ASUS Maximus 4 Extreme Review

ASUS Maximus 4 Extreme Review

Introduction

So if the new Intel chips have got you slavering, you must be considering a motherboard to put them in. Of course there will soon be a swathe of new boards from the usual manufacturers ready to tempt you.

Today we’ll be looking at the latest in the long line of ‘Extreme’ motherboards from Asus. Nomenclature makes it easy to see what series this is part of, as the Rampage is for the top-end Intel CPUs, the Crosshair for the AMD chips, and the Maximus for the middle-range Intel processor line-up.

Last time we saw a Maximus board it was the Maximus III designed for the LGA1156 socket P55 chips, so it makes sense that for their replacement we have the Maximus IV.

Technical Specifications

Despite this being based around the new P67 Express Chipset, large parts are similar to the P55. Evolution rather than revolution being the watchword.

So we still have dual-channel RAM, PCIe 2.0 slots, SATA 6Gbps, USB 2.0 and USB3.0. All the things we’ve come to expect, but with the newer LGA1155 socket rather than the LGA1156.

CPU Intel® Socket 1155 for Intel® 2nd Generation Core™ i7 Processor/Core™ i5 Processor/Core™ i3 Processor/
Support Intel® 32nm CPU
Supports Intel® Turbo Boost Technology 2.0
* The Intel® Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 support depends on the CPU types.
Chipset Intel® P67 Express Chipset
Memory 4 x DIMM, Max. 32 GB, DDR 2200(O.C.)/2133(O.C.)/1866(O.C.)/1600/1333 Non-ECC,Un-buffered Memory
Dual Channel memory architecture
* Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Profile (XMP)
* According to Intel® SPEC, the Max. 32GB memory capacity can be supported with DIMMs of 8GB (or above). ASUS will update QVL once the DIMMs are available on the market.
* Due to CPU behavior, DDR3 2200/2000/1800 MHz memory module will run at DDR3 2133/1866/1600 MHz frequency as default.
Expansion Slots 4 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (single @x16, dual @x8, triple @x8, x16, x16 )
1 x PCIe 2.0 x4
1 x PCIe 2.0 x1
Multi-GPU Support Support NVIDIA® 3-Way SLI™ / ATI CrossFireX™ Technology
Bluetooth Bluetooth Module Accessory Card
– Bluetooth V2.0/V2.1+EDR
– RC Bluetooth On/Off Switch
Storage Intel® P67 Express Chipset
2 xSATA 6.0 Gb/s ports (Red)
4 xSATA 3Gb/s ports (Gray)
Intel® Rapid Storage Technology Support RAID 0,1,5,10
Marvell® 9182 PCIe SATA6Gb/s controller
2 xSATA 6Gb/s ports (Red)
JMicron® 362 controller
2 xExternal SATA 3Gb/s ports at rear (SATA On-the-Go)
* Due to the Windows XP/ Vista limitation, the RAID array with the total capacity over 2TB cannot be set as a boot disk. A RAID array over 2TB can only be set as a data disk only.
LAN 2 x Intel® Gigabit LAN
Audio Realtek ALC889 8-Channel High Definition Audio CODEC
– Blu-ray audio layer Content Protection
– Supports Jack-Detection, Multi-streaming, Front Panel Jack-Retasking
– Supports 1 x Optical S/PDIF out port at back I/O
USB Intel® P67 Express Chipset
– 9 x USB 2.0/1.1 ports (8 ports at mid-board, 1 port at rear is also for ROG connect)
1 x NEC USB3.0 Controller
– 2 x USB 3.0/2.0 ports at rear
1 x NEC USB3.0 Controller with 2 x VIA SuperSpeed USB hub controllers:
6 x USB 3.0/2.0 ports at rear
2 x USB 3.0/2.0 ports at mid-board for front panel support
Overclocking Features ROG Connect
RC Bluetooth
ROG iDirect
USB BIOS Flashback
ROG Extreme Engine Digi+
– 8-phase CPU power
– 3-phase Memory power
– ML Cap on CPU only
BIOS Flashback with onboard switch button
ProbeIt
Extreme Tweaker
iROG
Loadline Calibration
ROG OC Kit
– LN2 Mode
– PCIe x16 Lane Switch
– Debug LED
– Q_Reset
EFI BIOS features
– ROG BIOS Print
– GPU.DIMM Post
– CPU Socket Monitor
Intelligent overclocking tools:
– ASUS TurboV Evo
– O.C Profile
Overclocking Protection:
– COP EX (Component Overheat Protection – EX)
– Voltiminder LED
– ASUS C.P.R.(CPU Parameter Recall)
Back Panel I/O Ports 1 x PS/2 Keyboard/Mouse Combo port
2 x External SATA
2 x LAN(RJ45) port(s)
8 x USB 3.0/2.0
1 x USB 2.0/1.1 (also for ROG Connect)
1 x S/PDIF Out (Optical)
8 -Channel Audio I/O
1 x Clr CMOS switch
1 x ROG Connect On/Off switch
1 x RC Bluetooth switch
Internal I/O Connectors 1 x USB 3.0/2.0 connector(s) (Red) supports additional 2 USB 3.0 ports
4 x USB 2.0/1.1 connector(s) support additional 8 USB 2.0 ports
4 x SATA 6.0Gb/s connectors (Red)
4 x SATA 3.0Gb/s connectors (Gray)
1 x CPU Fan connector(s)
3 x Chassis Fan connector(s)
1 x Power Fan connector(s)
3 x Optional Fan connector
1 x Power-on switch
1 x Reset switch
1 x S/PDIF Out connector
1 x 24-pin ATX Power connector
1 x 8-pin ATX 12V Power connector
1 x Front panel audio connector
1 x System Panel connector
7 x ProbeIt measurement points
3 x Thermal sensor connectors
1 x En/Dis-able Clr CMOS header
2 x EZ Plug connectors (4-pin Molex Power connectors)
1 x RC Bluetooth header
1 x LN2 Mode switch
1 x Q_Reset switch
1 x Go Button
1 x BIOS switch button
1 x ROG light connector
BIOS 32 Mb Flash ROM , EFI AMI BIOS, PnP, DMI2.0, WfM2.0, SM BIOS 2.5, ACPI2.0a Multi-Language BIOS
Manageability WfM 2.0,DMI 2.0,WOL by PME,WOR by PME,PXE
Accessories User’s manual
1 2-port USB2.0 module
1 x I/O Shield
2 x SATA 3.0Gb/s signal cables (2-in-1)
2 x SATA 6.0Gb/s signal cables (2-in-1)
1 x Q-Connecor Kit (2-in-1)
1 x ROG Connect Cable
1 x ProbeIt cable set
1 x Thermal Sensor Cable Pack
1 x 3-Way SLI bridge
1 x SLI Cable
1 x Crossfire cable
1 x Cable Ties Pack
1 x ROG Theme Label
1 x 12-in-1 ROG Cable Label
1 x RC Bluetooth card
1 x ROG exclusive feature guide
Support Disc Drivers
ASUS AI Suite II
ROG CPU-Z
3DMark Vantage
Kaspersky® Anti-Virus 1-year license
Form Factor Extended ATX Form Factor
12 inch x 10.6 inch ( 30.5 cm x 26.9 cm )

 

Phew. That’s quite a serious specification list. Many of the features will be familiar to anyone who has owned a ROG board before. We are surprised to see 3D Mark Vantage being supplied rather than 3D Mark 11, but especially disappointing is the continued use of SATA 3Gbps. Considering SATA 3 is backwards compatible it’s a head-scratcher.

Time to take a look at what we get.