ASUS Z170 Maximus VIII Hero (LGA 1151) Review

Introduction

The Z170 chipset and Skylake CPU’s have been around for just over a week now and we have seen pretty much everything that each manufacturer has to offer. We now know that the huge connectivity options presented by the Z170 chipset that some manufacturers have included not one, but two, sometimes even three M.2 slots and multiple USB 3.0 ports. Along with those, you also have USB 3.1 Type A and Type C as standard on the vast majority of the Z170 series boards.

Today on the test bench, we take our first look at an ASUS Republic of Gamers (RoG) motherboard in the form of the Maximus VIII Hero (M8H). If you’ve heard anything about the RoG range, you’ll know that it is the go-to motherboard range if you want the highest performance, best quality components, more accessories than you could ever use and some of the best looks available.

Specifications

The M8H follows a similar process to the RoG ranges of old with huge amount of features, but things have changed slightly, ASUS has decided to almost ditch the red colour scheme; I’ll let that sink in. So instead of the red theme, ASUS has gone for a simply stunning grey with subtle red detailing. I think this is a step in the right direction because of every manufacturer jumping on the red scheme recently.

Manufacturers nowadays need to find innovative ways to stand out from the crowd, ASUS is no exception and has crammed a huge array of features into this motherboard.

RoG Key Features

• Extreme Engine Digi+
• OC Zone
• RoG RAMDisk
• RoG RAMCache
• RoG Overwolf
• KeyBot II
• UEFI BIOS

Key Features

• Dual Intelligent Processors 5
• ASUS Exclusive Features
  • AI Suite 3
  • USB 3.1 Boost
  • AI Charger+
  • Push Notice
  • Disk Unlocker
  • Pc Cleaner
  • HyStream
  • Media Streamer
  • Mobo Connect
• EZ DIY
  • USB BIOS Flashback
  • Crashfree BIOS 3
  • EZ Flash 3
  • Mem OK!
• Q-Design
  • Q-Code
  • Q-Sheild
  • Q-Connector
  • Q-LED
  • Q-Slot
  • Q-DIMM

Packaging

The M8H is a key asset to the RoG series, the box itself is almost a direct replica of older RoG boxes with the changes to the features along the bottom and the name.

The back of the box has a small diagram of the board and the key features in detail.

Inside the box is a huge amount of accessories, including driver disk, install manual, door hanger, cable labels, case sticker and fan stickers.

Along with those are 6x SATA 6 Gb/s cables, 2 way SLI bridge, I/O shield, M.2 riser and screw, front panel connector riser and CPU locator.