Asus Maximus Formula & Maximus Extreme - bit-tech.net Forums

Tim S · 22nd Nov 2007, 07:56

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/200..._and_extreme/1

Asus' latest Republic of Gamers motherboards are feature packed to the point of exploding at the edges. Thankfully you shouldn't have to fight to the death in an ancient arena, to get a hold of one of them though.

Nature · 22nd Nov 2007, 10:02

Why buy a new enthusiast board with no support 1600 fsb when there are other ASUS and Gigabyte boards that do and are available?

Hiren · 22nd Nov 2007, 15:18

Awesome review as always Bindi!

Jamie · 22nd Nov 2007, 15:22

I wonder why they've included waterblocks on the nbr of these boards. Any serious gamer that is actually bothering with watercooling will want to use their own chipset block. It would have been more sensible, in my opinion, to include an easy to remove heatsink with a decent universal mounting system.

sheninat0r · 22nd Nov 2007, 15:23

On the eSATA test, the Formula is listed in the graph...

Tim S · 22nd Nov 2007, 16:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by sheninat0r

On the eSATA test, the Formula is listed in the graph...

Thanks for highlighting that, it should be fixed now - the IP35 Pro was supposed to be in the graph and not the Maximus Formula.

Max Spain · 22nd Nov 2007, 17:16

Well, I was planning on getting a Maximus Formula and now I'm not so sure. Most other reviews I have read have been positive, so the only thing I can think of is that you received a bad board. Especially since the EPU didn't work. If you do get a response from Asus about that, I'd certainly like to read it. Maybe the board just has a bad bios. Also, on the key on page 2, item #6 is incorrect.

ledbythereaper · 22nd Nov 2007, 17:25

Whats the point in a high end 'gaming' mobo with a northbridge block.. when it's 3/8" and not 1/2".. imo Asus should allow you to replace the barbs.

Tim S · 22nd Nov 2007, 17:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by ledbythereaper

Whats the point in a high end 'gaming' mobo with a northbridge block.. when it's 3/8" and not 1/2".. imo Asus should allow you to replace the barbs.

We echoed this sentiment in the meeting we recently had with the one of the RoG engineers and the RoG product manager - hopefully they'll listen!

simosaurus · 22nd Nov 2007, 18:23

could someone quickly explain the difference between the ram slots? i know one is white and one is blue, but the white ones seem to have different clips at the ends, is this for any reason or just the way it is?

-EVRE- · 22nd Nov 2007, 20:32

9 Intel motherboard articles in a row since the last AMD motherboard news.

I know Intel is #1 right now, but there has been a few things to cover on the AMD front. I hope to see something soon on an AMD board soon since Phenom is out.

E.E.L. Ambiense · 23rd Nov 2007, 01:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by ledbythereaper

Whats the point in a high end 'gaming' mobo with a northbridge block.. when it's 3/8" and not 1/2".. imo Asus should allow you to replace the barbs.

That's exactly what I was thinking too.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tim S

We echoed this sentiment in the meeting we recently had with the one of the RoG engineers and the RoG product manager - hopefully they'll listen!

I truly hope they do listen, because that seems ridiculous to go through the trouble of sticking a block on it, yet not make it 'modular' enough to allow the user to put whatever kind of barbs he/she wants on it.

Sparrowhawk · 23rd Nov 2007, 03:31

Any idea if they will be making an SLi version of it, instead of just Crossfire? Kinda sucks if you like the board, but bought into one multi-GPU system and not the other.

Woodstock · 23rd Nov 2007, 04:04

@sparrohawk
X38 doesnt offically support SLI, because its not a nvidia chipset, but normally there is "hacked" drivers to enable it.

Imo x38 has been a disappointment

Tim S · 23rd Nov 2007, 07:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by -EVRE-

9 Intel motherboard articles in a row since the last AMD motherboard news.

I know Intel is #1 right now, but there has been a few things to cover on the AMD front. I hope to see something soon on an AMD board soon since Phenom is out.

the board Rich is looking at now is a 790FX board

Bindibadgi · 23rd Nov 2007, 08:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by -EVRE-

9 Intel motherboard articles in a row since the last AMD motherboard news.

I know Intel is #1 right now, but there has been a few things to cover on the AMD front. I hope to see something soon on an AMD board soon since Phenom is out.

People are still *only* just getting us AMD boards, and I've no Phenom to test with

Paradigm Shifter · 23rd Nov 2007, 09:56

Hm. I was thinking of buying the Formula. Now I'm not so sure...

creach · 23rd Nov 2007, 14:20

I'm confident that many of the issues you guys faced (particularly stability-wise) with the Formula was courtesy of an outdated BIOS (v0505). I believe the latest version is 0901, which supposedly fixes quite a few things.

Bindibadgi · 23rd Nov 2007, 16:58

Welcome! I hear that comment loud and clear

Well to be honest - I was given the BIOS a little while ago and all our testing was done with that a few weeks back. I tried updating using the included BIOS update program for windows and even redownloaded it from the Asus website but neither seemed to work.

In addition, Asus website doesn't list any BIOS' for me for that particular board (I've just checked this minute) - we got sent this BIOS from Asus themselves, however it does list them for the non-SE version but there's no link between them. Any customer buying this board will not know that they are interchangeable. Customers just using the Asus Update will just be left with a non-working update utility too.

It's still a BIOS that Asus gave us and what people will have used - it's not even a release BIOS we expect problems with - does it really take NINE internal BIOS revisions?

I will update the Formula SE with the 0901 from the non-SE to see if it does fix the problems, but it still doesn't change the fact it's an expensive board with little performance advantage over one of half the cost. You have to make up your own mind if it's worth spending £30-60 more than other equivalent boards for the bling, basically.

I'm getting an X48 next week so we'll see how that works out

marscay · 23rd Nov 2007, 18:07

i don't see the point of reviewing a board when quite clearly it's before the bios has a chance to mature.

as lots of ppl have shown, the forumla is a nice fast stable board now and if you want proper 16x lanes with your crossfire setup it's hardly a purchase for 'bling'.

as far as updating the bios, experienced ppl who've been around the block still use dos and refuse to even try and flash within windows .....afudos works just fine you know.

yet you praise the extreme which costs £30 more let alone the price of DDR3 for little performance benefits.

very amateurish and a dissapointing review.

22nd Nov 2007, 10:02	#2
Nature Supermodder Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Jinan, China Posts: 417	Why buy a new enthusiast board with no support 1600 fsb when there are other ASUS and Gigabyte boards that do and are available? __________________ Peace, Love, Empathy, Respect, Generosity, Smiles, and Hugs

22nd Nov 2007, 15:18	#3
Hiren The Real Pacman bit-tech Staff Join Date: May 2002 Location: England Posts: 5,806	Awesome review as always Bindi! __________________ XBL : Shogun Hiren Homepage \| HD Tach \| Last.fm \| DeviantArt bit-tech newsletter \| bit-tech Blog

22nd Nov 2007, 15:22	#4
Jamie bit-tech Staff Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Oxford, UK Posts: 7,620	I wonder why they've included waterblocks on the nbr of these boards. Any serious gamer that is actually bothering with watercooling will want to use their own chipset block. It would have been more sensible, in my opinion, to include an easy to remove heatsink with a decent universal mounting system. __________________ bit-tech hosted by tsohost.co.uk twitter \| flickr \| xbox live \| last.fm \| moot

22nd Nov 2007, 15:23	#5
sheninat0r What's a Dremel? Join Date: May 2007 Location: U.S. Posts: 547	On the eSATA test, the Formula is listed in the graph... __________________ ...with a crowbar.

22nd Nov 2007, 17:25	#8
ledbythereaper Modder Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Under your bed. Posts: 58	Whats the point in a high end 'gaming' mobo with a northbridge block.. when it's 3/8" and not 1/2".. imo Asus should allow you to replace the barbs. __________________ Laptop: AMD Turion X2 1.8Ghz/2048Mb DDR2/Nvidia GeForce 7600Go 256Mb/2x80Gb HDDs/17"Widescreen PC: Intel Core 2 Duo E6300@3.2Ghz/4GB OCZ Reaper DDR2 PC6400/BFG 8800GT 512Mb OC2 (700/2000)/ 1.1TB total HDD space/20.1" Dell Ultrasharp Widescreen TFT/ Creative X-Fi Gamer/IceMat Siberias/Logitech G15/Logitech G5 Backup Machine: AMD Athlon 2500+XP/1024MB Corsair DDR 1 Cas 2.5/Leadtek FX5950/500GB total HDD space

22nd Nov 2007, 07:56	#1
Tim S Pewlius Caesar bit-tech Staff Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Ascot, Berks Posts: 18,021	Asus Maximus Formula & Maximus Extreme http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/200..._and_extreme/1 Asus' latest Republic of Gamers motherboards are feature packed to the point of exploding at the edges. Thankfully you shouldn't have to fight to the death in an ancient arena, to get a hold of one of them though. __________________ Tim on Twitter \| Tim's Blog \| Tim's Flickr The bit-tech Blog \| bit-tech on Twitter \| Join the bit-tech & Custom PC folding team (#35947)

22nd Nov 2007, 17:16	#7
Max Spain Minimodder Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 43	Well, I was planning on getting a Maximus Formula and now I'm not so sure. Most other reviews I have read have been positive, so the only thing I can think of is that you received a bad board. Especially since the EPU didn't work. If you do get a response from Asus about that, I'd certainly like to read it. Maybe the board just has a bad bios. Also, on the key on page 2, item #6 is incorrect.

22nd Nov 2007, 18:23	#10
simosaurus Supermodder Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 348	could someone quickly explain the difference between the ram slots? i know one is white and one is blue, but the white ones seem to have different clips at the ends, is this for any reason or just the way it is? __________________ lian-li v1000b 700GB RAID 0 Array X2 4800+ 7800 GTX SLi X-Fi FPS 24" dell Aqua Watercooling

22nd Nov 2007, 20:32	#11
-EVRE- Supermodder Join Date: May 2004 Location: Idaho U.S.A Posts: 343	9 Intel motherboard articles in a row since the last AMD motherboard news. I know Intel is #1 right now, but there has been a few things to cover on the AMD front. I hope to see something soon on an AMD board soon since Phenom is out. __________________ (Phenom II 940)(Foxcon A7DA)(8gb OCZ DDR2 800 )(8800gt aka hair dryer)(Big yellow case, CPU, GPU)(Enermax Liberty 500w)(lite-on DVD-RW w/LightScribe)(Seagate 300gb sata)(Seagate 320gb x2)(WD 200gb)(Dell 3007WFP 30"LCD, 19" Samsung, Acer 1280x720 projector)

23rd Nov 2007, 03:31	#13
Sparrowhawk Wetsander Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Kentucky Posts: 545	Any idea if they will be making an SLi version of it, instead of just Crossfire? Kinda sucks if you like the board, but bought into one multi-GPU system and not the other.

23rd Nov 2007, 04:04	#14
Woodstock So Say We All Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: New Zealand Posts: 1,657	@sparrohawk X38 doesnt offically support SLI, because its not a nvidia chipset, but normally there is "hacked" drivers to enable it. Imo x38 has been a disappointment __________________ Hell hath no fury like a hippo with a machine gun.

23rd Nov 2007, 09:56	#17
Paradigm Shifter Lethargic Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 1,210	Hm. I was thinking of buying the Formula. Now I'm not so sure... __________________ Core i7 920 D0 @ 3.8GHz \| 6GB Corsair 1600MHz \| Gigabyte EX58-UD5 \| XFX 4870X2 2GB \| 4TB \| WUXGA

23rd Nov 2007, 14:20	#18
creach What's a Dremel? Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 1	I'm confident that many of the issues you guys faced (particularly stability-wise) with the Formula was courtesy of an outdated BIOS (v0505). I believe the latest version is 0901, which supposedly fixes quite a few things.

23rd Nov 2007, 16:58	#19
Bindibadgi Richard Swinburne bit-tech Staff Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Omnipwntent Posts: 28,247	Welcome! I hear that comment loud and clear Well to be honest - I was given the BIOS a little while ago and all our testing was done with that a few weeks back. I tried updating using the included BIOS update program for windows and even redownloaded it from the Asus website but neither seemed to work. In addition, Asus website doesn't list any BIOS' for me for that particular board (I've just checked this minute) - we got sent this BIOS from Asus themselves, however it does list them for the non-SE version but there's no link between them. Any customer buying this board will not know that they are interchangeable. Customers just using the Asus Update will just be left with a non-working update utility too. It's still a BIOS that Asus gave us and what people will have used - it's not even a release BIOS we expect problems with - does it really take NINE internal BIOS revisions? I will update the Formula SE with the 0901 from the non-SE to see if it does fix the problems, but it still doesn't change the fact it's an expensive board with little performance advantage over one of half the cost. You have to make up your own mind if it's worth spending £30-60 more than other equivalent boards for the bling, basically. I'm getting an X48 next week so we'll see how that works out __________________ Made you look, made you stare, made you clicked this in your underwear! Den of Geek! Last edited by Bindibadgi; 23rd Nov 2007 at 17:09.

23rd Nov 2007, 18:07	#20
marscay What's a Dremel? Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 8	i don't see the point of reviewing a board when quite clearly it's before the bios has a chance to mature. as lots of ppl have shown, the forumla is a nice fast stable board now and if you want proper 16x lanes with your crossfire setup it's hardly a purchase for 'bling'. as far as updating the bios, experienced ppl who've been around the block still use dos and refuse to even try and flash within windows .....afudos works just fine you know. yet you praise the extreme which costs £30 more let alone the price of DDR3 for little performance benefits. very amateurish and a dissapointing review.