ASUS Z170 ROG Maximus VIII Formula review

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Final Words & Conclusion

Final Words & conclusion

The Formula is the next best iteration of what the hero offers, and then some more. As such we have a motherboard at hand here that has very similar features and looks. yet now with more extensive options like AC WIFI, much better shielding, the EK liquid cooling block for the VRM area (albeit that might be a little overkill) and then of course Aura, the RGB lighting system. I'll refrain from comments about the fact that ASUS creatively borrowed that concept from the MSI Godlike motherboard, buy hey it's how this business work my man. The RGB system is done right though, the good thing is that the design of the board is black, so no-matter what RGB color preference you have, you can match that color preference without conflicting your color schema with say a red base tone on the motherboard. And yeah, the reason why we talk about the RGB system so much is that 90% of this release; really is what this mobo is all about. In terms of all other stuff, let's walk through it. All motherboards tweak and overclock roughly similar with your processor. See the limiting factor really isn't your motherboard, it will be the ASIC quality of your proc rather than the motherboard.  Combined with a proper processor like the Core i5 6600K or Core i7 6700K on the ASUS Z170 ROG Maximus VIII Formula motherboard certainly is impressive and does perform really well. Other than that, the Z170 chipset combined with the ASUS 3rd party IC integration offers it all in terms of features, stability and reliability really, heaps of USB 3.0/3.1 connectors, plenty SATA3 ports, super fast M.2., a fantastic audio solution and so on.


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Much like any Z170 based motherboard, the performance is terrific and combined with DDR4 memory this processor it makes a good step forward over previous generation hardware. The Intel series 100 chipset features are helping as well, SATA3, M.2, some manufacturers will even go U2 and Sata Express. Then there's the added benefit of DDR4 memory that not only use less power, the frequency can be so much higher as well, bringing more bandwidth and overall performance to the applications that require fast memory. Combine that with things like nice Gigabit jacks, exemplary audio solutions on the new motherboards and things like USB 3.1. So what I am trying to say here is that the overall platform experience is what it is all about for Skylake. Performance with kick-ass features. 

Storage

Combined with many SATA 6Gbps ports we can hardly complain about anything. Interesting I find to be the developments on the M.2 interface, pop in a M.2 compatible PCI-E SSD and you'll see your SSD quickly perform in the 700/800 Mb/sec range running up-to 2 GB/s with the latest NVMe M2 SSDs like the delicious 950 Pro. Overall your SATA and M.2 connectivity is plentiful and top notch when it comes to performance. Great to see is that the slow has obtained a x4 PCIe interface connection allowing it 32 Gbps of bandwidth to work in. To compare a little, your SATA3 port has 6 Gbps available. So that small form factor SSD solution now is very future proof. Again, especially if you make use of an M2 nVME ready SSD like the Samsung 950 Pro the sky is the limit and your storage perf will rise to 1 GB/s writes and 2 GB/s reads.
 

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Aesthetics

We do totally like the way the ASUS Z170 ROG Maximus VIII Formula looks. That clean black toned color schema combined with the nicely designs heatsinks and shielding make it stand out. Once you got your flow going on then RGB lighting, that's where the extra value really kicks in as it makes all the difference. It is a little crazy when you realize how hip and trendy RGB LED systems have become ever since Corsair (credit where credit is due) introduced that RGB mechy keyboards. So yeah, it is a terrific looking product alright. The PCH heatsink has LEDs to create a bit of a HALO effect coming from under the shielding, it makes the motherboard pop out of your chassis. Well visually that is. The PCB is nicely matte dark as it has received a proper coated layer, including the dark connectors, dark capacitors, with the subtle heatsinks this rocks my boat. This is just a nice looking solution for the enthusiast PC gamer and in specific the ROG aficionado.


Performance & tweaking

The overall performance in combo with the ASUS Z170 ROG Maximus VIII Forumla motherboard as such I'd rate as "really good" for a quad core Core i7 6700K. Temps remain reasonable at default clock, temperatures when the CPU is overclocked with added voltage definitely seem to be a notch better opposed to Haswell but still can rise fast and hot. Our sample was not quite stable enough at 4.9 GHz but 4.74.8 GHz was stable on ÃIO liquid cooling. At that level we needed a lot of voltage, 1.35~1.45 volts in the processor. This is the same behavior we see on all motherboards tested thus far.
 


The bottom line

You take the DNA of the HERO, you add a handful of hip 'n trendy features, then improve the shielding, add a liquid cooling block, then alter the design to dark and combine it with an RGB lighting system. Them boom, that's the Formula, and it is terrific! With its exemplary looks and design, excellent USB connectivity, WIFI, one Intel Gigabit jacks and if you feel the need to tweak, there's just plenty of options in the BIOS to go nuts. Your DDR4 memory can be easily configured by enabling the XMP 2.0 profile. You will gain excellent features combined with seriously nice performance and very decent energy consumption levels. I have no doubt that some of you can reach 5 GHz on your CPU, the ASUS motherboard will certainly allow for this. The overall combination of the ASUS Z170 ROG Maximus VIII Formula and a Core i7 6700K however is a majestic symbiosis we feel. Though we do not have a final price just yet we expect this board to sell for just under 300 EURO. The Formula in its DNA from A to Z (or linear strand sequence of A, C, G, and T) encompasses everything a PC gamer wants. So from features like multi-gpu gaming, hardcore CPU performance, good tweaks, WIFI and all the way upwards towards sound and then that design with RGB LED system it is just done right. It does not only very much recommended, this is a true Guru3D Top Pick as I would not even dare giving this motherboard a lower rating. Heck I would even pick it over VIII Extreme (that's right .. I said that out loud!). A top pick you guys, well done ASUS.

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