ASUS ROG Maximus XII Hero review
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chalky
A board in the Maximus series that is slightly more affordable yet offers some of the best premium features this platform ...@ £429.95 is not cheap when i look into my wallet i will stay with my Z370 and 8700k RTX 2080 for some time to come i think
mahanddeem
Thanks
BIOS screenshots? overclocking parameters? sound chip quality?
Nowaker
I don't think the VRM temperature test for Asus Hero and Gigabyte Master are reliable and to be trusted in comparison to other boards, e.g. MSI Ace or ASRock Taichi. The thermal pictures for Hero nad Master were taken at an angle, effectively exposing more of what's under the heatsinks. Moreover, their pictures were taken at a closer distance. Just take a look:
ASRock Taichi - flat, far - 58C https://www.guru3d.com/index.php?ct=articles&action=file&id=60749
MSI Ace - flat, far - 59C - https://www.guru3d.com/index.php?ct=articles&action=file&id=60702
Gigabyte Master - angle, closeup - 64C - https://www.guru3d.com/index.php?ct=articles&action=file&id=60657
Asus Hero - angle, closeup - 74C - https://www.guru3d.com/index.php?ct=articles&action=file&id=60579
The VRM temperature test should be performed in a normalized way across all tests - especially the distance from the motherboard and the angle.
@Hilbert Hagedoorn Would it be possible to retest the temperatures? Thanks in advance!
Hilbert Hagedoorn
Administrator
The VRM temperatures you see listed in the chart are not based upon the thermal image, but the max temp reported by the thermal sensor at the VRM stage.
The thermal image is there for visualization of heat bleed, not measurement as most part of the VRM is covered by heatsinks. And yes, the angle has been changed and I am moving towards a top view.
metagamer
Am I being blind or is there no mention of the VRM power phases?
Nowaker
@Hilbert Hagedoorn Thanks for clarifying!
Hilbert Hagedoorn
Administrator
I'd hate to state the obvious. page 1 page 4.
metagamer
Yep, I was being blind. 14+2. For some reason I spotted it right away this time. My bad. Thanks Hilbert, you're the best.
sykozis
Nice review, as always Hilbert
sqarupatech0
What? 74 degrees on VRM? It doesn't look good compared to other motherboards.
Noisiv
Hmm....AIDA reported VRM reading.
Maybe an error, or thermally insignificant fluctuation (like 1ms)
PS
yes I carry water for ASUS these days. They are the best 😀 although Supermicro is staring to tingle my imagination
insp1re2600
Wait till you need an RMA or support.
jwb1
None of these companies excel at this.
Noisiv
well I needed both.
RMA... A year ago I explained my dead PC situation to them, and their RMA told me to return my Hero X mobo. Although I was suspecting it was CPU. And despite that being an unlikely option, turned out I was right.
I also had to return one dead 2070 STRIX. I didn't even bother with Asus, returned it to retailer - do I even have any warranty rights with Asus?
(Other 2070 retailer tried to screw me with Game codes, before I threatened them with Asus and Nvidia wrath 😀)
Support... I reported Q-FAN step-up issue to Asus, like 2 years ago. Nothing has been done. I have to use Argus Monitor to get the proper fan functionality. Hmmm... a new BIOS was posted few days ago, and I haven't updated for a while.
Looks like im a sucker, but I still really really like Asus motherboards and gfx cards.
(I know there were issue with Asus AMD cards, but on NV side STRIX is the king)
Nowaker
@Hilbert Hagedoorn Would you consider the higher VRM temperature a disadvantage for Hero, or is it irrelevant in your opinion?
BTW, I've come across a Russian review that shows more temperature readings for Hero: https://greentechreviews.ru/2020/05/20/obzor-materinskoj-platy-asus-rog-maximus-xii-hero-wi-fi/3/. Other motherboards: https://greentechreviews.ru/category/materinskie-platy/ - however, only Asus motherboards are tested so there's nothing to really compare Hero to. Also, they're heatsink temperature readings only, so probably not valuable anyway.
jura11
Hi there
Most of VRM are rated up to 120°C although I would keep them under 80°C, what matters is quality of VRM and phases there with VRM, some cheaper Gigabyte been known for not using good VRM and therefore issues with stability and OC
I remember I tested Asus Maximus X Formula and Asus Maximus XI FORMULA and on this two boards I have seen 45-60°C max on VRM with 8086k running at 5.3GHz and 9900k running at 5.2GHz although one of the Maximus X Formula died later on me, not sure why but after two weeks friend couldn't boot
Hope this helps
Thanks, Jura
Hilbert Hagedoorn
Administrator
Just because the Hero is lowest on the list doesn't mean it's bad. These temperatures are well within specifications, so unless you're planning g to pull some extreme overclocking, I do not see it as an issue.
fry178
@insp1re2600
board i destroyed (13y ago) when ocing gtx9600gt with a cheap psu:
fixed and returned within 14 days, didnt even get charged a penny.
Three year old 32" moni acting up on one hdmi and scrambling the signal every couple of weeks (unit had 2 as well as dp and dvi, so i could have just swapped cable/ports)
that i could fix every time by turning moni off/back on again, so nbd, but i wanted to possibly sell it, and started rma.
They told me to ship it and they would fix it, i replied i would not do it, because of the weights (25 lbs) cost for shipping/return shipping would be more than getting it fixed by a local shop,
so they gave me a pre-paid label for shipping it to them, and included return to me as well.
and even if it "sucks" when i try using it next time, better than the crappy +300$ board from Gb i have that gives me cold boot/crash reboots every week and Gb says "no issues known",
when multiple forums have a thread about it.
Mufflore
How f@*%ing much?
My Maximus VIII Hero I bought 4 years ago for my 6700K was only £180.
I took a risk it might be a dead loss should a problem arise after my previous bad experience trying to get a new Asus mobo fixed.
At well over £400, not a chance I'm going there!
I'll probably spend more on my ram to get decent clocks rather than a good mobo for overclocking cheaper ram next time.
I recently guessed I was going to get another 2 years from my CPU before something comes out worth upgrading to and with less security issues.
But at these ridiculous prices I'll not be moving until I absolutely have to.
Intel sales arent going to improve when this is what we face.
Tom Sunday
Looking for a year-end Mobo deal at the computer show this past weekend the boys from Varanasi told me that Asus Z490 buyers have been experiencing problems in getting their LAN to work. ASUS cannot help and is basically all talk. Not even a new BIOS update, driver hotfixes and new cables will help. Even INTEL updated drivers are not working. It appears that there are problems with the I225-V (LAN Chip) and Asus want to keep this issue hushed. Simply this being a hardware problem and no software or driver updates can permanently fix it. What has been done to date is only bandaging the problem. Many new Mobo purchaser's in frustration (disconnected their onboard NIC) and installed a new PCIE NIC and gotten it to work without a hitch! But its another $50 or so out of pocket to simply forego ones valuable system downtime, non-working drivers, hanging on the telephone and difficult RMA's. Will the new Z590 Mobo's in early 2021 get a new NIC chip? Anyway, the best advice is probably to stay away from purchasing any (2020) Z490 leftover boards using the embedded I225-V Ethernet controller and buy in a few weeks time a Z590 MOBO? Any Thoughts or experiences?
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