Questions about the Asus Maximus VI Formula

[tolis626]

I'm thinking of getting one for my upcoming (And much anticipated) build,but I have a few questions:

1)There are two different versions here it seems.One just adds a C2 to the name.It seems more like a revision or something,but still I wonder.Most retailers only have the C2 version.
2)There is a mPCIe combo something card included,that is supposed to have WiFi and bluetooth 4.0,but there aren't a lot of details about that is Asus' website.Which troubles me,because all WiFi ac cards I've seen use multiple big antennas to function properly.Any ideas?
3)I'll build a custom water loop at some point.Is there any point in including the mobo in it?
4)Is the sound really that good?
5)Would the "upgraded components" help with overclocking?I suppose only at extreme situations,but still it's nice to know that it does make a difference.
6)Do Asus' overclock utilities actually work?I mean,they do overclock the CPU,but it's probably like a half-arsed solution that needs further tweaking.But the question is,could I use it to find an initial working OC setting and then tweak away from there or is it best to do it all by hand?

Before anyone states the obvious,I know it doesn't make any sense to buy expensive gaming mobos,but I just love the way this looks and,if I don't have to sacrifice performance otherwise (Like buying an inferior CPU to have money for the Formula).Alternatives are the Maximus VI Hero and the MSI Z87-GD65 Gaming,both with similar feature sets.The only way I can "justify" buying the Formula is that I will anyway spend some money on a wireless solution (The way my hope is set up,I'm kinda forced to go wireless for now) and on a Kaspersky license,both of which are included with the Formula,so the price difference is practically smaller than the 70€ that seperate it from the other two mobos I have in mind.

Thanks in advance guys!

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I'm thinking of getting one for my upcoming (And much anticipated) build,but I have a few questions:

1)There are two different versions here it seems.One just adds a C2 to the name.It seems more like a revision or something,but still I wonder.Most retailers only have the C2 version.
2)There is a mPCIe combo something card included,that is supposed to have WiFi and bluetooth 4.0,but there aren't a lot of details about that is Asus' website.Which troubles me,because all WiFi ac cards I've seen use multiple big antennas to function properly.Any ideas?
3)I'll build a custom water loop at some point.Is there any point in including the mobo in it?
4)Is the sound really that good?
5)Would the "upgraded components" help with overclocking?I suppose only at extreme situations,but still it's nice to know that it does make a difference.
6)Do Asus' overclock utilities actually work?I mean,they do overclock the CPU,but it's probably like a half-arsed solution that needs further tweaking.But the question is,could I use it to find an initial working OC setting and then tweak away from there or is it best to do it all by hand?

Before anyone states the obvious,I know it doesn't make any sense to buy expensive gaming mobos,but I just love the way this looks and,if I don't have to sacrifice performance otherwise (Like buying an inferior CPU to have money for the Formula).Alternatives are the Maximus VI Hero and the MSI Z87-GD65 Gaming,both with similar feature sets.The only way I can "justify" buying the Formula is that I will anyway spend some money on a wireless solution (The way my hope is set up,I'm kinda forced to go wireless for now) and on a Kaspersky license,both of which are included with the Formula,so the price difference is practically smaller than the 70€ that seperate it from the other two mobos I have in mind.

Thanks in advance guys!

There are at least a few -- even several -- generations of this model, which means the top-end gaming and OC'ing board for any particular CPU family or socket.

I visited the Egg. 96 customer reviews, one guy giving two eggs because the board slipped out of the box and fell on his (likely bare) foot.

It could be more expensive in the EATX flavor (if it has one). Many top-end boards get fewer reviews because fewer people are willing to spend the money. When they do, the complainers have a slightly bigger incentive than would prevail for boards in the $200 midrange.

Also, the board seems to incorporate a feature in the Sabertooth model-line -- the "shield." It is not entirely evident that this includes the 40mm ducting fans to be seen on some Sabertooth models, but I can see at least one location where I might put one easily.

Meanwhile, investigate whether the phase power design on the Maximus differs significantly from the phase power design spec of an upper mid-range -- a "pro" or "deluxe board, "LE" or even the "Hero."

Consider how you will use the PCI-E slots, whether you have enough, how many PCI-E lanes the board uses with the Z87 chipset, and some other points of comparison. Can you use all the features if you want to?

That's my take on it, if I were building a Z87 system.

 

[tolis626]

There are at least a few -- even several -- generations of this model, which means the top-end gaming and OC'ing board for any particular CPU family or socket.

I visited the Egg. 96 customer reviews, one guy giving two eggs because the board slipped out of the box and fell on his (likely bare) foot.

It could be more expensive in the EATX flavor (if it has one). Many top-end boards get fewer reviews because fewer people are willing to spend the money. When they do, the complainers have a slightly bigger incentive than would prevail for boards in the $200 midrange.

Also, the board seems to incorporate a feature in the Sabertooth model-line -- the "shield." It is not entirely evident that this includes the 40mm ducting fans to be seen on some Sabertooth models, but I can see at least one location where I might put one easily.

Meanwhile, investigate whether the phase power design on the Maximus differs significantly from the phase power design spec of an upper mid-range -- a "pro" or "deluxe board, "LE" or even the "Hero."

Consider how you will use the PCI-E slots, whether you have enough, how many PCI-E lanes the board uses with the Z87 chipset, and some other points of comparison. Can you use all the features if you want to?

That's my take on it, if I were building a Z87 system.

Well,the Maximus VI Formula is the newest one,based on Z87.The X79 mobos are the Rampage line,while Z77 and older are Maximus V or older.Unless you mean something else...What I meant was that there is a Maximus VI Formula and a Maximus VI Formula C2,with no obvious changes.Also,AFAIK there is no E-ATX variant of it,but I don't really want an E-ATX board at this point,as I won't be using more than 2 GPUs at any given time (I'll be using 1 initially).

Concerning the "ROG Shield",it seems similar to what they have done with the TUF Armor of the Sabertooth series,but it seems like a simpler design.There aren't any mobo fans,but it's water-cooling ready.They also don't advertise any anti-dust features,so I suppose they aren't there on the ROG boards.The backplate does improve thermals,at least a bit,while the front cover is plastic and is mainly for show,although it does prevent heat from the GPUs from heating up the mobo components underneath.That seems more like a side effect though.

As far as power delivery designs go,I think the Formula is only second to the Maximus VI Extreme (From the Z87 line,because there's also the Black Edition Rampage V Extreme that is even more...extreme).It may not even be inferior,I don't really remember.I do remember it's better than lower-end models though,and it definitely should be better than most mainstream boards whose price rises from other features,not overclocking components.

Finally,I don't think there is a feature I wouln't be able to use...Not that I can think of at least.It's water-cooling ready,has overclocking in mind with the components used,has high-ish end sound,the mPCIe card is located at the top left of the mobo,so it doesn't interfere with the GPUs,it should easily support two or even three GPUs,although I won't be going with more than two...Is there anything else?I don't think so.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Well,the Maximus VI Formula is the newest one,based on Z87.The X79 mobos are the Rampage line,while Z77 and older are Maximus V or older.Unless you mean something else...What I meant was that there is a Maximus VI Formula and a Maximus VI Formula C2,with no obvious changes.Also,AFAIK there is no E-ATX variant of it,but I don't really want an E-ATX board at this point,as I won't be using more than 2 GPUs at any given time (I'll be using 1 initially).

Concerning the "ROG Shield",it seems similar to what they have done with the TUF Armor of the Sabertooth series,but it seems like a simpler design.There aren't any mobo fans,but it's water-cooling ready.They also don't advertise any anti-dust features,so I suppose they aren't there on the ROG boards.The backplate does improve thermals,at least a bit,while the front cover is plastic and is mainly for show,although it does prevent heat from the GPUs from heating up the mobo components underneath.That seems more like a side effect though.

As far as power delivery designs go,I think the Formula is only second to the Maximus VI Extreme (From the Z87 line,because there's also the Black Edition Rampage V Extreme that is even more...extreme).It may not even be inferior,I don't really remember.I do remember it's better than lower-end models though,and it definitely should be better than most mainstream boards whose price rises from other features,not overclocking components.

Finally,I don't think there is a feature I wouln't be able to use...Not that I can think of at least.It's water-cooling ready,has overclocking in mind with the components used,has high-ish end sound,the mPCIe card is located at the top left of the mobo,so it doesn't interfere with the GPUs,it should easily support two or even three GPUs,although I won't be going with more than two...Is there anything else?I don't think so.

Yeah -- that's right on the EATX angle: I got Maximus and Rampage mixed up. It mystifies me that they provide no ducting fans with the "TUF armor." That's what they did with the Sabertooth. Why provide the same sort of motherboard plate without it? I don't know.

Obviously the phase power design on these Maximus boards is top-end. IF you wanted less or wanted to spend less, I was suggesting you could compare that feature with the midrange boards. But even for recommending that, I'm inclined to buy a top-end board for my next project. I'll have to see what Haswell-E has in store. They'll probably release a new Rampage board, a Sabertooth X99, a slew of P9X99 or similarly named units.

 

[tolis626]

Yeah -- that's right on the EATX angle: I got Maximus and Rampage mixed up. It mystifies me that they provide no ducting fans with the "TUF armor." That's what they did with the Sabertooth. Why provide the same sort of motherboard plate without it? I don't know.

Obviously the phase power design on these Maximus boards is top-end. IF you wanted less or wanted to spend less, I was suggesting you could compare that feature with the midrange boards. But even for recommending that, I'm inclined to buy a top-end board for my next project. I'll have to see what Haswell-E has in store. They'll probably release a new Rampage board, a Sabertooth X99, a slew of P9X99 or similarly named units.

Just to be clear,I wouldn't shell out 270€ for a mobo just for the e-peen factor.It actually has stuff I WILL use,not that I may use etc.Only the sound card (It's in the class of the Xonar DX,so about 80€) and the included WiFi ac (Discrete network cards with WiFi ac are expensive still) are enough justification for me to swallow the price,as these are things I would purchase nevertheless.Now I don't have to.

As for the ducting fans...Well,I'm happy that it doesn't include them.They don't provide enough cooling to matter and are noisy as hell in some scenarios.Even if they were there,I would turn them off.I suppose they did it for aesthetic reasons,but I'm happy that they chose to not include them.The dust protection is another story,but I will open my case from time to time to clean it from the dust.What if it has a little on the mobo?No biggie.

Only thing is,especially with my hopes of custom water cooling,I hope I don't get a crap CPU in terms of overclocking headroom....

 

[coffeejunkee]

C2 revision = no Haswell usb3 bug. So yeah, you want that.

 

[tolis626]

C2 revision = no Haswell usb3 bug. So yeah, you want that.

The one that when the PC sleeps and then you wake it up the usb3 devices stay at a sleep state?Or have I got it wrong?

Anyway,thanks for clarifying that.I'll make sure I'm getting the C2 model.Although there wasn't much doubt at first.The C2 one is available from more than twice as many retailers as the old version...

 

[rgallant]

3)I'll build a custom water loop at some point.Is there any point in including the mobo in it?

maybe not but I like it on the MVF , but I used a T & Y to parallel it into a long tube run,
the one on mine was 3/8's I think and I didn't want it neffing my 1/2 tube.

-the rog board itself and it's bios's have been top notch.
and if not you can post on the rog forum to get help ,
http://rog.asus.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?155-Maximus-VI-Series-Motherboards

 

[tolis626]

3)I'll build a custom water loop at some point.Is there any point in including the mobo in it?

maybe not but I like it on the MVF , but I used a T & Y to parallel it into a long tube run,
the one on mine was 3/8's I think and I didn't want it neffing my 1/2 tube.

-the rog board itself and it's bios's have been top notch.
and if not you can post on the rog forum to get help ,
http://rog.asus.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?155-Maximus-VI-Series-Motherboards

I meant if there is actually a tangible benefit from doing so.It seems it would help with extreme overclocking,but I don't have anything too extreme in mind.I'll see about that.

The way I'll probably do it is just take a tube from the CPU block,pass it to the mobo heatsink and then to the upper rad.Not the best,but it's certainly the simplest way.

 

[p_monks33]

Be careful with adding the board into your loop, mixing metals is a water cooling no-no. I have this board, and didn't realize it was not a copper of acetyl block, I use copper CPU and VGA blocks, so I was afraid to mix metals and risk corrosion. Other than that one complaint, the board is awesome, and it looks amazing.

 

[tolis626]

Be careful with adding the board into your loop, mixing metals is a water cooling no-no. I have this board, and didn't realize it was not a copper of acetyl block, I use copper CPU and VGA blocks, so I was afraid to mix metals and risk corrosion. Other than that one complaint, the board is awesome, and it looks amazing.

Yeah...Heard about that too.Thing is it's like everything else,everyone has their own opinion.Some will call me stupid if I include it in my loop,some will call me stupid if I don't include it because I'm afraid of corrosion.Thing is,good anodized aluminum should be corrosion resistant to the point it doesn't matter that it's a different metal.The copper in the loop is a noble metal,so no corrosion there.Still,I don't think Asus would risk replacing a board that costs north of 250€ because they didn't use copper.We'll see...Thanks for the input anyway man!

PS : Does anyone have any experience with the included WiFi (The one on the mPCIe card)?Is it any good?

 

[Meghan54]

Yeah...Heard about that too.Thing is it's like everything else,everyone has their own opinion.Some will call me stupid if I include it in my loop,some will call me stupid if I don't include it because I'm afraid of corrosion.Thing is,good anodized aluminum should be corrosion resistant to the point it doesn't matter that it's a different metal.The copper in the loop is a noble metal,so no corrosion there.Still,I don't think Asus would risk replacing a board that costs north of 250€ because they didn't use copper.We'll see...Thanks for the input anyway man!

And the belief that good anodizing of alu. would be "good enough" was lead to huge problems with anodized alu. cpu blocks in particular years ago. You have to remember, while anodizing is supposed to seal off alu., it rarely is applied in the same uniform thickness across the alu. and can even have microscopic pits/missed areas that aren't seen by the naked eye. Just ask anyone who used Koolance cpu blocks a decade ago. Horrible corrosion problems over time from the mix of metals, and Koolance was arguably the best at producing anodized alu. blocks.

Why do you think everyone ditched alu., including Koolance, one of the biggest proponents of anodized aluminum, for copper or silver?

It wasn't because it's prettier or cheaper, which copper isn't in either case.

 

[tolis626]

And the belief that good anodizing of alu. would be "good enough" was lead to huge problems with anodized alu. cpu blocks in particular years ago. You have to remember, while anodizing is supposed to seal off alu., it rarely is applied in the same uniform thickness across the alu. and can even have microscopic pits/missed areas that aren't seen by the naked eye. Just ask anyone who used Koolance cpu blocks a decade ago. Horrible corrosion problems over time from the mix of metals, and Koolance was arguably the best at producing anodized alu. blocks.

Why do you think everyone ditched alu., including Koolance, one of the biggest proponents of anodized aluminum, for copper or silver?

It wasn't because it's prettier or cheaper, which copper isn't in either case.

I see...Well,you made your point.But just because I'm stubborn,I will check at people who've put their MVIF under water and see the results.I may or may not risk it.The thought of ruining my mobo almost brings tears to my eyes (Not to mention a potential damage to other components),but once something gets inside my head,it's hard to tear it out...Well,by the time I can afford a water loop,many things might have changed!

 

[p_monks33]

I just can't see reason to water cool the board. My VRMs are not warm at all. Haswell is going to have heat limits before your board limits overclock. That is unless you pursue delidding.

 

[tolis626]

I just can't see reason to water cool the board. My VRMs are not warm at all. Haswell is going to have heat limits before your board limits overclock. That is unless you pursue delidding.

Well,it's more for the cool factor (Pun intended)

Seriously though,I don't believe water cooling the mobo is necessary unless going stupidly extreme,like LN2.It's just that it has the block on there already,waiting to be liquid-cooled and my OCD tells me that it must be used.The idiot inside is screaming "Do it!" already...

I wonder if anti-corrosion additives will help.I will probably use Mayhems "coolant",or at least their version of colored water.These have biocides and anti-corrosion additives in the solution I think.