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As is the case with the rest of Asus' ROG line-up, the Maximus VI Formula features an attractive red and black colour scheme. The clear difference here is the graphite-coloured ROG Armor that covers most of the motherboard's front and back side.
Motherboard coverings (armour) aren't new for Asus – we have seen them on Sabertooth boards since the P67 era. Asus' latest Sabertooth motherboard features the TUF series' distinctive Thermal Armor. What is new, though, is the use of thermal armour on anything but the TUF line of motherboards. The Maximus VI Formula is the first product outside of Asus' TUF range to possess the distinguishing feature.
According to Asus' marketing material, ROG Armor gives the Maximus VI Formula strength, style, and additional cooling capacity. The ‘style' point is an understatement in my opinion. Personally, I am not a fan of the TUF Thermal Armor's black, industrial styling. However, I have taken a clear liking to the general appearance and eye-catching design of ROG Armor. Personal preference will be the biggest factor concerning the likeability of ROG Armor.
The Asus Maximus VI Formula measures in at 12 x 9.6 inches and conforms to the standard ATX form factor. With the part-steel ROG Armor attached, the Formula tips the scale at a large 1577g.
Up to 32GB of DDR3 memory can be installed in the Maximus VI Formula's alternating red and black, single latch DIMM slots. Asus claims support for DRAM frequencies of up to 3100MHz; we will be putting the high-frequency support claim to the test with a set of 3000MHz Avexir Core Extreme memory.
The Maximus VI Formula motherboard’s DIMM slots features Asus’ second generation T-Topology which, according to the company, improves the overclocking margin by up to 5% under full load and 10% for a one-DIMM configuration. Put simply, the T-Topology creates paths of equivalent distance between each DIMM slot (more specifically, memory channel) and the CPU. This helps to minimise the performance drops that can be encountered by poor clock synchronisation when unequal path distances are used. More information regarding T-Topology can be found on Asus’ ROG blog here.
A single internal USB 3.0 header is found neighbouring the 24-pin power connector. Asus places the header in an outwards-facing orientation which makes cable management trickier than the right-angled approach does.
Start and reset buttons are found in the Maximus VI Formula's top-right corner. In close proximity to the buttons are a speed-controlled 4-pin fan header and a two-digit diagnostic display.
The buttons are in a location where they would be susceptible to extreme temperatures when LN2 or DICE users overclock the system. Given that the Maximus VI Formula is designed for water cooling users over extreme overclockers, the onboard buttons' location is likely to be fine.
Eight power phases feed an LGA 1150 processor that is installed in the Maximus VI Formula motherboard. Memory slots are fed by two power phases. The power delivery components form Asus’ Extreme Engine Digi+ III which consists of; NexFET MOSFETs, 60 Amp BlackWing chokes, 10K Black Metallic Capacitors, and a digital controller.
According to Asus, the NexFET MOSFETs offer efficiency that is greater than 90% and a smaller size than their standard counterparts. The BlackWing chokes support current levels of up to 60A while maintaining cool operation due to their surface area-enhancing shape. The 10K Black Metallic Capacitors are touted as offering 20% better low temperature endurance and five times longer lifespan than generic solid state capacitors.
Asus equips the Maximus VI Formula with a hybrid VRM heatsink that is passively cooled by air, or the heat can be actively removed by water cooling users. Two rubber pieces protect the CrossChill VRM heatsink's water cooling entries from attack by dust and dirt.
The CrossChill VRM heatsink supports G1/4″ threaded fittings by default, but as the above promotional material shows, users can choose the barbs that suit their requirements. This sounds a little like an excuse on Asus' part for not bundling the barbs with the motherboard.
Unlike ASRock who pre-installs barbs with its Z87 OC Formula, Asus forces its users to purchase the water cooling fittings separately. The company may claim it gives users flexibility as to the fittings they employ, but it also cuts costs on Asus' part. When Asus is charging around £260 for the Maximus VI Formula, a pair of cheap barbs could quite easily be absorbed into the profit margin.
While there is the argument that many air and even water cooling buyers won't use the barbs, on a £260 motherboard they should be included to enhance the bundle. In this section of the market, the bundled items play a crucial part in a product's overall magnetism to consumers. A user who needs the connections but doesn't have them will be more disappointed than one who purchases better fittings and doesn't use the ones supplied.
Two CPU power connectors (one 8-pin and one 4-pin) allow users to feed large quantities of energy to a heavily-overclocked processor.
ProbeIt voltage reading points and the MemOK button are situated directly above the ROG Armor's upper edge. A pair of 4-pin CPU fan headers is tucked away in close vicinity to the DIMM slots.
The mPCIe Combo II card provides a mini-PCI Express slot on one side of its board, with the all-new M.2 (Next Generation Form Factor) connection found on the other side. A dual-band 802.11ac WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0 adapter populates the mPCIe slot, while the M.2 socket is left unused and ready to accept one of the small, M.2 Type 2242 SSDs that will have widespread availability soon.
Once the mPCIe Combo II card is connected, access to the CPU power connectors is hampered. A 4-pin power cable will touch the card's rear edge causing it to bend. The issue doesn't affect the card's function, but it does make connecting the power connectors a more difficult task, as shown by the image taken from our Asus Maximus VI Extreme motherboard review.
Three x16-length and another three open-ended x1 PCI-E slots are found on the Maximus VI Formula. Designed without the addition of a PLX PEX8747 PCI-E 3.0 lane switch, the Maximus VI Formula is only able to support a pair of graphics cards at x8 speed. With three cards installed, sixteen PCI-E Gen 3 lanes from the processor will be split as x8/x4/x4.
Due to PCI-E lane limitations and a minimum requirement of x8 link speed, only two-card SLI is officially supported. However, that doesn't stop buyers using a pair of dual-GPU cards to utilise Quad-SLI. By virtue of its more flexible nature, three-card CrossFire configurations are supported. Thanks to the PCI-E 3.0 connection speeds, 3-way CrossFire systems are unlikely to be hampered by x4 bandwidth.
All three of the PCI-E 2.0 x1 slots feature an open-ended design that is typically used to allow installation of longer-than-slot cards. Unless the front cover is removed, Maximus VI Formula users won't be able to install cards with a connection longer than x1 due to the ROG Armor's length-restricting design.
Following on from the above point, Asus confirmed to us that if an expansion card is installed in the bottom PCI-E x16-length slot, the second graphics lane is forced to run at Gen 3 x4 speed (with the top at x8). This is a problem for users wanting to install dual-card SLI, as well as an expansion device such as the PCI-E x4 OCZ RevoDrive, or Asus' own x2 ROG RAIDR.
Unlike a small minority of other Z87 motherboards, the Maximus VI Formula does not offer a dedicated PCI-E 2.0 x4 connection wired from the chipset (think ASRock's Z87 OC Formula , Asus' Maximus VI Hero and Gigabyte's Z87X-OC). Nor can it set the two primary lanes to operate at Gen 3 speed and the bottom slot to a Gen 2 connection (from the chipset). Either of those ways would allow users to maintain dual-card SLI with PCI-E 3.0 x8 bandwidth, and a PCI-E 2.0 x4 connection for a device in the bottom slot. Asus has traded 2-card SLI + x4 expansion device support in favour of 3-card CrossFire capabilities.
Given its target audience, the lane configuration is a shortfall, but one that will not cause problems for the majority of users. Nevertheless, dual-card SLI and something like a PCI-E x4 OCZ Revodrive is by no means an unrealistic configuration for £260 motherboard buyers. Granted, the LGA 1150 processors' number of PCI-E 3.0 lanes doesn't help, but other motherboard vendors (Asus included) have implemented ways to circumvent the connection restrictions.
Front panel headers are found in their usual locations – HD audio to the left and chassis connections to the right. Two 4-pin fan headers are situated on the M6F motherboard's bottom edge, a position that makes them easy to access for cases with side panel fans.
The Maximus VI Formula features support for the OC Panel via its ROG_EXT connector. In making use of the ROG_EXT header, functionality for one of the two internal USB 2.0 headers is lost. Given the target audience, it is not unlikely that some of the Maximus VI Formula’s users are going to purchase the OC Panel. Asus would have been wise to fit the board with at least two USB 2.0 headers that are usable all of the time, as is the case with the Maximus VI Extreme.
Additional power for multi-VGA configurations is provided via a downwards-facing molex connector. Asus made the correct decision to face the molex connection downwards as the orientation makes cable management much easier. A DirectKey button allows the board to boot into its BIOS upon being powered.
Ten right-angled SATA 6Gb/s ports are provided by the Maximus VI Formula. The six ports to the right operate from the Z87 chipset, while four on the left are provided by a pair of ASMedia ASM1061 controllers.
We have commented on many boards that some form of marking would make it easier for users to distinguish between native and add-on ports. While Asus doesn't use a meticulously clear marking system, the basic information it prints on the ROG Armor is far easier to read than ink on a board.
With gamers forming part of the Maximus VI Formula's target audience, Asus equips the board with the company's highest-grade audio system. Called Advanced SupremeFX (or SupremeFX Formula), Asus has combined high-quality acoustic equipment to obtain 120dB signal-to-noise-ratio calibre audio.
The equipment used consists of; SupremeFX shielding and EMI cover (including an isolated PCB), ELNA audio and WIMA film capacitors, differential circuit with operational amplifiers, a 120dB SNR Cirrus Logic CS4398 digital to analogue converter, and Texas Instruments' TPA6120A2 600 Ohm headphone amplifier.
Underneath the SupremeFX-branded cover, we will find a Realtek audio chip that is likely to be the ALC1150. Installing the Realtek audio drivers will also provide access to the Sonic Radar and Perfect Voice pieces of software.
The Sonic Radar gaming overlay indicates the direction of enemy footsteps, gunfire, and explosions. Perfect Voice is noise cancellation software.
A pair of gold-plated antenna connections exits the 802.11ac WiFi/BT4.0 adapter installed on the mPCIe Combo II card. The connections can be fitted to the IO shield where linking them with the external antenna is an easy task.
Four of the rear panel's USB 3.0 ports are provided by an ASMedia ASM1074 controller, while the other two operate via the Z87 chipset. Intel's I217V controller is used to provide gigabit Ethernet.
Motherboard rear ports:
- 1 x DisplayPort
- 1 x HDMI
- 1 x LAN (RJ45) port
- 6 x USB 3.0 (blue)
- 4 x USB 2.0
- 1 x Optical S/PDIF out
- 6 x Audio jacks
- 1 x Clear CMOS button
- 1 x ROG Connect On/ Off switch
As pointed out by the red circles in the above image, Asus' fan header distribution on the Maximus VI Formula motherboard is excellent. Each of the eight headers is of the 4-pin variety.
A number of LEDs mounted to the PCB give the Armor's Republic Of Gamers logo a red glowing effect.
Bare Motherboard
The photos below show the Asus Maximus VI Formula motherboard with its ROG Armor removed.
Nine screws secure the front and back pieces of armour in place. The rear section is made of a strong metal which acts as a rigidity enhancement and a heatsink that conducts thermal energy away from the VRM's MOSFETs. Noticeably less sturdy, the front side of the ROG Armor is formed from a plastic material (ABS) which acts as an insulator, preventing graphics cards' heat from contacting the PCB.
With ROG Armor removed, the Maximus VI Formula is still a highly attractive motherboard.
The VRM and Z87 PCH heatsinks are physically attached to the motherboard itself, not the ROG Armor. Additional screws hold them in place and will need to be removed if an add-on, full-cover waterblock is fitted.
Have mine ordered, cant wait to get it. thanks for the review. ive just bought some 2,800mhz memory, hope it works!
I really dislike the thermal armor, had it on my sabertooth and took it off, makes no difference and makes getting at some buttons tricky. good board though.
Great read Luke, looks like another winner for ASUS, but I fail to see the benefits of the armor really unless you added fans to circulate air underneath it. It would isolate GPU heat from above, that is good, but the stagnant air underneath the plastic would stay close to the capacitors, right? Am I missing something?
OMG it’s here. >.< Thank you so much for the review.
If I didin't already have this at hand ( arrived yesterday), I would have been worried because of the rating, which BTW I don't understand why the low rating seeing as it didn't do that bad at all. In fact I had to read the whole review carefully to see where it all went wrong but for the life of me, I can't find the negatives that matter. I only use one card so the lane speed issue doesn't affect me and By the Gods, Extreme and Hero don't have anything on how sexy This Beast looks or just how awesomely powerful it feels in hand. I would gladly drop the extra cash just for those looks alone.
Now that I have seen no real issues where performance is concerned, I have no regrets for skipping Ivy-E this time around in favour of Has well. And it was all because of this sexy thing.
Thank you again for the review Luke, can I use you name?
“A small minority of users may miss the support for 3-way SLI, and an even lesser number will frown at the headaches caused by two Nvidia cards being simultaneously used with a PCI-E x2 or x4 expansion device.”
What about a PCI-E x1 device? I have a SoundBlaster X-Fi I would like to use along with 2 770 GTXs in SLI.
Simon,
The two graphics cards can be installed in the upper x16-length slots to use the CPU’s PCI-E 3.0 lanes (split as x8/x8 for each card).
If you install the PCI-E x1 sound card in one of the dedicated x1 slots, it will receive a PCI-E 2.0 lane from the Z87 chipset, and will not affect the bandwidth provided to your graphics cards.