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- Date:
- Tuesday , November 11, 2008
- Author:
- Daniel Dobrowolski
- Editor:
- Kyle Bennett
- Google +1
ASUS Rampage II Extreme
ASUS adds another Republic of Gamers branded motherboard. The Rampage II Extreme, hopefully a worthy successor to its predecessor, comes to us packed with innovative features supporting Intel's new Core i7 processors. ASUS promises that this board was designed for overclockers.
Introduction
ASUS is one of the most recognized brands of motherboards in the world and for good reason. ASUS is one of the largest motherboard makers around and its products are typically known for quality, stability, and innovative features. For the hardware enthusiast, ASUS created their Republic of Gamers brand to identify its premium line of motherboards about two years ago. Though never inexpensive, or in some cases even reasonably priced, almost every board under the R.O.G. brand has been excellent by nearly all accounts. I myself have spent quite a bit of time with R.O.G. boards and I've always been impressed by their quality, design, and features. Value is certainly subjective many times and you can certainly find HardForum arguments as to R.O.G.’s value. All that aside, the Rampage II Extreme is by far the most impressive desktop motherboard we have ever seen. The board is oozing with features and some of those features are ASUS innovations that I've never seen on any other motherboard before.
The Rampage II Extreme (Yet to be officially launched.) is based on Intel's new X58 chipset and ICH10R south bridge. The X58 is truly a remarkable chipset for a ton of reasons. The first of which is the fact that the chipset no longer contains the memory controller as that has been integrated into the Intel Core i7 processor. While this isn't remarkable by itself, as AMD did this years ago, this is a first for Intel and the X58 chipset is a new breed of chipset designed to support a new breed of CPUs. This chipset also supports a remarkable feature set many of which are firsts for Intel. Triple channel DDR 3 memory support is new for Intel and thanks to Intel's new QPI (Quick Path Interconnect) the chipset provides an insane amount of memory bandwidth compared to Core 2 Duo/Quad processor based systems. This chipset is also the first chipset to support both ATI's Crossfire/CrossfireX and NVIDIA's SLI/3-Way/Quad-SLI technologies.
While Intel's D5400XS motherboard offered SLI support it did so by “making use” of the NVIDIA nForce 100 MCP. The X58 chipset supports SLI natively so no added NVIDIA chips are present on the board. This is the first time Intel has been able to offer SLI to the masses via their own chipset. Also included are the Extreme OC features on the board which allow for overclocking via hardware in real time outside of the BIOS. Probably just as importantly, if not more so, are the plugs and contacts that allow for monitoring of the board’s voltages via a multi-meter in real time. In short this board is loaded with features. Many of which will go unused by all but the most hard core, seasoned overclockers, and all-around enthusiasts.
Main Specifications Overview:
Detailed Specifications Overview:
Packaging
Some boards make you feel like a kid opening a present on Christmas day. From the packaging and included accessories to the board itself I was impressed every step of the way. The packaging is elegant and tasteful. The included accessories are well thought out and useful. They are neatly packaged in a presentation that is certainly memorable. Included with the board are: Manual, driver DVD, a small package of zip ties, LCD Poster, 3 SATA cables, EIDE cable, Molex to SATA power adapter, 2 thermal probes, flexible SLI bridge, 3-Way SLI bridge, Supreme FX X-Fi sound card, 2 multi-meter plugs, a MOSFET cooling fan, and an backlit I/O shield.
Board Layout
The board layout is excellent and is near perfect. I have two small issues with the layout and only two. The first is that the PCI-Express x1 slot at the top of the expansion slot area is blocked by the chipset cooling hardware. This means that all but the shortest of cards will not fit in that slot. Now for many people, the on-board audio card will be utilized in this slot, so it should be no issue, but if you plan on using it for something else, make sure you card is no longer than 3.25”. The second issue involves the PCI-Express x16 slot that is located farthest away from the X58 chipset. Its' location is potentially a problem as the use of the floppy controller, IEEE1394 header, or the fan header will prevent you from using the third slot for a video card. That's just fairly poor planning on ASUS' part. ASUS designed with SLI and 3-way SLI in mind, yet the actual use of that could be problematic for some users. When you install “2-way” SLI in the two X16 slots closest to the chipset, the board will give you a message telling you that the SLI card is in the wrong slot. Also cases that have the power supply on the bottom of the case or leave very little room at the bottom of the motherboard tray may create issues with the use of three video cards on this board. So all the issues I have are with the expansion slots.
The board also features eight fan headers located fairly evenly across the entire motherboard. This is a most welcome sight for me as I'd prefer to connect most of my fans to the board and control them via BIOS or even via software in Windows as I've never been a fan of the “bay bus” control solutions which add clutter to the front of my case in the form of knobs and buttons. Other headers have good placement as well. They are on the bottom edge of the board and don't extend too far back so attaching front panel cables should be easy, but don’t plan on getting at those with a 4870 or GTX 200 series video card installed.
ASUS did screw up in regard to one header and that's the IEEE1394 header they always stick at the very bottom corner of the board. This is great if you use the included I/O bracket that comes with the board but for those of you who use up most if not all of your expansion slots this sucks as most cases don't have long enough front panel connectors to reach the header at the back of the board like this. Most ASUS boards seem to all have the IEEE1394 port in the same location so I suspect that's just an “ASUS thing.” Certainly not a deal breaker though.
The CPU area is fairly clean and allows for a decent amount of clearance. There is plenty of room to mount cooling hardware such as the Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme that I used for testing or the Koolance water block. In fact, the area is around 4.75” x 4.75” before you run into any component that is above the plane of the CPU mating surface. The MOSFET coolers are a somewhat low profile design which is nice. Right up against those you can see the chokes and capacitors that give the board its 16-phase power. Once I mounted my CPU cooler I did find that there was almost no clearance between the memory slots and the CPU fan. It fit, and there was a bit of room in between the memory slot and the heatsink and fan but not much. Keep in mind though that our Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme is some 5.25” wide across the fins. It's less clearance than I'm used to seeing having worked with Core 2 and other LGA775 processor compatible boards for some time but its' more room than I ever saw on any AMD processor compatible boards made in the last couple years. That said, if you compare a C2D board with this one, you will see that things are laid out a bit differently. The CPU socket area has been positioned closer to the middle of the board making it line up in the middle of the DIMM slots. This looks to keep the traces as short as possible and keeping memory latency issues at bay.
There are a whopping six6 DDR3 DIMM slots. This allows for a total of 12GB of RAM. For extra stability ASUS chose to use a 3-phase power design instead of two for the memory slots, and you will see DIMM power come into play during overclocking. DIMM slot placement allows ASUS to avoid clearance issues with the expansion slot area but it is somewhat close to the CPU area so some of the larger heat sink and fan combinations could get a little closer together than you might want. As mentioned above the Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme is about as large as a CPU cooler gets for the most part and it fit just fine even with memory in that first slot. So I wouldn't worry too much about it. We do believe that the DIMM slots and the CPU with IMC have gotten a little closer to address memory issues.
Just to the left of the DIMM area is what the packaging for the Rampage II Extreme refers to as the "TweakIt" feature. It is marked on the PCB as "Extreme OC." This section of the board features a power and reset button, along with a toggle button, confirm button, and a plus and minus control stick. This allows hardware overclocking outside of the BIOS as well as manipulation of several BIOS controlled settings while in the operating system. There is a TweakIt application which does nothing more than notify the end user within Windows if TweakIt is enabled or disabled. This is done as ASUS does NOT want you to use all the overclocking methods at once on this motherboard. It seems that TweatkIt is “on its own” and you are warned as such when you load the drivers. This feature also allows the end user to access debug codes with the aid of the LCD Poster. Also present is what the Rampage II Extreme box refers to as the "Probelt." This takes the guess work out of voltage monitoring as it allows for direct connection of a multi-meter to wire leads (provided in the package) or contact surfaces for the purpose of monitoring your voltages. There are a number of them present and each of these values can be monitored in the BIOS as well. Also to the left of the Extreme OC part of the board you will find on the surface of the PCB ASUS volt-minder LED's. These LED's tell you at a glance what level of voltage you have going to your memory. Green is safe, Yellow is slightly less safe, but most likely ok, and Red is good old warranty voiding voltage levels. Probably not terribly useful in many cases but while on the open test bench these can be very nice to have.
The north bridge is in the usual spot and is somewhat intrusive on the expansion slot area thanks to its fairly large cooling solution. The cooling solution was highly effective as the board always stayed cool to the touch. This isn't a huge shock as the hottest running part of north bridges in the past has been the memory controller which is now integrated into the CPU. The X58 chipset (at least in this application) runs as cool as any AMD 790FX chipset based board I've ever worked with and about as cool as the Gigabyte EP45T-Extreme which was the coolest running P45 chipset based board I've ever seen that wasn't being watercooled. The chipset cooler is actually quite aesthetically appealing as well. It is topped off by a backlit Republic of Gamers logo and was never more than warm to the touch.
The south bridge is also in the usual spot in front of the expansion slot area. It is cooled by a heat pipe based, flat heat sink. This heatsink is large and very effective and allows it to lay flat under any cards you might be installing. The south bridge never got even remotely warm to the touch. Large video cards like the GeForce GTX 280 and the Radeon 4870 X2 will have no problems with clearances. There are no noisy fans on any of the motherboard cooling hardware (unless you use the optional cooling fan included for water cooling) to intrude on a silent computing experience should you decide to go that route with such a board. The SATA ports are just in front of the large south bridge cooling plate and are the right angled kind I like to see. Unfortunately they aren't the kind that supports the SATA cable latches which I've become so fond of. But you can ram the latching cables in if you want to.
The Rampage II Extreme supports the PCI-Express 2.0 standard as well as earlier PCI-Express 1.0a/1.0 compliant devices. The board features three PCI-Express x16 slots. They can run in a 16x16 configuration or a 16x8x8 configuration. As I mentioned earlier the board supports ATI's Crossfire and CrossfireX technologies as well as NVIDIA's SLI, 3-Way SLI and Quad-SLI technologies. There is a single PCI-Express x1 slot that is primarily intended for use with the included Supreme FX X-Fi card. However longer PCI-Express x1 cards like my Hauppauge WinTV-HVR 1600 card or my Intel PRO/1000 won't fit in this slot. Its' a minor complaint but it may affect some people. I have issues with the bottom PCI-Express slot as I mentioned earlier. Usage of the floppy port, fan header, and IEEE1394 header could create problems with the use of a third video card. For a board supposedly designed with 3-Way SLI in mind this really boggles my mind. Typically when I hear people complain about the layout of any ASUS motherboard its' always in regard to expansion slots. Over the years I've had reservations about the expansion slot areas of several ASUS boards dating back to the Pentium III days. So this is something that historically ASUS has struggled with for whatever reason. Though they nail the rest of the board nearly perfectly every time.
The ASUS Rampage II Extreme has the following ports located on the rear I/O panel: PS/2 keyboard port, 6 USB ports, 2 RJ-45 ports, 1 S/PDIF port, 1 optical out jack, 1 IEEE1394 port and one eSATA port. One thing I like about some of the Republic of Gamers boards is that ASUS includes backlit I/O panels. These things are a pain to install in the case as the wire for them has to connect to the very corner of the board. If you don't have a removable motherboard tray in your box this can really suck as you may have to get really creative in regard to connecting the wire. Its' totally worth it if you've ever had to plug stuff into the back of your box when the room your in isn't that well lit. Each port is clearly marked on the backlit I/O panel and the label for each port is lit up so that you can see what they all are. This prevents you fumbling around by touch or having to get another light back behind the machine just to plug in a cable or something.
TurboV
TurboV is a new utility for ASUS. Its' very simple and elegant. Not to mention cool looking! Much better than their older AI Booster, and AI Gear utilities. The whole utility works off of adjustable sliders that are used to alter the settings. The sliders are generous enough to go way beyond anything you could ever actually achieve. This means that you should be able to get results that are on par or very close to what you can do with the BIOS. Granted there are more settings in the BIOS for the hard core to play with but I think enthusiasts and overclocking noobs alike will enjoy this tool. I certainly liked it much better than 99% of the software overclocking utilities out there. (More on that later.) The most important settings for overclocking a Core i7 processor are all at the top. BCLK or Busclock frequency, is akin to FSB or Hypertransport speeds. CPU voltage is self explanatory, DRAM bus voltage is akin to VDIMM voltage. QPI/DRAM Core Voltage is also very important. This is voltage adjustment for the Intel QuickPath Interconnect and DRAM power.
Other voltage options are below which are also found in the BIOS. CPU PLL voltage, PCI-Express voltages etc. You can also adjust DRAM reference voltages for all three memory channels. When you click on the CPU ratio tab things get interesting. Since the Core i7 965 Extreme Edition is an unlocked CPU this allowed us to make adjustments to the CPU ratio without issue. The second image shows the current CPU ratio and the second is me playing with the sliders. I've also adjusted the BCLK frequency slider as well. You can adjust each core individually which is something new for Core i7 that we've never seen before. So you can run Core 1 at x24 and Core 2 at 10 or whatever you desire. This may or may not appeal to some gamers and enthusiasts who may want to have some of their cores which aren't being particularly useful in gaming throttled down via multiplier and thus conserving power and generating less heat. I really liked this utility. It was simple, elegant, and easy to understand. Most importantly it worked very well. There is one thing to be cautious about and that's with the changes the utility makes. It goes through and literally changes the values for just about everything under the Extreme Tweaker section of the BIOS that can be changed. So it is something you should probably watch out for. We HIGHLY SUGGEST saving your BIOS settings before playing with TurboV. Though most of the time all it does is set fairly conservative manual values close to what the automatic settings are anyway.
TweakIt
ASUS has included another application with the Rampage II Extreme called Tweakit. This works with the Extreme OC controls at the front of the boards' edge. The confirm, reset, + and - controls are all part of that system. They work in conjunction with the LCD Poster ASUS includes with the motherboard. All this utility does in Windows is tell you if the feature is disabled or enabled. It just pops up something in the system tray when enabled or disabled. The Windows part serves no other purpose. The toggle allows you to move the BCLK up or down a MHz at a time in real time. Value of this, like the OC Palm on the P6T Deluxe are somewhat questionable.