The Asus Republic of Gamers has launched new Maximus IX motherboards—the Extreme, Formula, and Hero mainstays, as well as the brand new Code and Apex products. These boast the latest Intel Z270 chipset which supports 24x PCIe 3.0 lanes (four more versus the Intel Z170 chipset) and the brand new Intel Optane disk drive caching technology. Asus signature features such as SupremeFX, Aura Sync, and GameFirst IV are also present onboard.
As always, the Maximus IX Extreme is the highest tiered product in the lineup. It is made for water-cooling and performance enthusiast, and comes with a Bitspower integrated monoblock which also cools the M.2 heatsink. The Formula features a slightly less aggressive CrossChill EK II hybrid heatsink for those not quite wanting to be on the bleeding edge, while the Hero foregoes integrated water blocks for a more vanilla gamer setup.
Meanwhile, the Code is a step up from the Hero in terms of aesthetics as it comes with its own ABS plastic ROG Armor. Lastly, the Apex features only gaming essentials such as reliable and stable overclocking support.
Check the table below for the specs.
|
Maximus IX Extreme |
Maximus IX
Formula |
Maximus IX
Code |
Maximus IX
Apex |
Maximus IX
Hero |
||
| CPU | LGA 1151 Socket for Intel® Core™ i7/Core™ i5/Core™ i3/Pentium®/Celeron® processors | |||||
| Chipset | Intel® Z270 Chipset | |||||
| Memory | 4 x DIMM (max.) 64GB
DDR4, 4133 (OC) MHz |
4 x DIMM (max.) 64GB
DDR4, 4133 (OC) MHz |
4 x DIMM (max.) 64GB
DDR4, 4133 (OC) MHz |
2 x DIMM (max.) 32GB
DDR4, 4266 (OC) MHz |
4x DIMM (max.) 64GB | |
| DDR4, 4133 (OC) MHz | ||||||
| Expansion Slots | 2 x PCIe 3.0 x16 SafeSlots (CPU)
1 x PCIe 3.0 x 16 slot (PCH) 1 x PCIe 3.0 x 4 slot (PCH) |
2 x PCIe 3.0 x16 SafeSlots (CPU)
1 x PCIe 3.0 x16 slot (PCH) 3 x PCIe 3.0 x1 slots (PCH) |
2 x PCIe 3.0 x16 SafeSlots (CPU)
3 x PCIe 3.0 x1 slots (PCH) 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16 slot (PCH) |
3 x PCIe 3.0 x16 SafeSlots (CPU)
1 x PCIe 3.0 x16 (PCH) 2 x PCIe 3.0 x1 (PCH) |
2 x PCIe 3.0 x16 SafeSlots (CPU)
3 x PCIe 3.0 x1 slots (PCH) 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16 slot (PCH) |
|
| Audio | ROG SupremeFX S1220 codec
ESS® ES9023P High Definition DAC |
ROG SupremeFX S1220 codec
ESS® ES9023P High Definition DAC |
ROG SupremeFX S1220 codec
ESS® ES9023P High Definition DAC |
ROG SupremeFX S1220A codec | ROG SupremeFX S1220 codec
ESS® ES9023P High Definition DAC |
|
| Gbit LAN | Intel® I219-V | Intel® I219-V | Intel® I219-V | Intel® I219-V | Intel® I219-V | |
| SATA | 6 x SATA 6Gb/s | 6 x SATA 6Gb/s | 6 x SATA 6Gb/s | 4 x SATA 6Gb/s | 6 x SATA 6Gb/s | |
| M.2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
| Wi-Fi | 2×2 MU-MIMO 802.11AC Wi-Fi | 2×2 MU-MIMO 802.11AC Wi-Fi | 2×2 MU-MIMO 802.11AC Wi-Fi | N/A | M.2 slot (E-Key) ready for Wi-Fi | |
| USB | 1 x USB3.1 front panel connector
1 x USB 3.1 (Type-A) 1 x USB 3.1 (Type-C) 8 x USB 3.0 ports 4 x USB 2.0 ports |
1 x USB3.1 front panel connector
1 x USB3.1 (Type-A) port 1 x USB3.1 (Type-C)port 6 x USB 3.0 ports 6 x USB 2.0 ports |
1 x USB3.1 front panel connector
1 x USB3.1 (Type-A) port 1 x USB3.1 (Type-C)port 6 x USB 3.0 ports 6 x USB 2.0 ports |
1 x USB 3.1 (Type A)
1 x USB 3.1 (Type C) 8 x USB 3.0 ports 6 x USB 2.0 |
1 x USB3.1 front panel connector
1 x USB3.1 (Type-A) port 1 x USB3.1 (Type-C)port 6 x USB 3.0 ports 6 x USB 2.0 ports |
|
| Aura Sync | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | |
| 4-pin RGB header | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
| Thunderbolt 3 | Onboard | Thunderbolt-ready | Thunderbolt-ready | N/A | Thunderbolt-ready | |
| Others | l Integrated ROG monoblock
l Liquid cooled M.2 heatsink l pre-mounted IO shield l color-coded LED audio-jacks l Copper-plated EMI protection PCB edge |
l ROG ARMOR
l CrossChill EK II l pre-mounted IO shield |
ROG ARMOR | l DIMM.2
l Customizable nameplate l CES Innovation Awards Honoree |
l 3D printing mounts
l CES Innovation Awards Honoree |
|