Board Layout

Taking the ASUS MAXIMUS IX CODE out of the box reveals a black board with a gunmetal gray shield covering most of its surface. Near the socket, brushed aluminum heat sinks peak out from under the shield, while down to the right of the PCI slots, a black heat sink can be found to be glimpsing out from under a black, removable shield that hides the first M.2 slot as well as the CMOS battery.

The overall impression the ASUS MAXIMUS IX CODE creates when examined is one of durability and quality. I really like the color scheme, though I don't like the color mismatch between the main gray shield and smaller black shield. The backside of the board continues the black theme and also reveals the nine screws that keep the shield attached.



The socket is somewhat open; though it does feel more crowded than on some boards, it should offer good clearance for coolers. The four DIMM slots sit to the right of the socket with a POST code display and start and reset buttons.


There are two M.2 slots of which the first is between PCI x16 slots two and three, underneath the small black shield bearing the ROG logo. The second slot is less conventional, located in the bottom-right corner. This slot requires an included adapter to mount the drive perpendicular to the board. This mounting method seems obtuse, but there is a lot going on with the ASUS MAXIMUS IX CODE, and real estate is a resource in short supply.


The ASUS MAXIMUS IX CODE features three PCI x16 and three PCI x1 slots. The top two PCI x16 slots are metal-reinforced. There are six standard SATA 6 Gb/s plugs on the board's right edge, angled at 90 degrees. The bottom edge of the board features three buttons along with a generous portion of USB, front panel, and fan headers. The white button is a hard reset, the second is a "safe boot", and the third is a "memOK". All three are extremely useful overclocking tools.


The rear I/O is fairly generous on the ASUS MAXIMUS IX CODE. Starting on the left, there are BIOS flashback and BIOS reset buttons. Next are the connections for the M.2 Wi-Fi antenna, followed by an HDMI 1.4b and a DisplayPort 1.2. Four USB 2.0 ports in black and four USB 3.0 ports in blue come next. The RJ45 LAN port sits over the two USB 3.1 ports, a Type-A in red and a Type-C in black. Finally, there are five color-coded 3.5 mm audio jacks and an optical S/PDIF out.