Overclocking - The Hardware

A big part of the ASUS ROG series has always been overclocking, and the ASUS MAXIMUS VI HERO is no exception. From customized monitoring devices to fan control, the ROG series has always been geared to handle system-level customizations by the end user.


That design has included removable BIOS chips as seen on the ASUS MAXIMUS VI HERO. New this time around is the "Direct Key". Seen on many boards of today's market, it is used to enter the BIOS when FastBoot features are enabled as the booting process can happen too quickly no matter how madly you hit the "DELETE" key to get into the BIOS. You will simply never be fast enough. If you are in the OS, press this button to have the system shut down and wait for you to hit the power button.


Speaking of buttons, all the standard ROG buttons are here on the ASUS MAXIMUS VI HERO, including POWER, RESET, and MemOK!. There's also a dual-digit POST display to help pinpoint problems when things go wrong. To aid in that, there is a set of four LEDs by the 24-pin power plug. These indicate the general area the boot failures occurred in.


The heatsink on the board's CPU VRM is a big chunk of flat, anodized metal. A heatpipe connects the two sections to ensure that heat generated here is spread out evenly. I found the VRM controller itself, a self-branded DIGI+ unit, underneath one end of the heatsink.


The DIGI+ controller pushes the input phases that I found on the backside of the board. Flipping it over, we find the MOSFET packages, one for each phase of the VRM, like the input drivers. This is indicative of the true 8+2 VRM design mentioned on the box.


Each phase, including the dual VRM phases, is terminated by custom ASUS Blackwing chokes capable of handling up to 60A each. The nearby DIMM controller is also a DIGI+ part.



The rest of the DIMM VRM is between the 24-pin connector and the DIMM slots--below the RESET button. I also found a secondary Super I/O chip peeking out from under the PCH cooler on the bottom half of the board.