The ASUS MAXIMUS VII HERO, as you should have expected, performs quite well, has decent features, and comes with all the capabilities it needs to match your ASUS ROG expectations. If you want to do some extreme overclocking, but don't need memory profiles or quad-GPU capabilities, this board has quite a bit to offer. For those, this board is a HERO to the wallet because it saves you from having to shell out even more money for either the MAXIMUS VII FORMULA or MAXIMUS VII EXTREME.

For all you gamers out there, the ASUS MAXIMUS VII HERO comes with a fair bit of options as well, including some decent automatic overclocking options and a host of software engineered to meet a gamer's needs. Yet, priced at $210, it doesn't really offer much other than its ASUS ROG branding and some flashy LEDs. I think there are better, more affordable options that have already covered these pages in the past few weeks you may want to consider.

I really didn't want it to work out in such a way, but I have to say it: We do not need another HERO. I am not exactly sure who this board is here to save given there are other options from amongst even ASUS's ranks that trump what this board has to offer. Without those memory profiles, etc., normal users might use, the ASUS MAXIMUS VII HERO is nothing other than a board with ASUS ROG colors, basic functionality, great audio, and a high-end power delivery design. It does work and overclock well, the software and its audio are great, and it uses an Intel LAN controller, which will keep all the buzzards at bay, but it simply lacks that high-powered finishing move other ROG products have. If you want the ROG experience, but want to save some money, you might want to take a gander at the MAXIMUS VII RANGER instead. If you consider yourself a more advanced user who wants to benchmark with this board, there is definitely a lot of appeal since it comes with high-quality power delivery and ASUS's fabled BIOS, although I fear there aren't many such users left.