Introduction

Big budget Hollywood blockbusters are the staple of summer entertainment. These massive projects cost over a hundred million dollars to make and if all goes well, net a tidy profit twice or thrice that of the initial budget. Due to the large sums of money involved in making these movies, sequels or franchise films are often more likely to be made than stand-alone movies. The odds of a project being profitable skyrocket when it is an established title compared to a totally new idea, since brand familiarity is a huge factor in sales. This is also true for system component manufacturers. Establishing a brand that has a clear vision and well-defined product lineup helps significantly down the line when users know what to expect when they buy a specific brand.

ASUS’ Republic of Gamers lineup is comprised of award winning motherboard designs and has also branched out to gaming notebooks, as well as video cards. Many of their innovative design ideas have been copied and imitated by other manufacturers, but RoG motherboards remain distinct and continue to set the bar for gamer-oriented, overclocking motherboards. As with every sequel, knowing just how much to add and how much to take away when improving a design is a balancing act that is vital to the success of the product.

The ASUS Maximus IV Extreme is the latest Republic of Gamers motherboard for the Intel socket 1155 mainstream platform. The ASUS Maximus IV Extreme features an updated sleek heatsink design, Extreme Engine DIGI+, DDR3-2200 (OC) support and 3-way SLI/CFX. The Maximus IV Extreme also boasts a wealth of overclocking options, including onboard debugging tools and switches, as well as remote overclocking controls via Bluetooth devices or through a laptop. In order to achieve 3-way SLI/CFX support, the ASUS Maximus IV Extreme is equipped with an NVIDIA NF200 chip located where the Northbridge is typically placed. The new B3 version of the Maximus IV Extreme has 10 USB 3.0 ports, including two at mid-board for front panel support, as well as four SATA 6Gb/s ports for high speed connectivity options.