ASUS Rampage V Extreme LGA 2011-v3 Motherboard @ [H]

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FrgMstr

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ASUS Rampage V Extreme LGA 2011-v3 Motherboard - The Rampage V Extreme needs no introduction. It is the flagship of the ASUS Republic of Gamers aka ROG product line. If the pattern of previous Rampage motherboards holds it should be one of the best motherboards money can buy. Is the new ROG crown jewel still worthy of the crown at its $475 price point?
 
Thank you for the review on a good board. Having said that, hopefully Asus will be bringing out a new version of the Sabertooth board on the X99 platform sometime next year.
 
you really had to run a 1.94v vcore voltage to get it stable? yikes, was that the ram or the CPU?
 
gigatexal said:
you really had to run a 1.94v vcore voltage to get it stable? yikes, was that the ram or the CPU?
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That was with the RAM at 2666MHz and CPU at 4.5GHz under LONG TERM (15 hours) full CPU and GPU load using Prime95.
 
From what I hear, a lot of R5E users prefer to set VCCIN (Input Voltage) manually around 1.9-1.95. Don't ask me why.
 
It seems like this is a logical step forward from the Rampage IV Extreme Black and the Maximus Extreme boards. They mostly kept things the same and didn't change much - only addition was the M.2 socket. I guess it's a matter of why change a winning formula?

How would you rate this against the X99 XPower? It looks like the XPower was able to withstand the full day on Prime 95 without airflow and in that regard did better. On the downside, I guess the XPower software was bit more annoying with the second NIC. That should be fixed relatively easily. It's a minor issue, as is the top standoff due to MSI's OC shield, which I think needs a redesign.

What about the build quality? You've noted before that the XPower and top notch MSI boards seem to be without peer when it comes to overall quality here.

XPower goes for $385, which means this carries about a $90 USD premium or so:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130792

To be honest, I think we may be at a point where motherboards are good enough that you cannot go wrong with either choice.

BIOS updates should improve both boards progressively.
 
I'd really like to see this RVE vs. the Asus WS-E vs. the MSI XPower vs. the Asrock Extreme11.
 
gigatexal said:
you really had to run a 1.94v vcore voltage to get it stable? yikes, was that the ram or the CPU?
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It was 1.9v CPU input voltage. The CPU vCore was set to 1.35 which is generally what this particular CPU requires on an ASUS motherboard.

alabrand1 said:
From what I hear, a lot of R5E users prefer to set VCCIN (Input Voltage) manually around 1.9-1.95. Don't ask me why.
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It isn't about preference. It's just what works for many motherboards. The ASRock X99 WS needed about that much voltage but it defaults to an unusable 1.72v or something like that.
 
hyperion0101 said:
It seems like this is a logical step forward from the Rampage IV Extreme Black and the Maximus Extreme boards. They mostly kept things the same and didn't change much - only addition was the M.2 socket. I guess it's a matter of why change a winning formula?

How would you rate this against the X99 XPower? It looks like the XPower was able to withstand the full day on Prime 95 without airflow and in that regard did better. On the downside, I guess the XPower software was bit more annoying with the second NIC. That should be fixed relatively easily. It's a minor issue, as is the top standoff due to MSI's OC shield, which I think needs a redesign.

What about the build quality? You've noted before that the XPower and top notch MSI boards seem to be without peer when it comes to overall quality here.

XPower goes for $385, which means this carries about a $90 USD premium or so:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130792

To be honest, I think we may be at a point where motherboards are good enough that you cannot go wrong with either choice.

BIOS updates should improve both boards progressively.
Click to expand...

You can't go wrong with either the MSI X99S XPower AC or the ASUS Rampage V Extreme. Both have allot in the pros and cons vs the other. What normally steers me toward ASUS for my personal machines is the UEFI. I just like the ASUS UEFI better. The AI Suite III software is actually pretty good but it does much more than I really need it to. I prefer overclocking in UEFI so that matters to me. Software wise I don't really use AI Suite III all that much. I mostly use that for enabling UASP/Turbo mode on USB 3.0 devices. From an overclocking standpoint I'd rather use the Intel XTU software that the MSI board comes with than either AI Suite III or Command Center. While the ASUS software isn't bad, it's got allot going on and Command Center just doesn't do it for me. The interface for that is just terrible.
 
Any difference in build quality between the xpower and rog?

I'm also interested in the heat difference -- it seems from your review and other sites that the xpower runs cooler than the rog. True?

thanks for all the info.

sd
 
gigatexal said:
you really had to run a 1.94v vcore voltage to get it stable? yikes, was that the ram or the CPU?
Click to expand...

This value is the input voltage applied to the VRMs...For a while now, this has been about .4 - .5 above the actual Vcore..
 
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I am a long time reader first time poster, great review as always.

I am planning on using the Asus X99 Rampage V Extreme in my next computer build. However after reading several reviews, I have seen very little about using the M.2 PCIe x4 capability. I have read that you can boot off the M.2 SSD by configuring the UEFI bios, but can you configure, say, 2 Samsung XP941 4x MZHPU512GB SSD’s in a Raid 0 and be bootable?

So say you have a 40 lane PCIe processor (5930, 5960) and are using SLI in the 16x slots 1 and 3. The one onboard M.2 PCIe uses slot 4. Although I cannot find the ASUS Hyper M.2 X4 Adapter card for sale anywhere yet, you can attach the second Samsung XP941 512GB to an Addonics ADM2PX4 PCIe 3.0 to M.2 PCIe SSD adapter ($20.00) and use slot 2. Now you are using all 40 lanes and have 1TB of Raid 0 storage space on a 32Gbps interface, but is it bootable?

There is some confusion, as JJ from ASUS stated in a YouTube video that it was strictly software raid and therefore unbootable, but this ROG article hints that it may be possible.

http://rog.asus.com/361862014/rampa...-ssd-raid-0-performance-on-rampage-v-extreme/
 
Lone Gunman said:
I am a long time reader first time poster, great review as always.

I am planning on using the Asus X99 Rampage V Extreme in my next computer build. However after reading several reviews, I have seen very little about using the M.2 PCIe x4 capability. I have read that you can boot off the M.2 SSD by configuring the UEFI bios, but can you configure, say, 2 Samsung XP941 4x MZHPU512GB SSD’s in a Raid 0 and be bootable?

So say you have a 40 lane PCIe processor (5930, 5960) and are using SLI in the 16x slots 1 and 3. The one onboard M.2 PCIe uses slot 4. Although I cannot find the ASUS Hyper M.2 X4 Adapter card for sale anywhere yet, you can attach the second Samsung XP941 512GB to an Addonics ADM2PX4 PCIe 3.0 to M.2 PCIe SSD adapter ($20.00) and use slot 2. Now you are using all 40 lanes and have 1TB of Raid 0 storage space on a 32Gbps interface, but is it bootable?

There is some confusion, as JJ from ASUS stated in a YouTube video that it was strictly software raid and therefore unbootable, but this ROG article hints that it may be possible.

http://rog.asus.com/361862014/rampa...-ssd-raid-0-performance-on-rampage-v-extreme/
Click to expand...

Raja can correct me if I'm wrong as I've not done all the due dilligience I'd have liked on this matter as I don't have any M.2 hardware to test with but my understanding is this:

You cannot put the onboard M.2 device and a device from a separate M.2 adapter in a RAID configuration. An additional PCI-Express based M.2 device (such as the adapter card) won't be handled or configured through the normal OROM that's part of the motherboard and chipset's storage implementation. In other words there is no OROM (BIOS) to boot from. The adapter card would have to have it's own BIOS to be bootable and the two M.2 devices would basicaly get handled by different OROMs. Cross controller / BIOS based arrays would be tricky to setup and that simply hasn't been implemented here. And frankly motherboards like this have a distinct lack of OROM space due to all the things that can potentially use that up. Multiple GPUs, NICs, and the onboard RAID controller which can eat that space up.

So you can't create a RAID array anywhere on the motherboard's firmware / BIOS for a M.2 RAID array. Therefore you can only RAID more than one M.2 device via software within the OS. The X99 Deluxe has two physical M.2 slots. (One vertical, one horizontal) and that motherboard won't allow you to RAID both devices together.

I don't think it's technically impossible to allow for putting multiple M.2 devices in a RAID configuration but the work which would allow for that simply hasn't been done yet. Only a fraction of the public will ever install M.2 devices into these motherboards and even fewer would wish to put two in a RAID configuration. In subsequent generations I think this is something you might see from motherboard manufacturers if M.2 becomes popular enough in the desktop market. But for this generation at least you won't see that.
 
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stormslayer said:
Any difference in build quality between the xpower and rog?

I'm also interested in the heat difference -- it seems from your review and other sites that the xpower runs cooler than the rog. True?

thanks for all the info.

sd
Click to expand...

I'd say the build quality on the MSI is a little nicer but the differences would be extremely hard to spot even with both motherboards in front of you. The X99S XPower AC has a flatter PCB, slightly cleaner soldering work and the machine work is a bit nicer on the heat sinks. But the X99S XPower AC also has that stupid shroud around the I/O panel which is cheap as hell. ASUS typically has nicer I/O shields if were nitpicking.

And fit and finish doesn't always make something more reliable. Keep this in mind. AK's aren't as nice to look at, nor do they have the attention to detail AR-15's do. But they are no less reliable for it.

My current favorites are the MSI X99S XPower AC, ASUS X99 Deluxe and Rampage V Extreme. Were all three of them still sitting in my office I'd just as soon throw any of them into my machine if I were upgrading this weekend. I feel as though I could grab the closest one and feel good about which ever I grabbed to install. It almost wouldn't be worth sorting through them to pick a different one. The only time I'd be able to narrow the list down further would be if I were going to go with LN2 cooling. At that point the ROG board stands out. The MSI has nicer hardware for mounting a LN2 pot but the ASUS board has the subzero sense function and the OC panel would be more useful for that type of build. Of course cost wise, if your going to buy these choices the ASUS X99 Deluxe is the better bang for your buck option out of the three.

The ASRock X99 WS was a damn good board overall as well but it takes more effort to work with as far as the UEFI goes. I'd still have it over the GIGABYTE's I've looked at recently despite the UEFI. In all the years I've been doing this I've never found it so difficult to call a clear favorite motherboard.
 
So I have to ask with the review sub system testing; is the test method up to date? For the latest generation of motherboards you are connecting a 3 antenna AC/N card to a personal N/G card?

The transfers of 6 mbyte indicate you are only connecting at G speeds to the test bed.

If your test bed is a G/N card then you should at least be seeing 3x-6x that transfer speed if it was configured to use the widely available N standard.

On a $400+ motherboard with AC capability your transfer rate on WiFi to another AC card should be similar to the numbers you are getting for your wired connection.

I'm not sure testing the G capability of these enthusiast motherboards really provides any useful buying information.

For the screenshots I would recommend including the network status that will display the Speed in Mbps that the board is connected at. This review here is an example:
http://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/asus-x99-rampage-v-extreme-review,17.html
index.php




Again, I would just like to stress; the only reason I'm posting this is because this is the 2nd or 3rd review I've seen using that G standard. I would either cut it out of your review entirely or update the test bed to include at least the N standard (and preferably the AC standard).
 
Hello

A RAID array consisting of multiple M.2 drives or PCIe drives can only be done from within the operating system. Neither the hardware nor drives support RAID at the OROM level.

I'm sure the three boards discussed above would be virtually indistinguishable in use if used at default settings. However if overclocking I look at all the contributing factors that lead to maximum performance while maintaining stability. The MSI is not capable of neither the memory or cache speeds the ASUS boards are. How much difference these speeds make in actual use is debatable but the differences are there.
 
Does anyone know where a PCIe lane diagram for this motherboard can be found? I can't seem to get a straight answer from google or even the manual for this motherboard. I know that the M2 slot shares a lane with the rest of them, as well as the SATA Express ports, meaning that if you were to have two cards in 16/16 SLI, then add an M2/SataE, it'll drop to 16/8. I see that the PCIe 1x lane is near the bottom, so I'm just hoping it doesn't do the same thing when a device is connected to it.

As much as I like my RIVBE, it's got some quirks that bug the heck outta me (biggest being massive spikes in DPC latency with wifi enabled). I was hoping the RVE would be a sure bet as an upgrade, but the more I look into it, the more I try to figure out what has what affect on performance, since so much of that board is now tied to the PCIe lanes.
 
DarkAngel_ZERO said:
Does anyone know where a PCIe lane diagram for this motherboard can be found? I can't seem to get a straight answer from google or even the manual for this motherboard. I know that the M2 slot shares a lane with the rest of them, as well as the SATA Express ports, meaning that if you were to have two cards in 16/16 SLI, then add an M2/SataE, it'll drop to 16/8. I see that the PCIe 1x lane is near the bottom, so I'm just hoping it doesn't do the same thing when a device is connected to it.

As much as I like my RIVBE, it's got some quirks that bug the heck outta me (biggest being massive spikes in DPC latency with wifi enabled). I was hoping the RVE would be a sure bet as an upgrade, but the more I look into it, the more I try to figure out what has what affect on performance, since so much of that board is now tied to the PCIe lanes.
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Hello

What specific info are you looking for? The manual for the R5E fully explains the PCIe lane allocation based on the different slots used. The SATA Express ports use PCIe slots form the PCH so will have no effect on the available PCIe lanes from the CPU.
 
The Cobra said:
Thank you for the review on a good board. Having said that, hopefully Asus will be bringing out a new version of the Sabertooth board on the X99 platform sometime next year.
Click to expand...

I swear I just saw something about this in the last week, but I can't seem to find it now.

It said it had been anounced and showed several pictures, the armor was white and had sort of a winter camo pattern to it.
 
DarkStar_WNY said:
I swear I just saw something about this in the last week, but I can't seem to find it now.

It said it had been anounced and showed several pictures, the armor was white and had sort of a winter camo pattern to it.
Click to expand...

Heh. That's the Z97 white version of the Sabertooth.
 
alabrand1 said:
Heh. That's the Z97 white version of the Sabertooth.
Click to expand...

Ah okay, Thanks! I didn't have time to read the story, and only glanced at it and swore it was X99 chipset, my bad. :D

Either way, I didn't care for the look of it, I mean if I want a white conponent I want it white, not a white camo that would match nothing else in the rig.
 
MaddBomber83 said:
Snip....................
So Again, I would just like to stress; the only reason I'm posting this is because this is the 2nd or 3rd review I've seen using that G standard. I would either cut it out of your review entirely or update the test bed to include at least the N standard (and preferably the AC standard).
Click to expand...

I have an 802.11/AC router. The problem is that testing with it has proven problematic in the environment. It's something I need to address.
 
jkramp said:
Hello

What specific info are you looking for? The manual for the R5E fully explains the PCIe lane allocation based on the different slots used. The SATA Express ports use PCIe slots form the PCH so will have no effect on the available PCIe lanes from the CPU.
Click to expand...

Ah, thanks. I went back and looked it over again. I guess I missed it once before.

Still bummed that the M.2 port affects Crossfire/SLI configs, as well as that strange PCIe 4x port literally having an effect on the rest of the board; using it disables the 1x, USB 3.0 header, and SATA Express ports, but there's no explanation if using a 1x card would have a similar effect due to "reasons". Hopefully future revisions of the board won't be so crowded...they could just remove the 4x connection entirely and dedicate those lanes to what's needed.
 
DarkAngel_ZERO said:
Ah, thanks. I went back and looked it over again. I guess I missed it once before.

Still bummed that the M.2 port affects Crossfire/SLI configs, as well as that strange PCIe 4x port literally having an effect on the rest of the board; using it disables the 1x, USB 3.0 header, and SATA Express ports, but there's no explanation if using a 1x card would have a similar effect due to "reasons". Hopefully future revisions of the board won't be so crowded...they could just remove the 4x connection entirely and dedicate those lanes to what's needed.
Click to expand...

Well even if you had a PLX chip, you'd still be constrained by the PCI-Express lanes leading t the chipset being the bottleneck.
 
I just got this board and I love it! So many options. I'm planning to try to start OCing this week after some more upgraded parts arrive.
 
Same here; built this up with a 5930 over the weekend. I'm staggered at the difference coming from an i7 930 and Rampage 3.

Will start OCing next week!
 
Same! Came from a i7930 as well (although I had a lighter Asus board at the time)! The difference is spectacular. If you're unexperienced at overclocking, like I was two weeks ago, this board has presets in the BIOS. One click and POOF, you're bumped from 3.8 to 4.3 Ghz on a 5820k. Completely steady, cool and quiet performance.

Oh, and don't forget to use the OC panel! It rocks.

------------
Phanteks Enthoo Luxe/ Asus Rampage Extreme V / Asus STRIX GTX 980 / Intel i7 5820k / Corsair AX860i / Crucial 16GB DDR4 (2400Mhz) / Samsung 850 Evo 500GB / WD Red 3TB / Scythe Mugen 4 / Asus BW-16D1HT
 
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For those who may be unaware, Asus is now offering a version of this board that includes a USB 3.1 PCI-E (2 ports, type A) card! http://rog.asus.com/403332015/asus-...est-and-most-comprehensive-usb-3-1-solutions/

I'm actually happy that it is the same board + an add-in card rather than making a whole new board version. Its great that Asus is also selling an a la carte version of the very same USB 3.1 PCI-E (2 type A ports) card, as well as an exclusively a la carte card that instead has a single Type C connector instead - the new, reversible USB option that will eventually become a standard...though that's a long way off.

So if you haven't purchased yet, I suggest ensuring that you pick up your R5E (or one of Asus' other boards) that comes with USB 3.1, but if you've already happily secured your hardware - here's an easy way to upgrade!
 
Xaeos said:
For those who may be unaware, Asus is now offering a version of this board that includes a USB 3.1 PCI-E (2 ports, type A) card! http://rog.asus.com/403332015/asus-...est-and-most-comprehensive-usb-3-1-solutions/

I'm actually happy that it is the same board + an add-in card rather than making a whole new board version. Its great that Asus is also selling an a la carte version of the very same USB 3.1 PCI-E (2 type A ports) card, as well as an exclusively a la carte card that instead has a single Type C connector instead - the new, reversible USB option that will eventually become a standard...though that's a long way off.

So if you haven't purchased yet, I suggest ensuring that you pick up your R5E (or one of Asus' other boards) that comes with USB 3.1, but if you've already happily secured your hardware - here's an easy way to upgrade!
Click to expand...

From the information I've gathered, the one with the /USB 3.1 is actually a new revision board with USB 3.1 built-in. The one with the /U3.1 is the current revision that just comes with a 2-port USB 3.1 PCI-E card. So, you may want to do a little research before jumping the gun because it may not be what you expect.
 
JCNiest5 said:
From the information I've gathered, the one with the /USB 3.1 is actually a new revision board with USB 3.1 built-in. The one with the /U3.1 is the current revision that just comes with a 2-port USB 3.1 PCI-E card. So, you may want to do a little research before jumping the gun because it may not be what you expect.
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The R5E will not feature onboard USB 3.1 ports.


You will notice only the Rampage V Extreme/U3.1 SKU is listed in the ROG link. We have no future plans to implement it onboard for the R5E either, so anything you've read to the contrary is not accurate.
 
Will this board support the new Broadwell-E CPUs for the 2011-v3 socket? Or has too much changed.
 
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