It has been a pleasure to have the wonderful and highly coveted ASUS Rampage IV Black Edition in my hands for a couple of weeks. This is the new motherboard with X79 chipset for socket 2011.

It is the new flagship of Asus. In this new revision we have slight improvements: black PCB, absolute compatibility with the new Ivy Birdge-E processors, new dissipation system, armature for the input / output ports, high speed WiFi 802.11 / ac wireless network card and new technology (Sonic Radar).

Let's go there!

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Technical characteristics

ASUS RAMPAGE IV BLACK EDITION FEATURES
CPU	Intel® Processors Intel® Core ™ i7 Processors for LGA 2011 Socket Supports Intel® 22nm CPU Supports Intel® Turbo Boost Technology 2.0
Chipset	Intel® X79
Memory	8 x DIMM, Max. 64GB, DDR3 2800 (OC) / 2666 (OC) / 2400 (OC) / 2133 (OC) / 1866/1600/1333/1066 MHz Non-ECC, Un-buffered Memory Quad Channel Memory Architecture Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Profile (XMP) Visit www.asus.com or the user manual to see the list of qualified sellers (QVL). * Due to CPU specifications, DDR3 2200/2000/1800 MHz modules operate at DDR3 2133/1866/1600 MHz by default.
Multi-GPU Compatible	NVIDIA® 4-Way SLI ™ Technology Compatible Compatible with AMD 4-Way CrossFireX Technology
Expansion slots	4 x PCIe 3.0 / 2.0 x16 (x16 or dual x16 or x16 / x8 / x16 or x16 / x8 / x8 / x8, black) * 1 2 x PCIe 2.0 x14 x PCIe 3.0 / 2.0 x16 (x16 or dual x16 or x16 / x8 / x16 or x16 / x8 / x8 / x8, black) * 1 2 x PCIe 2.0 x1
Storage	ntel® X79 chipset: 2 x SATA 6Gb / s port (s), gray 4 x SATA 3Gb / s port (s), black Compatible with Raid 0, 1, 5, 10 ASMedia® Controller ASM1061: * 2 2 x eSATA 6Gb / s port (s), red 4 x SATA 6Gb / s port (s), gray
Net	Intel® 82579V, 1 x Gigabit Network Controller
Bluetooth	Bluetooth V4.0
Audio	ROG SupremeFX Black 8ch High Definition Audio CODEC - Compatible with: Jack-detection, Multi-streaming Audio Features: - Optical S / PDIF output on rear panel - Blu-ray audio layer Content Protection - Sonic Radar - DTS Connect - TI 6120A2 Hi-Fi Headphone Amplifier - SupremeFX Shielding Technology - Cirrus Logic® CS4398 DAC: 120 dB SNR, -107 dB THD + N (Max. 192 kHz / 24 -bit) - WIMA® capacitors - ELNA® High Quality Audio Capacitors - Hi-Fi OP AMP (s) audio - Balanced design - NEC TOKIN UC2 audio relay
USB ports	ASMedia® USB 3.0 Controller: * 3 8 x USB 3.0 port (s) (6 at back panel, blue, 2 at mid-board) Intel® X79 chipset: * 4 10 x USB 2.0 port (s) (4 at back panel, black, 6 at mid-board)
Rear panel I / O	- POWER ： 1 x SATA power connector - ROG_EXT port ： 1 x 18-1 data contact connection port
accessories	OC Panel 2.6 "LCM display EXTREME / NORMAL mode switch EXTREME mode for subzero OC benching: - VGA Hotwire - Subzero Sense - Slow mode - Pause button - VGA SMB header - ProbeIt - 4 x 4-pin connectors for extra fans NORMAL mode for chassis use: * 6 - CPU Level Up OC button - Fan speed control button - Button (on / off) for LCM backlight
BIOS	2 x 64Mb UEFI AMI BIOS, PnP, DMI2.7, WfM2.0, SM BIOS 2.7, ACPI5.0a, Multilingual BIOS, ASUS EZ Flash 2, ASUS CrashFree BIOS 3, My Favorites, Quick Note, log of last modifications, F12 PrintScreen, F3 Shortcut functions, and memory information ASUS DRAM SPD (Serial Presence Detect)
Format	Extended ATX 12 inch x 10.7 inch (30.5 cm x 27.2 cm)
Warranty	3 years.

Asus Rampage Black Edition IV: Unboxing and Presentation.

The presentation cannot be better. Minimalist design, since black, white and silver sparkles predominate. This special edition features the amazing Assasin Creed IV gift set.

On the back we have all the most important specifications and features of the motherboard.

Once we open the box we find two sections. The first houses the motherboard and the second all its accessories and gadgets.

The Asus Rampage IV Black Edition is E-ATX format: 30.5 cm x 27.2 cm. This should not be a problem, as 99% of PC cases are compatible with that version. Its appearance is very changed… Now the color black and gray predominates. The truth is that it looks wonderful!

An image of the back of the box. For the most curious?

One of the great advances of this board is that all PCI Express x16 connections are 3.0 and compatible with ATI Multi-Graphics NVIDIA 4-way SLI and CrossfireX. The possible setups are as follows:

2 graphics cards: x16 / x16. 3 graphics cards: x16 / x8 / x16. 4 graphics cards: x16 / x8 / x8 / x8.

Here we have the overclocking zone k of this magnificent board. Buttons for power on / off, reset, switches to enable and disable PCI Express x16 ports, Slow mode and LN2 mode. Also, a Debug LED and the voltage readings.

Detail one of the two internal USB 3.0 connections and the 24-pin ATX power connection.

We do not have to worry about RAM memory since it allows us to install up to 64GB DDR3 with an extreme overclock of up to 2800 mhz. What's more, the Asus team has been exceeded and they have broken world records of up to 3000 mhz !!!

Regarding cooling, it uses new ceramic heatsinks, which are better conductors and with a greater dissipation system. Although they are passive, we should not worry, because they give an excellent performance.

It also features the technology: Extreme Engine Digi + III and an 8-phase power supply for the processor, a 3-phase VCCSA - 2 + 2 design for RAM and innovative NexFET Power Block MOSFET technology.

Once we remove the heatsinks we find the 60A chocks and their capacitors are the new 10K Black Metallic.

Already at the bottom of the board we find the two Dual BIOS chips , the control panel, the ROG EXT, a BIOS switch (choose the one you prefer, in case one is corrupt), direct key button, TPM and the connections for 4-pin fans.

Here comes the jewel in the crown… Your SupremeFX Black sound card. With WIMA capacitors, HiFI TPA6120A2 headphone amplifier, difference design with Op-Amps, isolation technology, ELNA dampers, cover with EMI protection, NEC TOKIN UC2 Audio Relay and Sonic Radar / DTS Connect.

The gray SATA connections are 3.0 6GB / s of Intel 's own and the black ones are 2.0 3GB / s. Enough to hold up to ten devices.

In the rear connections we have: PS / 2 port, ROG Connect, Ai Charger +, USB BIOS flash back, USB 2.0, USB 3.0, wifi, audio and network card.

Accessories, Gagdets and UEFI BIOS

It has a large repertoire of accessories. The truth is that it is the most complete I have played in a very long time.

Among them we highlight:

SATA cables, OC Gagdet adapter, Instruction manual, Quick guide, CD with driver and software, Back plate, WiFi antennas, SLI and CrossFireX bridges, Pick up ROG cable

PANEL OC: it has a 2.6 ″ screen and allows us to monitor and adjust the processor, overclock, motherboard clocks, manage profiles and inform ourselves of the RPM of the fans. This device has two installation modes. The first is inside the box in a 5.25 ″ bay while the extreme mode works like an external console. The latter we have the SubZero sensor, VGA SMB and VGA HotWire.

Here we see its new BIOS. Quite a marvel and the best we have seen with the Z87 series.

Test bench and tests

TESTING BENCH
Processor:	Intel i7 3930K
Base plate:	Asus Rampage IV Black Edition
Memory:	G.Skills Trident X 2400 mhz
Heatsink	Corsair H100i
HDD	Samsung EVO SSD
Graphic card	GTX 780
Power supply	Antec HCP 850

To check the stability of the processor and motherboard. We have done a moderate OC at 4500 mhz with Prime 95 Custom and a GTX 780.

TESTS
3dMark Vantage:	P71500 pts
3dMark11	P15111 PTS
Heaven Unigine	95 fps
CineBench	13.85 pts.
Battelfield 3 at 1920 × 1200 high level.	90 fps.

Final words and conclusion

Asus has been outdone with the new Asus Rampage IV black edition chipset x79 (socket 2011) compatible with ivy bridge extreme processors.

This new version allows us to install up to 64gb DDR3 at speeds of 2800mhz with overclock. Since we talk about overclocking we have its Command Center / OC Panel system. Which is an external module that allows us to monitor, adjust and customize our hot motherboard. This gadget is ideal for the most enthusiastic overclockers.

Its cooling has gone from active to passive 100%. Its heatsinks are more robust and with better dissipation capacity. Asus has not forgotten its fantastic design.

One of the big steps is improving communication: Bluetooth 4.0 and Wi-Fi 802.11ac.

Lastly, I would like to make a special mention of the SupremeFX Black sound card - With 120dB signal-to-noise ratio with built-in 600 ohm headphone amplifier.

In short, this motherboard is designed almost exclusively for overclockers looking to break world records or improve their positions in the leagues. It can be found with an approximate price of € 385 (which is worth them) but it is a plate for a very specific sector or to have the most or the most.

ADVANTAGE	DISADVANTAGES
+ NEW AESTHETICS	- PRICE
+ SUPERIOR OVERCLOCK CAPACITY. OVERALL IN MEMORY.
+ RENEWED USB AND SATA CONNECTIONS.
+ ALLOWS TO CONNECT UP TO 4 GRAPHICS CARDS.
+ NEW UEFI BIOS
+ ACCESSORIES