There was a problem. These include buttons on the rear I/O panel to reset and flash the BIOS. Tell us what you think - send your emails to the Editor. Sliding down the right side we see a large start/power button along with a smaller and simpler reset button. He began breaking down PCs and ancient video devices known as "VCRs" at the age of 10. PCMag Digital Group. This Wi-Fi model of the X570 Crosshair VIII comes with one of Intel's Wi-Fi 6 AX200 network adapters. Feeding the VRMs are a required 8-pin and optional 4-pin EPS connector, sandwiched between the shroud and VRM heatsinks. Both of these slots are reinforced as well. Here, being choosy may be for the best. I wasn't able to get the drivers provided by Asus for the Intel AX200 wireless NIC to install at all, but when I downloaded those drivers separately straight from Intel, that set installed just fine. They were some of the best results I recorded anywhere in this batch – only the MSI X470 Gaming Pro Carbon was faster. Now we’re stepping into a higher (though still mid-range) segment to evaluate if Asus’s Crosshair VIII Hero Wi-Fi deserves a spot on our best motherboards list. If you need a feature one day, or a dizzying amount of USB ports, odds on it’s already present and accounted for … Future US, Inc. 11 West 42nd Street, 15th Floor, But simply installing a utility shouldn't cause this much ruckus. The feature loadout and understated look should please builders looking to build out an AMD-based desktop based on a core-rich third-gen Ryzen CPU, such as the Ryzen 9 3900X. The wireless is more practical and current, however. One 3-pin ARGB and the other 4-pin. Deep overclocking support. Intel AX200-based Wi-Fi 6 onboard. Emblazoned on the rear IO heatsink is the Crosshair VIII name, while just below it in the sliver area is the word “HERO,” with RGBs illuminating the word with a faint frosty glow. The Asus board gained a slim advance in theoretical tests. When you buy an Asus ROG product, you’re expecting a device that’s packed with gaming features – and the Crosshair VII Hero doesn’t disappoint. The cover is made out of mostly brushed-finished aluminum, with some plastic. It’s loaded with enthusiast-level gear, and has the connectivity to support powerful rigs. A few of the utilities included with this board may be more trouble than they are worth, but they are not essential. The eight SATA ports are more than most builders will need, and all are sourced from the chipset and support RAID 0, 1,5 and 10. As is the norm on X570 due to the PCIe lane count, no SATA ports will be affected regardless of what type of M.2 module is used. That said, it is the hardware that counts here. The Crosshair VIII Hero Wi-Fi really presents itself as a premium motherboard. If you are looking for an ITX board, it will have to be from Gigabyte or ASRock for now, while Micro-ATX boards can be found in Asus, MSI, ASRock, and Gigabyte lineups. You can use the board's RGB headers to roll out more lights, if you like, and coordinate them via Asus' Aura Sync. One correction for the first page - the bottom PCI-E x16 (physical) slot is an x4 (effective) from the PCH, not x8. As with other boards on this platform, the ROG Crosshair VIII Hero supports both Ryzen 2000 and Ryzen 3000 series processors. We use industry standard tests in order to compare features properly. The bottom half of the board is, for all intents and purposes, covered by heatsinks/shrouds. Control over the attached strips is managed by the Asus Aura software. Gigabyte’s board has the same memory configuration, and the same PCI slot configuration. Worth noting is the Crosshair VIII Hero Wi-Fi is a watercooling ecosystem in itself. The problem here: Downloading and running the EXE file labelled "GameFirst V" on the board's support page won't actually install the GameFirst V program. This board uses a ASP1405i/Infineon IR35201 8-phase controller running in 7+1 mode. Solid power delivery and cooling hardware. The board still looks somewhat bland right out of the box, but patience will pay off—it transforms once you build out your system and fire it up. Some readers have made a lot of fuss about these fans. If not, boards like the Asrock X570 Extreme4 or even a last-gen, BIOS-upgraded X470 or B350 board will do, and save you a bunch. It's a newer control suite used by various Asus products for viewing system parameters, controlling RGB lighting, and the like. Along with the thermal hardware, Asus equipped this board with a whole host of overclocking features. The Crosshair VI Hero is ASUS's current top offering for the AMD … Like most high-end motherboards today, the X570 ROG Crosshair VIII Hero (Wi-Fi) is built on a black PCB. Asus specifies that this motherboard comes with a SupremeFX S1220 audio codec. The Asus Crosshair VII Hero is the priciest board in this group, and it justifies the cost with superb design and plenty of features. Voltage read points include a ground, Vcore, NB_SOC, DRAM, PLL and SB. The primary, (top) slot will hold up to an 80mm drive, while the bottom slot supports up to 110mm. With a second-generation Ryzen processor installed, the Asus board supports 64GB of 3600MHz memory in four slots, which matches the speed offered by the Gigabyte. Below is a complete list of what ships in the box, along with the board. Mike has worked as a technology journalist for more than a decade, writing for most of the UK’s most well-known websites and magazines. The left-hand side of the board is dominated by metallic heatsinks, and more metal is used to cover the rear I/O and to protect the audio circuits. Just below it is the 24-pin ATX power connector and below it the front panel USB 3.2 Gen 2 header. Outside of the generous USB port count, we can see both the Intel I211-AT Gigabit LAN as well as the Realtek 2.5G LAN port. The rear IO also holds the most USB ports we’ve seen yet on an X570 board, with a total of 12. In terms of expansion slots, the three PCI Express x16 slots support SLI twin or CrossFire twin- or triple-card installations, if that's your bent, and the four DDR4 DIMM slots support up to 128GB of memory (using 32GB DIMMs) at speeds up to a whopping 4,600MHz. Not broken, but not useful, either. The bottom full-length slot is capable of PCIe 4.0 x8 speeds, with its bandwidth sourced from the chipset. A second program called GameFirst V will then show up on your system, and this just tells you that you must go download the GameFirst V software to use it. It's not quite to the level of Asus' over-the-top ROG X570 Crosshair VIII Formula, but it's several hundred bucks less and offers all you could want in an overclocking mobo apart from integrated liquid cooling. The Gigabyte board – and plenty of other models – will deliver the same basic specification without the high-end features or the high price. PCMag, PCMag.com and PC Magazine are among the federally registered trademarks of Ziff Davis, LLC and may not be used by third parties without explicit permission. Both boards have 802.11ac wireless, too. This count includes eight USB 3.2 Gen 2 (7x Type-A and 1x Type-C), along with four USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports. This audio solution should be more than adequate for most users. Visit our corporate site. The Asus board returned a minimum of 61.4fps in Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, but that was actually one of the worst results in the group – and the Gigabyte was around two frames faster. Performance-wise, there are only slight gains to be had over rivals in benchmarking, so only shell out if you insist on having the best performance – and if you’ll be using every feature included. Packing Wi-Fi 6 support and a heap of tweaker creature comforts, the Asus ROG X570 Crosshair VIII Hero (Wi-Fi) is an excellent cutting-edge AM4 motherboard for gaming and overclocking on AMD's latest-gen Ryzen CPUs. The better programs of note include the Asus Aura Sync utility and the Overwolf GameFirst V software. I first tried to install this software while disconnected from the Internet; it requires Net access, though, so it configured itself to start and install as soon as it was available. The Crosshair VIII Hero Wi-Fi doesn’t disappoint, and brings with it a robust VRM, 2.5G LAN, a slew of USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, integrated Wi-Fi 6/802.11ax, and ROG SupremeFX premium audio in a full-sized ATX form factor. Asus ROG X570 Crosshair VIII Hero (Wi-Fi), How to Free Up Space on Your iPhone or iPad, How to Save Money on Your Cell Phone Bill, How to Find Free Tools to Optimize Your Small Business, How to Get Started With Project Management, Mega-Guide: All the Intel Z490 Motherboards for 10th Generation 'Comet Lake-S' CPUs, MSI Commits to Zen 3 Support for All 400 Series Motherboards, ASRock's Water-Cooled Z490 Aqua Motherboard Costs $1,100, MSI Responds to Coronavirus With Extended Warranties, How Trump's Tariff Hike May Affect Prices for PC Parts. We check over 130 million products every day for the best prices. The software presented some install hiccups, but that's a modest quibble. While the software continued in its attempt to update, command-prompt dialog boxes frequently opened and closed every few seconds, which would steal attention away from anything else I was doing. If you click an affiliate link and buy a product or service, we may be paid a fee by that merchant. Our expert industry analysis and practical solutions help you make better buying decisions and get more from technology. Asus’ latest UEFI for the system looks good and is easy to work with, providing a good foundation for a full system.