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Automatic CPU Overclocking:
We tested out the pre-defined overclocking profiles which feature base clock adjustment. We didn't manage to achieve stability with any of the base clock adjustment profiles as the majority resulted in a CPU frequency which was above our chip's known limit of 4,500 MHz.
The one profile that we did achieve a boot with was the 195MHz base clock configuration. Using a 23x CPU ratio, the processor frequency sat below our 4500MHz limit at 4487MHz. Memory was set at 1560MHz CL9 – a value that is very low for our 2,133MHz CL11 sticks.
While we were able to grab a screenshot from CPU-Z, the system was proven to be unstable when it suffered a BSOD after just a few minutes of operation.
Asus provides a “Gamer's” overclocking profile that uses a dynamic overclock. The maximum CPU ratio for this configuration is 47x, with each additional core receiving a 1x multiplier decrease, while the CPU Cache multiplier was at 42x. CPU VCore is set to 1.250V and CPU Cache is at 1.250V. As with the other profiles, our chip wasn't capable of maintaining stability with these settings.
We also tried overclocking with the 4.20, 4.40, and 4.60GHz CPU level up settings, but none of these provided enough stability for a successful boot. The reason for this lack of stability is likely to be the lower-than-required CPU VCore level applied by the pre-configured ‘Auto' setting.
We would usually heavily criticise a motherboard for shipping without overclocking profiles that are clearly stable to the wide majority of users' processors. Given that automated overclocking is by no means what the Asus Maximus VI Extreme motherboard is designed for, it is more understandable that the profiles' settings are not idle.
Nevertheless, if pre-defined overclocking profiles are found on a motherboard, at least some of them should be perfectly stable.
Manual CPU Overclocking:
To test the Asus Maximus VI Extreme motherboard's CPU overclocking potential, we first increased the CPU VCore to 1.350V, Cache voltage to 1.300V, and CPU Input Voltage to 1.900V. PLL overvoltage was enabled and the Cache multiplier was at 39x.
Power tweaks that we applied included; Load-line calibration set to level 1, CPU current capability at 130%, CPU power phase control as Optimised, and long duration and short duration package power limits to 1000.
We were able to hit our known-stable 4.5GHz CPU frequency by simply increasing the multiplier to 45x. We tried for 4.6GHz, but as with the other Z87 boards that we have tested with this chip, stability was not present.
One interesting point that we noted was that we actually found better system stability (eliminating a few infrequent BSODs) by opting for a 100% CPU current capability and ‘Auto' CPU power phase control. This could be related to the processor's temperature, or the motherboard's power delivery components (less likely).
Our 4.5GHz frequency validation can be viewed here.
High-speed Memory Compatibility:
While a system’s maximum memory frequency may be heavily swayed by the CPU’s individual memory controller, the motherboard’s performance can also help to obtain higher speeds, especially when XMP settings are taken into account.
We switched to a 3000MHz set of Avexir Core Extreme Series memory to test the Asus Maximus VI Extreme motherboard’s support for high DRAM frequencies. These sticks feature an XMP profile for 3000MHz and are a great challenge for any Z87 motherboard to support.
Note: Shortly before this review went to publication, Asus provided us with a pre-release BIOS which, according to the company, delivers better memory overclocking margins. We updated to this BIOS for the sole purpose of testing the Maximus VI Extreme motherboard's memory overclocking performance. The BIOS that we used will be available to download shortly.
After an initial hiccup where the memory was very reluctant to POST, even after pressing the MemOK button, we removed one module and tried again. The single DIMM went straight into the BIOS where we could apply its XMP profile. The same happened with the other DIMM, so we combined them and obtained perfect stability at 3000MHz using the Avexir Core Extreme Series memory's XMP profile.
By default, Avexir's XMP profile sets a 102.3MHz base clock and makes use of a motherboard's 29.33x memory multiplier. The Asus Maximus VI Extreme had no problems booting with these settings.
Our dedicated review of Avexir's Core Extreme Series 3000MHz 8GB memory kit, in which we use the Asus Maximus VI Extreme motherboard to see how far we can overclock the modules, can be read here.
Our validation running at a 3000MHz DRAM frequency can be viewed here.
