ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger Review
Category : Z170
Published by Marc Büchel on 26.11.15
With the Maximus VIII Ranger, ASUS shows their next generation ATX gaming and overclocking motherboard, which is based on Intel's latest Z170 chipset. Like it's predecessor this board wants to convince with an attractive price point, a balanced feature mix, which pleases overclockers as well as gamers.




The Maximus VIII Ranger is ASUS's ATX gaming and overclocking motherboard regarding Intels latest Z170 chipset, which features an interesting price/performance ratio. Once more we're really curious to find out what ASUS has come up with and how this board does when benchmarked.
Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Specs and Delivery

Chipset Intel Z170
Memory Dual Channel DDR4, 4 x DIMM, Max. 64 GB DDR4, 3400 (O.C.) / 3333 (O.C.) / 3300 (O.C.) / 3200 (O.C.) / 3000 (O.C.) / 2800 (O.C.) / 2666 (O.C.) / 2400 (O.C.) / 2133 Non-ECC, Un-buffered Memory
Multi-GPU
  • Supports NVIDIA 4-way SLI Technology
  • Supports AMD 3-way CrossFireX Technology
Slots
  • 2 x PCIe 3.0 x16
  • 1 x PCIe 3.0 x4
  • 3 x PCIe 3.0/2.0 x1
  • 1 x M.2 x4 Slots type 2242/2260/2280/22110
Sound ROG SupremeFX Impact Audio 8-Channel High Definition Audio
  • Supports : Jack-detection, Multi-streaming, Front Panel Jack-retasking
  • SupremeFX Shielding Technology
  • ESS ES9023P DAC: dB SNR, dB THD+N (Max. kHz/ -bit)
  • TI RC4580 2VRMS audio OP AMP(s)
Storage Intel Z170 chipset:
  • 1 x M.2 x4 Socket 3with M Key, type 2242/2260/2280/22110 (both SATA & PCIE mode)
  • 6 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), gray, , 4 ports from 2 x SATA Express
  • 2 x SATA Express port
  • Support Raid 0, 1, 5, 10
  • Intel Rapid Storage Technology supports
  • Supports Intel Smart Response Technology
Network
  • Intel I219V, 1 x 10/100 LAN Controller(s), GameFirst technology
  • Intel LAN- Dual interconnect between the Integrated LAN controller and Physical Layer (PHY)
  • Anti-surge LANGuard
Internal Connectors
  • 1 x AAFP connector
  • 2 x USB 3.0 connector(s) support(s) additional 4 USB 3.0 port(s)
  • 2 x USB 2.0 connector(s) support(s) additional 4 USB 2.0 port(s)
  • 2 x SATA Express connector: gray, Compatible with 4 x SATA 6.0 Gb/s ports
  • 1 x M.2 Socket 3 with M Key design, type 2242/2260/2280/22110
  • 2 x SATA 6Gb/s connector(s)
  • 1 x CPU Fan connector(s) (1 x 4 -pin)
  • 1 x CPU OPT Fan connector(s) (1 x 4 -pin)
  • 4 x Chassis Fan connector(s) (4 x 4 -pin)
  • 1 x Thunderbolt header(s)
  • 1 x 24-pin EATX Power connector(s)
  • 1 x 8-pin ATX 12V Power connector(s)
  • 1 x System panel(s) (Q-Connector)
  • 1 x 5-pin EXT_FAN(Extension Fan) connector
  • 1 x MemOK! button(s)
  • 1 x Thermal sensor connector(s)
  • 1 x Power-on button(s)
  • 1 x Reset button(s)
  • 1 x Clear CMOS button(s)
  • 1 x Water Pump header (4-pin)
  • 1 x LN2 Mode jumper(s)
  • 1 x ROG extension (ROG_EXT) header(s)
  • 1 x 14-1 pin TPM connector
External Connectors
  • 1 x PS/2 keyboard/mouse combo port(s)
  • 1 x DisplayPort
  • 1 x HDMI
  • 1 x LAN (RJ45) port(s)
  • 1 x USB 3.1 (black)Type-C
  • 1 x USB 3.1 (red)Type-A
  • 2 x USB 3.0 (blue)
  • 4 x USB 2.0
  • 1 x Optical S/PDIF out
  • 5 x Audio jack(s)
  • 1 x USB BIOS Flashback Button(s)
Forfactor ATX (30.5cm x 24.4cm)
BIOS Bios (128 Mb flash ROM, UEFI AMI BIOS)


   




Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Features

Digi+

Since quite some time ASUS has been equipping its boards with digital power designs. Using the right software it is not only possible to adjust voltages while being in Windows on can now also control impedances. Furthermore this board features high quality 10K black metallic capacitor which guarantee a long lifespan.
 

EPU

EPU automatically detects the current system load and moderates power usage. It offers a system-wide energy optimization and is able to reduce fan noise.
   

SATA Express

SATA Express is a port for storage devices that basically combines two SATA connectors and bundles them. Each SATA Express port has been wired using two PCI Express Gen2 lanes offering a total of 10 Gbps bandwidth. Compared to SATA-III with 6 Gbps bandwidth this is quite an improvement.
 

M.2 / NVMe support

The new ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger motherboard from ASUS features an M.2 slot, which can be equipped with an NVMe adapter card as well. This motherboard can be equipped with an SSD in M.2 format and it is wired directly to the Z170 PCH via four PCI Express Gen 3 lanes, therefore offering x4 bandwidth. In other words up to 32 Gbps can be pushed over the bus through this slot.
 

SupremeFX 2015

With SupremeFX 2015 you get ASUS ROG's interpretation of high quality onboard audio. Supporting up to eight channels, the SupremeFX 2015 solution received shielding from other onboard components. Apart from that there are high quality Nichicon capacitors offering as clear as possible audio.


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Layout


At a first glance the ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger looks very good with its harmonic design. For the first time in quite a few years ASUS has decided to change the color scheme of their ROG series motherboards. There is a matte black PCB and the heatsinks feature a metallic, dark silver tone, which reflects different colors. The layout itself is well-designed and there is plenty of space around the CPU socket to install even todays largest CPU coolers. The fact that there are angled SATA connectors allows an easy installation of oversized graphics cards.



  

The ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger features a digital 10+2 phase power design. The CPU is backed up by ten phases, while the memory can rely on two, so there is a stable current supply in any case. Furthermore ASUS equips this board with their so called "BlackWing Chokes". Furthermore those chokes can cope with up to 60A per phase. Additionally there are 10K Black Metallic Capacitors, which have an average life span of 10'000 hours. The power design is overall more than powerful enough to easily deal with extreme overclocking.



  

There are four DIMM-slots on the Maximus VIII Ranger. Officially supported are DDR4 3400 (O.C.) / 3333 (O.C.) / 3300 (O.C.) / 3200 (O.C.) / 3000 (O.C.) / 2800 (O.C.) / 2666 (O.C.) / 2400 (O.C.) / 2133.There is engough space between the DIMM-slots and the CPU socket which means that you won't encounter compatibility issues with large coolers even when you choose to install RAM with big heatspreaders. Also supported is Xtreme Memory Profile (XMP) in version 2.0.


On the Maximus VIII Ranger the PCH (Platform Controller Hub) is being cooled by a passiv heatsink. A closer look at the area where the VRM is, shows that there are two additional heatsinks, which have been connected with a heatpipe. As we already mentioned, ASUS has decided to rework the design and in our opinion ASUS once again managed to improve the looks of these coolers compared to the previous Rangerration. We particularly like the shroud covering the sound implementation, I/O area as well as a part of the power design.

  


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Connectors and I/O


ASUS has equipped the Maximus VIII Ranger with six angled SATA ports. All ports offer 6Gbps bandwidth and all SATA III ports are natively wired to the Z170 PCH. Furthermore four SATA ports can be combined to two SATA Express connectors. Right below the SATA connectors you'll find a M.2 slot, which has been wired to the PCH using four PCI Express Gen 3 lanes. Having a closer look at the full-sized PCIe Gen 3 slots, the first one has been wired using 16 lanes and the second one features eight lanes. You'll also find practical onboard power- and reset-buttons on this board as well as a debug display. Regarding onboard audio there is ASUS' latest SupremeFX solution. Also on this version of ASUS' SupremeFX audio solution there are high quality Nichicon capacitors as well as an ES9023P DAC.


  

There is a total of six fan header on the Maximus VIII Ranger which is more than enough, to provide a well equipped ATX system with fresh air. The fan header are located around the CPU socket as spread over the motherboard. ASUS decided to use 4-pin PWM headers in all seven cases. Therefore it is possible to adjust rotation speed in the BIOS or in Windows. One of the headers is marked "W-Pump", which offers a greater control range in order to better adjust pump speeds of all-in-one water pumps.


  


  

Looking at the external connectors directly at the back-panel ASUS equipped the Maximus VIII Ranger with a PS/2 port, two USB 3.1 Type-A ports and one Type-C port, two USB 3.0 ports, one gigabit ethernet port, an HDMI and a DisplayPort connector as well as an optical out and an analogue audio panel. Furtheremore you'll find also a clear CMOS button.




Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

BIOS


The most recent version of ASUS’s UEFI BIOS presents itself with an attractive design, and especially the new interface which called EzMode, where we can not only monitor system information, CPU and motherboard temperature, CPU voltage and DRAM status but also set system and CPU fans as well as directly change the boot priority and tune the system to different profiles, is leaving a good impression. If you wish to go back to the good old times, where you were racing through the menus hammering up and down arrows as well as the enter key ridiculously fast, you just have to press F7 and there you go. Since this motherboard features a very solid power design it is suitable for gaming and high overclocking. The BIOS features all the usual ASUS options, which allow for altering virtually anything when it comes to overclocking. Overall, there is certainly no lack of options in this BIOS.


   


   


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Test setup

Hardware

Motherboard
  • ASRock Z170 Extreme7+
  • ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme
  • ASUS Maximus VIII Gene
  • ASUS Maximus VIII Hero
  • ASUS Maximus VIII Impact
  • ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger
  • ASUS Z170 Deluxe
  • ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming
  • ASUS Z170-A
  • Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1
  • MSI Z170A Gaming M7
  • MSI Z170A XPower Gaming Titanium Edition
  • Supermicro C7Z170-SQ
Processor Intel Core i7-6700K @ 4.0 GHz
Memory 8 GB (2x4) G.Skill Ares DDR4-2133 CL15-15-15-2T 350
Graphic card ASUS GeForce GTX 980
Driver ForceWare 353.62
Hard disk Intel 335 Series SSD 120 GB
Power supply Seasonic Platinum Fanless 520W


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1
[pagebreak]

Preview / Gallery



Product Picture Link to Gallery
   

ASRock Z170 Extreme7+

   

ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme

   

ASUS Maximus VIII Gene

   

ASUS Maximus VIII Hero

   

ASUS Maximus VIII Impact

   

ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger

   

ASUS Z170 Deluxe

   

ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming

   

ASUS Z170-A

   

Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1

   

MSI Z170A Gaming M7

   

Supermicro C7Z170SQ

   


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

3D Mark

Ice Storm

3D Mark Ice Storm Score
Review Rating
Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   196'907 101.75%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   196'281 101.42%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   195'178 100.85%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   195'737 101.14%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   195'491 101.02%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   195'151 100.32%
ASUS Z170-A   195'107 100.82%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   193'524 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   192'036 99.23%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   187'768 97.03%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   184'489 95.33%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   186'491 96.37%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   185'448 95.83%
more is better


Ice Storm Physics

3D Mark Ice Storm Physics Score
Review Rating
Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   68'208 104.29%
ASUS Z170-A   68'073 104.08%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   67'026 102.48%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   66'616 101.16%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   66'332 101.42%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   65'716 100.48%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   65'681 100.42%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   65'404 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   64'711 98.94%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   63'524 97.13%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   62'866 96.12%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   62'775 95.98%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   62'072 94.91%
more is better


Fire Strike

3D Mark Fire Strike Score
Review Rating
Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   12'168 100.65%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   12'108 100.16%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   12'103 100.12%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   12'089 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   12'085 99.97%
ASUS Z170-A   12'085 99.97%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   12'081 99.93%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   12'081 99.93%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   12'071 99.85%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   12'068 99.83%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   12'061 99.80%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   12'061 99.80%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   12'059 99.75%
more is better


Fire Strike Physics

3D Mark Fire Strike Physics Score
Review Rating
Percent
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   13'050 100.48%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   13'043 100.33%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   13'009 100.07%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   13'000 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   12'998 99.98%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   12'993 99.95%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   12'988 99.91%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   12'987 99.90%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   12'977 99.82%
ASUS Z170-A   12'972 99.78%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   12'966 99.74%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   12'938 99.52%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   12'925 99.42%
more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

3D Mark 11

3D Mark 11 Total
Review Rating
Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   16'473 100.54%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   16'436 100.32%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   16'428 100.27%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   16'425 100.25%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   16'423 100.24%
ASUS Z170-A   16'416 100.20%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   16'406 100.13%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   16'397 100.08%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   16'389 100.03%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   16'384 100.00%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   16'366 99.89%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   16'377 99.96%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   16'357 99.83%
more is better


CPU

3D Mark 11 Physics
Review Rating
Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   11'597 101.27%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   11'549 100.85%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   11'548 100.84%
ASUS Z170-A   11'531 100.69%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   11'531 100.69%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   11'519 100.59%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   11'502 100.44%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   11'485 100.29%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   11'477 100.22%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   11'459 100.06%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   11'452 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   11'401 99.55%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   11'357 99.17%
more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

3D Mark Vantage

3D Mark Vantage Total
Review Rating
Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   46'246 100.68%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   46'135 100.44%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   46'052 100.26%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   46'011 100.17%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   45'932 100.00%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   45'903 99.94%
ASUS Z170-A   45'900 99.93%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   45'891 99.91%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   45'881 99.89%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   45'815 99.89%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   45'793 99.70%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   45'725 99.55%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   45'717 99.53%
more is better


3D Mark Vantage CPU
Review Rating
Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   33'163 101.58%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   32'869 100.68%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   32'860 100.66%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   32'852 100.63%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   32'850 100.62%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   32'801 100.47%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   32'753 100.33%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   32'688 100.13%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   32'646 100.00%
ASUS Z170-A   32'590 99.83%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   32'461 99.43%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   32'380 99.19%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   32'304 98.95%
more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

PC Mark 08

Total

PC Mark 08 Total
Review Rating
Points Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   4'662 100.69%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   4'660 100.65%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   4'647 100.37%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   4'640 100.22%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   4'631 100.02%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   4'630 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   4'627 99.94%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   4'621 99.81%
ASUS Z170-A   4'620 99.78%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   4'618 99.74%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   4'617 99.72%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   4'615 99.68%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   4'612 99.61%
more is better


Web Browsing - JunglePin
Review Rating
sec Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   0.28177 100.08%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   0.28182 100.06%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   0.28198 100.01%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   0.28200 100.00%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   0.28200 100.00%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   0.28209 99.97%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   0.28212 99.56%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   0.28215 99.95%
ASUS Z170-A   0.28219 99.93%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   0.28220 99.93%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   0.28253 99.81%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   0.28284 99.70%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   0.28300 99.65%
more is better


Web Browsing - Amazonia
Review Rating
sec Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   0.12176 100.12%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   0.12176 100.12%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   0.12182 100.07%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   0.12185 100.05%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   0.12185 100.05%
ASUS Z170-A   0.12185 100.05%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   0.12186 100.04%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   0.12186 100.04%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   0.12187 100.03%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   0.12191 100.00%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   0.12200 99.88%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   0.12200 99.93%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   0.12256 99.42%
more is better


Writing
Review Rating
sec Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   2.93116 105.76%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   3.00374 103.21%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   3.06777 101.05%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   3.06814 101.04%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   3.09132 100.28%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   3.09199 100.26%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   3.10012 100.00%
ASUS Z170-A   3.10024 99.99%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   3.14001 98.73%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   3.11766 99.44%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   3.13622 97.82%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   3.21000 96.58%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   3.21000 96.58%
more is better


Casual Gaming
Review Rating
fps Percent
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   140.10 100.96%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   139.91 100.82%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   139.48 100.51%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   139.32 100.40%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   139.22 100.32%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   139.18 100.30%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   139.05 100.11%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   138.90 100.09%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   138.77 100.00%
ASUS Z170-A   138.65 98.97%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   138.49 99.80%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   138.49 99.80%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   137.39 98.07%
more is better


Video Chat Playback 1
Review Rating
fps Percent
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   30.00 100.00%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   30.00 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   30.00 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   30.00 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   30.00 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   30.00 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   30.00 100.00%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   30.00 100.00%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   30.00 100.00%
ASUS Z170-A   30.00 100.00%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   30.00 100.00%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   30.00 100.00%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   30.00 100.00%
more is better


Video Chat encoding
Review Rating
ms Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   48.00 101.29%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   48.00 101.29%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   48.00 101.29%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   48.00 101.29%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   48.62 100.00%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   48.88 99.47%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   49.00 99.22%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   49.00 99.22%
ASUS Z170-A   49.00 99.22%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   49.00 99.22%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   49.00 99.22%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   49.00 99.22%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   50.00 97.24%
more is better


Advanced Photo Editing
Review Rating
sec Percent
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   0.30548 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   0.30810 99.15%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   0.31066 98.33%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   0.31100 98.23%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   0.31184 97.96%
ASUS Z170-A   0.31240 97.78%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   0.31261 97.72%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   0.31300 97.60%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   0.31355 97.43%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   0.31357 97.42%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   0.31501 96.97%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   0.31558 96.80%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   0.31645 96.53%
more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

SiSoft Sandra 1

Arithmetic Benchmark

SiSoft Sandra - Arithmetic Benchmark - Dhrystone
Review Rating
GIPS Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   156.00 102.97%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   155.83 102.86%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   155.67 102.75%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   155.23 102.46%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   155.20 102.44%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7  

155.10

102.38%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   155.00 102.31%
ASUS Z170-A   155.00 102.31%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   152.17 102.44%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   154.95 102.28%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   154.92 102.26%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   152.00 100.33%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   151.50 100.00%
more is better


SiSoft Sandra - Arithmetic Benchmark - Whetstone
Review Rating
GFLOPS Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   108.70 100.78%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   108.49 100.58%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   108.47 100.57%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   108.34 100.45%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   108.00 100.13%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   107.86 100.00%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   107.61 99.77%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   107.46 99.63%
ASUS Z170-A   107.41 99.58%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   107.36 99.54%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   107.17 99.36%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   106.73 98.95%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   106.14 98.41%
more is better


Multimedia

SiSoft Sandra - Multimedia - Integer
Review Rating
MPixels/sec Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   514.20 101.91%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   512.34 101.54%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   506.53 100.39%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   504.75 100.04%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   504.69 100.03%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   504.56 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   502.20 99.53%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   501.55 99.40%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   501.00 99.29%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   499.82 99.06%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   499.14 98.90%
ASUS Z170-A   499.12 97.42%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   498.84 97.37%
more is better


SiSoft Sandra - Multimedia - Floating Point
Review Rating
MPixels/sec Percent
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   495.73 101.83%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   492.12 101.09%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   491.71 101.01%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   490.73 100.81%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   490.30 100.72%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   490.29 100.72%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   490.00 100.66%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   489.67 100.59%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   489.18 100.49%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   488.07 100.26%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   487.79 100.20%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   486.80 100.00%
ASUS Z170-A   480.54 98.23%
more is better


Crytography

SiSoft Sandra - Crytography - AES 256
Review Rating
GB/sec Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   7.84 101.69%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   7.83 101.55%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   7.80 101.17%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   7.80 101.17%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   7.78 100.91%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   7.77 100.78%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   7.77 100.78%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   7.77 100.78%
ASUS Z170-A   7.73 100.26%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   7.71 100.00%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   7.71 100.00%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   7.68 99.61%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   7.66 99.35%
more is better


SiSoft Sandra - Crytography - SHA 256
Review Rating
GB/sec Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   1.56 101.96%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   1.56 101.96%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   1.55 101.31%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   1.55 101.31%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   1.55 101.31%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   1.55 101.31%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   1.55 101.31%
ASUS Z170-A   1.55 101.31%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   1.55 101.31%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   1.55 101.31%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   1.55 101.31%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   1.55 101.31%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   1.53 100.00%
more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

SiSoft Sandra 2

Memory bandwidth

SiSoft Sandra - Memory bandwidth - Integer
Review Rating
GB/sec Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   23.45 101.96%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   23.45 101.96%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   23.35 101.52%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   23.32 101.39%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   23.26 101.13%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   23.18 100.78%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   23.16 100.70%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   23.12 100.52%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   23.11 100.48%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   23.00 100.00%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   23.00 100.00%
ASUS Z170-A   23.00 100.00%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   22.91 99.61%
more is better


SiSoft Sandra - Memory bandwidth - floating point
Review Rating
GB/sec Percent
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   23.34 102.46%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   23.20 101.84%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   23.18 101.76%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   23.11 101.45%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   23.00 100.97%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   23.00 100.97%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   22.92 100.61%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   22.92 100.61%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   22.86 100.35%
ASUS Z170-A   22.80 100.09%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   22.79 100.04%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   22.78 100.00%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   22.67 99.52%
more is better


Memory latency

SiSoft Sandra - Memory latency
Review Rating
ns Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   22.7 101.76%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   22.7 101.76%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   22.8 101.32%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   22.9 100.87%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   22.9 100.87%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   22.9 100.87%
ASUS Z170-A   23.0 100.43%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   23.1 100.00%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   23.1 100.00%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   23.1 100.00%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   23.1 100.00%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   23.1 100.00%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   23.2 99.57%
less is better more is better


Memory and cache access

SiSoft Sandra - Cache
Review Rating
GB/sec Percent
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   207.35 100.41%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   207.24 100.35%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   207.20 100.33%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   207.18 100.32%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   207.11 100.29%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   207.00 100.24%
ASUS Z170-A   206.87 100.17%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   206.79 100.14%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   206.65 100.07%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   206.51 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   206.40 99.95%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   206.00 99.75%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   205.49 99.51%
more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

UC Bench

UC Bench
Review Rating
PW/sec Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   1'060.3 100.66%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   1'059.9 100.62%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   1'057.2 100.36%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   1'057.1 100.35%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   1'056.9 100.33%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   1'056.3 100.28%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   1'055.9 100.24%
ASUS Z170-A   1'055.9 100.24%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   1'055.5 100.20%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   1'055.1 100.16%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   1'054.6 100.11%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   1'054.1 100.07%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   1'053.4 100.00%
more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Super Pi 1M - 32M

Super Pi 1M

Super Pi 1.5 XS - 1M
Review Rating
sec Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   9.048 100.80%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   9.057 100.70%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   9.068 100.57%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   9.075 100.50%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   9.079 100.45%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   9.094 100.29%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   9.094 100.29%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   9.095 100.27%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   9.095 100.27%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   9.110 100.11%
ASUS Z170-A   9.111 100.10%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   9.111 100.10%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   9.120 100.00%
less is better more is better

Super Pi 32M

Super Pi 1.5 XS - 32M
Review Rating
sec Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   480.688 100.48%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   480.919 100.43%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   481.135 100.38%
ASUS Z170-A   482.305 100.14%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   482.390 100.12%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   481.401 100.33%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   482.462 100.11%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   482.789 100.04%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   482.985 100.00%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   484.677 99.65%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   485.394 99.38%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   486.127 99.35%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   487.266 99.12%
less is better more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

wPrime 1024M Multicore

wPrime - 1024M Multi Core
Review Rating
sec Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   158.323 100.77%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   158.356 100.75%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   158.470 100.67%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   158.752 100.49%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   158.816 100.45%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   158.963 100.36%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   159.026 100.32%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   159.042 100.31%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   159.262 100.17%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   159.401 100.08%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   159.425 100.07%
ASUS Z170-A   159.459 100.05%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   159.536 100.00%
more is better more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Cinebench R15

Cinebench R11.5 - Multi Core
Review Rating
pts Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   889 100.91%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   888 100.79%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   887 100.68%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   886 100.57%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   886 100.57%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   884 100.34%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   882 100.11%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   881 100.00%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   881 100.00%
ASUS Z170-A   879 99.77%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   878 99.66%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   877 99.55%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   874 99.21%
less is better more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Tomb Raider

Low resolution - 1024 x 768

Tomb Raider (low resolution, low details)
Review Rating
fps Percent
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   264.6 100.00%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   262.6 99.24%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   261.4 98.79%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   261.0 98.64%
ASUS Z170-A   260.6 98.49%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   260.0 98.26%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   259.3 98.00%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   258.1 97.54%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   258.0 97.51%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   258.0 97.51%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   257.2 97.20%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   257.1 97.17%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   255.1 96.41%
more is better


High resolution - 1920 x 1080

Tomb Raider (high resolution, high details)
Review Rating
fps Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   150.8 101.96%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   150.0 101.42%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   149.8 101.28%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   149.2 100.88%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   147.9 100.00%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   147.9 100.00%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   147.9 100.00%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   145.9 98.65%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   144.3 97.57%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   144.0 97.36%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   144.0 97.36%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   143.1 96.75%
ASUS Z170-A   142.0 96.01%
more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Metro Last Light

Low resolution - 1024 x 768

Metro Last Light (low details, low resolution)
Review Rating
fps Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   186.03 101.53%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   185.90 101.46%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   185.70 101.35%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   185.63 101.32%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   184.71 100.81%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   184.02 100.44%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   184.00 100.43%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   183.22 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   183.00 99.88%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   182.29 99.49%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   182.27 99.48%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   181.85 99.25%
ASUS Z170-A   181.55 99.09%
more is better


High resolution - 1920 x 1080

Metro Last Light (high details, high resolution)
Review Rating
fps Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   57.40 101.11%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   57.31 100.95%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   57.23 100.81%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   56.77 100.00%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   56.77 100.00%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   56.77 100.00%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   56.77 100.00%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   56.70 99.88%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   56.60 99.70%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   56.60 99.70%
ASUS Z170-A   56.57 99.65%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   56.54 99.59%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   56.06 98.75%
more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Sleeping Dogs

Low resolution, low details

Sleeping Dog (low details, low resolution)
Review Rating
fps Percent
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   557.7 101.97%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   557.0 101.85%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   556.6 101.77%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   555.9 101.65%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   555.2 101.52%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   551.5 100.84%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   550.4 100.64%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   550.2 100.60%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   548.4 100.27%
ASUS Z170-A   548.3 100.26%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   548.1 100.22%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   546.9 100.00%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   545.7 99.53%
more is better


High resolution, high details

Sleeping Dogs (high details, high resolution)
Review Rating
fps Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   248.1 101.51%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   248.0 101.47%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   247.3 101.19%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   246.8 100.98%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   245.5 100.45%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   244.4 100.00%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   243.6 99.67%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   242.5 99.22%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   241.7 98.90%
ASUS Z170-A   241.1 98.65%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   241.0 98.61%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   240.8 98.53%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   238.4 97.55%
more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Power Consumption

Idle

Idle
Review Rating
Watt Percent
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   43 141.86%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   48 127.08%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   49 124.49%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   55 110.91%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   55 110.91%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   55 100.91%
ASUS Z170-A   56 108.93%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   59 103.39%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   61 100.00%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   61 100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   62 98.39%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   62 98.39%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   66 92.42%
less is better more is better


Load

Load
Review Rating
Watt Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   108 123.15%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   109 122.02%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   111 119.82%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   113 117.70%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   117 113.68%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   120 110.83%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   121 109.92%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   127 104.72%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   131 101.53%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   133 100.00%
ASUS Z170-A   133 100.00%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   133 100.00%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   133 100.00%
less is better more is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Performance Rating

3D and Gaming Benchmarks
Review Rating
Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   100.67%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   100.53%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   100.39%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   100.32%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   100.16%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   100.11%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   100.00%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   99.92%
ASUS Z170-A   99.82%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   99.49%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   99.18%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   98.80%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   98.64%
more is better


2D Benchmarks
Review Rating
Percent
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   100.97%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   100.86%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   100.52%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   100.51%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   100.32%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   100.32%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   100.01%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   100.00%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   99.94%
ASUS Z170-A   99.82%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   99.82%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   99.61%
MSI Z170 Gaming M7   99.41%
more is better


Performance per Watt
Review Rating
Percent
MSI Z170 Gaming M7 79.57%
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ   80.91%
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+   84.57%
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene   89.37%
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger   90.38%
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero   90.68%
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact   92.41%
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition   94.43%
ASUS Z170-A   98.91%
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1   99.50%
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme   99.02%
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming   99.86%
ASUS Z170 Deluxe   100.00%
less is better


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Price comparison

Model
Geizhals.eu
ASRock Z170 Extreme7+
ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme
ASUS Maximus VIII Gene
ASUS Maximus VIII Hero
ASUS Maximus VIII Impact
ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger
ASUS Z170 Deluxe
ASUS Z170 Pro Gaming
ASUS Z170-A
Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming G1
MSI Z170 Gaming M7
MSI Z170A Xpower Gaming Titanium Edition
Supermicro C7Z170-SQ


Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]

Conclusion

General   + -
The Maximus VIII Ranger is the most aggressively priced ASUS Republic of Gamers board, which doesn't mean there isn't a number of interesting features. At a first glance the Maximus VIII Ranger definitely leaves a very good impression. The mix of overclocking features and solid audio hardware makes this an interesting motherboard for an ATX-gaming system. And next to a very nice looking design, which has been reworked for this series of ROG motherboards, you find useful features like for example GameFirst. This software allows you to configure your network device the way gaming traffic gets prioritized (keyword traffic shaping). Furthermore also on this board we find an M.2 slot, which has been wired to the PCH using four PCIe Gen 3.0 lanes. This slot can also be equipped with U.2 adapters to install NVMe SSDs.   - Design
- Features
 
       
Layout   + -
Basically the ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger's Layout has been very well thought. Once more practical are the angled SATA connectors as well as the power- and reset-buttons. There is also a debug display which is very useful in case you should have issues with a component in your system or the board itself. Regarding the PCI-Express x16 slots there we have nothing to complain about. A closer look at the area around the CPU socket shows, that there is plenty of space to install big aircoolers without running into any issues. What we also liked is where the power and reset buttons are. Especially when you overclock memory using liquid nitrogen, then it makes sense to not have them next to the DIMM slots, since they will freeze quite quickly. ASUS also decided to further improve the onboard audio, by adding a dedicated DAC as well as high-quality Nichicon capacitors.   - Angled SATA connectors
- Space around the CPU socket - Placement of PCIe slots - Number of different storage connectors
 
       
Performance   + -
Calculating the average of all 2D benchmarks we ran, we see that this is the fourth fastest board we've tested so far. When taking the average of all 3D results this board comes in on a very good second rank. As always we had a look at power consumption and we can say that also from an energy efficiency point of view the Maximus VIII Ranger does well.   - 3DMark 11
- 3DMark Vantage
- Super Pi 32M
- Sleeping Dogs
 
       
Overclocking / BIOS   + -
ASUS has a beautiful looking BIOS when it comes to their ROG series motherboard. The UEFI BIOS gets a black background and there are a few additional red design elements. Meanwhile it's almost normal that a BIOS is absolutely complete offering countless features. If you're looking for overclocking options you'll find a great many of them and they are equally practical for novices and extreme overclockers. We always love the pre-defined profiles, which make overclocking quite a bit easier. Apart from that we especially want to underline the memory profiles ASUS has created. These can help a great deal if you're trying to get high-end memory to work. Boosting our CPU to 5.0 GHz absolutely no problem at all.   - Sheer amount of options
- Design
 
       
Recommendation   + -
The Maximus VIII Ranger comes with a reasonable numer of features as well as excellent perfomance. Currently this board costs 160 Euro and at that price we can recommend it.   - Price - Gaming
- Air/Water Overclocking
 
       
Rating
We give the ASUS Maximus VIII Ranger good 4 out of 5 stars.





Page 1 - Introduction Page 14 - SiSoft Sandra 2
Page 2 - Specs and Delivery Page 15 - UC Bench
Page 3 - Features Page 16 - Super Pi 1M / 32M
Page 4 - Layout Page 17 - wPrime 1024M Multi Core
Page 5 - Connectors and I/O Page 18 - Cinebench
Page 6 - BIOS Page 19 - Tomb Raider
Page 7 - Test setup Page 20 - Metro Last Light
Page 8 - Preview / Gallery Page 21 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 9 - 3D Mark Page 22 - Power Consumption
Page 10 - 3D Mark 11 Page 23 - Performance Rating
Page 11 - 3D Mark Vantage  Page 24 - Price Comparison
Page 12 - PC Mark 8 Page 25 - Conclusion
Page 13 - SiSoft Sandra 1  
[pagebreak]