ASUS Maximus VII Hero Intel Z97 Socket H3 (LGA 1150) ATX motherboard

Intel Socket 1150, 4 x DIMM DDR3 3200/3100/3000/2933/2800/2666/2600/2500/2400/2200/2133/2000/1866/1800/1600/1333 MHz, SATA 6Gb, USB 3.0/USB 2.0, Gigabit Ethernet, ATX ROG high-value gaming ATX-board with brilliant performance and exclusive game-boosting features
- Intel® LGA1150 4th, New 4th & 5th-Generation Core™ i7/Core™ i5/Core™ i3/Pentium®/Celeron® Processors Ready;
- Intel® Z97 Express Chipset with M.2 support (up to 10Gb/s data-transfer);
- Intel™ Ethernet + LANGuard + GameFirst III –This is game networking taken to the next level. This is ROG;
- SupremeFX 2014 + Radar II – New and improved audio that’s beyond compare;
- KeyBot + TrueVolt USB - Instant keyboard upgrade and rock-steady 5V USB supply;
- USB UEFI BIOS and Secure Erase - Award-winning simplicity and factory-fresh conditioning for superb performance;
- World’s first dual-color PCB with a matte black and red finish.

More throughpu, less CPU usage and great gaming experiences!
Maximus VII Hero features the very latest Intel® Ethernet for faster, smoother gaming — always. Intel's LAN has the serious double advantage of reducing CPU overhead and offering exceptionally high TCP and UDP throughput. This significantly reduces the processor's workload, so there's more power for your game and your gameplay!

ASUS engineers used IxChariot, an independent network-assessment test tool, to determine just how much quicker Intel Gigabit Ethernet deals with the smaller (sub-256 bytes) UDP data packets that are vital for responsive gaming. The results are in — and with Maximus VII Hero your game-data packets flow up to two times (2X) faster than competing gaming-LAN technologies!

Pumped-up throughput. Best surge protection.
ROG has reinvented the LAN port. Advanced signal-coupling technology and premium surface-mounted capacitors improve throughput, while surge-protected and electrostatically-guarded components (ESD Guards) protect your motherboard from lightning strikes and static electricity!

Network-optimization software for no-delay gameplay!
Exclusive GameFirst III has been upgraded with even more gamer-helping features and an interface that's even more intuitive! GameFirst III helps you to assign top priority to game packets and allocate more bandwidth to the game, ensuring the best online gaming experience.

Choose from a preset mode to suit what you're doing – Optimization, Game, Media Streaming or File Sharing. You can manage bandwidth down to the level of individual applications, with five priority levels (highest, higher, normal, lower, lowest) and even the ability to block specific traffic. GameFirst III even has a built-in Network Monitor tool, so you can supervise your network traffic and test your connection speed to check that you're getting the bandwidth you pay for!

Precision-engineered audio that's as great as a dedicated sound card
ROG knows the importance of flawless audio – pristine effects and full-range soundtracks make the game. That's why we invest substantial engineering resources to perfect onboard audio. The result is SupremeFX. Cutting-edge isolation technologies minimize electromagnetic interference (EMI) and exceptionally premium components deliver best-in-class audio that's as great as a dedicated soundcard. But we never rest on our laurels, which is why SupremeFX 2014 has been refined even further for Maximus VII motherboards. That means even finer components and superbly clever software innovations for gaming and multimedia experiences beyond compare!

Sonic SenseAmp – Amp up your headset!Sonic SenseAmp is a ROG invention that detects headphone impedance (below 65 / 65 ~ 150 / 150 or higher ohms) and adjusts the built-in amp automatically, for pitch-perfect listening right away!

Sonic SoundStage – Hardware-level audio-profiles switch Apply the best settings for your favorite game genres in real time on any OS, via the onboard Sonic SoundStage button. The debug LED displays the mode — FPS (01), racing (02), fighting (03) or sports (04).

ELNA® capacitors – Exceptionally warm and natural soundPremium Japanese-made ELNA® audio capacitors.

Sonic Studio - Brilliant one-click virtual sound!
Sonic Studio is a brand-new audio-tuning suite that provides an aural treat. Use the one-click Virtual Surround function to 7.1 channels, even through a stereo (2.0-channel) headset. It offers five more superb audio controls, including Reverb, Bass Boost, Equalizer, Voice Clarity and Smart EQ — ensuring that everything you hear sounds just amazing!

Scan and detect to dominate!
Designed for first-person shooters (FPS), Sonic Radar II displays a stealthy overlay that shows what opponents and teammates are up to. See the precise direction and origin of in-game sounds such as gunshots, footsteps and call-outs, and practice your enemy-pinpointing skills — and exclusive Audio Enhancement further improves in-game sound for superb hearing awareness. The all-new Sonic Radar II includes a redesigned control panel with customizable game list!

Your keyboard, instantly upgraded!
Fancy a free keyboard upgrade? That's what KeyBot gives you — instantly. Just plug your existing keyboard into the dedicated USB socket to activate the exclusive KeyBot microprocessor on the Maximus VII Hero. Use the easy-to-use utility to assign macros to function keys F1-F10, launch any application with a single press or control multimedia playback.

Forget the USB power drop-outs!
ROG's TrueVolt USB design delivers a rock-steady 5V supply to both the front and back USB sockets – no drop-outs!

Two 5V isolated linear power supply for all USB ports
-Low noise, low loss.
-Stable 5V supply to provide clean 5V USB power to minimize potential fluctuations
-All connected equipment (e.g. USB DAC or thumb drivers) benefits from the clean, stable 5V supply at
the same time.

Acclaimed by world media as the most-intuitive UEFI BIOS!
The smoothest mouse-controlled graphical UEFI BIOS has been upgraded to deliver faster setup and easier functions, with an even more appealing design for better overclocking and DIY experiences. Whether you're a PC novice or a seasoned overclocker, the EZ and Advanced Modes help you find your way, quickly and easily.

Dynamically unleash your RAM – 20X faster than SSD!
With RAMDisk you can turn system memory into superfast temporary storage. Put large files, such as game maps, into RAMDisk and watch loading times fly — you'll never again wait to play. The improved 2014 edition of RAMDisk dynamically allocates memory, so unused RAM is released back to the system when it's needed. You'll even enjoy the bonus of protecting your SSD drives, as RAMDisk reduces excessive reads and writes that can reduce lifespan! Last but not least, the junction function serves as quick links between files and RAM storage. All files are automatically saved and restored to their specific locations on hard drives when you turn your PC off, then go back to RAM when you power on again.