In my last two pieces I looked at the various features you need to consider when investing in a gaming motherboard for the first time. From the basics like ports and onboard sound, to the mATX debate, we have covered almost all the bases. Now, however, it’s worth examining the overclocking angle.
Overclocking is the ability to boost your motherboard’s performance manually by tweaking the BIOS settings. Not everybody is keen on doing this and you can go to varying degrees of complexity – hardcore overclockers will tweak components within an inch of their lives – but often motherboards come with features that make this exceptionally easy and lots of fun.
Overclocking techniques will likely increase your power consumption and generate more heat so you do have to be sure of a fabulously cooled system before you dive into it. The RoG range of motherboards tend to come with extra cooling features as standard and their latest instalment, the Maximus V Gene motherboard, offers 20% lower temperature endurance and optimum power efficiency with the Extreme Engine Digi+ II. Sounds complicated but is really just extra control over your CPU, iGPU and memory as well as power optimisation features to get the most out of your motherboard.
This motherboard has been built FOR overclocking. Oh yes, it really does take the tinkering gamers needs to heart. The features I mentioned earlier are designed to help you take the card to the edge of its performance without needing ten years at the overclocking frontlines. It has UEFI BIOS functions, like the pre-configured memory IC profiles, as well as components that are designed to make overclocking less of a risk.
Thanks to the built-in components of the Maximus V Gene motherboard you aren’t taking the motherboard’s life into your hands as it can cope with almost anything you throw at it. For me, this makes it a great place to start for the beginner overclocker as it means you can make mistakes and learn from them without sobbing into your bank balance.
You’ll find lots of helpful advice on how to overclock your card, how to achieve different standards and speeds, and common mistakes to avoid on the Republic of Gamers website.
Mrs Mario
Mrs.Mario is a freelance journalist who loves to write about anything and everything. She accidentally fell into the cauldron of technology about eight years ago and has been slowly simmering in there ever since. She’s a geek but still has tons to learn about the wonderful world of technology. She also suffers from a rare disease known as “need to game” that demands it’s sufferers play at least one videogame a week. So far, she’s been coping with her ailment admirably.