devices which use up as
much bandwidth as possible
(Camera’s for example) then
you may run out of bandwidth
for other USB devices. This
isn’t a new situation, but
simply how traffic is routed
via the available links for the
system. Again, something
most users will never come
across, but for content
creators and the like, be
mindful of this.
Where cooling and aesthetic
customization is concerned,
Fan and RGB strip/LED
support are standard affair
and an arear where the
CROSSHAIR VI Hero holds its
own. You can directly control
five 4-pin PWM fans. In
addition, there are dedicated
headers for your water/AIO
pumps as well. Two water
temp sensors and a water flow
sensor are included as well.
You’ll have to spend some time
configuring all of this and you’d
28 The OverClocker Issue 41 | 2017
do well to install the software
that will allow you to control
all these fans and pumps in
real time. It’s possible to do
it in the UEFI, but you may
find it easier using Fan Xpert
software.
Finally, we get to the RGB
LEDs, honestly these solutions
are near identical on all
boards and it’s hard to write
anything about them without
waffling. You like bright
colours and shiny things, the
CROSSHAIR VI Hero has you
covered, but that isn’t in the
top 10 list of things that make
the CROSSHAIR VI worthwhile.
In fact, without any LED’s I’d
not change my mind about it.
Part of what makes this
such an interesting board
for performance tuning
and overclocking is that it
uses a particular routing
mechanism for the memory,
simply known as T-topology.
What this means is that
there’s a single set of signals
or lines if you prefer, from
the CPU IMC (Integrated
memory controller) to the
DIMM socket. These signals
split in a T shape, servicing
both channels (this is a logic
layout and not necessarily a
physical one). It’s of course a
lot more detailed than that, but
suffice to say it helps memory
overclocking and it is the same
design implemented on the
APEX series. The downside of
this layout is that four DIMM
operation or performance is
sacrificed by a small margin.
So, if you’re going to be using
four 8GB or even 16GB DIMMs,
you may want to consider
another motherboard. It won’t
be easy to find a matching
offering though, because
while others may have better
4-DIMM performance, the
operating frequency may be
significantly lower, so the
CROSSHAIR VI Hero could