ASUS P9X79 LGA 2011 Intel X79 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS

Pros: Easy Install ... manual is good ..easy to follow ...

Cons: A P9x79 with a super set up..SSD's and all the goodies... machine would not boot past the Asus Logo ...Pulled all the memory plugged in a single strip ..was OK ..plugged in the second memory strip, machine would not boot....
Took tech service 4 days to figure that somebody put the wrong label on the board and box...Tech said my numbers were not a P9 ..so after sending 4 emails over 10 days with pictures they agreed to fix the board...as they thought it was a bogus MB

Other Thoughts: In the meantime I bought a second p9X79 ..this installed and worked fine ..like a rockership ..then this AM would not boot.... Did all the DIAG's etc...Bad MB ...But arriving this week was my old P9 ..so I swapped, only to find out that the CPU cooler mounting bracket was missing...
Tech told me if I sent it in on the RMA MB they threw it away...so I pulled it off todays dead MB and slipped and broker a cap off the board...so it's going into file 13..lost $250.00. But got the mount on and getting ready to go into the config... So three months and I may have a new computer..BUT this is not ASUS, I've had dozens of MB's from them with no problem, just guess the P9 bit me on the rear side...

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valued Customer,

Sorry to hear that you had to go through this big mess. I hope you are able to get this frankenstein up and running. Sorry to hear that you broke the cap of the board.

If you have any questions or comments you can email me again at cl-jeffrey@asus.com which I reside in the U.S

ASUS strives to meet and exceeds our customer expectations within our warranty policy.

Regards,

Jeffrey

Pros: Very clean set up, the guide is extremly self explanatory. Best of all, the bios is easy to use and very helpfull

Cons: The price, but for 2011 socket and the quality of this mobo its worth it

Other Thoughts: So far i have zero problems with it, it controls the power properly and does eveything well. Id recomend nabbing the warranty just to be safe.

Pros: -UEFI Is nice.
-Board is well laid out.
-Easy to install.

Cons: When I first got it, and set everything up, I made the mistake in plugging the fan into an unlabeled 3 pin prong, which was RIGHT next to the actual fan port.
After I booted it up, the DRAM light stayed lit, I tried everything to get working, but realized that the mistake I made.

I think they need to do a better job of relocating whatever that odd prong was.

Ontop of that, I went into the Bios, and saw that the CPU temperature was 105 C.
That is insane, I re-seated it and everything, tried a different cooler...
I believe the temperature gauge for the CPU is busted.
I do not want to RMA it, but I am thinking about it.

Other Thoughts: I really do like this board, but that small issue with the CPU gauge really seems to ruin it for me.

If I reboot the computer while the gauge is reading 108c, it will prevent me from booting during post.

If it really was that hot, it should auto shut down at 100.

Though, it seems if I check the temperature right after it cools down, it starts out at 20 or so, and climbs to 85 very fast, no matter what heat sink, and thermal paste.

Pros: Stable so far, 8 memory slots, 3x SLI

Cons: I can't use the board for 3x SLI at work (and I need to!) The 3rd x16 PCI-E slot is set too far to the side. I can't wedge a third graphics card into the space the motherboard + case gives me.

Flip the positions of the 3rd 16x PCI-E and vanilla-PCI slots, and maybe the 2nd 16x PCI-E and the 2nd1x PCi-E slots, and I'd love this motherboard.

Other Thoughts: Wrote the review just to gripe about 16x PCI-E slot placement. I'd recommend it for anything short of 3x SLI.

If you want to make 3x SLI work, make sure you get a case that has 8x expansions slots and supports this MB's form factor. Normal cases support 7.

I'd be curious to find out how many Asus customers thought they were getting a inexpensive 3x SLI board only to take it home and realize they weren't going to fit their 3rd card into their case.

Pros: stable

Cons: Lack of more then 2 sata3 ports inhibits effective professional use

Pros: Worked right off, no flashing of BIOS required. UEFI BIOS is very easy to use, a caveman could do it. Added I7 CPU, 32G of Corsair Dominator Platinum RAM, and 2 ASUS HD 7770 2GD5 2G video cards crossfired....

Cons: There is no connection on the board for USB 3.0. I wish I would have done just a bit more research, but it isnt enough to deter me from buying again. An adapter connected and then plugged into one of the 3.0 rear panel connections will do the trick just fine, so if you want your case front 3.0 to work with this board, make sure you get an adapter.

Other Thoughts: The price for this was perfect. There are quite a few more boards out there with more bells and whistles, but you will pay higher dollar for it. IMHO, this is one of the best bang for your buck MOBO's out there. You could pay less for other MOBO's, but with electronics today, always remember that you get what you pay for. The only other thing is the drivers itself. I run windows 8 pro. Im not a big fan of the way ASUS website does their driver downloads. It is extremely confusing (not something a caveman can do...), and with windows 8, there isnt much support as it is new..... Looks like downloading drivers for those that use other versions of windows will be just difficult as well. ASUS, WTB a download that would have all drivers at once and up to date.

Pros: Good overclocker, painless install and affordable

Cons: See other thoughts

Other Thoughts: On boot I would always get a CPU fan error. Lowering the low speed monitor from 600 to 200 RPM in the BIOS took care of that problem

Pros: Easy to overclock with provided tools; Easily went from 3.6 GHz to 4.6 GHz. USB Flash BIOS is easy to use.

Cons: Memory is a too close to CPU for some CPU fans. On-board audio failed after several weeks of use. External Sound Blaster on USB is working fine.

Pros: Wrote a review 3 months ago, updating it now to reflect my experiences with this board.

I have had no issues with this board since after the 1st day of ownership. On that day, I had to update my BIOS to get my RAM which was supported to work. Not a big deal, if you did your homework, you'd expect that and would have downloaded the update onto a flash drive already. The bios flash through a rear usb port is fantastic and easy to use. The LED problem lights work and are helpful.

The board is working great. Has a lot of bells and whistles on it, plenty of heat sensors built in, onboard audio is adequate and has revitalized the ancient speakers I'm using.

Overclocking is made simple through the UEFI BIOS, can set many custom profiles. The 8 RAM slots are more than you'll ever need, plenty of PCIE slots as well. All in all, this board is a beast at it's price level.

Cons: Had to update the bios on day 1, but was aware of it. RAM placement is a bit closer to the processor than I'd like. No internal usb 3.0 port for modern cases to plug into. Only 2 usb SATA 6 GB ports and the provided drivers for it make devices plugged into it appear as if they are SCSI which may cause problems updating various SSDs if they are using those SATA ports. Only bad experience I've had since owning this board came from a failing SSD, which was not the boards fault at all.

Other Thoughts: This is a good buy for the money, but if you're not on a budget, I might consider going for the deluxe for a few more sata 6 gb ports and other features.

Pros: 8 memory slots, with any luck you can use them

Cons: Quality control ineffective. Customer service even worse. You need to update the BIOS just to get it working and even then you may be out of luck.

Other Thoughts: Generally I've had great luck with ASUS boards, but this one is terrible. Do your own research and google "DRAM_LED" and "P9X79" and you will find many results with people like "ASUS Board DRAM LED Lit, wont boot." Apparently flashing the bios will resolve the issue, but not for me. Now my only option is to remove the board, send it in for warranty and have no PC until it gets back.

Customer service had a great idea though....Luckily I have a 3 year warranty so if I manage to upgrade within that time I can send it in then! Super! I'd be cheaper still to leave it in the trash pile instead. What use will I have for the board AFTER I upgrade?

P.S. If you wind up searching google like I suggested you will see many of the people wound up returning the board. Unfortunately for me, the store was an hour drive each way and I don't have the time or gas money.

Also, don't be fooled by the personal responses to these negative reviews, they don't provide any real help

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Valued Customer,

We apologize for the memory issue with the motherboard.

The red DRAM_LED light will stay on when the memory is not seated properly into the slot. Please try to press and hold the MemOK! button until it blinks. This will start memory tuning for successful boot. It may take 30 seconds or more for tuning to be complete. Your computer may reboot several times; this is normal.

Please use memory listed in our Qualified Vendor List available on the motherboard product page. Memory listed here are known to be compatible with the motherboard. In addition, for Intel CPU’s memory voltage of less than 1.65V is recommended.

In addition, please try installing a single memory in slot DIMM_D1 (second slot from the left on the right side). If it boots, install additional RAM until you are not able to boot. That will tell you that that slot may be defective.

Regards,
Benson
Asus Customer Loyalty