Rampage VI Apex (LGA2066, Intel X299) - info, experience, BIOSes etc.

[FlanK3r]

Intel public HEDT CPus with platfrom Intel X299 at Computex 2017. The CPU reviews are still under embargo for short time ,-). But some informations are officially out and OK with Intels NDA.

Intel X299 is really highend chipset for enthusiast CPUs. This year very powerfull, much more than anyone hoped. Because this year is AMD also very strong at CPU side (Announced not only 8 cores with SMT, but also up to 16C with SMT for AMD X399), Intel will launch step by step 6C/12T, 8C/16T, 10C/20T....Everything? Nooo, continue it with 12C/24T, 14C/28T, 16C/32T and new flagship 18C/36T !!!


New LGA2066 will be new one after 2011v3...Great value is, you can put in two generation CPUs. More info bellow.
1) Kabylake-X with new CPUs Core i5 X a Core i7 X. Those CPUs are KabyLake-X. Its basically Kabylake with more capacitors and bigger heatspreader. This could help with higher overclocking than classic Kabylakes. Kabylake-X have support only for dualchannel mode (up to 2666 MHz 1.2V). After XMP mode or manualy tweaking you can except everything between 3600 MHz to 4400 MHz at DRAM effective frequency.
2)Skylake-X, are HEDT processors Core i7 X and new Core i9 X. Starting as 6C/12T and up to crazy 18C/36T
There is support for Quadchannel memory. Based at first results on web, the memory clock we can expect overclocking of RAM around 3200 to 3800 MHz. All depends on type of memory chips, quality of IMC particular piece of CPU.

APEX series replaced Extreme series in extreme overclocking segment (yes, all fans of DICE, LN2 and LHe are focus directly at this board). This board broked many WRs after first day :-) There is exmaple with informations about records from 31.5.2017



Now the board mainly.

Motherboard has nice X-design, what means "eXtreme" and looking it more geeks :-) "get out of line". You can see white "X" at PCB also.


In the right upper corner is OC zone with many switchs and buttons. I do not write more about all buttons and functions. You can ask us in discussion.


I like this corner with SATAs in acute angle.

Description of the board.


How to use multi GPU setup (SLI/CF)

-it depends also at CPU, two CPUs have 16 lines, some 28 and few CPUs full of 48 PCIe 3.0 lines



Better DIMM2 slot (for two M.2), "older" version has Maximus IX Apex

So, lets to do serious overclocking guys :-) Im looking forward at next results.

[Franziska]

Love it. I'm going to have a hard time deciding which of the 2 Rampage VI to get.

[FlanK3r]

Both are great. But for my using is more practice Apex

[jmike]

Love it. I'm going to have a hard time deciding which of the 2 Rampage VI to get.

I think for me it will be an easy choice. Something in my gut is telling me the Apex is going to break the price record for most expensive enthusiast board ever offered.

[Silent Scone@ROG]

The entire roster this round looks really sleek, looking forward to this platform.

[upsnef]

I really like the Apex, love the new PCB design, happy to see something new instead of regular rectangle, the "X" remind me something................

for sure I'm more on esthetic side than performance

and the Extreme is gorgeous, but I will have an Apex fisrt

[Franziska]

I think for me it will be an easy choice. Something in my gut is telling me the Apex is going to break the price record for most expensive enthusiast board ever offered.

Yeah I have the feeling the Extreme will be priced similar to the R5E10 around $600 and the Apex maybe around 700-800.

[FlanK3r]

Im thinking Apex will be cheaper than Extreme

[Brighttail]

I'll ask the simple question that I need to know before buying this board. We know that one DIMM 2 slot is linked to the CPU for the VROC technology. We also know that unless you have Intel M.2s you can't use VROC to make a bootable RAID drive.

The other DIMM 2 slot is linked to the Chipset. Will we be able to make a bootable RAID drive using the CHIPSET if we aren't using Intel M.2?

Also Asus will be selling the Asus Hyper x16 which allows FOUR M.2s on a single PCI-e card. If we don't have Intel M.2 drives, will we be able to make a bootable RAID drive using 2,3,4 drives on this device?

I have an x99 5930k with 6 cores. I'm already getting screwed by Intel if I want to keep at 6 or even 8 cores, that I'll lose 40 PCI-e lanes and have to go to 28. I can only get 44 lanes if i go 10 core for $700 more CAD. I can deal with losing 12 lanes IF i can use my Samsung M.2s in RAID 0 or 1 without using the VROC. Is this possible?

Finally am I seeing this right, the fan sits atop the top of the DIMM 2 like that? Looks awful. I'm assuming that the older Domintor Platinum RGB fans should work in this case as they were designed to cover four DIMMS. They are obnoxiously bright and you need an LED module to chnage the lighting from default red, but they look much better than this fan.

Honestly, the M.2s don't need much. I have two or three different types of PCI-e to M.2 cards with heat sinks on them. All it takes is a nice, aluminum or copper heat sink that is attached to the M.2 via a thin thermal transfer pad and you will never have any throttling with good airflow. Four screw holes on each corner that allowed a heat sink would be much better/sexier than a fan sitting on top in my opinion.

Ideally Intel relaxes or changes their mind and allows Samsung, OCZ, WD and other M.2 manufacturers to access the VROC technology. It is a simple update to the BIOS to allow it to happen. If they can make a key/dongle to allow people access to RAID 1, 5 and 10, they can allow other M.2 manufacturers access to VROC.

Simply put if I can't use my M.2s in RAID to Boot, like the z270 boards, then with the loss of my PCI-e lanes for a 6/8 core makes the total number of reasons I should upgrade to be exactly ZERO.

[tistou77]

Hello

waiting for confirmation, but the APEX is more oriented bench (LN2, etc ...) especially for the memory channels ?
To see if it will perform better than the R6E in h24