ASUS Maximus II GENE P45 mATX Motherboard Review

BIOS Rundown

For this section we are trying something new, instead of standard JPEG images we have turned the various BIOS sections into animated files. Let us know what you think in the comments thread. By the way, if you want to pause the animated images simply press on the ESC key and then F5 to refresh them.


As mentioned previously, the Maximus II GENE is part of the Republic of Gamers product line, as such we are expecting a BIOS that is option-rich yet user-friendly, and which puts an emphasis on its enthusiast roots. Let's see if ASUS can meet our expectations...


Upon entering the BIOS we are automatically presented with the Extreme Tweaker section, which is where all the fun happens. Once the manual option is selected in the Ai Overclock Tuner setting, the BIOS opens up to reveal all of the essential system clock control options: CPU multiplier, front side bus, PCI-E bus, northbridge strap, memory multiplier, CPU/NB/MEM Skews, primary and secondary memory timings, etc.


As we scroll down, numerous other memory-related options are revealed as well as the all important Ai Transaction Booster which contains the critical Performance Level (PL) setting, one of the most important settings for overclocking and overall system performance. As we continue to scroll down, the always handy Load-Line Calibration (LLC) and PCI-E frequency settings make their appearance, as well as a glutony of system voltage options. Off the top of our head, nearly every voltage setting that a serious overclocker needs is present and accounted for. We say nearly every voltage option, because DRAM Termination (VTT) is missing, but that won't be noticed nor missed by anyone not attempting to achieve some absurdly high DDR2 memory clocks. We are very pleased with the rich selection of reference voltage settings that ASUS have made available in this BIOS, more so than on any competitor's product. All the voltage settings must be entered manually, there are no drop-down menus, which we actually prefer since it is generally quite a bit faster. However, having both options would definitely be a plus in our opinion.

Now only are there a lot of voltage options, but the ranges are wide and increments are small, as you can see below:


What can we say? This is an overclocking-friendly BIOS and the abundant voltage options should satisfy everyone. Just make sure that you use these voltages sensibly, as ASUS have provided enough leeway for you to damage any and all components.


Next up is the Main tab, it features the standard storage device list and even a basic System Information section. This System Information section lists some rudementary specification info, including the BIOS date & version, the type of processor and the amount of memory installed.


The Advanced menu contains options for CPU configuration, chipset settings, onboard devices, USB configuration, LCD Poster and LED control, and iROG configuration. This is where you can enable or disable all the Intel-specific energy saving features, the onboard audio, the various storage and network controllers, etc. The LCD Poster and LED control provides a level of control over the LCD Poster and its functions, as well the ability to enable/disable the multiple LEDs strewn throughout the motherboard.


The Power menu allows you set how the computer will resume from various suspend/standby modes and how the fans are controlled, but most importantly it also contains the Hardware Monitor. Now the number of voltage and temperature readouts is usually a big disappointment on most motherboards, and we consistently chastise manufacturers for skimping on this important information. Thankfully, ASUS's Republic of Gamers motherboards have yet to leave us disappointed. The Maximus II GENE has top-notch temperature and voltage monitoring capabilities, everything you need to know about your system's vital stats can be found in either Temperature Monitor or Voltage Monitor sub-menus.


The Boot tab is essentially where you set storage device priority and select the boot drive, you can also set supervisor and user passwords, and disable the Republics of Gamers welcome screen.


ASUS EZ-Flash 2 is a built-in utility that greatly simplies the BIOS updating process. You can easily update your BIOS from a ROM file located on your hard drive(s), USB flash drive(s), or even a CD. It's quick, painless, and it takes the worry out of BIOS flashing. The ASUS O.C Profile feature gives users the option to save and switch between BIOS profiles, for example an everyday profile and a benchmarking profile. Not only is this infinitely quicker than manually inserting every setting, but the profiles can be saved and shared among other Rampage II Extreme owners. We are glad to see that ASUS have listened to our recommendations, and increased the number of profiles from a meager 2 to a more reasonable 8 profiles. In similar fashion to the ASUS O.C Profile feature, you can also create custom TweakIt batch files which can be conveniently saved and shared.

In summary, this BIOS has everything that we have come to expect from a Republic of Gamers model. This motherboard may be small in size, but it has a huge amount of BIOS settings and functionality.