To test for power consumption we use the same basic components for each motherboard on test. Readings are then taken from the wall both in stock (Optimised defaults loaded) and maximum overclocked (Voltages may vary).





The ASUS Rampage IV Extreme was found wanting in this area I'm afraid. Being an Extreme motherboard power consumption appears to have come second to outright performance as the ASUS board consumed more power at idle and load on average than any of the motherboards on test. This is exemplified even more by the idle and load conditions when overclocked as the RIVE consumed noticeably more power. Perhaps this was as a result of tweaking (increasing) more of the voltage settings than the other motherboards had available but nevertheless, more power consumption equates to being more expensive to run which is not great for the average consumer. Overclockers will however care little for power consumption as long as the highest overclock is attained so for the most part, ASUS can be forgiven for this.

While power consumption is high on the agenda in today's current climate, there is often a trade of between power consumption and performance and because of the numerous additional voltage tweaks ASUS afford the user, increasing these additional voltage options will also increase the power consumption of the mainboard so in this respect, ASUS are a victim of their own success.

Let's see how the motherboard performs in our suite of benchmarks...