ASUS ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero AMD X570 ATX Gaming Motherboard

ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero
Upgraded power delivery, passive chipset cooling, and stealthy aesthetics allow the Crosshair VIII Dark Hero to strike from the shadows and form a menacing duo with AMD Zen 3.

Performance
ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero boasts an optimized power design layout and all the cooling headers you need to handle the prodigious power of the latest AMD Ryzen processors.

Power solution

Teamed Power Architecture
Modern CPU architectures up the ante for motherboard power design by transitioning from deep power-saving modes to full load almost instantaneously. Our latest VRM architecture rises to the challenge by utilizing teamed power stages to rapidly swing current, while maintaining exemplary thermal performance.

A brief history
We became the first manufacturer to implement phase-doublers when we shipped our A8N32-SLI Deluxe motherboard, back in 2005. The board's VRM was lauded for elegantly overcoming the power handling capabilities of components that were available at the time and also reducing voltage ripple. Those benefits led to phase-doublers becoming universally accepted in the industry, and they are still used for similar purposes today.

A shift in CPU demands
However, today's CPUs now pack more cores than their predecessors, and the latest instruction sets allow them to crunch computationally dense workloads at an incredible pace. In addition, they consume less power at idle and can transition between load states much more quickly. These improvements necessitate a re-evaluation of power-design priorities because phase-doublers add a propagation delay that hampers transient response.

Bucking the trend
Fortunately, the latest integrated power components can handle higher currents than the devices of yesteryear, making it possible to implement a simple circuit topology that isn't hamstrung by the processing lag of phase-doublers. That's why ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero utilizes teamed power stages to deliver higher burst current per phase, while maintaining the thermal performance of phase-doubled designs.

Thermal performance
Each VRM component serves a specific purpose. PWM controllers and phase-doublers control the circuit, and the power stages do the heavy lifting from an electrical and thermal standpoint. That's why ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero utilizes 16 power stages. The power stage sits at the top of Infineon's lineup and features a low RDSON to reduce switching and conduction losses, helping to improve overall thermal headroom.

High Quality Components

Dual 8-pin ProCool II power connector
Two ProCool connectors ensure a snug and reliable connection to the EPS 12V power lines.

14+2 power stage
The VRM has 14+2 power stages, each rated to handle 90 amps.

MicroFine alloy chokes
Each Power stage is accompanied by a high-permeability alloy-core choke rated to handle 45 amps.

10K Japanese-made black metallic capacitors
Input and output filtering is provided by solid-polymer capacitors rated to last thousands of hours at high operating temperatures.

Memory

ASUS Optimem III
Infused with proprietary memory trace layout tweaks that improve signal integrity and mitigate noise, Optimem III allows memory kits to run at lower latencies, reduced voltages, and operate at higher frequencies. Stack the Dark Hero with your favorite modules and maximize Zen 3 processors throughput for applications that demand massive bandwidth, or balance infinity fabric and memory performance for a diverse range of workloads.

Cooling
Maintaining system stability is paramount under high load, so Crosshair VIII Dark Hero employs passive chipset cooling with large VRM and chipset heatsinks that strike the right balance between surface area and mass. Featuring premium components and multiple fan headers, Crosshair VIII Dark Hero is fully armed to provide the best foundation for gaming systems.

Cooling Heatsinks

VRM heatsink
The two VRM heatsinks are placed above the MOSFETs and chokes, and are connected by a heat-pipe to further increase surface area for heat dissipation.

High-conductivity thermal pad
A high-quality thermal pad improves overall heat transfer from the system by bridging the heat generated by the power stages to the heatsink.

M.2 heatsink
Two dedicated heatsinks keep the dual M.2 SSDs at the optimum operating temperature for consistent performance and reliability.

Passive chipset heatsink
A dedicated chipset heatsink draws heat away to maintain optimum operating temperatures.

Headers

Cooler by design
ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero features the most comprehensive cooling options ever.

Multiple temperature sources
Each header can be set to monitor and react to three user-configurable thermal sensors for workload-based cooling. All settings can be easily managed by Fan Xpert 4 or UEFI.

4-pin PWM/DC fan
Every onboard header supports auto-detection of PWM or DC fans.

AIO PUMP
A dedicated PWM/DC header for self-contained water-cooling setups.

ROG Water-Cooling Zone
Dual water-temperature headers and a flow-rate header feed information straight into the AI Suite utility, allowing you to track coolant temperatures and the flow rate of the entire loop.

Water pump+
A dedicated header can supply over 3 amps to high-performance PWM or DC water pumps.

Water in/out
A dedicated header enables monitoring of temperatures at the input/output points of any component.

Water flow
A dedicated header enables constant monitoring of flow rate throughout the entire loop.

Optimization
ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero is packed with intuitive and flexible tools to allow customization across all system parameters to deliver the performance you want.

5-way optimization

Performance Level Up
The dashboard-style control panel of AI Suite 3 lets you fine-tune almost every aspect of your ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero system with ease. Get the best balance between performance, cooling, stability, and efficiency via one simple and intuitive interface.

TPU: CPU-performance boost
The TurboV Processing Unit (TPU) is an intelligent onboard micro-controller that provides an array of system-tuning features, including the ability to fine-tune voltages, monitor system stats and adjust overclocking parameters.

EPU: All-around energy efficiency
With the Energy Processing Unit (EPU) you'll enjoy system-wide power savings. The EPU automatically optimizes power consumption and maximizes savings with Away mode - a smart setting that creates an extreme energy-saving scenario by shutting down unused I/O controllers.

Fan Xpert 4: Flexible cooling controls for air or liquid
Enjoy comprehensive control over fans, water pumps and all-in-one (AIO) coolers, via either Fan Expert 4 or our UEFI. Whether you're cooling with air or water, Auto-Tuning mode intelligently configures all parameters with a single click. There's also an Extreme Quiet mode, which reduces all fan speeds to below the default minimum - keeping your system whisper-quiet when performing light tasks.

Digital power controls: Precise digital power control
The Digi+ voltage-regulator module (VRM) delivers real-time control over voltage droop, switching frequency and power-efficiency settings, allowing you to fine-tune CPU voltage regulation for ultimate stability and performance.

Turbo App
This intuitive tool allows you to define CPU overclocking, apply fan profiles, prioritize network data and optimize audio settings at app level - so your system is perfectly optimized for whatever you're doing.

UEFI BIOS
The renowned ROG UEFI (BIOS) provides everything you need to configure, tweak, and tune your rig. It offers intelligently simplified options for newcomers to PC DIY, as well as comprehensive features for seasoned veterans.

Connectivity
ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero offers advanced connectivity, including WiFi 6 (AX200) and dual Ethernet with Intel 1Gb and Realtek 2.5Gb Ethernet port to eliminate bottlenecks so you can enjoy exceptionally smooth online and LAN play. Additionally, the M.2 supports AMD StoreMI technology to maximize the speed of your SSD for faster load times, and SupremeFX on-board audio provides superb sound, while saving a PCIe slot.

Networking

WiFi 6 (AX200)
Onboard WiFi 6 (802.11ax) supports ultrafast wireless-networking speeds, improved capacity and better performance in dense WiFi environments, providing exceptional online gaming experiences.

REALTEK 2.5G LAN
2.5G on-board Ethernet kicks your LAN connection up a notch with an up to 2.5X bandwidth improvement. Using your existing LAN cable, you can take advantage this networking upgrade to experience smoother, lag-free gaming, immediately stream high-resolution videos and enjoy faster file transfers.

Intel 1Gbps Ethernet
ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero features the latest Intel Ethernet (I211-AT) ensuring data exchanges with your network and the outside world are fast and smooth. Intel LAN reduces CPU overhead and increases TCP and UDP throughput, keeping more processing power.

Storage

Unthrottled Transfer Speed
Dual PCIe 4.0 M.2 Slot support up to 22110 and provide NVMe SSD RAID support for an incredible performance boost. Create a RAID configuration with up to two PCIe 4.0 storage devices to enjoy the fastest data-transfer speeds on the AMD Ryzen 5000 and 3000 Series desktop processors.