Asus ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero
| Form Factor | ATX |
| CPU Socket | AM4 |
| CPU | AMD Ryzen 5000/3000/2000 |
| Chipset | AMD X570 |
| RAM Type | DDR4 |
| RAM Slots | 4 |
| RAM Max | 128 GB |
| RAM Speed | 2133-5100(OC) Mhz |
| AMD CrossFireX | 2 or 3 way |
| Nvidia SLI | 2 way |
| PCIe x16 | 3 |
| PCIe 1 | 1 |
| Bluetooth | 5.1 |
Back Panel
| USB | 4 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5Gbps) Type A |
| USB | 7 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gbps) Type A |
| USB | 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gbps) Type C |
| Network | 2.5G Ethernet - Realtek RTL8125-CG - Anti-surge |
| Network | 1G Ethernet - Intel I211-AT - Anti-surge |
| Network | 5 audio jacks - Gold-plated ( line in, line out, mic in, rear, c/sub ) |
| Audio | Optical S/PDIF out |
| Audio | USB BIOS FlashBack Button |
| Other | Clear CMOS button |
| Other | Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) 2.4/5GHz - AX200 - 2 antenna ports |
Internal
| Power | 24-pin EATX Power connector |
| Power | 4-pin EATX 12V Power connector |
| Power | 8-pin EATX 12V Power connectors |
| Storage | 1 x M.2 Socket 3 with M key, type 2242/2260/2280 |
| Storage | 1 x M.2 Socket 3 with M key, type 2242/2260/2280/22110 |
| Storage | 8 x SATA 6Gb/s connectors |
| USB | 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 connector |
| USB | 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 connector |
| USB | 2 x USB 2.0 connectors |
| Audio | Speaker connector |
| Audio | AAFP - Front panel audio connector |
| Fan | CPU Fan connector |
| Fan | CPU OPT Fan connector |
| Fan | 3 x Chassis Fan connectors |
| Fan | H_AMP fan connector |
| Fan | Node Connector |
| Liquid cooling | W_IN header |
| Liquid cooling | W_OUT header |
| Liquid cooling | W_FLOW header |
| Liquid cooling | AIO_PUMP connector |
| Liquid cooling | W_PUMP+ connector |
| Light | 2 x Aura RGB Strip Headers |
| Light | 2 x Addressable Gen 2 headers |
| Other | System panel connector |
| Other | T_Sensor Connector |
| Other | TPM connector |
| Other | LN2 Mode jumpers |
| Button | Start button |
| Button | Slow Mode switch |
| Button | Reset button |
| Button | Safe Boot button |
| Button | ReTry button |
Third Party Review
Author: Madiha Aftab
ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero
The Dark Hero allowed our Ryzen 9 5950X to run above 5 GHz using optimum settings. So we’re receiving basically what we expected and paid for. Overclocking went smoothly enough. Our CPU was able to operate at 4.4 GHz. This was done together with all cores enabled. We also used 32GB DDR4 DDR RAM running at a speed of 3600 MHz. The Dark Hero’s Memory and CPU have plenty to offer if you’re into serious overclocking.
Asus debuted their motherboards for the X570 chipset. This also included the ROG Crosshair VIII Hero, in the early months of 2019. We appreciated the original’s 12 USB ports, look, and other features. Currently, the ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero has arrived, along with AMD’s outstanding but hard-to-find 5000 series CPUs. As the name suggests, the Dark edition becomes completely black, increases power supply, and removes the chipset fan from the previous version. On paper, it’s an incremental upgrade, but one that supports the latest CPUs right out of the box.
The Dark Hero performed well in the majority of tests that were run. Some of the tests for PCMark10 were unusual. The same goes for MS Office suite tests. This could have just been due to slight inconsistencies in the runs. With boards that score considerably better in these tests, the clock speeds are where they should be. We have our first pair of ARGB and RGB headers on the far-right side. The Start button is located below it, and it is used to turn on the computer. Following that is a more straightforward Reset button. Instead of the simpler version we have here, I would want to see a full reset button at this pricing. The 24-pin ATX connection for powering the board continues along the right side. Multiple voltage read points, including Vcore, VRAM, SOC, Southbridge, and PLL, are located to the right of this. While most people will not utilize them, individuals who are into severe overclocking and need/want accurate numbers would appreciate this option. The front panel USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C header is underneath that.
Last but not least, there’s the IO area at the back. The integrated IO plate has 12 USB ports, one of the first things you’ll notice. Eight USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports and four USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports are available. You’re using too many if this isn’t enough! There are 2.5 GbE Realtek and 1 GbE Intel LAN connectors and two Wi-Fi antenna connections on the networking side. The SPDIF and five analog jacks make up the audio stack at the rear. Two buttons, the first for BIOS flashback and the second for clean CMOS complete the rear IO. A huge plastic shroud hides the rear IO ICs and part of the left VRM bank when we look at the top half of the board. The Asus ROG logo is illuminated up with RGB lights on the top. A necessary 8-pin EPS connection and a 4-pin connector provide power to the CPU. Two massive heatsinks linked by Heatpipe to split the load cool the 16-phase VRMs. Even while overclocking our 5950X, this setup kept the power supply cool, as you’ll see later.
Video
Here is a video from Haurjie: