Some of the recent discussions around motherboard design are whether the motherboard manufacturers are actually adhering to the CPU vendor specifications. If a motherboard manufacturer improves the base power delivery and cooling, should they be allowed to go beyond Intel’s suggested turbo power limits, for example? The question is actually rather moot, given that the vendors have been doing this for over a decade in one form or another, so varying degrees of extreme. As this practice has come more into the public light, especially with Intel’s high-end processors going north of 250 watts, companies like ASUS have come under increased scrutiny. That is why, at least with the Maximus XII Hero we are testing today, ASUS offers two options on the first boot: Intel Recommended, and ASUS Optimized.