Asus z97 Series User manual

E9141
First Edition
April 2014
Copyright©2014 ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. All Rights Reserved.
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Contents
Dual Intelligent Processors 5..................................................................................... 4
5-Way Optimization......................................................................................... 4
TPU (Turbo Processing Unit).......................................................................... 4
EPU (Energy Processing Unit)........................................................................ 7
DIGI+ Power Control....................................................................................... 8
Fan Xpert 3 ................................................................................................... 10
Turbo App ..................................................................................................... 12
Wi-Fi GO! Card........................................................................................................... 13
ASUS Wi-Fi GO! card specications............................................................. 13
Installation..................................................................................................... 14
Wi-Fi Engine............................................................................................................... 15
Wi-Fi GO! and Remote GO! ...................................................................................... 17
System requirements .................................................................................... 17
ASUS Account Login..................................................................................... 17
Using Wi-Fi GO!............................................................................................ 19
Cloud GO! ..................................................................................................... 22
Remote Desktop ........................................................................................... 23
File Transfer.................................................................................................. 25
Remote Keyboard & Mouse.......................................................................... 26
ASUS Media Streamer............................................................................................... 26
System requirements .................................................................................... 26
RF Equipment Notices.............................................................................................. 28

Conventions used in this guide
To ensure that you perform certain tasks properly, take note of the following symbols used
throughout this manual.
DANGER/WARNING: Information to prevent injury to yourself when trying to
complete a task.
CAUTION: Information to prevent damage to the components when trying to
complete a task
IMPORTANT: Instructions that you MUST follow to complete a task.
NOTE: Tips and additional information to help you complete a task.

4
Dual Intelligent Processors 5
ASUS Dual Intelligent Processors 5 combines TPU, EPU, DIGI+ Power Control, Fan Xpert
3, and Turbo App functions to push the system’s performance to its optimal potential. It
automatically balances the system’s performance, power saving, levels, and fan settings via
the user-friendly AI Suite 3 utility.
5-Way Optimization
The 5-Way Optimization function dynamically optimizes your PC based on real-time usage
to provide the best system status. It covers the essential areas such as CPU performance,
energy saving, stable digital power, cool and quiet fan control, and includes tailored settings
for your apps to ensure your PC is ready for gaming, entertainment, productivity, or just about
anything.
Click or tap this 5-Way Optimization button to auto-detect and tune the best settings
for your system
DO NOT remove your fan during the tuning process.
5-Way Optimization screen
TPU (Turbo Processing Unit)
TPU allows you to manually adjust the CPU frequency, core ratio, DRAM frequency, and
related voltages for enhanced system stability and performance boost.
Refer to the CPU documentation before adjusting CPU voltage settings. Setting a high
voltage may damage the CPU permanently and setting a low voltage may lead to an
unstable system.
For system stability, the TPU settings are not saved in the BIOS and are not loaded during
system bootup. Save your overclocking settings as a TPU prole and manually load this
prole after system bootup.

5
Using TPU
Click or tap to undo the adjustments
• Set the CPU Core Ratio item in BIOS to [Auto] before using the CPU Frequency in
TPU. Refer to section Ai Tweaker menu in the BIOS chapter of your motherboard
user manual for details.
• The CPU Frequency bars show the status of the CPU cores, which vary with your
CPU model.
CPU Frequency
Tick to enable
Group Tuning
Click or tap or to adjust the
Base Clock Frequency, CPU Ratio,
and CPU Cache Ratio
Click or tap or to select the
number of cores to adjust
Click or tap to save the
adjustment into a profile
Click or tap to load
the saved profile Click or tap to apply the adjustments
Click to load the
default values
Scroll down then
adjust the CPU
voltages and
DRAM voltages
Voltage
Drag the slider to adjust DRAM, CPU Analog
I/O, PCH, and CPU Input voltages Drag the slider to adjust CPU System Agent, CPU Digital I/O, VTTDDR, and PCHVLX voltages
Click to save the adjustment
into a profile
Click to load the
saved profile
Click to apply the
adjustments
Click to undo the adjustments
Click to load the default values
CPU Core Voltage adjustments CPU Cache Voltage adjustments

6
GPU Boost
Click to save the
adjustment into a profile
Click to load the
saved profile
Click to
apply the
adjustments
Click to
undo the
adjustments
Click to enable the
default settings
CPU Graphics Voltage Adjustmets
CPU Strap
Click to save the
adjustment into a profile
Click to load the
saved profile
Click to apply
the adjustments
Click to undo the
adjustments
Click to enable the
default settings
Click or tap or to adjust the
CPU Strap’s BCLK frequency
• The overclocking result varies with the CPU model and the system conguration.
• We recommend that you set up a better thermal environment to prevent overheating
from damaging the motherboard.

7
EPU (Energy Processing Unit)
EPU is a real-time system power-saving chip that automatically detects the current
system load and intelligently moderates power usage. It offers a total system-wide energy
optimization, reduces fan noise, and extends the lifespan of your hardware components.
Using EPU
• When you enable Congured Max CPU Power for advanced energy saving
condition, the CPU frequency may display 800 MHz in the Windows®OS information
of your computer. However, the true CPU frequency varies depending on the
wattage that you manually set. You can adjust the CPU wattage from the lowest
base on your preferred default value.
• Congured Max CPU Power may decrease the total power delivery to the CPU and
affects the CPU performance under system heavy load. To restore your system to its
default settings, reboot your computer.
Click to
select a fan
profile
Click or
to adjust the
configured Max
CPU Power
Tick to select
a setting for
Add-on USB
ports power
Click to configure the
settings in Auto mode Click to configure the settings in High Performance mode
Click to configure the settings
in Max Power Saving mode
Click to configure the
settings in Away mode Click to configure the
Global settings
Tick to select a setting for
Voltage Decrement
Click to undo the
adjustments
Click to enable the
default settings
Click to apply the
adjustments

8
DIGI+ Power Control
ASUS DIGI+ Power Control features the revolutionary and innovative digital VRM and DRAM
Voltage controllers. These controllers offers ultra-precise memory and voltage tuning for
optimal system efciency, stability and performance.
The following screens are for reference only. Conguration options varies depending on the
motherboard model.
Adjusting the CPU Power
CPU Power Phase Control
Increase the phase number under a heavy system load to get more transient and
better thermal performance. Reduce the phase number under a light system load
to increase the VRM efciency.
CPU VRM Switching Frequency
Enables spread spectrum to enhance system stability.
CPU Power Thermal Control
A higher temperature brings a wider CPU power thermal range and extends the
overclocking tolerance to enlarge the overclocking potential.
CPU Current Capability
CPU Current Capability provides a wider total power range for overclocking.
A higher value brings a wider total power range and extends the overclocking
frequence range simultaneously.
CPU Load-line Calibration
It allows you to adjust the voltage range to control the CPU Load-line. Adjust to a
high value for system performance or to a low value for power efciezncy.
CPU Power Duty Control
CPU Power Duty Control adjusts the current of every VRM phase and the thermal
conditions of every phase component.
Active Frequency Mode
Active Frequency Mode allows you to enhance the power saving condition of the
CPU. Click ON to get a quicker transient response while saving the CPU power.
Click or tap to switch
between screens Click or tap to apply the changes
Click or tap to undo
the changes

9
Adjusting the DRAM Power
DRAM Voltage Frequency
Allows you to adjust the DRAM switching frequency to stabilize the system or to
increase the overclocking range.
DRAM Current Capability
A higher value brings a wider total power range and extends the overclocking
frequency range simultaneously.
DRAM Power Phase Control
Select Extreme for full phase mode to increase system performance or select
Optimized for ASUS optimized phase tuning prole to increase the DRAM power
efciency.
• The actual performance boost may vary depending on your CPU specication.
• Ensure that the cooling modules are properly installed in your motherboard to
monitor the thermal conditions.
Click or tap to
apply the changes
Click or tap to undo
the changes

10
Fan Xpert 3
ASUS Fan Xpert 3 provides customizable settings of your fans for a cooler and quieter
computing environment. With its fan Auto Tuning feature, ASUS Fan Xpert 3 automatically
tweaks the settings of CPU and chassis fans to achieve their best cooling performance.
ASUS Fan Xpert 3 also supports hardware level PWM/DC combo mode for the CPU and
chassis fans. You can also reduce the CPU fan speed below the default minimum for a
noiseless operation during light loads.
Customizing the fan settings
Smart Mode
Smart Mode allows you to customize the fans’ rotation speeds and responsiveness based on
your system’s temperature.
Click to switch between the
CPU and chassis fan screens
Click to apply
the changes
Click to undo
the changes
Click and drag
to set the fan’s
rotation speed
Tick to set the CPU fan’s mode
Click and drag
the sliders to
adjust the fan’s
responsiveness
Click a screen
to select the
type of fan
that you want
to customize
Click to set the
fan’s speed to
silent mode
Click to set the balanced
configuration between the
fan’s noise level and speed
Click to increase the fan’s
speed for a high cooling
capability
Click to
maximize the
fan speed
Click to switch between CPU
and chassis fan screens
The Extreme Quiet Mode allows you to congure the CPU fan speed control range to its
extreme low setting when using a PWM CPU fan.

11
RPM Mode
RPM Mode allows you to set the fan speed when the CPU temperature is below 75oC.
• When the CPU temperature reaches 75oC, the fan will automatically run at full
speed to protect the CPU.
• The Fan Xpert 3 may not be able to detect the fan speed if your fan is installed with
an external control kit for rotation speed.
• Fan Xpert 3 does not support 2-pin fans. If you install a 2-pin fan, it can only run at its
full speed.
• If the CPU or chassis fans have been changed, the Fan Auto Tuning process should
be repeated.
DO NOT remove your fan during the Fan Auto Tuning process.
Click to switch between the
CPU and chassis fan screens
Click to apply
the changes
Click to select a different thermal sensor
onboard for chassis fan’s speed control
Click to undo
the changes
Click and drag
to set the fan’s
rotation speed
Tick to set the Chassis fan’s mode
Click and drag
the sliders to
adjust the fan’s
responsiveness
Click and drag to adjust the
fan’s speed
Click to switch between the
CPU and chassis fan screens

12
Turbo App
Turbo App allows you customize the system performance, network priority, and audio setting
of an application.
When an application is on the Turbo App List, you can allocate the CPU frequency, assign a
network priority, and dene the audio setting of the seleted application.
Click to apply
the changes
Click to scroll up/down
Click to undo
the changes
Click to assign a specific application(.exe)
into Turbo App list
Click to refresh the list of running applications
Applications list pane
Displays all the running applications on your system.
Turbo App List pane
Displays the applications added to the Turbo App List.
* Only applications on the Turbo App List can be configured.
Performance pane
Allows you to assign the CPU performance to a selected application.
Audio pane
Allows you to manually assign a preset audio conguration to a selected
application.
LAN pane
Allows you assign the network priority to a selected application.

13
ASUS Wi-Fi GO! card specifications
Wi-Fi Standard IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac
Bluetooth standard Bluetooth v4.0
Data rate
802.11ac (HT80*) up to 867Mbps, 802.11n(HT40*) up to 300Mbps,
802.11n(HT20) up to 150Mbps, 802.11a up to 54Mbps,
802.11b up to 11Mbps, 802.11g up to 54Mbps
* When using Wi-Fi Engine in AP mode, the channel bandwidth is limited
to HT20 and with a maximum data rate of 150 Mbps due to Windows®
limitation.
Security WEP, WPA & WPA2*
* Use WPA2 or open system to reach 65Mbps and above.
Network architechture
types
AP Mode
Client mode
Frequency band 2.4GHz & 5GHz ISM radio band
Operating range
Wi-Fi:*
Outdoor up to 300 meters
Indoor up to 100 meters
* The transmission speed may vary according to the environment
Bluetooth:
10 - 20 meters (depends on the environment)
Antenna
Antenna 1: Wi-Fi Tx/Rx
Antenna 2: Wi-Fi Tx/Rx + Bluetooth
1 x ASUS 2T2R dual band Wi-Fi moving antenna (with SMA
connector)
LED
Wi-Fi:
Green LED: Wi-Fi enabled
LED off: Wi-Fi disabled
Bluetooth:
Blue LED: Bluetooth enabled
LED off: Bluetooth disabled
Blinking blue LED: Data activity
Support OS 32-bit / 64-bit Windows®7, 32-bit / 64-bit Windows®8 / 8.1
ASUS special features ASUS Wi-Fi Engine
ASUS Wi-Fi GO!
Bluetooth v4.0 Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac version
Wi-Fi GO! Card
The Wi-Fi GO! card is an easy-to-use wireless LAN adapter that allows you to connect to a
wireless LAN in a single network. With the Wi-Fi GO! card, you can also use your system as
an access point for other Wi-Fi supported devices.
By default, the Wi-Fi GO! card is already installed on your motherboard. To locate the Wi-Fi
GO! card, refer to section Motherboard rear and audio connections of your motherboard’s
user guide.
* The specifications are subject to change without notice.
The Wi-Fi standard of 802.11ac will be restricted by countries’ regulations. Wi-Fi 802.11ac
feature will be supported under the complete 11ac eco-system environment.

14
Installing Wi-Fi GO! card driver
The contents of the support DVD are subject to change without notice. Visit the ASUS
support site at http://support.asus.com for driver or utilities updates.
To install Wi-Fi GO! card driver:
1. Place the support DVD on the optical drive. If Autorun is enabled in your computer, the
DVD automatically displays the installation wizard.
2. Click Drivers tab then click ASUS
Bluetooth 4.0 Wi-Fi Driver.
3. Follow the onscreen instructions to complete
the installation.
4. After the installation is completed, restart
your computer.
Installation
System requirements
To use the Wi-Fi GO! card, ensure that your system meets the following requirements:
1. 32-bit / 64-bit Windows®7, 32-bit / 64-bit Windows®8 / 8.1
2. DVD Optical drive
3. ASUS support DVD containing the Wi-Fi GO! card driver
4. ASUS AI Suite 3 utility
• Ensure to install the bundled Wi-Fi antenna connector to the Wi-Fi GO! card ports.
• To install ASUS AI Suite 3 utility, refer to the section AI Suite 3 of your motherboard’s
user guide for more details.

15
Wi-Fi Engine
Wi-Fi Engine allows you to connect to a wireless network and set up your computer as an
access point for Internet connection sharing among Wi-Fi enabled devices.
To use Wi-Fi Engine, click or tap on the right edge of the AI Suite 3 main menu, then
select Wi-Fi Engine.
Wi-Fi Engine is available only in selected motherboard models.
Click or tap to set up your computer as
a wireless access point
Using the Client Mode
The Client mode allows you to connect your system to a wireless network.
To use the client mode:
1. Click or tap Client Mode to launch Network Connections.
2. From the Network Connections window, select a network adapter.
Click or tap to connect to a wireless access point
Using Wi-Fi Engine

16
3. From the list of available networks, select a network that you
want to connect to.
Some networks may require you to key in a password.
Using the AP Mode
The AP mode allows you to set your system as an access point for other wireless-enabled
devices.
To use AP mode, click or tap AP Mode on the Wi-Fi Engine menu.
Click or tap to go back
to previous screen
Click or tap
to disable AP
mode
Click or tap
to enable AP
mode
Click or tap to
select a network
Key in a network
name
Key in your
password
Key in your
password for
confirmation
• In the AP mode, the Internet Connection Sharing may depend on the Bluetooth/
Internet device's driver support.
• Due to Windows®8 limitation, it may take several minutes to set up the AP mode for
the rst time.
• Due to the restriction of Windows OS SoftAP feature, the AP mode only supports 2.4
GHz bandwidth with 802.11n communication standard.

17
Wi-Fi GO! and Remote GO!
Wi-Fi GO! and Remote GO! are ASUS exclusive utilities that gives you complete control of
your PC anytime and anywhere with your smart devices. You can manage all your public
clouds or sync and backup les among your PC and devices.
The user interface of your smart device may vary with the operating system and the screen
resolution.
System requirements
System requirements PC Smart device
OS Windows®7/Windows®8/
Windows®8.1
Android 4.0 or higher versions
iOS7 or later versions
Utilities ASUS HomeCloud ASUS Wi-Fi GO! & NFC Remote
• For Android devices, download the ASUS Wi-Fi GO! & NFC Remote from Google
Play. For iOS devices, download it from App Store.
• Install the Wi-Fi GO! card driver and ASUS HomeCloud utility from the support DVD
bundled with your ASUS motherboard or visit www.asus.com.
• If you upgrade from Windows®8 to Windows®8.1, ensure to reinstall the Wi-Fi GO!
card driver to fully utilize the Wi-Fi GO! functions.
Screen
type
Low density
(120 ldpi)
Medium density
(160 mdpi)
High density
(240 hdpi)
Extra high density
(320 xhdpi)
Screen
Resolution 1024 x 600
WXGA
(1280 x 800) 1536 x 1152 2048 x 1536
1024 x 768 1920 x 1152 2560 x 1536
1280 x 768 1920 x 1200 2560 x 1600
Smart device supported screen resolutions
Wi-Fi GO! & NFC Remote supports the following screen resolutions of smart devices:
ASUS Account Login
Wi-Fi GO! gives you complete control of your PC anytime and anywhere. Create and
login the same ASUS Account on your PC and smart devices for public-to-private network
functions.
• Remote Desktop and File Transfer support public-to-private networks feature.
• You can access the ASUS Account tab by clicking from Wi-Fi GO! main page.

18
Creating an ASUS account
Ensure that you have an internet connection before you create an account.
To create a new ASUS Account:
1. Click or tap Create a New Account on your PC or smart device.
The browser will direct you to the ASUS website (www.asus.com).
2. From the ASUS website, click or tap Sign Up then follow onscreen instructions to
complete the registration.
A login notice is displayed when you launch Wi-Fi
GO! for the rst time on your PC. To stop this
notice from appearing again, tick Don’t remind me
again then click Go to Login.
Logging in
To log-in using your PC:
1. Launch Wi-Fi GO! on your PC.
2. From the log-in window, key in your ASUS account and password (A) then click Login
(B).

19
To log-in using your smart device:
1. Launch Wi-Fi GO! & NFC
Remote on you smart device.
2. Tap ASUS Account (A), key
in your ASUS Account and
password, then click or tap
Login (C).
• PCs with the same ASUS account logged in will show up in the device list.
• The public-to-private network functions for the iOS system will be available from
Wi-Fi GO! & NFC Remote V2.00.00 or later versions.
Use your smart device to scan QR
Codes for more information
Click to set a password or log in using your ASUS Account
Using Wi-Fi GO!
To launch Wi-Fi GO!, click the ASUS HomeCloud shortcut on your desktop, then select Wi-
Fi GO! from the mini bar.
Launch Wi-Fi GO! & NFC Remote on your smart device to use the Wi-Fi GO! & NFC
remote control functions. For more details, refer to section Wi-Fi GO! & NFC Remote of
this user manual for more details.
Wi-Fi GO! menu
To protect your Wi-Fi utility from unauthorized remote access, click then set a
password.

20
Using Wi-Fi GO! & NFC Remote
To use the Wi-Fi GO! & NFC Remote:
1. Connect your smart device to the same Wi-Fi network as your computer or log in on
your computer and smart devices using the same ASUS account to fully utilize the Wi-
Fi GO! functions across different networks.
2. On your smart device, tap
Wi-Fi GO!
& NFC Remote
then tap Enter.
3. From the list of scanned PCs, tap the computer that you want to connect with your smart
device.
Wi-Fi GO! & NFC Remote (App for smart devices)
Wi-Fi GO! & NFC Remote interface main page
Remote Keyboard & Mouse
Remote Desktop
File Transfer
Cloud GO!
The screenshots are for reference only and vary with the type of smart device.