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Conclusion:
ASUS has again made a huge step forward regarding the VRM design. This board is not a CPU overclocking board, we are not sure if the VRM or the P4 cpu-power connector holds it back at high frequencies where the VRM has to deliver massive amperes with stable voltage. A very good power-consumption result is ruined by the 3666MHz measurements. Another drawback is the exclusive usage of the PCIe x16 slots for graphics cards only. Some BIOS settings would have avoided such behavior.
On the plus side is stable operation, highly overclockable memory and FSB, the best power consumption an ASUS board ever got.
For us, this board is a mixed bag, not bad, but not as good, either. While a "standard" board, it's extraordinarily expensive, priced about €180,- and requiring very expensive DDR3 modules which will give you none to little advantage compared to DDR2. Besides the ASUS IR Remote, you will not receive any fancy extras.
If you spend some more money you can grab a DFI LANparty P35 board previously tested in our labs and if you wait two more weeks the DFI X38 boards should arrive and cost under €200,. Even ASUS is offering an high-end solution called "Maximus Formula" for under €200, too, which has a nicer layout, Supreme FX soundcard and other fancy stuff; we will tell you soon if it's worth the bucks.