Alternative to GA-G33M-S2H

dskeeles · Post by **dskeeles** » Sun Jan 13, 2008 8:12 pm

Hi folks,

I want to update my HTPC, and erroneously bought a GA-G33-S2R; I actually wanted something with DVI-D or HDMI output, plus SPDIF as standard, as a bonus...

Which took me to the GA-G33M-S2H.... but unfortunately, it seems no-one stocks them any more. I was wondering if anyone can suggest an alternative uATX board with DVI or HDMI, & SPDIF?

It should be Socket 775 as I already have an E2450 ready to go, and the system will be underclocked most of the time as it's usually idle. One alternative I found was the Intel BOXDG33TLM, which Scan do stock, but it's had generally bad reviews. So I guess I'm looking for other alternatives...

Thanks!

D

Tommy Jefferson · Post by **Tommy Jefferson** » Mon Jan 14, 2008 4:32 am

Video standards are in a state of transition.

If you bought a motherboard without on-board video, you could easily change the video card as the standards change.

dskeeles · Post by **dskeeles** » Mon Jan 14, 2008 4:41 am

Tommy Jefferson wrote:Video standards are in a state of transition.

If you bought a motherboard without on-board video, you could easily change the video card as the standards change.

That's true, but I could equally do that with a motherboard with on-board video if I really had to. I currently have an LCD HDTV, so the Giga should work with that and I'm not going to change either for a few years, at least!

Space/power is at a premium in uATX, so on-board DVI/HDMI is pretty useful.

Cheers!

Damian

dskeeles · Post by **dskeeles** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 6:32 pm

Hi Folks,

OK - after some re-researching, I've found the Gigabyte GA-73PVM-S2H as a possible. It's actually pretty long-in-the-tooth - max FSB is 800MHz - but it does feature HDMI, HDCP, and SPDIF Optical, which are the magical ingredients.

A few reviews state it's good, but borderline for MPEG4 / Blu-Ray playback; someone with an identical spec to my plan (E6750 / 2Gb RAM / this board) said it was too choppy to watch - which doesn't bode well.

I've also found the Abit Fatal1ty F-I90HD (good specs, but die quickly) and Asus P5E-VM HDMI (very good, expensive, runs a bit hot for a silent PC). Nothing fits well yet - does anyone have any other suggestions?

D

Magsy · Post by **Magsy** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 9:56 am

A few stores are showing it as available in 2-4weeks... (froogle)

You have no room in the case for a real card or ADD2 hdmi riser?

I'm in a simlar boat but it seems that even with some of these better onboard solutions you have to throw large amounts of CPU at it for a smooth decode, it becomes wasteful, plus deinterlacing quality will suffer (but if 1080p only content then I suppose it's ok)

Which CPU are you using again?

The Asus is the only solution I can find but I'd baulk at the price too

There are many mini-itx boards to fit you needs but the cost is even higher.

I stay away from anything not using an Intel chipset but this is mainly because of the nightmares I had in the early days - I would hope they are better now.

dskeeles · Post by **dskeeles** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 10:13 am

Yep, I checked Froogle and called the stores; they're all actually out of stock and not expecting more, but weren't aware of this until I asked, and they checked! Any stock they show is really just lack of stock control!

It seems my case isn't compatible with many modern mobos (LC11 - uses risers to mount the PCI cards sideways), so it seems I'm going to have to build a new system from scratch anyway! It's a shame, as apart from the lack of modern media support (poor CPU for HD / no SPDIF out), it's a reasonably good system

Damian

igor123 · Post by **igor123** » Thu Jan 24, 2008 10:33 am

Hi.
Until very recently I had the same problem - find mATX board for my future HTPC.
- I rejected GA-73PVM-S2H because it supports single channel memory only; I expect this would seriously cripple any high bitrate decoding.
- I rejected Abit Fatal1ty F-I90HD only because a lot of people are complaining about stability issues, etc.

I ended up buying Gigabyte G33-S2H. I don't have it running, as my case didn't arrive yet

, but I hope it will perform nicely. And it looks good too

My second choice actually was Asus P5E-VM HDMI. I didn't buy it as it is not available at retail stores in my country, and I hate on-line shopping. I also didn't know that it runs hot - I would not expect a typical HTPC use to stress the board so much that it becomes a heater

dskeeles · Post by **dskeeles** » Fri Jan 25, 2008 6:15 am

igor123 wrote:I ended up buying Gigabyte G33-S2H. I don't have it running, as my case didn't arrive yet , but I hope it will perform nicely. And it looks good too

Painfully, it does seem this board is perfect, as it also fits my current case (see thread here). However, I'm in the UK (sorry, should have clarified that point), and I just can't find a reseller here - all those who claim to have stock, don't.

dskeeles · Post by **dskeeles** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 3:30 pm

dskeeles wrote:
igor123 wrote:I ended up buying Gigabyte G33-S2H. I don't have it running, as my case didn't arrive yet , but I hope it will perform nicely. And it looks good too
Painfully, it does seem this board is perfect, as it also fits my current case (see thread here). However, I'm in the UK (sorry, should have clarified that point), and I just can't find a reseller here - all those who claim to have stock, don't.

To follow - I've emailed companies from Norway to New Zealand that still show stock on their online stores; but none have any. Also spoke to Gigabyte UK themselves, and they say it was discontinued 6 months ago, and there's no comparable successor.

igor123 · Post by **igor123** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 12:11 am

Interesting. I've just looked at the store where I've bought mine, and they still have some left (unfortunately, I think this store don't ship stock outside the country).

I think this is because HTPC building is still not very popular in Croatia. The gamers surely will not buy mATX board that has PCIe running at only x4. But, on the downside I find it very hard to find other HTPC components here - it's impossibe to find decent case, and smaller than ATX PSUs are nowhere to be found.

dskeeles · Post by **dskeeles** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 1:09 am

We'll have to exchange motherboards

I realised that there are a couple of alternatives: the GA-73UM-S2H(rev. 1.0) and GA-73PVM-S2H (comparison). However, they both have PCI slot 1 as a PCIx1 slot, whereas my case (Silverstone LC11) needs it to be a PCIx4/16 slot for the riser card to fit.

So - now I'm thinking of two options:
- one of these nVidia boards mentioned above, but using a flexible riser strip to hang my PCI DVI card
- the GA-G33M-DS2R that I already have (bought in error), with a separate graphics card, and using the Coax SPDIF it has rather than Optical

I'm inclined to follow the first one, since the board on it's own does everything I need without a single add-on.

D

Delta_42 · Post by **Delta_42** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 2:16 am

dskeeles wrote:Hi Folks,

OK - after some re-researching, I've found the Gigabyte GA-73PVM-S2H as a possible. It's actually pretty long-in-the-tooth - max FSB is 800MHz - but it does feature HDMI, HDCP, and SPDIF Optical, which are the magical ingredients.

D

I think you're confusing supported memory speeds with FSB.

That board will support a 1333MHz FSB processor.

igor123 · Post by **igor123** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 10:01 am

dskeeles wrote:We'll have to exchange motherboards

dskeeles wrote:I realised that there are a couple of alternatives: the GA-73UM-S2H(rev. 1.0) and GA-73PVM-S2H

But none of those two boards supports dual channel memory. I'd be sure to check if this would affect performance while playing some high bitrate movies - especially if you plan to watch bluray movies someday. Hmm...

but than again you would need a faster processor to decode blurays; note that those boards does not supports new 45nm core duos either.

Well, I guess those boards would be ok (and cheap

) solution if you don't plan on upgrading your pc anytime soon, or don't mind buying everything new on your next upgrade.

dskeeles · Post by **dskeeles** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 1:32 am

igor123 wrote:
dskeeles wrote:I realised that there are a couple of alternatives: the GA-73UM-S2H(rev. 1.0) and GA-73PVM-S2H
But none of those two boards supports dual channel memory. I'd be sure to check if this would affect performance while playing some high bitrate movies - especially if you plan to watch bluray movies someday. Hmm... but than again you would need a faster processor to decode blurays; note that those boards does not supports new 45nm core duos either.

<Doh!> I hadn't looked into them in detail; I've checked so many specs, I've started to lose focus. I'd originally spec'ed DDR2 and Penryn support when I started searching. Thanks for highlighting that to me!

So Gigabyte discontinue a highly-regarded motherboard with up-to-date specs, but continue to manufacture and sell two others that are lower spec and outdated, for the same price? What is wrong with these people*?

D

* Obviously they have their reasons, and it's me who needs a PCI slot arrangement that'll work in my LC11 case. But it's frustrating

Cov · Post by **Cov** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 2:59 am

Hello

Sorry, but I just wonder why you guys didn't go for the Asus P5E-VM HDMI ?

The obvious choice:

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1233021

igor123 · Post by **igor123** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 4:21 am

Cov wrote:Sorry, but I just wonder why you guys didn't go for the Asus P5E-VM HDMI ?

Yep, that's a very good board.

But, I live in a god-forsaken-land (just kidding

) where no Asus P5E-VM HDMI is yet available.

And I believe dskeeles is trying to use riser card in his case which is very picky about the layout of PCI/PCI-E slots on the mobo.

dskeeles · Post by **dskeeles** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 4:47 am

igor123 wrote:And I believe dskeeles is trying to use riser card in his case which is very picky about the layout of PCI/PCI-E slots on the mobo.

Yep, the PCI-E slot has to be in position 1, which the Asus doesn't have - I'd need a new case.

I've heard the NB on the Asus can run a little hot too...

Cov · Post by **Cov** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 6:10 am

I follow the postings of this motherboard at hardforum. I will buy it as soon as the online store has the CPU which I'm looking for in stock again.

It is very interesting to read what people have experienced with their item, in this case more positive then negative. As you can see, the thread is going on for a long time.

The onboard graphics X3500 is capable of all of Vista's demands and for playing back HD or BluRay content.
I read somewhere too that the passive heatsink of the Northbridge can get hot and had planned to get the NB Cooler
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showprodu ... =HS-003-NC

Then I PM one of the owner of this board and asked for his opinion.

Here is his answer:
------------------------

IÂ´m using the P5E-VM since Novemer last year. From my point of view itÂ´s the best board I ever had. Sine IÂ´m using it i never had any bluescreens or crash. ItÂ´s my workstation so i use it about 8 h every day.
The decision of using a mAtx or Atx is yours. I wanted a small setup, because i donÂ´t like big towers.
The onboard video is nice to have but not necessary ... For me the onboard video with Hdmi was important because this is gonne be my htpc ... With my cooling solutions ... the NB never has been to hot.

Cpu cooler depends on the case you will use. I made good experiences with the Sycthe Ninja Mini ande a silent 80mm fan. I would replace the NB only if youÂ´ll get problems with your temps. To replace the SB wont make a sense in my opinion. Mine is always cool when I touch it.

So, I hope I could help you a bit.

PS: this is the PC case of my choice.
But as with many other computer parts, it's a question of taste.

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1133290

igor123 · Post by **igor123** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 10:44 am

Cov wrote:The onboard graphics X3500 is capable of all of Vista's demands and for playing back HD or BluRay content.

Intel G35 chipset don't have h264 acceleration, so HD and bluray decoding will still depend on your processor power, or dedicated graphic card that supports h264, if you have one.

igor123 · Post by **igor123** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 10:50 am

Cov wrote:PS: this is the PC case of my choice.
But as with many other computer parts, it's a question of taste.

I'm also trying to get my hands on one Lian-li case (black C35, to be more precise). I will use this opportunity to grumble about me waiting for that case over one month. It still hasn't arrived

Cov · Post by **Cov** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 12:53 pm

That sounds like the CPU might not be able to cope with the decoding process ... well, here's what I found:

If we are relying on the CPU for decoding, then Tom's Hardware has these stats:
60 seconds of Blu Ray Casino Royale using PowerDVD 7.3
Q6600 -- 21.5% utilization
E6750 -- 39% utilization

Video playback was excellent as none of the clips gave the test system any problems. The demanding WVC1 clip was also played with the system underclocked to 1.6Ghz and 1.2Ghz. At 1.6Ghz there was a moderate increase in CPU usage, but also a sizable decrease in power consumption. At this speed, it still rendered the video smoothly with plenty of headroom. Intel's slowest dual core processor happens to be clocked at 1.6Ghz, so in conjunction with a G35 motherboard, all of Intel's slower dual core processors are fast enough to play back the majority of H.264 and VC-1 videos adequately. At 1.2Ghz, the clip stuttered frequently and there were complete pauses in some spots. If underclocking, we recommend keeping the clock speed to at least 1.4Ghz for proper VC-1 playback.

Asus's tag for this board is 'Enjoy Full HD 1080p Multimedia Home-Theater Entertainment' with no mention of CPU because I assume the G35 chipset does all the work.

Asus P5E-VM HDMI: best matx ever?
#145 12-04-2007, 02:15 PM
Tremeloes said:

I made some tests with the onboard graphic. X3500@384MB
3DMark05: 1190
3DMark06: 675
Testsystem was: E4300@3GHz, 4GB Adata Ram

So far i didnÂ´t have any problems with HD Video up to 1080p. Played some hd trailers from the apple homepage with quicktime (55% Cpu load), and hd avi+mpeg files with power dvd 7 (25% Cpu load), vlc player (between 10-25% Cpu load).

igor123 · Post by **igor123** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 2:42 pm

G35 offers a higher speed FSB, higher speed memory clocks and includes DX10 support. It doesn't do h.264 (the upcoming G45 should), but it does hardware decoding of MPEG-2 and VC-1, however (hence the good results while decoding those).

Regarding your quote, I seriously doubt that processor running at 1.6MHz (or less) will be able to decode h264 bluray without hiccups - I'd say you would need at least 2.4MHz core duo for that. Note that when someone says "smooth 1080p video decoding" you don't know anything about what video compression and bitrate is used - and this can make a big difference. For example, my old pentium 4 @ 3.0GHz can decode some 1080p low bitrate video without problem

. Does that mean I'll be able to play bluray content on it? Well, obviously no

Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to imply that P5E-VM is a bad board, far from that, it's probably the best thing you can buy for your HTPC today - but it will not do ALL the work and you'll still need decent cpu to go with it.

Regards.

dskeeles · Post by **dskeeles** » Sat Feb 09, 2008 5:07 am

dskeeles wrote: So Gigabyte discontinue a highly-regarded motherboard with up-to-date specs, but continue to manufacture and sell two others that are lower spec and outdated, for the same price? What is wrong with these people?

Well, I've found a GA-G33M-S2H after all; an ebay watch brought one up in France, which arrived yesterday. If anyone else is looking out for one, I just had another alert on ebay for one in the US.

I'm a little rusty on homebuild, so it took me a few minutes to realise I haven't got a new CPU cooler. So - will do a bit of searching and Googling, buy some bits, and hopefully have the system up by the end of this week, work permitting.

Watch this space...

D

dskeeles · Post by **dskeeles** » Sun Feb 10, 2008 2:27 am

dskeeles wrote:Watch this space...

Well, I'm going to have a go at assembling today; I also hit the issue of the fan, thread here.

D

Alternative to GA-G33M-S2H

Alternative to GA-G33M-S2H

Is GA-73PVM-S2H the best bet?

Re: Is GA-73PVM-S2H the best bet?

Re: Is GA-73PVM-S2H the best bet?

Re: Is GA-73PVM-S2H the best bet?

Re: Is GA-73PVM-S2H the best bet?

Finally!

Re: Finally!