I plan to upgrade my HTPC to Ivy bridge before the end of the year. Applications include everything except for gaming. I use a networked HDHomeRun tuner.
I will be starting from scratch, moving from mATX to mITX, from a dedicated GPU to integrated, from an ATX PSU to a Pico (or onboard DC-DC), all in a much smaller case. This upgrade is motivated mainly by a desire for faster CPU performance (video encoding), and a smaller physical footprint than my NSK2400. Power consumption is secondary, though this will certainly improve.
I have not settled on a case yet. I may make my own since I can't find anything that satisfies all my needs/wants. The HDPlex H5.ODD is almost perfect. What I end up with will resemble it.
The build will include a full-size optical drive - my trusty LG HD-DVD/BD combo - plus a slow 2.5" storage drive and a mSATA SSD, most likely one of Micron's new C400 mSATA SSDs.
For the sake of elegance, I am interested in keeping internal component & cable count to a minimum. This is one reason I want the mSATA SSD. The other reason is that I also need to power the storage HDD and an optical drive. To power all this with a PicoPSU will require at least an adapter, and most likely cable extensions as the Pico's cables are pretty short (at least, all of mine are).
So, I want a motherboard with mSATA support from its mini PCIe slot. Several Intel boards support this, including the approximately 1-year old Intel DH61AG. Does anyone know if the DH61AG will support Ivy Bridge? I cannot find anything official. Another advantage of the DH61AG is that it includes a SATA power cable that can power 2 SATA devices directly from the motherboard. I like this a lot.
Other Intel boards that support mSATA on mini PCIe are listed here, including:
- DH61AG
- DN2800MT
- DH77EB
- DH77KC
I read a rumor online (here maybe? I can't find it anymore) that Intel is prepping a 7-series chipset Slim mITX board. I am thinking that it would be the replacement for the DH61AG. That's what I want anyway: a 7-series mITX board with built-in DC-DC conversion, support for mSATA on mini PCIe, and SATA power out on-board. Is this too much to ask ?!