The perfect HTPC motherboard? - Page 2

MattLittle · 2008-05-09, 00:35

Yeah except that the PCIe and PCI slots are too close together still. This is a real bugger. There is the <odd> one out there that fits my specs... ie the abit NF-M2 nView but that is one expensive MB for HTPC use, and I dont really see the point in paying for wang o/b gfx when Ill be using an ad in card anyway... Cheers for the input though, my search continues! I have emailed the speedfan guy and he has asked for my current MB specs to see if we can get fan control on that one. Nice surprise to hear from him! Ill keep you posted, any further suggestions appreciated. If you have a look at this
You will see what I mean by slot spacing for the abit board...

Marcusb · 2008-05-09, 03:10

the Asrock Mobo is here for a fair bit cheaper than you found : Product list
I bought the slightly cheaper Asrock one from that page, the 720 model and it works well for me. I haven't tried too much to get Speedfan to control the speed though but it didn't seem to work first go.

If the Asus board works well for you in all aspects except the fan noise, why not just by a three port fan speed controller? You can get these for a lot cheaper than the cost of a new motherboard (well, not much cheaper now that boards have dropped in price so much).

Anyway, I think that is probably a better option than buying another board that may not be suitable either.

MattLittle · 2008-05-09, 05:30

Yeah same old problem with slot spacing. Ive actually got a 3 pin fan controller somewhere. I just dont like the idea of manually turning up the fan speed by hand whenever I want to do anything resource intensive.

MattLittle · 2008-05-11, 02:52

1gkar - I can see the boot up/post screen on my TV. Yes, I do have to reset the flicker filter everytime I reboot! My telly is connected via s-video. I tried to connect it via component input. I get the POST screen but as soon as the driver loads in XP the screen goes all fxxed. Gave up and have gone back to s-video. Have you got 'first graphics device' or whatever set to PCIe in your bios?

Okay I quite like the look of the asus M2N-VM boards either the HDMI or DVI I dont really care as Ill be adding in gfx card here.
Do any of you have experience with these boards and sppedfans ability to control CPU and system fans?

2008-05-09, 00:35	#11 (permalink)
MattLittle Portal Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 25 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Yeah except that the PCIe and PCI slots are too close together still. This is a real bugger. There is the <odd> one out there that fits my specs... ie the abit NF-M2 nView but that is one expensive MB for HTPC use, and I dont really see the point in paying for wang o/b gfx when Ill be using an ad in card anyway... Cheers for the input though, my search continues! I have emailed the speedfan guy and he has asked for my current MB specs to see if we can get fan control on that one. Nice surprise to hear from him! Ill keep you posted, any further suggestions appreciated. If you have a look at this You will see what I mean by slot spacing for the abit board... Last edited by MattLittle; 2008-05-09 at 00:46.

2008-05-11, 02:52	#14 (permalink)
MattLittle Portal Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 25 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	1gkar - I can see the boot up/post screen on my TV. Yes, I do have to reset the flicker filter everytime I reboot! My telly is connected via s-video. I tried to connect it via component input. I get the POST screen but as soon as the driver loads in XP the screen goes all fxxed. Gave up and have gone back to s-video. Have you got 'first graphics device' or whatever set to PCIe in your bios? Okay I quite like the look of the asus M2N-VM boards either the HDMI or DVI I dont really care as Ill be adding in gfx card here. Do any of you have experience with these boards and sppedfans ability to control CPU and system fans? Last edited by MattLittle; 2008-05-11 at 02:56. Reason: Automerged Doublepost

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2008-05-09, 03:10	#12 (permalink)
Marcusb Super Moderator Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Melbourne Posts: 1,869 Thanks: 55 Thanked 24 Times in 24 Posts Country: My System	the Asrock Mobo is here for a fair bit cheaper than you found : Product list I bought the slightly cheaper Asrock one from that page, the 720 model and it works well for me. I haven't tried too much to get Speedfan to control the speed though but it didn't seem to work first go. If the Asus board works well for you in all aspects except the fan noise, why not just by a three port fan speed controller? You can get these for a lot cheaper than the cost of a new motherboard (well, not much cheaper now that boards have dropped in price so much). Anyway, I think that is probably a better option than buying another board that may not be suitable either.

2008-05-09, 05:30	#13 (permalink)
MattLittle Portal Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 25 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Yeah same old problem with slot spacing. Ive actually got a 3 pin fan controller somewhere. I just dont like the idea of manually turning up the fan speed by hand whenever I want to do anything resource intensive.