best motherboard for HTPC

mbbx0bbr · 16-02-2009, 1:29 AM

Hi I have an old silverstone HTPC case that I am wanting to reconfigure and start setting up a new HTPC for a new home cinema project that i am going to start over the next 6-10 months.

It can take any for of ATX motherbaord.

I am wanting HDMI built into a motherboard, but I also want it to pump out the Audio (7.1) on the HDMI cable.

Is there any motherboard with this build in? I have seen seperate graphics cards that support it. somthing to do with UDV2?

Hope you can help.

Bob

MikeK · 16-02-2009, 8:16 AM

You are probably looking at something like the Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H (perhaps coupled with a 5050e CPU) for AMD processors or something like the Asus P5N7A-VM from the Intel camp (coupled with something like an E5200 CPU).

The Gigabyte board has inbuilt ATI HD3200 graphics with a HDMI port (and utilises ATI's UVD2 video decoding technology)

The Asus board has inbuilt Nvidia 9300 graphics with a HDMI port (and utilises Nvidia's CUDA video decoding technology)

Take your pick really - for an HTPC there's very little to choose between Intel and AMD on the performance front. Of the two examples above, the Intel platform probably has the edge, but for normal HD HTPC duties, that edge is pretty much inconsequential. The Intel setup would be a tad more expensive though - c£150 for mbd/cpu, whereas the AMD setup would be c£120.

There are quite a few alternatives too though, especially if you don't mind using an add-in graphics card (often it works out no more expensive), but the MicroATX boards (like the examples above), with pretty much everything built onto the motherboard are a neat solution for a HTPC.

Koolvin1 · 17-02-2009, 9:15 AM

I would go with the iG35 Asus P5E-VM HDMI mothorboard which is a micro ATX board and is also available in full size ATX (P5E-V HDMI) these boards meet your requiments - A rock solid board.

The P5N7A looks good too and is based on the iG45 chipset but does not have any firewire ports. Firewire would be essential if you wanted to use something like a Floppy DTV DVB-S Ci (with your Sky viewing card) This A new board so you would have to read feedback from any users.

Both boards above meet your requiments with on board HDMI and LCPM audio over HDMI.

cdldt · 17-02-2009, 7:59 PM

Can your case take full ATX motherboards?

I would consider this:
Biostar TA790GX3-A2+, AMD 790GX, SAM2+, PCI-E 2.0 (x16), DDR2 1066/533/667, SATA II, SATA RAID, ATX - Scan.co.uk

That board has 128MB onboard memory for the IGP, which means that you can get away with using a low-powered CPU (e.g. Athlon 5050e) and still get the highest quality deinterlacing. With the 780G chipset (as opposed to 780GX) you lose out on vector adaptive deinterlacing unless you use a CPU with HT 3.0 (which typically consume more power than an equivalent HT 2.0 CPU).

I've had various Biostar boards with 1997 and have found them to be very reliable.

Scott_Mac · 18-02-2009, 12:48 PM

My personal choice (and that of many others) is:

AMD Athlon X2 5050e Energy Efficient Dual-Core: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics & Photo

and

Gigabyte GA-MA78GPM-DS2H - Motherboard - micro ATX: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics & Photo

Plays everything HD i throw at it... plenty of choices for audio/video out, efficient processor and great support!

deksawyer · 18-02-2009, 3:48 PM

I recently moved my HTPC from the Asus P5E-VM HDMI to the Gigabyte GA-E7AUM-DS2H and it's a night/day comparison.

Technically the Asus G35 should be capable, but the lack of driver support was its biggest problem. I now use the G35 as my main PC and it's very good, but as an HTPC it really can't compete with the Gigabyte.

I've not tried the AMD solutions so can't comment, but I know a man who can.....

D.

Koolvin1 · 20-02-2009, 7:07 PM

hi I appreciate your view as you have had both the Asus and Gigabyte- but please explain why the Gigabyte has been better than the Asus?

anth.payne · 20-02-2009, 10:00 PM

I believe one difference is that the Gigabyte boards run much cooler than the Asus boards

Another consideration is that the ATI IGP's do not support LPCM over HDMI

I would personally go for the nVidia 8200/8300 for AMD or the 9300/9400 for intel.

The Gigabyte GA-E7AUM-DS2H is a good board, but pricey...

deksawyer · 22-02-2009, 11:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Koolvin1

hi I appreciate your view as you have had both the Asus and Gigabyte- but please explain why the Gigabyte has been better than the Asus?

The Intel drivers are shocking. And as mentioned, no multichannel LPCM over HDMI (although this is a moot point for me at the moment).

The Asus NB actually runs cooler than the Gigabyte, but so far I've never had a problem with temps.

BD & HD DVD playback is much smoother on the Gigabyte as well, even at 720p 50hz. The Asus never played back smoothly at all. But my biggest gripe was SD television - it was horrible on the G35. Very jittery and a real pain in the butt. In hindsight, I don't know how I put up with it for so long.....

Also standby/resume is much better on the Gigabyte.

D.

andymet87 · 23-02-2009, 12:26 AM

I've just built a system using the GA-MA78GM-S2H and a AMD 5600+, although its only been a few days it is amazing. plays HD-DVD, blu-ray, and anything else without even stuttering.

Despite my limited time using it I would highly recommend it!

mbbx0bbr · 26-02-2009, 1:01 AM

Thank you for all your replies, my heads in a spin!!

My ideas are now:

An ATX motherboard (with some PCI slots) and integrated HD video/graphics.

The energy efficient AMD CPU

The PCI slots are so that I can add 1 or 2 TV cards, for digital broadcasts and TV recording etc.

Can anyone inform me how good a PC is to run this stuff. Many years ago I used to have an ATI TV card, it was unstable and pretty CPU intensive. Have things improved?

andymet87 · 26-02-2009, 2:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mbbx0bbr

Thank you for all your replies, my heads in a spin!!

My ideas are now:

An ATX motherboard (with some PCI slots) and integrated HD video/graphics.

The energy efficient AMD CPU

The PCI slots are so that I can add 1 or 2 TV cards, for digital broadcasts and TV recording etc.

Can anyone inform me how good a PC is to run this stuff. Many years ago I used to have an ATI TV card, it was unstable and pretty CPU intensive. Have things improved?

hi i'm watching BBC on the system I said above right now. Amazing quality and sound. I tired to play a high end game earlier and it really struggled. It depends what your gonna be using it for. the board i've used (see above) allows you to plug in a cheap graphics pcie card to have the affect of a really high end graphics card!
I would really recommend this board for your system. its Micro ATX so would fit a smaller case. (has 4 expansion slots)