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I'm looking for a mobo for the i3-3225, and I really don't know where to start. I've looked around and found a couple of possibilities. It must be a mATX board, b/c it should be compatible with the Streacom FC10 case.

What I need:
- Linux compatibility
- Low power consumption

The ones I found so far:
- Intel DH77EB (edit: compatible with FC10)
- MSI Z77MA-G45 (edit: compatible with FC10, with HT4 extension)
- ASRock H77M (edit: compatible with FC10)
- ASRock H77 Pro4-M (edit: compatible with FC10)
- ASUS P8Z77-M (edit: compatible with FC10)
- GIGABYTE GA-Z77M (edit: compatible with FC10)
- GIGABYTE GA-B75M-D3P (edit: compatible with FC10)
- so many other possibilities ...

Can you guys help?

--
Edit: I just heard back from Streacom support regarding the compatibility of the above mentioned boards with the Streacom FC10 case. They are all compatible. The MSI Z77MA-G45 only with the HT4 riser extension.
I like asrock boards.. they are reasonably priced and can be turned on via remote (if the IR receiver is plugged in the right usb port).
I recently ordered an asrock h77m for my new streacom fc9 build, as i dont need those extra sata ports of the h77m pro4-m version.
The FC-10 specs say it will support an ATX motherboard as well. Is there a reason you want only micro-ATX?
(2012-12-26, 19:38)Dougie Fresh Wrote: [ -> ]The FC-10 specs say it will support an ATX motherboard as well. Is there a reason you want only micro-ATX?

This is from an Anandtech review.
Quote:"Users going in for a ATX board are not going to be happy with the maximum available 250 W PSU. Streacom indicated that ATX compatibility was mentioned only because the size of the chassis allowed it. However, they expect end-users to use either mITX or uATX motherboards only."

So technically, ATX is possible, but mATX is the preferred option.
I could also go for mITX, but I can't seem to find any compatible cases with the layout.
Gotcha. Lately I've been using the ASUS P8Z77-M PRO for customer builds and they've worked great. I've only had one DOA which was quickly replaced. I would think in a fanless case like that it's a good idea to find a motherboard with heatsinked VRMs.
I've chosen the FC5 case, which unfortunately isn't that compatible with the majority of motherboards. I have gone with the Gigabyte GA-Z77MX-D3H to use with the i3-3225, which it is proven to work with. Personally I've always used Asus within my PC builds but I couldn't not find a model that was proven to fit the case. I currently have the ASUS P8Z77-V in my main desktop build
(2012-12-26, 21:04)Dougie Fresh Wrote: [ -> ]Gotcha. Lately I've been using the ASUS P8Z77-M PRO for customer builds and they've worked great. I've only had one DOA which was quickly replaced. I would think in a fanless case like that it's a good idea to find a motherboard with heatsinked VRMs.

I agree with the heatsinked components -- that certainly makes sense. However, many users (on Newegg) seem to have issues with the board, and a review I've read calls it "the worst board in the P8Z77 lineup and the worst ASUS board I’ve reviewed in a while" (hardocp.com). I haven't been able to find anything about its power consumption and Linux compatibility either. Do you have experience with that?

Another thing: Compared to the P8Z77-M, I don't really know what I would be the extra money for when I get the P8Z77-M PRO. I used the ASUS compare-thingy, but the extra features don't tell me anything.

I mainly need a less power hungry board; and I think mostly more features mean more idle wattage. Correct me if I'm wrong, though!

(2012-12-26, 23:51)smudgeruk Wrote: [ -> ]I've chosen the FC5 case, which unfortunately isn't that compatible with the majority of motherboards. I have gone with the Gigabyte GA-Z77MX-D3H to use with the i3-3225, which it is proven to work with. Personally I've always used Asus within my PC builds but I couldn't not find a model that was proven to fit the case. I currently have the ASUS P8Z77-V in my main desktop build

I have asked Streacom about a compatibility list, or at least a set of examples they've used the cases with. It's just annoying what you have to do to figure out if the board fits in the case. I currently use The Gimp to overlay their build guide with the board pictures :-)

How does the Gigabyte GA-Z77MX-D3H work for you? I've seen many good reviews. And it's also heatsinked for some of the components on the board. Do you have any experiences with LInux/Ubuntu? Any issues?


(2012-12-26, 19:35)krasv Wrote: [ -> ]I like asrock boards.. they are reasonably priced and can be turned on via remote (if the IR receiver is plugged in the right usb port).
I recently ordered an asrock h77m for my new streacom fc9 build, as i dont need those extra sata ports of the h77m pro4-m version.

How is the board? It's really cheap compared to the others and I haven't read any showstopper-kind-of-things. Any Linux experiences/issues?
smudgeruk, one additional question: Do you have power consumption / wattage numbers? Idle mostly? I'm trying to achieve something around 30W in idle with this build.
My parts will be arriving tomorrow and the day after. I've gone for the crucial m4 64gb ssd along with 8gb and the straecom 150watt psu. I can't comment on the linux compatibility as I'm going with win 7 however I will try openelec as well. My build will be very similar to yours though so will post temps and watts on the weekend
Great, thanks! Happy building!
I'm wondering if you (or me) could reach wattage numbers like in this build: http://www.avsforum.com/t/1364084/htpc-k...t_22686839

26.3w idle: http://www.avsforum.com/t/1364084/htpc-k...t_22689986

Is the mainboard choice relevant for this? What do the expers say? Dougie Fresh, eskro, bluray, etc.?
There are probably some differences but it's going to take some digging to figure out the power consumption of each motherboard if it's available. Most everything is contained in the CPU these days except the Southbridge so most of the power consumption is in the CPU. Intel SandyBridge/IvyBridge consume about the same at idle and for videos. It's at the top end where the difference is. You won't see much of a difference at the low end among any of the CPUs. Where you see a lot of difference is in the PSU.
(2012-12-27, 00:34)binwiederda Wrote: [ -> ]How is the board? It's really cheap compared to the others and I haven't read any showstopper-kind-of-things. Any Linux experiences/issues?
I'm running the latest openelec beta6 intel build - didnt encounter any problems so far.
I just heard back from Streacom support regarding the compatibility of the above mentioned boards with the Streacom FC10 case. They are all compatible. The MSI Z77MA-G45 only with the HT4 riser extension. I updated the original post.
Dougie Fresh, thanks for replying so quickly. That basically means it's a not relevant which mainboard I choose when it comes to idle power consumption?

What about durability? Are there any brands that are known for durable boards? I want it to run 24/7.
Almost decided to go with the Intel DH77EB board. Low power + low voltage RAM support.

I'd appreciate any comments on my almost-ready-to-order build in this post:
http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid...pid1274651
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