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Official Sandy Bridge / LGA1155 for HTPCs Thread - Page 51

post #1501 of 2220
6/7/11 at 2:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by StardogChampion View Post

I'd have to add this one to the list that I am very happy with:

37mm
SilverStone Low Profile 90mm Fan CPU Cooler for LGA 1156 Platforms NT07-1156

I think that one looks almost identical to the stock 2100t cooler.
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post #1502 of 2220
6/7/11 at 2:36pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by user4avsforum View Post

Nice analysis, thanks for doing this.

Given the basic configuration:
- Pentium / Core i3 processor
- H61 mb
- 2 x 2GB DDR3
- 1 x 3.5" HDD
- PSU
I expected to see lower idle power numbers. To what do you attribute the relatively high idle power? The MB, PSU, both?

The MB components could easily be drawing half of that power just for upkeep.
The CPU and case fans draw a few watts.
Was the HDD spun down at the moment the idle power usage was measured?
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post #1503 of 2220
6/7/11 at 7:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by rushidesai View Post

renethx: can you tell me which pcie x1 card you were able to get working in your ASRock H67M-ITX? I just bought this motherboard and it refuses to see my AverMedia Duet A188 TV Tuner.

Intel released a BIOS update to fix the Pcie issue and a TV tuner issue, on Intel branded boards, on May 23.

BLH6710H.86A.0119.2011.0523.1030 Production BIOS
About This Release:
 May 23, 2011
 ME Firmware: 7.1.13.1088
 Integrated Graphics Option ROM: Build 2111 PC 14.34
 SATA RAID Option ROM: v10.0.0.1046
 LAN Option ROM: v1365 PXE 2.1 Build 089
Note:
After updating to BIOS version 0119 or newer, you must use the Recovery update method to revert to version 0110 or earlier.
New Fixes/Features:
 Fixed issue where PCIe x1 card is not detected when inserted in a PCIe x16 slot.
 Updated Intel® ME firmware to version 7.1.13.1088.
 Added SATA hot plug functionality.
 Updated processor support.
 Fixed TV tuner card issue.
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post #1504 of 2220
6/8/11 at 5:41am
Although that BIOS update helped me on my Intel branded motherboard to be able to use an x1 card in the x16 slot, it is not going to help rushidesai with his Asrock branded motherboard. If you are on the latest BIOS version with your Asrock board and it doesn't work, you'll have to get in touch with Asrock support.
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post #1505 of 2220
6/8/11 at 6:26am
Did Intel release a new graphics driver yet that does not BSOD on Win7 when you installed in UEFI mode?

I heard one can work around this problem by installing SP1 before the graphics driver, however that didn't work for me. No matter what i did, installing the driver BSODs on my Z68 board with Win7 in UEFI mode.

I went back to a BIOS Win7 install now, would prefer to have a UEFI install however.
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post #1506 of 2220
6/10/11 at 8:28am
Is anyone using a Hauppauge PVR-500 with a Sandy Bridge motherboard?

I've tried all of the following boards, and none will even POST if a PVR-500 is plugged in to a PCI slot.

Gigabyte H67A-UD3H-B3
Asus P8Z68-V Pro
Intel DH67CLB3
Asus P8H67-M Pro

The systems work perfectly otherwise. They also work fine with a PVR-150, so I suspect it's an incompatibility between the Sandy Bridge chipsets and the PCI bridge on the PVR-500. I haven't yet tried a 2250 card (don't have one available) ... hopefully the bridge on that doesn't cause this same issue. Several posters in this thread indicate they're using 2250's, so I presume that's not an issue ... but itd be nice to isolate why the PVR-500's won't work.

[I've tried these with an i5-2400S and an i7-2600K just to be sure it wasn't CPU-related.]
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post #1507 of 2220
6/10/11 at 8:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by garycase2001 View Post

Is anyone using a Hauppauge PVR-500 with a Sandy Bridge motherboard?

I've tried all of the following boards, and none will even POST if a PVR-500 is plugged in to a PCI slot.

Gigabyte H67A-UD3H-B3
Asus P8Z68-V Pro
Intel DH67CLB3
Asus P8H67-M Pro

The systems work perfectly otherwise. They also work fine with a PVR-150, so I suspect it's an incompatibility between the Sandy Bridge chipsets and the PCI bridge on the PVR-500. I haven't yet tried a 2250 card (don't have one available) ... hopefully the bridge on that doesn't cause this same issue. Several posters in this thread indicate they're using 2250's, so I presume that's not an issue ... but itd be nice to isolate why the PVR-500's won't work.

[I've tried these with an i5-2400S and an i7-2600K just to be sure it wasn't CPU-related.]

I thought I read something recently regarding a new driver that was released that fixed the problem of some PCI-E cards not being detected. I can't seem to find it now though.
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post #1508 of 2220
6/10/11 at 8:38am
Quote:
Originally Posted by assassin View Post

I thought I read something recently regarding a new driver that was released that fixed the problem of some PCI-E cards not being detected. I can't seem to find it now though.

It's not a driver issue -- the system's won't even POST. It's also not a PCIe card ... the PVR-500's are PCI cards.
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post #1509 of 2220
6/10/11 at 8:38am
Three new 32nm Celerons in September
Quote:


Sandy Bridge 32nm architecture doesn't have to cost a fortune. In its cheaper Celeron iteration, it sells for really modest $37 a piece. This money will buy you a single core Intel Celeron processor G440 with one core and one tread, and Intel is nice enough to offer you a whole 1MB of cache.

The second in line will offer you much more for only $5 more. The name is Celeron G530 and this is a 2.4GHz clocked dual core with two threads with a whole 2 MB of cache. It will sell for $42 once it launches in September.

The top of this new upgrade is Celeron G540, a $52 dual core with two threads and 2.5GHz core clock. This 2MB cache LGA1155 also comes in September and will be the fastest Sandy Bridge based Celeron.

The G530 2.4 GHz, $42 and G540 2.5GHz, $52 look like they might be good choices for the HTPC. No idea what features will be cut from it, though. Don't mind lacking 3D so much, but I think at this time, HD audio bitstreaming and GPU decode acceleration should be standard. This should make building an LGA-1155-based (HT)PC even cheaper.
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post #1510 of 2220
6/10/11 at 9:29am
Very low price point for the new chips.
Fudzilla states "that the chips will most likely have the graphics" - - > I am sure it will make for an excellent basic HTPC/media streamer.
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post #1511 of 2220
6/10/11 at 10:46pm
I'm tagging on here, since I'm a new Sandy Bridge user.

Has anyone had trouble with bitstreaming audio via HDMI using the integrated graphics? If so, how did you fix it?

I just bought a Denon AVR-1912 and all it's seeing is stereo as far as I can tell. I can set it to "simulate" surround sound and it sounds great, but I'd really rather hear the original soundtrack.
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post #1512 of 2220
6/11/11 at 11:35am
If anyone's feeling benevolent, there's a separate thread about my bitstreaming issue over here: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...8#post20555988
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post #1513 of 2220
6/15/11 at 12:40pm
ASUS Maximus IV GENE-Z (Z68 microATX) is available (soon).
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post #1514 of 2220
6/16/11 at 5:38am
Quote:
Originally Posted by renethx View Post

ASUS Maximus IV GENE-Z (Z68 microATX) is available (soon).

Any information on this?
I checked ASUS' website but couldn't find anything....estimated price? Features?
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post #1515 of 2220
6/16/11 at 5:44am
Intel's DH61AG will be available soon.

Highlights:

- mini-ITX
- slim profile (1/2 standard height)
- HTPC (provides access to CEC via 3rd party HW), CIR, 8 channel analog audio (line levels) headers
- SO-DIMM
- full and half sized mini PCIe (full is mSATA compatible) slots
- PCIe x4
- requires 19V laptop style PSU (does not have 24 pin ATX)
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post #1516 of 2220
6/16/11 at 6:38am
Quote:
Originally Posted by efotonik View Post

Any information on this?
I checked ASUS' website but couldn't find anything....estimated price? Features?

asus.co.jp, ~$180, late in June, "SupremeFX X-Fi 2" chip (EAX).
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post #1517 of 2220
6/16/11 at 8:41am
Quote:
Originally Posted by babgvant View Post

Intel's DH61AG will be available soon.

Highlights:

- mini-ITX
- slim profile (1/2 standard height)
- HTPC (provides access to CEC via 3rd party HW), CIR, 8 channel analog audio (line levels) headers
- SO-DIMM
- full and half sized mini PCIe (full is mSATA compatible) slots
- PCIe x4
- requires 19V laptop style PSU (does not have 24 pin ATX)

Nice. Looks like a good fit for the Mini-Box M-350. It's good that it uses 19V bricks. It's easier to find 120W versions of those than the 12V required by most PicoPSU's.
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post #1518 of 2220
6/16/11 at 8:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ilovejedd View Post

Nice. Looks like a good fit for the Mini-Box M-350. It's good that it uses 19V bricks. It's easier to find 120W versions of those than the 12V required by most PicoPSU's.

That's a big reason I went with the picoPSU WI version so I could get a 19V 120W adapter. I too am very happy to see this.

I hope following will be some nice cases to match that low-profile form factor. It'll at least make it easier to jam a build into a regular low-profile case.
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post #1519 of 2220
6/16/11 at 9:06am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ilovejedd View Post

Nice. Looks like a good fit for the Mini-Box M-350. It's good that it uses 19V bricks. It's easier to find 120W versions of those than the 12V required by most PicoPSU's.

Just in case you missed it, Michael (Mikinho) included some shots of the DH61AG in a M350 in the photo gallery he posted.
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post #1520 of 2220
6/16/11 at 9:10am
Quote:
Originally Posted by StardogChampion View Post

I hope following will be some nice cases to match that low-profile form factor. It'll at least make it easier to jam a build into a regular low-profile case.


Me too. I'd love to see some slim BD player sized cases with the board on one side, ODD on the other.
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post #1521 of 2220
6/16/11 at 9:13am
Quote:
Originally Posted by babgvant View Post

Just in case you missed it, Michael (Mikinho) included some shots of the DH61AG in a M350 in the photo gallery he posted.

slow internet = not checking photo galleries at the moment

Thanks for the heads up, though. Will definitely check it out later.
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post #1522 of 2220
6/17/11 at 10:13am
Thread Starter 
I recently got hold of a Intel HD Graphics 3000 equipped HTPC, and it performed admirably better than the Clarkdale / Arrandale IGP in many HQV benchmark tests. (It is now able to detect all the tested cadence patterns, for example).

However, I am disappointed with the deinterlacing performance in the Cheese Slices test and also the 'Skin Tone Correction' slider. I am using the ArcSoft Video Decoder with EVR. The driver version is 8.15.10.2372

Has anyone been able to get the AMD 6450 / at least NVIDIA GT 520 level deinterlacing performance with SNB graphics?

Also, has anyone been able to get the Skin Tone Correction sliders to work? The sliders do move around freely, but enabling skin tone correction and adjusting it only makes the HQV benchmark video appear worse off.
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post #1523 of 2220
6/17/11 at 10:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by jakmal View Post
However, I am disappointed with the deinterlacing performance in the Cheese Slices test and also the 'Skin Tone Correction' slider. I am using the ArcSoft Video Decoder with EVR. The driver version is 8.15.10.2372
What application are you using? Do you see similar DI performance when viewing in PowerDVD?
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post #1524 of 2220
6/17/11 at 10:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by babgvant View Post
Me too. I'd love to see some slim BD player sized cases with the board on one side, ODD on the other.
That'd be perfect in so many ways, especially since nothing would be mounted above the motherboard. I wish I had the skills to make my own I know just how I'd design it.
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post #1525 of 2220
6/17/11 at 10:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by StardogChampion View Post
That'd be perfect in so many ways, especially since nothing would be mounted above the motherboard. I wish I had the skills to make my own I know just how I'd design it.
+1. Still, for now, one issue with really, really low-profile cases is you'd still need a cooler for the CPU and it'll be hard to find one that's both uber-tiny and quiet. I'm not sold on the Silverstone NT07 HSF. For me, they're too loud. I have an NT07-775 and find it to be louder than the stock Celeron E3300 Intel cooler it replaced. No choice, though. The case I'm using (BM-639) can't accommodate the Intel HSF.
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post #1526 of 2220
6/17/11 at 10:41am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by babgvant View Post
What application are you using? Do you see similar DI performance when viewing in PowerDVD?
Yes, similar DI when playing natively in both PowerDVD and ArcSoft. Currently have screenshots with MPC-HC + ArcSoft Video Decoder + EVR. Other post processing algos like noise reduction work pretty OK.

Edit: What I am getting with the HD 3000 is similar to what renethx reports here (wrt DI performance): http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...4#post20479074
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post #1527 of 2220
6/17/11 at 9:44pm
I know it's late and I may not get many responses but I bit on a deal I couldn't pass up and would like to know if anyone sees a problem with this setup for streaming from another PC, Netflix, 1080 mkv files and the like through XBMC. Running Win7 64.

I3-2100
MSI H67MA-E35-B3
Samsung Spinpoint F4 2TB 5400 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" HD204UI - OEM

Memory is undecided but will be 2X2 gb
Case will be whatever I find cheap and small to fit in the space I need.
No tuner in plans for now, it will come later.

Is the driver issue worked out, no surprises for playing back mkv and iso through XBMC ? Netflix ? That is 90% of what this will be used for but wanted the system open to be able to re-purpose it later.
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post #1528 of 2220
6/17/11 at 11:08pm
So I just got the Gigabyte GA-Z68MA-D2H-B3 (rev. 1.0) z68 chipset motherboard and an i5 2500k processor but I cannot get my high definition sound device to show trueHD or DTA-MA as supported formats. The whole driver situation for this setup is really confusing. I can't even tell what model # to look for new drivers for.

I installed the newest realtek drivers, but that only effected my other outputs like Analog and spdif. The HDMI output stayed exactly the same with some old 2009 driver.
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post #1529 of 2220
6/18/11 at 5:35am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ncognito30 View Post


Is the driver issue worked out, no surprises for playing back mkv and iso through XBMC ? Netflix ? That is 90% of what this will be used for but wanted the system open to be able to re-purpose it later.

If you plan to use the default player in in XBMC on Windows, you will have to rely on the processor to decode the video, as DXVA2 does not work in XBMC for sandy bridge, but the 2100 is more than enough to handle the job. The concern with using the CPU to decode is increased workload means more heat, then generally comes more noise. And the fact that well, dangit, you are paying extra for intel's supposed latest and greatest, super duper onboard graphics, it should hardware decode 1080p like butter, with any software you want to use.
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post #1530 of 2220
6/18/11 at 5:52am
Quote:
Originally Posted by babgvant View Post

Intel's DH61AG will be available soon.

Highlights:

- mini-ITX
- slim profile (1/2 standard height)
- HTPC (provides access to CEC via 3rd party HW), CIR, 8 channel analog audio (line levels) headers
- SO-DIMM
- full and half sized mini PCIe (full is mSATA compatible) slots
- PCIe x4
- requires 19V laptop style PSU (does not have 24 pin ATX)


Would the graphics on this be capable of running HD content (1080) since it runs the older H61 chipset from Intel?
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