Which motherboard should i buy for AMD M2 withing 4K?

[alsiladka]

Hey guys, i have zeroed in on AMD X2 proc for my new system. My budget for the motherboard is 4K.

I am not an hardcore gamer, but now that i am getting myself a new machine, would like to play occasionally. I want vista running smoothly with Aero. My current laptop cannot even play 720p movies fluently, i want my new system to effortlessly play 1080p.
Please suggest a motherboard to me with minimum 3 Windows Experience Rating

Please also mention
* How many RAM slots it has.
* Does it feature HD Audio.

[desiibond]

1) Gigabyte GA-M68SM-S2L based on latest NVIDIA® GeForce 7025 / nForce 630a chipset
2) Gigabyte GA-MA69VM-S2 based on AMD 690V chipset

1) Asus M2A-VM based on AMD 690G chipset
2) Asus M2N-VM DVi or HDMI based on nvidia 7025 chipset.


You can opt Nvidia based board for better funcionality on linux and solid vista performance.

[juggler]

+1 for Asus M2A-VM

[dOm1naTOr]

go for M2A VM HDMI which is for 4.2k. It has aditional HDMI port with audio as well.
Normal M2A VM has only DVI d D SUB nd provide HD conyents through that DVI-D port.

[alsiladka]

Guys which is better -
M2NVM DVI or M2NVM HDMI or M2AVM ?

[varunprabhakar]

i have used both M2NVM DVI (nvidia 7050 based)and M2AVM (ati 690g based)
m2a-vm has shader model 2.0 support while m2n-vm has shader 3.0 support. ithink m2n-vm is supposed to b better in hd-content playback and games as well

[dOm1naTOr]

But there is no HDMI in M2N VM DVI. Though DVI can give quality cloce to HDMI ones, ull heve to connect audio seperately.
But M2A VM has HDMI with audio integrated, nd its HD audio Realtec 880.
And performancewise there's not much diif b/w 690G nd 7050.

But with my experience, X1250 is giving more performance rating in vista that 7050 or 6150. Maybe reason is ATi boasts HQ HD decoding with integrated decoder in GPU.
But with any onboard GPU, u can't enjoy HD Gaming as it can't handle games @ HD resolutions even at lowest setings in todays games.

And later if u add any ATI card in M2A VM DHMI, u can have practically five video outputs, ie u can still use the onboard DVi,Dsub, HDMI addition to those in the cards[dual DVI in HD series cards]. This time HD decoding is done in card's GPU.

As of now, for home entertainment, ATI is way ahead of nvidia.
For smooth playback of HD contents, u shud get a gud CPU, at least a 5000+.

And whats the use of SM 3.0 in 7050 if it can't handle games at even med details?

[alsiladka]

I wont be playing games, dont have time for them.
I am getting an AMD X2 5600+

I need smooth HD playback and smooth Aero effects. Nothing else.
And the only output i shall be needing is the normal CRT monitor, so no use of 3 4 outputs to me.

If possible, i would love to connect our normal 21 inch tvs to my computer, is that possible?

[Pathik]

Dude u could hav better options with c2d.. Also tell wich monitor do u use? Does it have a dvi in? I wd prefer 7050> x1250

[alsiladka]

Considering the cost comparisions, AMD came out to be a better deal.

I have a basic CRT 17inch monitor, I dont think it has a DVI in.

[desiibond]

^^^ I prefer nVidia for AMD proccy's. Better go for M2N-VM HDMI. I opt this over DVI as this one is future proof and if future, if you get a HDTV, this one can send the HD video to HDTV but to play 1080p effortlessly, you may need a dedicated GPU with HDMI. You can play HD audio without any hiccups from this motherboard.

[dOm1naTOr]

@alsiladka
If u want to connect ur TV too, then the best option is:
Asus M2N PV VM: It has DVI, D Sub, analog RF TV out[dun know correct nae, but the yellow connector to TV], component outs etc in the board itself.