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| Buyers Guide to Motherboards from Acu IT Solutions | |
| When buying a motherboard, always decide on the processor that will inhabit it before making your choice, as you will need to match the chip's socket or slot and also make sure the board will support a chip running at that speed. Also make sure you opt for a motherboard that fits your PC's case. Although most now come in a standard ATX size, there are many that won't fit in the smaller and older AT variety - something to consider if you are upgrading a decrepit machine - and some, such as the Micro ATX (MATX) designed specifically for slimline or compact PC cases. | |
| CHIPSETS | |
| It's a good idea to do some homework on motherboard chipsets too, if only to check that any compatibility problems affecting the latest versions have been resolved. Some, like Intel's 810e, integrate graphics and audio controllers onto the motherboard itself, meaning you can save money if you don't want to buy an extra graphics or sound card. Be aware that although the integrated solutions these type of motherboards offer are neat, the quality of the video and audio they deliver often makes them unsuitable for demanding multimedia applications such as highend 3D games or DVD playback. | |
| BUS AND CACHE | |
| Apart from the type of processor and number of
memory slots (see below), other aspects to consider are the amount
of integrated cache and the front side bus (FSB) speed support. As
with processors, the more cache fitted to a motherboard the better,
but it's not necessarily advantageous to opt for the mobo with the
highest FSB speed support. If your memory and processor support 66MHz
for instance, don't spend money on a motherboard with 133MHz FSB capabilities
unless you plan to upgrade the other two components in the future.
PCs that will be attached to networks might benefit from integrated Ethernet, token ring or other network interfaces, and Wake on Lan (Wol) support is a good idea for PCs in larger networks where time and money can be saved by booting the PC from a remote location. |
We hope this buying advice article gave you some tips on what to look out for when choosing an item to buy that suits your needs. We welcome feedback and additions to our tutorials / how-to's and tips feel free to contact us with your ideas and updates. |
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