Hi tomshardware community,
I am looking for an ATX motherboard to work some of the hardware that I currently have.
Currently have:
2* Xeon X3360 CPU (LGA775) (I don't plan to use both though)
4* 2GB PC2-5300 (DDR2-667) ECC memory
A Full Tower case, appears to be Cooler Master HAF 932 (Micro-ATX / ATX / E-ATX)
Power source
A few hard drives and DVD drives
Monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc
I realized that I would still need a motherboard, a graphic card and a fan to make it a completed computer, so why not. I am planning to use the computer for small coding works, Youtube/Netflix and some not very demanding game, like World of Tank, Battlefield 3, and Minecraft.
Based on what I planned to do with the computer, I think I don't need a high-performance graphic card, but I would still need some dedicated graphic card rather than integrated graphic, and I need to consider that when deciding on the motherboard.
Before I started the serious search I was hoping to be able to use both the CPUs I have, but it seems can't be done cheaply (dual LGA775 board seems to be hard to find and expensive).
At first I was looking at old server motherboard with LGA775, like the Supermicro X7SBE and Intel S3210 on eb*y. They are cheap, easy to find, but additional search told me that they don't like dedicated graphic card, so I guess that's a no.
Then I went to look at old WorkStation motherboard with LGA775, like the Dell Precision WorkStation T3400 board (also on eb*y), as it seems would work with my CPU, but then I realized it is a BTX form factor. Some search told me that the chipset (X38 Express) may still work for what I planning to do, even if it is not on the Compatible Products List of Xeon X3360 .
So now I am looking for a X38 chipset ATX board. I heard that ASUS P5E would work with X3380 Xeon as well as ECC memory. Sounds good, but I am also looking for other [strike]cheaper[/strike] options, like the HP XW4600 WorkStation FMB-0702 X38 Motherboard.
For using the HP XW4600 WorkStation Motherboard, I would expect it to be a little bit challenging to find the correct pins for the front panel, as this is a OEM motherboard and don't come with manuals. But I found a Pinouts for HP xw Workstations which combined with a little bit of trial and error should get the front panel to work.
So my question is, is it safe to assume the HP XW4600 WorkStation Motherboard will also work with Xeon X3360 CPU because it uses the same X38 chipset as the ASUS P5E? Is there any other problems with the planned setup, that I am not aware of?
Thanks for reading this far. I really appreciated your attention and help. Thank you.
I am looking for an ATX motherboard to work some of the hardware that I currently have.
Currently have:
2* Xeon X3360 CPU (LGA775) (I don't plan to use both though)
4* 2GB PC2-5300 (DDR2-667) ECC memory
A Full Tower case, appears to be Cooler Master HAF 932 (Micro-ATX / ATX / E-ATX)
Power source
A few hard drives and DVD drives
Monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc
I realized that I would still need a motherboard, a graphic card and a fan to make it a completed computer, so why not. I am planning to use the computer for small coding works, Youtube/Netflix and some not very demanding game, like World of Tank, Battlefield 3, and Minecraft.
Based on what I planned to do with the computer, I think I don't need a high-performance graphic card, but I would still need some dedicated graphic card rather than integrated graphic, and I need to consider that when deciding on the motherboard.
Before I started the serious search I was hoping to be able to use both the CPUs I have, but it seems can't be done cheaply (dual LGA775 board seems to be hard to find and expensive).
At first I was looking at old server motherboard with LGA775, like the Supermicro X7SBE and Intel S3210 on eb*y. They are cheap, easy to find, but additional search told me that they don't like dedicated graphic card, so I guess that's a no.
Then I went to look at old WorkStation motherboard with LGA775, like the Dell Precision WorkStation T3400 board (also on eb*y), as it seems would work with my CPU, but then I realized it is a BTX form factor. Some search told me that the chipset (X38 Express) may still work for what I planning to do, even if it is not on the Compatible Products List of Xeon X3360 .
So now I am looking for a X38 chipset ATX board. I heard that ASUS P5E would work with X3380 Xeon as well as ECC memory. Sounds good, but I am also looking for other [strike]cheaper[/strike] options, like the HP XW4600 WorkStation FMB-0702 X38 Motherboard.
For using the HP XW4600 WorkStation Motherboard, I would expect it to be a little bit challenging to find the correct pins for the front panel, as this is a OEM motherboard and don't come with manuals. But I found a Pinouts for HP xw Workstations which combined with a little bit of trial and error should get the front panel to work.
So my question is, is it safe to assume the HP XW4600 WorkStation Motherboard will also work with Xeon X3360 CPU because it uses the same X38 chipset as the ASUS P5E? Is there any other problems with the planned setup, that I am not aware of?
Thanks for reading this far. I really appreciated your attention and help. Thank you.
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