What I want and don't want in a motherboard

[renaissance_man]

Wants:
nforce 2
firewire
usb 2.0
integrated sound
agp 8X
nic
Micro atx (or smaller)
3 dimm slots
ata 133

Don't want:
parallel port
serial ports
integrated graphics (willing to be flexible on this one)

does this exist (I haven't been able to find it)

Its all a right wing conspiracay

 

[Maverick494]

I find myself wanting pretty much the same things as you and not wanting the same. I found my solution was to disable the parallel and serial ports in the bios and avoid onboard graphics as if my life depended on it. Micro ATX is a new one to me for research. I haven't been able to find anything in a Micro ATX that has what you want anywhere though. Why the Micro ATX requirement?


Just a computer junky

 

[Maverick494]

I can't find anything that doesn't physically have the parallel and serial ports, nor can I find anything that has firewire. But I did find this mobo by biostar:

http://www.biostar.com.tw/products/mainboard/socket_a/m7ncg/index.php3

maybe it is what you are needing/wanting or can be close enough.

Just a computer junky

 

[Crashman]

Cry me a river. I hope they never make your board. Why? YOU could DISABLE the unwanted ports, but what if someone else NEEDS them? Screw them, just so you can be comfortable knowing they aren't there? Disable them and quit griping about it.

<font color=blue>Watts mean squat if you don't have quality!</font color=blue>

 

[knowan]

He probably is looking at space requirements for a set top box for an entertainment unit PC. Removing the serial and parallel ports may save some height on the ATX faceplate.

Seriously, serial and parallel ports have gone the way of the floppy drive. Even PS2 ports are starting to be replaced by USB keyboards and mice.

That Biostar mobo is the best I've been able to find in a micro-atx form factor. MSI has a micro-atx nforce 2 board as well, but firewire is not standard and it doesn't use the nforce2 APU.

--------------
Knowan likes you. Knowan is your friend. Knowan thinks you're great.

 

[JimmyDean]

The only board I can think of that comes close to that is the Biostar M7CNIG or something like that. Its nforce2 and micro atx. Im not sure about the integrated audio

<b><font color=red>Remember kids, if you see a downed power line, suck on the end, candy comes out!</font color=red></b>

 

[jihiggs]

i think we have already had this conversation. parralel and serial have far from outlived their usefulness. you can do so much with them, cheaply, without a controler chip.

my computer is so fast, it completes an endless loop in less than 4 seconds!

 

[vk2amv]

I agree. Parralel and serial ports are FAR from outliving their usefulness. I still heavily use parralel and serial ports for quick laplink transfers of small files between machines when one comes in that I need to service. They are especialy useful for very old laptops that dont have a USB port or cant take a network card. No we dont want to get rid of them for a while yet in my opinion.
AREA_51

'It's only when you look at an ant through a magnifying glass on a sunny day that you realise how often they burst into flames'

 

[bikeman]

For some users serial and parallel ports are no longer necessary. And I think Abit has their Max-series of motherboards where legacy-items, such as parallel and serial ports are not present. Wait, I'll search for a link ...

<searches for a link>

<A HREF="http://www.abit.com.tw/abitweb/webjsp/english/mb_spec.jsp?pPRODUCT_TYPE=MotherBoard&pMODEL_NAME=IT7-MAX2" target="_new">The IT7-MAX2, for example</A> does not have serial or parallel ports, as does (n't?) the <A HREF="http://www.abit.com.tw/abitweb/webjsp/english/mb_spec.jsp?pPRODUCT_TYPE=MotherBoard&pMODEL_NAME=AT7-MAX2" target="_new">AT7-MAX2</A>. So actually there are mobo's without them. And I do believe there is a market for it.

Greetz,
Bikeman

<i>Then again, that's just my opinion</i>

 

[Crashman]

I wouldn't be too concerned about backplate size, since slots and CPU coolers are so tall anyway.

<font color=blue>Watts mean squat if you don't have quality!</font color=blue>

 

[Crashman]

Right, but here's the problem: There is only 1 mATX motherboard that offers the nForce APU. If they remove the legacy ports from that board, there will be zero mATX boards with the nForce APU and legacy ports. I no longer have a digital camera that uses serial port connection, but a lot of people still do. And parallel ports are more reliable for many printers. So unless they plan on making two versions of that board, it's best to leave the legacy ports as they are.

About the market for such boards: If the market for premium mATX boards was large enough to support several options, legacy free boards would be OK. But the market appears to be so small in this area that it wouldn't be profitable for Biostar to make two versions at this time. It cost more money to make multiple versions of a board!

<font color=blue>Watts mean squat if you don't have quality!</font color=blue>

 

[renaissance_man]

I made a 10 X 10 X 10 acrylic cube with a baby at mobo. I want to update it to a mATX that will be forward compatible enough to be good for a few more years.
Its kind of the same look as the shuttle barebones without the $320 premium and a couple more pci slots.
I can disable the ports in the bios but I still have to cut the slots and it takes up valuable back plate space.
As far as the integrated graphics, its just one more piece in the machine that can go bad and costs you money. Besides, whats the point of having a gf4ti 4200.


Its all a right wing conspiracay