This article provides useful tips and info with respect to Motherboards to those who are building your own Gaming Computer (or Gamputer as I like to call them).
Motherboards are also referred to as "Printed Circuit Boards." The main function of the motherboard is to connect the PC hardware and allow them to work together.
Gamputers are Computers with higher hardware performance namely in CPU, RAM, HDD and especially the GPU. Just think of Gaming Computers as a high performance normal PC.
A specific hardware may have a certain interface which it connects to the circuit board. When choosing to build your own gamputer, make sure that the motherboard provides support to your choice of Computer Hardware.
OK, Let's Move on to the Actual Tips and Info.
1) Choose the Form Factor:
Form Factors are basically the size and form of a specific motherboard. Currently, for household PC, there are 2 main types: ATX and Micro ATX. Micro ATX Motherboards are smaller than ATX Motherboards. This is important when choosing a Computer Case, because a ATX Motherboard will not fit into a Micro ATX Case. An ATX Case usually accepts Micro ATX Motherboards.
2) CPU Socket + FSB/QPI/HT Speed:
Motherboards have specific CPU Sockets. Any Motherboards will accept one of two CPU Brands: AMD or Intel. It further divides into different models/types of CPU within the Brand.
For example, a Motherboard will say it accepts AMD Phenom II Triple and Quadcore Processors. Let's say you have a AMD Phenom II Dual Core Processor.
In the simplest term possible, "it won't work."
The term FSB is an abbreviation for "Front Side Bus." It simply means the speed at which orders/Data from CPU reaches the RAM and GPU via Northbridge (a part of the Motherboard which connects the 3). Faster the Speed, faster the overall performance. Intel Motherboards have FSB or QPI-"Quick Path Interconnect"-for higher end Processors. AMD Processors use HT-"Hyper Transport"-which serves the same funtion as FSB or QPI.
3) Standard Memory + Memory Slots:
Whenever a PC Hardware related article or specification mentions PC Memory, it refers to the Random Access Memory of a Computer System. In terms of PC upgrade, the RAM is the easiest hardware to upgrade. Back to the topic, the Standard Memory refers to the ideal PC Memory speed the Motherboard is compatible with. On the Motherboard Specs section, it will say Memory Standard 1600MHz (for instance) or other Memory Speeds.
If you plug in a 1600MHz DDR3 Memory into a Motherboard with a Memory Standard of 1600MHz, there will not be any problem. What if then, you plug in a 1800MHz RAM into a 1600MHz Memory Standard Pin Slot? In that case, the 1800MHz RAM will actually perform slower at 1600MHz.
What about the other way around? A slower Memory Speed than the Memory Standard will just perform at its written Clock Rate. For example, a 800MHz Memory in a 1600MHz Memory Standard Motherboard will perform at 800MHz.
Lastly, look closely at the Number of Memory Slots if you want to plug in multiple PC Memories.
4) Graphics Interface, PCI-E 2.0:
Majority of GPU today use PCI-E 2.0 x16 interface. This is especially the case newer the GPU type. The only issue with the Graphics Interface rises if you want to add multiple Graphics cards (SLI for Nvidia, CrossfireX for ATI Radeon). You must find a Motherboard with multiple PCI-E 2.0 x16 slots if you want to add any additional GPUs.
5) HDD Interface, SATA 1 or 2:
The term SATA refers to the Hard Disk Drive interface of the Motherboard. There are mainly two types used frequently: SATA 1 and SATA 2. SATA 2 has approximately twice the performance speed of SATA 1 in the file transfer rate. You need to get a Motherboard that will accept whichever SATA plug your HDD has. If you are thinking of pluggin in multiple HDDs, again, look at the number of ports available.
6) Tip: AMD Motherboards/Processors have better Price to Performance than Intel
This is really interesting because AMD Processors (higher performing ones) with same Processor Speed as Intel is much more cheaper than the other brand model. Go for AMD if you want better Bang for your Buck.
Conclusion:
That pretty much sums up the important aspects you need to know and see when choosing a Motherboard to build your own Gamputer.
Thank you for reading my article.
I hope you've enjoyed reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it.
Disclaimer: All information on this site is provided for informational purposes only! By no means is any
information presented herein intended to substitute for the advice provided to you by any health care or other professional
or organization.
tweet this!