Conclusion | ASRock ConRoe1333-DVI/H (Intel 945G) Review

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ASRock ConRoe1333-DVI/H (Intel 945G) Review - Conclusion
Bluetooth 1 Mar 2007

Conclusion

ASRock delivered yet another innovative product using a proven chipset 945G. Although it may not have the best performance for its integrated graphics, this chipset has proven to be stable and runs well with the Core 2 Duo/Extreme processors. ASRock has even gone one step ahead to add support through overclocking for the future 1333MHz FSB CPUs. Instead of having users to wait for newer chipsets from Intel to incorporate HDCP, ASRock improved on its previous ConRoe945G-DVI by incorporating a DVI-HDCP chip onto the add on card to support playback of HDCP video contents when paired up with a HDCP LCD TV set.

On top of all these, ConRoe1333-DVI/H is quite similar to its predecessor. It comes with Gigabit LAN 10/100/1000 Mb/s, Dual VGA Output: support DVI-D and D-Sub ports with DVI Graphics-HDCP card by independent display controllers. 4 SATA II 3.0Gb/s connectors, 7.1 Ch Vista™ Premium level HD Audio (ALC888 Audio Codec). The board is Windows^® Vista™ Premium Logo 2007 Hardware Ready. The board also comes with Hybrid Booster - Safe Overclocking Technology and the Untied Overclocking : During Overclocking that allows higher FSB due to fixed PCIE/ PCI Buses.

The board has some overclocking features with adjustments of the CPUCLK, ASync settings, ram timing adjustments, voltage adjustments. You can check the gallery for more details. With the X6800, we lowered the multiplier to 7x and tested at 7x333 to ensure that support of 333MHz processor works. We have no problems at all. In fact, we pushed the FSB up to 350MHz with ease.

In terms of performance, the board did well in the tests. As for video quality, we can't expect it to match the high end graphics cards. As an integrated solution, we were able to playback most of the H.264 contents we threw at it even at 1920x1080. It definitely eats CPU resources as most of the decoding will be processed by the CPU.

Overall, the board did what it promises. If you are looking for an Conroe based system for your HTPC for playing back of HD contents, this board is definitely worth a consideration. For those using VISTA, this board is VISTA PREMIUM Hardware Ready. Thus, you can get ready to take advantage of the Aeroglass and HD Audio features for VISTA.

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Pros

8 USB 2.0 ports
Core 2 Duo support
DVI out with HDCP
GbE

Cons

Overclocking options
No eSATA
No 1394

Ratings

Here are my ratings out of 10.

Category	Score
Performance	9 / 10
Features	8 / 10
Ease Of Installation	8 / 10
Overclocking Features	8 / 10
Documentation	8 / 10
Packaging	8 / 10
Cost / Performance	9 / 10
Overall Rating :	8.3 / 10

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