DG45FC looks promising for HTPC

jessekopelman · Post by **jessekopelman** » Fri Sep 26, 2008 11:56 am

I don't think it's a rights issue, as AnandTech uses actual Blu-Ray disks for their tests. Maybe the problem is that the BIOS for DG45FC is still not enabling all the features of the G45. In the AnandTech article they clearly demonstrated H264 acceleration for a BD movie, but they don't mention which of the 5 boards they tested produced the benchmarks. Seems like it wasn't one of the Intels.

Ashex · Post by **Ashex** » Sat Sep 27, 2008 10:48 pm

anyone have an app that can stress test the gpu? I've finally tried out the replacement board.

Watched one video on it and I heard the board chirp a few times.

frank2003 · Post by **frank2003** » Sun Sep 28, 2008 5:10 pm

jessekopelman wrote:I don't think it's a rights issue, as AnandTech uses actual Blu-Ray disks for their tests. Maybe the problem is that the BIOS for DG45FC is still not enabling all the features of the G45. In the AnandTech article they clearly demonstrated H264 acceleration for a BD movie, but they don't mention which of the 5 boards they tested produced the benchmarks. Seems like it wasn't one of the Intels.

Good point on their not mentioning which board they used to produce the results.

I just tried playing a ripped video clip of the H264 disc and this board did show hardware acceleration in PDVD7 in full glory (average 12% CPU usage on E5200 underclocked to 1.2ghz). So I still maintain that there are some DRM issues with H264 BD playback on this board. Maybe it's due to some buggy interactions between the BIOS, driver and PDVD7.

loimlo · Post by **loimlo** » Tue Sep 30, 2008 11:15 am

PowerDVD7 doesn't support BD off-loading on G45 variants, sorry.

In fact, G45 BD off-loading is still buggy for the time being, and XP driver is more immature than Vista counterpart. If you really off-loading, you might consider installing Vista in your computer.

frank2003 · Post by **frank2003** » Tue Sep 30, 2008 7:48 pm

loimlo wrote:PowerDVD7 doesn't support BD off-loading on G45 variants, sorry.
In fact, G45 BD off-loading is still buggy for the time being, and XP driver is more immature than Vista counterpart. If you really off-loading, you might consider installing Vista in your computer.

This is not entirely accurate. In Vista PDVD7 can play back BD with hardware acceleration for MPEG2 and VC1 movies just fine; it just cannot play back H264 movies from disc with hardware acceleration. The reason is most likely due to driver issues.

In contrast, the same PDVD7 version on AMD 780G based system can play all BR titles from disc with HW acceleration in XP as well as in Vista. To give you an idea of how well HW acceleration works for the 780G: I can play BR movies with an AMD Brisbane underclocked to 1.6ghz @ .912v with under 50% CPU utilization. The power consumption is around 48W.

Saying XP driver for G45 is immature is an understatement. From what I have read and observed, I do not think Intel will ever support HW acceleration for VC1 and H264 for XP. I would love to be proved wrong on this.

loimlo · Post by **loimlo** » Tue Sep 30, 2008 9:28 pm

It seems that you didn't test 8 channel on G45; PowerDVD was unable to decode 8 channel sounds to repeater yet. Cyberlink said they will release a patch for G45 in the future.

I am sorry to say that you are right; Intel is unable to enable off-loading for G45 on XP in the near future. Intel's driver team is very busy at the moment to fix Vista issues.

frank2003 · Post by **frank2003** » Thu Oct 02, 2008 3:44 am

I'm really fed up with the fan noise under Intel's BIOS fan control where the fan cycles between low speed and maxium speed.

As I noted a couple of posts back, this ironically happens only when the system is idle, and never when it's under any kind of load. It makes me wonder if the BIO fan control logic is flawed in that it's incapable of accepting a low fan RPM as may be the case when the system is in extreme low power state (24W). When the fan speed falls below certain RPM the BIOS may think it's not working or stuck and then tries to restart it at full speed. Anyway, it points to some poor design in the BIOS and a sign that Intel folks don't know much about feedback/loop control. Intel had better fix this real soon.

In the mean time, I have to forgo the 4-pin fan control and have to modify my 3-pin Fanmate to accept 4-pin fan in order to get some manual fan control. Now I'm getting some decent cooling and silence, and regaining my sanity.

Overall, this Intel board is an excellent value as far as mini-itx board goes. But you would have to have a lot of patience dealing with all the bugs.

Ashex · Post by **Ashex** » Mon Oct 06, 2008 9:31 am

I'm still looking to get the HIPER copper heatsink. I found the aluminum version here.

The replacement Intel sent me is working pretty well, I'm probably going to reinstall the OS since I've had some intermitent issues after upgrading bios to the latest version.

For anyone who puts it to sleep at it wakes up after a few minutes, you have to disable remote wakeup in the Intel Management before bootup. After I disabled I didn't have any issues, as the htpc has been asleep for about 24 hours now.

Ashex · Post by **Ashex** » Tue Oct 07, 2008 10:23 pm

Just an update, ordered the hiper directly from them. Just email their customer service asking to order one and they'll give you a number to call.

I'd like to have Mike test this too, sent him a message to see if I could send one his way.

Ashex · Post by **Ashex** » Fri Oct 10, 2008 6:31 pm

I got the heatsink yesterday and installed it today. It is completely silent. It's not in a case and I wasn't able to hear it at all. Also replaced the power brick with an 80W one. I also connected my dvd drive this time around. It's pretty noisy on boot, so not sure if I'll keep it. The slot-loading drives are noisy, may go back to a tray.

Power draw is currently 30W idle, 67W maxed.

Edit: Current temp settings after using for 3 hours watching videos:

PROCHOT-57C
Motherboard Temperature 44C
ICH Temperature 99C
MCH Temperature 68C

frank2003 · Post by **frank2003** » Mon Oct 20, 2008 3:27 pm

Intel has just posted a new BIOS (0081) and a new video driver (15.11.3.1576) today.

If anyone has upgraded the BIOS I'm curious as to whether the fan control logic has been improved.

Ashex · Post by **Ashex** » Wed Oct 22, 2008 2:18 pm

I upgraded my bios but haven't had time to play with it a lot, it didn't look as though there were any changes to the fan control itself. I'll take a look at it later and let you know.

Edit No noticeable difference in Fan logic. Running XP so no playing with driver update.

Muzza · Post by **Muzza** » Thu Oct 23, 2008 10:18 am

just received my replacement board. So far it's definitly quieter.

It came back with the 0075 bios. wonder if this is to do with the buzz around BD playback being broken in every bios after 0075.

frank2003 · Post by **frank2003** » Fri Oct 24, 2008 4:55 am

Muzza -

If you haven't already flashed your BIOS to the latest update (0081), I'm curious to know if you are able to play Blu-Ray AVC (aka H.264/mpeg4) movies from disc under Vista with the factory 0075 BIOS.

The reason I'm interested in this is that according to Intel they changed the BIOS after 0075 and broke Blu-Ray playback for AVC titles. When I did my test with the factory BIOS (I thought it was 0077 in my previous posts; but when I flashed to 0079 the BIOS upgrade program told me I had 0075) I couldn't get any hardware acceleration. I've always thought this was a driver issue, not a BIOS issue.

The release notes for BIOS 0079 said it was not possible to re-flash to an older release; the same may apply to 0081. So I'd appreciate the test if you plan on updating the BIOS and if you have the right hardware. Thanks.

frank2003 · Post by **frank2003** » Fri Oct 24, 2008 4:57 am

Ashex wrote:No noticeable difference in Fan logic.

Thanks. I guess Intel does not think it's an important issue. That's too bad as it was one of my big gripes.

Muzza · Post by **Muzza** » Sun Oct 26, 2008 1:49 am

unfortunatly I don't have a blu-ray drive as yet, but will probably get one soon.

Bullet446 · Post by **Bullet446** » Sun Oct 26, 2008 9:19 am

I intend to build a Mini-ITX system as my main workstation using this board.

Has anyone tried running dual monitors using onboard video?

I have two 1920x1200 monitors (DVI) that I intend to use and avoid Nvidia Quadro NVS 1x PCI-E card.

Bullet446 · Post by **Bullet446** » Sun Oct 26, 2008 9:51 am

What I intend to build as my main workstation:

CPU: E8500
Case: icp-uk.com/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=351
HD: OCZ Core V2 2.5" 30GB SSD
Memory: OCZ 2X1GB 240DIMM PC2-6400 CAS4
CPU Fan: Hiper HFA-10828-C2

Hopefully would be a super quiet machine with low temp.

1) Opinions?
2) What PSU would be capable of running the above?

frank2003 · Post by **frank2003** » Wed Oct 29, 2008 2:16 pm

Intel just posted a new version of the BIOS (0083). From the release notes:

Changed the processor temperature string.
Changed the PAVP mode default setting to "Lite".
Updated iQST performance.

Not sure what the PAVP deal is, as it was already done in 0079. The other two look like they might translate into improvements in fan control.

Ashex · Post by **Ashex** » Thu Oct 30, 2008 12:46 pm

frank2003 wrote:Intel just posted a new version of the BIOS (0083). From the release notes:
Changed the processor temperature string.
Changed the PAVP mode default setting to "Lite".
Updated iQST performance.
Not sure what the PAVP deal is, as it was already done in 0079. The other two look like they might translate into improvements in fan control.

Thanks for posting it, I'll try the bios update tonight.

After I updated to the last version, my system would power on by itself every 6-8 hours for 10-15 seconds then just go back to sleep.

frank2003 · Post by **frank2003** » Thu Oct 30, 2008 5:58 pm

Wow, I blinked and I already missed a release or two of the BIOS. The latest version is now 0085. Here are the change notes:

â€¢ Updated VBIOS to from 1659 to 1702.
â€¢ Updated ME firmware from 1087 to 1096.
â€¢ Updated RAID OPROM from 8.0.0.1039 to 8.6.0.1007.
â€¢ Updated iQST thermal profile.
â€¢ Removed â€œPROCHOTâ€

Ashex · Post by **Ashex** » Tue Nov 04, 2008 7:27 am

I've been having trouble flashing the bios. The usual method via bootable flash drive didn't work, just said bios failed to update. The updater that runs inside XP failed also. Going to keep trying and see what's wrong with it.

autobulb · Post by **autobulb** » Wed Nov 05, 2008 11:05 pm

Hello everyone. I have been following this thread closely because I am very tempted to buy this board in order to replace a big noisy Athlon 64 system.

I have 2 questions about this board, if you don't mind:

Has the 0085 BIOS solved any bugs? Besides heat that seems to be the largest problem of this board.

Do you think this board would run okay with an older 70W SFX PSU? I'm trying to make this build as budget as possible by reusing old components. I have this old gateway flex case with a SFX PSU. However, the ATX connector is only 20pin (though Intel's manual says 24 or 20pin connector can be used), and there is no 12V P4 connector. I was going to purchase a molex to P4 adapter, but I'm not sure if this is being irresponsible. The board would be used with an E7200 processor, one 300GB hard drive, and nothing else. In the future I will be purchasing a Seasonic 300W SFX PSU to replace the old one. I just want to keep the initial cost as low as possible until I can aquire more funds.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

pipperoni · Post by **pipperoni** » Thu Nov 06, 2008 6:18 am

autobulb wrote:...I just want to keep the initial cost as low as possible until I can aquire more funds.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

It usually can't hurt too much to just try it out. If you get any problems, it will probably be in the form of system instability (ie OS won't install without crashing). If you're really cheap like me, you can fashion the 4 pin 12V connector out of an old 20 pin ATX connector (I think its the save as the 4 middle pins so you even keep the clip).

autobulb · Post by **autobulb** » Thu Nov 06, 2008 9:22 am

Thanks pipperoni, I actually just went ahead and sprung for the PSU. I am ordering an Open Box version of this motherboard, and I have 15 days to test it out to see if it's working properly. So I want to make sure I have a stable platform to test with.

I have this old flex-atx case from a Gateway system that has a good amount of space I am going to use.

pipperoni · Post by **pipperoni** » Fri Nov 07, 2008 6:22 am

The Seasonic 300W PSU has been very good to me, I have two of them in fact!

frank2003 · Post by **frank2003** » Sun Nov 09, 2008 8:35 am

Here's my 0085 BIOS upgrade experience:

Express BIOS Update from Vista claimed it completed successfully on reboot. It never updated the BIOS. I had to use iflash.exe from a bootable USB drive in order to upgrade from 0079 to 0085.

With 0085, not only was I not able to play H.264 Blu-Ray movies from disc using PDVD 7.3, I also lost the ability to play ANY Blu-Ray movie (with BIOS 0079 at least I was able to play VC1 and MPEG2 titles with full hardware acceleration, and H.264 movies with no HA). I would get random color bars and pixels, which was what I was getting with factory BIOS 0075 when the PAVP was not set to the magic setting (not sure if it was Lite or Paranoid). But 0085 didn't give you a choice of PAVP setting.

The fan noise issue, where the fan toggled between silent mode and full blast mode, was still not fixed.

So I reinstalled my trusty old FanMate for CPU fan control. I also rolled back to BIOS 0079 and promptly got back my Blu-Ray playback ability. With BIOS 0079 at least I get a partially functioning system, so I think I'll quit while I'm still ahead. Good luck to all you fellow owners.

tmclaugh · Post by **tmclaugh** » Sun Nov 09, 2008 3:45 pm

This board has come a long way in two months. When I got it there was no support for Ubuntu, then the Alpha version, and now it's pretty much fully supported.

Does anyone else have trouble running 720p or 1080p movies and getting small stutters? Now I'm leary of upgrading to the new BIOS based on the last couple of posts.

autobulb · Post by **autobulb** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 5:05 pm

Got my board today, woohoo! It's an open-box version (no accessories whatsoever) and it boots and seems to working fine. I don't have an OS on it yet since I only have 1 SATA HDD that's currently in use on my main system. I have to back some stuff up, format, and reinstall Windows on it.

I think it has the original firmware. Here's what BIOS says:
IDG4510H.86A.0075.2008.0722.1329

The 0075 is the version number, yes? Intel's website shows 0085 as the current version. If anyone wants me to do any testing with older revisions, I can do so as long as they are still available for download. However, I don't know what good that will do since it seems like HA is what's being finnicky and I only have Windows XP and no Blu-Ray drive, so I couldn't test those out.

This setup is incredibly quiet! I love it! The stock CPU cooler is really silent at ~1000RPM though the temp was 60C in BIOS. I'm assuming that's idle which is not to my liking. This is also on top of a box, open air. After I get my case I'm going to do some measurements to see if any Zalman coolers will fit on this board and in my case.

Again, no OS so my temp readings were in BIOS and I'm assuming that's idle speeds, but my NB temp was 75ish, with the heatink being warm to the touch. SB temp was stuck at 45 but according to Intel's manual the threshold for accurate reading is above 66C. The system wasn't powered on for long, I imagine things will get toastier after some time and in a case. I have a 50mm fan I might stick on the NB sink if things get too hot.

My brand new Kill-A-Watt was showing 41W in BIOS with a Seasonic 300W SFX power supply. One 2GB DDR2-800 stick, no HDD, no ODD. This was a refreshing number to see after measure my socket 939 system which idles at 125W while underclocked. It's my first low powered system.

confusion · Post by **confusion** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 11:21 pm

As another reference, this review got hardware acceleration working on the DG45ID, the mATX counterpart to the DG45FC, using BIOS 85 and PDVD 8 Ultra:
http://www.legitreviews.com/article/827/1/

Perhaps there's some difference between the two boards, or maybe it only works the newer version of PDVD?

DG45FC looks promising for HTPC

BIOS 0085 upgrade experience

Ubuntu