Need help mini-ITX 1150 MB

[dhawk312]

I'm building an HTPC using a Fractal Design Node 304 case. Bought all the components, then after getting the case realized I bought a micro-ATX when the case is a mini-ITX. Now I have to replace the MB, but not sure which to go with. I'm looking at H87 boards mostly, but if the benefits are huge for a Z87 then I could go with one of those as well.

I don't plan on OC at all, but I do plan on repurposing this rig as a NAS after retiring it (and retiring my current AMD E-350 NAS then).

Here's the build

Case - Fractal Design Node 304
Ram - 2x4GB Kingston Hyper
CPU - i3 4330
Fan - Coolmaster 212 EVO
HD - Samsung 840 EVO 128GB SDD
PSU - Corsair Modular CX430M

Although I'm looking at the following boards, I am happy to hear other recommendations:

H87 boards
Gigabyte H87N-WIFI (£87---has wifi/bt included)
Asus H87I-Plus (£87---doesn't have wifi/bt chip)
ASRock H87M-ITX (£86---doesn't have wifi/bt chip)

Z87 boards
ASRock Z87E-ITX (£127---wifi/bt included)
Asus Z87I (£132---wifi/bt included)


As I said, I'm leaning toward one of the H87 boards, with the Gigabyte and Asus being my top choices. Not sure if the builtin wifi/bt is worth it, and the Asus board has enough USBs to add a couple extra dongles later on. Which of these is the best boards in terms of build quality, BIOS, upgradability, and longevity? Which board do you recommend an why?

 

[Nec_V20]

If you take a look at DABS, they have just reduced the Gigabyte Z87N-Wifi board to £109.99, if that helps.

 

[dhawk312]

If you take a look at DABS, they have just reduced the Gigabyte Z87N-Wifi board to £109.99, if that helps.

Yea, nice board. Not sure it's worth the extra £20 for this board though given the low number of USB ports compared to the other boards. If I go with a Gigabyte board I'd probably stick to the H87N I listed above to save money--they are practically identical in terms of features I'd actually use.

 

[Alan G]

The Gigabyte MoBo is superb. I have the H77 version with an Ivy Bridge i3 in two HTPC builds and the WiFi is great; no drop outs at all when streaming videos. You can't go wrong here. Not sure you need a big CPU cooler as HTPC applications are not terribly demanding; I run the stock Intel cooler.

 

[Insert_Nickname]

I have the FM2 version version of that Gigabyte board. No issues what-so-ever. Really great board, runs cool and quietly too.

 

[dhawk312]

No votes for the Asus? Is there any significant difference in build quality between Asus and Gigabyte for these two boards? I'm leaning toward the Asus still because of the extra sata connectors and the board layout.

How are the new Gigabyte series 8 bios?

 

[snoturtle]

My only addition to this topic is to make sure you look at the bottoms of the boards before you buy one.
I have an Asus board that has components near the heatsink mount holes so the only ones that can be used are push pin ones.
Which was unfortunate as I had bought an Evo 212 to mount on there
If the pics on Newegg are correct it looks like the ASRock H87M-ITX has the same issue

Something I didn't really see mentioned any where when I was picking a board so hopefully it helps
Looks like 3 of the holes on the bottom are clear but one has a component next to it