- Oct 13, 1999
- 22,377
- 7
- 81
Zap's Mini Review: Zotac G43-ITX (G43ITX-A-E)
(Purchased from Newegg for around $80 after rebate with free shipping)
The Zotac G43-ITX is, as the name implies, a mini ITX form factor motherboard based on the Intel G43 chipset for socket 775 supporting all single/dual/quad core processors up to 65W.
SPECIFICATIONS
Zotac G43ITX-A-E
Intel G43 chipset with ICH10
Supports socket LGA 775 Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad, Pentium Dual Core, Celeron up to 65W
Supports FSB 800/1066/1333MHz
Two DDR2 slots for dual channel operation, 8GB max
one PCI Express 2.0 x16 slot, one mini PCIe slot
five SATA 3Gb/s and one eSATA
Atheros B/G/N WiFi (occupying the mini PCIe slot), Realtek 10/100/1000 NIC, ALC662 audio
Intel GMA X4500 onboard video with DVI and HDMI outputs
Mini ITX form factor
BIOS
CPU Fan Speed Control (AKA Smart Fan) Full On/Medium/Quiet/Manual/Smart
CPU Fan Speed PWM (for Manual mode) 70-255
CPU voltage auto, 1.35v-1.60v in 0.05v increments
Memory voltage auto/1.78v/1.88v/1.98v/2.00v/2.05v/2.08v/2.10v
GMCH voltage auto, +0.05v to +0.35v in 0.05v increments
CPU clock ratio adjustable
CPU clock 200-232MHz in 1MHz increments
TEST CONFIG
Zotac G43-ITX motherboard
Intel Pentium Dual Core E5200
Thermalright MST-9775 heatsink with Xilence 92mm PWM fan
OCZ DDR2-1066 4GB kit
Seagate 250GB 7200.12
Samsung DVDRW
BFG GTX 260 Maxcore OC
BFG LS-550 power supply
IMPRESSIONS
How cute! This tiny little board is packed with about as many features as can be packed into the mini ITX form factor. Of course the biggest point of interest is the PCIe x16 slot for add-on graphics cards. This feature, combined with a graphics card - friendly mini ITX case like the Silverstone SG05/SG06/SG07 or Lian Li PC-Q08 can become a portable powerhouse of a gaming rig.
The layout of the board is reasonable considering how much is on it. One of the Newegg reviewers complained about the mini PCIe slot only accepting half length cards. My thought is that I'm happy Zotac went that way because their older boards used USB WiFi chips that plugged in to an internal header. This brings me to what I usually discuss at this point - the layout of the motherboard. Well, I'm not going to say much about this board because I wouldn't know how components could be moved around to make it all fit. CPU socket too close to the edge of the board? Well, it can't move down because of the chipset. Headers not near the edge of the board for easy plugging in? Well, the PCIe slot is so close to the edge that it is almost falling off so there's no room at the bottom of the board.
The board is so small that it is comical to see a large graphics card installed on it. Without the graphics card, it looks as if it could fit within a power supply housing.
This board has HDMI output for the integrated graphics, which may make it a possible HTPC solution. It also has a total of six SATA ports, five internal and one eSATA. This can make for a powerhouse of a file server or WHS box. Heck, most mini ITX cases won't even hold five hard drives. Only the Lian Li PC-Q08 and Fractal Design Array NAS case come to mind. Most mini ITX Atom boards come with only two SATA ports, and boards such as the Zotac Atom ION, Zotac GF9300 and even the DFI P55 chipset mini ITX board all have only three internal SATA ports. Five is a HUGE number of SATA ports for mini ITX and I think this is the first mini ITX board to have this many, though there are now a few others such as various H55/H57 chipset mini ITX board and even another Zotac socket 775 mini ITX board.
Speaking of other Zotac boards, Zotac makes three which are really similar to each other, based on the Intel G41, G43 and G45 chipsets. Besides chipset differences (which seem minor), there are a few board differences. The G41 version only has three internal SATA ports versus the five of the other two. The G45 version uses ICH10R meaning it is the only one of the three to support RAID. The G45 also uses DDR3 while the other two use DDR2.
I did a Windows 7 Premium 64-bit install using the integrated graphics and the Aero interface worked well.
(CPU-Z identified the motherboard manufacturer as "PCPartner" which is Zotac's parent company)
I choose this OS for two reasons. First, Windows 7 will install without a key so it makes for a great 30-day test rig. Second, one of the Newegg reviewers specifically said that he had problems getting this board to work under 64-bit Windows. In fact, a lot of Newegg reviewers said things that left me scratching my head. Stories about multiple DOA boards, no video in 64-bit Windows, buggy BIOS (nothing specified, so what does that mean?) and needing to update the BIOS. My board had the 2K091218 BIOS. Zotac's web site identified that as the shipping BIOS and the only BIOS available. Why the heck were people updating the BIOS... to the same version? About the only reviewer that made sense to me was the one that mentioned a 232MHz FSB limit, because that's what I saw. This brings me to...
OVERCLOCKING
To put it succinctly, fergetaboutit.
At first glance the voltage settings from the BIOS section above look promising. However, look at the FSB limit. Now, I no longer have easy access to faster FSB CPUs for testing (DOH! Sold 'em all) but I don't think it would have made much difference. Even with bumping CPU, memory and GMCH voltages, I was only able to raise the FSB to around 225MHz. At 230MHz the board would not consistently POST. 225MHz makes for 2.81GHz with my test E5200 and I was able to install Windows 7 at that setting.
There's something else missing. Memory settings. The only thing I saw was memory voltage. I did not see any way to change the memory multiplier, nor any latency settings.
I know that at this point some will counter that mini ITX is not meant for overclocking, that mini ITX case don't have the airflow to support overclocking. To that I say rubbish! If Zotac doesn't want it overclocked, why allow overvolting the processor all the way to 1.60v? Indeed, if not overclocking then I would rather there be UNDERvolting settings to make for some serious low power draw systems.
CONCLUSION
Zotac has inundated the market with a variety of mini ITX motherboards. While I love the mini ITX form factor, I'm left wondering if Zotac isn't just muddying the waters, so to speak. For the gamer on a budget, the G41 chipset version is the cheapest. Otherwise, why not go for the H55 chipset version? It is both a higher performance platform as well as potentially lower power draw. The GF9300 version may be better for HTPC use without a dedicated card because of stronger IGP, but why does Zotac have three versions of that IN STOCK at Newegg? I guess choosing the right board will come down to splitting hairs over what exactly you are looking for and what (if any) legacy hardware you need to keep using. That, and what is in stock at the time you are buying and which boards are on sale or have rebates.
While I can say that the Zotac G43-ITX board is interesting and useful for either a tiny NAS/WHS or LAN gaming rig I can't say that it is the best choice, only one of many.
(Purchased from Newegg for around $80 after rebate with free shipping)
The Zotac G43-ITX is, as the name implies, a mini ITX form factor motherboard based on the Intel G43 chipset for socket 775 supporting all single/dual/quad core processors up to 65W.
SPECIFICATIONS
Zotac G43ITX-A-E
Intel G43 chipset with ICH10
Supports socket LGA 775 Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad, Pentium Dual Core, Celeron up to 65W
Supports FSB 800/1066/1333MHz
Two DDR2 slots for dual channel operation, 8GB max
one PCI Express 2.0 x16 slot, one mini PCIe slot
five SATA 3Gb/s and one eSATA
Atheros B/G/N WiFi (occupying the mini PCIe slot), Realtek 10/100/1000 NIC, ALC662 audio
Intel GMA X4500 onboard video with DVI and HDMI outputs
Mini ITX form factor
BIOS
CPU Fan Speed Control (AKA Smart Fan) Full On/Medium/Quiet/Manual/Smart
CPU Fan Speed PWM (for Manual mode) 70-255
CPU voltage auto, 1.35v-1.60v in 0.05v increments
Memory voltage auto/1.78v/1.88v/1.98v/2.00v/2.05v/2.08v/2.10v
GMCH voltage auto, +0.05v to +0.35v in 0.05v increments
CPU clock ratio adjustable
CPU clock 200-232MHz in 1MHz increments
TEST CONFIG
Zotac G43-ITX motherboard
Intel Pentium Dual Core E5200
Thermalright MST-9775 heatsink with Xilence 92mm PWM fan
OCZ DDR2-1066 4GB kit
Seagate 250GB 7200.12
Samsung DVDRW
BFG GTX 260 Maxcore OC
BFG LS-550 power supply
IMPRESSIONS
How cute! This tiny little board is packed with about as many features as can be packed into the mini ITX form factor. Of course the biggest point of interest is the PCIe x16 slot for add-on graphics cards. This feature, combined with a graphics card - friendly mini ITX case like the Silverstone SG05/SG06/SG07 or Lian Li PC-Q08 can become a portable powerhouse of a gaming rig.
The layout of the board is reasonable considering how much is on it. One of the Newegg reviewers complained about the mini PCIe slot only accepting half length cards. My thought is that I'm happy Zotac went that way because their older boards used USB WiFi chips that plugged in to an internal header. This brings me to what I usually discuss at this point - the layout of the motherboard. Well, I'm not going to say much about this board because I wouldn't know how components could be moved around to make it all fit. CPU socket too close to the edge of the board? Well, it can't move down because of the chipset. Headers not near the edge of the board for easy plugging in? Well, the PCIe slot is so close to the edge that it is almost falling off so there's no room at the bottom of the board.
The board is so small that it is comical to see a large graphics card installed on it. Without the graphics card, it looks as if it could fit within a power supply housing.
This board has HDMI output for the integrated graphics, which may make it a possible HTPC solution. It also has a total of six SATA ports, five internal and one eSATA. This can make for a powerhouse of a file server or WHS box. Heck, most mini ITX cases won't even hold five hard drives. Only the Lian Li PC-Q08 and Fractal Design Array NAS case come to mind. Most mini ITX Atom boards come with only two SATA ports, and boards such as the Zotac Atom ION, Zotac GF9300 and even the DFI P55 chipset mini ITX board all have only three internal SATA ports. Five is a HUGE number of SATA ports for mini ITX and I think this is the first mini ITX board to have this many, though there are now a few others such as various H55/H57 chipset mini ITX board and even another Zotac socket 775 mini ITX board.
Speaking of other Zotac boards, Zotac makes three which are really similar to each other, based on the Intel G41, G43 and G45 chipsets. Besides chipset differences (which seem minor), there are a few board differences. The G41 version only has three internal SATA ports versus the five of the other two. The G45 version uses ICH10R meaning it is the only one of the three to support RAID. The G45 also uses DDR3 while the other two use DDR2.
I did a Windows 7 Premium 64-bit install using the integrated graphics and the Aero interface worked well.
(CPU-Z identified the motherboard manufacturer as "PCPartner" which is Zotac's parent company)
I choose this OS for two reasons. First, Windows 7 will install without a key so it makes for a great 30-day test rig. Second, one of the Newegg reviewers specifically said that he had problems getting this board to work under 64-bit Windows. In fact, a lot of Newegg reviewers said things that left me scratching my head. Stories about multiple DOA boards, no video in 64-bit Windows, buggy BIOS (nothing specified, so what does that mean?) and needing to update the BIOS. My board had the 2K091218 BIOS. Zotac's web site identified that as the shipping BIOS and the only BIOS available. Why the heck were people updating the BIOS... to the same version? About the only reviewer that made sense to me was the one that mentioned a 232MHz FSB limit, because that's what I saw. This brings me to...
OVERCLOCKING
To put it succinctly, fergetaboutit.
At first glance the voltage settings from the BIOS section above look promising. However, look at the FSB limit. Now, I no longer have easy access to faster FSB CPUs for testing (DOH! Sold 'em all) but I don't think it would have made much difference. Even with bumping CPU, memory and GMCH voltages, I was only able to raise the FSB to around 225MHz. At 230MHz the board would not consistently POST. 225MHz makes for 2.81GHz with my test E5200 and I was able to install Windows 7 at that setting.
There's something else missing. Memory settings. The only thing I saw was memory voltage. I did not see any way to change the memory multiplier, nor any latency settings.
I know that at this point some will counter that mini ITX is not meant for overclocking, that mini ITX case don't have the airflow to support overclocking. To that I say rubbish! If Zotac doesn't want it overclocked, why allow overvolting the processor all the way to 1.60v? Indeed, if not overclocking then I would rather there be UNDERvolting settings to make for some serious low power draw systems.
CONCLUSION
Zotac has inundated the market with a variety of mini ITX motherboards. While I love the mini ITX form factor, I'm left wondering if Zotac isn't just muddying the waters, so to speak. For the gamer on a budget, the G41 chipset version is the cheapest. Otherwise, why not go for the H55 chipset version? It is both a higher performance platform as well as potentially lower power draw. The GF9300 version may be better for HTPC use without a dedicated card because of stronger IGP, but why does Zotac have three versions of that IN STOCK at Newegg? I guess choosing the right board will come down to splitting hairs over what exactly you are looking for and what (if any) legacy hardware you need to keep using. That, and what is in stock at the time you are buying and which boards are on sale or have rebates.
While I can say that the Zotac G43-ITX board is interesting and useful for either a tiny NAS/WHS or LAN gaming rig I can't say that it is the best choice, only one of many.
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