Introduction

Table of Contents

Introduction
    The problem this article solves
    How this Article solves the problem
    Is there an easier way
How this Article works
    Classes of Motherboards
    Side by side comparison
    Assign Motherboards to Use Cases
Motherboard Comparison
    Comparison Table
    Motherboard Features explained

The problem this article solves

There are a huge number of motherboard out there, each with a very long list of features. To make matters worse, you will connect a lot of other components into the Motherboard, all of which have a long list of features themselves. And of course not all Motherboards are compatible with all parts. So if later you want to use a certain part and the motherboard you have picked does not support it, then you are buggered.

How this Article solves the problem

This Article is part of three community projects, all designed to simplify building DIY PCs

• ViCase: Indiegogo Project. A DIY Mini and All-IN-One Computer Case System
• V²Configurator: GitHub Project. The Configurator assists you when configuration your PC
• This Article Series: In depth Know How. In case you want to tune Ready Made Configurations of the V² Configurator

Is there an easier way

Yes! Learning how to choose components for a DIY computer is time consuming. This is why we created a shortcut for you. Go to the V²Configurator and open the Wizard. Pick your Field of Application, say e.g. Photography and then pick the Main Use and the Configurator will custom build a complete computer for you, optimized for your Use Case and Performance class.

How this Article works

Classes of Motherboards

This Article is providing choices of Motherboards for the three performance classes:

1. Entry Level: Total cost of Computer: $200+
2. Mid Range: Total cost of Computer: $400+
3. High End: Total cost of Computer: $1000+

Side by side comparison

We have selected 3 Motherboards for you covering the range from lowest cost to most powerful. We put them into one table for most convenient side by side comparison. All features are explained in another table.

Assign Motherboards to Use Cases

To make picking a Motherboard easier the V²Configurator simply asks you about your Use Case and your performance class and picks the right motherboard for you.

Advice

Short advice which motherboard to choose for which purpose

Motherboard Comparison

Comparison Table

MoBo Feature	Entry Level	Mid Range	High End
MoBo►Name	MSI AM1	H81M-ITX	Z170-ITX/ac
MoBo►Brand	MSI	ASRock	ASRock
MoBo►Form Factor	Mini-ITX	Mini-ITX	Mini-ITX
MoBo►Chip	N/A (1)	H81	Z170
MoBo►Price	$35	$55	$165
CPU►intel/AMD	AMD	Intel	Intel
CPU►Socket Name	AM1 (2)	LGA 1150 (3)	LGA 1151 (4)
CPU►Overclock	No	No	Yes
Disk►SSD Cache (5)	No	No	Yes
Disk►RAID5	No	No	Yes
Disk►Qty SATA Ports	2	2	6
Disk►NVME►M.2	-	-	1
Mem►Max size	32 GB	16 GB	32 GB
Mem►Type	DDR3	DDR3	DDR4
Mem►Speed	1600 MHz	1600 MHz	2133 MHz
I/O►WiFi Lan	No	No	Yes
I/O►mPCIe socket	Yes	No	Yes(6)
I/O►Qty USB 2 ports	2	2	2
I/O►Qty USB 3 ports	2	4	6
Display►Digital Ports	2	2	3
Display►Resolution (7)	UHD@30Hz	1080p@60Hz	UHD@60 Hz

• (1) All Motherboard IO is integrated into AM1 CPU. Thus no MoBo Chip needed.
• (2) AM1 CPU have by far lowest cost and power consumption. But maximum performance is limited to about same performance as a high end tablet.
• (3) All current intel Desktop CPU use this socket from entry level to high end, except the very latest ones
• (4) Brand new CPU socket, just released in second half of 2015
• (5) Accelerate your HD with your SSD (very useful)
• (6) The mPCIe socket is occupied with included WLan module
• (7) 1080p = 1920 x 1080. UHD Is one form of 4K Display resolution of 3940x2160 pixels size. This is the common format of 4K displays. There is a slightly bigger one used in Cinema. The ASRock Z170-ITX/ac can drive that one too!

Motherboard Features explained

MoBo Feature	Feature explained
MoBo►Name	Name and Link to Motherboard
MoBo►Form Factor	Size of Motherboard. Mini-ITX is small size ideal for Mini PC
MoBo►Chip	The Motherboard Chip determines performance and features
CPU►intel/AMD	This Motherboard is either for Intel or AMD CPU
CPU►Max Benchmark	The socket determines the kind of CPU you can insert and as such the maximum CPU performance you can get
CPU►Socket Name	Make sure the CPU you want to use has same Socket Name
CPU►Overclock	Are you allowed to run the CPU faster than spec?
Disk►SSD Cache	Accelerate your HD with your SSD
Disk►RAID5	RAID5 treats 3 or more HDD as one drive, making it more fast and secure
Disk►Qty SATA Ports	Number of SATA ports. Important if you want to use RAID
Disk►NVME►M.2	This Disk Bay is 600% faster than SATA 3
Mem►Max size	Maximum size of Memory
Mem►Type	DDR3 is the standard memory type
Mem►Speed	Maximum Memory Speed in MHz
Mem►ECC	Parity Check on Memory. Provides additional data protection
I/O►WiFi Lan	Is Wireless Network integrated on the Motherboard?
I/O►mPCIe socket	Used to connect a WLan Module or mSATA Module
I/O►Qty USB 2 ports	Number of USB 2 ports in IO Panel
I/O►Qty USB 3 ports	Number of USB 3 ports in IO Panel
Display►Digital Ports	How many Displays can you connect without adding a GPU card using DVI, Display Port or HDMI
Display►Resolution	If shows UHD you can drive a 4K Display without a GPU card

Advice

Entry Level Motherboard

Choose this motherboard if lowest power consumption and / or lowest cost is most important. You have CPU choices of 12 and 25W. The lowest Intel CPU choice is 35 W. But since the Motherboard chip is integrated in AMD AM1 and not integrated in Intel CPUs your power consumption comparison is 12 W versus 48W. Keep in mind though that maximum performance of Entry AMD line is limited to about the performance level of a tablet. In some countries Entry AMD is half the cost for motherboard and CPU when compared to Entry Intel. In other countries the cost is the same. This motherboard directly supports UHD = 4k Display. Only at 30 Hz, but will be sufficient for high end picture frame. Paired with ViCase Tiny you get a Mini or All-In-One PC of lowest cost, lowest power consumption with good looks. Using standard Desktop components will allow you to upgrade only parts when needed and keep it operational for decades to come. The very low power consumption allows for passive cooling and makes this PC practically maintenance free.

Mid Range Motherboard

Lowest cost Intel Motherboard. Comes with all basic features to build a mid range PC with a fast SSD Boot Disk and if needed a second Data Disk for more space @ better cost. Great foundation for a mid range PC, including decent gaming when paired with a GPU. The LGA 1150 CPU socket supports a huge range of intel CPU up to the very fast i7 Quad Core 4790. This means you will have plenty of room to upgrade your CPU later if so desired. You can build computer with this motherboard that will be snappy at everything you throw at them, except for high end demanding applications.

High End Motherboard

Choose this board if you are looking for ultimate performance. Lets break it down into sections: 1) Disks: Very high performing RAID 5 Controller. We use this in the high end configurations to give you very large Data Disks at speed levels similar to SSD and security even beyond. 2) NVME-M2: This port is 600% faster than SATA 3. A dramatic improvement. 3) 32 GB DDR4. You can use more memory and it is 40% faster than DDR3. 4) New CPU Socket 1151: It gives you all these cool features and makes your board future proof. 5) Integrated 4K Display support: Connect the latest 4K display without the need to add a GPU card. 6) Build in WiFi. 7) If you are looking for the fastest PC possible, choose this board with confidence. ViCase comes with the matching CPU cooling solution, so you can run even the biggest CPU at 100% load all the time without thermal throttling. The V²Configurator has high end configurations to turn all these extras into a much faster computer for you.