Asus A8N-VM CSM: NVIDIA GeForce 6150 Finally Arrives
by Wesley Fink on December 1, 2005 12:04 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
NVIDIA launched their integrated graphics chipsets for Athlon 64 about two months ago. The NVIDIA 61x0 family consists of three combinations of Northbridge and Southbridge geared at different market segments.
As you can see, there are several features that are only available with this chipset combination. The 6150 runs at a 475MHz Graphics Clock instead of 425 and features a TV encoder, High Quality Video Scaling, and dual video (DVI-D and RGB) outputs. The nForce 430 adds 2 more SATA2 ports (4 total), support for Raid 5, NVIDIA Active Armor Firewall support, and the hooks for 1GB Ethernet. These additional features make the 6150/430 a much more attractive solution for Multimedia applications or as the core of a Home Theater PC (HTPC) box.
| Specifications: | NVIDIA GeForce 6150 NVIDIA nForce 430 |
NVIDIA GeForce 6100 NVIDIA nForce 430 |
NVIDIA GeForce 6100 NVIDIA nForce 410 |
| CPU | Athlon 64 or Sempron | Athlon 64 or Sempron | Athlon 64 or Sempron |
| PureVideo (High Definition) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| DirectX® 9.0 Shader Model 3.0 Support | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| TV Encoder | Yes | No | No |
| TMDS/DVI | Yes | No | No |
| Graphics Clock | 475 MHz | 425 MHz | 425 MHz |
| PCI-Express | 1x16 2x1 |
1x16 1x1 |
1x16 1x1 |
| MPEG-2/WMV9 Playback | HD(1080p/1080i) | SD | SD |
| Video Scaling | High Quality(5x4) | Basic (2x2) | Basic (2x2) |
| SATA/PATA drives | 4/4 | 4/4 | 2/4 |
| SATA speed | 3Gb/s | 3Gb/s | 3Gb/s |
| RAID | 0,1,0+1,5 | 0,1,0+1,5 | 0,1 |
| NVIDIA MediaShield | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| NVIDIA ActiveArmorTM Firewall | Yes | Yes | - |
| Ethernet | 10/100/1000 | 10/100/1000 | 10/100 |
| USB ports | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| NVIDIA nTuneTM Utility | Yes | Yes | Yes |
As you can see, there are several features that are only available with this chipset combination. The 6150 runs at a 475MHz Graphics Clock instead of 425 and features a TV encoder, High Quality Video Scaling, and dual video (DVI-D and RGB) outputs. The nForce 430 adds 2 more SATA2 ports (4 total), support for Raid 5, NVIDIA Active Armor Firewall support, and the hooks for 1GB Ethernet. These additional features make the 6150/430 a much more attractive solution for Multimedia applications or as the core of a Home Theater PC (HTPC) box.
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Anton74 - Thursday, December 1, 2005 - link
It appears this type of board is mostly touted for HTPC use, but I think it's quite excellent for a capable office system as well because of the DVI connector, dual-head capability and gigabit LAN - and of course all the other connectivity goodness that's largely standard these days. And passive cooling, which I appreciate.I'm not aware of the existence of any other board with integrated graphics that has a DVI connector and can drive 2 monitors without additional expense. This is absolutely great for a very productive office setup without really breaking the bank (although using a cheaper Sempron CPU is out, since it's Socket 939).
Of course, competing boards should follow based on this chipset, which is only going to be a good thing. (Are all GeForce 6150 boards expected to have DVI connectors?)
By the way, are there some availability issues with this board? Newegg.com has had it listed out of stock for a good while now, periodically pushing back the ETA (which now isn't even mentioned anymore). Not many retailers seem to carry it yet, judging from the RTPE.
bob661 - Thursday, December 1, 2005 - link
The only issue with this is that you can't use one of those DVI to VGA converters on this board. There are several warnings on the website and in the manual not to do that.Calin - Friday, December 2, 2005 - link
There are many (cheaper, it's true) LCD panels that support VGA in, so this won't be such a big problem. Sad is that - if you want dual out, you need a panel with DVI input.Anton74 - Thursday, December 1, 2005 - link
Indeed, but for office applications - especially for those that care enough to invest in a dual head setup - LCD panels are generally more desirable I would think. I know it's what I want for my work system.
Degrador - Wednesday, November 30, 2005 - link
The article has been removed?? Product Disclosure Statement?ksherman - Thursday, December 1, 2005 - link
called an NDA (non-Disclosure Agreement) ;)Degrador - Friday, December 2, 2005 - link
lol, it is too, right term wasn't coming to mind :)Anand Lal Shimpi - Thursday, December 1, 2005 - link
The article got pushed back by a day to accommodate the Yonah exclusive yesterday. That's why it was temporarily removed.Take care,
Anand
Degrador - Friday, December 2, 2005 - link
Thanks for the reply Anand, it's nice to have a site where we can still get reasons for things :)bob661 - Wednesday, November 30, 2005 - link
It would have been nice if Asus included High Definition Audio on this board.