ECS H55H-I Review: Mini-ITX at a Sensible Price
by Rajinder Gill on May 6, 2010 6:59 AM EST- Posted in
- Motherboards
Final words
Much of what the ECS H55H-I can and cannot do bears a startling resemblance to Intel’s DH57JG. The only major difference is that ECS are keeping a loose grip on the voltage reins for all processors at present, so you get more room to play with overclocking. Of course, there are no guarantees that future BIOSes will allow such a free range of voltage, especially if users end up blowing up FETs and such.
Whichever way ECS decide to lean, there are a few things on the H55H-I that are in need of attention – unsurprisingly, its ECS’ decision to allow overclocking that opens the can of worms. The CPU multiplier ratio control option should either be removed altogether, or it should be made to work. In its current state the option is useless, serving only to create non-POST situations. This is the second motherboard we've reviewed from ECS in recent months with this problem.
One of the other things that come to light when a BIOS setting is wrong, is that there’s no way to get the board to POST unless you clear CMOS. The trouble is that the CMOS clear jumper location is not easy to access when this board is in a case, so ECS would be wise to spend some time refining the BIOS code to perform some kind of watchdog procedure. These are the kind of things we expect to see implemented if overclocking features are present - regardless of price.
On the bright side, you do get a 3 year limited warranty, which at least inspires a little confidence that ECS will take care of you if the event of a failure.
To cap this all off, yes, the H55H-I is competitive with other mini-ITX products based upon its price and basic functionality, it makes a great little stock-runner or LAN PC. However, if you're thinking of overclocking with this board, we'd say that ECS is a couple of BIOSes away from a glowing recommendation - we'd like to see a little more finesse please!
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Marlin1975 - Thursday, May 6, 2010 - link
Is Realtek Codec really better than the VIA? I don;t build systems as much as I use to and VIA use to make better Audio Codecs.That and I wish small boards like this would include a built in wireless chip. I know you can use a USB one but the idea of a system like this is small. So to have extra cables and items hanging off it takes away from it. Could be just a very basic one.
Rajinder Gill - Thursday, May 6, 2010 - link
The VIA comment was made in respect of ECS' implementation on the ECS H55H-M that we reviewed a couple of months ago. Same price for the board, but limited Audio out optionshttp://www.anandtech.com/show/2945/2
I should have clarified that better.
Taft12 - Thursday, May 6, 2010 - link
But is it the VIA codec that limits ECS' microATX board to only 3 audio I/O jacks + no SPDIF? Or is that just a matter of ECS not providing the connectors? I'm still not clear.Do any audiophile readers know which is technically superior between VIA and Realtek audio?
mindless1 - Thursday, May 6, 2010 - link
Any modern codec (family, meaning they can make defeatured parts for cost conscious buyers) from Via or Realtek offers 5.1 or more channel output.The issue is not really codec quality, it is board design and PSU selection which determines how much noise gets into the analog circuits. For digital, it's still 1's and 0's.
Point being, roll the dice and take your chances, there are lots of good and bad audio implementations using the very same chips.
For HTPC, what about HDMI audio? Why even bother with onboard analog codec for this purpose?
Rajinder Gill - Thursday, May 6, 2010 - link
From everything I can find, the VT1705 is a 6 channel device, so limited on the analog I/O side. Unfortunately, I can't find a datasheet online so don't know if there are any features ECS chose not to implement. What I will say is that had the features been available I'm sure ECS would have used them. Vendors tend to buy devices like these in bulk, so will utilize them on a wdie range of boards where possible - unless there's a problem.As for arguments about whether or not analogue outputs are needed when HDMI audio is available, this is another area (like the legacy devices) where people have downstream hardware they'd like to use.
Regards
Raja
kake - Saturday, August 21, 2010 - link
One way to get around having an external USB wifi adapter is to use the internal USB header and put the USB adapter inside the case with it. Works a treat.BansheeX - Thursday, May 6, 2010 - link
But the lack of PS2 ports is a con? It's 2010 for cripes sake. If you have a USB mouse and keyboard, then PS2 eats into USB availability. Also detestable is IDE and floppy eating into SATA ports. Being mini-ITX, thank god the board is legacy free, I say.Rajinder Gill - Thursday, May 6, 2010 - link
You're right. I was thinking along the lines of desktop use where people tend to hold on to legacy devices a little too long..IanCutress - Thursday, May 6, 2010 - link
People will upgrade all sorts of things, but you will see those still using a PS2 keyboard and mouse, just because they still work. Also in environments where expensive equipment is used based on old connections (floppy, serial), where it's cheaper to buy a new computer than to buy a new $100k piece of hardware with the newest port, then legacy connectors come into play. It's all very well saying 'thankfully this or that has been removed', but at the end of the day, some people still need them and they're included to widen the market. I have some equipment here in my lab (chemistry) that requires ISA cards; upgrading those computers is always a hassle, trying to find a cheap Core 2 motherboard with ISA ports. Legacy markets are always bigger than you think.Ian
DanNeely - Thursday, May 6, 2010 - link
I'm shocked that you can find one at all. Where are boards like that hiding?