- Oct 13, 1999
- 22,377
- 2
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Zap's Mini Review: ECS G31T-M
(Newegg link)
The ECS G31T-M is a budget motherboard for socket LGA 775 based on the Intel G31 chipset for all Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad processors. I purchased mine from Fry's Electronics as part of a $149.99 combo deal with an OEM E8400 processor.
SPECIFICATIONS
ECS G31T-M
Intel G31 chipset with ICH7
Supports socket LGA 775 Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad
Supports FSB 800/1066/1333
Two DDR2 slots for dual channel operation, 4GB max
one PCI Express x16, one PCI Express x1, two PCI slots
four SATA 3Gb/s and one EIDE (two drives), plus one FDD
Realtek ALC662 HD audio with 6 channels
Realtek RTL8101E 10/100 network
Intel GMA 3100 onboard video with VGA output
Micro ATX form factor
BIOS
FSB up to 500MHz
memory auto/667/800MHz regardless of detected FSB
standard memory latency settings available
Smart Fan (start PWM value/start temp/CPU DeltaT/slope PWM value)
IMPRESSIONS
This is basically a free (with CPU) board as part of a Fry's combo. Newegg has it for $35 after rebate, plus shipping. Very inexpensive. Benefits over other super inexpensive/low end boards are that it supports higher FSB chips properly (unlike 945GC chipset) and it supports dual channel memory (unlike GeForce 7000 series chipset).
The features are typical of other G31 chipset boards, with two DIMM slots, one PCI Express x16, one PCI Express x1 and two PCI slots. There are two fan headers, one 4 pin for CPU and a 3 pin between the Northbridge and I/O area. Thus, this board one-ups the Asus P5KPL-AM/PS board in the number of fan headers, which wasn't very difficult to do I'm sure. Four capacitors at the CPU VRM area represent the only solid caps on the whole board. The 4 pin +12v plug is in the middle of the board, not the most optimal location.
The layout of the four SATA ports is terrible because a single slot video card longer than 7" will cover up one, and if the fansink is also long, will cover up two. A dual slot video card may cover up all four of the SATA ports. That's just wrong. Then again, I don't think anyone would be using a high-end video card with such a board... would they?
Besides the low cost, really the only things that impress me about this board is the speed at which it POSTs (starting to boot from disk in about 5 sec) and the extensive Smart Fan settings.
OVERCLOCKING
Terrible. Nothing much else to say. Raising FSB by a bit will result in no POST, even though it can be set up to 500MHz.
I tried a CPU with BSEL mod but it didn't do anything - I now suspect that the mod is done wrong since I've tried it on four boards with no success. Unfortunately my bottle of conductive ink broke so I'm not trying it again anytime soon.
CONCLUSIONS
This is not the board for enthusiasts. Not even close. There are some other cheap boards that are more suitable for the enthusiast on a budget, but this isn't one of them. I've also had other cheap ECS motherboards which overclocked quite well and were quite the budget-enthusiast value. This board isn't one of them.
Is this board completely useless?
No.
Not everyone is an enthusiast and even enthusiasts end up building systems for non-enthusiasts on occasion. This board would be perfectly fine for non-enthusiasts that won't use big video cards. The extensive Smart Fan controls will keep the setup nice and quiet while the super quick POST is great after dealing with some Core i7 motherboards that I swear takes around 40 seconds to POST. This would make a fine basis for a non-overclocked business machine. It would be great for my mother's computer.
Enthusiasts, look elsewhere.
(Newegg link)
The ECS G31T-M is a budget motherboard for socket LGA 775 based on the Intel G31 chipset for all Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad processors. I purchased mine from Fry's Electronics as part of a $149.99 combo deal with an OEM E8400 processor.
SPECIFICATIONS
ECS G31T-M
Intel G31 chipset with ICH7
Supports socket LGA 775 Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad
Supports FSB 800/1066/1333
Two DDR2 slots for dual channel operation, 4GB max
one PCI Express x16, one PCI Express x1, two PCI slots
four SATA 3Gb/s and one EIDE (two drives), plus one FDD
Realtek ALC662 HD audio with 6 channels
Realtek RTL8101E 10/100 network
Intel GMA 3100 onboard video with VGA output
Micro ATX form factor
BIOS
FSB up to 500MHz
memory auto/667/800MHz regardless of detected FSB
standard memory latency settings available
Smart Fan (start PWM value/start temp/CPU DeltaT/slope PWM value)
IMPRESSIONS
This is basically a free (with CPU) board as part of a Fry's combo. Newegg has it for $35 after rebate, plus shipping. Very inexpensive. Benefits over other super inexpensive/low end boards are that it supports higher FSB chips properly (unlike 945GC chipset) and it supports dual channel memory (unlike GeForce 7000 series chipset).
The features are typical of other G31 chipset boards, with two DIMM slots, one PCI Express x16, one PCI Express x1 and two PCI slots. There are two fan headers, one 4 pin for CPU and a 3 pin between the Northbridge and I/O area. Thus, this board one-ups the Asus P5KPL-AM/PS board in the number of fan headers, which wasn't very difficult to do I'm sure. Four capacitors at the CPU VRM area represent the only solid caps on the whole board. The 4 pin +12v plug is in the middle of the board, not the most optimal location.
The layout of the four SATA ports is terrible because a single slot video card longer than 7" will cover up one, and if the fansink is also long, will cover up two. A dual slot video card may cover up all four of the SATA ports. That's just wrong. Then again, I don't think anyone would be using a high-end video card with such a board... would they?
Besides the low cost, really the only things that impress me about this board is the speed at which it POSTs (starting to boot from disk in about 5 sec) and the extensive Smart Fan settings.
OVERCLOCKING
Terrible. Nothing much else to say. Raising FSB by a bit will result in no POST, even though it can be set up to 500MHz.
I tried a CPU with BSEL mod but it didn't do anything - I now suspect that the mod is done wrong since I've tried it on four boards with no success. Unfortunately my bottle of conductive ink broke so I'm not trying it again anytime soon.
CONCLUSIONS
This is not the board for enthusiasts. Not even close. There are some other cheap boards that are more suitable for the enthusiast on a budget, but this isn't one of them. I've also had other cheap ECS motherboards which overclocked quite well and were quite the budget-enthusiast value. This board isn't one of them.
Is this board completely useless?
No.
Not everyone is an enthusiast and even enthusiasts end up building systems for non-enthusiasts on occasion. This board would be perfectly fine for non-enthusiasts that won't use big video cards. The extensive Smart Fan controls will keep the setup nice and quiet while the super quick POST is great after dealing with some Core i7 motherboards that I swear takes around 40 seconds to POST. This would make a fine basis for a non-overclocked business machine. It would be great for my mother's computer.
Enthusiasts, look elsewhere.