Does M2 can handle Dual-Core CPU?

**shahabmusic** · 11-21-2009, 08:06 AM

I am currently using Dell Optiplex computer with 1.7ghz CPU and 256Mb ram. I never got into a problem with M2 with this machine. I have just installed another LCD monitor so I am looking for a motherboard that has dual video out put (DVI, VGA).
I am about to purchase Intel BOXDG41MJ itx motherboard that has dual output and my CPU is E5300 Pentium Dual core with 1GB memory. now here is my question, does M2 can handle this much load on it? if not, what would be my next motherboard option with dual output? I could not find any cheaper than this:-(

I really hate to add dual output graphic card on my current machine. I did this but I am not satisfy at all. when ever I was passing speed bumps or when I was driving on a rocky road, pc would crash and I had to restart PC!!! I am guessing that graphic card was moving inside the slot so its better to have all in one peace.......

I would appreciate any help

**DarquePervert** · 11-21-2009, 08:28 AM

It's not about the series of CPU.
It's about the power consumption of the CPU.

There's a FAQ about how to determine the power draw of your CPU.

**shahabmusic** · 11-21-2009, 09:31 AM

thanks a lot i read it. so my CPU consumes 65watts. M2 provide only 96watts. I need 24 watts for my LCDs. so do you think that 7watts is enough for HDD and motherboard?

**trader007** · 11-21-2009, 11:43 AM

the m2 should provide about 150w. its rated 160w max, and there are a slew of 45w cpu's from both intel and amd that are now prime for carpc's.

specifically, amd's athlon II x4 600e. pair that $150 chip with a $100 790g motherboard and youre gaming in your car, encoding high def movies... anything. and you wont even use much more then 100w for the total system under load.

**shahabmusic** · 11-21-2009, 06:54 PM

I googled 790g motherboard and its ATX, right? I going to move to ITX as my case does not have space for ATX motherboard and also my big concern is to get dual monitor mobo and this motherboard does not have dual output.
I also found Intel D945GSEJT that has built in Atom CPU. should I go for this one or get that first motherboard with 45W CPU on it?

**justchat_1** · 11-21-2009, 08:34 PM

CPU: 65 watts
Hard Drive: 30Watts
LCDS: 24watts
Mobo: 10watts
Total: 130/150watts

That leaves you ~20 watts for USB and accessories

**trader007** · 11-21-2009, 09:48 PM

you dont really want to put more then 80% load on the m2.. or any power supply for that matter. if you can keep your system under 150w peak draw then you should be safe. 20w for usb and accessories is not that much.

atom cpu's are pretty terrible, even the dual core ones. i know a lot of people here use them in their cars, but a lot of people also complain about their lack of horsepower.

im not sure if you can do athlon II's on a itx system, but i wouldnt doubt if they dont show up soon if they havent yet. a 600e w/ 3300 graphics and you can forget about needing to upgrade for years... the amount of muscle you can get for under 150w nowadays is just incredible.

**Seek** · 11-22-2009, 03:08 AM

Originally Posted by justchat_1

CPU: 65 watts
Hard Drive: 30Watts
LCDS: 24watts
Mobo: 10watts
Total: 130/150watts

That leaves you ~20 watts for USB and accessories

CPU may be rated at 65W but my entire ITX system with an E8400 at stock speed/voltage draws 5.4 amps (+/- 1.5%) on the 12v input (65W total) to the dc-dc converter when running Intel Burn Test with a 3.5" hdd attached. My 3.5" hard drive draws about 5.5W, my new 2.5" hdd about 2W load and my Intel SSD 150mW. LCD is rated at 1A at 12v so 12 Watts, motherboard is about right with onboard video. Your numbers are a little off but figure anyone reading this thread should be pointed to more accurate numbers. Of course, YMMV.

With a decent motherboard, running at stock speed or underclocking, with undervolting, can easily get processor power consumption down below 50W and I would recommend looking for parts that allow this. I ran my Core2 at 950MHz (stock voltage due to lack of undervolting for my motherboard) and my consumption went 2.1A idle/3.1A cpu load - 28 watts less from underclocking to still usable speeds. This low, the system still booted Windows 7 quickly, much faster than an Atom at 1.6GHz. A <50W system (minus usb and lcd power draw) is completely attainable in a car without sacrificing processing power.

**justchat_1** · 11-22-2009, 03:59 AM

Results are hardware dependent.....but lets take a look at the setup you describe:

Hard Drive peak draw is during spin up....during use a hard drive will draw significantly less power (probably only standby current in a processor burn-in test). 3.5" drives are rated for a max of ~2.5A@12v or 30watts....2.5" are rated closer to 5w peak which again occurs at spin-up.

2 LCDs x 12W = 24W...enough said

5.4A*12V=64.8W-5.5W Hard Drive=59.3W or ~92% of peak rated power...accounting for the error in your measurement and speedstep during register transition should also put the 10w peak number at pretty close to correct.

The CoreDuo architecture has built in power management far more efficient then undervolting....what your doing is capping peak power draw but actually using more power over time. Not to mention the unnecessary performance penalty.

To the OP:
The reason we measure in peak usage is to ensure you have a system that never fails. Realistically your system will use 1/8 of peak power when idle, and will never approach that magic number during use. That said, we account for it anyway to allow for things like the life of a power supply (which could be very short if using 80%+ its peak constantly) and so that even if a very unlikely peak draw does happen you know it will not overload the power supply and cause some potentially ugly results.

**shahabmusic** · 11-22-2009, 05:17 AM

ok I have changed my mind so far. as none of you guys gave positive feedback to Atom processor, I would not go for Atom anymore.
another thing that i have noticed is that none of you has noticed that when M2 says 150watts MAX, it means 150Watts OVERALL...I mean each rail has different current.
In M2 manual it says 12V rail can provides 8amps MAXIMUM. that's 96watts, right?
so if I draw 24 watts for my LCDs, I will get only 72watts left for my motherboard, CPU, HDD and other stuff. i don't need to be worry about other peripherals as they use 5V and 3V rails I guess.
and I think that Intel DG41MJ is totally wrong option for me, I tell you why. these two screen shots are from M2 Power Characteristics and Intel DG41MJ Electrical Considerations.

M2

Intel ITX motherboard

look at requirement. none of them match with M2!!!