ASUS M2A-VM HDMI (AMD 690G)
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Features and Layout
Features
As a mainstream-level motherboard, the ASUS M2A-VM HDMI is essentially a standard AMD 690G motherboard. Its main components and features do not stray from those offered by the AMD 690 Northbridge and SB600 Southbridge. This is the standard chipset combination we've seen to date and ASUS does not change the recipe here. The Radeon X1250 GPU onboard is responsible for both graphics and video processing for the board, and like any other AMD 690G motherboard, the main feature of the M2A-VM HDMI is its AVIVO technology and HD decoding capabilities. It also boasts AMD Live! technology support, and this can be activated through the BIOS.
Unlike the Sapphire Pure Innovation HDMI however, ASUS does not provide a HDMI port as a default port on the M2A-VM. Instead, the board features both a regular VGA and a DVI port only. This is unfortunately a necessity in order for ASUS to differentiate its two SKUs. As mentioned before, the standard M2A-VM will only come with the two standard connectors, while the M2A-VM HDMI model will include a separate add-on card with not only a HDMI port, but also S-Video, component and S/PDIF connections. Knowing the limitations of the Radeon X1250 GPU however, it may be a surprise that ASUS claims full 1080p support for the board's DVI and HDMI connection, but you'll have to read the fine print to see their disclaimer that video performance may not be smooth. We expect the AMD 690G to perform well up to 720p, but you'll need quite a powerful processor to offset 1080p decoding, especially if you're watching Blu-ray or HD DVD movies. Speaking of which, both the ASUS M2A-VM and M2A-VM HDMI have HDCP support, so there shouldn't be any issues regarding Blu-ray or HD DVD playback whether you're using the DVI port or HDMI module.
Audio on the M2A-VM HDMI is controlled by a Realtek ALC883 8-channel HD CODEC, the value version of the ALC882 available on the Sapphire Pure Innovation HDMI and without Dolby Digital Live! support. However, it should still be able to do the job well enough. S/PDIF interface ports on the M2A-VM HDMI will also ensure connectivity to most consumer audio equipment. Our only gripe with the audio system is that ASUS did not provide the full 8-channel analog connectors. There are only three jacks, which can support either stereo output or 6-channel through jack re-tasking. The additional HDMI module does not provide analog extensions as well, so you will only be able to achieve 8-channel through S/PDIF or HDMI if the audio sources permits.
For the rest of the board, the M2A-VM sports ten usable USB 2.0 ports and four SATA 3.0Gbps connectors with RAID and AHCI capabilities courtesy of the SB600 Southbridge. ASUS uses a PCI Express based controller for its Gigabit LAN port and as mentioned, the M2A-VM HDMI version will also include FireWire capabilities through a 2-port FireWire-400 controller.
Layout
Although the M2A-VM HDMI isn't one of ASUS' premium branded motherboards, much consideration has gone into its design. SATA connectors are located away from the PCIe x16 graphics slot to avoid potential cable issues. Also, its expansion slot layout ensures that you'll get to use all three types of slots if you decide to use an external graphics card instead. Lastly, we like how the board's PWM components have been spaced apart for better cooling efficiency.
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