Zotac ION (NVIDIA 9400 graphics / Atom CPU) Mini-ITX motherboard now shipping [Archive]

thebitjockey

2009-05-13, 22:53

I haven't found it for sale quite yet, but it should be soon.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/zotac-ion-atom,2300-2.html

http://www.zotacusa.com/zotac-ionitx-a-u-atom-n330-1-6ghz-dual-core-mini-itx-intel-motherboard.html

I have been waiting for one of these suckers to build something to replace my XBOXs (3 of them).

natethomas

2009-05-13, 23:01

Not to be that guy, but these boards will not be very helpful to a windows installer. XBMC for Windows cannot use the 9400 nvidia chip for video processing like XBMC for Linux can.

I guess you could always rig together an external player, but I've never been a big fan of that solution.

Edit: I only mention this as we're in the Windows forum. Might be a conversation best left to another area.

digitalhigh

2009-05-14, 00:11

I don't really care what OS I have to run it on...for $189, I'll learn to use linux.

ccMatrix

2009-05-14, 01:04

Looks promising. Now all I would need is a case which can have the board and a full-sized Blu-Ray drive next to each other as well as a 3.5" HDD slot. It should be possible to create very small book-format cases. Anyone knows about any?

digitalhigh

2009-05-14, 01:07

Found this here bundle that could be promising, although it's not exactly what you described:

http://www.mini-itx.com/store/?c=53#ION-ITX-A-may-2009-bundle

The bundle is called "Zotac ION-ITX-A Wi-Fi / M350 Mini-ITX Case / RAM Offer Bundle".

thebitjockey

2009-05-14, 02:10

XBMC for Windows cannot use the 9400 nvidia chip for video processing like XBMC for Linux can.

Sorry, I thought it was available on Windows as well. No matter, I have no issues with Linux.

Found this here bundle that could be promising, although it's not exactly what you described:

http://www.mini-itx.com/store/?c=53#ION-ITX-A-may-2009-bundle

The bundle is called "Zotac ION-ITX-A Wi-Fi / M350 Mini-ITX Case / RAM Offer Bundle".

Only problem for me is that they are a UK company and I don't want to deal with importing. They also don't have them yet either... Newegg carries Zotac and will likely have this board. Just need to find a case since everything mini-itx at newegg has a power supply.

I also want the case to have room for 1 3.5" drive and a blue ray drive. Who knows, I have 2 broken XBOXs... might be able to hack one of those cases to put this in :)

joebrady

2009-05-14, 04:47

I was thinking the same thing as I have a few empty xbox cases lying around..:cool: For nostalgia sake.

digitalhigh

2009-05-14, 04:58

I was thinking the same thing as I have a few empty xbox cases lying around..:cool: For nostalgia sake.

Hell, the thing is so cool, it'd probably look sweet if you just set it on top of the TV and hooked it up. ;)

I've got a few broken 360's...maybe try to stuff one inside of that. Benheck, if you will. Hey...actually, my first name is even Ben. Yeah baby...

matt_cyr

2009-05-14, 05:05

Wow, $150 shipping to Canada. Think i'll wait until a canadian company carries them...

Livin

2009-05-14, 09:23

I wish some enterprising dev would take on adding GPU decoding for Windows - it would make XBMC unparalleled!

CrashX

2009-05-14, 17:36

Adding DXA support will awesome ..

natethomas

2009-05-14, 19:49

ccMatrix

2009-05-14, 22:28

Um. Good luck with that guys. I suggest moving this discussion either to a different forum, or simply continuing the discussion in this thread.

http://xbmc.org/forum/showthread.php?t=46739&highlight=DXVA

The discussion about GPU accelerated video decoding shouldn't be done here. But I welcome the discussion about building an HTPC based on the new board and posting the results of it. Since there is no dedicated HTPC building/hardware forum here this is as good a place as any.

lotagu

2009-05-16, 22:04

Came accross this and it looks kewl...we should start to see more of these types of products from other manufactures soon..

Check it Out...

http://hothardware.com/Articles/Zotac-NVIDIA-Ion-Motherboard/

linko

2009-05-19, 22:05

This is a must-have!

Evanrich

2009-05-21, 03:36

I'm gonna go ahead and ask the dumb question here, but...

If I want to be able to play 1920x1080 rips on my tv, will this board be fine enough if I run the linux build, so i get the graphics acceleration? all i want is a yes or no... I've got all my media stored on another atom based system, running freenas, so I'd just be streaming data to the box.....my q6600 desktop is running up 330+ watts of power just to watch movies, I'd take this 38 watt board anyday but i don't want it to be jerking on high deff playback.

matt_cyr

2009-05-21, 20:37

Not sure if anyone has tried personally, but reading the reviews the dual-core versions of the board should be able to play 1080p content no problem.
Take a look at this page on hothardware
http://hothardware.com/Articles/Zotac-NVIDIA-Ion-Motherboard/?page=4

Edit:
And according to the review, they were using media player classic Home Cinema which uses gpu acceleration on the nvidia chipset, so I would assume gpu acceleration in linux would be possible.

Not a yes or no answer, but a probably ;)

rossgemuend

2009-05-21, 21:55

Geeba

2009-05-22, 11:12

By the look of the clip on HotHardware Windows Vista will play 1080p very smoothly too... external player trick for XBMC?

Bob___

2009-05-22, 11:52

How smooth is the use of AEON Auriga with XBMC on a Zotac ION-PC? Is the showcase-mode a "show-stopper" because of to high performance requirements?

ashlar

2009-05-22, 12:27

my q6600 desktop is running up 330+ watts of power just to watch movies:shocked: What?!? My Q6600 server, with an ATI 3850 and seven hard drives goes to 150W top, 167 if I don't underclock and undervolt it (which I usually do when I don't need it for encoding stuff).

Evanrich

2009-05-22, 21:48

:shocked: What?!? My Q6600 server, with an ATI 3850 and seven hard drives goes to 150W top, 167 if I don't underclock and undervolt it (which I usually do when I don't need it for encoding stuff).

Q6600
Gigabyte GA-P35-ds3l
8GB ram
1 HD/Bluray rom drive
1 20x dvd burner
3 Hard drives
EVGA 260 SSC video card overclocked even higher
Soundblaster xfi gamer card

It peeks around 330 watts under load, my NAS file server is an atom 330 with D945GCLF2 board, 1GB ram, 4 1TB Hitachi drives, and a 3ware 9500S-4LP raid card...it draws about 40-50 watts under load....huge difference. My Q6600 computer is my main desktop, that I use for gaming mostly, but since I have it hooked to my 46" Sharp Auqos TV, I use it for HTPC stuff as well.

I hate having to have it on all the time for gaming and tv/movie watching, so I'm definately interested in this new atom/ion board if it can deliver the goods. I have been wanting to build a dedicated HTPC to just watch tv/movies, so as long as this board can play without hicups using linux and VDPAU, I'd get it in a heartbeat, even if it costs 180$, as it will draw a considerably less amount of power being left on most of the day.

Edit: actually its more around 230...got it mixed up by 100 haha sorry, but still 230 vs 40 is a huge difference in power savings :)

TREX6662k5

2009-05-27, 19:10

Has anyone who pre-ordered received an email regarding the dispatch of the first batch of the Atom330 motherboards from mini-itx.com? I can't wait another 2 weeks :(

toast

2009-05-28, 19:41

natethomas

2009-05-28, 21:15

newbie here, interested in this product

if i were to purchase this mobo when it became available and build it as an htpc, xbmc wouldn't be able to take advantage of the video card to play 720/1080p mkv rips unless it was installed with a linux os instead of xp?

just trying to make some sense out of this... thanks

You have it correct, sir. Due to certain API limitations, GPU acceleration of video is currently only available through Linux. At the moment, Windows depends entirely upon the CPU to decode video. Currently at least one coder is attempting to fix this, but, as yet, there is no working method.

If you still want to go the Zotac mini-itx route but want to stick with Windows, I would recommend this board, which can accept your Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad CPUs.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813500022

toast

2009-05-28, 21:20

You have it correct, sir. Due to certain API limitations, GPU acceleration of video is currently only available through Linux. At the moment, Windows depends entirely upon the CPU to decode video. Currently at least one coder is attempting to fix this, but, as yet, there is no working method.

If you still want to go the Zotac mini-itx route but want to stick with Windows, I would recommend this board, which can accept your Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad CPUs.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813500022

Thanks for the quick reply! That's unfortunate... is this GPU acceleration limited in ALL of Windows or just when using XBMC?

And thank you for that link... I was actually looking at this board earlier today... I was thinking about a PCH but the XBMC GUI is so visually appealing I can't seem to stray away from it...

grajea

2009-05-28, 22:41

PCH is a linux-powered device. If you don't have problems with PCH, you will can easily manage ubuntu+xbmc.

Try it in your desktop Pc. You will see it's easy (as easy as under windows, at least)

toast

2009-05-28, 23:57

PCH is a linux-powered device. If you don't have problems with PCH, you will can easily manage ubuntu+xbmc.

Try it in your desktop Pc. You will see it's easy (as easy as under windows, at least)

Well, I'm debating on whether to get a PCH or build an HTPC. I have a tower in my bedroom that houses 4TB and just need a way to stream to my family/living room.

It would be nice to have an XBMC interface because it looks/performs so well. I've heard PCH cannot match in the visual department but can play anything under the sun.

gwood007

2009-05-29, 00:59

Installed XBMC from the live setup and it works great with VDPAU on.

Personal test is a rip of my bluray of 28 weeks later during the chase scene near the start - 50mbps+ H264 and flac lossless = frame perfect video + a total of around 20% CPU (15-25% one thread, ~5% the other).

Not bad for a crappy in-order 1.6GHz single core ;-). Now all I need is the drivers to be fixed to get 7.1 lossless out of the HDMI ...

Starstream

2009-05-29, 10:34

gwood007 could you check something out for me with the Zotac board.

It doesn't support wake on usb but it was mentioned in theory that if a powered usb hub is plugged into the zotac usb port that will allow wake on usb to work as the hub delivers the power to the port.

The device that wakes it up over usb mouse/keyboard/remote etc must be plugged into the usb hub.

Is that something you could try with XBMC and see if it wakes from sleep mode.

gwood007

2009-05-29, 14:12

... don't even have an unpowered USB hub to try .. sure someone else will pop on here who can test for you...

snoxbox

2009-05-30, 09:05

It doesn't support wake on usb

A new version is coming out that will:
http://anandtech.com/weblog/showpost.aspx?i=601

sion28

2009-05-30, 10:00

What case would one recommend with this board?

Starstream

2009-05-30, 14:57

A new version is coming out that will:
http://anandtech.com/weblog/showpost.aspx?i=601

Yeah I saw that already but I'm skeptical it will be out anytime soon (hopefully I'm wrong) Anandtech do mention that a USB powered hub plugged into the Zotac might make "wake on USB" work so if that workaround did work I'd go buy one right now.

If anyone else does get the Zotac board could they test waking from sleep with a powered USB hub plugged into it to see if it works.

zebraitis

2009-06-01, 05:16

It looks like I may have stumbled into the right thread...

I'm considering an upgrade from my XBOX platform, and looking at the Zotac IONITX-B-E from Newegg at $149US. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813500029

1080p, HDMI 1.3, Optical, 5.1 channel audio... Add to that "XBMC Live on a USB", RAM, and a Mini-ITX case, and I have a system at maybe $200, certainly less than $250. (I don't plan to add HD , DVD or B/R... I use RAID storage)

Running Linux (that will be a first for me), then the NVIDIA chip is fine, especially since GPU acceleration is available

I have a harmony remote, so I need to get an IR receiver... that seems to be no problem.

From one of the reviews at http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1146623 it looks like that under load, this thing uses less than 60W of power, so the case and PS can be REALLY small.

This may finally be the XBOX killer that I have been looking for.

So... what's the catch? what won't it do?

V.

------------------

EDITED: Oh... I just figured out the catch.

The items about "no wake from USB" would prevent the IR receiver from turning the system on.

My appologies for the delayed development of understanding.

Still, are there any other known issues?

snoxbox

2009-06-01, 06:15

Still, are there any other known issues?

That is the main issue so far for me, Of course, everyone will want different things out of it. Another issue is that it won't play HD flash video (hulu etc.) . Doesn't bother me in the slightest because australia's broadband can't cope with streaming HD video.

*Potentially*, it may struggle on high res skins such as aeon, with high quality backdrops. I've not heard anyone confirm or deny this, just suggest it.

Don't believe Zotac when they say it can be ran fanless; the dual core needs a fan (but not the single core).

All in all though, it is pretty much the perfect solution for a small, quiet xbmc setup.

koscica

2009-06-01, 11:36

That is the main issue so far for me, Of course, everyone will want different things out of it. Another issue is that it won't play HD flash video (hulu etc.) . Doesn't bother me in the slightest because australia's broadband can't cope with streaming HD video.

*Potentially*, it may struggle on high res skins such as aeon, with high quality backdrops. I've not heard anyone confirm or deny this, just suggest it.

Don't believe Zotac when they say it can be ran fanless; the dual core needs a fan (but not the single core).

All in all though, it is pretty much the perfect solution for a small, quiet xbmc setup.

According to comments here ASROCK Ionstar 330 supports wake on USB.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgAZ67MuaK0

If someone could confirm that dual core atom can handle AEON skin I would order the thing right now

Starstream

2009-06-01, 13:48

According to comments here ASROCK Ionstar 330 supports wake on USB.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgAZ67MuaK0

If someone could confirm that dual core atom can handle AEON skin I would order the thing right now

Awesome its looks like the Ionstar 330 it is for me then.

arkay

2009-06-01, 14:04

At first I was really excited by the release of this board. The USB wake issue is a showstopper that stopped me putting in an order immediately. Then upon further reading I foudn the the dual core atom does need active cooling. Given that I don't really see any advantage of the board given that a fan will increate the potential case size. May as well go for the 9300-itx and put an E5200 in it if it has to be cooled anyway. It's a pity, this was looking perfect but you may as well have some moderate CPU power as well for non GPU assisted tasks. So I hope they fix the USB wake issues and re-release that as well.

I just don't get these board makers. Is there some unwritten law that states they can only do 90% of a solution? Everything falls short. There's always a but....

Cheers,

Arkay.

zebraitis

2009-06-01, 18:55

Now, I have to say this makes it even more confusing...

The boards appear to be identical.

From what I had read, It was a hardware issue, not a bios issue, so the issue should be there in both.

Here's why I'm paranoid: I work for a big harware company. We have product managers. They read infor off spec sheets, and (in this case) the spec sheets say it will support wake on USB.

But what we have seen in links in this article (dated May 25th) is that it really does not: http://anandtech.com/weblog/showpost.aspx?i=601

"Zotac says that wake-on-USB isn't currently supported by the PCB and requires a hardware revision to enable it. A new revision of the Zotac Ion board with wake-on-USB support is in the works and Zotac tells me that the new board should be ready in early June.

Zotac also tells me that the Ion user manual should be the first place to look to see if your version of the board supports wake-on-USB. Given that none of the boards support it currently, don't expect to see any reference to the feature in the current version of the manual :) "

Does anyone have the cycles to contact the manufacturer and find out when the new released boards will be available?

v

zebraitis

2009-06-01, 18:58

... and the question of flash as well.

Some sites list that it will do flash, others state that it will not.

I do not know if we have an authoritative answer on that. And we need that.

V.

(I'm a big fan of "PlayOn", a UPNP client that links to HULU, Netfix and other sites)

snoxbox

2009-06-02, 01:44

the spec sheets say it will support wake on lan.

"Zotac says that wake-on-USB isn't currently supported "

v

Wake On Lan and Wake on USB are completely different. Wake on Lan does work.

snoxbox

2009-06-02, 01:46

Given that I don't really see any advantage of the board given that a fan will increate the potential case size.

Yeah, I thought the same thing initially. But I've heard from both a retailer, and have seen the package deal on mini-itx.com, that the M350 case will fit the fan, and is apparently still a tiny case.

http://mini-box.com.au/purchase/browse-detail.asp?menuId=10&start=1&laCode=ENGAU&productId=141

arkay

2009-06-02, 03:04

Guess we can only wait and see when this newer board ships. They'll probably remove the sata headers to make USB wake work or something equally as stupid :shocked:

Cheers,

Arkay.

donabi

2009-06-02, 10:26

zebraitis

2009-06-02, 13:57

Wake On Lan and Wake on USB are completely different. Wake on Lan does work.

My typing error. I had meant to write "wake on USB" in my comment.

My original comment corrected. Thanks!

hermand

2009-06-02, 14:20

Well, I've just ordered mine from here:

http://www.cclonline.com/product-info.asp?id=33190

Can't say Wake-ON-USB fusses me, nor does the fan (Though, I've read loads of reviews and it possible to run without depending on your other cooling). The rest of the features more than made up for it - I've bunged in 4Gb of matched ram. I haven't really decided on an OS yet, but I think I'm gonna see how I get on with XBMC live off a USB stick.

We'll see how it goes!

If they release the new board in the next two weeks then I can always send mine back under the Distance Selling Regulations.

donabi

2009-06-07, 13:15

doesn't it have an "oldschool" ps2 connector?

i would connect an infra-red keyboard and copy some ir-codes into my universal infrared remote.
wake on keyboard should work, i guess.

with this sollution i would have no problems with drivers in any os.

sure, it is a workaround, but it has some sort of benefit.

can anyone test if it possible to wake it up from ps2-keyboard?
i don't mean hybernate or something.
i mean, instead of using the powerbutton.

as far as i know, it can be waked up by lan ... usb doesn't work.
but does it work on ps2?

kortina

2009-06-23, 06:27

Hi,

I have been following the threads about the Zotac board, and the lack of Wake-via USB.

Here is a possible fix:
http://www.origenae.co.kr/downloads/brochures/m10.pdf
http://www.origenae.co.kr/en/accessory_ir211.htm

It seems that this case has an little screen/IR receiver, it plugs into the power and to the power header pins. This *should* mean that you can pull the power on for the computer via a IR command regardless of the USB state.

I am getting keen to buy this M10 case and a Zotac, and running XBMC Live. Any feedback would be appreciated.

joebrady

2009-06-23, 07:37

Those are some nice cases...

donabi

2009-06-28, 13:14

@kortina

this won't work ,if you choose the zotac with external power supply.
you would need the zotac with regular atx-power-connector.
(which isn't available, afaik)

by the way:
zotacs external power connector is a piece of crap.
it consumes 17watt by itself (not plugged into the mobo):

quoting myself from another thread:

the psu is one of the least things, i thought about, while planning a htpc.

but now, with this 17 watts, i have to send it back to the store.
i'm using my xbox about 2 hours a day.
the rest of the day it stays off (power still plugged in)
it needs nearly 165 watts per day.

the ion-board would take 450 watts.

no way. it makes me sad, but this is definitly a "NO-GO" for me.
and still, i can't believe that it was never mentioned before.

by the way: the asrock ionstar needs 1 watt, when it is OFF.

kortina

2009-06-29, 11:44

This might need a new thread... I couldnt start one:

It would really useful if a "Preferred Hardware" list was created.

Just something simple with some basic pro's and cons.

I have been reading these forums for a while now, and also using XBMC on a few different platforms, but still would find it hard to recommend a setup for users based on different needs.

EG:

Platform = XBOX

Pros:
Cheap
Fast boot times
Easy remote support
Lower power (x watts when OFF, y when in use)

Cons:
Noisy (xDB)
No High Definition

Platform = Zotac itx-nVidia9400
Pros:
XBMC Live support
VPADU support
Quiet
Low power

Cons:
no remote on
excessive power consumption when off

It is very difficult for new users to select HTPC hardware to run XBMC on.

I know that people should have a choice, I know that the beauty of open source and linux allows for flexability. But users (even experienced ones) are drowning in choice.

XBOX was so easy, but is getting dated.

I still cant decide on a Zotac or an ASUS ION...

Evanrich

2009-08-19, 10:39

Wake On Lan and Wake on USB are completely different. Wake on Lan does work.

dumb question, but how do you get WOL to work on the board? I've turned on wake on MAC in the bios, but when i send magic packets to the board it won't turn on from a shut-of state. My desktop computer can turn on from a powered off state when i send it a packet, and Ive verified the MAC address used with the sticker on the connector....do i need to change any other bios settings to get it to work or does it only work in a suspended state?

Evanrich

2009-08-19, 10:43

BIOS update for our boards posted today....now features gpu overclock!!!

http://www.zotac.com/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_details&gid=509&Itemid=506

pko66

2009-08-19, 20:11

dumb question, but how do you get WOL to work on the board? I've turned on wake on MAC in the bios, but when i send magic packets to the board it won't turn on from a shut-of state. My desktop computer can turn on from a powered off state when i send it a packet, and Ive verified the MAC address used with the sticker on the connector....do i need to change any other bios settings to get it to work or does it only work in a suspended state?

You need to enable it at the operating system level too, not only in the BIOS. In windows from device manager, in "properties" of the interface, "power administration" tab, you must enable "allow this device to wake up the computer" (or something like that). In linux, you must run (at every season, this setting is not persistent after power off/power on) the command "ethtool -s eth0 wol g". That is assuming eth0 is the interface you want to awake the computer from. Of course, the user running the script must have enough privileges (i.e., root). I suggest you add the command to one of the start up scripts. If you still have doubts, google "ethtool wol" and there is lots of information about this.