GIGABYTE GA-G31M-ES2C motherboard: overview, specifications and reviews

Choosing a motherboard for a computer is a very important step in assembling a PC. It is this component that is the platform on which all other elements will be placed. Therefore, you need to choose a board with extreme caution. If it turns out to be defective or not powerful enough, your PC will not start (at best) or burn vital components (at worst). Among budget models, the motherboard Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2C is quite good. However, for gaming computers it will not work.

Positioning

This fee was created as a budget solution for not very powerful computers. It is perfect for office PCs and home multimedia solutions. However, for games Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2C is absolutely not suitable. Not the level device. The manufacturer decided not to bother with the support of games and left it to more advanced boards.

The motherboard of this type is far from capable of much. Nevertheless, many people buy it to equip old computers and multimedia centers. For such tasks, it is quite suitable. However, you need to consider that the newest hardware will not work on this board. It does not meet modern requirements for the components of the motherboard.

Specifications

According to the parameters of the motherboard, it has the form factor micro ATX. This means that the board can easily fit in the smallest system unit. Also the place will remain. The socket is LGA775. The board supports multi-core processors (up to 4 cores). It is preferable to use processors from Intel. With them you can achieve the greatest productivity.

Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2C v1 perfectly copes with the support of multi-channel audio and digital signal output. However, it does not support CrossFire SLI. This means that you can not connect more than one video card. But there is an integrated graphics core Intel GMA. Of course, there is little sense from him, but fish and fish are not fish-free.

Sound system

The motherboard has a Realtek chipset, which supports the 7.1 channel multichannel standard. And the support is complete. That is, on the rear panel there are separate outputs for each component of the multi-channel system. This indicates the wide multimedia capabilities of Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2C.

As a sound chip, Realtek ALC 883 is used. According to the manufacturer, it is capable of providing sound quality of 24 bits and 192 kHz. Only in this it is hard to believe. A high-grade sound of this level can be provided only by separate audio processors, which are connected via USB. So it is not worthwhile to trust the tales of producers.

If the user for some reason does not like the quality of the built-in sound, you can always purchase an external sound card (or even a DAC) with a USB connection. This option will be more preferable for audiophiles. The motherboard of this level can work with modern DACs.

Connectors and interfaces

Like most older motherboards, the Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2C has two PS2 slots: a keyboard and a mouse. In our time it looks like an outrageous anachronism. But at the time of this board's release, this state of affairs was normal. There are also 8 USB ports. But there is no port with support for USB 3.0. Other ports include S / PDIF, 1xCOM, D-Sub, Ethernet. The number of connectors, in principle, is standard. But in modern motherboards, the situation with them is much better. Nevertheless, such a basic set is enough for comfortable work.

As for the network card connector. It is manufactured according to the standard RJ-45 standard and is capable of providing data transfer rates of up to 100 megabits per second. The relative "antiquity" of this motherboard is indicated by the presence of an outdated IDE interface next to quite modern SATA. Expansion slots - 1xPCI-E x16, 1xPCI-E x1, 2xPCI, are also a little outdated. For example, they do not support simultaneous operation of several video cards. And many gamers now have this most popular solution. That's why this motherboard does not fit for modern games.

Memory

The motherboard Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2C supports only 4 gigabytes of RAM. This volume is the maximum. Well, cheap and angry. Well at least that multi-channel mode is supported. . The operating frequency of the memory bus is 667-1066 MHz . If you compare it to modern models of motherboards, then this state of things looks unacceptable. However, even with these characteristics, the board does its job well.

As for the type of RAM, it's impossible to use new-fashioned modules with low power consumption in tandem with this motherboard. It is not intended for new system components. Nevertheless, five-year-old modules will easily work. Do not just forget that it's better to use modules from the same manufacturer. Otherwise, there may be a conflict between the slats. And what will be the consequences - one Gates knows.

Reviews

Reviews of the owners of the product help to better understand how the thing behaves in real conditions. I must say that there are not so many nice reviews about Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2C. Its characteristics look rather miserable in comparison with modern samples. Therefore, the dissatisfied with the responses. But pay no attention to them, for these comrades themselves saw what they took. Much more importantly, most users note the weak south bridge of this board. After a certain period of time, it burns. And this is not good.

Many also note that the voltage and heating sensors lie at a loss. But these are trifles in comparison with the problem of the south bridge. Nevertheless, the lion's share of owners note the good performance of this card on medium power systems. This board behaves perfectly even under conditions of a hard load. If not for the bridge problem, then it could be called an ideal budget solution for the vast majority of users.

Conclusion

The motherboard Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2C refers to products of budgetary level. It is perfect for office PCs and home multimedia solutions. The board is equipped with high-grade multi-channel sound (7.1) and supports multi-channel memory operation. This will allow the computer system to cope with all types of multimedia and some not-so-modern games. For true gamers, the products are more expensive and more productive.