GIGABYTE GA-M61PME S2: characteristics, description, pros and cons of the motherboard

As part of this small review material, not only the main characteristics of the GIGABYTE GA-M61PME S2 will be phased, but also general recommendations regarding the practical use of this motherboard model will be given. It will also show its communication capabilities and list the supported microprocessor devices. In addition to this, the question of the advisability of acquiring this computer component today will be considered and its strengths and weaknesses will be given.

Appointment

Initially, according to the technical specifications, the GIGABYTE GA-M61PME S2 is assigned to entry-level motherboards within the AMD computer platform AM2. It really has modest technical specifications, which in combination with this board can only use economy microprocessors of the Septron or Athlon series. Only in rare cases can a Phenom chip be found in its socket. It is not advisable to install more efficient CPUs in such a motherboard for the reason that it will not allow to fully reveal their capabilities.

As a result, only office computers were assembled on the basis of the device in question. It was perfectly suited for solving simple and least demanding tasks on computer hardware resources. In all other cases, this motherboard is inappropriate to use: it has very modest technical specifications.

Equipment

The delivery list for this device included the following:

1. Motherboard GIGABYTE GA-M61PME S2.
2. Drivers, documentation, and diagnostic utilities can be found on the CD.
3. User guide.
4. Steel plate - a cap for mounting the device in a computer case.
5. Warranty card.
6. A set of communication wires.
7. Sticker with the logo of the manufacturer GIGABYTE.

It is impossible to identify any shortcomings in the above list. Everything necessary for assembling and starting operation of this model of the board is in it.

Device layout

The device in question has “truncated” dimensions; its dimensions correspond to the miniATX format. Its length is 244 mm and its width is 225 mm.

Almost at the very center of the upper half of the board is the microprocessor connector AM2. To his right are two slots for installing RAM slats. Immediately behind them is a connector for connecting IDE drives and a power management socket on the system board. On the opposite side of the socket, the elements of the CPU power system and communication ports are soldered.

Separately, it should also be noted that this device has a layout of a single chip. That is, on it you can find only the south bridge, which is located immediately under the processor socket. But the northern microcircuit in this case is integrated into the CPU. Also next to it are expansion slots of a computer system. At the very bottom of the board on the right are special connectors that are used to connect to SATA drives and the front panel of a computer.

One of the main drawbacks that the owners of this board focus on is the small number of USB ports. There are only four of them in the interface panel. But you can also connect two such ports on the front panel and two on a special plate in the expansion slots. That is, the total number of USB connectors is 8. There are also LPT and COM ports . With their help, various peripheral systems are connected to the computer. RJ-45 (network port) and a set of audio connectors complete this list.

Chipset. Socket

The AM2 processor socket is at the heart of the GIGABYTE GA-M61PME S2. This socket has 938 pins. It is designed to install Septron, Athlon, and Phenom microprocessors. After updating the BIOS, you can also install AM2 + and even AM3 chips in its socket.

As previously noted, this motherboard is based on the NVidia GeForce 6100 chipset. It can only address 8 GB of RAM and is equipped with a single slot for mounting an external graphics accelerator. Therefore, this solution helps to optimally use only when assembling low-performance computers. In other cases, it is strongly recommended to use more expensive motherboards with improved specifications and advanced functionality.

Processor models

Types of supported processors GIGABYTE GA-M61PME S2 Rev 2. 0 relate to the computer platforms AM2, AM2 + and AM3. This list includes the following chip families:

1. Most low-cost Semtron solutions.
2. The middle segment in this case was filled with devices of the Athlon and Athlon II rulers. Such CPUs had 2, 3 or 4 cores and provided higher performance in comparison with Septron devices.
3. Premium microprocessors were considered representatives of the Phenom and Phenom II series. Their key difference from the previous two families is the presence of the third level of fast cache and a greater number of computing modules. Accordingly, their performance was an order of magnitude higher.

Nominally, any of the previously mentioned chips can be installed on this motherboard. Only on the basis of its technical specifications, it is most optimal to use only the first two families of microprocessors in combination with it. But for more expensive CPU models, more functional devices were developed, at which the price was significantly higher.

RAM subsystem

The characteristics of the motherboard GIGABYTE GA-M61PME S2, as previously noted, indicate a very, very modest organization of RAM. It is equipped with only two slots. A module with a nominal capacity of 8 GB can be installed in each of them. That is, such a computing system can include only 16 GB of RAM.

Again, this board only allows the installation of DDR2 modules. Moreover, their frequencies can be 800 or 1066 MHz. In an exceptional case, it is possible to install more high-speed bars, but they will operate at the maximum possible frequency of 1066 MHz.

The memory controller in this case is removed from the set of system logic and integrated into the processor device. It aims to operate in dual channel mode. That is, if you install two 4 GB strips instead of one on 8 GB, you can get a good performance increase, which will be 10-15%, depending on the degree of complexity of the task being solved on a PC.

Expansion slots. Their features and specialization

The specifications of the GIGABYTE GA-M61PME S2 indicate the presence of only three types of expansion slots. The main one is PCI - Ex version 16x. A discrete performance graphics subsystem can be installed in it. As experience shows, the capabilities of the integrated video card are enough to implement the most simple software tasks. Therefore, it is only necessary to install a discrete accelerator when the integrated video subsystem does not function for some reason. Again, discrete graphics should have a comparable level of performance.

Also on this board there are two PCI slots. They should be installed at the current time modifications of expansion controllers. The latter can, for example, include a TV tuner or a network adapter.

Also, the developers did not forget to equip this device with a PCI-Ex slot in version 1x. In this case, it is allowed to install new versions of expansion controllers. There is only one such slot in this device.

Front panel communications

GIGABYTE GA-M61PME S2 is connected using the following connectors:

1. MSG + / MSG- - informs about the included state of the PC.
2. PW + / PW- - button to turn on the computer.
3. SPEAK + / SPEAK- - sound speaker for emergency situations.
4. HD + / HD- - indication of the operating mode of the internal drive.
5. RS + / RS- - unscheduled reboot of the computing system.

Short setup procedure. Software installation

A brief setup algorithm for the motherboard in question consists of the following steps:

1. Dismantling the PC case.
2. Installing a system board with a metal plug.
3. Installing a processor with a cooler.
4. Installation of the power supply and its connection to the board and other elements of the computing system.
5. Installing RAM modules, discrete graphics, and, if necessary, expansion controllers.
6. Mounting drives and connecting them to the connectors of the motherboard and power supply.
7. Assembly of the housing, installation at the workplace.
8. Connecting peripheral devices.
9. Installation of the operating system. Then the GIGABYTE GA-M61PME S2 REV 1 01 drivers are installed.
10. At the final stage, application software is installed. Feedback. Component relevance

Be that as it may, the AM2, AM2 + and even AM3 platforms are outdated today and are not supported by AMD. Therefore, the main disadvantage of this model of the motherboard is that it does not meet modern requirements and is no longer a relevant solution. Also, the level of functionality is quite low. In addition to this, it is problematic to overclock the processor on this computer component. Plus, she only has one - it's low cost. To assemble on its basis a personal computer is now impractical. But you can repair an office computer with it.

Conclusion Summary

Within the framework of this short review, the characteristics of the GIGABYTE GA-M61PME S2 were examined in detail and described. This motherboard is a budget solution. It focuses on the creation of economy-class computing systems. Such a positioning is indicated by the form factor, the minimum set of expansion slots and communication ports, as well as its cost. Therefore, such a computer component is most often used in office computers. It is also necessary to highlight the moment that this computing platform is outdated. Therefore, the owners of such PCs need to upgrade them.