Foxconn M61PMV Motherboard
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- Front Side Bus Speed: 1000 MHz
- Storage Controller Type(s): Serial ATA II x 2
- Form Factor: Micro ATX
- Video Interface: PCI Express
- Chipset: NVIDIA GeForce 6100
- Compatibility: PC
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Foxconn M61PMV Will Not Con You
Pros
Cheap, easy to install, everything needed already in the box
Cons
Lousy onboard video, onboard audio has slight issues
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
Most cheap budget motherboards are terrible but the M61PMV somehow rises above the rest in most areas.
I was shopping around for a low budget motherboard for an AMD Athlon X2 dual core system and there were many options out there. The Asus M2N68-AM was my first choice but found out it didn't have any fan headers, so that was a bust. The Biostar MCP6P-M2 was another choice but the slots didn't look favorable for my setup. I also thought about the Zotac GF6100 & GF8100 but didn't know much about them. There were several others from PCchips, MSI and Gigabyte but they were either too cheap or too expensive. I then remembered Foxconn for some reason, researched their products, and ultimately chose the Foxconn M61PMV.
The biggest selling point for this motherboard was price at $41 from ewiz. The specifications were spot on with what I was building. I needed a AM2/AM2+ socket for an AMD Athlon X2 5200+ processor, only needed 2 dimm sockets for 2GB of memory, 1 IDE header for some cd/dvd drives, 4 SATA headers but only needed 1 for the hard drive, and of course onboard audio, video, and ethernet, with a PCI Express slot for a video card upgrade. This motherboard also comes with a bunch of overclocking and personalization software which was another huge selling point.
The Box
In the box you get the Foxconn M61PMV motherboard, rear shield panel, 1 IDE cable, 1 SATA data cable, 1 SATA power cable (molex converted), user manuals with foldout diagram, and dvd installation disk.
Installation
Because of its micro ATX size (9.6" x 8.0") this motherboard can easily fit into just about any standard ATX case with plenty of room to spare. The smaller size also makes for easier installation and doesn't use as many screws. There is also plenty of clearance for a stock fan and heatsink, even when using heat shield equipped memory.
Performance
This is a rather low end budget motherboard but it manages to keep up with the more expensive mainstream brands. I had no issues installing hardware and devices on the product, everything was basically plug and play with little to no setup. The only negatives to report is the onboard video and audio. The onboard GeForce 6150SE video is junk. It's good for basic computers running word and excel, but games and other applications will look terrible. You will need to get a dedicated video card installed on the PCI Express x16 slot. The onboard 6-channel audio is nice but is made by VIA which doesn't seem as good as Realtek. I had issues with the microphone boost options and was only able to get this working by using their generic software program. Windows simply would not handle these options and settings properly.
Those looking to overclock will be pleased with the onboard bios options and foxconn software. Just about everything you need is there, from controlling fan speeds, to processor operating frequency. These can be dealt with in normal bios or better controlled with the foxone software.
Specifications
I'm not computer savvy so I won't go into detail about how this motherboard works. But for you average readers my comments should be suffice.
CPU Socket Type: AM2/AM2+ -- This will support most AMD processors using AM2 and AM2+ sockets.
CPU Type: Sempron / Athlon 64 / Phenom / -- This will support most AMD processors that are sempron, athlon 64, athlon 64 x2, and phenom. There is a maximum limit of 95w which is fine for sempron and athlon but only a few low end phenom are compatible.
FSB: 1000MHz (2000 MT/s) -- This is in line with most athlon 64 x2 processors including the 5000+, 5200+ and 5600+. Semprons are fully compatible but again only a few phenom will work here.
Memory: DDR2 533/667/800/1066 -- This motherboard will accept most types of DDR2 memory with exception to 1066. In order to use the maximum supported memory you need to have an AM2+ processor, such as a phenom. Otherwise, the best available memory is PC6400 800Mhz which isn't all that bad. Dual channel memory is supported with a maximum of 4GB (2GB per channel).
Expansion Slots: (1) PCI Express x16 / (1) PCI Express x1 / (2) PCI Slots -- There are 2 standard PCI slots, 1 PCI-E x1, and 1 PCI-E x16 for a video graphics card. The PCI-E x16 is not 2.0, so it's the slower version, but 2.0 compatible video cards will work on this older slot.
PATA: (1) ATA100 -- There's only 1 IDE header for support of up to 2 devices. This can handle older cd/dvd and hard drives.
SATA: (4) 3Gb/s 0/1/0+1/5/JBOD Raid -- There are 4 SATA headers for all the newest devices such as cd/dvd and hard drives with raid support.
Onboard Video: NVIDIA GeForce 6100 -- This comes with onboard video which isn't all that great. Gamers will obviously want to upgrade to a PCI-E video card. Even for basic setups the onboard just isn't that great. Newer versions of the M61PMV are coming out with GeForce 6150SE.
Onboard Audio: VIA VT1708B 6 Channels -- Standard onboard audio but VIA is not quite as good as the mainstream Realtek brand. You may be forced to use the VIA software to get some audio components to work properly.
Onboard LAN: Broadcom 10/100Mbps -- Standard onboard ethernet but would like to see the Realtek brand being used.
Conclusion
I was happy with this purchase for its basics needs to met my expectations. As I said, the onboard video is junk, so expect to purchase a video card upgrade, which you will need for gaming purposes anyway. The audio is a slight issue if using a microphone otherwise it's perfectly acceptable. Every other aspect of the motherboard operates as described with no major issues. Overall, this is a decent low end budget motherboard that will handle almost any AMD Athlon X2 dual core processor configuration using standard DDR2 PC6400 800MHz memory. The upgrade options are limited as this can only handle up to Phenom 95w processors and only goes up to 4GB memory. Although for a basic low budget setup, this is probably all you need for years to come anyway. The foxconn web site also has detailed information about their products including: manuals, driver downloads and hardware compatibility listings. This is great if you ever need help or lost the driver disk. You can go to the manufactures web site to get official and reliable information. Not quite an A+ motherboard but the cheap price, software packages, and online tech support make up for any short comings.
The biggest selling point for this motherboard was price at $41 from ewiz. The specifications were spot on with what I was building. I needed a AM2/AM2+ socket for an AMD Athlon X2 5200+ processor, only needed 2 dimm sockets for 2GB of memory, 1 IDE header for some cd/dvd drives, 4 SATA headers but only needed 1 for the hard drive, and of course onboard audio, video, and ethernet, with a PCI Express slot for a video card upgrade. This motherboard also comes with a bunch of overclocking and personalization software which was another huge selling point.
The Box
In the box you get the Foxconn M61PMV motherboard, rear shield panel, 1 IDE cable, 1 SATA data cable, 1 SATA power cable (molex converted), user manuals with foldout diagram, and dvd installation disk.
Installation
Because of its micro ATX size (9.6" x 8.0") this motherboard can easily fit into just about any standard ATX case with plenty of room to spare. The smaller size also makes for easier installation and doesn't use as many screws. There is also plenty of clearance for a stock fan and heatsink, even when using heat shield equipped memory.
Performance
This is a rather low end budget motherboard but it manages to keep up with the more expensive mainstream brands. I had no issues installing hardware and devices on the product, everything was basically plug and play with little to no setup. The only negatives to report is the onboard video and audio. The onboard GeForce 6150SE video is junk. It's good for basic computers running word and excel, but games and other applications will look terrible. You will need to get a dedicated video card installed on the PCI Express x16 slot. The onboard 6-channel audio is nice but is made by VIA which doesn't seem as good as Realtek. I had issues with the microphone boost options and was only able to get this working by using their generic software program. Windows simply would not handle these options and settings properly.
Those looking to overclock will be pleased with the onboard bios options and foxconn software. Just about everything you need is there, from controlling fan speeds, to processor operating frequency. These can be dealt with in normal bios or better controlled with the foxone software.
Specifications
I'm not computer savvy so I won't go into detail about how this motherboard works. But for you average readers my comments should be suffice.
CPU Socket Type: AM2/AM2+ -- This will support most AMD processors using AM2 and AM2+ sockets.
CPU Type: Sempron / Athlon 64 / Phenom / -- This will support most AMD processors that are sempron, athlon 64, athlon 64 x2, and phenom. There is a maximum limit of 95w which is fine for sempron and athlon but only a few low end phenom are compatible.
FSB: 1000MHz (2000 MT/s) -- This is in line with most athlon 64 x2 processors including the 5000+, 5200+ and 5600+. Semprons are fully compatible but again only a few phenom will work here.
Memory: DDR2 533/667/800/1066 -- This motherboard will accept most types of DDR2 memory with exception to 1066. In order to use the maximum supported memory you need to have an AM2+ processor, such as a phenom. Otherwise, the best available memory is PC6400 800Mhz which isn't all that bad. Dual channel memory is supported with a maximum of 4GB (2GB per channel).
Expansion Slots: (1) PCI Express x16 / (1) PCI Express x1 / (2) PCI Slots -- There are 2 standard PCI slots, 1 PCI-E x1, and 1 PCI-E x16 for a video graphics card. The PCI-E x16 is not 2.0, so it's the slower version, but 2.0 compatible video cards will work on this older slot.
PATA: (1) ATA100 -- There's only 1 IDE header for support of up to 2 devices. This can handle older cd/dvd and hard drives.
SATA: (4) 3Gb/s 0/1/0+1/5/JBOD Raid -- There are 4 SATA headers for all the newest devices such as cd/dvd and hard drives with raid support.
Onboard Video: NVIDIA GeForce 6100 -- This comes with onboard video which isn't all that great. Gamers will obviously want to upgrade to a PCI-E video card. Even for basic setups the onboard just isn't that great. Newer versions of the M61PMV are coming out with GeForce 6150SE.
Onboard Audio: VIA VT1708B 6 Channels -- Standard onboard audio but VIA is not quite as good as the mainstream Realtek brand. You may be forced to use the VIA software to get some audio components to work properly.
Onboard LAN: Broadcom 10/100Mbps -- Standard onboard ethernet but would like to see the Realtek brand being used.
Conclusion
I was happy with this purchase for its basics needs to met my expectations. As I said, the onboard video is junk, so expect to purchase a video card upgrade, which you will need for gaming purposes anyway. The audio is a slight issue if using a microphone otherwise it's perfectly acceptable. Every other aspect of the motherboard operates as described with no major issues. Overall, this is a decent low end budget motherboard that will handle almost any AMD Athlon X2 dual core processor configuration using standard DDR2 PC6400 800MHz memory. The upgrade options are limited as this can only handle up to Phenom 95w processors and only goes up to 4GB memory. Although for a basic low budget setup, this is probably all you need for years to come anyway. The foxconn web site also has detailed information about their products including: manuals, driver downloads and hardware compatibility listings. This is great if you ever need help or lost the driver disk. You can go to the manufactures web site to get official and reliable information. Not quite an A+ motherboard but the cheap price, software packages, and online tech support make up for any short comings.
