Verdict and Conclusion
Looking at the results from our benchmarks, the Intel DH67BL motherboard is quite a decent peformer. I suppose the new Sandy Bridge Core i7-2600K processor did help a little. It easily beats its predecessor, H55 chipset based motherboard (powered by a Core i5-650 Clarkdale processor). There is a definite performance increase in the graphics department, and a noticeable improvement in the Sandra CPU test, ScienceMark 2 and PC Mark tests.
Although the onboard processor graphics of the Sandy Bridge CPUs only support upto DX10.1, it’s more than plenty to satisfy the needs of most HTPC and media PC users. It’s good enough for general graphics applications such as web broswers, minor photo editing and even low resolution 3D gaming. For dedicated gamers, who want full DX11 support … it’s probably best to get yourself a discrete graphics card.
What makes the H67 based motherboards attractive is the available onboard video and audio outputs. The Intel DH67BL motherboard comes with DVI and HDMI supporting full HD, for DVD and Blu-ray movie playback. While the 7.1 digital, audio along wth SPDIF optical output is more than enough for most audiophiles.
If I needed to build an all-in-one system, then the Intel DH67BL coupled with a Sandy Bridge processor, are a perfect combination. These two really complement each other. It offers decent all-round performance and has plenty of outputs for multimedia, both video and audio. These include 6 x USB2.0, 2 x USB3.0, gigabit ethernet, 7.1 channel audio, RAID support, eSATA and dual video outputs including DVI and HMDI. There’s also SPDIF optical output and an array of audio connectors.
As I’ve mentioned earlier in the review, we chose not to overclock the Core i7-2600K on the Intel DH67BL motherboard. There was no need, as this motherboard isn’t really designed for that. However, there are some options is the BIOS … I meant firmware, which allows you to do some mild overclocking. Intel have now chosen to use the new UEFI firmware for their motherboards. It does need some getting used to, but it’s basically replaces the aging 30 year old BIOS 😉
Being a mainstream motherboard means that there are some missing features. For example, there’s no dual PCI-E x16 slots. You only get 1. There however, 2 x PCIE (x1) slots and standard PCI. Other than that … it’s pretty a standard motherboard.
OK, so what about price? I never seem to be able to get a proper price for Intel motherboards. But according to a close friend of mine at a local retailer, prices range from USD $130-$160 (GBP 70-100). If this is the case, then I think it’s an OK price, but nothing spectacular.
SCORE
7.5/10
