Very cool looking Asus Motherboard

[Zephik]

Asus Marine Cool Motherboard Fights Heat with Ceramic Plates (http://i.gizmodo.com/5162855/asus-marine-cool-motherboard-fights-heat-with-ceramic-plates)

:up:

[SXRguyinMA]

that thing is bad-ass. well except for the sodimm slots :dead:

[Zephik]

that thing is bad-ass. well except for the sodimm slots :dead:

Yea that is incredibly lame. Thank god its just a prototype/concept, maybe if they decide to make it they'll change that.

Now my question is this; I know they use ceramics in space shuttles and break pads because they can take quite a bit of heat without burning into a crisp, but does ceramic also dissipate heat well enough for this to be plausible? Isn't ceramic an insulator?

[SXRguyinMA]

I was thinking the same thing....unless its a different type of ceramic possibly :think:

[Zephik]

I may have answered my own question. Ceramic break pads cool down pretty quickly don't they? I've seen videos where they go from cherry red looking to normal looking just seconds after the breaks let up. But this isn't a point A to point B type deal, this is applying constant heat for who knows how many hours on end.

:think:

Then again there is air circulation throughout the case usually and its not like its using ceramic on the parts that get really hot like the CPU.

This has all given me a fun sounding idea though. I did take pottery back in high school.... :p

[nevermind1534]

But they have the ceramic thermal paste. I think it depends on how it's used and what type?

[Zephik]

But they have the ceramic thermal paste. I think it depends on how it's used and what type?

Thats a good point. I never thought about that. You also have things like ceramic cookware, which can withstand the high temperatures of ovens. But I don't know how that stuff works, whether it absorbs heat or if it acts more like a shield against it. Maybe there is different types of ceramics?

Found this little nugget of information, thought it was pretty interesting.

"In the early 1980s, Toyota researched production of an adiabatic ceramic engine which can run at a temperature of over 6000°F (3300°C). Ceramic engines do not require a cooling system and hence allow a major weight reduction and therefore greater fuel efficiency. Fuel efficiency of the engine is also higher at high temperature, as shown by Carnot's theorem. In a conventional metallic engine, much of the energy released from the fuel must be dissipated as waste heat in order to prevent a meltdown of the metallic parts. Despite all of these desirable properties, such engines are not in production because the manufacturing of ceramic parts in the requisite precision and durability is difficult. Imperfection in the ceramic leads to cracks, which can lead to potentially dangerous equipment failure. Such engines are possible in laboratory settings, but mass-production is not feasible with current technology."

But I think what they are saying is that because the engine is made of ceramic it doesn't need cooling since the ceramic can withstand the high temperatures. So to apply that in computers I think you would have to have EVERYTHING made of ceramic otherwise it would probably overheat.

I think its important to find out whether ceramic absorbs heat or if it acts sort of like a barrier like that frozen smoke stuff. Because I sure wouldn't want the ceramic reflecting the heat back down onto my components!

[Datech]

With all this talk about heat dissipation and feasibility I feel kind of stupid, my first thought was, "Looks perfect for a Halo mod."

[xRyokenx]

"Looks perfect for a Halo mod."

Hahaha the same thing was floating around in the back of my head, too. Well either that or a Crysis mod.

[progbuddy]

Ceramic is just a fine-particle substance used to fill in cracks. It transfers and dissipates heat very well. As for the SO-DIMM slot... Ummmmm... I think R&D had a brain fart.

[FuzzyPlushroom]

The thing that makes me wonder... yeah, maybe they used SODIMMS because they run cooler, but that's countered by the lack of airflow from putting them parallel to the board. Plus, the damn things are more expensive to start with.

I'm glad the rest of the design isn't SO DIMM as that.

[The boy 4rm oz]

From what I have read that board isn't an actual enthusiast grade board, more industrial purposes. Have you seen the back on the board? The board has been pre installed on a sorta protective lid, may make it easier to mount to a wall or to a cupboard. I think that's why they used toe So-dimm slot, perhaps to save height or make the overall design more compact. As I said it looks like an industrial grade board so it really isn't aimed at us with the rest of the high end gear.

[NightrainSrt4]

I'm all for going with that explanation except the northbridge heatsink is taller than any regular sized ram.

But I will say they look cramped for space over there. There are a lot of components in that area that would be in the spot of the ram if they went with desktop ram.

[Airbozo]

I don't know...

If that were an industrial grade board, there would be a 64bit pciX slot. Or at least enough room to install a 64 bit card in one of the 32 bit slots.

Plus it looks like a 775 socket with a memory controller...