I wanted to build a single PC to fit all my needs, but since hardware virtualization support (Vt-d specifically) is a huge problem, I decided to build multiple single-use oriented computers. In this scenario I want these computers to be as minimal as possible.

So the core of my question is: "Are there significant performance difference between chipsets?"

I'm considering Sandy-Bridge i7 or i5 for my "game console" computer. And since I will use only one graphic card, one or two HDD, 4-8GB RAM and nothing else, I would be fine with a micro-ATX board with a Q67 (or some other low-end chipset).