Widescreen Gaming Forum

Do you think that having a pcie 2.0 slot makes a difference compared to a 1.0? I've read some articles and it seems that the difference is nearly unnoticable, even when the new GPU's claim they are pcie 2.0. At present, the graphic cards dont seem to need the double bandwidth for most games.

I ask this cause im between a P35 and a x38 chipset motherboard, and the difference in price is more than double between em. (asus P5K SE and maximus formula if u need to know)

Those chipsets are very similar, they only differ in some sata ports and the stated pcie. x38 has two pcie x16 2.0 slots, and im only gonna use one so it would be a total overkill for my needs.

Question: Are there motherboards with only one pcie 2.0 slot?? Im not really interested in crossfire/SLI cause im running games at most 1600x1050 resolution for now (read my other post... no money for 24' :P)

Thanks.

From what I've read, no game has come close to maxing out the bandwidth of a PCI-E v1 slot, so 2.0 really doesn't "offer" much.

There's one big exception, though. Some newer 2.0 video cards don't like 1.0 slots--as in, they will not work. Case-in-point: NVIDIA's G92 cards, such as the 8800GT. I tried 2 of these cards in my rig and neither worked, then I stumbled upon the little fact that these cards are not as backwards compatible as NVIDIA had claimed. Look up geforce 8 series on wikipedia for more details. This is why I ended up with an 8800GTS--it was the best I could get in my price range that was not a 2.0 card. I'm happier, though, since I got EVGA's SSC edition (OC'd, more stream processors, 640MB, 320bit memory bus) :D .

For the sake of compatibility, I'd say go for 2.0, unless you really need to save the money.

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VirtualDub Game Recording Guide | BFME2 & RotWK Widescreen/Triplehead Mods

Go with a P45 and be happy.

To answer your question no a pcie2.0 will not make much if any difference especially if your using a mid range card like a 4850.

Edit: Hmm that is very weird GenAdmission, I have used DOZENS of p35 boards with g92 cards.

Hell I know a guy running a 9600GT with an AMD 3500+ on an nforce4 mobo.

My best friend is running a Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS3L with an 8800GTS 512.


I still recommend going with a P45 board over X38.

table breaking links are bad ;)

I would go for 2.0 express if i find a sub 200 dollars mother board.
I dont need 2 pcie slots, just one and as far as i can tell i havent found any motherboard with only one pcie 2.0.

I guess im going for the p35...
btw im getting a 4870, is crossfire worth it in 1600x1050 ?

PS: Is 4870 backwards compatible with pcie 1.0?

Edit: Hmm that is very weird GenAdmission, I have used DOZENS of p35 boards with g92 cards.

Hell I know a guy running a 9600GT with an AMD 3500+ on an nforce4 mobo.

My best friend is running a Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS3L with an 8800GTS 512.

Yeah, many do run OK. It's just my luck that those video cards don't like VIA chipsets.

The thing that irks me is that all the marketing put out by NVIDIA stated "Fully backwards compatible with PCI-E 1.0", when it flat out was not true. Did they not test any VIA PCI-E 1.0 mobos? I find that hard to believe. The first 8800GT I tried was a BFG OC2. When I called them for support they just said "We can't do anything, you should return the product." Way to kill that happy upgrade vibe, people.

I ended up with a slightly better card anyway, and it's running great, so the happy upgrade feeling is back. :D

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VirtualDub Game Recording Guide | BFME2 & RotWK Widescreen/Triplehead Mods

My G92 based 8800 GTS 512 works great in my P35 based board.

My 3850 is working great in PCIe x16, I have little reason to believe the 4870 shouldn't.

Ha, that's what I get when I stay up late. I missed the fact that S0ulBlade is looking at Intel boards.

-1 to self for not paying attention

PS: Is 4870 backwards compatible with pcie 1.0?

You'll probably be fine. Search a few hardware forums with that question to check it out.

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VirtualDub Game Recording Guide | BFME2 & RotWK Widescreen/Triplehead Mods

PS: Is 4870 backwards compatible with pcie 1.0?

Yeah it works just fine.

I still do recommend going with a P45 board though.

Hmmm yeah, ill just get a P45 instead. If i plan to upgrade to a newer card on the future, it will probably need the pcie 2.0. Thanks all for the advice!