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PCIe Slot Matters?

Zuzu
By Zuzu
in CPUs, Motherboards, and Memory
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Posted

Hi,

Does it matter which PCIe slot I use to plug my GTX 970 Strix into?

All the slots are PCIe x16 slots... Will it make a huge difference if I plug into the second one?

This is my mobo (Asus Z97 Pro Wifi/Ac):

YsjnXsf.jpg

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No, but if it's anything like mine, it will be wired for PCIe x16 3.0 wired to x8 (basically PCIe 2.0 x16). Bottom slot is probably wired to x4, which would probably impact performance.

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Yes, because the other slots are limited to x8. Even though there is little difference between x16 and x8, plug it into the top one.

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Yes, because the other slots are limited to x8. Even though there is little difference between x16 and x8, plug it into the top one.

I can't though.. My heatsink is covering it :(.

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Can't :/. Does it make a huge difference?

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I can't though.. My heatsink is covering it :(.

Well, then it's fine. You'll barely even see the difference anyway.

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I can't though.. My heatsink is covering it :(.

You'll still be fine. There's no way you'll saturate PCIe 3.0 x8 gaming.

You know what's easier than buying and building a brand new PC? Petty larceny!
If you're worried about getting caught, here's a trick: Only steal one part at a time. Plenty of people will call the cops because somebody stole their computer -- nobody calls the cops because they're "pretty sure the dirty-bathrobe guy from next door jacked my heat sink."

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You'll still be fine. There's no way you'll saturate PCIe 3.0 x8 gaming.

Will my mobo detect the card though?

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Will my mobo detect the card though?

There shouldn't be any problems. I currently have my graphics card plugged into the second pcie slot of my computer and there's no difference from it being plugged into the first.

You know what's easier than buying and building a brand new PC? Petty larceny!
If you're worried about getting caught, here's a trick: Only steal one part at a time. Plenty of people will call the cops because somebody stole their computer -- nobody calls the cops because they're "pretty sure the dirty-bathrobe guy from next door jacked my heat sink."

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Bottom slot is probably wired to x4, which would probably impact performance.

x4 will only decrease performance by ~5%. So it's not really all that bad.

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x4 will only decrease performance by ~5%. So it's not really all that bad.

 

The bottom slot on my board is only PCIe 2.0 4x, and isn't even connected directly to the CPU but to the chipset - IMHO not a place to put a GPU. ;)

[Main rig "ToXxXiC":]
CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K | MB: ASUS Maximus VII Formula | RAM: G.Skill TridentX 32GB 2400MHz (DDR-3) | GPU: EVGA GTX980 Hydro Copper | Storage: Samsung 850 Pro 256GB SSD + Samsung 850 EVO 1TB SSD (+NAS) | Sound: OnBoard | PSU: XFX Black Edition Pro 1050W 80+ Gold | Case: Cooler Master Cosmos II | Cooling: Full Custom Watercooling Loop (CPU+GPU+MB) | OS: Windows 7 Professional (64-Bit)

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