PCIe 3.0x16 vs PCIe x1?

[jdidia1006]

Can I plug my WiFi/Bluetooth expansion card into my PCIe x16 slot?  The reason is that my case has some funky covers for the PCI slots and one of them is removal with a thumb screw where as the other three either need to bent or broken off in order to put something in a slot.  Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thank you in advance!

[EarthboundHero]

Yeah, but it's kind of a waste. I'd put a GPU there, if you don't have another X16.

[Ganz]

Yes, PCI 3.0 is 100% backwards compatible, so in the words of a cat "If I fits, I sits."

[Lotus]

Yup, it'll fit. But if you're on a 1150 socket, the slots have to share the 16 PCIE lanes so it will split into x8 and x8. Right now this is zero problem, but in the future it's best to use the PCIE 1x slots. Usually there's one right above the top x16 slot that's perfect for WiFi cards.

[jdidia1006]

Yeah, but it's kind of a waste. I'd put a GPU there, if you don't have another X16.

 

 

I have another x16 slot and it's just in my HTPC which I'm running an APU without a dedicated GPU.

[jdidia1006]

Yup, it'll fit. But if you're on a 1150 socket, the slots have to share the 16 PCIE lanes so it will split into x8 and x8. Right now this is zero problem, but in the future it's best to use the PCIE 1x slots. Usually there's one right above the top x16 slot that's perfect for WiFi cards.

 

 

FM2+ socket...

[LinusDropTips]

I have another x16 slot and it's just in my HTPC which I'm running an APU without a dedicated GPU.

If the only slot is that PCIe slot and you don't plan to use it for anything else (considering you are using the APU) you can install an x1 card into it. PCIe slots can accomidate any cards that will physically fit and the card will run at the maximum common speed of the card and the slot. Here is an article with the lane breakdown for your convenience:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PCI_Express#Pinout

 

Similarly PCIe 3.0, 2.0 and 1.0 are all backwards and forwards compatible, with the cards again running at the highest common speed.

I hope this helped somewhat, feel free to ask if I wasn't clear enough.