can i use a PCI-E 2.0 x16 card if my mobo is specified for PCI-E x16?

[Omegachi]

first of all, is this a motherboard thing? or is it a video card backwards compatible thing?

 

[lyssword]

pcie 2.0 vidcard should be backwards compatible. Yeah it's a motherboard thing as far as I know, most new-ish mobos will support 2.0 cards if they have x16 slot.

 

[Omegachi]

so what would happen if you use a PCI-E 2.0 card in my motherboard now thats built for PCI-Es? what kind of performance effects would it have on the 2.0 card?

 

[krnmastersgt]

Absolutely none, PCI-E 2.0 just doubles the bandwidth, but as it stands no card on the market can even fully saturate the 1.1 bandwidth limit, so at least for a few more generations of cards, you're good to go

 

[Terracode]

I am running the 9600 GT in a Dell SC1430 server. It has an 8x PCI-Express that is wired as 4x. I had to use a 16x to 8x adapter. The video is still pretty snappy and plays Crysis decently.

I have details on the install and pics at
http://terracode.com/SC1430_N9600GT/SC1430_9600GT.html

VasR