Not many people know what the function of the PCIe is. Not many people even know what a PCIe slot is even though they may or may not use it. The PCIe does a lot more than provide a space for your graphic card to sit. And this article is going to tell you all about it.
Although we are focusing on PCIe X16, the article will also cover important things so that all the answers to your questions are covered. Dig in and enjoy!
Table of Contents
1.What is a PCIe x16?
In simple terms, a PCIe x16 (PCI-Express x16) is a slot or communication channel on your computer motherboard with 16 PCIe lanes or data links. The PCIe x16 slot has the biggest throughput rate and you can use expansion cards such as graphic cards with high bandwidth in it. To boost the performance of your computer you can add more components to it. As most modern motherboards are customizable.
However, to be able to add any components to your motherboard, you need two crucial interfaces. They are the SATA slot and the PCIe slot interfaces. But bear in mind that the SATA interface is best suited for low bandwidth components such as hard disk drives. So, if you require a high bandwidth component, the PCIe interface is your best bet.
There are many different types of PCIe interfaces such as PCIe x4, and it makes sense since motherboards come with varying PCIe slots.
2.What does 16 mean in PCIe x16?
In the term PCI Express x16, the 16 denotes that there are 16 slots or channels between the motherboard and the graphic card. This is important whenever you want to expand your motherboard or when you want to purchase a video card. Because, if your motherboard comes with a PCIe x16 slot then you need a PCIe x16 graphics card.However, if your motherboard doesn’t come with an x16 slot, then the PCIe x16 won’t fit.
3.PCIe Slots and Its Types
Although we are discussing the PCIe x16 slot, other PCIe slot sizes are worth mentioning too. So that you get a much clearer understanding of the PCIe functions. Every PCIe slots have a specific purpose or use. For example, smaller lots are more suitable for expansion cards that don’t require a high amount of data. Cards such as Wi-fi cards and sound cards among others.
There are four types of PCIe slots and they are —— x1, x4, x8, and x16 respectively.
4.The difference between PCIe x1, x4, x8, and x16
The short answer to the above question will be that the difference is in their sizes and the number of data lanes. That is, PCIe x1 is the smallest with just one data lane. PCIe x4 is four times bigger than x1 and has four data lanes. The PCIe x8 is the second largest with eight data lanes. And the last is the PCIe x 16 which is the largest and the best with 16 data lanes.
The four mentioned PCIe slots also have differences when it comes to what they can be used for. For example, the PCIe x1 has the smallest bandwidth due to its number of lanes (one). And as such works best with cards that don’t demand a lot like the sound card, modems, and USB expansion cards. The PCIe x4 can accommodate higher bandwidth and works well with 10G network cards and 4k video capture cards among others.
PCIe x8 is mostly used as a second video card. So, if your computer came with a dual NVIDIA graphic card, you get to plug the second graphic card in the PCIe x8 slot. Also, PCIe x8 slots are perfect for use as RAID controllers. The PCIe x16 is the biggest and fastest slot found on your everyday computer motherboard. And it is the primary slot for your graphic cards.
5.PCIe x16 vs x8
The PCIe x8 is a unique kind of slot as is very similar to the x16 slot when installed on the motherboard.It is quite hard to distinguish the two slots when they are already installed as they almost look the same.
So, be sure to check more than just the outward profile as that is not enough to differentiate them. It is recommended that you cross-check your motherboard spec sheet to ensure the PCIe slot is the right one.
Since we are comparing x16 and x8 slots is worth noting that, an x8 card can fit into an x16 slot and still works perfectly.This is because most devices in the PCIe standard are cross-compatible. Although fixing an x8 card in an x 16 slot allows you to maximize the potential of the card, there are a few things that play an important role.
The PCIe version is significant
Although different generations of the PCIe are compatible, there is a huge gap in their performance. So, using a PCIe 3.0 x8 on a PCIe 2.0 x16 will not give the desired result in terms of performance. So, a PCIe 4.0 will have to reduce its performance to the lower interface to work.
Not all 16 lanes will be utilized
Even though the PCIe is cross-compatible, when you install x8 on the x16 slot, only 8 of the 16 lanes will be utilized. So, although it will fit, you will end up wasting half of the slots.
No additional performance gains
Since you are still only able to use 8 out of the 16 slots, there will be no additional performance gain.
6.What goes into PCIe x16 slots?
PCIe 16 slots are very versatile and can be used for many add-in cards. With the most common of them being graphic cards. Depending on what you want to do with it. For example, if you are a gamer, a graphic card is crucial. A storage controller and more SATA slots are required if you are into NSA setup building. And a network adapter is added to solve network compatibility issues. There are so many things that go into a PCIe x16 slot. Below are some more.
- Graphic cards
- Ethernet network cards
- TV tuner cards
- Sound cards
- SATA expansion RAID controller cards
- Wireless and Bluetooth network cards
- Port expansion cards
- 2 NMVe expansion cards
- Video capture cards
- Splitters/ riser
As you can see, the x16 accepts a lot of cards that are important for various functioning of the computer.
7.Is PCIe x16 the same as PCIe 4.0?
A simple answer is no, PCIe x16 is not the same as PCIe 4.0. What is PCIe 4.0 then? You may ask? PCIe 4.0 is the fourth-generation expansion bus specifications. It is the fastest PCIe generation available with 16 Giga transfers per second. The PCIe 4.0 works with your computer motherboard to facilitate and accelerate the transfer of data from NVMe, RAID, graphic cards, and other expansion cards at a high speed. The process is made possible by the PCIe slot into which the cards are inserted. This is where the PCIe x16 comes in.
However, the CPU, motherboard, and expansion cards manufacturers are the ones responsible for whether your PCIe, expansion cards, and CPU are compatible with the PCIe 4.0 speed. The bandwidth of PCIe 4.0 with the four types of PCIe slots are
- 1.969 GB/s for PCIe x1 slot
- 7.877 GB/s for PCIe x4 slot
- 15.754 GB/s for x8 slot
- 31.508 GB/s for x16 slots
8.Does PCIe 4.0 matter for gaming?
The increase in bandwidth is the major benefit of PCIe 4.0. As such any device designed for it will surely benefit. When it comes to gaming, having PCIe 4.0 means you get faster storage speed in terms of video and game loading and faster graphics in terms of rendering and video games. So, does the PCIe 4.0 matter for gaming? The answer will be yes if you:
- Use a fast NVMe storage device to load your games and as such can make use of the high speed the PCIe 4.0 provides.
- Have a graphic card that is compatible with the PCIe 4.0; then you may notice some performance improvement.
- Are interested in future-proofing your system.
- Just want to free up more slots for other devices to work too
9.How fast is PCIe x16?
As we already know, x16 means that there are 16 slots available. The speed of the PCIe x16 or any other PCIe slots depends wholly on the PCI-Express standards of the CPU. So, the speed of x16 with PCIe version 1.0 is not the same as x16 with PCIe version 4.0. Below is the different speed of the x16 with the various PCIe versions.
- Version 1.0 will give x16 a speed of 4.0 GB/s
- Version 2.0 will give x16 a speed of 8.0 GB/s
- Version 3.0 will give x16 a speed of 15.8 GB/s
- Version 4.0 will give x16 a speed of 31.58 GB/s
As you can see, the speed doubles as the version increase. So, the fastness of the PCIe x16 is dependent on the version it is working on.
10.Is PCIe x16 the fastest?
Yes, among all the PCIe slots available, the x 16 is the fastest. And this is because of the number of lanes it has.
11.Are all graphics cards PCIe x16?
To get the best performance out of the graphic cards, they are designed to fit the PCIe x16. However, some graphic cards are also compatible with the PCIe x8. But you will surely experience a slight loss in performance as compared to using the x16 slot.
The use of any other slots lower than x8 will result in crippled graphic cards.
12.How do you know if your GPU is x16?
There are several ways to check if your GPU is x16. Let’s discuss three modes below.
Through the Control panel
- On the desktop search bar, type “control panel” and click the option.
- Then proceed to click on the “hardware and sound” option.
- A list of options containing the “NVIDIA control panel” will show. Click on it.
- A page will pop up. Click on “system information” located at the bottom left side.
- Once you have reached here, a window containing all the information including whether your GPU is x16 will appear.
That’s it.
Through The Windows Task manager
- On your desktop search bar, type “device manager” and choose it when it appears.
- On the task manager window, click on “performance”.
- Then proceed to select “GPU” from the provided lists.
That’s it. You can also press Ctrl + Alt + Del to take you directly to your device manager and continue from there.
Through Settings
- Through the start menu, open the settings and click on “system”.
- Choose the “display” from the menu and proceed to click on “Advanced display settings”.
- It will take you to a display information page where you can see details regarding your PC graphic card.
13.Which PCIe for GPU?
Ideally, the first PCIe slot on the motherboard is the best place to install your graphic card. This is because is a fully loaded PCIe x16 slot that will enable your graphic card to perform at its full best. Sometimes, it might be the only slot available.
14.How many PCIe x16 slots do I need?
This depends on what you are using the computer for. However, you will need at least one PCIe x16 to install your graphic card and another one if you want to run another graphic card. The remaining slots you can use for connecting different components.
15.Can you Use an x4 or x8 Card in an x16 PCIe Slot?
Yes, you can. Larger PCIe slots are designed to fit smaller slots. And as such, you can fit an x4 or x8 into x16 perfectly without any issue.
16.Can you put a Wi-Fi card in a PCIe x16 slot?
Yes, you can. And it will work fine.
Final Thoughts
To fully understand what PCIe x16 means, you need to learn a whole lot of things regarding the PCIe interface. In layman’s terms, the PCIe x16 is the largest available size for any PCIe slot on motherboards.