PCI expres x16, x8 and x4

[Dima]

I am looking at this motherboard on newegg
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128495
if you click on the picture and zoom in to the PCI express slots (physically speaking, they are all PCIe 2.0 x16 slots) you will see the top being x16, the middle x4, and the bottom x8. Lets say if I use only one GPU and I put it in the middle (x4), does this mean I will be running it only at x4 lanes (or w/e) or it affects only SLI and crossfire?
Also will I be able to fit a single GTX560 Ti on this board or is it too big for the board? like this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125363

This motherboard is a part of combo deal, if you want to take a look...here:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Combo...o.789219&cm_sp=DIY_PC_Combos-_-789219-_-Combo

 

[Dima]

 

[Wildcard]

Hi,

Yes, in theory if you plug the card into the 4x slot that is what it will be running at. However, many motherboards will not let you do this. They have a designated primary slot for the graphics and if you do not have the card in that one, it will not boot. I tried it on my evga 790 board, plugging my video card into slot 2 instead of one and it would not come up. I know the slot works because I used it for SLI setup with no problems.

As for the card fitting the board, as long as the card fits the BUS, it should be ok as far as the motherboard is concerned. What you want to look at in addition is will it fit in your case? If you have a micro atx case you may run into problems.