MSI N580GTX GeForce GTX 580 Lightning Xtreme Video Card - 3GB, GDDR5, PCI-Express 2.0 (x16), Dual-DVI, HDMI, DisplayPort, DirectX 11, Dual-Slot, 3-way SLI ReadyItem#: M452-0582  |  Model#: N580GTXLightningXtre

Click Here To Find Video Cards - Look For Dual DVI/Dual Monitor Ready Cards »
Click Here For Dual Monitor Stands »
Click Here For Great Deals On A 2nd Monitor »

PCI Express 2.0 - High End Graphics Have Arrived
PCI Express Base 2.0 specification doubles the interconnect bit rate from 2.5 GT/s to 5 GT/s in a seamless and compatible manner. The performance boost to 5 GT/s is by far the most important feature of the PCI Express 2.0 specifications. It effectively increases the aggregate bandwidth of a 16-lane link to approximately 16 GB/s. The higher bandwidth will allow product designers to implement narrower interconnect links to achieve high performance while reducing cost.

A number of optimizations and improvements have been made to the protocol and software layers of the PCI Express architecture in the PCI Express Base 2.0 specification. These include:

• Dynamic link speed management – to control the speed at which the link is operating
• Link bandwidth notification – to notify software (operating system, device drivers, etc) of changes in link speed and width
• Capability structure expansion – to expand the control registers to better manage devices, slots and the interconnect
• Access control services – optional controls to manage peer-peer transactions
• Completion timeout control – to define a required disable mechanism plus related optional enhancements
• Function-level reset – optional mechanism to reset functions within a device
• Power limit redefinition – to redefine slot power limit values to accommodate devices that consume higher power

Will Your Motherboard Support the Video Card You're Purchasing? Here's the Answer...

Before you buy - make sure your motherboard is compatible with this video card. For example, PCI Express video cards won't work with motherboards designed only for AGP or PCI video cards, and vice versa. Please read the specifications carefully or call us for expert advice.

Close-Up: PCI, AGP, and PCI-E (PCI Express)

Check your motherboard and make sure you are purchasing the correct cardbus type.

There are 3 types of cardbus slots currently available: PCI, AGP, and PCI Express (PCIe 2.0 is compatible with PCIe slot)

PCI - The most widely used I/O bus, it provides a shared data path between the CPU and peripheral controllers, such as network, display, SCSI and RAID cards. Though limited in terms of performance, they are considered the best value when you upgrade your video capabilities on a PC. The PCI interface can be found and used in nearly any motherboard.
Click here to view our selection of PCI Cards

AGP - The AGP slot is next in line of higher graphic performance. It was designed especially for the throughput demands of 3-D graphics. It offers up to 8x improvement over a PCI card, is 32 bits wide and runs at 66 MHz. It provides a direct connection between the card and memory, and only one AGP slot is on the motherboard. The motherboard must be equipped with an AGP bus slot for an AGP card to be compatible.(AGP 1x provided a data transfer rate of 264 Mbytes/sec. AGP 2x is 528 Mbytes/sec. AGP 4x is 1 Gbyte/sec. AGP 8x is 2 Gbytes/sec.)
Click here to view our selection of AGP Cards

PCI Express - PCI Express is the newest technology that is superior to both PCI and AGP, in terms of graphic performance. It offers performance as much as 4x faster than the fastest AGP 8X slot. PCI Express connections can support fast data transfer rates, which can be used to connect high-speed devices such as high-end video cards. The slots come in different variations and speeds, such as x1, x4, x8, and x16. Presently, most high-end motherboards meant for design, video production, or gaming come with PCI express slots. To use a PCI Express card, your computer must have at least one available PCI Express slot.
Click here to view our selection of PCI Express Cards