You are here

Dell XPS 8700's PCIe x4 slot is only wired for x1

Submitted by John T. Haller on Mon, 01/16/2017 - 16:56

I ran into this issue myself, so I figured I'd make a quick post on the off chance anyone else looks into it. The Dell XPS 8700's motherboard has an x4 slot, but it's not wired as such. This is contrary to the official specifications published by Dell (PDF) which, at the time of this post, read:

Expansion Bus

PCI Express x1:

  • Connectors two
  • Connector size 36‑pin

PCI Express x4:

  • Connectors one
  • Connector size 64‑pin

PCI Express x16:

  • Connectors one
  • Connector size 164‑pin

PCI Express mini‑card

  • Connectors two
  • Connector size 52‑pin

In any other PC spec where the x4 is wired as an x1 that I've seen, it's always specifically mentioned so as not to mislead the consumer.

Sadly, this means that if you'd like to upgrade your system to a shiny new nvme SSD via a PCIe adapter, you're out of luck. Unless you're not using a graphics card, of course. Having an available x4 slot is one reason I'd bought this system as a base. Is this something actionable for false advertising? I don't know.