I had a quick question. Is the EVGA x99 classy really x8/x8/x8 for 3-way sli? the brochures says so, but isn't it normally x16/x16/x8 like the dark? did they just test the board with a 5820k?

houkom
This says differently...  Says PCI-E Slot Arrangement – 1x16, 2x16, 3x8, 4x8

 
Thats what i'm talking about, it says x8/x8/x8. Asus and other have said x16/x16/x8, so is x8/x8/x8 unique to EVGA?

Scarlet-Tech
I am curious... I think EVGA wrote it out in a slightly less than smart format. I think it may actually mean Lane 1: x16, Lane 2: x16 Lane 3: x8, Lane 4: x8 and items in those slots would be capable of running at the suggested speeds... They should definitely clarify that though... It says lane configuration, so I think Houkon is saying that Lane 1 and 2 should run at x16 with a capable chip.

 
ahhh i understand sorry 5 hours of sleep, daughter woke up at freaking 5:30 in the morning. though babies slept alot.... anyways that resolved my issues. Ordered it and sent it to nateman... for things....

I looked at the Classified x99 manual earlier and below is a summary of the slot configurations listed in the manual.
 
1 - x16/x8 - x8 if 2 is occupied
2 - x8
 
3 - x8 - Disabled on 28-lane CPU
4 - x16/x8 - x8 if 3 is occupied or on 28-lane CPU
 
5 - x4 2.0 -> x99 PCH
 
6 - x8 on 40-lane CPU or x4 on 28-lane CPU
 
Source (Page 9):
 
http://www.evga.com/support/manuals/files/151-HE-E999_Part1.pdf
 
Based on this slot layout, there are some different options for a 3x GPU installation. If the cards are installed in slots 1, 2, and 4, the cards should operate at x8/x8/x16. If the cards are installed in slots 1, 4, and 6, the cards should operate at x16/x16/x8. This would be with the 40-lane CPU. This is somewhat different from the EVGA x79 Dark slot layout. The Dark could run 3 cards in slot 1, 3, and 6 and have the cards operate at x16/x16/x8 with one slot open between each card for air flow. This is how I run my Dark with 3x AMD 7970 cards. The slot configuration appears to have been changed with the EVGA x99 ATX motherboards. You would also have to look at the included 3-way SLI adapter to see which slot configuration would work for SLI.
 
With SLI, the maximum bandwidth between cards will be that of the slowest slot. In a 3 GPU configuration, that would be x8. The benefit to the x16 slots in a 3 GPU configuration would be when the GPUs are used for compute purposes.

EVGATech_JoeyC
Here is a breakdown of the PCI-E Lane Distribution between 40 and 28 Lane CPUs. Hopefully this clears up any confusion.

Thanks Joey. It looks like lanes 1, 4, and 6 are the way to go.

4 (40-lane CPU @ x16, x16/x16, x16/x8/x8 or x16/x8/x8/x8 that is for the RVE x99 chipset.... So, 16/8/8 is what you can get with 3 way according to NewEgg.

5 x PCIe 3.0/2.0 x16 (x16, x16/x16, x16/x16/x8, x8/x8/x16/x8, x8/x8/x8/x8/x8 mode) for the Deluxe.

To me, I am hoping it was a typo, as the RVE (in my opinion) should be the same I would think. It also shows the RVE having 8x240 pin slots, so I think it is a typo for sure since I am pretty sure they are 288 pin slots...

Now, I am seeing a lot of them labeled as 240 pin DDR4.

Hello All,
 
Trying to get my head arround the PCI-E setup on the Classified.
I have two cards in SLI and one card that just runs extra monitors, If i am understanding this correctly, i can run the two SLI'ed cards @ 16x and the single as 8x if i use PE1, PE4 and PE6 respectivly, can someone confirm?
 
thanks
 
T.

16-8-8-8

I am thinking of upgrading from my Z68FTW to the X99 and I need to know which CPU is 28 lane and which is 40 lane. Maybe I am missing it in the CPU specs but I can't seem to find this info.
 
 
 
 
Figures I would post a question and then a few minutes later find the info I asked about, DOH.

???? help me can I run 3GPU TRI sli in pe1 pe3 pe6  for best air flow.  with m.2  fuled with 2280mm? with 5960x I have  3 GTX 980.

Hello... I have the x99 FTW with the i7-5820K and two gtx 590 Class for qual sli... what lanes should i use other than 1 and 2.. kind of close for me for air flow... I have tried to use 1 and 4 but bios shows nothing in the slot 4. Thanks.

EVGATech_DaveB

kevo89
Hello... I have the x99 FTW with the i7-5820K and two gtx 590 Class for qual sli... what lanes should i use other than 1 and 2.. kind of close for me for air flow... I have tried to use 1 and 4 but bios shows nothing in the slot 4. Thanks.

I would use 1 and 4. 
What CPU are you running?
Is the PCI-E switch enabled for Slot 4?
Have you plugged in the 6 pin PCI-E power at the bottom of the board?

Dave, he states the 5820k.
 
This should support quad sli, but unfortunately, I think there is a deep seated issue with it actually working.  The last person that had this issue had to get the 5930k to enable quad sli, which is NOT correct.  If a 4790k can run quad, then a 5820k better.

I would be interested in the results. I have an X99 classified with a 5820k and will be adding a second card for SLI in the near future... or so I hope!

Ah, gotchya - my mistake. I have a 970 FTW.