I had a MVE Z77 motherboard, which started to behave erratically, so I sent it to the retailer for warranty. I got back after 1 & 1/2  months with no explanation, no job sheet, not even da*n paper stating anything at all. I was shocked at their level of service. I got mad and sold the board, got a decent amount just enough to buy amed-end Z97 board. I am leaning towards EVGA, Z97 FTW, in particular, mainly due to my pleasant experience with them in the past regarding their CSR & post-sales service. But the only thing I am hesitant is due to the fact that their PCIe lanes are laid out a bit weird. I have a SLI set up and would prefer to use the PCIe lane 1 and PCIE lane 3. if anyone from EVGA could answer my question regarding this positively, then I would buy this board immediately.
 
 

Drerex
Slots 1 & 2 would be ideal in a SLI setup on the FTW
 
PCIe Slot 1 -  16x/8x 
PCIe Slot 2 -  8x/4x
PCIe Slot 3 - 4x (16x physical) 
PCIe Slot 4 - 1x (16x physical)

thanks for the reply, drerex! what exactly is 16x physical?? does it mean if i connect one gpu only and use the slot 3 then i get 16x or else, in dual gpu setup where atleast one of the slot 1 or 2 is occupied, then the slot 3 & 4 goes down to 4x (PCIe 3.0) speed??

Got it!! Tnx guys..!! But this makes me sad. They made so many PCIe slots but not optimised for SLI/Crossfore. Every other manufacturers have provided open options in terms of how to use the first 3 PCIe slots, so why could evga make such decisions. If you guys can change with a BIOS update pls do so.

If I can't use the PCIe slot I want then I'll get MSI Z97 Gaming 7 board. Love the looks of it!! And its got all features I need.

Tux for all your input!!

 
So, what's so great with MSI Z97 Gaming 7 except it has 60mm instead of 40mm between PCIe slots for SLI. It only supports 2-way SLI and without third card for PhysX that FTW supports.
And you cant use any PCIe slot for SLI configuration on that board. But you will have 60mm between the slots wich could be nice if you have air cooled GPU with non ref cooler. Otherwise it dosent mather if it is 60 or 40mm between slots.

-A30N-
I have had this board since the first week it came out, it's awesome and there is NO PROBLEM with filling both slots 1 & 2 with full-sized cards. I added a couple of 60mm fans with a little bit of foam tape, and my temps are rock solid at 70c when playing Watch Dogs on high settings at 2560x1080 (21:9 aspect ratio monitor is awesome!). I got the two GTX 660s until my Step-Up to GTX 970s goes through.
 
Here is my setup:
Core i5 overclocked to 4.20GHz (hehe)
16GB ADATA 
2x Samsung Evo 840 250GB SSDs in RAID0 (1.21 GB/s read & write!)
EVGA 2x GTX 660 3GB in SLI
EVGA SuperNova 750w PSU
EVGA Z97 FTW motherboard
4x Corsair fans, 2 intake, 2 exhaust
2x 60mm "server" fans for GPU assist
Rosewill copper core CPU cooler with diamond-based thermal paste
Corsair mid-tower
 

Thanks, -A30N-! That picture really says it all!! How you liking the BIOS on this board?? I had nightmares with the Z77 FTW series but I hear that the guys at EVGA BIOS team have upped their game since then! Hope this board serves you well, brother!

thanks for the feedback mate! and, yes, this gap is a much needed thing, esp, for my setup as I foolishly got the ACX version first thinking I could adjust with just one GPU. Eventually, I was wrong and now I have a mix of ACX and reference cooler, classic rookie SLI mistake!!

tracidtrax
hey guys I'm looking at buying the EVGA Z97 FTW board and noticed it only has 2 Way SLI support. I currently have a EVGA Z77 FTW and that has 3 way SLI support and yes I'm running x3 EVGA GTX cards. I would like to upgrade the Z77 FTW board to a Z97 FTW board but was wondering why they only made it 2 way SLI even though it has x4 PCI-E slots?

I'm pretty sure it was designed for dual 980s w/ waterblocks for mid-sized builds. I have 2 970s in SLI, with Kraken G10 brackets and Corsair H55 AIO coolers installed. I can play max settings in any game 60FPS and the 970's never even reach 50C.
 
If you need the 3-way SLI, then go for the Z97 Classified which supports 4-way SLI.