My motherboard user manual has 2 sections for M.2 slots. There are 2 slots under the "Intel 13th & 12th Gen Processors" section and then 3 slots under the "Intel Z790 Chipset" section.

What is the difference between these slots exactly? I don't fully understand that. If I use both M.2 slots under the Intel 13th & 12th Gen Processors section, will that use up all the PCIE lanes for the CPU and cause performance issues with the GPU?

I am not super familiar with PCIE lanes, so sorry if this is a dumb question.

Edit* Link to full manual.

I currently have my OS drive in the slot marked E because I heard that the top slot nearest to the CPU will lessen GPU bandwidth. I also currently have a storage drive in the slot marked as B or M.2_4. If I put another drive into the one marked D aka M.2_3 for a total of three drives would it limit my gpu in any way?

Hey folks.. I picked up the ASUS ROG Z790-E mobo. There are multiple PCIe slots, with the top-most one being Gen5. Also, there's multiple M.2 slots, the top one being Gen5.

I have a Gen4 GPU (4090 FE) and a Gen4 M.2 (WD 850X).. I'm wondering if it makes sense to plug in both of these in the Gen5 slots even if they aren't Gen5? I undestand the Gen5 M.2 slot will take some lanes from the PCIe Gen5 slot. In this case, does it make sense to plug the M.2 in another slot, or the GPU in a different slot?

Or is it a meaningless difference since they're both Gen4 anyway and there would be zero performance hit in this case?

Appreciate any advice.. TIA !

Two questions…. Im building a new pc and pre ordered the asus z790-e board and 2 m2 SSDS (1TB and 2TB) I’ve been reading on previous boards that installing ssds in the wrong m2 slot can limit your gpu from 16 to 8 lanes in pci slot. Will this happen on this board if I install on the top spot under cpu and will installing both ssds limit performance aswell. Both ssds are 4th gen. TIA :)

I'm going to be building my new PC soon and will be using:

• Intel i7 13700K

• ROG STRIX Z790-F

• MSI 3080Ti (Ventus 3x)

• 2x Samsung 980 Pros (PCI-E 4x)

From what I've read putting one of the M.2s on the same lane as the 3080Ti can slow down the performance of it. I have read some stuff that PCI-E 5 runs at half speeds than PCI-E 4 - i.e PCI-E 5 at x8 is the same as PCI-E 4 at x16. However I'm not entirely sure and beggining to get a little confused on the whole thing!

If that is the case should I be using the Z790 chipset slots (M.2_2 and M.2_3), rather than the Processor's M.2 slot (M.2_1)? I don't think it matters in this instance but I will be using 1-2 old SATA drivers for bulk storage too.

The motherboard states the following:
Intel® 13th & 12th Gen Processors

• M.2_1 slot (Key M), type 2242/2260/2280/22110 (supports PCIe 4.0 x4 mode)

Intel® Z790 Chipset

• M.2_2 slot (Key M), type 2242/2260/2280 (supports PCIe 4.0 x4 mode)

• M.2_3 slot (Key M), type 2242/2260/2280/22110 (supports PCIe 4.0 x4 mode)

• M.2_4 slot (Key M), type 2242/2260/2280 (supports PCIe 4.0 x4 and SATA modes)

• 4 x SATA 6Gb/s ports

Manual available here: https://rog.asus.com/motherboards/rog-strix/rog-strix-z790-f-gaming-wifi-model/helpdesk_manual/