PCI Express x16 2.0 card on 1.0 motherboard?

Recently, I decided that I wanted to upgrade my computer because I probably won't have the money to buy a new one til next year or so. Here are my specs:

Biostar Tforce 6100-939
AMD Athalon 64 x2 4200+ (939 socket) 2.2ghz
2 gb 184 pin ddr sdram (i plan to upgrade this to 4gb)
Nvidia 8500GT 256mb (PCI Express x16 1.0)
400 Watt PSU (upgrading to a 500 or 600 soon)

While browsing on newegg, I ran into this card.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx…N82E16814102719

Someone told me that 2.0 cards are backwards compatible but run at only half the bandwidth. Seeing as that's a 2.0 and I have a 1.0 (or is it 1.1?) slot, will it be significantly slowed down from what its supposed to run at?

Hi there, Yes it is compatible, no you wouldn't hardly notice any limitations on the PCI-Express bus. Troy

Thanks for the quick response! Are you sure it's compatible? I just found out that my PCI Express x16 slot is 1.0a. Also, do you think that video card is too much for my system to handle? Like would it bottleneck? Thanks.

Sorry for the late response, I've been slightly busy of late…

The 3870 you have chosen is more than sufficient for your needs, when taking into account the rest of your system. I would think that the 3870 is slightly above the rest of your system, but the good news is you would be able to keep it to include with a better system down the line.

Don't forget that your upgrading of the PSU is vital, as the video card is one the highest power-drawing components in a system - especially if you are using it to the fullest extent possible (i.e. playing 3D computer games!). A high quality PSU is extremely important, and I must stress that you include the PSU as part of the overall upgrade to the system.

Also another point to consider is the 3xxx series of ATI graphics cards are last-generation, now - the 4xxx series are out now, and have been for a little while. Take a good look at the Tom's Hardware Video Card Chart to get a feel of your choices, and where you can fit them in with your budget. Watch out for the February edition, which should be released within the next week. In specific, look at page 7 - the hierarchy chart.

Once again, I don't feel either of these cards would be a huge limitation on your PCI-Express x16 bus.

Cheers

Troy