Gigabyte fixes PCIe lanes issue on boards with GeForce RTX 50

Two weeks ago, we published an article about issues with PCI Express 5.0 slot speeds on newer graphics cards in certain motherboards. After powering on the PC, the PCIe slot often failed to initialize correctly, causing graphics cards to start with fewer active lanes than expected. With the new GeForce RTX 5060 Ti, the card was booting in PCIe 5.0 x1 or x2 mode nearly every other time. Gigabyte investigated the issue and addressed it with the release of the F5a BIOS.

Just to be sure, I reran the same tests on the board after updating the BIOS. The results are summarized in the table below. For Cyberpunk, the values are averages from two runs; for F1 24, the averages are based on three runs.
No meaningful difference in performance was observed between the older and the latest BIOS when all PCIe lanes were active—the results fell within expected test variation.

Gainward GF RTX 5060 Ti Python III, 16 GB, x1, BIOS F3j Gainward GF RTX 5060 Ti Python III, 16 GB, x8, BIOS F3j Gainward GF RTX 5060 Ti Python III, 16 GB, x8, BIOS F5a RTX 5060 Ti, PCIe x1 vs PCIe x8 difference RTX 5060 Ti, PCIe x8,
BIOS F3j vs F5a
difference
Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, scaling off, 1920 × 1080 118,7 fps 124,2 fps 124,4 fps 95,6 % 99,8 %
Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, FSR3 nat. AA, 1920 × 1080 86,0 fps 87,0 fps 88,7 fps 98,9 % 98,1 %
Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, FSR3 bal., 1920 × 1080 150,5 fps 160,8 fps 161,5 fps 93,6 % 99,6 %
Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, FSR3 bal., fg 2×, 1920 × 1080 253,8 fps 269,8 fps 267,7 fps 94,1 % 100,8 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, scaling off, 1920 × 1080 53,2 fps 55,3 fps 55,2 fps 96,2 % 100,2 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, FSR3 nat. AA, 1920 × 1080 51,3 fps 53,0 fps 53,0 fps 96,8 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, FSR3 bal., 1920 × 1080 97,7 fps 105,0 fps 104,6 fps 93,0 % 100,4 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, FSR3 bal., fg 2×, 1920 × 1080 173,1 fps 183,5 fps 184,2 fps 94,3 % 99,6 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, scaling off, 1920 × 1080 30,1 fps 30,5 fps 30,4 fps 98,7 % 100,3 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, FSR3 nat. AA, 1920 × 1080 29,4 fps 29,8 fps 29,8 fps 98,7 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, FSR3 perf., 1920 × 1080 74,9 fps 79,4 fps 79,1 fps 94,3 % 100,4 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, FSR3 perf., fg 2×, 1920 × 1080 135,9 fps 135,7 fps 136,3 fps 100,1 % 99,6 %
Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, scaling off, 2560 × 1440 76,4 fps 78,9 fps 78,7 fps 96,8 % 100,3 %
Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, FSR3 nat. AA, 2560 × 1440 50,5 fps 51,5 fps 51,3 fps 98,1 % 100,4 %
Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, FSR3 bal., 2560 × 1440 109,0 fps 113,7 fps 113,0 fps 95,9 % 100,6 %
Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, FSR3 bal., fg 2×, 2560 × 1440 184,9 fps 189,3 fps 187,9 fps 97,7 % 100,7 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, scaling off, 2560 × 1440 33,6 fps 34,2 fps 34,2 fps 98,2 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, FSR3 nat. AA, 2560 × 1440 32,1 fps 32,9 fps 32,9 fps 97,6 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, FSR3 bal., 2560 × 1440 68,1 fps 71,5 fps 71,2 fps 95,2 % 100,4 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, FSR3 bal., fg 2×, 2560 × 1440 120,0 fps 120,9 fps 120,5 fps 99,3 % 100,3 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, scaling off, 2560 × 1440 18,3 fps 18,5 fps 18,4 fps 98,9 % 100,5 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, FSR3 nat. AA, 2560 × 1440 17,8 fps 18,0 fps 18,0 fps 98,9 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, FSR3 perf., 2560 × 1440 51,2 fps 53,3 fps 53,2 fps 96,1 % 100,2 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, FSR3 perf., fg 2×, 2560 × 1440 91,8 fps 89,7 fps 89,4 fps 102,3 % 100,3 %
Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, scaling off, 3840 × 2160 33,7 fps 34,1 fps 34,0 fps 98,8 % 100,3 %
Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, FSR3 nat. AA, 3840 × 2160 21,8 fps 21,7 fps 21,5 fps 100,5 % 100,9 %
Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, FSR3 bal., 3840 × 2160 54,8 fps 56,3 fps 56,4 fps 97,3 % 99,8 %
Cyberpunk 2077, Ultra, FSR3 bal., fg 2×, 3840 × 2160 88,8 fps 89,2 fps 90,1 fps 99,6 % 99,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, scaling off, 3840 × 2160 16,1 fps 16,2 fps 16,2 fps 99,4 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, FSR3 nat. AA, 3840 × 2160 15,1 fps 15,6 fps 15,5 fps 96,8 % 100,6 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, FSR3 bal., 3840 × 2160 35,9 fps 36,9 fps 36,8 fps 97,3 % 100,3 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, FSR3 bal., fg 2×, 3840 × 2160 60,1 fps 60,8 fps 60,4 fps 98,8 % 100,7 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, scaling off, 3840 × 2160 8,6 fps 8,6 fps 8,6 fps 100,0 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, FSR3 nat. AA, 3840 × 2160 8,3 fps 8,4 fps 8,4 fps 98,8 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, FSR3 perf., 3840 × 2160 27,2 fps 27,7 fps 27,7 fps 98,2 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, FSR3 perf., fg 2×, 3840 × 2160 44,9 fps 45,2 fps 45,1 fps 99,3 % 100,2 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, DLAA, transf., 1920 × 1080 50,1 fps 52,2 fps 52,2 fps 96,0 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, DLSS bal., transf., 1920 × 1080 92,0 fps 101,1 fps 100,8 fps 91,0 % 100,3 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, DLSS bal., transf., fg 2×, 1920 × 1080 151,4 fps 163,1 fps 162,6 fps 92,8 % 100,3 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, DLSS bal. + frame gen. 4×, 1920 × 1080 266,0 fps 282,7 fps 282,1 fps 94,1 % 100,2 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, DLAA, transf., 1920 × 1080 29,8 fps 30,7 fps 30,4 fps 97,1 % 101,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, DLSS perf., transf., 1920 × 1080 74,4 fps 81,0 fps 80,4 fps 91,9 % 100,7 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, DLSS perf., transf., fg 2×, 1920 × 1080 126,4 fps 134,9 fps 134,9 fps 93,7 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, DLSS perf., transf., fg 4×, 1920 × 1080 226,0 fps 239,0 fps 239,0 fps 94,6 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, DLAA, transf., 2560 × 1440 32,0 fps 32,0 fps 32,0 fps 100,0 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, DLSS bal., transf., 2560 × 1440 65,0 fps 69,0 fps 69,0 fps 94,2 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, DLSS bal., transf., fg 2×, 2560 × 1440 104,0 fps 108,0 fps 109,0 fps 96,3 % 99,1 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, DLSS bal., transf., fg 4×, 2560 × 1440 179,0 fps 185,0 fps 184,0 fps 96,8 % 100,5 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, DLAA, transf., 2560 × 1440 18,0 fps 19,0 fps 18,0 fps 94,7 % 105,6 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, DLSS perf., transf., 2560 × 1440 52,0 fps 55,0 fps 54,0 fps 94,5 % 101,9 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, DLSS perf., transf., fg 2×, 2560 × 1440 86,0 fps 90,0 fps 89,0 fps 95,6 % 101,1 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, DLSS perf., transf., fg 4×, 2560 × 1440 151,0 fps 157,0 fps 156,0 fps 96,2 % 100,6 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, DLAA, transf., 3840 × 2160 15,0 fps 15,0 fps 15,0 fps 100,0 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, DLSS bal., transf., 3840 × 2160 35,0 fps 36,0 fps 36,0 fps 97,2 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, DLSS bal., transf., fg 2×, 3840 × 2160 58,0 fps 60,0 fps 60,0 fps 96,7 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Ultra, DLSS bal. + frame gen. 4×, 3840 × 2160 101,0 fps 104,0 fps 103,0 fps 97,1 % 101,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, DLAA, transf., 3840 × 2160 8,0 fps 8,0 fps 8,0 fps 100,0 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, DLSS perf., transf., 3840 × 2160 28,0 fps 29,0 fps 29,0 fps 96,6 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, DLSS perf., transf., fg 2×, 3840 × 2160 48,0 fps 50,0 fps 50,0 fps 96,0 % 100,0 %
Cyberpunk 2077, RT Overdrive, DLSS perf., transf., fg 4×, 3840 × 2160 87,0 fps 88,0 fps 88,0 fps 98,9 % 100,0 %
F1 24, high, TAA, 1920 × 1080 148,0 fps 183,0 fps 178,7 fps 80,9 % 102,4 %
F1 24, high, TAA, 2560 × 1440 129,0 fps 147,3 fps 147,7 fps 87,6 % 99,7 %
F1 24, high, TAA, 3480 × 2160 93,3 fps 96,0 fps 96,0 fps 97,2 % 100,0 %
F1 24, ultra high, TAA, 1920 × 1080 70,3 fps 73,0 fps 72,0 fps 96,3 % 101,4 %
F1 24, ultra high, TAA, 2560 × 1440 51,3 fps 52,7 fps 53,0 fps 97,3 % 99,4 %
F1 24, ultra high, TAA, 3480 × 2160 28,0 fps 28,0 fps 28,0 fps 100,0 % 100,0 %
F1 24, ultra high, FSR bal., 1920 × 1080 89,3 fps 95,7 fps 95,7 fps 93,3 % 100,0 %
F1 24, ultra high, FSR bal., 2560 × 1440 75,7 fps 79,7 fps 80,3 fps 95,0 % 99,3 %
F1 24, ultra high, FSR bal., 3480 × 2160 51,7 fps 52,7 fps 52,7 fps 98,1 % 100,0 %
F1 24, ultra high, FSR bal. + frame gen. 2×, 1920 × 1080 146,0 fps 169,7 fps 167,0 fps 86,0 % 101,6 %
F1 24, ultra high, FSR bal. + frame gen. 2×, 2560 × 1440 123,0 fps 137,7 fps 138,0 fps 89,3 % 99,8 %
F1 24, ultra high, FSR bal. + frame gen. 2×, 3480 × 2160 85,0 fps 86,0 fps 88,0 fps 98,8 % 97,7 %
F1 24, DLAA, 1920 × 1080 57,0 fps 59,0 fps 59,0 fps 96,6 % 100,0 %
F1 24, DLAA, 2560 × 1440 43,0 fps 44,3 fps 44,0 fps 97,1 % 100,7 %
F1 24, DLAA, 3840 × 2160 25,0 fps 25,0 fps 25,0 fps 100,0 % 100,0 %
F1 24, DLSS Bal., 1920 × 1080 76,3 fps 82,0 fps 81,0 fps 93,0 % 101,2 %
F1 24, DLSS Bal., 2560 × 1440 64,0 fps 69,0 fps 69,0 fps 92,8 % 100,0 %
F1 24, DLSS Bal., 3840 × 2160 46,0 fps 48,0 fps 47,7 fps 95,8 % 100,6 %
F1 24, DLSS Bal., frame gen. 2×, 1920 × 1080 132,3 fps 140,0 fps 140,0 fps 94,5 % 100,0 %
F1 24, DLSS Bal., frame gen. 2×, 2560 × 1440 105,0 fps 112,0 fps 111,7 fps 93,8 % 100,3 %
F1 24, DLSS Bal., frame gen. 2×, 3840 × 2160 68,0 fps 69,0 fps 69,0 fps 98,6 % 100,0 %

With the updated BIOS, I’ve so far tested both X870 Aorus Elite WIFI7 boards through twenty cold boots using two different RTX 5060 Ti cards, and in all cases the card started with the full number of lanes on the first try. At the very least, it can be said that the new BIOS helped – whether the issue is permanently resolved remains to be seen with more card models and a significantly higher number of cold starts.

English translation and edit by Jozef Dudáš

Comments (15) Add comment

  1. I have the same problem. I have the GB AORUS Elite X870 WIFI7 and the GB AERO RTX 5060Ti 16GB. The system already had BIOS F5a before installing the 5060Ti. Before that, the GB AERO RTX 4060 8GB ran on my system without any problems. The new 5060Ti very rarely runs with PCI-E 5×8. Most of the time it is connected with PCI-E 5×1 or 2 after booting. This is very annoying and I have already flashed the BIOS but to no avail. The error still persists.
    I’m at a loss. I’ve contacted Gigabyte Support, but it can take a long time for a response.

    1. Thanks for letting us know. I was starting to think I was the only one who had a problem with it. But I guess not many people notice.

      I’ll let the people I’ve addressed it with know and see what they say. It might take a little longer, partly because of the time difference and partly because everyone’s dealing with Computex right now.

      It should still be resolved faster than through standard support, where they’ll just recommend the usual steps like uninstalling drivers, loading BIOS defaults, and other standard procedures.

      They weren’t able to tell me which boards might have this issue, but it was supposed to be fixed with F5a. Apparently, it’s still not fixed on all of them.

      1. It’s definitely not fixed. I’ve tried everything humanly possible to find the error, but unfortunately, so far, without success. It’s still a lottery whether the computer boots with 8 or fewer lanes. This is a sad state of affairs. I’m hoping for a new BIOS from Gigabyte. Previously, my RTX 4060 ran perfectly with 8 lanes on the WIFI7 board. I really hope you can achieve something better. Thanks.

  2. Same issue here too. I have the GB AORUS Elite X870 WIFI7 with an rtx 5080. I had to run it in gen 4 to get it to work. System was running unstable with it on Auto or on gen 5. Have there been any update on getting this to work on gen 5 from Gigabyte?

  3. Diego, Hello

    So far, no solution has been found from Gigabyte Support. (This has been going on for a few weeks now. The problem is the response time from support: it can take up to six days for a response, which is catastrophic.) You should also open a ticket with Gigabyte e-support to expedite the process.

    1. Hi -!

      I actually managed to get a response, they provided what appears to be an unreleased bios version F6, however the issue still persisted after the flash. I provided a response back about this and will wait for the next steps.

      1. Diego, Hi / Very interesting. I’ve been in contact with Gigabyte support for weeks, but I haven’t received an F6 beta. I hope this problem will finally be resolved in the long run; I’m slowly running out of energy.

  4. I am also experiencing this issue with 5070ti on msi x670e. Latest bios does not resolve. Enabling spread spectrum eliminates freezes but it still runs at lower gen.

    1. Hmm, so this is something that also affects other motherboards besides Gigabyte… thanks for sharing your experience! 🙂

  5. I am experiancing this issue with my Asus Prime 5070Ti with an Asus x870e-e motherboard

    It randomly changes pice lane speed from a cold boot or restart intermittently.

    1. Hi,

      The issue I had wasn’t with the bus speed, but with the number of active PCIe lanes changing randomly on pc startup.

      What you’re describing seems to be the correct function and proper behavior.

      Why Your PCIe Lane Speed Changes
      This is normal behavior and not a fault. It’s caused by a power-saving feature called Active State Power Management (ASPM).

      When Idle: When your GPU isn’t doing much (like browsing the web or showing the desktop), the system automatically lowers the PCIe link speed (e.g., from 5.0 to 1.1) to save power and reduce heat.
      Under Load: As soon as you launch a game or any demanding application, the speed instantly ramps up to its maximum (e.g., PCIe 5.0 x16) to ensure you get full performance.

      How to Verify It’s Working Correctly
      You can easily confirm this is working as intended using the free tool GPU-Z.

      1. Download and run GPU-Z from TechPowerUp.
      2. Look at the “Bus Interface” field. It will show the maximum supported speed and the current speed, like: PCIe x16 4.0 @ x16 1.1
      3. Click the question mark icon (?) next to this field and click “Start Render Test”. This will put a small load on your GPU.
      4. While the test is running, look at the “Bus Interface” field again. It should now show the speed has increased to its maximum: PCIe x16 4.0 @ x16 4.0

       

      If the speed increases during the test, your hardware is behaving exactly as it should.

      1. Hi, thank you for your reply.

        Here are a few screen shots of the issue im having

        https://imgur.com/a/yDYSNCA

        this second screenshot is the one in full screen render

        https://imgur.com/a/doxv1Dw

        Most times when I boot into windows it works as you have described but sometimes it gets stuck at 4.0 x 16 as shown.

        I am using lastest bios version 1701, windows 11 with all latest updates.

        This is the only problem I have with this motherboard everything else works flawlessly.

        My cpu is a 9950x3d
        RAM is CORSAIR DOMINATOR TITANIUM RGB DDR5 64GB (2x32GB) DDR5 6000MHz CL30 running in expo II

        I have no overlocks or undervolts everything is default in bios.

        I have spent so many hours of the last month trying to find a fix but I cant find one that fixes this issue.

        Anymore help would be appreciated.

  6. Hi , I have this problem too, a new build 4090 strix oc , 7800x3d and MB is gigabyte aorus master x670e.
    I’ve had issues were the pc boots to a resolution of 800×600 even though the screen is 1600×3840 , a when does this GPUZ can see the card but there are no details.
    When it does boot at the correct resolution windows is slow and laggy , programs like GPUZ take 30s too open , if you move a window across the screen it lags and freezes.
    GPUZ shows the pci express lanes as 16×4.0 @ 16×1.1 sometimes 2.0 this doesn’t change running heaven benchmark and 3dmark ends up freezing the pc.
    The FPS in heaven is 7-8 fps. The power draw for the 4090 is 80 watts.
    I think windows is laggy because the nvme it’s install on share bandwidth with the no.1 pce express slot , if it’s only running at 1.1 everything windows loads to ram is taking longer.
    I updated the bios when setting up last month so will check for updates.

    The gpu is on a riser cable so I’m going to put it into no.2 slot and see what happens.

    1. Thanks for sharing your experience. 80 W on an RTX 4090 is really low. So it seems this (issue with activating a limited number of PCIe lanes) also involves GeForce RTX 40 graphics cards? 🙂

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