2.0 PCI-e Card in a PCI-E X16 slot?

I built a computer in August of 2008 and here are the specs:

Gateway 22" monitor at 1680 X 1050 resolution
GIGABYTE GA-MA74GM-S2 AM2+/AM2 AMD 740G Micro ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
4 GB of G.SKILL 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
PNY VCG86512GXPB-OC GeForce 8600 GT 512MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000 Brisbane 2.6GHz Socket AM2 65W Dual-Core Processor Model ADO5000DOBOX - Retail
Antec 500 Watt power supply

I use the computer only to play WOW and have all settings set to Ultra High. Getting 10 fps with these settings. My question is can i get a better video card with 2.0 X 16 and will it work with my motherboard? Or do i need to get a motherboard with a 2.0 X 16 dedicated slot? If i can use a card like that can you recommend a decent card so i can get fps of 40+? Thanks in advance for all your help = ).

Do n't play it myself but it seems even fast cards have problems with large raids so you might want to lower your settings and expectations first.
I am reading conflicting reports on this game: In some cases medium end cards are playing it very well and in others higher end cards are struggling, there seems to be no pattern other than a change of card chip maker.
I will be cautious, since you have not given a budget: GTX260 216 is the top choice but the most expensive, but it will also play other, more demanding games. 9800GTX, 9800GTX+ or GTS250 cheaper and slower. 9800GT or 9600GT depending on budget are slower and slowest choices.
I have restricted my choices to Nvidia because I think this will prevent problems.

After a recent patch WoW has an option for an "Ultra" setting. Don't use it, it's still bugged, even people with core2 quads at 3.6GHz and GTX275s get poor performance set at "ultra". Instead set your "video" to custom and arrange the individual settings until you're happy with performance/visuals.

Yep, 2.0 in a 1.0 is fine and I second (or third) the 4770 as a very well rounded (power, performance, and price) card for WoW and others.

try Tigerdirect looks like they have some stock, but it is $120!

the 3870 competed against the 8800GT (aka 9800GT) and was slightly less powerful (about the same as a 9600GT). The 4770 is about 10-15% better in games then the 8800GT. For the extra $25 I would get a 4770, it would be the biggest improvement over your 8600GT.

Either card (3870 or 4770) will have no issue running WoW but the 4770 would future proof your PC for later games.


P.S. Ive played WoW on a 9800GT, 9600GT, and 8600GT with an AMD x2 60000 and 14490x900 res on the highest settings (before the new shadows).

the 8600GT gave me roughly 45FPS, the 9600GT 60FPS, and the 9800GT would reach into the 70'sFPS.