With SLI and CrossFire dead, many PC gamers no longer use the secondary PCIe slot on their motherboards. However, your graphics card doesn’t have to be alone, as you can install a number of different PCIe cards into your motherboard’s secondary PCIe slot!
1 Add Wi-Fi to your PC with a Wi-Fi PCIe card
If you own a desktop PC, you most likely don’t have WiFi unless your motherboard has WiFi built in. If you want to get rid of Ethernet cables, you can install a PCIe WiFi card and enjoy wireless networking!
There are many high-quality PCIe WiFi cards on the market, so I recommend you check out our overview of the best WiFi cards and choose the right card for your needs and budget.
2 Install a 10 Gbps network card
Maybe you don’t need Wi-Fi at all on your desktop, and that’s perfectly fine. But what about faster Ethernet? Even if you don’t have a multi-gigabit internet plan, you can benefit from a 10Gbps network card if you have a NAS or home server.
A 10Gbps home network is pretty damn fast, and if you move a lot of large files back and forth between your PC and NAS, investing in a 10Gbps PCIe card may be worth it just for the time you’ll save moving files at 10Gbps speeds.
While these cards aren’t particularly cheap, they won’t put a huge dent in your wallet either. For example, you can get this 10Gtek 10Gb Dual RJ45 Port Network Card for $65 – even less on sale – while you can get a high-end solution like TP-Link’s TX401 card for $100.
One of the most common mistakes PC builders make is that when buying a new motherboard they don’t think about how many USB ports they need. Usually we just think that we need one port for the mouse, one for the keyboard and maybe a few extra ports for security. But in reality we often need more, sometimes a lot more.
Just think about it: your mouse and keyboard take up two slots. Then you have a game controller, an SD card reader, a data cable for transferring files from your phone or camera to the PC, maybe another mouse if you have a dual-mouse setup, a second game controller for playing with friends, and a few extra ports for security. The end result is nine USB ports, which is more than many budget boards have.
Then there is the problem of the lack of USB-C ports that many high-end motherboards suffer from, not to mention budget and mid-range models.
If you’re in a pinch and need extra USB ports, don’t worry. PCIe add-in cards with additional USB-A or USB-C ports are fairly inexpensive and easy to find. The FebSmart FS-U4-Pro PCIe add-in card with four USB-A 3.0 5Gbps ports costs just $20, which is a small price to pay for never having to worry about having enough USB ports for all your cables, peripherals, and gadgets again. If you’re looking for extra USB-C ports, check out the FS-U304C-Pro, also from FebSmart, which offers four 5Gbps USB-C ports.
4 Stream and record your gameplay or play consoles on your PC with a capture card
A PCIe capture card can be a wise investment if you want to stream console games on Twitch or play your gaming consoles on your PC if your monitor doesn’t have enough video ports.
We’ve put together a roundup of the best capture cards currently available, so be sure to check it out if you’re looking to combine your graphics card with a PCIe capture card.
Remember, if you want to stream PC games or record gameplay footage, you don’t need a dedicated capture card. Modern PCs are powerful enough to handle the task without sacrificing in-game performance.
5 A PCIe sound card can improve the audio quality of your PC
Most PC gamers, myself included, are happy with their motherboard’s integrated audio solution, but if you want better sound quality, you can get a PCIe sound card.
A PCIe sound card can eliminate the electrical interference associated with integrated motherboard audio, improve the sound quality of your current headset, add more sound detail when gaming or watching movies, and improve the quality of directional audio if your headset supports it.
If you want to learn more, check out our article on whether you need a dedicated sound card. If you’ve already decided to buy a PCIe sound card, the Creative Sound Blaster Audigy FX is an excellent budget choice, while the Creative Sound BlasterX AE-5 Plus is a top-notch high-end option.
6 Add more storage with an M.2 or SATA PCIe expansion card
More storage is always good. If you’re a staunch believer in this philosophy, you may have already filled up all the M.2 and SATA ports on your motherboard and are now looking for a way to install additional storage drives.
A PCIe SATA or M.2 expansion card is the easiest way to add more SATA or M.2 slots to your PC. It’s easy to install and doesn’t cost a lot of money. This generic PCIE 3.0 add-in card with four SATA ports should be enough if you need additional SATA storage drives.
If you prefer to add more M.2 SSDs to your PC, the ASUS Hyper M.2 X16 PCIe 3.0 X4 Expansion Card V2 is a great choice for advanced users. However, note that the card requires a full-size PCIe x16 slot that works in x8 mode. If you don’t have a secondary full-size PCIe slot that works in x8 mode, check out the SABRENT M.2 PCIe Add-On Card, which works with PCIe x16, x8, and x4 slots.
7 Watch OTA and cable TV channels on your PC with a TV tuner card
A TV tuner card? Are we living in 2004? Well, TV tuner cards may have passed their prime by a few decades, but they can still be useful in certain situations. For example, if you don’t have a coaxial outlet in your PC room, a TV tuner card can be a way to watch OTA or cable TV without having to rip open your wall.
Or maybe you’re a college student who already has a good monitor and doesn’t want to invest extra money in a TV, or simply doesn’t have enough space in your dorm room for one. A TV tuner card can be a relatively inexpensive way to access your favorite TV content without spending hundreds of dollars or having to make room for a TV.
I recommend the Hauppauge WinTV-quadHD PCIe 4 Tuner, which offers four ATSC/QAM TV tuners and costs $120. Note, however, that the card only supports clear QAM digital cable TV, so only unencrypted channels. However, if your cable provider only offers encrypted channels, you will need your own cable receiver.
8 Turn your PC on or off remotely with a PCIe remote card
A PCIe remote card for your PC might sound like the dumbest invention ever, but hear me out: you just woke up and your PC gaming handheld is sitting next to you on the nightstand. You’re thinking about playing your favorite game, but it’s a AAA title that barely runs on your handheld, so you streamed the game from your PC.
But of course, the PC is turned off and you would have to get up and walk over to turn it on, and that’s the last thing you want to do right now. With SilverStone’s ES02-PCIe PC Remote Control Card, you can just press the button on the remote, turn on your PC, and start streaming! Granted, the card is a little more expensive, but $46 is a small price to pay to stream PC games in your bed on a weekend morning.
