Steve said:
Well i finally got all my parts for my new computer featuring
A8N-SLI Premium and AMD x2 4800+ and a ATI 1800xt Vid card and CORSAIR
XMS 2GB (2 x 1GB). My old Power Supply was only a 350 watt and i had a
brand new Antec True Power 550 still in the box for a rainy day! When
i went to install the power Supply, i noticed this m/b has a 24 pin
connector. This true power 550 that i bought like 18 months ago has a
20 pin. After reading the m/b manual i noticed it states if using a
power supply with a 20 pin connector, connect a 4 pin to the "EZ Plug"
on the m/b. Ive done this and all seems fine but in the back of my
mind im wondering if i should go ahead and by a atx 2.0 supply that
has the 24 pin connction.
Any Thoughts?
If your video card has no separate power cable, make sure both
the ATX 20 pin and the EZPlug are connected. That covers the case
of all the video card power coming through the PCI Express
edge card connector.
If the video card has a separate power connector, like a 2x3,
that takes the stress off the edge card connector. You can
still connect the EZPlug if you want, just for safety.
I don't know how 112W gets to that card - the PCI Express edge
card connector is rated at 75W - so there had better be a separate
power connector on that card.
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/radeon-x1000_14.html
I see a PCI Express power plug in the upper right corner.
This picture is a bit fuzzy to see it clearly.
http://images10.newegg.com/NeweggImage/productimage/14-102-629-02.JPG
A PCI Express is a 2x3 connector, with +12V and GND on it.
Three pins are +12V, and three pins are GND.
http://www.pcpowercooling.com/products/assets/T51SLI/mb_T51SLI.gif
It is too bad Xbitlabs didn't give a breakdown on the power
consumption, as then you could do the math and tell exactly
how well the setup is balanced.
From here, AMD X2 4800+ is 110W. That will come from +12V, and
the ~90% efficient Vcore converter. Expect 10.19 amps drain
on +12V for the processor, from that spec.
http://www.amdcompare.com/us-en/desktop/Default.aspx
Processor plus video card would be 220watts while gaming.
Should make a nice toaster
You may have to shop for a disk drive to PCI Express adapter
cable. I would want at least two disk drive connectors
to feed the PCI Express. Get one with two disk drive connectors
like this one. There are some other adapters with only
one disk drive connector, and that connector might get a
bit warm. Two connectors sourcing power like this one,
is safer.
http://us.st7.yimg.com/store1.yimg.com/I/directron_1870_13849144
http://www.directron.com/directron/6pinpcie.html
Otherwise, get a power supply with PCI Express power connector(s).
I seem to remember, there were two number floating around
for the high end Truepower series. One was 12V@24A and the
other was 12V@36A. (Maybe one of those was the EPS version?)
The 36 amps should cover all odds. If yours is the 24 amp one,
I'd want to do a detailed calculation with a "real" figure
for the X1800XT.
True550
5V@40A
12V@24A <--- Check the label. 10 amps processor, 9 amps video ?
3.3V@32A
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
If we allow 1 amp for case/CPU fans, 0.5 amps per idling disk
drive, plus 10 amps processor, 9 amps video, whether 24 amps
is sufficient really depends on how much current is coming
down that PCI Express power cable. I don't believe the entire
112W measured by Xbitlabs would be coming down that cable,
but if it did, you might me cutting it close. You can certainly
test it and see if the system POSTs.
I wonder if ATI Tech Support would be willing to answer a
question about power consumption ? I know power numbers
are jealously guarded secrets, so don't be surprised if
they hang up on you or don't return an email
Maybe even drop an email to Xbitlabs, and see if they
have a breakdown ?
Try a search on X1800XT here. You'd think with all the
rich guys on this forum, someone would have been able
to measure the power.
http://www.sapphiretech.com/en/forums/search.php
Paul
