Ninja48

Presumably, I have a 430W power supply. I mean, there's a sticker right on the shit that says 430W. Anyway, it has four of those 4-pin connector cables coming out of it, which at the moment connect to two CD-ROM drives and two hard drives. However, I got a new video card that requires two 4-pin connectors to be plugged into it. What I did was get a power splitting cable so I had five 4-pin connectors hanging around so I could hook up the graphics card (at the cost of unplugging a hard drive).

Well, for some reason, that made my shit boot REALLY slow. To start up windows, it would literally take some 15 minutes. So I said fuck it and switched things back to normal (after I tested the video card, which actually worked very well). Question is, was the problem caused because my power supply is lacking, or is it because the power splitter takes too much power away from the remaining hard drive?

Specifically, the way I set it up was... well fuck it, I'll draw a picture. Here:


As you can see, I sacrificed the pron for Call of Duty 4. The power splitter split one 4-pin connector into two, which were then directed into the graphics card. But why would that slow down the booting process? Did my pron drive actually help to speed up booting, or is my graphics card being incredibly slow because it's getting power from a power splitter? Would the graphics card even matter when it comes to start-up and all that?

I'm thinking to use the power splitter on one of the top cables to give one of each extra 4-pin connector to the CD drives, and using two 4-pin connectors to power the graphics card directly, but for it to work that would mean the graphics card has something to do with the start-up process... wouldn't it?

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NarutoChan

your video card probably requires a 30amp rail. check the amperage rating of the +12v on the psu. ill bet its not enough amperage.

Ninja48

Should there be an option in the BIOS to change the voltage and all that? I suppose I can give it a try.

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NarutoChan

nope, you'll need to purchase a psu with a higher amperage rail. is the card an SLi or a Crossfire compatible card?

Ninja48

Here's the exact thing I got: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814129090

Yeah, AGP. Pretty impossible to SLI. So you're saying I should buy a new power supply? Would that be because the supply itself isn't getting enough power to the computer as a whole, or just isn't getting it to the graphics card?

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NarutoChan

oh god any of the xt cards that support hdcp are power whores. very nice card but im afraid that psu isnt cutting it. ya, your whole computer isnt getting enough power, its running slow because the components cant get the power they need to run properly. you'll prolly need to pick up a pc power and cooling psu. they make some of the best.

Ninja48

Yo, will this one be fine? Link

My mobo has a 20pin connector, so will the 20+4pin connector still fit? The CPU connector is compatible, and it has eight 4-pin connectors, so it's good shit. Would the supposed 6-pin PCIe connector be compatible with the 6-pin connector on the card that I've linked before? If so, even more good shit. And finally, do you figure it would have enough voltage and etc to power that card? If so, that's some sold shit right there.

I've pretty much messed specifically with every component of PCs except the power supply, so help is much appreciated. All this amperage and voltage stuff is new to me.


Oh, also, what would happen if I just flat out not plug the card with any power cables? Would it just disable the fan on the card, or would it also mess directly with the video capabilities? If it just disables the fan, would that seriously damage the card if it overheated too much? I'm running an x700 with a broken fan, and to prevent it from overheating I've got the case open and a fan blowing directly into it. Would the same work for my new card?

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NarutoChan

yes, that will do because it has dual high current +12v rails that produce a combined amperage of above 30A. and if you do not connect the molex connectors to the video card (power) then it just wont work at all because the motherboard cannot supply the power the card needs through the AGP slot. Nothing will 'fry' if thats what you want to know. it just simply wont work.

Ninja48

Ah, okay. Well, also, that power supply that I linked has a 6-pin "PCIe" connector. I figure that would work with my card, so I wouldn't have to use the molex 4-pin connectors, but I'm not sure. The name is deceiving, as I have an AGP card.

Anyway thanks for the help dude. I'll probably go out and get some shit today.

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NarutoChan

it will not work as you pretty much answered your own question you have an AGP card and thta connector was designed for PCIe. If it works, then props on that card for being the first AGP that supports PCIe power!

Ninja48

Oh right I forgot to update.

I just installed a new 600W power supply (two +12V rails, ones 20A another is 18A) and... it works. Excellent. Though my card seems slower than it should be, I figure it's a driver issue. But thats a problem for another day. Anyway, thanks again NarutoChan.

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NarutoChan

^^no problem! green rep would be appreciated yo oh and go to amd.ati.com to download the latest drivers, cause the ones in the box are usually extremely outdated. but good to know it works!

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HI! I like your photobucketz!