Video adapters are one of the main components of a computer. Every year they become more productive and require an additional source of energy, since the tasks assigned to them are no longer a miscalculation of rendering one 8-bit image, but complex 3D rendering. So what types of video card power supply exist and in what cases is it necessary?
Varieties of video cards
Depending on the adapters, they consume different amounts of electricity. Older models did not require additional power for the video card, since 75 W from the PCI slot itself was enough, and where passive cooling was used, half of this power was enough.
The energy consumed depends almost entirely on the type of GPU and cooling system. She may be:
- Active - on simple coolers (1, 2 or 3 fans) and water, where liquid is used for cooling.
- Passive - one large volume radiator is used without any electronics. There are separate versions of quite productive video cards with this type of cooling. But, as practice shows, such a solution can not always cope with the assigned tasks.
How is the video card powered?
Modern video cards are powered in three ways:
- Through the PCI slot. Maximum power consumption 75 watts.
- Connector 6 pin. Additional 75 watts.
- Connector 8 pin. Optional up to
In this case, all three types of video card power supply can be combined or have two 6/8 pin connectors. This is necessary to power boards with a power of more than 250-300 W for their stable operation, or for video cards with multiple GPUs that must receive energy through separate channels.
In addition to powerful flagship video cards, powered like a nuclear reactor, there are adapters that can use only the PCI slot to get all the necessary energy. Typically, this type of connection is used by low-power and old video cards.
If someone wondered what kind of video card power to choose, then the answer is simple: the presence of an additional connector is present only where it is needed. A more powerful card will always consume more power from additional sources.
Perhaps when video adapters become multi-core or the number of processors increases, they will receive even more powerful additional power, or acquire their own power supplies, but for now a 6/8-pin connector is enough.
SLI, Crossfire and electricity bills
Installing several video cards in one system is a fairly common solution to improve performance, especially in cases where the second video card is given shareware. NVidia and Radeon have many graphics cards that support parallel technology called SLI and Crossfire. So you can link several video cards into one powerful computing system.
The problem is that the power of video cards turns into a continuous consumption of a huge amount of energy. Well, if your unit is able to cope with this and it even has enough connectors, you won't have to buy a new one.
Some craftsmen have gone even further - they install several low-power PSUs in one system. This solution helps distribute the load between the two blocks, make the assembly less busy and even reduce noise. True, such a solution has some problems associated with launch synchronism.
Connecting additional power
Most modern power supplies have built-in outputs for the GPU and CPU 8 pin. They are very similar to each other, but have a distinctive pinout from each other.
Usually, an adapter is supplied for the auxiliary power socket of the video card. It is a branching of 6/8 pin contacts into two Molexes. Which, in principle, will be enough when using two 12 V channels. If there was no adapter in the kit, then it can be purchased separately literally for a penny.
Of course, powering through connectors that are not designed to deliver such power often leads to their burning and even failure, like the entire power supply. Therefore, it would be desirable to acquire a new PSU with enough power for the normal functioning of all components.
Emergency power connection
Sometimes, when buying a used video card, you may not find an 8-pin adapter in the kit. How to connect the power of the video card in this case? You can try to make a plug for the two remaining pins. To do this, you need an old ATX power plug, CPU or GPU 6 pin connector. The pinout of the contacts is as follows.
In 8 pin connectors, the difference is only in the presence of two GND pins. If you try to start the equipment with 8 pin from the 6 pin connector, then you will get an error about insufficient power supply of the video card, and, accordingly, a refusal to start.
Contacts No. 4 and 6 are not only GND, but also signal, which means that you can safely power it either from another source (as an option, a Molex connector) or simply duplicate the GND channel from an already connected 6-pin connector, as in factory adapters. In theory, you can just stick a jumper between the contacts from a reliable wire, but it doesn’t look very good, it’s difficult to achieve a stable contact.
It is important to remember that each plug has its own keys to prevent connection to other sockets. Therefore, you need to cut off only those parts that fit exactly into the socket.
Connecting power to the video card this way can help if you really understand what is happening and all the possible risks. And long work on such "crutches" is hardly guaranteed.
Selection of a block by power
Power supplies are classified mainly by power. In the old days, a fairly productive computer was enough for 300 watts of energy consumed. Now, one top-end card can consume such an amount of energy, and if there are two of them, or even worse, three, even if they are not the most demanding ones?
PSUs with connectors for a video card began to be produced immediately with the release of the first video adapters that require additional power. In some power supplies, you can find connectors immediately with adapters from 6 to 8 pin, in which 2 pins are simply unfastened.
For a successful selection of a power supply for a video card, it would be advisable to use special calculators, of which there are quite a few on the network. You just need to enter the names of the components and the recommended power will be automatically selected. If you plan to upgrade in the future or want quieter operation, you should choose a PSU with a slightly increased power - 100-150 watts.
I was lucky enough to purchase an Nvidia GTX 780 video card instead of my old Nvidia GTX 560. The video card refused to fit into my case. Although this problem is treated quickly with the help of a grinder and straight arms)))
The next and main problem was the presence of two 8 pin connectors on the video card and their absence on the power supply. I have a 700 W block, but it has 2 * 6 pin.
First, let's turn to the theory, what kind of 8-pin connector is this? In fact, this is the same 6-pin connector only with the addition of two additional “ground” contacts. This is necessary to give additional power to the video card via the 12V bus, which in turn is necessary for powerful video adapters, as well as for overclocking and using standard technologies such as AMD OverDrive.
After reading the "smart" forums, I came to the conclusion that, in principle, the use of additional contacts is not mandatory, although desirable.
When trying to start the system, the video adapter gave an error about the lack of power, and refused to start the PC. It became clear that it was necessary to connect an eight-pin connector. In principle, there are adapters from 6 to 8 contacts, but firstly they cost money, and secondly, you need to wait until they are brought, and put in a new vidyukha “burned” right now))).
Having studied the proposed adapter, it became clear that two additional contacts are simply duplicated from the existing ones.
It was also necessary to get a connector for connecting to a video card. For this purpose, the existing eight-pin adapter for powering the processor perfectly suited. I just sawed off the necessary parts that fit into the video card.
Now it was necessary to connect the connector to the power supply. It would be possible to connect to 6 pin connectors, but I did not touch them, but cut off one unused SATA power connector and took two “ground” wires from there, and insulated the rest. And that's what happened.
When buying a computer, many may initially be interested in the diagonal of the monitor, volumes random access memory, hard drive, video card performance. All this is true, but when choosing a PC, pay attention to one of its most important components - the power supply. An 8-pin adapter for a video card performs the main function - it breathes life into the device. The reliability of the computer and performance depends on its quality.
What's this?
In most cases, power supplies are included with a laptop or computer. They are installed in a computer case. If the buyer focuses on the external data of the PC, forgetting about technical specifications, then it may not be possible to install a more powerful video card or an additional drive in the future. The main reason may be the lack of connectors for connection.
The main elements of the PC are connected to the power supply. The number of connectors determines how many devices will be connected to it. Its main task is to supply energy to the processor, memory, video card, hard drive and other elements. The power reserve of the power supply allows it to work in optimal conditions without overloading. Today on sale you can find blocks of various capacities (from 150 to 1500 watts). The average unit wattage range to follow is 450 watts. When buying a laptop, estimate its weight. If the device is light, then the power supply is unreliable, and vice versa.
The main elements of the PC are divided into modular and standard. Modular connectors are placed by the manufacturer on the cables. They can be detached and attached as needed. For standard units, connectors are located on cables that are not removable. 8 pin - an adapter that is used to connect the central processor. Many motherboards have a 4 pin connector. Often the figure eight consists of two fours. There are also 15 pin, 8 pin, 6 pin connectors.
Appearance
It is provided with the help of connectors built into the body of the device. 8 pin - an adapter similar to a cord, on one side of which there are eight connectors, and on the other - connecting elements. Fixed adapter - built-in. It has eight connectors arranged in two rows (four in each).
Other models are outwardly similar to each other, the difference lies only in the presence or absence of auxiliary connectors.
purpose
8 pin - an adapter that is designed to power a video card located in a computer. The amount of power consumption of a video card depends on the manufacturer, purpose, series and other parameters. Power fluctuates widely. Your device will need sources to power your graphics card and other components. The most common are PCIe x16, 6 pin, 8 pin. The adapter is needed not only for the video card, the power of other elements in the computer depends on it. It provides maximum PC performance.
How to connect?
If the motherboard in a computer or laptop is demanding, then 8 pin is an adapter that will provide proper power to the processor. In the absence of an eight-pin connector, a removable connector will help. Some users of older PCs and modern graphics cards may experience the presence of an eight-pin connector on the card and its absence on the power supply. The good thing is that 8 pin consists of six connectors that have two additional pins. This is necessary in order to give the video card additional power. It is desirable to use all eight connectors on the adapter, but this is not a strict rule.
If an error occurs during system startup, this means that the video adapter does not have enough power, and you need to connect the appropriate connector to the power supply. The Molex 8 pin adapter is designed to power the video card with energy. The cable has an eight-pin connector on one side and two interfaces on the other. This allows you to connect an additional GPU and not buy a new power supply. Such an adapter is required if the equipment needs to be upgraded or installed. The cost of an eight-pin cable is more than affordable and starts at 40 rubles.
Peculiarities
The 8 pin power adapter is a fairly powerful type of connector that is used for demanding video cards. It supplies the computer elements with an additional 150 watts of power. For a modern video card, the block must be provided with a power connector. Additional connectors may indicate that the video card requires a lot of energy to work. This also indicates the high performance of a PC or laptop. Modern video cards are powered by a connector motherboard, which delivers power up to 75 watts. This is enough for unassuming video cards without additional connectors with low performance.
The number of slots on a graphics card can help you calculate how much power will be consumed. If the video card has several connectors, which should be connected to each connector will ensure normal operation. This will ensure that the PC runs normally and performs well. If the video card has 8 pin, 6 pin, it can receive 300W of power. Users may come across power supplies that have separated lines. Each connector will receive energy through its own channel. When choosing a computer, experts advise paying attention to the types of connectors if you do not want to face low performance and lack of power in the future.
Flaws
An 8 pin adapter for a video card performs a specific task. There can be no actual shortcomings in the connector, because this is one of the energy supply and power supply of the device elements depends on it. The quality of connectors, like other parts, depends on the manufacturer, materials and assembly methods.
When choosing a plug-in adapter, consider its purpose, type of equipment, connectors on the device, cable length, compatibility, weight, packaging. The quality of the adapter will depend on its service life, computer performance. Buy a strong cable, also pay attention to wires, fasteners. There should be no chips, cracks or other defects.