[HELP] Power Plug Requirements.

[Negeva]

Prefer software to hardware and haven't built a machine since the days of P4 and Pres-'hot' cores. Still, offered to help build a simple office machine for a friend. Parts arrived at mine, so decided to do a dry run to check everything out before we build it together over the weekend.

However, hit a snag. On the motherboard there is a 24 pin plug and another 4-8 pin plug, however the PSU has a single 24 pin plug and a 6 pin PCI-E plug. The machine refuses to boot correctly because of this.

Thinking of cutting the 6 pin PCI-E plug to a 4 pin plug for the second power supply. This advisable? Or are there converters?

Spec's below;

Abit I-N73HD motherboard.
C2D 4500
Antec NSK 3480 case with EA-380 (380Watt) PSU


Thanks in advance.

[Katreat]

is the PSU ATX 2.0 compliant? If it is it should have the correct plugs. Do not use an older, non-ATX 2.0, PSU on a newer board requiring one, they do not have enough amps on the rails to run the new CPUs.

Kat

[freakitchen]

That power supply is ATX2. Look again at the connectors, you should have the 24-pin main power connector, and a separate 4-pin power connector (in addition to the 6-pin PCI-E plug that is for a video card, if required). The wires going to the 4-pin are usually black and yellow.

That 8-pin connector on your motherboard can *usually* be used with that 4-pin connector. Refer to the manual for which 4 of the 8 pins you should connect.

[Cricket]

I have a Antec 380 watt Earthwatts PSU in front of me and this one has a square 4 pin 12v power connector on it. You sure it's not jumbled up with the other connectors and wires somewhere?

Cricket

[Negeva]

Originally Posted by Cricket I have a Antec 380 watt Earthwatts PSU in front of me and this one has a square 4 pin 12v power connector on it. You sure it's not jumbled up with the other connectors and wires somewhere? Cricket

Aye, it was there, hidden under the optical drive. Plugged it in and the beast sprang to life. So glad decided to do a 'dry' run beforehand - otherwise would have looked a tad daft in from of my friend.

As much as I love Antec parts I'm not a big fan of this case; not a lot of room to play with, had to reverse the PSU due to short cables, and then spent the best part of three knuckles worth of skin just feeding the wiring loom.

Still, it's running now. So might just leave it be - hate to tempt the fates.


Thanks again for the help.

[Cricket]

Originally Posted by Negeva As much as I love Antec parts I'm not a big fan of this case; not a lot of room to play with, had to reverse the PSU due to short cables,

Isn't the Antec NSK 3480 a micro-ATX case? Just how short are the cables on that 380watt Earthwatts? Mine look about the standard length and would fit okay in a standard mid-tower. What didn't they reach?

Cricket

[Negeva]

They seem to be full length cables. However, the problem seems to be a mixture of the motherboard (mobo) layout and PSU cable system. The mobo's power connectors are on the far right end of the board and with the PSU's cables running through the little hole you loose an inch or two of length. Thus, reversing the PSU - that is having it upside down seems to do the trick.

The case is somewhat limited; two hdd points: one under the optical drive and the other at the bottom of the case. No, cage as such like you would have in an ordinary case. Thus, if you have to decide over one optical drive and 2 hdd or two optical drives and one hdd (attached at bottom of case). Since, we only need one of each it's not much of an issue. But it severely limits expansion.

The only reason why we picked this case was for the size to cost ratio and the added quality of an Antec PSU and build quality - which is as astounding as ever. The machine whispers into action. Originally thought about using an SFF case, but the costs were a bit over the top compared to this botched approach. Since the machine will be on 24/7, the savings the PSU makes will pay for the machine in saved electricity.