Power supply question

Aunty Em

Aunty Em

Well-Known Member
On my mobo (ABit KD7E) I have 2 power connections - the usual atx connector and a square 4 pin connector. My manual seems to indicate that if both these connections are present on the psu they should both be plugged in. I have this cable but I'm a bit nervous about plugging it in. Does anyone else have this type of set-up?
 
Seems like an old spec, but it could be a newer one to feed more power and better grounding to the mobo.

Can't tell for sure thou.
 
The manual says:

It's a newly designed ATX12V1 + 12VDC power with 300W, 20A + 5VDC capacity at least for heavily loaded system, and 720mA + 5VSB at least for supporting some special features.

Attach the connector from the atx power supply to the atx1 and atx2 connectors here (general design atx do not have atx12V1 connector, so you don't need to connect anything to atx2).
Click to expand...

Here's a picture of the board:
 
It's a spare 12v connector, generally should be used if possible, as the motherboards that support it will use it to supply current to the processor directly and lighten the load on the regulators handling the motherboard (I may be wrong on this, Justin? anyone?)
 
I was under the understanding that started with the P4, I thought you had an Athlon system there?
 
It started with the P4 indeed, but as I recall, Athlon mobo manufacturers picked up on the idea and took it on as a supply of a stable 12v line for Athlons as well.
 
It's just that my old psu did not have this connector, but my new Thermaltake 420W Dual Fan Silent PSU does and I just want to make sure I'm not going to blow up the mobo by connecting it. :lol:
 
If it's there, I'd connect it. They wouldn't put it there if you shouldn't hook it up. Except for Dell of course. :shrug:
 
Hehe, nope. You're fine either way, the board can still run fine without it but it is mostly a precautionary measure for Athlons now. (it's mandatory on P4's)
 
PuterTutor said:
I was under the understanding that started with the P4, I thought you had an Athlon system there?
Click to expand...

Manual:

KD7E had designed two power connectors (atx1 and atx2), it is different from regular mainboard power supply. It can provide for power supply designed for Pentium 4 processors, also can provide for general designed atx to connect it.
Click to expand...

It would be nice if they got a proper translator don't you think?
 
fury said:
Hehe, nope. You're fine either way, the board can still run fine without it but it is mostly a precautionary measure for Athlons now. (it's mandatory on P4's)
Click to expand...

Thanks, I'll hook it up when I shut down later tonight. :)
 
Their forte is in making great mobos, not speaking english :D At least they try, though.
 
fury said:
It's a spare 12v connector, generally should be used if possible, as the motherboards that support it will use it to supply current to the processor directly and lighten the load on the regulators handling the motherboard (I may be wrong on this, Justin? anyone?)
Click to expand...

Yup, it supplies extra juice to keep things stable, some boards such as some nforce 2 boards require it to boot/work at all. Most of my psus have it, and one which did'nt have it (beautiful FSP 300W that runs a PIV @ 3Ghz flawlessly!) i cut the connector off a generic crappy psu and put it on the 12v line, works fine.
 
Really? So basically this thing is just a standard 12v molex in square form? Well why the hell didn't they just put in a 12v molex hole on the motherboard instead of complicating things and creating another type of connector to add to the confusion?
 
Its a dual 12v connector, so the psu manufacturers would have to put 2 12V lines on each end of the standard connector, which is a easy redesign but one that can cause major issues, such as mistakenly plugging it into a hdd or cdrom etc. and toasting the shit out of the component. I suspect 'proper' psus have better regulation of this line, but if the psu is of good enough quality it'll work right off the 12v line.
 
There's a fan connector on my psu as well - so I've plugged it into fan header #2 on the board and am now getting a reading for the psu fans. I think it is also has to do with regulating the speed of the fans depending on the temperature - I really wish they would include an info sheet for the psu so you that know what all the connectors are for, it would make life so much easier!
 
It's probably more just a way to get a reading for your PSU fans. The PSU fan is most likely connected and controlled internally. If it were a temperature controlled fan, you'd definitely notice it as soon as you turned on your PC (most of them start out spinning at 100% then after a second or two, slow down to an almost silent level).
 
Aunty Em said:
PuterTutor said:
I was under the understanding that started with the P4, I thought you had an Athlon system there?
Click to expand...

Manual:

KD7E had designed two power connectors (atx1 and atx2), it is different from regular mainboard power supply. It can provide for power supply designed for Pentium 4 processors, also can provide for general designed atx to connect it.
Click to expand...

It would be nice if they got a proper translator don't you think?
Click to expand...

:rofl:

I have yet to read a well translated mobo manual. Ever.
 
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