Is there a way to get CrossfireX running with my current PSU using 6-pin adapters?

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Daylon Rankin

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Jan 9, 2014
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Hi, I am buying a graphics card for my desktop computer and planned to buy one which is multi-gpu compatible so later on when the same gpu is cheaper I can buy a second one. However, I looked at my PSU's connectors and there is only one 6-pin PCI-e connector. The cards I am looking at each require two 6-pin connectors, so I would have to use adapters to even get one card working.

Is there some combination of adapters I can use to power two video cards? Rather than list off the connectors it has, I will include a link to the newegg specifications page: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817101050
The two SATA connectors are occupied by my optical drive and hard drive, one molex connector is used by my chassis fans, and obviously, the 4-pin and 20+4-pin connectors are occupied. I have seen adapters that turn two molexs into a 6-pin, but I don't know much about adapters.

As far as wattage is concerned, I will be using AMD R9 270x GPU's (virtually identical to radeon 7870's) and I have confirmed from multiple wattage calculators that my PSU can supply sufficient wattage.

On a side note, I have a couple of non-functioning computers that I could take a PSU out of to use with this machine. Any chance that I could power one or both video cards from a seperate PSU outside of the machine?

Thanks!
 
Solution
hunter315
A 270X has a power consumption of 180W(15A), your PSU only has a capacity of 29A on its 12V rail(348W) which is sad for a '550W' unit given that the corsair 400CX used to come with 30A on its 12V rail. Your CPU can pull anywhere between 5A and 12A depending on the CPU, if you have one with a TDP >90W you are far to close to the capacity of the PSU to safely run a 270X, even below that i wouldn't run it for more than a month before swapping out that PSU.

Do you really want to risk a $200 graphics cards when spending $50 for a good PSU can ensure that everything works properly?
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Daylon Rankin

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Thanks for the advice, but I'm only buying a new card because my old one failed. I would rather just stick with one 270x than buy a new PSU. Most of the wattage calculators suggested my system+two 270x's use an even lower wattage PSU than 550. After a bit of research, I see that the problem is the amperage on the 12v rail.
Do you think even a single 270x would work with my PSU?
My CPU is a phenom II 975 in a AM3 socket, a regular mainboard, I have 1 HDD 1 optical drive and 2 DDR3 RAM sticks, if that information helps.
 
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ewok93

ewok93

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Mar 18, 2013
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It might be able to run one, but I wouldn't count on it. They're really easy to replace, it is worth it because that ones is of questionable quality, it is not 80+ bronze certified, and it's a rather unknown brand. You can expect one that is not certified to put out 20% less power than it is advertised to.
 
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hunter315

hunter315

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May 12, 2009
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A 270X has a power consumption of 180W(15A), your PSU only has a capacity of 29A on its 12V rail(348W) which is sad for a '550W' unit given that the corsair 400CX used to come with 30A on its 12V rail. Your CPU can pull anywhere between 5A and 12A depending on the CPU, if you have one with a TDP >90W you are far to close to the capacity of the PSU to safely run a 270X, even below that i wouldn't run it for more than a month before swapping out that PSU.

Do you really want to risk a $200 graphics cards when spending $50 for a good PSU can ensure that everything works properly?
 
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