Power supply with no ATX12V connector

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jhsachs

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I'm trying to use a power supply which, I just discovered, has no 4 or 8-pin ATX12V connector. Instead it has ten, count 'em ten, 6-pin connectors. (That's ten connectors on the power supply, each of which accommodates a cable with one or more device-end plugs.)

What should I make of this? I understand that some PCIe power connectors use six pins, but that doesn't explain having ten of them.

Is there a way I can adapt this power supply to serve an ATX motherboard's basic needs? Or is it more trouble than it's worth?
 
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I looked up the brand, the several reviews out there for them are actually good, but...
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Titan
Mar 25, 2010
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Are you just looking at a modular power supply without cables attached to it?

Does it look like this:

images

 
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J

jhsachs

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I swapped the power supply for a less troublesome one, so the problem has changed from "Figure it out now or replace?" to "Save it for later or pitch?" Uninstalling it enabled me to get a closer look and a picture, which I'm posting. I don't have the power supply on hand as I write, but I'll get the make and model tomorrow if it still matters by then.

DSCN1515.jpg


It is indeed a modular power supply without cables (at least, it became so when I removed the cables to install it). I see now that it has three 8-pin connectors -- they're not all 6-pin, as I thought when I was squinting at it inside the case.

Several of the cables have tags that say "Attach to VGA power rail," which tells me what sort of power supply I've got: a very, very old one. It probably doesn't have an ATX12V connector because it was built before the ATX standard existed.

That sheds light on the problem, but doesn't change its essence: can I use this thing to light up an ATX board, or would that be more trouble than it's worth (or downright impossible)?
 
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Titan
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You are confusing things a bit here, the modular connections on the power supply have nothing to do with the other side of the connections, so these 6 pin, 8 pin connections do not matter. It's like looking at a packet of ground beef and saying "I don't see a hamburger here, where is it?".

Those cables attached to the power supply that are not modular should be the motherboard power cords, the others would be for videocard, hard drives, etc... ATX standard has been around for a long time, that power supply does not look very old, especially being modular.
 
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jhsachs

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I think I misunderstood what you meant by "modular." You're right that it doesn't look very old... at least it's shiny and clean... but I don't know how else to account for the tags that refer to "VGA rails."

I noticed that one of its cables (equipped with an old-style disk drive power connector) was plugged in to a SATA power adapter. That indicates that someone tried to use it with a modern board, but not whether they succeeded.

The make and model are a GreatPower 1200W, made by Xclio. Xclio made cases, and apparently also power supplies. From what I found on the web, or rather from what I didn't find, I believe they're no longer in business.

My next opportunity to work on this will be Monday. I can inventory all of the connectors then. As I recall, though, none of them would fit an ATX12V socket.
 
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CountMike

CountMike

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VGA Rail = power for graphic cards, PCIe or otherwise. (VGA = Video Graphic Adapter), usually 6, 6+2 or 8 pin connectors.
"one of its cables (equipped with an old-style disk drive power connector) was plugged in to a SATA power adapter" = SATA and Molex (for PATA) disks are same thing just different ends to plug into drives.
 
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Titan
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Well we pretty much knew it's a low quality power supply, but it should have all the connections needed to run a new computer. You just need to round up the cables it came with. The motherboard power should be the cables that are attached not modular. The other side of things is that it IS a low quality power supply, I would not run a system you like on it. The wattage I'm sure is greatly exaggerated in real world use and the parts used are not likely to last long. Ok for upgrading a cheap OEM system to run a lower end gaming video card, not OK to use in a "gaming" setup.
 
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jhsachs

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I'm going to look up the AQTX12V pinout and make sure the 8-pin connectors match it, because having two unsplit 8-pin connectors still makes me suspicious. But I've come around to the same conclusion: it's reasonably current and should work.

I'm curious, though: what makes you conclude that it's low quality? The weirdness quotient is a bit high, but I don't see anything that looks like a red flag for quality. The manufacturer is apparently out of business, but plenty of companies have gone out of business making good products. I know the organization that originally bought this thing, and it's not one that likes to or needs to skimp on quality.
 
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hang-the-9

hang-the-9

Titan
Mar 25, 2010
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I looked up the brand, the several reviews out there for them are actually good, but the points that lead me to think it was a bad power supply: unknown name, unusually high wattage rating (a good 1200 watt power supply would be $150 or higher and I doubt that was the price of it), the way the stickers look are the same as other low quality power supplies, most case makers that brand their power supplies use crappy power supplies and you said the brand was also for cases.

From a review of at least their 500-550 watt units, they were made by the same company that made Antec power supplies, which are good quality.

So it should be fine to use, aside from the fact it may be an older unit. I'd say it was not a horrible PSU but not a "good" one either. Not one I'd use in a system with gaming components.
 
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