XBarbarian

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hey..searched and dont remeber what thread it had been mentioned, but someone knew a site that gave you an Idea of p/s you need, depending on your devices.

my -12v seems to be at or about -13 regularly, and get a warning. I have a new Antec case with 400w p/s, although it's the SL400, not the true430, and Im wondering if 2 7200 rpm hdds, Radeon 9800 pro, plextor burner and athlon 2500 with big coolermaster fan, and 2-4 80mm fans, is too much stress on the -12volt rail?

<i>Benjamin Franklin</i>, <b>" Those who give up liberty for the sake of security deserve neither liberty nor security."</b>
 

Flinx

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As far as I know, the -12V is not used for anything so relax and go to the "Other" category where there is more discussion about PSU's.

You'll find info there! :smile: I wouldn't worry about -13.

But what is the info for your +12V?
Why don't you post your voltage readings here?
Maybe something is close to causing a problem.


The loving are the daring!<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by Flinx on 08/21/03 05:33 PM.</EM></FONT></P>
 

XBarbarian

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Thanks for the feedback Flinx...

+12 rail : 11.88 - 11.94
+3.3 : 3.26
+5 : 4.87

Everything else is right in the middle of the "happy" range of the Winbond Hardware Dr. display

Just the -12 hits -13 regularly...hmmmm

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Flinx

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-12 V: This voltage is used on some types of serial port circuits, whose amplifier circuits require <b> both -12V and +12V.</b> It is not needed on some newer systems, and even on older ones not very much is used, because the serial ports require little power. Most power supplies provide it for compatibility with older hardware, but usually with a current limit of less than 1 A.


-5 V: A now archaic voltage, -5 V was used on some of the earliest PCs for floppy controllers and other circuits used by ISA bus cards. It is usually provided, in small quantity (generally less than 1A), for compatibility with older hardware. Some form factor power supplies such as the SFX no longer bother to supply it (systems using the SFX power supply are intended not to have ISA bus slots).


I hope the info above is accurate.

The loving are the daring!<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by Flinx on 08/21/03 08:00 PM.</EM></FONT></P>
 

Flinx

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I just noticed that you got your voltages from some software, Winbond.

Did you correlate the information u see using the software with the information shown in the BIOS?

Ultimately a multimeter is going to be the only accurate device but I would correlate BIOS info with software info to see if there is a descrepancy.

I have read that software is way off sometimes.

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Crashman

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Wow, that's curious, as many older Micro ATX systems had an ISA slot, including many eMachines units, which always came with SFX power!

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Crashman

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Wow, that's curious, as many older Micro ATX systems had an ISA slot, including many eMachines units, which always came with SFX power!

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XBarbarian

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yes, the info from the dr. hardware is tied to the winbond chip onboard the mobo. and it verifies with the bios as well.

so, that damn -12 is just legacy poop, and I have nothing to fear.

<i>Benjamin Franklin</i>, <b>" Those who give up liberty for the sake of security deserve neither liberty nor security."</b>
 

Crashman

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Former Staff
Even if your +12v was operating at +13v you'd have nothing to fear. As far as I know, the 12v standard is based on...earlier 12v devices, which were based on...automotive batteries. And 12v automotive batteries are from 11.5v (discharged) to 13.8v (fully charged). Anything that falls within that range fails to alarm me. In fact, 12.5v is better than 11.5v in many systems because the extra voltage can add stability.

But being the -12v line, all that is irrelavent.

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