Motherboard power question

[BrandtP]

I've seen the layout of many potential motherboards. Many require that 4 pin, square plug in addition to the larger, rectangular one. I have a 300 Watt PSU and don't want to buy a new one if at all possible. I will have to look when I get home (I'm at work now), but I don't believe that PSU has that plug. Is there any kind of adapter with that end to connect to a spare HDD cord, or do I need a new PSU? The PSU is currently in an ATX case.

Thanks in advance.

Brandt

 

[Crashman]

Yes, you can get an adapter that connects to a 4-pin molex drive header and converts it to the ATX12v style plug.

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[Mr5oh]

Some boards include the adapter Crashman is talking about.

My Desktop: <A HREF="http://Mr5oh.tripod.com/pc.html" target="_new">http://Mr5oh.tripod.com/pc.html</A>

 

[BrandtP]

Great. As always, thanks for the answers.

Brandt

 

[ChipDeath]

What boards and parts were you looking at? a Generic 300W PSU is starting to get a little borderline for a Rig assembled from new mid-high end parts. If you're considering a Prescott-based System with a high-end Graphics card you're asking for problems there.

---
Epox 8RDA+ V1.1 w/ Custom NB HS
XP1700+ @200x11 (~2.2Ghz), 1.55 Vcore
2x256Mb Corsair PC3200LL/1x512Mb Corsair XMS PC4000 2.5-3-3-7
Sapphire 9800Pro (VGA Silencer Rev3) @400/730

 

[ChipDeath]

<A HREF="http://www.jscustompcs.com/power_supply/" target="_new">try this site</A> for giving a rough estimate for how much power your rig will need.

---
Epox 8RDA+ V1.1 w/ Custom NB HS
XP1700+ @200x11 (~2.2Ghz), 1.55 Vcore
2x256Mb Corsair PC3200LL/1x512Mb Corsair XMS PC4000 2.5-3-3-7
Sapphire 9800Pro (VGA Silencer Rev3) @400/730

 

[BrandtP]

Very helpful, Chip. I may need to get a 350 PSU. Incidentally, the new setup will be an AMD 64 3000+, nForce 3 250 based Motherboard, probably 512 of 3200 DDR RAM, SB LIve 5.1. Current vid card is a Geforce FX 5700 Ultra, and won't change just yet. I'm right now languishing about which motherboard to get.

 

[Mr5oh]

Does your PSU have amp ratings on the side. (Ex: 12v+ : 12a). I have run into a few cases that even though they have generic PSU, they still have decent power ratings (Watts aren't everything). I actually went to install a 400 watt PSU in a friends computer, only to find out his generic 300 watt in the case, was already just as powerful (At least on the 12v+ rail, where he needed power).

My Desktop: <A HREF="http://Mr5oh.tripod.com/pc.html" target="_new">http://Mr5oh.tripod.com/pc.html</A>