Noob question regarding new Build/8pin power connector

ElusiveHonor

Honorable
Nov 23, 2012
1
0
10,510
Hey guys,

I'm a total newb, so please be gentle.

I am currently upgrading my rig from an AMD Athlon II 640 to an i7 3770K.

I bought an AsRock Extreme4 z77 motherboard, and the CPU, of course.

My power supply is a carry over from the old system. Nothing fancy, its just a 400w piece of garbage.

In another week, I will be getting a new power supply rated at 750w, and a better video card.

However, today I put everything together and...nothing...

The CPU won't boot up, and the motherboard won't either...There is power to everything, and the USB's on the motherboard do give power, as well as to my HD light, and stuff like that.

I even tried an i5 in the motherboard from a working computer, and it still didn't work. I then tried the i7 in the working computer, and that didn't work...

Everything is wired properly, though I did hear an electric click the first time I plugged in...not sure if that is normal, or not...I didn't smell burning, or anything like that...

Another issue I discovered after doing a little bit of trouble-shooting was this, however:

There is only an 8 pin connector on the motherboard for the CPU, but there is no 8pin connector on my current PSU (there will be on the new PSU).

Now, I understand that the computer won't post without this connector, even with the i5, but I put the i7 in another computer with a 4pin connector for the CPU and it still didn't post...

Does the i7 3770k require an 8pin? The other computer only had a PSU of 380w, or around there. Is that part of the problem as well?

So, do you guys think I received a defective motherboard/processor? Should I wait for the new PSU to come in?

The main cause for concern is the fact that the CPU wouldn't work, despite being powered by a 4pin power connector...should I not worry about this? Admittedly, the power was low...

Anyways, freakin' out. Could use some advice.
 

scorpinock2

Honorable
Oct 18, 2012
242
0
10,760
It seems like you should wait for your new PSU. More than not it is likely that you do not have adequate power for the hardware you are running. You can use thermaltake power calculator to check. If it is an old PSU then it probably does not give 400 Watts anymore it is probably 350 or so. Wait for the new psu as it meets your requirements.