Six pin power to ASUS Radeon 7870

sophor

Honorable
Jul 9, 2012
13
0
10,510
I bought an ASUS Radeon 7870 to replace my 5770. The old card has a single six pin power connector and the 7870 has two. My 700w Thermaltake Toughpower supply has only one six pin power outlet. Is there a Y connector for six pin cables? Will this even work? Thanks.
 

aliromy70

Distinguished
Jan 15, 2012
45
0
18,540

Hello my friend,
1-buy a new psu with 2 six pin connectors.
2-buy a Y connector (side with 6 pin.the other two with 4 pin connectors) yes this will work
 

sophor

Honorable
Jul 9, 2012
13
0
10,510
Thanks for the quick responses. I misspoke about my power connector. It's actually an eight pin outlet and I have 8 to 6 pin extension on it to attach to the 5770, but I suspect this is common knowledge amongst the experience. Unfortunately, my little town's computer store has no such Y-connector, so I will have to order one.

In the meantime, am I correct in my understanding that the six pin connectors run the fans only or do they supply voltage to the card itself? If they only run the fans, would it be feasible to run a single fan for a day or two? I have an Antec 300 case with all ancillary fans installed, ample room, and if the probe I have dangling in the center of the case can be trusted, temps inside the case run 28-30 degrees C.
 

sophor

Honorable
Jul 9, 2012
13
0
10,510


I've seen that terminology, but I don't really understand it. What range of amps would work?
 

sophor

Honorable
Jul 9, 2012
13
0
10,510
The ASUS card came with an eight pin to a single six pin pcie extension. My power supply came with a molex to six pin pcie adapter which I'm currently using with my 5770. I still need another six pin plug. I've ordered:

http://www.amazon.com/StarTech-com-PCIEXSPLIT6-6-Inch-Express-Splitter/dp/B004NNTVT6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345759731&sr=8-1&keywords=six+pin+pcie+splitter

which I hope will do the job. I'm concerned about the 12V rail amps though, even though I don't understand what that actually means. The Thermaltake box says, "Next generation four + 12V rails (12V1, 12V2, 12V3, 12V4) supports high-end graphic card and PC system (combined loading of 56A). On the output chart it indicates 18A for each 12V1, 12V2, etc.