Question 980TI won’t work in a Dell T5810?

[ikea(s)]

Hello, recently acquired a used Dell T5810 from eBay for super cheap. I think around 100 dollars. Been using it for around 2 weeks and all works well with the ancient NVS 510’s it comes with. Considering this is a pretty old station, when selecting a new GPU I didn’t want to go too new, so I went for something that might just work; that being the 980TI. When it arrived yesterday I tried finding the 8 pin connector coming from the PSU. To my surprise, this 5810 only has 2x6 pin connectors. The 980TI I have has 6 pins and an 8 pin socket. How am I supposed to get an 8 pin connector when I only have 6 pins? I tried an adapter that goes from 6 pins to 8, but the pc won’t boot and flashes an amber light. The PSU says 685 watts.

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

The PSU says 685 watts

you would actually have to determine the make & model of the power supply.
likely being an OEM build it cannot properly power this graphics card.

trying to replace it with a higher rated model PSU will probably lead to more issues like improper motherboard connectors, etc.
these old OEM systems were not intended for this type of use.

I tried an adapter that goes from 6 pins to 8, but the pc won’t boot and flashes an amber light

many cheaper manufactured adapters don't work properly either.

if you can find one actually distributed by a known/trusted manufacturer it could possibly work,
but then you'd still have to determine if this power supply can actually provide a stable >/=600w.

 

[NedSmelly]

You may be better off trying to find an old Quadro or FirePro GPU, which is what these Precisions were designed for. Quadro M6000 is roughly equivalent, and with much more vram.

 

[ikea(s)]

you would actually have to determine the make of model of the power supply.
likely being an OEM build it cannot properly power this graphics card.

trying to replace it with a higher rated model PSU will probably lead to more issues like improper motherboard connectors, etc.
these old OEM systems were not intended for this type of use.

many cheaper manufactured adapters don't work properly either.

if you can find one actually distributed by a known/trusted manufacturer it could possibly work,
but then you'd still have to determine if this power supply can actually provide a stable >/=600w.

The adapter I got was this one: https://www.cablematters.com/pc-819-158-2-pack-pci-e-6-pin-to-8-pin-power-cable-4-inches.aspx
All the reviews say they tried it from their 6 pin to 8 and they say it worked. I’m starting to think it’s a cable issue, or maybe the GPU is DOA.
And about the PSU, is 685 watts not enough to power this card?

 

[stonecarver]

https://www.dell.com/community/en/c...sion-tower-5810/647f7b05f4ccf8a8de93bbca#M564

It was a Nvidia 1080ti in that link but good information on how they solved the booting issue.

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

And about the PSU, is 685 watts not enough to power this card?

the stated amount of available wattage has nothing to do with it's ability to actually do the job.

there are a lot more factors related to a unit's overall quality and it's ability to provide steady power in a stable continuous flow.

you should read up on power supply quality, ratings, reliability, etc.
there are many articles out there just for users to understand the issue you are/may be facing.
Tom's has a few good threads related to the issue, like:
PSU Tier List
PSU Recommendations