How to use GTX 680 with one 6 pin?

[bcodemz]

I bought a EVGA GTX 680 for my HP H8-1503 desktop. The PSU only has one 6 pin power connector, and no molex connectors. The motherboard supports PCI-E 3.0, which means it can deliver 225/300W of power to the 680 that only has a TDP of 195W. However, my motherboard complains about a graphics card error during POST when I connect just one 6 pin to the 680. How do I make the motherboard ignore the lack of a second 6 pin connector?

Thanks

 

[sophiebeth100]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Startech-com-Express-Power-Splitter-Cable/dp/B004NNTVT6/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Should do the job.

 

[rgd1101]

I might be wrong but I don't think the PSU would handle it.

 

[sophiebeth100]

Didn't read the OPs post thoroughly, my bad. Could you give us a link to your PSU or give us the model name?

 

[Spiral Nemesis]

EVGA 680 recommend a minimum of 550W PSU. Even though you might be able to make do with a slightly less watt, I dont think 460W PSU from your HP will do, especially if your system is under load.

 

[sophiebeth100]

With such a high end card the one thing you don't want to do is skimp on the PSU. Best thing to do would be to save up and get yourself a quality 550w PSU from a brand such as Corsair, XFX, Antec or Seasonic. You can get them for $60-$80 on Newegg.

 

[Deleted member 217926]

You need a 550w power supply. You also need both PCI-E connectors. You can use a molex to PCI-E if you have to but generally if your PSU lacks the connectors it's not going to be powerful enough to run a card requiring 2 connectors.

 

[bcodemz]

Why do I need a 550W PSU when the highest power draw my system will use is less than 300W? The 460W should have plenty of headroom for the 680.

 

[Spiral Nemesis]

Because along with the 680, your psu cannot feed the system enough power.

 

[Deleted member 217926]

Why do I need a 550W PSU when the highest power draw my system will use is less than 300W? The 460W should have plenty of headroom for the 680.

Your system will pull more like 360 watts under load and you need to leave enough headroom to not stress the power supply. It's a Dell so the PSU is likely a Delta and decent quality but you have to leave headroom or even the best power supplies will fail.

http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/geforce_gtx_680_review,9.html

http://www.anandtech.com/show/5699/nvidia-geforce-gtx-680-review/19

 

[bcodemz]

I'll try the 680 on the stock PSU for now. If my system breaks, oh well, I have warranty.

Is there another way besides the single 6 pin to dual 6 pin adapter?

Thanks

 

[Deleted member 217926]

A molex adapter.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812887001

Better hope the protection circuitry is good in that Delta. Warranty will not cover it burning up the card and motherboard. Actually just adding a GTX 680 voids the entire Dell warranty I believe. They are even picky about you opening the case.

 

[bcodemz]

I don't have any molex connectors. Is is OK to convert SATA power to molex, then convert 2 molex to 6 pin?

 

[sophiebeth100]

If the PSU doesn't have the connectors needed it most likely will not be able to power your system. Just buy a new PSU, they're not at all expensive.

 

[bcodemz]

Just bought 2 sata to molex adapters, and used the included 2 molex to 6 pin adapter in my 680, and it works! The strange thing is the computer still gives the 6 beep graphics card POST error, but as soon as it finishes the 6 beeps, it boots up.

I have ran folding@home, cpu + gpu, and it only draws 195W from the wall. Even running furmark and maxing the cpu at the same time only gets my computer to draw 307W from the wall. If I assume 80% efficiency, the PSU is only outputting 246 watts, and I still have over 200 watts of headroom for the PSU.

That was $80 + 4-5 hours of psu installation time saved! I'm happy. The 680 is amazingly fast!