[SOLVED] PSU Connectors

[Jacim]

I bought a new psu a few months back Zeus force series 600w bronze, after my old psu died. At the time i was using gtx 1050ti which didnt use any power connectors, i didnt pay much attention to what psu i was getting because of it.

My 1050ti is getting weak to do anything so i wanted to replace it with used gtx 1070 or gtx 1080. Since most of them need 8 + 6 or 8 + 8 pin i went to check my psu specs.

On the box it says it has 6 pin connector and a 6 + 2 pin, but after opening my pc i found an 8 pin and a 6 +2 pin. Is the label on the box correct, am i getting something wrong or mixing up connectors? Any explanations would be appreciated. I dont want to buy a new gpu only to find i cant use it

https://imgur.com/a/zXXU5AS

View: https://imgur.com/a/zXXU5AS

 

[Darkbreeze]

So, here's the bad news. It really doesn't matter what connectors that unit has because it's a complete piece of crap and I'm not being sensational about it, it just IS.

That unit has 14A on each of the two 12v rails which means that in reality that is only a 336w power supply AND I'd be EXTREMELY surprised if that unit could eve sustain that reliably. This is very possibly, at the least, a contributor to why your 1050 ti is performing poorly or "getting weak" as you indicated.

It absolutely would have to be replaced if you chose to upgrade to anything using more than slot power. No question about it. Doesn't matter that you live in a region where hardware is hard to come by and expensive. That does not change the fact of the matter.

As far as the connectors are concerned, you'd better take a closer look because the specs clearly say ONE 6 pin and ONE 6+2 pin, BUT there is an 8 pin EPS/CPU power connector which in reality is a 4+4 pin. It's possible this is the connector you're looking at. From your screenshot is impossible to tell anything other than the fact that what you are holding is a 6+2 pin. If there is another connector on that same strand of cable, then that is your other PCI/PEG connector.

None of that really matters though since you currently have a PSU made by a company better known for making vapes than power supplies. Seriously, it's pretty terrible and hopefully you didn't spend much money on it or can return it, or can use it with some other lower powered system, perhaps sell it to get back part of your investment, because it cannot be part of any plan that involves the use of a graphics card that requires more than slot power. Maybe not even then as your current card uses only slot power and you already have problems.

 

[Jacim]

Thank you for your fast reply. Sadly i didnt know it was that bad, when my old psu died i took it to a repair shop to confirm it was psu since i wasent sure. The salesman offered to replace it with this one and it was the most affordable one at the moment costing 60 bucks, he offered me coolermaster 550w but that one was twice the price, so i just settled for this one. He reassured me that it was a good psu, that he sells many of these all the time and no one ever complained... I will probably try to sell it then, since it is only 5-6 months old and get a better one. Also im sorry for bad picture quality i tried my best, these are the only connectors left, both are at the same strand, hence my confusion, i dont belive its a 4 + 4 since i have that one connected to my cpu, unless it has 2 of those... but as you pointed out it dosent matter, at least i wont try to upgrade until i solve this first.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Good luck. When you get ready to buy another PSU, come back and talk to me about what models are available to you or which ones you should look for so you don't buy a poor quality one again next time. And in the future, NEVER listen to salesmen. They are only concerned with telling you what you want to hear so you don't leave without making a purchase. That is all they are ever concerned with. They do not care if it craps out on you two days later.

And he's probably right anyhow, because most of the people he sells those units to probably do not have or use gaming cards in their systems so that unit will likely work fine for a while in a very basic system, but has no business being in ANY system that uses any kind of PCIe graphics card.

 

[Jacim]

Im already looking at my options, i dont really know which brands are best, so feel free to correct me if you see some bad psu:

Be quiet pure power 11 500w 80+ gold
Asus TUF Gaming- 550w 80+ bronze
Corsair CV650 650w 80+ bronze

These are all around a 100 bucks in my country, i cant rly go more than that, cuz i need to leave some money for a new gpu.
As i stated i wish to upgrade to a gtx 1070 or gtx 1080, these are selling for a rly good price on a used market currently.
If none of these are good enough for that be sure to tell me, i will save a bit more if i have to. I wanna be sure everything works correctly.

Again, thank you for your responses.

 

[vertigo_2_20]

Those are all good brands, though I only know be quiet for their fans, but I would assume their PSUs are good, though every company has their bad products, so you have to check each one individually. I leave it you to look at reviews, but they all look good at a glance. I respectfully disagree that your current PSU can't handle your current card, as the 1050 Ti draws 75W max, and each 12V rail on your PSU can supply 168W @85% efficiency, so 75W should be no problem, assuming the PSU is decent quality, and it has generally good reviews, so I'm going to assume it is. However, if you have lots of drives/fans on the same rail as the GPU, that could be a problem, so you need to make sure you split that stuff up. That said, since you want to upgrade, it is absolutely correct you need a new PSU, as the 1070 and 1080 use 150W/180W, respectively, which are above what yours can supply. To that end, you need to make sure that whichever one you pick can provide >15A (180W) on at least one 12V rail, and that's the bare minimum, since you don't want it running at 100% and you want to have some headroom for possible future expansion. I'd suggest at least 18A (216W, so it would be running at 83.3% output), and the more the better. Just make sure you also take into account fans/drives/etc and split them between different rails appropriately. And a lower watt PSU with a higher efficiency rating can be just as good or better, so weigh that in as well, though a 500W gold isn't going to be as good as a 650W bronze (for power output, it will be better for efficiency and therefore heat and electricity usage), but it may be equivalent to or better than the 550W bronze. I'd look at the labels for them, but be quiet's site is giving me an access denied error and neither Amazon nor Corsair's site shows the label, which isn't a good sign. So you'll have to do some digging to find that out for yourself.

 

[Jacim]

There might be some confusion about what i said about my gtx 1050ti, i dont have problems running it at all, as you said it only draws 75w, so even this psu can provide that, what i meant was it was a budget card when it released, it gooten weak in a sense it cant really run new games it has nothing to do with a psu, its just its age as a budget gpu. Its time for it to reitre and get something that can hold for at least a year or two until i finish college. English isnt my mother language, i mightve expressed myself badly.

About the labels im not supprised, the psu market in my country has 80% brands and power supplies you never heard off, so i was looking for some familiar names like asus, corsair, be quiet, etc... But i wouldnt be supprised if they were some older models that are not sold anywhere but here, and thats why you cant find them(Just a shot in a dark, who knows). When it comes to power consumption i think my pc dosent draw too much, im goona list my specs:

CPU : AMD Ryzen 5 1400
RAM : Patriot Viper Steel DDR4 16GB (2x8GB) 3200Mhz
Motherboard : MSI B350M Gaming PRO
Storage : Kingstone 240GB SSD and 2TB Toshiba Hard Drive 7200RPM
GPU: ASUS Ceberus GTX 1050ti

I dont have fans or anything like that, never had any problems with termals, what i need is just good enough psu to do the job when i replace 1050ti, it dosent have to be the best, but at least decent. I though this psu was goona be enough, but to be honest i dont have much knowledge about power supplies, it is my least known part when it comes to pc so i though i better ask, and thank god i did otherwise i would buy something like a 1070 and now would be making a post why it dosent work...

EDIT: i have found another psu that fits my price range
https://www.antec.com/product/power/ne600g-zen

Its' a 600w 80+ gold psu, but personally i have never used Antec product, are they good or should i just ignore this one?

 

[Darkbreeze]

Avoid that Neo Eco Gold Zen. Antec has some really good units, but that is not one of them.

Avoid that CV series unit too. Corsair has some really good units, but that is not one of them.

Of all those I'd probably go with the TUF gaming 550w, which is the same platform that was used by the 2017 and newer Corsair CX units and is pretty decent for a cheap model. The Pure Power 11 isn't terrible, exactly, either, but it's an active clamp design that isn't very good when it comes to transient response.

If you have a website you can order from and a budget in your native currently I can take a look and see if I can find something decent or better as well.

 

[vertigo_2_20]

If you find the labels or specs that show the amperage per voltage rail and want help, you can post them here, preferably in text form since imgur doesn't load for me, and I can tell you if it's good or not. But basically you're just looking for as much amps at 12V as you can find, and of course good quality.

 

[Jacim]

I will avoid those you mentioned then. I couldnt find Corsair CX series anywhere, they are out of stock on every store i checked, we only have CV and RM models, and RM models are out of the question they are way too expensive for my budget.

I would rather not bother you to look at websites, but if you want to do that here is one of the stores:
https://gigatron.rs/racunari-i-komponente/komponente/napajanja

My budget is 12.000RSD, which is around 100 euros. Otherwise i will probaly go with TUF Gaming, and call it a day. Thank you.

 

[--SID--]

https://gigatron.rs/napajanja/asus-napajanje-tuf-gaming-550w-tufgaming-550b-406492 or add 500 to your budget for https://gigatron.rs/napajanja/asus-tufgaming-750b-750w-napajanje-498302

 

[vertigo_2_20]

Just took a quick look, again I leave it to you to determine which one based on price, features, reviews, etc. I only looked at the ones from be quiet, ASUS, Cooler Master, Corsair, and Antec, as those are all good brands in general, but of course you need to determine which of their PSUs are good and which aren't. All of the ones from those within your price range except one offer 40+ amps @12V and should therefore be more than sufficient, but of course, all else being equal (price, quality, etc), you should go with the one with more. So the CM 500W Elite V3 has the least with 38A despite being in the middle for cost (and it doesn't have an efficiency rating), the CM 500W V2, Antec CSK550, ASUS TUF 550W, and be quiet 500W are next with ~40-46A, and the rest are all ~50+ A. The CMs with efficiency ratings are only 80 PLUS, whereas the be quiets all have 80 PLUS Bronze, which isn't much of a difference but it is slightly better. One of the Antecs is Bronze, one isn't, and the ASUS and Corsair are Bronze. So the CMs just seem like poor value overall between efficiency and amperage for the cost. The be quiets give you a wide range of choice to help with budget and getting what you need, and they make excellent fans, but I don't know about their PSUs, so you'd want to do your research looking at reviews, which you should do for any PSU before you buy it. Just going off the numbers, I'd rule out the ASUS and the CM 500W V2 and V3 for value, as they're among the lowest for power output yet higher in price (that said, the reason may be that you're paying for quality, so if they're much better quality, it may be worth it). Out of the remaining, any would work, but if you can get more amps and/or better efficiency for the same price or slightly more, you should do it.

You also need to look at the connectors and make sure they have what you need, e.g. if you're running lots of HDDs you need lots of SATA connectors (you can always use splitters, but that's more cost, messier, and you need to make sure to use good ones that don't have a risk of melting). Also look at fully modular (unlikely in this price range) vs partially modular vs non-modular. Modular ones are nice because it's easier to do cable management and to replace the PSU if it fails, but you have to be careful to not use the same cables with other PSUs unless you're very careful and check the pinouts for compatibility. Modular PSUs also allow you to use/make custom cables if desired. It looks like the only one there that's (partially) modular is the Antec CSK550, so that would be the one to get if that's important to you, but keep in mind you're paying for that feature, which is apparent considering it's the lowest power output of the remaining choices after the previous eliminations yet is slightly higher to the same cost as others with more output. And, of course, just because it meets the requirements and is modular, that doesn't mean you should automatically get it, as you still should check reviews first.

 

[--SID--]

I'd rule out the ASUS and the CM 500W V2 and V3 for value

The Asus is way better than all the other units you mentioned.

but if you can get more amps and/or better efficiency for the same price or slightly more, you should do it.

NO! Quality first. Don't recommand group regulated crap for recent hardware and with recent I mean since Intel introduced Haswell with it's low powerstates in 2013.

 

[vertigo_2_20]

The Asus is way better than all the other units you mentioned.

NO! Quality first. Don't recommand group regulated crap for recent hardware and with recent I mean since Intel introduced Haswell with it's low powerstates in 2013.

I clearly stated, multiple times, that OP needs to look at reviews, that quality matters, and that my recommendations were solely based on power output, as their primary concern is what PSUs will work. I'm simply saying which ones will work based on the power they provide and pointing out other factors to consider, and specifically said I'm leaving it up to OP to research them beyond that. Interesting that you'd quote me and leave out the end of that sentence in which I explicitly stated the caveat that they may be better quality, hence the higher price, and replied to the (mis)quote as if I hadn't said that. You also seem to have "missed" an earlier statement I made, so allow me to quote it for you:

all else being equal (price, quality, etc), you should go with the one with more.

If you want to add to the recommendations and say why certain ones are better or worse, by all means do so. But don't misquote me and act like I said something I didn't.

 

[Darkbreeze]

I will avoid those you mentioned then. I couldnt find Corsair CX series anywhere, they are out of stock on every store i checked, we only have CV and RM models, and RM models are out of the question they are way too expensive for my budget.

I would rather not bother you to look at websites, but if you want to do that here is one of the stores:
https://gigatron.rs/racunari-i-komponente/komponente/napajanja

My budget is 12.000RSD, which is around 100 euros. Otherwise i will probaly go with TUF Gaming, and call it a day. Thank you.

These would both be good choices. Better than the TUF unit mentioned earlier.

https://gigatron.rs/napajanja/antec-napajanje-earthwatts-gold-pro-550w-ea550g-pro-222993


https://gigatron.rs/napajanja/nzxt-napajanje-c-series-c550-pa-5b1bb-eu-461859

 

[--SID--]

These would both be good choices. Better than the TUF unit mentioned earlier.

https://gigatron.rs/napajanja/antec-napajanje-earthwatts-gold-pro-550w-ea550g-pro-222993


https://gigatron.rs/napajanja/nzxt-napajanje-c-series-c550-pa-5b1bb-eu-461859

C-Series Bronze is just double forward (same platform like the Adata/XPG Pylon, Corsair CXM 2021 and MSI MAG A-BN) and inferiour to the LLC platform of the Asus TUF.

 

[vertigo_2_20]

By the way, while I don't have time to research every PSU OP might buy, which is why I didn't, just doing a cursory look into the be quiet ones, they don't appear to be group-regulated. They're also within OP's stated budget. Didn't check the others, but I'd be surprised if they are, especially the Antecs, ASUS, and Corsair.

 

[Darkbreeze]

You're right. My mistake. I looked and thought it was the C series Gold based on the Focus Plus platform. The Earthwatts Gold Pro IS based on that platform though, so it's still a pretty good choice considering the budget restrictions.

 

[Darkbreeze]

By the way, while I don't have time to research every PSU OP might buy, which is why I didn't, just doing a cursory look into the be quiet ones, they don't appear to be group-regulated. They're also within OP's stated budget. Didn't check the others, but I'd be surprised if they are, especially the Antecs, ASUS, and Corsair.

Most decent companies aren't selling any newer models that are group regulated anymore, HOWEVER, there are plenty of them still selling older models that ARE group regulated, especially in regions where newer hardware is not so easy to come by. Be Quiet is no different than any other company in this regard and for the record, they also have just as many hard to recommend under any circumstances units as any other well known brand. If you don't have the time to look specifically for reviews of models you are recommending, then it's usually a good idea to not recommend them. Also for the record, the VAST majority of PSU models USED to be group regulated with very few, and only very expensive models having DC-DC platforms in the past.

 

[vertigo_2_20]

Most decent companies aren't selling any newer models that are group regulated anymore, HOWEVER, there are plenty of them still selling older models that ARE group regulated, especially in regions where newer hardware is not so easy to come by. Be Quiet is no different than any other company in this regard and for the record, they also have just as many hard to recommend under any circumstances units as any other well known brand. If you don't have the time to look specifically for reviews of models you are recommending, then it's usually a good idea to not recommend them. Also for the record, the VAST majority of PSU models USED to be group regulated with very few, and only very expensive models having DC-DC platforms in the past.

I made that clear, though, that all brands have their bad models. I also didn't recommend the PSUs, I said those are the ones that will meet the requirements and the only ones I'd consider, but further research is needed. Narrowing it down is better than nothing. I couldn't find much on the be quiets without really digging, but what I did find indicates they're not only not group-regulated, but that they're at least decent, though granted perhaps not great. It's very possible, even likely, the others are better quality which, again, I made clear that had to be researched and factored in. The ones you linked may be better, but they're outside OP's budget, and we of course don't know how strict that budget is. They could be 10x as good but if OP can't afford them they can't afford them. If they can stretch that bit, then yeah, they very well may be worth it.

 

[Jacim]

I like the Antec one, after checking the reviews, people wrote mostly positive things. It's a bit higher then what i can afford currently, but i would rather save up and get good quality psu.
So i made my decision to go with that one.

One final question, looking at other stores i found the same model except its 650w not 550w, its about the same price, so im thinking even going a step higher to get that one, since its bearly more expensive than a 550w one.

Does it matter which one i get? Because 550w will do the job just fine, im just worried in the long run it might be better to save even a bit more to get 650w one.

 

[Darkbreeze]

650w version is even better.

 

[Jacim]

Then it's settled.

I wanna thank everyone in this thread for being so helpful, i didnt undersand everything, but i did learn a lot.

Cheers!

 

[Darkbreeze]

It's all good. There were some things said by some people that were misleading and not really relevant anyhow so you did fine.