Gamers At WinCustomize?
I have a gamer question.
Thursday, November 3, 2022 by RedneckDude | Discussion: Community
Hey gamers! I have a gamer question.
Ok, I have a graphics card that requires 2 x 8 pin cables. I only have one 8 pin on my PSU. So I bought a cable that splits one 8 pin into two 8 pins. It works fine until I play a game and then it shuts down my PC after just a few minutes.
So, I ran a graphics card stresser, Unigine Superposition Benchmark which also shut down my PC.
Is it because of the splitter? Do I need a PSU with 2x 8pins on it?
BTW, stressing the CPU causes no issues.
Reply #2 Friday, November 4, 2022 9:51 PM
I'll throw some things out that may or may not be food for thought. I'm not up on these things though.
Graphics cards are notorious pigs on the 12v rail.
I know there is some practical limit to how much amperage to draw from a single power supply lead (including any splits). I Googled it just now and for a 4pin molex I see 5amps on each the +5v and the 12v rails, 25watts on the +5v and 60watts on the 12v. This is what I stumbled across in case you want to ponder it:
Can't guarantee how accurate that is but it's a place to start. Seems like splitting a single lead and plugging both into the graphics card could easily be inadequate. If you have an adapter you could use with a different supply lead, and plug your 4pin in directly, that might be worth a shot.
Another thing is, a power supply with lots of wattage can still be too weak on the 12v rail for a given card. The sticker on the power supply should tell you how many amps/watts it has available on each voltage.
Other thing is, some power supplies often used to have the 12v rail split to accommodate the higher draws ("Dual Rails"). I don't know if those are still around. I avoided them like the plague, I don't know how a person knows which leads are on which rails. If you've got one of those though you would want to use a power supply lead from each of the 2 rails.
Good hunting.
Reply #3 Friday, November 4, 2022 10:07 PM
And now I see you said "8pin". [Sigh] I love my brain.
He's got 8pins listed on that link too, so have a look to see which you're using, and same principle in terms of splitting.
Reply #4 Saturday, November 5, 2022 12:52 AM
The reason a card might have 2 cables is to increase power consumption [capacity]. The splitter simply halves what is needed to each so simply won't work at 'capacity'...instead the PSU will trip and shutdown totally...
Reply #5 Saturday, November 5, 2022 9:16 AM
Looking at the loads those 8pin connectors are designed for, if you do look for an adaptor for another line, it would need to be a beefy line. You wouldn't want to try to put an 8pin adaptor for this on a 4pin molex or a sata line for example, if they even make them.
Reply #6 Sunday, November 6, 2022 6:25 AM
The reason a card might have 2 cables is to increase power consumption [capacity]. The splitter simply halves what is needed to each so simply won't work at 'capacity'...instead the PSU will trip and shutdown totally...
Reply #7 Sunday, November 6, 2022 7:59 AM
Pretty much what I thought was happening. I guess I need a new/better PSU.
Not necessarily...you need to check what voltage is being wanted by the 2 sockets on the GPU and see if they can be accommodated by a suitable adapter for an existing 'spare' lead from the PSU.
Probably worth a Google at least...
Reply #11 Monday, November 7, 2022 7:46 PM
A GPU in a PCIe slot with 1 8 pin cable maxes out at 225 watt. Check what your card's max draw is.... it will be more since it's built with 2 cables. The second one would have about another 150 or so...
Specs on whatever your card is for max consumption will be something like 300 watt ...so if you max out you'll shut down the MoBo ...
I may have to teach you how to Google...
Reply #12 Monday, November 7, 2022 10:21 PM
Thank you Paul.
I'll hop the big pond sometime and you can teach me. 
Reply #15 Tuesday, November 8, 2022 3:34 PM
Hmmm, well, for shits and giggles, I tried something.
My PSU has an 8 pin and a 6 pin. I used an 8 pin extension on the 6 pin along with the 8 pin, and played the game with no issues.
But since I already ordered the new PSU, I'll go ahead and use it when it gets here.
Reply #16 Tuesday, November 8, 2022 4:18 PM
Nope. Ran FurMark and it immediately shut off.
Reply #18 Friday, November 11, 2022 10:53 PM
One of my old machines has one of the 6pin leads coming from the PSU via an adapter from a standard 4 pin Molex ...so it's not an uncommon issue re part compatibility...
Reply #19 Saturday, November 12, 2022 6:19 AM
I'm not good with amps/watts/voltage. I wasn't sure if molex put out enough power.
Plus new PSU is RGB which fits the build.
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Reply #1 Friday, November 4, 2022 7:56 PM
BUMP