Power issue with new board.

cr!spy · 27 Jan 2006 at 21:07

Hi guys,

Just bought a new board (MSI K8N DIAMOND) and a 7800GT card and just came into a little problem setting it all up... My PSU (ANTEC TRUEPOWER 550) has a 20 pin ATX supply, but the board has a 24 pin socket... Can I just use the 20 pin in the 24 pin socket, or do I need to buy a new 24 pin PSU?

UOcUK Poopscoop · 27 Jan 2006 at 22:16

I believe you will need an adaptor for the 20 pin socket.

Google will probably reveal all.

cr!spy · 27 Jan 2006 at 22:20

Been reading through forums and a lot of people are saying that the 20 pin runs fine in the 24 pin socket...

UOcUK Poopscoop · 27 Jan 2006 at 22:24

cr!spy said:
Been reading through forums and a lot of people are saying that the 20 pin runs fine in the 24 pin socket...

I stand corrected then.

May be best to wait for a PSU expert to turn up though and give you a definite answer.

I was always under the impression you needed an adapter.........

(Unless it is a feature specific to the mobo you have?)

cr!spy · 27 Jan 2006 at 22:31

I was totally unaware they had different sockets anyway lol! Will give it a shot tonight, but will see if I can purchase an adaptor tomorrow from somewhere...

UOcUK Poopscoop · 27 Jan 2006 at 23:13

cr!spy said:
I was totally unaware they had different sockets anyway lol! Will give it a shot tonight, but will see if I can purchase an adaptor tomorrow from M@plins or somewhere...

I would do some more research before plugging the sucker in, just in case..........

P.S. Better edit out the retailer entirely. This forum is hugely strict on not posting competitors.

Shifter_Hull · 28 Jan 2006 at 12:17

Well I wouldn’t plug a 20 pin into a 24 pin conversion myself i did exactly that and blew my xm3500ll memory sky high
Lucky corsair replaced it direct i rma it and they replaced it .
But it was my own fault but i like you had a cheap nasty psu and changed it to a true 24 pin pus the Tagen 580 watt
and now don’t have to worry about power surges or anything also they come with a 3 yr warranty
But hey its only money if your board, ram, hard drives go bang good luck

Nat · 28 Jan 2006 at 12:48

They are completely pin compatible. My 20 pin Truepower 430w is plugged into a 24 pin AN8 Ultra and is perfectly happy powering an X800GTO2 and a Venice 3000 @ 2.7GHz...

However, the extra 4 terminals on a 24 pin connector (+12v, +5v, +3, GND) are there to accommodate motherboards with high current draw. Thus, a PSU with only a 20 pin connector can potentially be overloaded - a damn good reason not to try this with a cheapo PSU.

Looking at your specs, you should be OK as long you make sure the auxiliary power connector on the 7800GT is hooked up. Antec PSUs have decent over-current protection, whereas cheapo units don't.

BTW, using a 24 pin adapter doesn't make it much safer; the PSU doesn't magically become compliant with the new ATX standards. A crap PSU could still go pop (and damage other components) regardless of whether an adapter is used.

cr!spy · 28 Jan 2006 at 17:45

Ok, wel I've just gone out and bought a new PSU today, got a Hiper 580, PC is not even turning on with the new PSU plugged in! :mad:

Nat · 28 Jan 2006 at 17:52

If 550w was overkill, then 580w is just a waste of money.

On the bright side, at least you've got two PSUs you can test against the K8N, to see whether its a power problem or not!

cr!spy · 28 Jan 2006 at 18:01

You can never have enough power mate!

Ok, well unplugged the battery and PC's working again now, still seems a bit sketchy though, everytime I plug in a USB device it shuts down... :confused:

sja360 · 28 Jan 2006 at 18:09

possibly the motherboard is shorting out? causing a reset?

Nat · 28 Jan 2006 at 18:17

cr!spy said:
You can never have enough power mate!

... Or cash for the leccy bill

sja360 said:
possibly the motherboard is shorting out? causing a reset?

Sounds like it, doesn't it. Have you got any PS/2 devices hooked up cr!spy?

jesmiatka · 29 Jan 2006 at 01:41

Putting a 20 Pins in is no problem, if u got enough power in your PSU though. So thats not a big problem.

beaNN · 29 Jan 2006 at 15:23

I've done it on my new biostar, I've got an enermax 460w.

cr!spy · 30 Jan 2006 at 13:09

Sorry for the delay guys.

I sold my old PSU, so not too bothered that I payed for another one...

I'm going to take the whole board out tonight and put it back in again. I'll let you all know what happens.

Cheers. :cool:

cr!spy · 31 Jan 2006 at 12:05

Ok, put the motherboard all back in, works fine now. However, the onboard 24bit Creative Sound Blaster sounds crackly and distorted. Installed lastest drivers from MSI site, still the same... Been speaking to the nerds on the MSI forums and apparently it's a common problem, something to do with the PSU not delivering enough power to the onboard sound - pfft!

twiceborn · 31 Jan 2006 at 23:36

Nat said:
... Or cash for the leccy bill

Higher rated PSUs generally draw less power from the mains, when powering the same components (i.e. they are more efficient), than lower rated ones.
It's efficiency and load that determine your electricity bill, not the maximum power the PSU can deliver. Which is nice

Sorry to hear of your power woes, cr!spy

Have your MSI nerds been able to recommend a PSU which does deliver enough juice to the SC?

UOcUK Poopscoop · 31 Jan 2006 at 23:49

cr!spy said:
Ok, put the motherboard all back in, works fine now. However, the onboard 24bit Creative Sound Blaster sounds crackly and distorted. Installed lastest drivers from MSI site, still the same... Been speaking to the nerds on the MSI forums and apparently it's a common problem, something to do with the PSU not delivering enough power to the onboard sound - pfft!

550w PSU not enough to supply the onboard sound? :confused:

Last resort, you tried those non Creative drivers you can use on their cards?

Can't remember the name now but I ran them for ages.

Basically wrote by a bloke/ blokes who thought creative couldn't write decent drivers.

Crackling on a lot of the creative sound solutions was a well known issue though.