# 4 pin power enough?



## MxPhenom 216 (Sep 14, 2012)

I guy I work with is building a computer and he was suppose to bring it in today so I can look it over since He said it was booting, and couldn't find the 8 pin CPU power connector from his PSU, and he thought what he did ine that was 8 pin was for USB. (I HAVE NO IDEA LOL) and then I told him no thats most likely for your proc. So he pluged it in for the CPU power yesterday but I guess only 4 pins actually fit. Is 4 pins enough for his Core i5 3570k? He has the TX750w V2 PSU







I think thats what his CPU connector looks like.


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## INSTG8R (Sep 14, 2012)

It "technically" should be enough. I know some Mobo's I have built with actually have a cap on the 8 pin making it 4. 8 pin as far as I know is just "extra stability" for the CPU power section. You'll see some of the "Extreme OC" Mobos with TWO 8 pin. Again more stability.


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## [Ion] (Sep 14, 2012)

For a low-power CPU like that, 4pin is OK.  I'd suggest 8pin for any overclocking, but for stock speeds it's alright.


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## INSTG8R (Sep 14, 2012)

[Ion] said:


> For a low-power CPU like that, 4pin is OK.  I'd suggest 8pin for any overclocking, but for stock speeds it's alright.



Agreed.


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## sneekypeet (Sep 14, 2012)

what board is he trying this on?


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## Ghost (Sep 14, 2012)

Should be enough. Got i5 2500K to 4.9 GHz with G1.Sniper M3 which also has only 4-pin connector.

EDIT: if 8-pin doesn't fit, try rotating it 180 degrees. If that doesn't help, rotate 180 degrees again


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## Sir B. Fannybottom (Sep 14, 2012)

[Ion] said:


> For a low-power CPU like that, 4pin is OK.  I'd suggest 8pin for any overclocking, but for stock speeds it's alright.



This man is correct. I run my 955 with only a 4 pin, and it's at 1.4v usually.


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## itsakjt (Sep 15, 2012)

I run my 955 on a 4 pin connector too and I can even overclock to 4.1 - 4.2 GHz


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## newlife (Sep 15, 2012)

my z77 board will ONLY run with 8 pin, mb will not start with 4 pin, its the same as my last gigabyte 990fx board


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## cadaveca (Sep 15, 2012)

newlife said:


> my z77 board will ONLY run with 8 pin, mb will not start with 4 pin, its the same as my last gigabyte 990fx board



Not all boards are the same, and those two would be the oddities. 99% of all motherboards with 8-pin can run with just a 4-pin. Your problem was probably NOT the motherboard, but your PSU.


The reason WHY it's fine has to do with how power is delivered, and how much can be delivered via a 4-pin, which is about 200 Watts. And yes, that means an 8-pin can deliver near 400 Watts.(374 W, if I remember correctly)


Now, of course, some high-end boards have more than just an 8-pin; some have an added 4-pin with the 8pin, and some have dual 8-pins. Why?

Because less current delivered over the line is easier to manage, and typically is "cleaner", as it's further from "THE LIMIT".

I have this handy site bookmarked:

http://www.playtool.com/pages/psuconnectors/connectors.html

It has some good info. 


Anyway, so, a 4-pin is DEFINITELY enough for IVB CPUs, even with an OC, since these are just 77 W CPUs. that leaves like a 120 Watts of overhead, or enough to power a whole other IVB CPU, and then some.


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## ThE_MaD_ShOt (Sep 15, 2012)

That power supply should have the 8 pin connector. Mine does.


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## Jstn7477 (Sep 15, 2012)

TX750 has a 4+4 pin connector for the CPU. Would help to know what board is being used, as my friend got a Gigabyte Z77 ATX board that only had a 4 pin ATX12V connection.


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## Pehla (Sep 16, 2012)

MxPhenom 216 said:


> I guy I work with is building a computer and he was suppose to bring it in today so I can look it over since He said it was booting, and couldn't find the 8 pin CPU power connector from his PSU, and he thought what he did ine that was 8 pin was for USB. (I HAVE NO IDEA LOL) and then I told him no thats most likely for your proc. So he pluged it in for the CPU power yesterday but I guess only 4 pins actually fit. Is 4 pins enough for his Core i5 3570k? He has the TX750w V2 PSU
> 
> http://www.playtool.com/pages/psuconnectors/eps4plus4.jpg
> 
> I think thats what his CPU connector looks like.


hi..i must say for sure YES IT IS ENOUGH...i have msi z68ma-ed55 with 4pin conector and the board works just fine...as a mater of fact it work prety nasty..as i can OC cpu for 4.8ghz stable!! and yes if it was maybe 8 pin could get maybe nother 100-200mhz!


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