I'm building a PC with the parts listed in my component list, but I'm unsure how to connect the power supply to my graphics card. The power supply has three modular ports labeled CPU/PCIe. I'm currently using two of them for the motherboard's CPU_PWR1 and CPU_PWR2 connections, leaving only one port available. I also have two modular cables labeled PSU and PCI-E, while the graphics card requires three 8-pin power connections. Should I move one of the motherboard CPU power cables, and how should the PCIe cables be connected to the graphics card?
2 Answers
You generally only need one EPS/CPU power cable connected to the motherboard unless you’re running an unusually demanding CPU or doing serious overclocking. Use the other compatible modular cable for the graphics card. The GPU should be powered with PCIe cables, not an EPS/CPU cable. Since you have two PCIe cables and the card has three sockets, connect both cables directly to the power supply and use their separate PCIe connectors to fill all three GPU sockets if the cables are designed that way. Avoid using third-party or mismatched modular cables, and check the PSU manual to confirm the ports and cable types.
You can leave CPU_PWR2 disconnected if your system only needs one CPU power connector, but use a PCIe-labeled cable in that PSU port. Don’t plug an EPS/CPU cable into the graphics card.
The product image may show a different revision of the power supply with four combined CPU/PCIe ports, so rely on the labels and layout of your actual unit rather than the listing photo. Connect one CPU/EPS cable to the motherboard’s primary CPU socket, then connect the two PCIe cables to the remaining suitable ports and route their GPU plugs to all three graphics-card connectors.
The PSU I received doesn’t match the picture shown in the parts list, so I’ll follow the labels on the physical unit instead.
So I can disconnect the CPU_PWR2 cable and use that connection for the graphics card instead?