• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Can I convert a 6 pin PCI-E to 8 pin and have enough power?

Joined
Dec 7, 2008
Messages
130 (0.02/day)
Location
UK
System Name PC
Processor i5 3570k
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-Z77-D3H
Cooling Stock
Memory 8GB Corsair 1600mhz
Video Card(s) XFX 7870
Storage 120GB Kingston SSD, 2TB HDD
Display(s) Sony 32" HDTV
Case Corsair 230T
Audio Device(s) Asus Xonar D1
Power Supply Corsair 500W
Software Windows 8 64bit
Hi there,

I searched around for this and couldn't find a straight answer. I am just trying to upgrade my PC with a new graphics card, a 7970. It needs a 6 pin connector and an 8 pin. My PSU doesn't have an 8 pin available from what I can see. It has several 6 pins and several 4 pins.

The GPU comes with two adapters, however. It has a 6 pin to 8 pin, and 2x4 pin to 6 pin. If I convert a 6 pin to an 8 pin, would that give enough power to run the card? Or how about converting 2x4 pins to a 6 pin, then converting that to an 8 pin with the other adapter - would that even work, and if so would that give more power?

Would really appreciate help with this, thanks.
 
Joined
Apr 19, 2012
Messages
12,062 (2.77/day)
Location
Gypsyland, UK
System Name HP Omen 17
Processor i7 7700HQ
Memory 16GB 2400Mhz DDR4
Video Card(s) GTX 1060
Storage Samsung SM961 256GB + HGST 1TB
Display(s) 1080p IPS G-SYNC 75Hz
Audio Device(s) Bang & Olufsen
Power Supply 230W
Mouse Roccat Kone XTD+
Software Win 10 Pro
If by 4 pin you mean Molex. An actual 4+4pin is the processor power cable.
As for converting a 6pin to an 8pin, that's perfectly viable. You can draw a tonne more from a 6pin than is advertised, provided you're using a good quality PSU.

If your ATRIX is the PSU you intend to do it on. I'll warn you now. Don't. Buy a decent PSU.

"If you are in the market for a power supply in the 650W range, I certainly could not recommend this one for a high performance system. Like its name suggests (Atrix 500T), 500W is probably a more realistic maximum than the stated 650W. The efficiency and power factor are very poor and the failure of the unit to maintain the 3V3 and 5V0 lines at heavy loads, just reinforces my case. I should also bring to your attention a really irritating noise coming from the unit at high load - a sure sign of a stressed out low-end power supply. I am convinced this unit would fail within a short period of time if constantly loaded above 500W. The casing of the power supply got far warmer than the temperature of the air leaving the enclosure suggested, but with such a poor efficiency of 57.7%, this is not surprising."
 
Joined
Dec 7, 2008
Messages
130 (0.02/day)
Location
UK
System Name PC
Processor i5 3570k
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-Z77-D3H
Cooling Stock
Memory 8GB Corsair 1600mhz
Video Card(s) XFX 7870
Storage 120GB Kingston SSD, 2TB HDD
Display(s) Sony 32" HDTV
Case Corsair 230T
Audio Device(s) Asus Xonar D1
Power Supply Corsair 500W
Software Windows 8 64bit
If by 4 pin you mean Molex. An actual 4+4pin is the processor power cable.
As for converting a 6pin to an 8pin, that's perfectly viable. You can draw a tonne more from a 6pin than is advertised, provided you're using a good quality PSU.

If youre ATRIX is the PSU you intend to do it on. I'll warn you now. Don't. Buy a decent PSU.

"If you are in the market for a power supply in the 650W range, I certainly could not recommend this one for a high performance system. Like its name suggests (Atrix 500T), 500W is probably a more realistic maximum than the stated 650W. The efficiency and power factor are very poor and the failure of the unit to maintain the 3V3 and 5V0 lines at heavy loads, just reinforces my case. I should also bring to your attention a really irritating noise coming from the unit at high load - a sure sign of a stressed out low-end power supply. I am convinced this unit would fail within a short period of time if constantly loaded above 500W. The casing of the power supply got far warmer than the temperature of the air leaving the enclosure suggested, but with such a poor efficiency of 57.7%, this is not surprising."

Thanks RCoon :) those specs were outdated, I literally just updated them. I have a 500W Corsair now. And yes sorry, I meant molex.
 
Joined
Apr 19, 2012
Messages
12,062 (2.77/day)
Location
Gypsyland, UK
System Name HP Omen 17
Processor i7 7700HQ
Memory 16GB 2400Mhz DDR4
Video Card(s) GTX 1060
Storage Samsung SM961 256GB + HGST 1TB
Display(s) 1080p IPS G-SYNC 75Hz
Audio Device(s) Bang & Olufsen
Power Supply 230W
Mouse Roccat Kone XTD+
Software Win 10 Pro
Thanks RCoon :) those specs were outdated, I literally just updated them. I have a 500W Corsair now. And yes sorry, I meant molex.

Ah great! What model? Lemme check that 12v rail ampage so I can see what it can produce.
If it's a good strong 12v rail, you can draw a butt-load of power from your 6pins, pretty much twice the amount they're rated at, so an adapter won't cause you too much trouble.
 
Joined
Dec 7, 2008
Messages
130 (0.02/day)
Location
UK
System Name PC
Processor i5 3570k
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-Z77-D3H
Cooling Stock
Memory 8GB Corsair 1600mhz
Video Card(s) XFX 7870
Storage 120GB Kingston SSD, 2TB HDD
Display(s) Sony 32" HDTV
Case Corsair 230T
Audio Device(s) Asus Xonar D1
Power Supply Corsair 500W
Software Windows 8 64bit
Ah great! What model? Lemme check that 12v rail ampage so I can see what it can produce.

Really appreciate your help today. I must admit I don't know a lot about PSUs, so that'd be great. It's the CX500. I imagine that even if it is okay to power this GPU, it'll be in the upper limits. But this would only be a temporary solution, and to start with I just want to test this GPU I got from my mate to make sure it works okay.
 
Joined
Apr 19, 2012
Messages
12,062 (2.77/day)
Location
Gypsyland, UK
System Name HP Omen 17
Processor i7 7700HQ
Memory 16GB 2400Mhz DDR4
Video Card(s) GTX 1060
Storage Samsung SM961 256GB + HGST 1TB
Display(s) 1080p IPS G-SYNC 75Hz
Audio Device(s) Bang & Olufsen
Power Supply 230W
Mouse Roccat Kone XTD+
Software Win 10 Pro
Really appreciate your help today. I must admit I don't know a lot about PSUs, so that'd be great. It's the CX500. I imagine that even if it is okay to power this GPU, it'll be in the upper limits. But this would only be a temporary solution, and to start with I just want to test this GPU I got from my mate to make sure it works okay.

CX500 is a great PSU, I don't see you running into any problems.
 
Joined
Aug 1, 2009
Messages
959 (0.18/day)
Location
Currently somewhere around NSW, Australia
System Name hmmm... / lappy (ASUS Scar III)
Processor Intel Core i7-8086K / Intel Core i7-9750H
Motherboard ASUS Maximus XI Formula / ASUS G531GW
Cooling Noctua NH-D15s w/ 2 x Noctua NF-F12 PWM Chromax and 1 x Noctua NF-A15 HS-PWM Chromax Fans / Stock
Memory 4x16gb G.Skill Trident Z DDR4 3600mhz / 2x16gb Kingston Hyper X Impact DDR4 2666mhz C15
Video Card(s) 2 x EVGA GTX 1080 TI FTW3 / Nvidia RTX 2070 8gb
Storage 2 x Samsung 960 EVO Plus 1tb NVME/ 1tb Intel SSDPEKNW010T8 NVME + 2tb Samsung 860 EVO SSD
Display(s) Acer Predator X34P / ASUS 15.6" Screen
Case Fractal Design Meshify S2 White-TG + Noctua Chromax Fans / ASUS Scar III Case
Audio Device(s) Onboard + Logitech Z623 / Onboard
Power Supply Seasonic Prime Ultra Titanium 1000W + PROLINK PRO903WS / ASUS ADP-230GB B Power Brick
Mouse Corsair Vengeance M65 PRO RGB / Logitech MX Anywhere 2S
Keyboard Corsair K70 LUX RGB / ASUS Scar III Keyboard
Software Windows 10 Professional x64 / Windows 10 Professional x64
If it's a CX500 then you wouldn't need to use a 6-pin to 8-pin adapter, just use the 6+2-pin on your PSU.
 
Joined
Dec 7, 2008
Messages
130 (0.02/day)
Location
UK
System Name PC
Processor i5 3570k
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-Z77-D3H
Cooling Stock
Memory 8GB Corsair 1600mhz
Video Card(s) XFX 7870
Storage 120GB Kingston SSD, 2TB HDD
Display(s) Sony 32" HDTV
Case Corsair 230T
Audio Device(s) Asus Xonar D1
Power Supply Corsair 500W
Software Windows 8 64bit
If it's a CX500 then it should have 2 x 6+2 pin PCI-E connectors.

Oh my, what an idiot... :D I didn't even see those extra 2's hanging off the side. On a side note, it's running beautifully on the converted 6pin regardless. But thank you, next time I power down I'll swap those over. :laugh:
 
Joined
Aug 1, 2009
Messages
959 (0.18/day)
Location
Currently somewhere around NSW, Australia
System Name hmmm... / lappy (ASUS Scar III)
Processor Intel Core i7-8086K / Intel Core i7-9750H
Motherboard ASUS Maximus XI Formula / ASUS G531GW
Cooling Noctua NH-D15s w/ 2 x Noctua NF-F12 PWM Chromax and 1 x Noctua NF-A15 HS-PWM Chromax Fans / Stock
Memory 4x16gb G.Skill Trident Z DDR4 3600mhz / 2x16gb Kingston Hyper X Impact DDR4 2666mhz C15
Video Card(s) 2 x EVGA GTX 1080 TI FTW3 / Nvidia RTX 2070 8gb
Storage 2 x Samsung 960 EVO Plus 1tb NVME/ 1tb Intel SSDPEKNW010T8 NVME + 2tb Samsung 860 EVO SSD
Display(s) Acer Predator X34P / ASUS 15.6" Screen
Case Fractal Design Meshify S2 White-TG + Noctua Chromax Fans / ASUS Scar III Case
Audio Device(s) Onboard + Logitech Z623 / Onboard
Power Supply Seasonic Prime Ultra Titanium 1000W + PROLINK PRO903WS / ASUS ADP-230GB B Power Brick
Mouse Corsair Vengeance M65 PRO RGB / Logitech MX Anywhere 2S
Keyboard Corsair K70 LUX RGB / ASUS Scar III Keyboard
Software Windows 10 Professional x64 / Windows 10 Professional x64
Oh my, what an idiot... :D I didn't even see those extra 2's hanging off the side. On a side note, it's running beautifully on the converted 6pin regardless. But thank you, next time I power down I'll swap those over. :laugh:

There's always a first time for everything. I couldn't even plug an IDE cable the first time I tried to assemble a PC. I had to carry it to a shop and have someone plug it for me and check if I put plugged the other cables on the proper sockets. :laugh:Sometimes it's how we learn. ;)
 
Joined
Dec 7, 2008
Messages
130 (0.02/day)
Location
UK
System Name PC
Processor i5 3570k
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-Z77-D3H
Cooling Stock
Memory 8GB Corsair 1600mhz
Video Card(s) XFX 7870
Storage 120GB Kingston SSD, 2TB HDD
Display(s) Sony 32" HDTV
Case Corsair 230T
Audio Device(s) Asus Xonar D1
Power Supply Corsair 500W
Software Windows 8 64bit
There's always a first time for everything. I couldn't even plug an IDE cable the first time I tried to assemble a PC. I had to carry it to a shop and have someone plug it for me and check if I put plugged the other cables on the proper sockets. :laugh:Sometimes it's how we learn. ;)

Haha, the very first upgrade I did myself was swapping a graphics card on my first (prebuilt) gaming PC. I can't remember now if it was that I put it in upside down or something, but I put it in completely wrong and it couldn't be secured properly, so it freely wobbled about. I kept it like that for 6 months :D
 
Top