Stock PSU with Razer Core X with adapter to 12VHPWR

[synackfin]

I'll be installing an Asus Prime 5070 Ti soon into my Razer Core X, but I wanted to check if the power adapter can work with two 8-pin inputs instead of three?

My stock PSU only provides two 8-pins, and I've constantly read "never use splitters!" so I don't want to split one to create a 3rd 8-pin.

The 12VHPWR adapter that comes with the card is a 1-to-3, so it expects three 8-pin inputs. The card is only 330W at its peak, and can get 75W from the PCIe slot and 300W from two 8-pin inputs.

 

[synackfin]

Ok, so I installed it, and it doesn't work. I get a solid red light if only two 8-pin connectors are attached to the 1-to-3 VHPWR (which I think is actually upgraded to a 12v2x6 for the 50 series).

Should I try it w/ a splitter so it gets all three 8-pin inputs? The PSU says it can supply 600W on the 12v rail. All the 8-pins seem to come from the same single rail. But the Razer Core X's 8-pin cables use 18 awg, which isn't enough for 300W. But the card shouldn't draw that much from a single 8-pin considering it's a total 330W card, and draws less than 300W from the 12VHPWR, so 100W per 8-pin (200W from one 8-pin if it is split into two.). Alternatively, I can buy a 1-to-4 12VHPWR and use two splitters, so it won't go over 150W per source 8-pin.

 

[Hereticbar]

Is it even designed to support graphics card that draws over 300W, that's the important question. Isn't the Razer Core X released like more than 5 years ago or there's newer updated versions of it?

For most RTX 40 and 50 series cards, they draw almost all their power from the power plug and almost zero from the PCIe slot. And the dual 8 pin 18 AWG cables are certainly not up to the task of providing 330W that your card needs.

 

[synackfin]

Ah, I didn’t realize the 40 and 50 series don’t draw any significant power from the pcie slot. So then yeah, the 18 awg will be a problem.

I’m buying the Corsair SF850 (2024 edition.. supposedly an atx 3.1 / pcie 5.1 complaint psu) as a replacement psu.

 

[Assimilator]

Ah, I didn’t realize the 40 and 50 series don’t draw any significant power from the pcie slot. So then yeah, the 18 awg will be a problem.

I’m buying the Corsair SF850 (2024 edition.. supposedly an atx 3.1 / pcie 5.1 complaint psu) as a replacement psu.

Don't know if you need an 850W PSU for a 330W card, but buying a unit with a native ATX12V-2X6 cable is definitely the safe and smart thing to do over using a hodgepodge of extenders.

 

[synackfin]

I don’t know how “native” the 12V 2x6 is on the Corsair SFX psus. It’s a modular design where they use their own proprietary Corsair type-5 ports on the psu, and then they give you a 16awg cable that merges two Type-5 ports into a single 450w 12V 2x6. So I’m not sure how great the load balancing will be.

Honestly, I can’t find any SFX or SFX-L psus with a native 12v 2x6 port on the psu itself, apart from the Thermaltake SFX-L. They have a 850w and 1000w edition that come with a 450w 12v 2x6 and a 600w 12v 2x6, respectively.

 

[synackfin]

Okay, I installed the Corsair SF850 (2024 edition), and was pleasantly surprised that it has a 600w 12v 2x6, not a 450w 12v 2x6 like I thought. The Asus Prime OC 5070 Ti turns on fine now, and TDP is capped at 300w by default. (I tried bumping the tdp limit up to 330w, but it honestly didn't many any difference to fps whatsoever). I'll secure this new psu into the Razer Core X with some double-sided weatherproof tape. (If it's weatherproof, it can handle the hot sun and searing hot roofs, so it hopefully can handle a psu).