Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
the auxiliary connector is required to carry the additional load. These higher levels of
power are needed in systems using 250- or 300-watt or greater supplies.
The 6-pin auxiliary power connector was added as a safety or stopgap measure in the
ATX motherboard 2.02/2.03 and ATX12V 1.x power supply specifications for systems in
which the +3.3V and +5V power draw could exceed the respective 18A and 24A max-
imums allowed using only the main connector with standard terminals. These conditions
would normally be met in systems requiring 300W or higher output power supplies. The
auxiliary power connector is a 6-pin Molex 90331-0010 connector, which is similar to
the motherboard power connectors used on older AT/LPX power supplies for Baby-AT
motherboards (see
Figure 18.22
).
Figure 18.22
ATX 2.02/2.03 and ATX12V 1.x auxiliary power connector, side and terminal end view.
The pinouts of the auxiliary connector are shown in
Table 18.8
.
Table 18.8 ATX Auxiliary Power Connector Pinout
Each terminal in the auxiliary power connector is rated to handle up to 5 amps of current,
slightlylessthanthemainpowerconnector.Bycountingthenumberofterminalsforeach
voltage level, you can calculate the power-handling capability of the connector, as shown
in
Table 18.9
.
Table 18.9 Six-Pin Auxiliary Power Connector Maximum Power-Handling Capabilities
