Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
work properly even if a 4-pin PSU connector is attached. In the latter case you will often
see that the 8-pin connector has a cap installed over 4 of the pins, meaning that a 4-pin
connector can be installed in the exposed portion. Consult the specific motherboard docu-
mentation toseeifyoucanattach asingle4-pin+12Vpowerconnector (offsettooneside
or the other) when using lower power processors. If you are using a processor that draws
more power than a 4-pin connector can supply, then you should insure you are using a
power supply with an 8-pin connector to match the motherboard.
Four-Pin to 8-Pin +12V CPU Power Adapters
If your motherboard requires all 8-pins be connected, and you are using a lower power
draw processor and a power supply that does not have a matching 8-pin +12V connector,
you can use an adapter to convert an existing 4-pin connector to an 8-pin connector. An
example of this is shown in
Figure 18.27
.
Figure 18.27
Four-pin +12V to 8-pin +12V power adapter.
Adapters are also available that go the other way—that is, they convert an 8-pin CPU
power connector to a 4-pin version. However, these are not always required because one
canplugan8-pinconnectorfromapowersupplyintoa4-pinconnectoronamotherboard
bysimplyoffsettingtheconnectortooneside.Theonlytimetheadapterwouldbeneeded
isifthere isacomponent onthe boardthat isphysically interfering with the portion ofthe
connector that is offset.
Backward and Forward Compatibility
Ifyouhavereachedthispoint,I'msureyouhavesomequestions.Forexample,whathap-
pensifyoupurchaseanewpowersupplythathasa24-pinmainpowerconnectorbutyour
motherboard has only a 20-pin main power socket? Likewise, what if you purchase a new
motherboardthathasa24-pinmainpowersocketbutyourpowersupplyhasonlya20-pin
main power connector? The answers to these questions are surprising to say the least.
