Do not all PSUs have a power connector for an SSD?

ManBearPig

Diamond Member
Sep 5, 2000
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I bought an XFX 650w core edition and figured it would have a cable to power an SSD since its supposedly a decent PSU but it appears it does not...am i missing something here? I dont know the name of the plug so i cant be of any help (appears to be a SATA 15 pin power connector). Would it be ok to use an adapter?
 
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BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
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If your SSD doesn't have a standard SATA connection, it's a micro-SATA connection

Use this adapter:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16812200788

12-200-788-TS


Most of the SSD's I looked at on Newegg come with an adapter cable...and NONE of the power supplies I saw came with a built-in micro-SATA connector.
 

lehtv

Elite Member
Dec 8, 2010
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Looks like a standard SATA power connection to me... the standard SATA power connector is 15-pin
 
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BoomerD

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Feb 26, 2006
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Thanks Boomer, but i think it is just the power part. It's to the right of the SATA connection and i think its a SATA 15 pin power connecter. Here's a pic:

http://images.anandtech.com/reviews/storage/Crucial/m4/DSC_2632.jpg

I could swear previous PSUs i've used have had this. This new one i bought does not.

I called Frys and apparently they have this connector soooo off i go to spend money for something else. :(

Everything I've read about that drive says it's just a standard SATA connector. Your PSU should come with 8 SATA power connectors. (probably 2 cables with four connectors each)

1 x Main connector (20+4Pin)
1 x 4+4 Pin ATX12V / EPS12V
7 x Peripheral
8 x SATA
1 x Floppy
4 x PCI-E
 

ManBearPig

Diamond Member
Sep 5, 2000
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Looks like a standard SATA power connection to me... the standard SATA power connector is 15-pin

Yep, gotta get an adapter.

Everything I've read about that drive says it's just a standard SATA connector. Your PSU should come with 8 SATA power connectors. (probably 2 cables with four connectors each)

Yes sir, but it's the power part that isn't there. :(
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
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Yep, gotta get an adapter.



Yes sir, but it's the power part that isn't there. :(

explain...if the SSD takes a SATA power cable...and your PSU has 8 SATA power connections...then unless it takes a micro SATA adapter, you SHOULD be good to go.

Please post the exact model number of the Crucial SSD.
 

ManBearPig

Diamond Member
Sep 5, 2000
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I can connect the SATA cable from the SSD to the mobo. HOWEVER I see no power connectors to go from the PSU to the SSD.
 

tomt4535

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Jan 4, 2004
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I can connect the SATA cable from the SSD to the mobo. HOWEVER I see no power connectors to go from the PSU to the SSD.

According to the newegg link you provided above, that PSU has 8 SATA connectors on it. In one of the pics, it shows one right in the middle of of the picture. It doesn't have 8 of any other type of connectors, so count them up and see which ones you have 8 of and that's your connector. They also have 5 wires going into them, rather than four. Yellow, black, red, black, and orange.
 

Fallen Kell

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
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Ok so lets make this easier. Your power supply should have the following:

7 of these:
800px-Molex_male_connector.jpg

Which are 4 pin molex power connectors used for the last 20 years for powering 3.5" hard drives and optical drives.

8 of these:
images

Which are SATA Power connectors used for powering the standard SATA drives.

Now you might not have a standard SATA drive, and instead have an non-standard (for desktop), drive. Some of the first drives used the 4pin molex connections, because that is what everyone had in their computers. Then we saw the combination of both SATA power and 4pin in the same drive, and you were to only connect one or the other.

There is also the e-SATA connector:
eSATA_TypA_lrg.jpg

They combined both power and data into 1 cable.

Finally there is the micro-SATA connector:
cooldrives_2074_47022546.jpg


So you either have a SSD that uses a micro-SATA, or else you have something that has a proprietary pinout designed for laptops. Like the following:
images
 
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ManBearPig

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Sep 5, 2000
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Ok, so on the right side of the drive in the foreground (m4), that connector is a standard sata connector? It seemed way longer than any power connector I had.

On the left side I put a sata cable from the drive into the mobo.

Omg, I feel like I'm a fucking idiot with tho drive! I'm gonna google around. Sorry to take your guys' time lol.
 

sm625

Diamond Member
May 6, 2011
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It makes my head hurt too. Somebody is missing something very basic here.
 

mfenn

Elite Member
Jan 17, 2010
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www.mfenn.com
Ok, so on the right side of the drive in the foreground (m4), that connector is a standard sata connector? It seemed way longer than any power connector I had.

On the left side I put a sata cable from the drive into the mobo.

Omg, I feel like I'm a fucking idiot with tho drive! I'm gonna google around. Sorry to take your guys' time lol.

The M4 has standard SATA power and data connectors. Your PSU has a bunch of flat black plugs, those are the SATA power connectors. Plug it into the drive next to the data connector (it only fits one way).
 

ManBearPig

Diamond Member
Sep 5, 2000
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Uh, hey fellas, can we forget this thread ever existed? :oops:

I guess the problem was that this case has the 2.5" drive mount on the very bottom and i could barely see it, and the little slot looked way longer than the plugs.

Thanks everyone! I feel like i owe you guys an apology. :awe: Especially boomer. :p

...carry on. :(
 

lehtv

Elite Member
Dec 8, 2010
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kazaam said:
Yep, gotta get an adapter.

My comment was supposed to tell you the exact opposite... :p

Hope you didnt lose any hair after all that head scratching
 

ManBearPig

Diamond Member
Sep 5, 2000
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Haha, i feel like the worlds biggest dumbass. Everything is done and works! Who would've thought. I have no idea how i forgot so much about building PCs since I just did my brothers like 8 months ago. the damn cooler threw me for a loop.
 

Googer

Lifer
Nov 11, 2004
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The molex connector has been used much longer than 20 years, try closer to 30 and back then they ran every accessory in the system except for 3.5 inch floppy drives.

To the best of my knowledge, those molex to SATA adapters only pass 5v to the drives, which is fine for a HDD. The 3.3volt lines are excluded. 3.3 volts may be needed to run some SSDs but not a lot hard disk drives (HDD) use 3.3v.

To answer his question: All modern ATX PSUs sold today have at least one SATA power connector. For a newbie like your self, get a nice Seasonic PSU with a high efficiency rating and you'll be set.
 
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BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
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The molex connector has been used much longer than 20 years, try closer to 30 and back then they ran every accessory in the system except for 3.5 inch floppy drives.

To the best of my knowledge, those molex to SATA adapters only pass 5v to the drives, which is fine for a HDD. The 3.3volt lines are excluded. 3.3 volts may be needed to run some SSDs but not a lot hard disk drives (HDD) use 3.3v.

To answer his question: All modern ATX PSUs sold today have at least one SATA power connector. For a newbie like your self, get a nice Seasonic PSU with a high efficiency rating and you'll be set.

The XFX power supply he bought is a Seasonic build. It's VERY good quality.

The problem here wasn't the power supply...it was the installer. :p
 

corkyg

Elite Member | Peripherals
Super Moderator
Mar 4, 2000
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The XFX power supply he bought is a Seasonic build. It's VERY good quality. The problem here wasn't the power supply...it was the installer. :p

Yep! My Seasonic came with a pile of power cables - some Molex and some SATA. I selected what I need of both during the installation process.