Power question for XFX R9 280

waylman2

Junior Member
Nov 29, 2011
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Just picked up the XFX R9 280

It has a 6 pin and 8 pin power connector on it.

Do both of these get plugged in or is it just a one or the other type of deal?

Please let me know!

Thank you!
 

waylman2

Junior Member
Nov 29, 2011
7
0
0
Thanks - I don't have an 8 pin power plug from my power supply.

I suppose I use an adapter in this case?
 

nsafreak

Diamond Member
Oct 16, 2001
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Yep the card likely came with a molex to 8 pin connector so you'd use that. Which PSU do you have though? It's a bit odd that it only has the 6 pin.
 

waylman2

Junior Member
Nov 29, 2011
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It's an Antec EA 500D

Mobo is an Asus P6X58D-E

These parts are getting old so I'm not even sure I can run this card????
 

nsafreak

Diamond Member
Oct 16, 2001
7,093
3
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500 watts should be enough and it is a decent PSU. Still it is getting up there in age so you might want to consider swapping it out in the near future.
 

lehtv

Elite Member
Dec 8, 2010
11,897
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EA-500D has two +12V rails of 22A (264W) each. I would advise against using Molex->PCIe or SATA/PCIe cable. Presumably the unit is designed for the graphics card to be powered from a different rail than the processor, and when you use an adapter, you risk powering the GPU from the same rail as the CPU which can result in overloading that rail. Time for an upgrade.

If you're in the US: Antec HCG-620M $60 after rebate. 2 x 6+2-Pin connectors, single 576W rail - it powers any single GPU graphics card except some custom cards that need 3 connectors (MSI 290X lightning for instance).

What CPU do you have? It could be a serious bottleneck to the R9 280, or it could be fine.
 
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waylman2

Junior Member
Nov 29, 2011
7
0
0
CPU is a Core i7 950 @ 3.07 GHz

I figured out the power situation. I actually have a 6 pin + 2 pin coming out of the power supply that I used.

Thanks everyone!