What's with this 4-pin PCI-E power socket on my Abit??

MDesigner

Platinum Member
Apr 3, 2001
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OK, I'm confused.. I'm a PCI-E n00b. On my Abit motherboard, there's a standard 4-pin molex socket.. the manual says it's for additional power for PCI express and it's recommended. Then, on my eVGA 7900GT, there's a power connector for PCI express. Do I need to plug in both? or just one? if so, which one?
 

imported_h04x

Junior Member
Mar 14, 2006
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For a 7900GT you should be all right with just powering the card. The molex connector is for power hogs like the 7800/7900GTX series cards in SLI, the additional power provided by the molex into the board helps to keep the cards and the mobo stable under heavy load conditions.
 

MDesigner

Platinum Member
Apr 3, 2001
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Gotcha..thanks. But it won't hurt if I plug the molex into that ATX4P1 PCI-e socket, right?