My PSU just had a catastrophic failure (i.e. exploded)

[Nolo]

So now I figure I should learn the basics on how to properly balance the load on a PSU.  

I was obviously just working the 4 year old PSU too hard, and had connected the power cables all haphazardly not paying attention to amps, or rails, or any of that stuff.  

So now I come to you guys for an education.  In simplest terms, how do I figure out what to connect to what?  

Example:  Say I have a 1050W PSU that has this:  +3.3V@24A, +5V@30A, +12V1@20A, +12V2@20A, +12V3@20A, +12V4@35A, +12V5@35A, +12V6@20A, -12V@0.5A, +5VSB@5.0A

8 SATA connectors & 4 PCI-E connectors & then the regular assortment of molex.  

I need to connect 4 HDDs, 1 SSD, 1 DVD, MB, CPU, and 3 5830s.  

How should I connect this to safely load the PSU?

[jborkl]

I can only tell you a common sense approach. That is too much stuff. Get another power supply and use both. I does not have to be expensive or even new.

[Nolo]

I can only tell you a common sense approach. That is too much stuff. Get another power supply and use both. I does not have to be expensive or even new.

I just don't think that's the case.  A 1050W PSU should be able to handle this.  HDDs don't draw that much, and neither do 5830s.   

[jborkl]

It is really east to do, I promise. 

[Nolo]

I'm buying a Kill a Watt as we speak.  But nevertheless as far as load balancing, does anyone have any suggestions on how to read the specs on a PSU and then apply the knowledge obtained by reading those specs? 

[tacotime]

cards on this rail:
+12V4@35A, +12V5@35A

board on any of the 20A rail

alternatively if the board is on the 35A rail by default just put a 5830 on any single 20A rail

[sveetsnelda]

That is too much stuff.

Negative.  That's not even close to loading a 1050W PSU.

[Nolo]

cards on this rail:
+12V4@35A, +12V5@35A

board on any of the 20A rail

alternatively if the board is on the 35A rail by default just put a 5830 on any single 20A rail

That makes sense.  I guess I'm missing a more fundamental question:  How do I know which rail is which?

[BeetcoinScummer]

I can't be bothered with load balancing. That is why I always get a single-rail supply. Why don't you?

[bcpokey]

Well here's the thing, my guess is that PSU is not super high quality. The specs listed are the usual nonsense I remember seeing with low quality PSUs, notice that the total Amperage of the 12V rails combined is 150A. ?? @ that (thats like 1800W...).

Likely there is some crazy ass internal structure to this that distributes whatever load it can actually handle amongst the rails in some twisted shared fashion that isn't worth figuring out. Back when I used to be really into hardware, I counseled people all the time that just because a PSU is "1000W"+ doesn't mean it can handle any kind of load on it. My suggestion is simply get a quality PSU and then forget about it, it's worth the extra $20 by far, more than any other component (except I guess GPUs for miners).

Some people have a hard time believing me, but I ran a Seasonic X750 Gold PSU with 4 5870s overclocked at full load for a few weeks straight (before my 1200W shipped). It ran at scary hot temps, but didn't miss a beat powerwise, and once I got it transferred to a slightly less intense system, put out the sweet stuff for my second rig for months on end.

So my recommendation is to make sure you are purchasing quality, at least on a PSU.

[ssateneth]

Here's how you load balance a power supply.

Step 1: Sell the multi rail PSU on eBay
Step 2: Buy a single rail power supply
Step 3:
Step 4: Profit.

Any of the Rosewill CAPSTONE, FORTRESS, or LIGHTNING lines are exceptional quality, the same if not better than high end seasonic, corsair, etc, and they cost significantly less money. Also all CAPSTONE and LIGHTNING are rated 80PLUS GOLD and the FORTRESS line is 80PLUS Platinum.

I personally run 6 GPU's (5850 and 5870's) off of a 750W NZXT HALE90 (80plus gold) and it doesnt break a sweat. It was expensive and wasn't aware of the rosewill lines at the time, but it works great and it's also single rail.

[Nolo]

So back to the thread question.  How do I know which rail is which?   Is there a guide on the back of the PSU?  I've looked at the manual, but really didn't see it, atleast not in a way I recognized. 

[sveetsnelda]

I can't be bothered with load balancing. That is why I always get a single-rail supply. Why don't you?

Agreed.  I also can't be bothered with load balancing my house, so I run everything from a single 200 amp breaker.  If I draw too much power from an outlet, my house just burns down. 

/sarcasm


Multi-rail power supplies are there for good reason, and they aren't that big of a deal to manage.

[sveetsnelda]

So back to the thread question.  How do I know which rail is which?   Is there a guide on the back of the PSU?  I've looked at the manual, but really didn't see it, atleast not in a way I recognized. 

Can you post a picture of the PSU's label?

[Nolo]

So back to the thread question.  How do I know which rail is which?   Is there a guide on the back of the PSU?  I've looked at the manual, but really didn't see it, atleast not in a way I recognized. 

Can you post a picture of the PSU's label?

I haven't received it yet.  Supposed to be here this afternoon.  But here it is:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817121070

And here is the manual:
http://kingwin.com/products/cate/power_supplies/manual/max_series/abt_850_1050MM_manual.pdf

[superfastkyle]

Its impossible to know for sure until we see documentation but I have seen power supplies that are multi rail and only two rails contain the pci-e cables. So it may be the pcie are on the two 35 amp rails. which means you might need some molex adapters. Motherboard and cpu usually have their own rail

[malevolent]

1. You do not need 1050W for 3 HD5830 (I am assuming it is for a gaming rig with a low powered, preferably undeclocked and undervolted 1-2 core CPU), 750W will be more than enough with headroom for overclocking.
2. Also look at the brand (very important - your PSU that exploded was probably a chinese no-name/piece of crap).

I recommend this website if you're looking for PSU reviews:
http://www.jonnyguru.com/

[Nolo]

This is a Kingwin by the way.

Ok I figured it out.  

This PSU has 4 PCI-E 6pins.  

For the other 5830, should I split two 20A rails using molex to PCI-E adapters, or should I just use one of the 20A rails and split it twice?  

I've read the 5830 uses a maximum of 175 Watts.

[bcpokey]

1. You do not need 1050W for 3 HD5830 (I am assuming it is for a gaming rig with a low powered, preferably undeclocked and undervolted 1-2 core CPU), 750W will be more than enough with headroom for overclocking.
2. Also look at the brand (very important - your PSU that exploded was probably a chinese no-name/piece of crap.

I recommend this website if you're looking for PSU reviews:
http://www.jonnyguru.com/

I want to make it perfectly clear in the first line: The power ratings listed on the rails are a lie. 20A + 20A + 20A + 35A + 35A + 20A = 150A (or 1800W). The rails must in fact share power load to meet the Labels' own criteria of providing 80A across the entire 12V circuit.

I second this fellows suggestion, though it looks like it is too late. You already ordered one of the crappier units on the market, a rebranded out of date throwback:

"It's another Super Flower unit, you're looking at something inline with the Mach1 1000w but less efficient and a cheaper fan.

It shouldn't even do 80+ standard at full load and isn't even modular.

A skip if you're looking for a 1kw unit. "

Why you would want a possible repeat of your previous experience, buying another "6 rail" PSU is beyond me. Again, most of these rails are in actuality shared load (as the total AMPerage of all 12V rails is only 80A). I can't find specs on the PSU, so if I were you I'd hope that the 20A rail is set for the mobo and peripherals, while the 35A rails are for the PCI-E connectors.

If you can cancel your order and return it for a refund though, I'd highly suggest you do that. 3 5830s will run easily on a 750W which you will end up saving money on if you get even a bronze rated supply like http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371025 (one of my favs back in the day, probably still decent).

[Nolo]

Here's what the label says:

+3.3V & +5V =170W
+3.3V&+5V&+12V=1020W
+12V1~ +12V6=960W (80A)
Max Power = 1050W