Proper way to power 1x-16x usb riser?

[Starry_air]

Hi,

I bought a usb riser with a 6pin connector. It came bundled with a 6-pin to SATA adapter. I want to use it to connect an r9 390 to my motherboard (its two 16x slots are occupied by an rx480 and an rx580). I tried using the riser with the included adapter, but the system would power-up for a second, a led would flash on the riser (I was terrified when I saw it as I thought it was some kind of a short, but then I noticed the led...) and then some sort of protection would kick in and the system would shut down completely.

1. The motherboard (AsRock) has a molex socket. Should I plug in a connector from the PSU?
2. I read that it may not be a good idea to use the 6-pin to SATA adapter to power the riser. What should I use instead? Is it possible to connect a 6pin directly from the PSU?
3. Will an rx480/580 draw less power from the PCIE slot than the 390? Which would be best to use with the riser?

Thanks a lot!

[Vann]

IMO, 6-pin PCI-E risers are best powered directly using a 6-pin PCI-E connector. The second best option is to use a dual sata or molex to 6-pin adapter cable to distribute the load over 2 connectors instead of 1.

Dual sata to 6-pin connectors.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Deconn-SATA-15-Pin-Male-to-PCI-Express-6-Pin-Dual-Video-Card-Adapter-Cable/32584991290.html

Dual molex to 6-pin connectors.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4Pcs-High-Quality-2-x-Molex-To-PCI-E-Power-Adapter-4Pin-4-Pin-6-Pin/32759205876.html

[Starry_air]

Thanks! So I will power it directly from the PSU, as I have one 6+2 connector unused.

Should I also plug in the molex into the motherboard?

[Vann]

Thanks! So I will power it directly from the PSU, as I have one 6+2 connector unused.

Should I also plug in the molex into the motherboard?

Technically if you are using powered risers it's not necessary to use the motherboard PCI-E supplemental power. If you have multiple cards, some motherboards won't boot without the 4-pin molex supplemental power connected. If you are only using one card, I would say try it without the molex connector first and see if it boots.

[toptek]

I use Sever PSU with http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-PicoPSU-150-XT-150W-12Volt-DC-DC-ATX-Mini-ITX-Power-Supply-FREE-Shipping-/371962175719?hash=item569aac60e7:g:-NEAAOSwDiBZJ40p i make my own cables and buy these http://www.ebay.com/itm/6pin-PCI-E-Express-USB3-0-1x-to-16x-Extender-Riser-Card-Adapter-SATA-Power-Cable-/322579370223?hash=item4b1b3a90ef:g:aDIAAOSwKRJZbLVH PCI-E-Express  Riser Cards and plug it all into a 2400 watt Server PSU . I don't use these anymore after i found out plugging it All into the Server pSU is safer and i can .   http://www.ebay.com/itm/18AWG-CPU-8pin-to-2x-6-2-pin-6-pin-8-pin-Power-Splitter-Cable-PCIE-PCI-Express-/362079822992?hash=item544da3a490:g:X3wAAOSw0ThZnZc~  or any cables that share power form the video card or the Riser card and plug it all direct into the Server PSU ... no in between cables ....all plugs have there own power.

You can buy the PicoPSU kitts here in the US if you don't want to make your own cables http://www.parallelminer.com/product-tag/atx-power-adapter/

or here on the forums

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1864539.0

AS for a Proper way is there really one ? ...

[AzCrTe]

Also depends on motherboard - on one of mine, I have to plug in 2 molex connections into the motherboard if I use more than 3 GPU's

[toptek]

two of my mother boards have those plugs i don't use them at all you don't need to if you use powered raiser cards .

i use these two boards and they run fine not plugging the 2 or 3  molex plugs in on the mother board the key is you need to power the Raiser cards some how ...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BIOSTAR-TB350-BTC-AM4-AMD-B350-SATA-6Gb-s-USB-3-1-ATX-AMD-Motherboard/302393834488?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649


and this board

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157724

so I'll ask again

is there really a Proper way to power GPU RIGS ...?...

[bouldou]

I suggest you read this post, it's really well explained :

https://forum.ethereum.org/discussion/9495/the-correct-way-of-powering-the-risers-for-the-470-480/p7

 

[fanatic26]

Ill never understand why people ask if they should plug stuff in. If the connector is there, it is there for a reason. Is it really that hard to just plug it in?

I mean you dont NEED a seat belt to drive a car....but its probably a good idea to use it right?

[fanatic26]

I suggest you read this post, it's really well explained :

https://forum.ethereum.org/discussion/9495/the-correct-way-of-powering-the-risers-for-the-470-480/p7

 

The only problem with that post is that it is wrong. There is no danger as long as you dont overload a single string of connectors by putting too many on. There is nothing wrong with the molex or sata power connectors, they all work just fine. Also I have done actual amp clamp testing and an rx470 undervolted and setup for mining pulls under 30 watts from the powered riser....hell an overclocked 1070 only pulls about 35 watts. The sata power plugs are rated up to 4.5amp (or 54 watts) so you are only putting an 80% load on the connector itself. As long as you dont try to run a bunch of risers off of one string of plugs coming out of the PSU you wont have any problems

[toptek]

Ill never understand why people ask if they should plug stuff in. If the connector is there, it is there for a reason. Is it really that hard to just plug it in?

I mean you dont NEED a seat belt to drive a car....but its probably a good idea to use it right?

The exact reason i don't ask why ....... good point . when i do ask some thing it is because i can't find what I'm  looking for either in books or on the Webb ... or I can find it but I need help understanding why I would if three different sources tell me three different ways .. ...

[AzCrTe]

two of my mother boards have those plugs i don't use them at all you don't need to if you use powered raiser cards .

i use these two boards and they run fine not plugging the 2 or 3  molex plugs in on the mother board the key is you need to power the Raiser cards some how ...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BIOSTAR-TB350-BTC-AM4-AMD-B350-SATA-6Gb-s-USB-3-1-ATX-AMD-Motherboard/302393834488?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649


and this board

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157724

so I'll ask again

is there really a Proper way to power GPU RIGS ...?...

question - what GPU's you running in the ASRock and PSU? I have 6 x 1080's off a 1200W PSU

and the answer you are looking for is yes  - it should be powered off a 208-240V outlet

[bouldou]

I suggest you read this post, it's really well explained :

https://forum.ethereum.org/discussion/9495/the-correct-way-of-powering-the-risers-for-the-470-480/p7

 

The only problem with that post is that it is wrong. There is no danger as long as you dont overload a single string of connectors by putting too many on. There is nothing wrong with the molex or sata power connectors, they all work just fine. Also I have done actual amp clamp testing and an rx470 undervolted and setup for mining pulls under 30 watts from the powered riser....hell an overclocked 1070 only pulls about 35 watts. The sata power plugs are rated up to 4.5amp (or 54 watts) so you are only putting an 80% load on the connector itself. As long as you dont try to run a bunch of risers off of one string of plugs coming out of the PSU you wont have any problems

Thanks for your interesting explanation

[Undefined31415]

I suggest you read this post, it's really well explained :

https://forum.ethereum.org/discussion/9495/the-correct-way-of-powering-the-risers-for-the-470-480/p7

 

The only problem with that post is that it is wrong. There is no danger as long as you dont overload a single string of connectors by putting too many on. There is nothing wrong with the molex or sata power connectors, they all work just fine. Also I have done actual amp clamp testing and an rx470 undervolted and setup for mining pulls under 30 watts from the powered riser....hell an overclocked 1070 only pulls about 35 watts. The sata power plugs are rated up to 4.5amp (or 54 watts) so you are only putting an 80% load on the connector itself. As long as you dont try to run a bunch of risers off of one string of plugs coming out of the PSU you wont have any problems

Perhaps SATA powered risers work fine with your specific configurations. However, SATA connectors are not rated for the same current that 6-pin connectors can handle. Given that certain cards, such as the RX 480, have gone over-spec as far as the power pulled through an x16 slot itself (instead of the onboard PCIe power connectors), it's definitely a possibility that some cards may push SATA-powered risers beyond the 54W rating. Sure, some quality connectors can likely handle going over-spec, but it remains less than ideal for 24/7 operation.

[toptek]

I'm not asking a question by that comment... it was meant more there is no Proper way to power 1x-16x usb riser because there is so many different ways of doing it a few don't work any more or it depends how good the wires and riser cards are ..


i have three RIGS

two are fully built as far as i want to take them 4 card rigs I have a Mix of AMD 470 to 570 but the third rig will be when it's done  all NV cards sense i refuse to pay 309 buck for a new AMD 570 4gb  even more for a new 470 or 480 on newegg or any place ive found that sells new not used cards,Sense i can buy a new NV GTX 1060 6GB for 289 or 3gb for 219 or less . and when the Vega 56 came out I missed getting one of the 399.00 $ cards by 2 mins ,. and i don't like mixing different brand cards ( AMD NV ).. i have done it, it does works but can be a real pain. ...


I won't power them any other way but over a 208-240V outlet with one of these http://www.parallelminer.com/product/delta-2400watt-power-supply-platinum-94-200-240v-dps-2400ab/ Per RIG, i know it's over kill PER RIG  but I'm thinking  later on I might add more cards, get one of the 12 slot boards and max them, who knows ..


PS: I did try each board with 6  cards to make sure there was no issue with Six cards, and it was temping, an i think i would have done it with Six cards each rig  if the AMD Cards were back at 199 a card.

what GPU's you running in the ASRock and PSU?

CPU .. PSU Is linked above ...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Pentium-G3260-Dual-Core-Haswell-Processor-3-3GHz-5-0GT-s-3MB-LGA-1150-/192273175810?hash=item2cc45fd502:g:06sAAOSwtTVZjJGc

the cheaper OEM version ...for the CPu.

[pepemonster]

Any riser is fine tbh. As long as the adapters you're using are the ones with yellow and black wires (those are thicker compared to the rgb ones), you are good to go.
The best riser would be the one that matches with the perifs of your PSU.
As for the molex connector, if you aren't experiencing any trouble with your rig without it plugged, then don't worry about it.

[toptek]

Any riser is fine tbh. As long as the adapters you're using are the ones with yellow and black wires (those are thicker compared to the rgb ones), you are good to go.
The best riser would be the one that matches with the perifs of your PSU.
As for the molex connector, if you aren't experiencing any trouble with your rig without it plugged, then don't worry about it.

if you gonna go that route you for sure want 14 to 16 Weight wires they usually come with 16 weight but be care full, Ive seen some sold as 16 wire with the black and yellow cable. and it came with 18, not good ...

an by what your saying that's the 16 wire .