20 or 24pins

stix2415 · 06-26-2009, 07:15 AM

guyz.. im kind of confused about the 20 or 24 pins plugged into the motherboard.. right now, my motherboard is plugged with the 20pins only and its running fine for about 3months already and theres no problem so far,.. and there is a slot for the 4pin.. I didnt plugged it, i remembered last time, when i plugged the 4 pins, i got the BSOD.. (im not sure, if it was because of the PSU)..

should i try to plug the 24pins or should I leave it 20pins..? thanks..

was just wondering what should i get if i plug the extra 4 pins

PS: my psu is HEC Raptor R500 @ 500W

**speedster123** · 06-26-2009, 03:53 PM

Power Supply Information and Selection

scroll down

stix2415 · 06-26-2009, 10:28 PM

Quote:

The ATX standard has two different versions of the main power cable: the original 20 pin cable, and the the newer 24 pin cable. The 24 pin cable is just the 20 pin cable with 4 extra wires added to the end to provide extra current. If your power supply main power cable and motherboard main power connector both have the same number of pins then they'll (of course) fit together just fine. But what happens if they don't match? If you plug a 24 pin power cable into a 20 pin motherboard then it will work fine but you often can't get them to physically fit together because something gets in the way. If they don't fit together then you can get an adapter cable which converts a 24 pin power cable into a 20 pin cable. You can always plug a 20 pin power cable into a 24 pin motherboard but whether it works over the long haul depends on how much current your motherboard draws. Those extra 4 pins provide more current carrying capacity. Plugging a 20 pin cable into a 24 pin motherboard can strain the 20 pins that you're using. If the motherboard draws too much current then it will overheat the connector which can burn or melt it. There are adapters which convert 20 pin cables into 24 pin cables but they don't solve the problem and can cause problems of their own. Many newer power supplies come with a 20+4 power cable which has a 24 pin connector which can be split into two pieces: a 20 pin piece, and a 4 pin piece. This kind of power cable is fully compatible with both 20 and 24 pin motherboards. If you're buying a new power supply then try to get one with a 20+4 power cable.

I was able to read this information, my motherboard is a 24PIN slots.. and I just plugged a 20Pins (wherein my current PSU is a 20+4PIN).. im going to buy a 20+4PIN (a much better PSU) soon, and I was just wondering if it will be compatible, if I plug a 24PIN to my 24PIN slot motherboard.. or should i stick to my trick, still plug only the 20Pins..

**speedster123** · 06-27-2009, 04:11 AM

Quote:

I was just wondering if it will be compatible, if I plug a 24PIN to my 24PIN slot motherboard..

thats the way

**Tyree** · 06-27-2009, 07:42 AM

If your current PSU has a 20+4 pin connector...CONNECT the 4pin connector!

06-26-2009, 07:15 AM	#1 (permalink)
stix2415 Registered User Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Philippines Posts: 41 OS: Windows Vista 32-BIT My System	20 or 24pins guyz.. im kind of confused about the 20 or 24 pins plugged into the motherboard.. right now, my motherboard is plugged with the 20pins only and its running fine for about 3months already and theres no problem so far,.. and there is a slot for the 4pin.. I didnt plugged it, i remembered last time, when i plugged the 4 pins, i got the BSOD.. (im not sure, if it was because of the PSU).. should i try to plug the 24pins or should I leave it 20pins..? thanks.. was just wondering what should i get if i plug the extra 4 pins PS: my psu is HEC Raptor R500 @ 500W Last edited by stix2415; 06-26-2009 at 07:17 AM. Reason: additional info

06-26-2009, 03:53 PM	#2 (permalink)
speedster123 Mentor Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: United States-New York-Long Island Posts: 5,216 OS: xp pro SP3	Re: 20 or 24pins Power Supply Information and Selection scroll down __________________

06-27-2009, 07:42 AM	#5 (permalink)
Tyree Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: May 2009 Location: Illinois Posts: 5,525 OS: XP Pro-7RC-Mandriva My System	Re: 20 or 24pins If your current PSU has a 20+4 pin connector...CONNECT the 4pin connector! __________________ Posting your PC specs will help us to help you quicker and more efficiently.