Multi plug gpu cable

[Billy Pilgrim]

I have a PSU that has PCIe cables with multiple plugs at the end. If I plug my GPU into the second one instead of the first one should there be any type of difference?

[Fasauceome]

Not at all

[fabafaba]

No, the plugs are running parallel and you can use whichever one you want.

[Billy Pilgrim]

5 minutes ago, fasauceome said:

Not at all

 

3 minutes ago, fabafaba said:

No, the plugs are running parallel and you can use whichever one you want.

So why does it seem like there are fewer wire going to the second plug?

[LukeSavenije]

1 minute ago, Billy Pilgrim said:

 

So why does it seem like there are fewer wire going to the second plug?

weird. normally pcie 8 pin is rated for 320 per cable

[fabafaba]

2 minutes ago, Billy Pilgrim said:

So why does it seem like there are fewer wire going to the second plug?

Can you post a picture? I've never seen a dual connector cable that's missing wires. Maybe they didn't wire up the sense line for the second plug.

[Billy Pilgrim]

1 minute ago, LukeSavenije said:

weird. normally pcie 8 pin is rated for 320 per cable

Should I send a picture?

[LukeSavenije]

3 minutes ago, Billy Pilgrim said:

Should I send a picture?

you could. but know that I'm a general pc nerd, not specificly a psu nerd

[Billy Pilgrim]

8 minutes ago, fabafaba said:

Can you post a picture? I've never seen a dual connector cable that's missing wires. Maybe they didn't wire up the sense line for the second plug.

 

4 minutes ago, LukeSavenije said:

you could. but know that I'm a general pc nerd, not specificly a psu nerd

Left plug is the second one.

[fabafaba]

The two-pin conncector has a ground and a sense line taken from the 6 pin part, but that's not a problem.

[Billy Pilgrim]

Just now, fabafaba said:

The two-pin conncector has a ground and a sense line taken from the 6 pin part, but that's not a problem.

what does the sense line do?

[schwellmo92]

Just now, Billy Pilgrim said:

what does the sense line do?

You have the option of 6 pin or 8 pin with that, depending on what your card needs.

[fabafaba]

9 minutes ago, Billy Pilgrim said:

what does the sense line do?

It senses the voltage on the connector end. The 8 pin connector uses two sense lines and the 6 pin only one. In your case, the two lines for the second plug are running off the same wire, but that's not a problem.

[Billy Pilgrim]

1 minute ago, fabafaba said:

It senses the voltage on the connector end. The 8 pin connector uses two sense lines and the 6 pin only one. In your case, the two lines for the second plug are running off the same wire, but that's not a problem.

If this does not have any effect, then why do 8 pin connectors have 2 sense lines?

[fabafaba]

1 minute ago, Billy Pilgrim said:

If this does not have any effect, then why do 8 pin connectors have 2 sense lines?

The PCI-E pin spec deosn't make a whole lot of sense and I have no idea why the spec requires two.

The two sense lines are measuring the 12V input to, if necessary, allow the PSU to compensate for the voltage drop across the wires. One sense line should actually be all it needs to monitor the voltage. In my photo you can see that the two sense lines on the 8 pin are shorted in the PSU. So for measuring the voltage drop, it makes no difference if the sense lines meet in the PSU, or in the connector before they get to the PSU. You don't have to worry about using the second connector and that it only has one effective sense line.

 

Here you see the connector from the pin-side, the wires come out the back.

As you can see, the connector is plugged in and the PSU is powered on.

And here, the two sense lines are shorted and I had no problems so far.

[Guest]

On 12/17/2018 at 8:40 AM, Billy Pilgrim said:

 

Left plug is the second one.

There isn't fewer wires going to the second connector.  It's the same number of wires.  It's doubled because they have to go from the first connector to the second.

 

It doesn't matter which connector you use.  Power is going to get where it needs to go regardless.