500w cable for 650w PSU?

[Umegadem]

I am currently trounleshooting a computer for my friend. He forgotten to give me the cable to power the whole computer and will it be ok to use the power cable for my computer(500w)(some PSU from Unknown PSU maker which is 80+ bronze) for my friend VS650 PSU? Or is it better for me to take it from him

[Moonzy]

3 minutes ago, Umegadem said:

I am currently trounleshooting a computer for my friend. He forgotten to give me the cable to power the whole computer and will it be ok to use the power cable for my computer(500w)(some PSU from Unknown PSU maker which is 80+ bronze) for my friend VS650 PSU? Or is it better for me to take it from him

it should be fine

if you want to be sure, and know basic knowledge about electronics, you can try this

Spoiler

crack open the plug and find the fuse, and multiply the voltage of your country (110v or 240V) with the ampere written on it, ie (5A or 8A)

it should exceed the wattage you're trying to use

ie. 8x110 = 880W, 5x240 = 1200W

 

 

[manikyath]

500 watt cables....

does ANYONE make 500 watt rated wall power cables?

 

all schuko cables (europe) have to be rated 3680 watts, i'm not sure how things are in the rest of the world tho.

[Umegadem]

3 minutes ago, manikyath said:

500 watt cables....

does ANYONE make 500 watt rated wall power cables?

 

all schuko cables (europe) have to be rated 3680 watts, i'm not sure how things are in the rest of the world tho.

Wait... So u r telling me the cable that I'm using for a 500w PSU can be used for any PSU?

[manikyath]

3 minutes ago, Umegadem said:

Wait... So u r telling me the cable that I'm using for a 500w PSU can be used for any PSU?

you mean the cable you plug in the wall right?

 

if that cable is only rated 500 watts its actually not legal to be sold...

[Umegadem]

1 minute ago, manikyath said:

you mean the cable you plug in the wall right?

 

if that cable is only rated 500 watts its actually not legal to be sold...

Nonono, idk the rating. But the electrical current here from the wall is 230V, 50HZ ac. This cable I'm using is currently used for my 500w PSU. Is it ok for me to use the same cable for a 650W PSU?

[manikyath]

2 minutes ago, Umegadem said:

Nonono, idk the rating. But the electrical current here from the wall is 230V, 50HZ ac. This cable I'm using is currently used for my 500w PSU. Is it ok for me to use the same cable for a 650W PSU?

they're a standard cable, the cable that gets packaged with your 500 watt PSU is the exact same cable as a 1200 watt PSU, a 40 watt monitor, and a 2000 watt watercooker.

[Godlygamer23]

1 hour ago, manikyath said:

they're a standard cable, the cable that gets packaged with your 500 watt PSU is the exact same cable as a 1200 watt PSU, a 40 watt monitor, and a 2000 watt watercooker.

I'm pretty sure power cords have different wire gauges, and in the case of SUper Flower's 2000W power supply, they use a different connector.

https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/SuperFlower/SF-2000F14HP/3.html

[manikyath]

1 minute ago, Godlygamer23 said:

I'm pretty sure power cords have different wire gauges.

they arent supposed to. (at least in europe) you cannot go from a thicker to a thinner gauge without placing a fuse in between. schuko plugs dont have fuses, so your cable has to be the same gauge as the wire in the wall => 2.5mm => 16 amps => 3680 watts.

 

now, that doesnt mean i totally dont have a 0.75mm power cord with a schuko plug, but those just arent "according to the standard" meaning if they start a house fire, insurance is like "sorry bro".

[Godlygamer23]

Just now, manikyath said:

they arent supposed to. (at least in europe) you cannot go from a thicker to a thinner gauge without placing a fuse in between. schuko plugs dont have fuses, so your cable has to be the same gauge as the wire in the wall => 2.5mm => 16 amps => 3680 watts.

 

now, that doesnt mean i totally dont have a 0.75mm power cord with a schuko plug, but those just arent "according to the standard" meaning if they start a house fire, insurance is like "sorry bro".

I didn't say that it would be thinner. What I'm stating is that it's not necessarily true that the cords will be the same. If the company is producing something that will handle a lot of current, they might include a thicker power cable to reduce electrical resistance, so the cable doesn't get so hot which is something to bear in mind.

 

And just to give you a real world example, the cord coming out of my monitor is thinner than the one that came with my power supply. They're designed to handle x amount of current, and if the unit only consumes so much power, the company can include a thinner cable because that's all that's required. And FYI, the cables for both the PSU and the monitor are using the same connector.

[manikyath]

Just now, Godlygamer23 said:

I didn't say that it would be thinner. What I'm stating is that it's not necessarily true that the cords will be the same. If the company is producing something that will handle a lot of current, they might include a thicker power cable to reduce electrical resistance, so the cable doesn't get so hot which is something to bear in mind.

 

And just to give you a real world example, the cord coming out of my monitor is thinner than the one that came with my power supply. They're designed to handle x amount of current, and if the unit only consumes so much power, the company can include a thinner cable because that's all that's required. And FYI, the cables for both the PSU and the monitor are using the same connector.

so... it may be europe going crazy over standardization again, but literally every one of my power cables (with the exception of one, but that one is that crappy even the plug isnt the same size as the socket) is the same exact thickness. some are 20 years old, others are brand new. you can actually get slammed pretty hard here for producing shitty cables here.

 

everything schuko needs to be 2.5mm, because if its schuko, it means its rated for 16 amps, no matter what the cable comes with.

if companies insist cheaping out, we have europlug that goes down to 0.75mm, and has a much lower wattage rating.

[Godlygamer23]

4 minutes ago, manikyath said:

so... it may be europe going crazy over standardization again, but literally every one of my power cables (with the exception of one, but that one is that crappy even the plug isnt the same size as the socket) is the same exact thickness. some are 20 years old, others are brand new. you can actually get slammed pretty hard here for producing shitty cables here.

 

everything schuko needs to be 2.5mm, because if its schuko, it means its rated for 16 amps, no matter what the cable comes with.

if companies insist cheaping out, we have europlug that goes down to 0.75mm, and has a much lower wattage rating.

That requirement might be to cover their butts as much as possible as well.

 

I know the cord on my vacuum cleaner is pretty shitty(it's a budget unit), despite it pulling ~1200W - or more when you first turn on the unit. It causes the cord to get fairly warm after a short amount of time.

[manikyath]

1 minute ago, Godlygamer23 said:

That requirement might be to cover their butts as much as possible as well.

 

I know the cord on my vacuum cleaner is pretty shitty(it's a budget unit), despite it pulling ~1200W - or more when you first turn on the unit. It causes the cord to get fairly warm after a short amount of time.

well, vaccuum cleaner cords are actually one of the biggest points of failure in a house. usually vaccuum cleaners are europlug here, which means they can go up to ~1600 watts, but for the love of god do those cables not like that. 0.75mm cables dont like to be long, and somehow the vaccuum cleaner folks see no problem in hooking up a 4 ohm cable to a unit that'll be pulling 6 amps trough that: 144 watts in the cable right there.

 

and thats why vaccuum cleaner cables curl up over time.

[ThomasD]

Certain ultra high wattage PSUs may ship with special power cords, but most everything else ships with a standard cord intended to handle as much current as a standard wall outlet can supply.

 

From a supply standpoint it makes no sense to do otherwise.  And from a safety standpoint you would be crazy to provide anything not rated for the usual maximum.  

 

Which here in the US is 15 amps at 110 volts.