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Is it safe to...

N

Nuzzles

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Apr 13, 2005
Messages
1,787
...run a system with a +12 of 11.64 - 70?

Sorry, I'm a total n00bz0r when it comes to PSU's and shite.

Btw, this is according to PC Alert 4 and with a MSI K7N2 Mobo, no multimeter has been used because I don't have one. :p

EDIT: Here's a pic of PC Alert :

voltages1be.jpg


Didn't notice it went that low. :|
 
It's saying 11.73 - 11.79.

I guess the BIOS would be a better place to go from....Sooo are these okay?
 
hey, software monitors, even in bios are notoriously inaccurate. I only trust readings from a multimeter. but lets run some numbers. 12-5% =11.4 so you are within 5% which I consider the absolute worst case allowable voltage "droop" by ATX specs, the 12 volts can swing from 11.4 to 12.6 and still be inside the window of +/- 5% on positive voltages. See if you have a friend who owns and knows how to use a multimeter and read the 12v off an unused molex connector, the yellow wire is the 12v. LMK what you find out.
 
exactly

software is good at relative values to observe a range of fluctuation or a change in that range over time, but arent good a definitive values thus need to be calibrated with a physical measurement, they could all be too high or low by some unknown amount
 
I noticed the PSU on my board at work was a full volt off on the +12 rail yesterday. I happened to go in the bios and see it reporting 11.3v, so I pulled the multimeter out and measured 12.4v while it was still reporting 11.3v in the bios. Spend the $20 and get a cheap multimeter if you really want to find out what is going on.
 
Okay thanks guys. I'm going to buy one later on today. I'll let you know what i find out. :)

How do I measure the 3.3V and 5V?

Thanks,
Nuzzles
 
yellow +12V
red +5V
orange +3.3V

measure from one wire to black (ground)
youll likely have to probe the back to test the +3.3V
 
Ice Czar said:
yellow +12V
red +5V
orange +3.3V

measure from one wire to black (ground)
youll likely have to probe the back to test the +3.3V
Click to expand...


Okay, so I put the multimeter on oen of these, and then onto a black wire?

What exactly do you mean by probing the back?

Thanks. :)
 
well its easy to access an unused 4 pin molex while the supply is powering the board and insert the probes in the front of it
so there is the +12V & +5V


but there are only +3.3V orange wires in the main mobo connector
(unless youve got a 6 pin AGP Pro connector which is very unlikely)
so you need to insert the probe into the back of the main connector to get a metal contact, so into the side with the wires
 
I usually test my lines by using the molex for +5 and +12. You can ground to one of the black wires in the molex or anywhere on the case. I'm not exactly sure of how acurate grounding to the case is though. I can usually get away with shoving the probe down by the orange wire n the atx while on, and finding a ground. It all depends on the size of the probe and how tight the atx connector area is.
 
starting up the supply without a real or typical load on it isnt very accurate
but can be done by simply shorting the main mobo connector from the green wire to any of the black

power on \ PW_ON \ Green > COM \ Ground \ Black

it might not even start without some load
generally an optical or HDD is enough
 
sandmanx said:
I usually test my lines by using the molex for +5 and +12. You can ground to one of the black wires in the molex or anywhere on the case. I'm not exactly sure of how acurate grounding to the case is though. I can usually get away with shoving the probe down by the orange wire n the atx while on, and finding a ground. It all depends on the size of the probe and how tight the atx connector area is.
Click to expand...

USUALLY while it's on? have you had problems doing it while it's on before?

Thanks both of ya. ;)
 
well you want to exercise some care you wouldnt want to say short anything
or cause an ESD event I wear a wrist strap when working inside any case
(well most any modern case Im pretty cavalier with antiques :p )

usually you can get a good contact to take the reading,

personally I establish a good ground to an unused molex and then probe the back rather than try to get a ground contact to the case or the back of the main connector
 
You're confusing me now...

"but can be done by simply shorting the main mobo connector from the green wire to any of the black"

"well you want to exercise some care you wouldnt want to say short anything"

:p
 
in the order above

first senerio your testing the supply seperate from the board
to start it you short the green wire to the black
its all of +5V a paperclip would do, gives you access to rhe front of the main mobo connector, but with no real load on that rail the measurements can be way off

second senerio PSU is actually powering the mobo and you want to exerciae care not to accidentally short anything by say dropping a screwdriver, spilling something, sticking the DMM probes where they shouldnt be ;)

the mobo itself starts the supply using the +5VSB (standby) rail
which is always powering the mobo so it can softpower on by keynoard, Wake on LAN wake on WAN ect

and why when you say swap out ram you either need to turn the PSU off at the back or disconnect it, yet ideally leave it grounded or at least the case
but gurantee the board isnt powered by the +5VSB
discussed in full here > http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=761614
 
Oooh, okay, Understood!

Once again, thanks. Thanks alot! you guys are really helpful. :)

((I'm supprised I didn't fuck it up last night...Was taking the mobo out for wire management etc. The screwdriver had somehow been magnatized. :eek: Sooo I had undone all the screws done the cabling, and then going to put the mobo back in (this is when I actually realised it was magnatized), of course it was simple as to put the screws in, but one decided to jump off the screwdrver and into a place i couldn't reach. The only way to get it was putting the screwdriver there and pick it up XD. To my supprise, no harm done. Or maybe I'm being a noob....))

EDIT: Just read the bit on Latent Defect's....I hope it isn't one of them...: x
 
well magnetized screwdrivers arent all that bad, I use em
but with care

electromagnetic fields obey whats called the inverse square law
and their field strength isnt all that great to start will normally
you always try to avoid direct contact with chips or contacts of course
but a mildly magentized screwdriver is pretty safe with care
of course I do have 6 different tweezers in my tool box :p

(my favorites are a 5" long one with a bent end with say 2mm flat ends and a small one which comes to needle points and actually allows you to grab a screw by its head edge and from inside the slot)
 
The screw was on a couple of those little silver things (sorry, really tired and can't think of the name -_-)....So wouldn't the magnatism have gone through the screw and to the mobo?

If so, would it have no affect if it was midly magnatised?
 
Multimeter

This is the multimeter I will probably buy...This should be fine to test everything with right?

Okay another question, is it okay to cut off the floppy powercord?
 
sure as long as there is no potential for the ends to short

thats a basic affordable DMM
likely a good choice for the basics we are talking about and your budget
good RMS multimeters are a whole different class of accuracy but more to the point price, I doubt you want or need a $300 DMM :p
 
*would rather buy a new graphics card with a PSU that he knows is reliable*

((that's if it's $300 American $'s(or Euro's...:D Most currancies are better than NZ. >.> :p))
 
Question : How good are the amp ratings for my PSU?

+3.3V - 28A, +5V - 40A, +12V 8 18A, -5V - 1.0A, -12 - 1.0A, +5Vsb - 3.0A
 
its an older ATX12V v1.2\1.3 (not a hybrid v1.3) supply geared toward mobos that power the CPU and AGP off the +3.3\5V rail (which is generally capacity related)

modern graphics cards often use auxillary +12V power
P4 mobos and AMD mobo's w\ an auxillary 4 pin +12V connector on them will power the CPU off the +12V rail
PCI-E is all about +12V amps

thus its suitability is now quite limited
 
Ice Czar said:
its an older ATX12V v1.2\1.3 (not a hybrid v1.3) supply geared toward mobos that power the CPU and AGP off the +3.3\5V rail (which is generally capacity related)

modern graphics cards often use auxillary +12V power
P4 mobos and AMD mobo's w\ an auxillary 4 pin +12V connector on them will power the CPU off the +12V rail
PCI-E is all about +12V amps

thus its suitability is now quite limited
Click to expand...

Well, I don't see myself getting a modern graphics card (if you mean Xxxx and 6xxx cards :p) anytime soon. Nor PCI-E. Way out of my budget. XD
I have an auxillary 4 pin +12 connector (I think XD) on my mobo, so yeah. Does the AGP still get powered off the +3.3/5V rail, or off the +12?
 
OKay, just got my multimeter.

What do I set it to, to take the readings?

And which plugs do I plug the cords into?

Thanks

EDIT : Okay figured it out

+12V = 11.96-99
+5V = 5.07
+3.3V = 3.34

Not bad for a $50 (NZ) PSU.
 
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