PCI-E plugs on PSU

[IDversusEGO]

I have a corsair vx450 and am thinkign of adding a 5830 or 5850 to my system. I only have one 6 pin PCIE plug and the cards I have seen require 2. Can I use an adpater or splitter or do I need a new PSU? The wattage is OK for the setup I have but if I got a new one I might get a bit bigger. Here is what I currently have...

abit ip35-e
Intel q6600
4x2gb ram (8gb total)
2 SATA drives
2 DVD-RW drives
older Xfi sound card
fan controller and 3 120mm case fans

according to the antec PSU calculator I need like 421 watts of max power.

 

[RandomUserAZ]

A 5850 might be to much for a 450W with all those devices, but Corsair makes great PSUs and might be OK.

I'd try with a power splitter first, though, as they are cheap.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812198016

 

[Camberwell]

I had a VX450 and it's a great psu, but to ensure the stability of your whole system I would do what I did and sell it and upgrade to a TX650 (or even a TX750). Both have two 6+2 pci-e plugs and will run any single card you can buy (except maybe a GTX 480!)...

 

[IDversusEGO]

thanks guys. I think I will start with a splitter while I shop for the PSU. I have been very happy with this corsair so I am sure that another one will follow. I kind of would like a modular one this time around since I have at least 3 leads stuffed behind the drive cages.

 

[Camberwell]

thanks guys. I think I will start with a splitter while I shop for the PSU. I have been very happy with this corsair so I am sure that another one will follow. I kind of would like a modular one this time around since I have at least 3 leads stuffed behind the drive cages.

Cool, let us know how you get on with the splitter. Otherwise any Corsair modular (HX range) from the HX520 upwards would be a good buy....

 

[IDversusEGO]

I grabbed one of these locally. I liked the idea of taking an unused lead from the PSU instead of splitting the existing one...plus its what htey had on hand, cheaper, and I am impatient. Turns out Gigabyte liked that idea too because when I opened the box on my new 5830 I saw that they had 2 of these in there with the card. LOL, whatever, it was $4 and frys has a good return policy.

 

[dccmadams]

I ran a gtx 280 on a vx450 psu with no problem. A 5850 uses less power.