Question: Power requirements for a PCIe USB 3.0 card?
Question: Power requirements for a PCIe USB 3.0 card?
I purchased a Startech PEXUSB3S7 PCIe USB expansion card and the manual advises connecting SATA power to the card for adequate power delivery to each USB 3.0 port. The card's power is supplied via a SATA 15 pin terminal. My Dell Optiplex Plus 7020 has a 260W Bronze Power Supply with outputs for a six-pin and an eight-pin female connector. I’ve located many adapters converting 15 pin SATA to a six-pin connector, but I’m unable to find one that fits a six-pin male connector for the power output. Could anyone suggest a solution for connecting the card to the PSU to obtain the necessary power? Thank you for your help.
Welcome to the forums, newcomer! I've purchased a Startech PEXUSB3S7 PCIe USB Expansion Card. Is this the add-on card you're using?
If yes, then this is the SATA connector;
Dell Optiplex Plus 7020. Which version of the Dell Optiplex Plus 7020 do you have?
You may wish to reach out to the seller of this listing:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/325408729034
to check if the harness fits your connector.
Hi
@Lutfij
Thank you for your reply.
Your photo indicates the correct USB card. My Dell Optiplex uses a Mini Tower (MT) design.
The eBay listing seems to suggest it could function as I need - likely a mislabeling of 5 pin HDD SATA for 15 pin HDD SATA. Since I'm in the UK, it might be more challenging to get this.
I think the title mentioning a 5 pin HDD SATA might be a mistake, it should probably be a 15 pin HDD SATA. Your device actually has 15 pins, but the harness connects to a 6-pin PCIe connector that's specific to your motherboard (provided by Dell). Only 5 pins are connected in that harness and then pass through to the SATA power connector. As I mentioned before, reach out to the seller to confirm completely before proceeding. Getting the wrong harness could result in costly problems if it damages your build.
Thank you for clarifying the pin details. Unfortunately, the information about available power output on the motherboard isn't visible because the optical drive is already utilizing it. My alternative would be to draw power from the sockets—specifically the 6-pin and 8-pin connectors directly connected to the PSU. I'm uncertain if this setup will fit these sockets.
PCI-E power connectors provide only a +12V supply. If the card requires +5V as well, then using a PCI-E connector won't work.
Does your power supply include 4-pin MOLEX connectors? If yes, you can use MOLEX for a SATA adapter.
For example, this product:
https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-3-P...B00STNUB04
Both MOLEX and SATA offer +12V and +5V rails. PCI-E (for GPU) and EPS (for CPU) only have a +12V rail. While 20/24-pin ATX has all the necessary rails (+12V, +5V, +3.3V, 5VSB, -12V).
Sadly, there isn't a 4-pin MOLEX output available. It was the initial choice I considered, and I also discovered cables for connecting it to SATA. Are there any details about the voltage needs of the USB hub that you'd like to know?
Based on the SATA power connector it has, all 15 pins are soldered onto the PCB. It seems it likely requires every voltage rail.
Also, USB functions from a +5V rail; +12V is unnecessary for USB.
The setup doesn’t look ideal because your custom PSU only provides three cables:
* 8-pin for MoBo
* 6-pin for GPU
* 4-pin for CPU
Since the 8-pin pinout for MoBo isn’t clear, you can’t simply connect a PCI-E to SATA adapter.
But if your ODD is powered via SATA, you can purchase a SATA Y-splitter like this one:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Multibao-Female...B08ZSN5CGF