How to Connect a Graphics Card Correctly

Do you want to know how to connect graphics card correctly to the source? You are on the right spot to know the answer of this question.

Powering your graphics card properly isn’t as easy as it sounds. More and more manufacturers warn of how a bad connection can have catastrophic consequences on the power supply or on the graphics card itself.

In this article, we will teach you how to properly connect a graphics card, and especially high-power graphics cards. Even if you think you know how to assemble a graph, not everything goes. We explain why?

Power Limits for Cables and Connectors

The cables we use to connect the graphics card to the power supply don’t support unlimited power, and neither do the connectors.

According to Intel’s ATX standard, using 18 AWG wiring (the most common thickness in power supplies) supports approximately 6-8 amps per connector pin.

See Also: How Long does a Graphics Card Last

Multiplying it by 12V voltage, we are talking about between 72W and 96W for each power pin.

This is not bad at all since it leads to a single 8-pin PCI Express connector (it has 3 power pins, not 4). It is used in powerful graphics cards, can handle between 216W and 288W on its own.

Let’s keep in mind that the PCI standard speaks of about 150W per connector, and graphics cards are designed based on it, so we have room to spare.

So what is the problem? We are implying that simply using as many connectors as the graph needs we will not have any problem, what is the point of this article then? The thing is, unfortunately, it’s not that simple.

Most power supplies route their wiring so that there are two 8-pin PCI Express connectors on a single cable, usually 18AWG.

If it is also a modular supply, on the other side there are probably only 8 power pins. Therefore, what we thought could support between 432 and 576W (two connectors), actually supports more or less as much as a single connector.

How to connect Graphics Card Correctly

What is the solution then? Well, nothing less than using two or more different cables to power our graphics card, as long as the GPU that we are going to mount is of high consumption.

This is in line with the recommendations that some honest manufacturers, like Antec or Seasonic, are making.

In the photo above, released by Antec, the brand explains to us which routes are reasonable. You must not power the graphics card as seen in point (1), but you have to do it in any way shown in point (2).

Yes, this is going to be annoying because there will be loose connectors, but even more annoying is having problems with your source or your graphics card due to improper mounting.

Surely you have many questions right now, but don’t worry, we are going to solve the most common ones below.

What GPU do we consider “High Consumption”?

If we take into account that distinction of “up to 288W” per cable, we could estimate that any graphics card with more than 250W of consumption should be considered a “high consumption” GPU.

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Also, keep in mind that the PCIe connectors do not provide all the power, but a part (up to 75W) can go through the motherboard slot.

Let’s also keep in mind that Antec is more cautious and speaks of “up to 200W” of consumption. With this in mind, we could make the following classification, based on Tech power up’s consumption data:

It is essential to use 2 or 3 PCIe cables (More than 280W):

• RTX 3090Ti
• RTX 3090
• RTX 3080Ti
• RTX 3080
• AMD RX6900XT
• RTX 3070 Ti
• AMD RX6800XT
• AMD RX Vega 64 and Vega 56

Recommended to use 2 or 3 PCIe cables (200-280W):

• RTX 2080Ti
• AMD RX 6800
• RTX 3070
• AMD RX6700XT
• AMD RX6700XT
• RTX 2080

No need to use 2 or 3 PCIe cables (Less than 200W):

• RTX 3060Ti
• RTX 2070
• RTX 3060
• RX5600XT
• RX5500XT
• RX6600XT
• RTX 2060
• RTX 3050
• Any GTX (except high-end or Titan models)

As we can see, with any graphics card superior to the NVIDIA RTX 3070 or the AMD RX 6700 XT, it is recommended to use several different PCI Express cables to avoid problems.

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If we go to the RTX 3070 Ti or RX 6800 XT, it already seems essential to us. With GPUs lower than these, there should be no problem.

Also, if your power supply does not provide you with more than one cable and you have a graphics card that needs them (according to our classification).

This is a very bad sign, because it means that the supply is of poor quality, or of very little power.

What if I use a single PCIe cable for a high Power Graphics card?

What is the consequence of powering our graphics card with a single PCI Express cable? Let’s start with the catastrophic, and then with a reassuring message:

In general, the worst that could happen would be PCI Express connector melted or overheating of cable. This can happen on both the power and graphics card side.

Probably we wouldn’t know about it until there was a short circuit that caused the graphics card to shut down.

In practice, is this going to happen if I use only one PCIe connector on a high power graphics card? Well, it shouldn’t happen, but it’s possible, and that’s the problem.

The specifications of the cables and connectors give us a guarantee of what they can withstand. The most normal thing is that they can withstand much more, but they do not have to.

See Also: How to choose a Good Graphics Card for Gaming

In certain situations, the cable could melt, and it has already happened on several occasions. Prevention is better than cure with a solution as simple as using two different cables.

In other words, we are not asking for anything excessive, but something that is super easy to do and that minimize risks. It’s up to you!

Why aren’t Manufacturers being more honest about it?

Why are manufacturers bringing power supplies with multiple PCIe cable connectors to the market? Isn’t that dishonest? Well, there are several reasons that explain it:

1 – Growing competition to bring more PCI Express connectors

2 – In this way, it is possible to mount several “medium consumption” graphics cards that have 2 PCI Express connectors.

For example, we are dealing with a 550W source, we save a lot of costs. Many models of NVIDIA GTX 960 had 2 PCIe connectors, being a GPU that consumes a pittance.

3 – What is happening with graphics cards has not been anticipated. For years, the trend was for all new GPUs to consume less.

But it’s been two generations since this has been broken, and it looks like it will continue to be. High-end graphics consume more and more. Although they are more efficient, there is more competition for performance.

In addition, really there are power supplies and manufacturers that have been palliating this for years. Either using more robust cables (16AWG) or simply including PCI’s connectors on single cables.

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For example, Straight Power 11, two connectors come together, but the connector on the modular part is larger (more than 8 pins) and two different cables are used despite this.

We hope this article has helped you mount a graphics card correctly and avoid problems. We have found it essential to comment on it. This help to implement good practices when building a PC, and avoid problems.

We know that this topic can raise many more doubts, questions and recommendations. Therefore, do not hesitate to leave your comments below with all your doubts, and we will try to answer you.