#MOLEX IS AN OLDER POWER CONNECTOR HOW TO#
#MOLEX IS AN OLDER POWER CONNECTOR INSTALL#
#MOLEX IS AN OLDER POWER CONNECTOR UPGRADE#

#MOLEX IS AN OLDER POWER CONNECTOR INSTALL#

If it is labeled SFX or SFX12V, you can install any current SFX12V power supply or, if the case has enough clearance, an ATX12V unit. If your old power supply is labeled ATX 1.X or 2.X or ATX12V 1.X or 2.X, you can install any current ATX12V power supply. When you replace your power supply, it's important to get a replacement unit that fits your case.

#MOLEX IS AN OLDER POWER CONNECTOR UPGRADE#

All aspects of the various form factors including physical dimensions, mounting hole locations, and cable connectors are rigidly standardized, which means you can choose among numerous industry-standard power supplies to repair or upgrade most systems, even older models. The changes from older versions of the ATX specification to newer versions and from ATX to smaller variants such as SFX and TFX have been evolutionary, with backward compatibility always kept firmly in mind. You can replace an ATX power supply with an ATX12V unit, or an SFX power supply with an SFX12V (or possibly an ATX12V) unit. Older systems use non-12V ATX or SFX power supplies. Since then, each time Intel has updated a power supply specification or created a new one, it required this +12V connector, and used the 12V modifier in the name of the specification. In 2000, to accommodate the +12V requirements of their new Pentium 4 processors, Intel added a new +12V power connector to the ATX specification and renamed the specification ATX12V. Detailed specification documents for all of these form factors can be downloaded from. Because of their odd physical shape, you can replace a TFX12V power supply only with another TFX12V unit.Īlthough it is less likely, you may encounter an EPS12V power supply (used almost exclusively in servers), a CFX12V power supply (used in microBTX systems), or an LFX12V power supply (used in picoBTX systems). TFX12V power supplies are used in some small form factor (SFF) systems with total system volumes of 9 to 15 liters. TFX12V (t-for-thin) power supplies are physically elongated (versus the cubic form of ATX12V and SFX12V units) but have capacities similar to SFX12V units.

#MOLEX IS AN OLDER POWER CONNECTOR HOW TO#

The following sections detail what you need to understand how to choose a good replacement power supply. For their mass-market, consumer-grade lines, even name-brand manufacturers may compromise on the power supply to meet a price point, using what we consider marginal power supplies both in terms of output and construction quality. For their premium lines, first-tier manufacturers generally use what we call midrange power supplies. Good power supplies don't win marketing brownie points, so few manufacturers are willing to spend $30 to $75 extra for a better power supply. Computer makers count pennies, literally.

The sad truth is that it is almost impossible to buy a computer with a top-notch power supply.

In fact, we have found that using a high-quality power supply allows even marginal motherboards, processors, and memory to operate with reasonable stability, whereas using a cheap power supply makes even top-notch components unstable. If you want a reliable, crash-proof system, use a high-quality power supply. But, without apologizing for Microsoft, the truth is that many such crashes are caused by low-quality or overloaded power supplies. Many people who complain that Windows crashes frequently understandably blame Microsoft. That's a big mistake, because the power supply performs two critical functions: it provides regulated power to every system component, and it cools the computer. Power supplies lack glamour, so nearly everyone takes them for granted.

Molex is an older power connector