Several years ago I bought one of these PCs.
I would like to yank the obsolete modem card and insert a PCI card to give it some USB 3.0 ports. When I cracked the case for the first time a few days ago, the first obvious problem came up. USB 3.0 cards all seem to need a connection to the power supply (either via SATA or Molex), and this machine’s 160-watt power supply does not have a free power cable hanging off of it.
I have never built my own PC and am not experienced with budgeting power. Can I simply buy a splitter cable like this and expect it to work to power a USB 3.0 card without overusing that power supply? Or is trying to extend the life of this PC this way a bridge too far?
Also, any guesses what my next problem will be if I try this?
I would like to yank the obsolete modem card and insert a PCI card to give it some USB 3.0 ports. When I cracked the case for the first time a few days ago, the first obvious problem came up. USB 3.0 cards all seem to need a connection to the power supply (either via SATA or Molex), and this machine’s 160-watt power supply does not have a free power cable hanging off of it.
I have never built my own PC and am not experienced with budgeting power. Can I simply buy a splitter cable like this and expect it to work to power a USB 3.0 card without overusing that power supply? Or is trying to extend the life of this PC this way a bridge too far?
Also, any guesses what my next problem will be if I try this?