Hoping someone can advise on this...

Just installed a new AGP 8X graphic card which has its own power connection to the PSU. When i connect it to the PSU my PC fails to boot up though.

I've disconnected it from the PSU and just running it through the motheboard. It works, but I get a warning message saying that the card is running at reduced capacity as it isn't getting enough power.

My PSU is 400w which is the minimum requirement for this card.

Running on Windows XP (SP2) AMD 2400 with 1Gig of RAM.

Anyone got any ideas?

Thanks in advance

What other connections go to the motherboard?

Some have the Main 24/20 pin; the 12V 4/8 pin; plus an axillary 4 pin for slot support.

If you have the latter and it is plugged in unplug it as this would short the card line.

If this is not the case then with everything else you have inside you might need a larger PSU.

Its a rather ancient shuttle AK/47N motherboard. Power wise its got the main connection to the PSU, running an AMD XP 2400 & 1Gig of ram.

Everything else, hardrive, 2x disk drives are connected staright to the PSU.

Board to old to handle this?

I am unable to find anything on that motherboard - are you sure of the model number? Is that a Shuttle case too?

Although the minimum requirements stated is 400watts, the more important specification is the amperage on the 12V rail that feeds the card. If that supply only has one +12V rail (in other words, all 12V connections are fed off the same windings of the transformer, that is, the same +12V circuit) then your card may not be getting enough power. It is important to note too that PSUs actually lose capacity over time due to "capacitor aging". In just a couple years, this can be as much as 30% with lesser quality parts.

So I don't think it is your motherboard that is too old, but your PSU. I recommend you use the eXtreme PSU Calculator Lite to determine your power requirments. Plug in all the hardware you think you might have in 2 or 3 years (extra drives, bigger or 2nd video card, more RAM, etc.). Be sure to read and heed the notes at the bottom. I recommend you set Capacitor Aging to 30% and if you participate in distributive computing projects, I recommend setting TDP to 100%.

Sadly, many folks mistakenly think any old PSU will do as long as it has plenty of watts. That is not true. Note that I would much rather have a 500W Antec PSU than a 600W no-name/off-brand generic. Cheap gas in a car may cause the engine to run poorly, but it will still run. Not so with digital electronics. If you miss a beat, the system crashes. I recommend you look for brands under the "Good" column of PC Mechanic's PSU Reference List.

Note that some Shuttle cases do not support standard ATX power supplies, but instead, support a smaller form factor supply. You need to verify your type first. My guess is yours is standard since you were able to install a new graphics card. But any information on the case would be helpful too.

Thanks for the response, I'll have to check the details when I get back from work.