POWER - SATA > MOLEX

[Koldov]

I'm trying to get a few old systems up and running with various parts being moved around and I'm stuck with a DVD ROM/RW which needs Molex power and a PSU with only SATA...

 

Searching on the web and the first few results are about being very careful as these connectors are known to burn down your house!

 

So, not going for a £0.50 no brand version from Ebay, I found these (I'm leaning towards the socket type from Scan, but I'm also thinking the wired version on Amazon looks better than some I've seen and would StarTech really risk their reputation - such as it is - on something potentially dangerous?):

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/StarTech-com-Molex-Power-Cable-Adapter/dp/B00GK8SYCW

 

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/scan-rb-413-sata-15-pin-to-4-pin-molex-converter-adapter

[andy_b]

Gonna be honest. I wouldn't even bother powering it.

 

Certainly can't remember the last time I saw a disc being used.

[PotNoodleTech]

They are fine for powering a CD rom drive or hard drive etc - the burn down your house comes from people who have tried to daisy chain 6 of them in order to power a graphics card or something stupid like that.

[3s-gtech]

I'd replace the drive nowadays, but I'm saying that as I have hundreds of defunct SATA DVD drives in PCs that have never been used.

 

They are still such a cheap thing to buy - £20 will net you something more than decent.

[Fazza]

I'm trying to get a few old systems up and running with various parts being moved around and I'm stuck with a DVD ROM/RW which needs Molex power and a PSU with only SATA...

 

Searching on the web and the first few results are about being very careful as these connectors are known to burn down your house!

 

So, not going for a £0.50 no brand version from Ebay, I found these (I'm leaning towards the socket type from Scan, but I'm also thinking the wired version on Amazon looks better than some I've seen and would StarTech really risk their reputation - such as it is - on something potentially dangerous?):

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/StarTech-com-Molex-Power-Cable-Adapter/dp/B00GK8SYCW

 

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/scan-rb-413-sata-15-pin-to-4-pin-molex-converter-adapter

 

I always use the StarTech ones, it's a trusted brand and they're well built.

[LeMarchand]

I've used the StarTech type before without incident. There's probably one in my main PC at home!

[Koldov]

Yeah the whole buy a new one debate is another thing though...

 

I enjoy getting old hardware up and running mostly from parts I have lying around (apart from the odd unique connector/adapter) so it's worth £3 over £20 if you see what I mean, not that I don't have the money... but it's not about that.

 

It's more of a hobby really and just to see if I can... I actually miss the days of computer building as it's where I started really (don't really miss the troubleshooting random issues though lol), so the last few have been prebuilt/refurbished etc.

 

Also, for this machine out of 5 SATA data ports, 3 are used up by a 'storage spaces pool', 1 for the OS disk and one for the OD. So I'm swapping out the SATA OD for an old IDE one (that only has a Molex power connector) to free up a data port because I want to add another disk to the storage spaces pool.

Edited December 13, 2023 by Koldov