Hi :-)
 
I currently am using a new PC that came with an OEM GTX 760. The OEM 760 uses a single 6-pin connector. I would like to use an EVGA GTX 970  that requires two 6-pin connectors. I have a 500W power supply. I have not opened the case yet, but from what I have seen, I believe there is only one available 6-pin connector and no other free cables running from the power supply.
 
I understand that 500w is the very minimum stated power requirement for this card, but I believe EVGA is conservative in it's stated power requirements as it should be. But I used to run an EVGA GTX 580 with 3 GB RAM on a 500W power supply on a PC from the same PC maker of my new machine  for years without any issues. On that PC there was an extra available cord that could be used for the the second required 8 pin connector. I believe that the EVGA stated power requirements for that card was either 600W or 630W.
 
Would it be OK to put a splitter on the single 6 pin connector in my PC so that I could fill the two 6-pin connector slots on the 970? Would the card run OK ? Would there be any danger of causing damage to the card or my PC if I did that ?
 
(Truth be known, I have already purchased an EVGA GTX 970 . I don't know if it's OK to mention a particular store on this forum buy I'll say this. Last night I was in a brick and mortar store that is part of a large national chain that runs a weekly ad supplement and whose name begins with B. I nearly fainted when I saw a batch of EVGA 970s on the shelf! This chain used to sell in its stores some high-end stuff many years ago, but stopped when it switched to an online emphasis to try to compete with the large online retailers. It appears they have backed away a bit from that business model. Their return and exchange policy service has been excellent recently and I don't plan on breaking the plastic covering the box until I'm sure I can use it.)
 
NB: Technology advances have been amazing. My GTX 580 with 3 GBs of RAM was the top of the line Nvidia/EVGA single GPU card at the time. The 2 GB version of the 580 did have a slightly higher clocks speeds.  so my saying my 580 was the top-of the line card may be an overstatement. (I chose the 3GB version because I was doing a lot of work with high rez texture and photo work at the time.) Today, you can buy a 760 for at least 50% less than I paid for my 580, but the benchmark frame rates on the 760 are about 20% faster than the 580 :-)
 

I would not Recommend you do this.
What Model Number is your EVGA GTX 970 OC Graphics Card?
High End 970
Requirements
                Minimum of a 500 Watt power supply.                        
                One available 8-pin PCI-E power connector and one available 6-pin PCI-E power connector                        
                Total Power Draw : 145 Watts
 
 
Low End 970
Requirements
                Minimum of a 500 Watt power supply.                        
                Two available 6-pin PCI-E power connectors                        
                Total Power Draw : 145 Watts

bcavnaugh
I would not Recommend you do this.
What Model Number is your EVGA GTX 970 OC Graphics Card?
High End 970
Requirements
                Minimum of a 500 Watt power supply.                        
                One available 8-pin PCI-E power connector and one available 6-pin PCI-E power connector                        
                Total Power Draw : 145 Watts
 
 
Low End 970
Requirements
                Minimum of a 500 Watt power supply.                        
                Two available 6-pin PCI-E power connectors                        
                Total Power Draw : 145 Watts

Hi bcavnaugh :-)
 
LOL looks like I took the wrong box off the shelf at the store :-)
 
It's the Vanilla-Non-OC Version that requires Two available 6-pin connectors.
 

It depends on what PSU you currently have.

I see everyone saying don't do it, but it really depends. Is it a cheap off brand PSU? If so, I would never trust it from the start.

If it is a good quality PSU, you will be fine. A lot of manufacturers send a SINGLE 6 pin PCI cable that has a Second 6 pin coming off the first, so you only have 1 cable to route.

Being as this was a prefabricated system (OEM) I doubt you have a quality PSU unless you specifically requested it.

http://www.evga.com/products/images/gallery/100-CW-1300-B9_XL_4.jpg

This is a 6+2+6 EVGA power supply cable. This allows One single cable to occupy both 6 pin connections or one 8 pin and one 6 pin. If a manufacturer of a quality PSU can send these with a power supply, then using a splitter with a quality power supply is just fine.

Again, check to see if your PSU is of a good quality.

rawar
Would it be OK to put a splitter on the single 6 pin connector in my PC so that I could fill the two 6-pin connector slots on the 970?

No. You should use one of the power splitters that comes with the card that turns two molex into a 6-pin for the other 6-pin required to power the video card.
 
  

What about the EVGA GTX 960 Graphics Cards?

bcavanaugh suggested: "What about the EVGA GTX 960 Graphics Cards?:
 
Well, Truth Be Known, I actually tried to force the GTX 970, something I normally would never do, but I wanted so badly to use it. In doing so I actually broke in half that piece from the board that was obstructing the 970's proper installation and ultimately broke off the entire piece. There is now also a loose white wire. I have looked everywhere and have zero clue where it is supposed to connect.
 
The Acer no longer functions and the online large retailer was out of stock. ATM the only thing it's good for is to recharge my electronic cigarettes and vape pens :-)
 
I am handicapped and heavily dependent on the net for ordering grocery deliveries and other necessities, and paying bills, and other critically important things. It is dangerous for me to be without a PC for more than a day. It was Sunday and the only store I am able to get to is a local store of a national retail chain. The highest end "gaming rig" they sell is an ASUS ROG G20AJ-B09. It does have a good processor. 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-4790 processor,  16GB Ram (upgradeable to 32GB) and a GTX 760 with 2GB ram. 
 
ASUS has the most absurd warranty limitation on earth for a gaming rig on the GR 20 series. If you open the case, even just to blow dust off of the fans, the ASUS One Year Warranty is automatically voided. They have caught a lot of flack about it. I believe that the reason for it is that because the ROG GR 20s are so tiny, that they are uniquely and tightly packed inside. So for a year, I'm stuck with the GTX 760. But for the games I play most often it is gives me more than adequate frame rates at high quality settings.
 
Hopefully one day I will be able to get my Predator repaired, but it is my understanding that it uses a mother board that is uncommon, has a weird plug, is difficult to find, and relatively expensive. I feel like a complete idiot. I currently use it to recharge my electronic cigarettes and vape pens:-)
 
I'm fairly happy with the ROG, but my purchase of it was totally insane. During the past month I had purchased, exchanged, or gotten a refund on three other ROG GR 20's. The first came with a dead-on-arrival Nvidia GTX 760. The store I bought it at has a 30 day replacement policy on ASUS products (I don't actually know if it applies to all their sales) and because I bought it during Christmas Time they had an extended refund policy, so I had time to wait for a replacement. The ROG GR 20 Model that has the pre-installed GTX 760 also has an on board Intel HD4600 GPU you can access through a separate HDMI Port that was surprisingly adequate, so I could afford the time to wait for a replacement.
 
Got the replacement and guess what? It also arrived with a dead-on-arrival Nvidia GTX 760. Within a day the hard drive froze so I was afraid I would not be able to return it because I not had the chance to securely wipe my personal financial and other data. Luckily, for some reason, the next day I was able to restart the hard drive and do a refresh and was able to wipe the drive and get a refund.
 
I then bought a low end model of the GTX ROG GR 20 series so I would at least have something. This one had a GTX 750. It actually worked FOR SEVEN HOURS and then then the electrical system totally blew out. I still have it cuz I was not able to wipe the drive myself. Luckily it was not an expensive machine and it is a small price to pay for the peace of mind keeping it gives me.
 
So buying another ASUS G20AJ-B09 was a totally insane purchase for me. But everything on this one actually works and it's more than fast enough for me ATM. I am very happy with it's performance and features, I just hope it keeps on working as well as it is today :-)
 
BTW: The people at the store I was buying my ROGs were wonderful and helpful. Never gave me any problems with refunds or exchanges and even offered to wipe my drives, but I would not trust anyone with the data that was on them. Perhaps they were so nice to me because they felt sorry for me because I have a handicap, but I don't think that was the reason. They seemed sincere. I do not know if EVGA allows you to mention the name of a large chain-store even though the chain now sells EVGA products in it's stores, but it's name begins with a "B" and every Sunday they run a new weekly ad :-) For many years they did not sell high-end anything PC-related in their stores, but that has now changed. It's where I got my EVGA 970 and they also had the OC version on their shelves, They are also now selling the latest new hi-end gaming peripherals in their stores as well as the ROGs, which very few peeps had issues with and about which nearly all their on-line customer reviews were 5 star.
 
Sorry for wasting your time if you got to this point :-)
 
If you did, thank you for taking the time to read it , and once again thanks to all those who tried to help me.