Newb With MultiMeter... Help Check My Rails

[Philup_Bowls]

i just bought myself a new ocz powerstream 520w with adjustable power rails, and for the heck of it a multimeter... i know this question is so newb, but could someone please explain the proper way for me to check my 12, 5, 3.3, rails... i want to raise my rails slightly since i will be overclocking my system!!! any info would be appreciated!!!

 

[Brad84cnc]

i dont know about how to check the 3.3v but to check the 12 and 5v put the black lead from the meter to one of the black wires in the molex plug and the red lead from the meter to the outside yellow then red plug. also make sure you have the meter on the next higher setting then 12v DC which is 20v DC on mine

 

[ETUKE]

couldnt you just adjust it using software like MBM5 or asus probe??

 

[SavageBasher]

onboard sensors... are you mad?

 

[ETUKE]

AHHHH!! that feels good.guess thats a bad idea then .lol

 

[bobmanfoo]

yeah the sensors aren't accurate at all,

philup, you plug the black probe into a ground wire, black wire on molex or 20pin, red probe goes to orange/3.3v, red/5v, yellow 12v on the 20pin connector, or you could use the red and yellow on a spare molex and the orange is on the aux plug

 

[Philup_Bowls]

thx for the info.. time to do some testing!!

 

[ETUKE]

what about the LED's on the PSU ,once they go green isnt that indication that the rail is good?

 

[Philup_Bowls]

sure the leds indicate a good rail, but they dont indicate how much voltage to those rails... im going to be building a new system here soon and will be overclocking everything to the max... cpu/ram/vidcard... i want to raise all my rails about .2-.3 or so... i have read many posts in this forums sayin that if you oc alot that the extra voltage can help with stability... every little bit helps!!

 

[Ad Rock]

what about the LED's on the PSU ,once they go green isnt that indication that the rail is good?

When the LED's turn green that means that rail is within a certain tolerance on the line. The rail could still be below spec or to high over the optimal specs.

A Multimeter is your friend, learn to use it and love it .