Power Supply: Single Vs. Multi Rail

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Power Supply: Single vs. Multi Rail Power supply specifications indicate whether or not if it has multi rails, or single rails. Is the multi/single rail just a specification for companies to interest you, or is there a difference in performance? Many debates and topics have been made on which is better for what reasons. But really, there are facts that allows one type to outdo the other. Single Rail Single rail means that the +12v supply is ran through one trace, or pathway of electrical circuit. Now, the advantage of that is that it can run power more components (PCIe, CPU, etc.) at an overall better performance in terms of ease and frequency difference. Although this might sound good, there are many hazards if you have too many high quality components that take up a lot of power. If you have a power supply where the 12v rail is only to power 60amps, and you have a graphics and processor that takes a lot of power and goes over 60amps, the power supply will shut down from not being able to have enough electricity to power everything. What's even more unsafe is that some power supplies don't even have an OCP (Over Current Protection). Not having this and your single rail power supply shutting down or shorting out is that it can cause fires or violent sparks. In conclusion, the power supply may have better performance for gamers and other frequent computer users, but dangerous if it is not used correctly. -As you can see, all the amps are put through a one +12v rail. Multi Rail Multi rail means that it has more than one +12V rail, and the total amount of amps are split up into those rails. For example, a total amount of amps for a power supply may be 80amps total, but has four +12v rails, the power may be split up to 20 amps each. The advantage of this, unlike the single rail, is that if you exceed the amps of one rail, the entire power supply will not shut

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