- If you get an older Dell or Micron built Sept 1998 to April 2002, the power supply & motherboard has been rewired. Don't put in a standard ATX power supply or you will burn everything up! They put in extra 3.3V lines and rearranged the wires.
- Dell-to-standard-ATX power supply converter cable $15
- If you purchase a Dell used or get one for free, don't expect to get technical support unless the person has transferred dell ownership to you.
- Dell tech support (erringly I think) told me yesterday that "a Dell 4600's power supply could take a standard ATX, but it could not be upgraded beyond 250W or it would burn up the motherboard." He read the technical specs and since all the tech specs say is "250W power supply", this is what he deduced. In reality, You could probably plug in a 700W power supply, you just need to make sure you have a motherboard, the power switch, & some drives loading it down so the power supply starts up. What I did find however, is that my year 2004 Dell 4600 has no blue -12V wire on the power connector to the motherboard. it makes me wonder about the wiring on the motherboard. Did Dell leave the connection open-circuit like they should? did they wire it to ground underneath the plastic connector? I don't know. I *think* it's supposed to be a standard ATX supply, but then again PC Power & Cooling offer a special lower and 410W power supply for certain Dell models, and the 4600 (mine) is one of them. Since the motherboard is a low-power design, they can get by with a lower-wattage PSU.
If you have Roxio 7 and IE7 and plan on using DVD Builder, they will clash. You will need Roxio 9, which requires a DirectX 9 video card. if you have a regular desktop Dell, you will also require a power supply upgrade too, because many of the DirectX 9 cards also require a 400W power supply. Read the specs on the manufacturer's web site before you buy if you can. - If you need a power supply/PSU for Astec, Bestec, Compaq, Dell, Delta, Emachine, FSP, Gateway, Hipro, HP, Liteon, Newton, Power Man, Shuttle, and Sparkle, try atxpowersupplies.com, or for an upgrade for certain Dell models try PC Power & Cooling (eastluna.com is a retailer of theirs). PC Power has recently upgraded their line of power supplies. All of them.
| Pin | Signal | colour |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | +5v | red |
| 2 | gnd | black |
| 3 | +5v | red |
| 4 | gnd | black |
| 5 | Power_good | Orange |
| 6 | +5vSB | Purple |
| 7 | +12v | Yellow |
| 8 | -12v | Blue |
| 9 | gnd | black |
| 10 | gnd | black |
| 11 | PS_On | grey |
| 12 | gnd | black |
| 13 | gnd | black |
| 14 | gnd | black |
| 15 | -5v | white |
| 16 | +5v | red |
| 17 | +5v | red |
| 18 | +5v | red |
| 19 | key(blank) | n/a |
| 20 | +5v | red |
| Pin | Signal | color |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | +3.3v | orange |
| 2 | +3.3v | orange |
| 3 | gnd | black |
| 4 | +5v | red |
| 5 | gnd | black |
| 6 | +5v standby | red |
| 7 | gnd | black |
| 8 | Power_good | gray |
| 9 | +5VSB | purple |
| 10 | +12v | yellow |
| 11 | +3.3v | orange |
| 12 | -12v | blue, missing |
| 13 | gnd | black |
| 14 | PS_ON | green |
| 15 | gnd | black |
| 16 | gnd | black |
| 17 | gnd | black |
| 18 | -5v | white |
| 19 | +5v | red |
| 20 | +5v | red |
PC Power & Cooling Dell Silencer 500W (PPCS500D), available at provantage(USA) $73, ecost.com $78, dell.com $100
rated for 7 years. I have found computers to last for about 10 years, but maybe they will last longer when they aren't using an old NiCd battery.
Dimension 1100,Dimension 2200,Dimension 2300,Dimension 2350,Dimension 2400,Dimension 3000,Dimension 3100,Dimension 4300,Dimension 4400,Dimension 4500,Dimension 4550,Dimension 4600,
Dimension 4700,Dimension 5000,Dimension 5100,Dimension 5150,Dimension 8200,Dimension 8250,Dimension 8300,Dimension 8400,Dimension 9100,Dimension 9150,Dimension 9200,
Dimension E310,Dimension E510,Dimension E520,Dimension E521,Inspiron 518,Inspiron 519,Inspiron 530,Inspiron 531,Optiplex 160L,Optiplex 170L,Optiplex 210L MiniTower,
Optiplex 320 MiniTower,Optiplex 330 MiniTower,Optiplex 740 MiniTower,Optiplex 745 MiniTower,Optiplex 755 MiniTower,Optiplex GX200 MidTower,Optiplex GX200 MiniTower,
OptiPlex GX240 Mini-Tower,OptiPlex GX260,OptiPlex GX270 Mini-Tower,OptiPlex GX280,Optiplex GX520,Optiplex GX600 MiniTower,Optiplex GX620 MiniTower,Precision 360 Desktop,
Precision 360 MiniTower,Precision 380,Precision 390,Precision T3400,recision Workstation 350,Precision Workstation 370,SmartStep 100D,SmartStep 150D,Vostro 200 MiniTower,
Vostro 400 MiniTower,XPS 400,XPS 410,XPS 420
Startech.com 400 Watt ATX12V 2.01 Dell Replacement Computer PC Power Supply (ATXPW400DELL) $78, available at , , $
Dimension Series Models: 1100 / 2200 / 2300 / 2350 / 2400 / 4300 / 4400 / 4500 / 4550 / 4600 / 8200 / 8250 / 8300 / 8400 / B100.
Optiplex Series Models: 170L / GX60 / GX150 / GX240 / GX260 / GX270.
Power Edge Series Models: 400SC / 600SC.
Precision Workstation Series Model: Model 340 / 350.
Smart Step Series Models: 100D / 150D.
Startech.com 350 Watt ATX12V 2.01 Dell Replacement Computer PC Power Supply (ATXPW350DELL) $73, available at , , $
does not have a switch.
Dimension Series Models: 3000 / 3100 / 4600 / 4700 / 9100 / E310 / E510.
Optiplex Series Model: GX280.
Power Edge Series Model: SC420.
Precision Workstation Series Model: Model 370.
Startech.com 300 Watt ATX12V 2.01 Dell Replacement Computer PC Power Supply (ATXPW300DELL) $50, available at , , $
does not have a switch or a P4 connector.
Dimension Series Models: 2100 / 4100 / B1000R / L Series / V350 / V400 / XPS B Series / XPS Dxxx / XPS Mxxx / XPS P133c MT / XPS Pro 180n /
XPS Rxxx / XPS Txxx.
Optiplex Series Models: GN / GN+ / G1 / GX1 / GX1p / GX100 / GX110 / GX115 / GX300 / Gxa / Gxi.
Power Edge Series Models: 2100 / 2200.
Precision Workstation Series Models: 210 / 400.