Intel will release the most substantial change to industrial power supply standards since 2003, with ATX 3.0 ready for next-generation PCIe 5.0 GPUs and 600W power.
Intel introduces ATX 3.0 and ATX12VO 2.0 standards for next-gen GPUs
The next-generation PCIe 5.0-based power connectors and PCIe 5.0-ready PSUs have been rumored lately, but now Intel has established the most significant change to power supply standards since 2003 with the release of the ATX 3.0 specs.
The ATX 3.0 specs will help future CPU and GPU designs reach their full potential via improved communication technologies such as PCIe 5.0. Intel has also worked on its ATX12VO specification to assist manufacturers in creating PSUs and motherboards with lower power draws at idle.
“Power supplies based on ATX 3.0 and ATX12VO 2.0 will ensure anyone looking to get the most stable and cost optimized performance possible with highest power efficiency out of their desktop PCs will be able to do so – both now and in the future.”
-Intel platform power specialist Stephen Eastman
The 12VHPWR connector will provide power to a wide range of future PCIe 5.0 desktop add-in cards. This new connection offers up to 600 watts straight to any PCIe 5.0 graphics/add-in card. It also has sideband signals that allow the power supply to communicate with any PCIe 5.0 graphic card about how much power it can deliver.
The updated regulations are in line with the PCIe CEM Gen 5 power excursion limitation for PCIe 5.0 add-in cards, which was revealed in November 2021. New DC output voltage regulation will be required to manage new power excursion parameters, as well as other updated specifications.
With ATX12VO 2.0 desktop platforms will be able to benefit from the I_PSU% feature. This option allows SFF systems to take advantage of larger power supplies that are not possible due to space limitations. OEMs may also benefit from this feature since they can better decide the PSU size to match system needs.
Conclusion
PSUs that meet the ATX 3.0 and ATX12VO 2.0 standards will be required for desktop users looking to get the most out of their next-gen PCIe 5.0 graphics cards. These future GPUs will be larger and more powerful than before. Users may improve their system performance by ensuring that they have adequate power supplies installed.
