Power cables aren’t usually the most exciting part of building a gaming PC, but as graphics cards become increasingly power-hungry, making sure that power gets to your expensive GPU safely has become considerably more important, and I’m sure you’ve seen some of the horror stories circulating on the web.
That’s exactly where the ASUS ROG Equalizer 12V-2×6 PCIe power cable comes in, taking something we’d normally hide behind a side panel and packing it with some genuinely interesting technology.
At its core, the ASUS ROG Equalizer 12V-2×6 PCIe power cable is a 750mm PCIe 5.1 and ATX 3.1-compatible 16-pin cable. Rather than simply carrying power from the PSU to your graphics card, however, it’s designed to balance the current travelling across its connections, helping reduce potential hot spots and thermal stress.
ASUS recommends the cable for loads up to 600W and has increased its per-wire current capacity from the standard 9.2A to 17A, providing additional headroom for short-term power spikes from high-end graphics cards. ASUS’s own extreme testing also demonstrates how balancing that current can reduce potentially dangerous hot spots when power isn’t distributed evenly across the connection.
The PC that ASUS helped us put together uses an ASUS ROG Strix GeForce RTX 4070 OC, so while we have a graphics card using a compatible 16-pin power connection, it’s certainly not going to push the cable anywhere near its limits.
This isn’t really a product designed to improve gaming performance, either, so don’t expect to plug it in and suddenly discover another ten frames per second.
I’m not about to start disconnecting individual wires and deliberately pushing 600W through a cable connected to my graphics card, for obvious safety reasons. So those extreme thermal claims remain firmly within ASUS’s own testing. With our RTX 4070, the more practical side of the ASUS ROG Equalizer 12V-2×6 PCIe power cable is considerably easier to appreciate.
At 750mm long, there’s plenty of cable for routing through most cases, while the embossed construction is surprisingly pliable and easy to work with. Three quick-release cable combs are also included to keep everything neatly aligned, which is particularly useful if your case puts the hardware on display. ASUS has also put some thought into the GPU-side connection.
A dual-colour design provides a simple visual indicator to help confirm that the 16-pin connector has been completely inserted, and given how important properly seating a 16-pin GPU power connector is, anything that makes confirming the connection easier is certainly welcome.
The cable itself uses tin-plated oxygen-free copper, while enlarged gold-plated spring contacts are designed to increase the contact area between the cable and graphics card, so you know ASUS is still emphasising conductivity, flexibility and reducing resistance.
There’s another layer of protection as well, with ASUS GPU Tweak III Power Detector+ combining software monitoring with the hardware protection built into the cable. ASUS also backs the ASUS ROG Equaliser 12V-2×6 PCIe power cable with a three-year warranty, while selected newer ROG Thor III and ROG Strix Platinum power supplies will include the cable with the package.
Compatibility isn’t limited to those ASUS power supplies, either. ASUS states that the ASUS ROG Equalizer 12V-2×6 PCIe power cable can be used with compatible modular power supplies from leading manufacturers, as the 12V-2×6 connection is suitable for graphics cards utilising the newer 16-pin power standard. Of course, you’ll still want to confirm compatibility with your particular power supply and graphics card before connecting anything.
The ASUS ROG Equalizer 12V-2×6 PCIe power cable is ultimately one of those products you install hoping you’ll never actually need to see what it’s capable of. Our ASUS ROG Strix GeForce RTX 4070 OC isn’t demanding enough to push its 600W capabilities; however, the easy installation, flexible cabling, visual connection indicator and additional protection are still easy to appreciate.
For gamers running considerably more power-hungry hardware, the ASUS ROG Equalizer 12V-2×6 PCIe power cable is a no-brainer. It won’t make your graphics card any faster, but when you’re powering one of the most expensive components inside your PC, another layer of protection certainly isn’t a bad thing.
