# Can I use a usb cord/power supply converter designed for SATA with a SSD? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 19, 2016, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-usb-cord-power-supply-converter-designed-for-sata-with-a-ssd/757790 "2016-06-19T18:02:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![lithrawind\_gmail.com](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e79b87/32.png) [@lithrawind\_gmail.com](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lithrawind_gmail.com)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2016, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-usb-cord-power-supply-converter-designed-for-sata-with-a-ssd/757790/1 "2016-06-19T18:02:56Z")
I’ve done some looking around, and the answer seems to be yes, but I’m pretty sure the cables I have predate SSDs, so I’m worried if I try to use them to power a SSD I might fry the thing. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2016, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-usb-cord-power-supply-converter-designed-for-sata-with-a-ssd/757790/2 "2016-06-19T18:08:44Z")
A SSD designed to replace a hard drive _IS_ SATA, so all the cables are compatible. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2016, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-usb-cord-power-supply-converter-designed-for-sata-with-a-ssd/757790/3 "2016-06-19T20:41:05Z")
The main issue is USB connector type. Your SSD might have a (wide) Micro-B SuperSpeed connector. While you could use a (narrow) USB-B cable, the speeds are going to be a lot lower. Sort of pointless for a SSD. ---
**Author:** ![lithrawind\_gmail.com](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e79b87/32.png) [@lithrawind\_gmail.com](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lithrawind_gmail.com)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2016, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-usb-cord-power-supply-converter-designed-for-sata-with-a-ssd/757790/4 "2016-06-19T21:09:21Z")
I wouldn’t really care about speed unless it ended up being a huge speed loss compared to a regular SATA. I just want the stability of an SSD. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-usb-cord-power-supply-converter-designed-for-sata-with-a-ssd/757790/5 "2016-06-20T02:57:17Z")
If speed doesn’t matter, then you will be absolutely fine as long as the USB cable fits. You may be sacrificing an order of magnitude in speeds, but if this is very small or very infrequently accessed files, it hardly matters. ---
**Author:** ![Pantastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3bc359/32.png) [@Pantastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pantastic)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-usb-cord-power-supply-converter-designed-for-sata-with-a-ssd/757790/6 "2016-06-20T03:16:36Z")
If you can fit a drive cable onto a drive without excessive force, it’s not going to damage the drive to run power through the cable. Those interfaces are highly standardized, and the cables are made so that you can’t connect the wrong cable accidentally. SSDs use the same power and interface as regular SATA drives, so either it fits and works or just doesn’t fit. ---
**Author:** ![lithrawind\_gmail.com](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e79b87/32.png) [@lithrawind\_gmail.com](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lithrawind_gmail.com)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-usb-cord-power-supply-converter-designed-for-sata-with-a-ssd/757790/7 "2016-06-20T17:38:39Z")
Thanks, folks!