10 replies to this topic

[splodgecat]

As many of you will know dontthroworanges kindly offered to make and sell some G5 front panel cables not so long ago. Having tried my hand at making my own, and seen how much work just one cable requires, its totally understandable that he has now decided to put the cables on hold until further notice. I respect his decision and we have no right to pester him for more cables. He may wish to protect his sources in case he decides to make more cables in the future which is also fair enough. However there is no reason why we should not, as a community, attempt to gather resources and information which might one day lead to a simple set of instructions that will allow your average modder, like me, to come up with a professional looking cable by themselves.

So far I have removed the Apple 18-wire cable from the connector as shown below.


Having purchased jumper wires, I removed their female ends from their header casings.


These will then insert into the 18pin connector.


Here we have my current progress:



I think it's sensible to come up with a list of required items which we can add links and more information to as we come up with them.
-------------------------------
Requirements

The 18 pin connector
a ) use the original that came with your G5 case
b ) order one

************
UPDATE
I have discovered the difference between the 18-pin connector and the standard headers that usually plug into our motherboards. The 18-pin connector is a 'Milli-grid' connector manufactured by Molex. It uses a smaller grid layout than standard headers.

Information available here.

Quote

Molex's Milli-Grid family of high density connectors is based on a 2.00 by 2.00mm (.079 by .079") grid pattern. The system offers complete design flexibility for wire-to-board, board-to-board and cable-to-board connections in PCs, entertainment, telecom and other electronic industries.

Compared to traditional 2.54mm (.100") pitch connectors, Milli-Grid connectors offer up to 40% savings in PCB real estate.

Housing 2.00mm Milli-Grid,18w

These are available to order from RS and they have a Worldwide website too.
******************

Terminals for the 18 pin connector are available from RS too - click here

USB/Firewire/Power/LED/Audio connector housings (available from frontx.com)
Terminals for the USB/Firewire/Power/LED/Audio connector housings (available from frontx.com)

Suitable wire - I've ordered 10m of AWG 24 (0.2mm) fan wire.

Crimping tool - I'm hoping needle nosed pliers will suffice - I'll update with how this goes.

The correct pin out for the circuit board header, NOT the end of the 18pin Apple cable (if they are different).

-------------------------------

I hope other people share my enthusiasm for this project. I'll continue researching and post anything I find. If anybody else fancies helping and posting, it'll be appreciated. If we combine our Googling skills we are sure to come up with the goods!

[DiaboliK]

or get one of these http://www.newegg.co...N82E16812119245

dremel it in half and there ya go, 2x adaptors. with pins to solder to.

[splodgecat]

DiaboliK, on Jun 18 2010, 10:52 PM, said:

or get one of these http://www.newegg.co...N82E16812119245

dremel it in half and there ya go, 2x adaptors. with pins to solder to.

'Dremel it in half?' Yeah because that looks great. People already know how to bodge it with soldering. The demand for a professional solution is clear with all of dontthroworanges' cables being snapped up within a few hours. Thats what I'm trying to help with; if your not interested, keep your opinions to yourself.

[BlackCH]

splodgecat, on Jun 19 2010, 06:01 PM, said:

'Dremel it in half?' Yeah because that looks great. People already know how to bodge it with soldering. The demand for a professional solution is clear with all of dontthroworanges' cables being snapped up within a few hours. Thats what I'm trying to help with; if your not interested, keep your opinions to yourself.

I've tryed to buy from RS on-line, but unfortunately they dont seem to sale to particulars, only to enterprises/small companies (as they ask for the tax number ID of your company in the registration)
If you are in europe and you plan to buy those parts let me know (if you like). I would really like to get some connectors and terminals...

[splodgecat]

BlackCH, on Jun 20 2010, 09:08 AM, said:

I've tryed to buy from RS on-line, but unfortunately they dont seem to sale to particulars, only to enterprises/small companies (as they ask for the tax number ID of your company in the registration)
If you are in europe and you plan to buy those parts let me know (if you like). I would really like to get some connectors and terminals...

I purchased the terminals last week from RS without any problems. Sorry you've had trouble. When it asked for company information I just put in my name. I should have terminals left after attempting my cable so I could always send you them (this won't be for a few weeks I'm waiting for parts). I didn't buy the connector because I'm reusing the original.

[DiaboliK]

splodgecat, on Jun 19 2010, 11:01 AM, said:

'Dremel it in half?' Yeah because that looks great. People already know how to bodge it with soldering. The demand for a professional solution is clear with all of dontthroworanges' cables being snapped up within a few hours. Thats what I'm trying to help with; if your not interested, keep your opinions to yourself.

http://www.insanelym...p...t&p=1066785

im just making it easy...

[Gatorman]

I think what your'e doing here is great!  I just ordered a G5 case off of ebay and can't wait to get started.  What cable did you use for the 2x12 v that goes to the firewire?  Is there some sort of split jumper wire available?

Keep up the good work!

[highwaytrucker]

Am I missing somthing here?



If you already have the original 18 pin conector that came with the case
Then all you have to do is cut the other end off and solder the ATX conectors
onto the the wires you cut (using shrink tube) Placing a "cable cover" to hide
the area where you made the mod...........

I understand the professional look that you are trying to get but if you use
that black braided "Cable cover" & slide it over the wires before you solder
& shrink wrap everything together, no one will every see or know thats its not
a factory cable.......

however.......
Im a newb to the G5 case mod thing so maybe I am missing somthing here?

I have read many of this
community's post's and I look forward to sharing my ideas, Pic's & mods with
you all...........



Best regards  Highwaytrucker

www.highwaytrucker.com

G5 Case
G31m GS2L mother board
Intel E5300

[pukujuhla]

highwaytrucker, on Jun 27 2010, 06:22 PM, said:

Am I missing somthing here?



If you already have the original 18 pin conector that came with the case
Then all you have to do is cut the other end off and solder the ATX conectors
onto the the wires you cut (using shrink tube) Placing a "cable cover" to hide
the area where you made the mod...........

I understand the professional look that you are trying to get but if you use
that black braided "Cable cover" & slide it over the wires before you solder
& shrink wrap everything together, no one will every see or know thats its not
a factory cable.......

however.......
Im a newb to the G5 case mod thing so maybe I am missing somthing here?

I have read many of this
community's post's and I look forward to sharing my ideas, Pic's & mods with
you all...........



Best regards  Highwaytrucker

www.highwaytrucker.com

G5 Case
G31m GS2L mother board
Intel E5300

This is my exact question and I cannot find the answer.  Am I missing something as well?
It seems to me I can just use the original short cable, cut one end off, solder on the new leads to the ATX board and done deal.  Why is everyone making new 18 pin connectors to plug into the existing short one.

Thanks for the input, I'm about to start my Case mod and I've spent the last 3 days straight on here... lots of great info!!

[DukeRaoul]

Check it out y'all, G5 Front Panel cables are on eBay right now for 8 bucks / free ship!  

http://cgi.ebay.com/...#ht_1897wt_1141

I don't know about all that jazz with taking out the wires, but my approach will be just chop the end off and splice the wires to the proper PC headers.  1 cable, branching out to multiple areas in the case from the front panel.  

I was going to try DiaboliK's method, and I even sawed a small IDE connector in half to do that, but the premise of soldering 18 wires onto those connectors in such a tiny space put me off to procrastinate until it never happened yet.  But a proper plug from the original cable will do it, I'm sure.

[b2496853]

I've converted two G5 cases to standard ATX (Windows) computers.  The first G5 front panel cable I purchased from AlohaCab on this forum.  It was well made and looked/worked great.  My only reservations were that the cable was only crimped and not soldered, and there was no shielding on the cables (though they were twisted as appropriate).  The second cable I built myself using properly shielded firewire/usb/audio cables that I salvaged from an old case.  It was fairly easy and took a couple of evenings to solder everything together.  I haven’t noticed any performance differences between the cable I made and the cable I bought from AlohaCab, so if I ever need another cable, I’ll just buy it from AlohaCab.  He makes a good product, and the price is fair.

This thread has good info for building your own cable from scratch.  Below is a source for everything you need.  The only part I couldn’t find a good bulk source for were the single-pin connector housings for the power button and light.  For those I just a 2 pin connector housing.

2.00mm Pitch, Milli-Grid Crimp Housing, 18 Circuits, with Center Polarization Key, Part 0511101851
http://www.jameco.co...10001_378193_-1
$0.10 each (order in quantities of 10)
Connector Housing 10 Position 2.54mm Straight, Part JS-1105-10-R
http://www.jameco.co...10001_157421_-1
$0.55 each
Connector Housing 5 Position 2.54mm, Part TMT-25402H-1X5
http://www.jameco.co...10001_163686_-1
$0.39 each
CONNECTOR RECEPTACLE, 1POS, 2.54MM, Part 7-87499-2
http://www.performan...ex&cPath=60_190
$0.25
POLARIZING KEY FOR .100 HOUSINGS, 15-04-9209 (part number for taller peg: 15-04-0292)
http://www.jameco.co...10001_741327_-1
$0.028 each (order in quantities of 80)
Connector Contact PIN 1 Position Crimp Straight Cable Mount Reel, Part JS-1105-T-R
http://www.jameco.co...0766&CID=pdfSKU
$0.15 each (order in quantities of 10)
Milli-Grid™ Crimp Terminal, Bag, 0.76µm Select Gold, Lead free, Part  0503948200  (0.38µm 0503948100)
http://www.jameco.co...ogDrillDownView
$0.12 each (order in quantities of 20)

WIRE, BLACK, 100' ,26 AWG, STRANDED, PVC, Part 815-0
https://www.jameco.c...roductId=734511
$7.30
Note on wire: because of the 18 pin connector, 26 gage wire with a max of 1.4mm insulation is the largest wire you can use.  It's rated at 1.5 amps.
3/8 inch Black PET (3/16"-5/8" size range) - 125 ft spool
http://www.cableties...products_id=254
$37.00
1/2 inch 3:1 Heat Shrink Tubing - 4 Foot Pieces
http://www.cableties...products_id=154
$6.14
You'll also need a crimp tool, jameco.com has those too.