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Bauxite
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I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Sat Jul 09, 2011 8:35 pm

USB3 ports to drive bay or pci bracket via proper header cable:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6811996037

Finally, something out there that isn't a stupid pass-through cable, and its cheaper too. I bet they start selling quite a few especially with the llano chipset giving 4 "free" ports that might not all be on the backplate.

Cheaper than the kludgy lian-li ports-on-pcb thing (UC-01) and available unlike the too-short-for-drivebay-mounts bitphoenix part.

Not perfect (unwanted logo, not sure about actual length yet) but enough for a lot of people. I only found it by accident, so I think its a fairly new item. The incorrect description (3.5" bay, not 2.5") and problems adding it to my cart for a few hours didn't help ;)
Last edited by Bauxite on Mon Jul 11, 2011 1:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for these

Sat Jul 09, 2011 11:47 pm

I'm not looking for one yet, but good to know.

They should get someone who actually speaks English to rewrite the product description, instead of just copy-pasting what I assume was Biostar's product blurb...
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Bauxite
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Mon Jul 11, 2011 1:26 pm

Apparently bitfenix (sigh @ that spelling) is making a drive bay which should be out in week or two:

https://store.bitfenix.com/bitfenix%20u ... nt%20panel

Weird that only pictures of the y-cable thing were being shown when this makes more sense.

I only needed 2 ports, but for 4 thats a better choice and a 2 foot cable should work for most cases. Still has annoying logos that ruin a clean look (even on their own cases) but beggars can't be choosers.
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UberGerbil
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Mon Jul 11, 2011 3:42 pm

Useful links, thanks. Now we need to start finding quality (IPS) monitors with integrated 3.0 (instead of 2.0) hubs.
Bauxite wrote:
Still has annoying logos that ruin a clean look (even on their own cases) but beggars can't be choosers.
No, but beggars can find a can of black spray paint. I share your annoyance at the logo (and the spelling -- if the logo was just a little abstract symbol it wouldn't be a big deal).
 
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Mon Jul 11, 2011 5:03 pm

Cooler Master has had them for a while now, too. The 5.25" bracket matches all the CM cases with the mesh drive bays, like my 690 II (it says 912 but fits my case fine), so just for cosmetics alone I don't mind having spent a little more.
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Mon Jul 11, 2011 5:35 pm

Nice. I don't need one of those yet as I don't have a mobo with a USB 3 header on it, but it's good to know such a thing exists.
 
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Mon Jul 11, 2011 6:52 pm

On a related note, ASRock has been doing this for quite a while now. A number of their motherboards come bundled with a USB3.0 two-port cluster you can mount as a 3.5"-bay front panel (by default) or on a rear expansion slot (an adapter is bundled for this purpose). The cluster connects to a USB3.0 header on the motherboard.

What's particularly nifty is that ASRock's USB3.0 front panel adapter has room for bolting on an SSD or 2.5" HDD, too. I thought that was very, very cool...and this is one big reason why I'm considering one such mobo of theirs for my future build.

Great to see that it's available as a third-party component now though.

(MSI has a similar USB3.0 port cluster, but theirs mounts only at the rear.)
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Airmantharp
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Tue Jul 12, 2011 2:21 am

I can verify through first-hand experience that ASRock includes it's USB3/2.5" drive bay in a 3.5" form factor with it's P67 and Z68 Extreme4's, both excellent boards. This was actually one of the deciding factors in my purchase.
 
LoneWolf15
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Sat Aug 13, 2011 7:08 pm

Bauxite wrote:
USB3 ports to drive bay or pci bracket via proper header cable:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6811996037


One of those came with my Asrock mainboard.

I took the ports out of the 3.5" housing, then plugged my Corsair 650D's USB3 connectors into it inside the case, so I could go to the 10-pin header rather than plugging things together on the outside.
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thegleek
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Sat Aug 13, 2011 9:06 pm

yeah i'm in the same boat... the cooler master case came with that same usb 3.0 panel, alas the mobo i got (ASUS P8P67 LE rev3) indicates that it has double usb 3.0 access, yet there is no place on the mobo that allows the cable from that panel to plug into... I did notice a place on the mobo that looks like the same pinout, but nothing was soldered to it. Perhaps it exists only in the higher end PRO versions of this mobo?
 
LoneWolf15
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Sun Aug 14, 2011 4:18 pm

thegleek wrote:
yeah i'm in the same boat... the cooler master case came with that same usb 3.0 panel, alas the mobo i got (ASUS P8P67 LE rev3) indicates that it has double usb 3.0 access, yet there is no place on the mobo that allows the cable from that panel to plug into... I did notice a place on the mobo that looks like the same pinout, but nothing was soldered to it. Perhaps it exists only in the higher end PRO versions of this mobo?


I can only say this is what the header/cable looks like (courtesy of OCWorkbench). Looking at NewEgg's pictures of your board, I don't see the connector there, just some rear USB 3.0 ports. Perhaps the Deluxe and Pro versions do.

Image

I may get Bitfenix's cable adapter to replace the way I did it. I think it will be more sturdy, and I had to electrical-tape my connection to ensure no metal on the female side of the connection touched anything. However, the adapter isn't available yet.

https://store.bitfenix.com/bitfenix%20a ... %20adapter
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thegleek
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Mon Aug 15, 2011 12:23 am

LoneWolf15 wrote:
I can only say this is what the header/cable looks like (courtesy of OCWorkbench). Looking at NewEgg's pictures of your board, I don't see the connector there, just some rear USB 3.0 ports. Perhaps the Deluxe and Pro versions do. http://www.techpowerup.com/img/10-07-15/63b.jpg

Yeah I see that... More specifically, my board -has- that 20-pin connector, just not soldered onto the board, as such:

Image
(Actual full size image was retrieved from http://www.wstore.co.uk/ for educational purposes only.)

What I was wondering LW15, is with my novice soldering skills - is it possible to find that plastic connector and solder it on to the board? And even if I did that, is the mobo capable of recognizing the USB 3.0 if added to it?
 
LoneWolf15
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Mon Aug 15, 2011 12:15 pm

I very much doubt it. I'm guessing your usb3 controller chip supports less ports, lowering the cost slightly, or that there may be caps or resistors not there (or other power circuitry) that would be required and present on the deluxe and pro models.

At any rate, that would be a cast-iron !#$%* to solder, as it's a surface mount component. The best you could probably do would be to solder ten wire leads off the board, then solder the connector to that. -which would be ugly.
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Ryu Connor
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Mon Aug 15, 2011 12:32 pm

The pin out in that image is wrong. Notice the missing pin in the silk screen as compared to the USB3 pin out from the OCW image. The image also includes the letters TPM underneath the missing header pins.

http://www.neoseeker.com/Articles/Hardw ... dq6/3.html

The author's description of the TPM module is more than a little colored with bias and unfounded assertions.

If you were running a copy of Enterprise or Ultimate of Windows 7 the TPM module would grant you the ability to use Bitlocker (without need of a USB key) for whole disk encryption of the boot volume. Bitlocker with a TPM also enables an integrity check of the boot files before boot. That integrity check would aid you in preventing the system from being compromised by a pre-boot virus such as a rootkit.
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Mon Aug 15, 2011 12:36 pm

LoneWolf15 wrote:
At any rate, that would be a cast-iron !#$%* to solder, as it's a surface mount component. The best you could probably do would be to solder ten wire leads off the board, then solder the connector to that. -which would be ugly.

Looks like it is designed to take a through-hole header to me... the holes are just filled with solder.

It's all moot anyway if Ryu is correct about it being for a TPM module.
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thegleek
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Re: I know I'm not the only one looking for usb3 panels

Mon Aug 15, 2011 1:29 pm

Yeah yer all right. I guess I was ignorant to what this "TPM" was... Both the USB 3.0 connector and this TPM both have 10x2 (20 pins) to it... But good call Ryu! :oops:

Image

Has any one ever used one of those before? Probably more of a work-place environement over home use, unless you have sensitive data on your hdd's.

Moral of the story is that I should have gone with the ASUS P8P67 Deluxe over the LE since it does have the USB 3.0 connector onboard.

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