Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
Connectingfront-panelports,switches,andindicators
The next step is to connect the front-panel ports, switches, and indicators.
Figure 5-46 shows the front-panel connector positions on the DX58SO
motherboard.
USB 3.0?
The DF-85 case provides a front-panel
USB 3.0 port, which is color-keyed
blue to differentiate it from the three
black USB 2.0 ports. Antec faced a
dilemma in deciding what type of
connector to put on the free end of
that cable. The pin-outs for USB 2.0
internal header-pin sets are well
established, but the same is not true
for USB 3.0. Also, as we write this,
few motherboards provide USB 3.0
support, and most of those that do
provide USB 3.0 as back-panel exter-
nal ports rather than USB 3.0 internal
header-pin sets.
Antec had two choices, neither of
them great. The first option was to
terminate the USB 3.0 cable in indi-
vidual wires, which would have to be
connected one by one to an internal
USB 3.0 header-pin set (which prob-
ably wouldn't be present). The sec-
ond was to terminate the front-panel
USB 3.0 cable in a standard external
USB connector, which could then be
routed through the case, out through
an expansion slot or other hole in the
rear of the case, and then connected
to an external USB 3.0 port on the
motherboard rear-panel I/O set.
Antec elected to do the latter.
Figure 5-46.
Front-panel connector positions on the DX58SO motherboard (image courtesy
of Intel Corporation)
Note that the type and number of front-panel ports on a case seldom cor-
responds to the front-panel connectors available on a motherboard. For ex-
ample, the DF-85 case provides three front-panel USB 2.0 ports, while the
DX58SO motherboard provides six internal USB 2.0 connectors. The DX58SO
also provides internal connectors for a front-panel FireWire and an IR emitter,
for which the DF-85 has no front-panel ports. Conversely, the DF-85 provides a
front-panel USB 3.0 port, for which the DX58SO provides no connector.
To begin connecting front-panel cables, locate the front-panel audio cable in
the bundle of cables at the top front of the DF-85 case. That cable is double-
ended, with connecting blocks for both HD audio and AC'97 audio. Locate
the HD audio header-pin set on the DX58SO motherboard, near the expan-
sion slot covers. That cable connector and the header-pin set are keyed with a
blocked hole and missing pin, respectively. Orient the cable connector so that
the missing pin and blocked hole are aligned, and then press the cable con-
nector firmly onto the header-pin set, as shown in Figure 5-47.
The Intel DX58SO motherboard provides three internal USB 2.0 header-pin
sets, each of which supports two USB 2.0 ports. The DF-85 case has three
front-panel USB 2.0 ports, which connect to the motherboard via two USB 2.0
cables, one with a two-port 10-pin (2X5) connector and the other with a one-
port 5-pin (1X5) connector.
