Question Access to USB ports.

[tclancey]

Hi there. I wont bother you with why, please just take it as read, I can't get to the back of my pc easily. (Short story, wheelchair, big table, etc)

I've just built a lovely new system, Z690 with some blingy bits. The board has a plethora of USB ports on the back which I can't get to, it's always seemed a bit of a design fault, there should be headers so we can run cables somewhere more useful.

And that really is the crux, does anyone know of a tidy way to extend these ports to the font or side? Yes I can buy 10 extender cables, but they just lie around getting tangled and generally being a pain. I could print or make a box, but then I need to buy extenders and panel mount sockets, that's a pain. I could make my own cables and box which will be my fall back position if there's nothing else.

So, does anyone know of any kit that would allow me to do this? I'm not looking for hubs, I want to effectively be using the ports on the back face of the motherboard.

Over to you folks.
Many thanks.

 

[lvt]

All motherboards have available USB header so that you can use the front side USB ports if your computer case has them.

I can't see why a lovely system doesn't have a front USB panel.

 

[Paperdoc]

It would help if you can tell us the maker and exact model of the mobo.

I can see two routes here. Certainly a USB 3.2 Gen2 or Gen1 HUB that includes its own power supply module is a good solution, although you seem reluctant there. Such a device can centralize all your USB 3.2 ports in one box placed for easy access. There is only one small downside to that - all the devices plugged into that box share ONE USB 3.2 Genx port, so IF you are trying to use several very high-data-rate devices at once, they might be slowed down a little. There are a few ways to minimize that impact, including the possibility of arranging to have USB2 ports available and assigning slow devices like keyboard and mouse to a separate USB 2 Hub. Info on your mobo will help identify its available features. Tell us why you don't like the Hub idea.

Using existing USB 3.2 ports on the front of your case also is an option. If you don't have those, or some but not enough, there are ways to add more on the front with modules that fit into a 5¼" slot for DVD players and the like if your case has one empty. Again, info on the mobo will help. Some mobos have more than one USB 3.2 Gen2 header, but only one actually in use for front panel ports, so more can be added.

You may know this already, but some info on USB naming. First there was USB2, and a few improvements on that. Then came USB3 with much faster data transfer rates and higher power available for attached devices. That was impoved to USB 3.1, and very quickly improved again. So now ALL of these newer ones are called USB 3.2 Gen(something). USB 3.2 Gen1 is the SAME as USB 3 and USB 3.1 using the same USB3 Type A connectors, and a max data transfer rate of 5 Gb/s. (The USB3 Type A connectors look very familiar and just like the older USB2 connectors, but they have five additional contacts in the back. Usually the USB2 connectors have BLACK inserts in them while the newer USB 3 ones have BLUE inserts. USB 3.2 Gen2 has a faster max data transfer rate of 10 Gb/s and can use the Type A connecrtors, but it is recommended that you use the smaller new Type C connector to guarantee full data rate. On the mobo, the headers for USB 3.2 Gen1 and Gen 2 are different from the ones for USB2, but still contain TWO ports per header. You CAN get HUBS for Gen1 and Gen2 speeds, although ones guaranteed to give Gen2 performance can be hard to find.

USB 3.2 Gen2x2 is even faster at up to 20 Gb/s and they REALLY recommend you use the Type C connectors for this. There are very few devices on the market that can actually use this max speed, but the system exists for future development AND to guarantee that the max data rate of the communication system will NOT be a limit on the performance of the connected device. On the mobo, the header for this is a new one again called Type E, and it carries only one port that uses the combined capabilities of two Gen2 ports. So a special cable is required from that mobo header to a front panel Type C socket. I have not seen any Hubs that guarantee Gen 2x2 performance.

With your replies we can help further to narrow down possibilities.

 

[tclancey]

All of which is why I expressly said I'm not going to use hubs, I need to route cables (somehow) from the back of the pc board to the front or side.
It's an Asus Z690 Formula, although I don't see what the difference is, all the ports are 3.2 A, and one type C.
I can see I'm going to have to make cables.

 

[Paperdoc]

That mobo says its back panel contains 7 USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports - six as Type A, one as Type C - plus 3 USB 2.0 Type A ports. In looking around I do find you can buy Extension Cables with male-to-female connectors pre-made of 1.5, 2, and 3 foot lengths. The ones for USB 2.0 in Type A are easy to find - ideally you need 3. The ones for USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gb/s rate max) are all Type A, and usually called USB 3.1 - you need 6 of these. For 10 Gb/s (USB 3.2 Gen 2) speeds, ONLY cables with Type C connectors are sold that way, and you need one. This reflects the advice of the USB designers that you cannot rely on Type A connectors to guarantee 10 Gb/s. IF none of your devices requires a Type C connector, you may find a simple adapter to convert a Type C female socket into a Type A socket.

I considered the possibility that you might try buying a USB 3 HUB with 7 or 10 Type A sockets in one box, then NOT using it as a Hub. Just gut it and use only the female sockets mounted in the box for your access point, then custom connect all your cables to those sockets. But I suspect disconnecting all those sockets from a Hub motherboard and then re-soldering cable wires to all of them would be tough to do inside such a small box.