Help me identify these connectors - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / repair

author: akis
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2018, 12:07:20 am
content: I want to extend the fan leads inside my laptop because they are too short. This will allow me to lift the heatsink off the motherboard without having to remove the motherboard (and all the cables and connectors on it). I have taken a photo of the plugs, they have 4 pins and they are quite small. I need the female sockets and the male jacks so as to make an extension. I could cut the wires instead but that would void any warranty so it would be a last ditch effort.

author: Armadillo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2018, 09:19:11 am
content: Just out of curiosity, how many times in a lifetime will you want to repair this laptop to make such modification?

author: ElecSeb
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2018, 09:24:06 am
content: Simple answer, this connector you ask does not exist. The connector is an wire-to-board.Here someone with the same question:https://electronics.stackexchange.com/questions/333575/jst-connector-female-to-male-jumper-is-this-how-it-worksHere is the site from JST:http://www.jst-mfg.com/product/detail_e.php?series=231What I would do:1. Buy a new FAN for your laptop (eBay 10 to 15 dollar probably)2. Extend the cable form this new fan and install it in your laptop.This is probably the easiest and quickest way without jeopardizing your warranty.

author: akis
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2018, 11:35:55 am
content: Hey guys, many thanks for pointing me out to the JST connector - now I know I can get both male and female, even if the female socket is PCB mounted.The reason for wanting to do this is because my laptop is notorious for bad thermals and opening it up to re-paste the CPU and GPU has become "standard" routine amongst its users. However in order to remove the single piece heatsink, those fan leads must first be unplugged, but they are underneath the motherboard which means the motherboard itself has to come out first. Which is very hard work, a lot of flimsy connectors on board, very delicate, you do not want to be doing this every two months. Which is how long my thermal paste solution seems to have lasted before clearly deteriorating.Laptop is Alienware 17 R5 with i9-8950HK and GTX 1080.

author: ElecSeb
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2018, 01:56:50 pm
content: I you buy decent paste you should not have that problem.Just invest in real paste... also 30 dollar but then your problem should be solved...An other option (when possible and wanted) is to flatten the IC top of your core so it makes better contact to the heating element.And then of course apply some proper thermal grease.

author: akis
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2018, 03:18:37 pm
content: I wish it were so simple. Unfortunately this laptop is renowned for its thermal problems and ordinary thermal grease will not last long. I used MX-4 which was great to start with but then deteriorated in a month. The only permanent solution is Liquid Metal or graphite pads (I have used the Panasonic ones). And even then you get more problems because the single heatsink also helps cool down the VRMs, chokes, and VRAMs. All those ICs are at different levels and the heatsink is a 3D nightmare. Dell have used thermal pads of different thickness at different locations, and jelly like thermal pads in other locations where the gaps cannot possibly be measured accurately. Unfortunately this results in the VRMs overheating even if the GPU/CPU are not and thayt brings the system down too. I have measured 104C on my GPU's VRMs. There are hundreds of pages on the forums and Dell does nothing but replacing heatsinks and/or whole laptops. This is my 3rd one now in 9 months.

author: ElecSeb
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2018, 06:25:34 pm
content: Did you try this:https://www.aw-community.com/forum/topic/8849-new-alienware-17-r5-repaste-guide-ergebnisse/Including the same thermal pasta (I have it myself, it is a pain in the ass to apply, but it does make its promises!)

author: akis
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2018, 06:50:17 pm
content: No I have not tried liquid metal, and will not - I was very happy with MX-4 thermal paste, and got fantastic benchmarks, but for some reason it has been deteriorating with time (2 months out).I will wait to receive the fan connectors and leads so that I will need to remove the motherboard only once and not ever again. After I fit the fan lead extensions, I should be able to remove the heatsink without removing the motherboard too.I have two more thermal pastes ready to try: IC Diamond 24 and Cooler Master MasterGel Maker. I think I might try the Cooler Master first. I also have the Panasonic Graphite pads I could use, they are almost as good as LM, but you must have good contact.

author: ElecSeb
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2018, 09:42:54 pm
content: The liquid metal is better, but cannot be used on alu surfaces, because it makes it corrode...I would deff advice you to use this paste. However it is your choice.Anyway, good luck with the board connectors, they are smd style and not an easy task to solder.

author: Armadillo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2018, 10:01:14 pm
content: Elevate the bottom, or buy a bottom assisted cooler or design your own bottom cooler.Give it a try.

author: akis
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: January 10, 2019, 02:52:20 pm
content: I bought a few connectors on ebay, advertised as JST SH, but they are visibly smaller than what I need and they lack protrusions at the front (not at the back). I think I can just make the writing "JC TC" maybe. My connector is 5mm at the bottom without the protrusions. It is not the JST SH, but I do not know what it is.

author: Armadillo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 10, 2019, 03:09:46 pm
content: You can push the pin and pull out and put it into the JST connector you just bought.Got the idea?

author: akis
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: January 10, 2019, 10:24:05 pm
content: Yes repurpose the existing male connector so that it can be used in the existing socket and make a custom extension in between. If I need to put it back I could reverse the process.

author: mvs
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: January 11, 2019, 10:56:16 am
content: Quote from: akis on January 10, 2019, 02:52:20 pmIt looks like Molex 51146 or A1254 series. Measure it with caliper and then compare to one of the drawings below.https://www.molex.com/pdm_docs/sd/511460400_sd.pdfhttps://www.hr-connector.com.tw/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/A1254H-XPNXXXXXXXX-11A1.pdf