What's this part and where can I get it? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / repair

author: Pcmaker
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2020, 06:43:05 pm
content: This came from my Steelseries Cataclysm mouse. It's the part that the mouse wheel goes into and detects scrollingIt came from here:it says ALPS 1 on the frontThis is the back:

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2020, 06:50:50 pm
content: It's a rotary encoder. Likely one from this series:https://www.alps.com/prod/info/E/HTML/Encoder/Incremental/EC10E/EC10E_list.htmlBe sure to measure the height precisely to match the drawings, since otherwise it won't line up with the wheel itself.

author: Pcmaker
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2020, 06:55:09 pm
content: Do I measure this distance?

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2020, 07:02:16 pm
content: No. Look at the datasheet:https://www.alps.com/prod/info/E/PDF/Encoder/Incremental/EC10E/EC10E.pdfIt says the height is dimension "H", which appears to be from the PCB level (the lower of your two lines) and the center of the hole.

author: Twoflower
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2020, 07:03:20 pm
content: Check the drawings included in each specific encoder (e.g.EC10E1220505). There is the complete drawing with measurements given.

author: Pcmaker
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2020, 07:28:06 pm
content: I have it narrowed down to EC10E1220503 and EC10E1260507The only difference I see are the detent torques, which I have no way of measuring, but I don't think that really matters and also operating temperatures, of which there's a massive difference between the two*edit* ugh, can't seem to find this on Digikey

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2020, 07:35:43 pm
content: Is the original part broken? Mechanical encoders are notorious for getting flaky but usually a squirt of pot cleaner/lube gets them right back into shape.

author: Pcmaker
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2020, 07:40:43 pm
content: It just feels weird when I turn the mouse scroll like the detent isn't stopping the movement like it used to and it overdoes it sometimes when I scroll one click

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2020, 07:42:39 pm
content: It might be worn out then, you could try cleaning it and see if that helps, or look and see if you can see what's wrong.Finding replacement parts like this can be tricky, at least in this case it *looks* like it's a standard Alps part. It's not uncommon in high volume consumer devices to find custom components though.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 01, 2020, 07:50:55 pm
content: Quote from: Pcmaker on January 01, 2020, 07:28:06 pmHmm. The temp difference is simply because one is rated for automotive use, the other is not. So for your purposes, of absolutely no consequence.Digikey doesn't carry Alps products. But Mouser does (and it looks like they have the EC10E1220503 in stock), as does LCSC (sorta the Chinese Mouser), and they're easy to find on eBay, either as originals or clones. It looks like if you search for "steelseries mouse encoder", there are vendors selling replacements specifically for your model.