ATX and PCIe Extension cable questions

Hello all,

I've managed to talk my friend out of buying a $4k+ computer from Alien-ware and letting me design and build it. He is very much about the Bling factor so I want to order up some Murder-mod PC sleeving for all the exposed wires in the case. Instead of taking hours to sleeve the PSU and potentially having it break down or be sold, I think making extension cables would be a better idea.

First question, I have done some research and found that good Power Supplies use 18 gauge wire, so I wanted to know if there is a quality difference between a 100' spool of black 18 gauge at OSH and "high end electrical wire" from online retailers?

Second, where is a good place to look for solid black ATX and PCIe connectors? Most places I've looked only have clear and weird colors.

Thanks for the help

flebay is full of connectors in all colors. quality can be hit and miss depending on seller though.

j0rd said:

flebay is full of connectors in all colors. quality can be hit and miss depending on seller though.

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Could always just make your own, like what I do. Took me around an hour or two to make these and they are solid. This way, you can make it the exact length you need, the color you want, sleeve it how you want and make sure the quality is good.

^^^ tidy

j0rd: I tend to stay away from flebay since I've had multiple bad experiences on it.

thideras: That's exactly what I am going to do. Where do you buy the end connectors? And are you using just basic 18 gauge wire?

GMdoubleG said:

thideras: That's exactly what I am going to do. Where do you buy the end connectors? And are you using just basic 18 gauge wire?

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You just need male/female connectors. I personally use Performance-PCs because I can get everything in one place. They've only screwed up my order once, but they over-nighted me the replacement part; which is good, because the cables were for a customer of mine. The connectors themselves are roughly $1/e with pins costing the same amount or a little bit more. The whole cable should be in the $10-15 range with quality parts and individual sleeving.

cool...the only thing that has stopped me from making my own cables is a crimper...i dont have one. Can i use a crimper from the auto store or is like a "molex" crimper requiered..?

sorry to go off topic.

I'm not sure about molex or sata cables, but for ATX and PCIe I have used needle nosed pliers and a very small amount of solder to make sure everything stays nice and tight.

i've seen "molex crimper's" online somwhere before for a stupid amount of money. Just dug up my crimper/stripper, looks like it could do molex and perhaps some others easy enough. I tend to stay away from solder as my hand isnt that steady. Like thid said, performance-pc's has great stock. And they post international at a reasonable rate.

This is the exact one I have, just a different colored handle. Fairly expensive, but it has paid for itself many times over. If you are only going to make a few cables, it isn't really worth the investment. If you are going to make some in the future, it is a good idea to grab one. There isn't a need to solder. You can do it to strengthen the connection to prevent it from slipping out, but it isn't going to lower the resistance by a noticeable amount.

http://www.performance-pcs.com/cata...roduct_info&cPath=60_143_272&products_id=1277

sweet

Yea, I only use the solder as a way to ensure that the wire doesn't pull away from the connection since I don't use a crimp.