Easy and cheap PC case front USB port upgrade?

[Delicieuxz]

If a PC case has USB Type-A ports on it, to be connected to a motherboard USB 5Gbps header, but your motherboard has many rear USB 10Gbps Type-A ports, can a cable be run connecting some extra rear USB 10GBps ports, through the PC case, and to the PC case's frontal USB ports, to make them 10Gbps instead of 5Gbps?

I expect a custom cable might need to be made. In the case of the PC case having two frontal USB 5Gbps ports, either with an adapter to make two read USB 10Gbps ports join into a single cable and connector that matches the motherboard's header connector for the frontal USB ports, or by cutting the PC case's front USB cable and make two separate cables for the case's front USB ports that each have a USB 3 connector to be plugged into a rear USB 10Gbps port.

Would that distance of cable (maybe 2.4 feet) between the case's front USB ports and the rear USB ports impair the transfer speed?

 

[LigTasm]

Its been done before and shouldn't have any problem. You can also get a PCI-E USB card and use that to run the header on the case to get the higher speeds. Also the good old fashioned USB hub is always an option.

 

[Delicieuxz]

Its been done before and shouldn't have any problem. You can also get a PCI-E USB card and use that to run the header on the case to get the higher speeds. Also the good old fashioned USB hub is always an option.

Cool. Is there a ready-to-go cable for it that can be purchased, or does one need to make their own?

The PCIe-slot route is less preferable, as it would use up the only spare PCIe slot on the mobo I'm looking at, and then I couldn't add a Thunderbolt expansion card later on.

 

[LigTasm]

Cool. Is there a ready-to-go cable for it that can be purchased, or does one need to make their own?

The PCIe-slot route is less preferable, as it would use up the only spare PCIe slot on the mobo I'm looking at, and then I couldn't add a Thunderbolt expansion card later on.

Whats the board? You can get header to port cables like this all over the place, just specify the type.

 

[pendragon1]

didnt need another thread for this...
(1) Can the USB ports on a Be Quiet Silent Base 802 be upgraded to 10 or 20 Gbps? | [H]ard|Forum (hardforum.com)

look for "motherboard to usb*** cable"

 

[Delicieuxz]

Whats the board? You can get header to port cables like this all over the place, just specify the type.

View attachment 540596

Cool. I'm looking at a ROG Strix X670E-A or a ROG Strix B650E-E mobo. The case I've ordered is a Be Quiet Silent Base 802. Its front USB 3.2 ports combine into a single header cable, which is the blue-tipped one in this photo.

Maybe this is exactly what's needed: https://www.ebay.com/itm/303542282685

 

[Delicieuxz]

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB_3.0

Under the USB 3.2 specification, released 22 September 2017,[11] existing SuperSpeed certified USB-C 3.1 Gen 1 cables will be able to operate at 10 Gbit/s (up from 5 Gbit/s), and SuperSpeed+ certified USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 cables will be able to operate at 20 Gbit/s (up from 10 Gbit/s). The increase in bandwidth is a result of multi-lane operation over existing wires that were intended for flip-flop capabilities of the USB-C connector.

If older USB-C cables are compatible with newer USB-C speeds due to having additional lanes already built into them for the sake of a feature that is specific to USB-C ports, maybe the same doesn't apply to cables made for USB-A ports, and maybe the ports on the PC case will have to be upgraded to 10Gbps along with the cable for this plan to work. Does anyone know if this is the case?

 

[GiGaBiTe]

If older USB-C cables are compatible with newer USB-C speeds due to having additional lanes already built into them for the sake of a feature that is specific to USB-C ports, maybe the same doesn't apply to cables made for USB-A ports, and maybe the ports on the PC case will have to be upgraded to 10Gbps along with the cable for this plan to work. Does anyone know if this is the case?

The new 10 gbit mode looks like it requires a second high speed lane, which USB A doesn't have. Even if you extended the 10 gbit ports on the back of the machine to the case header, you're probably going to be limited to the max speed of one lane.