I’m using the motherboard from a Dell Inspiron 3847 for this build but I can’t figure out the front IO and I can’t find instructions for this motherboard anywhere. In the original case the front panel IO is handled by a single cable. Is what I’m trying to do hopeless? Surely there’s a way to connect this to my new case.
They are proprietary and typically have a pin jumpered to ground as the dell cables sense disconnects. Some dells already have after market adapters. Let me check my notes…
Notes: I bought these, but looks like they don’t have your model with 12 pin. https://store.harbinrepairs.com/index.php/product-category/motherboard-conversion-adapters/dell-compatible-adapters/
While waiting on the order I had wired my own with some tiny connectors, after finding a wiring pinout.
https://youtu.be/N1A32o4WcHA
I found an adapter on eBay. I’m kind of embarrassed that I couldn’t find it before making this post. I wasn’t searching for the right thing. In conclusion, a second look often pays off and also fuck Dell.
Edit: In case this helps someone in the future, here’s the link.
Awesome! Yeah dell makes it complicated, but there is method behind their madness.
Their cables all check if they are connected to what they are supposed to be connected to, so that mass assembly troubleshooting is automatic.
So the work around on the adapter board and manual wire setups is to jump one pin over to another to fake that the cable is connected to the item at the other end.
Why they chose to mess with fan wires is beyond me though…that’s just cruel