What Are Molex Connectors

By Author: William Campbell
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A Molex connector is a lingo term used to refer to a type of connector used in microcomputers. The Molex connector was designed by Molex. Molex is a large electronic component manufacturing company founded in 1938. They mainly deal in the manufacture of plugs and sockets. NB/ The name Molex connector is used because Molex was one of the first companies to make this type of connector. This does not mean that there are no other companies making the connector. In practice, compatible connectors are available from myriad manufacturers such as AMP and Delphi, not just Molex. The name just stuck.

The Molex connector has a very simple design. The connector has a nylon plug and receptacle; consisting of a two piece pin and socket connection to which four wires are attached. One piece of the two piece pin and socket design consists of metal pins while the other piece consists of metal sockets. The pins and the sockets on the ends of a Molex connector are held in place by nylon shells and aligned 5.088 mm apart in a sort of rectangular matrix depending on the application. These shells can be arranged to support anywhere from two ...
... to fifteen circuits. The wires consist of a yellow wire, two black wires and a red wire. The standard pin out is as shown below.
COLOR FUNCTION
Yellow 12 volts
Black Ground
Red 5 volts

The connector is polarized and designed in a way that makes it difficult to plug it in incorrectly. The connector that provides power has female pins and a male housing while the connector that receives power has male pins and a female housing. The connectors are capable of up to 10 amperes. The function of the housing is to hold the terminals and protect them from shorting, dust, dirt, moisture, and electrical interference. The terminal pins on the other hand are what conduct the current.

The Molex connector is used for power connections for a disk drive in a computer as well as for other computer components such as CD-ROM's, graphic cards etc. The Molex connectors bring DC power to the drives inside a PC case. One computer can have several Molex connectors. The largest of the Molex connectors on a computer power supply is known as the ATX connector, or the Mini-Fit Jr. This connector can feature twenty or twenty four different pins, depending on the age of the power supply and the motherboard it will connect to. As computer technology has advanced, so too has the Molex Mini-Fit Jr. connector's shape and size.

Benefits of the Molex connector

* They make it easier to assemble different components.
* They ease repairs since if the connector fails, it can easily be replaced.
* They allow for upgrades.
* They allow for design flexibility.

Drawbacks associated with the Molex connector

* Expensive
* May not be widely available
* Cumbersome to remove since they do not lock into position using a latch.
* The Molex connector has a lifespan of about 5 years only.