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I'm experiencing some unusual difficulty looking for a manufacturer part number for the connector shown here:

.. which is found on computer fan cable extensions. There are 3-pin versions and 4-pin versions that use a polarization rib (power, tachometer, PWM control): http://www.formfactors.org/developer/specs/REV1_2_Public.pdf

It's everywhere on the web in already-assembled cables but I can't find anything regarding the connector itself using the regular search tools (digikey/mouser/farnell/google)...

The best "reference" I could find is MDY-CO052.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ It looks like some kind of Molex SL connector with a special keying \$\endgroup\$
    – Daniel
    Commented Mar 7, 2016 at 4:09
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    \$\begingroup\$ Actually it's a Molex KK, based on the part numbers in that formfactors.org document... but I can't find that crimp-pin version that you've shown here. \$\endgroup\$
    – Daniel
    Commented Mar 7, 2016 at 4:23
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    \$\begingroup\$ I'm guessing that connector is not a Molex part, but a compatible part of some other make. molex KK 254 will connect to regular 2.54mm square pin headers, and everyone does them.... \$\endgroup\$
    – Jasen Слава Україні
    Commented Mar 10, 2016 at 3:22
  • \$\begingroup\$ My guess is those sockets simply aren't made by the major connector manufacturer and the only source is off-brand vendors in china. \$\endgroup\$
    – Peter Green
    Commented Mar 23, 2016 at 18:46

2 Answers 2

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direct quote from wikipedia: "computer_fan"

Three-pin Molex connector KK family

This Molex connector is used when connecting a fan to the motherboard or other circuit board. It is a small, thick, rectangular in-line female connector with two polarizing tabs on the outer-most edge of one long side. Pins are square and on a 0.1 inch (2.54 mm) pitch. The three pins are used for ground, +12 V power, and a tachometer signal. The Molex part number of receptacle is 22-01-3037. The Molex part number of the individual crimp contacts is 08-50-0114. The matching PCB header Molex part number is 22-23-2031.

Four-pin Molex connector KK family

This is a special variant of the Molex KK connector with four pins but with the locking/polarisation features of a three-pin connector. The additional pin is used for a pulse-width modulation signal to provide variable speed control.[22] These can be plugged into 3-pin headers, but will lose their fan speed control. The Molex part number of receptacle is 47054-1000. The Molex part number of individual crimp contacts is 08-50-0114. The Molex part number of the header is 47053-1000.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Hi, sorry but the part I'm inquiring about in is the male wire-to-wire part, which is not 47053-1000 (which is wire-to-board, not crimp) or 47054-1000 (which is female, not male). \$\endgroup\$
    – cJ Zougloub
    Commented Mar 7, 2016 at 14:38
  • \$\begingroup\$ ah, sorry I didn't read the question fully. \$\endgroup\$
    – Jasen Слава Україні
    Commented Mar 10, 2016 at 3:20
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There are several of these housings out there, most of which are off-brand. The only name brand I could find is a Molex SPOX connector. The 29-11-0032 is a 4-pin connector that we use in short jumpers connect hot-swap fans to the motherboard fan headers.

A few things to note about this part:

  • These are 2.50mm pitch, not 0.100"(2.54mm). This isn't really an issue with 4-position connectors.
  • These housings are not dual-keyed for 3 and 4 pin. The keying is correct for 4 pin and so is the 3 pin, so they will work in an exact fit but not a universal fit.

  • These housings have panel mount ears, but they can be cut off pretty easily with an x-acto knife.*

    • When doing a little research, I see that 29-11-0033 is the same thing without panel mount ears. The "old" part number for these is 5240-03 and 5240-031, respectively. 5240 is the SPOX male wire-to-wire housing, -03 is three position, and the 1 suffix denotes w/o mounting ear. Thus, 5240-041 is a four-position, w/o ear.

5240 three position, without ears

Mouser and Digi-Key both carry these, so it may be a decent starting point. It's not in the Mouser paper catalog, but both sites have the datasheets available. Also, Molex's website has a pretty decent search tool with lots of parts data.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Does spox mate with kk? it doesn't look like it does from the pictures on the molex site. \$\endgroup\$
    – Peter Green
    Commented Mar 23, 2016 at 18:41
  • \$\begingroup\$ Along with the connector housing you also need the male pins that crimp onto the wire, and whether or not the female KK 100 or KK 254 connector will fit onto the male pins in the SPOX socket. The SPOX 4-pin male sockets don't appear to be keyed for the 3 or 4 pin female housing. One could carefully simply cut out the required notch, though it'd be labor intensive and error prone. The connector housings shown by OP, I wonder if ther take SPOX male pins, if retention tabs work, etc. \$\endgroup\$
    – user137924
    Commented Feb 4, 2017 at 9:23

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