Ask Electronics @discuss.tchncs.de UndercoverUlrikHD @programming.dev 2 mo. ago

5 pin connector recommendations that have both male and female sockets available

I'm looking for a 5 pin connector type that I can easily find chassis plugs for both male and female.

I've looked at DIN and mini xlr connectors, but have unsurprisingly been unable to find male chassis sockets.

The pins needs to support 12V 10A*

*realistically only expects about 6-7A flowing through 1 pin and one fourth of that through the 4 others.

23 comments

What are your other requirements?

Is this for a production or a one of a kind hobby/repair project?

How budget aware are you?

you mention portability. How often would you need to unplug it? And will it be done by you or someone who requires a bit more user proofing?

Have you considered using more than one pin per pole? Ie if you had a 15pin connector, that can take 3A per pin, then shorting 3pins will give you 5 pins 9A. There will be more considerations to this though. Like how can you make sure that the parallel pins present a similar resistance, so you don't get an unbalanced load.
- One of a kind hobby project. I want to experiment with time of day controlled LEDs, and see how they work as a light based wake up alarm.
  
  I'd rather not break the bank for needlessly overkill connectors, the total for the project so far is only ~220$, and I only sporadically work on it.
  
  portability isn't all that important, but the chassis the connectors would connect to should preferably be as small as possible. The PWM circuitry without connectors are ~8cmx3cm.
  
  I wouldn't mind using connectors with more pins. The primary challenge is just finding a connector with both male and female socket plugs that seems to easy to plug in and out, within specs.
  
  Thanks for the update. In that case I would be looking at terminal block plugs. They can easily handle the current, they come in a wide variety including panel mount, and they're cheap. What's even better, they don't require crimping and one I saw didn't even use screw terminals https://www.digikey.com/en/products/filter/headers-plugs-and-sockets/370?s=N4IgjCBcpgHAzFUBjKAzAhgGwM4FMAaEAeygG0R5YB2BAFhCKtvgFZHKaBOMABg%2BY8ITbmABMA0QxHUuYhgF0iABwAuUEAGVVAJwCWAOwDmIAL7mgA
Anderson powerpoles. They're like Lego, non-gendered, and will handle your current requirements. I use them to make harnesses in my scientific equipment applications all the time under specs similar to yours.
- The connectors needs to be gendered so that input and output can't be mixed up by mistake.
10A is a pretty big ask. You might want a few more pins to spread that current around. What are you other pins used for. DE-9 is where I would probably start.
- I don't know how aging affects the LED power draw, according to the manufacturer I shouldn't expect more than 7.5A. When measuring peak power output, I get only get ~6A total though.
  
  4 pins are for earth with each (measured) having ~1.5A going through them at peak brightness. The fifth pin must bear the total load of the four other pins.
  
  Having 5 pins is of course not a strict requirement, it's just the LED strip that has 5 connections.
  
  Edit: I should have clarified that the 4 pins "leading to earth" are connected to mosfets controlled by PWM signals, so they aren't directly connected to earth. Each of the 4 pins carries a unique amount of current. Their total current is flowing through the fifth pin. Sorry for missing out on that detail in the original statement.
  
  If you solder together the ends on the LED you'll only need 2 pins
  
  You could use XT60 connectors and connect together the ground pins
There's automotive plugs which use more or less standard spade connectors which you can wire yourself and they can easily achieve 10A and things like relay sockets can manage 40A or more. JAE is one of the brands manufacturing all kinds of connectors, with and without panel connectors, but there's a ton of manufacturers around. I suppose on marine stuff you can find connectors like that too.

But if it's for a LED strip and you don't need to constantly move them around, I'd suggest using a dirt cheap spade connectors with color coding (reverse male/female connectors on the live one so it's physically impossible to connect led strip in reverse polarity). Or even cheaper, use screw terminals and be extra careful when wiring the strip in.

And for the dupont-style connector commonly seen on LED strips, 10A feels like quite optimistic value. Obviously a LED strip can pull 10A and many times that, but quickly googled ballpark estimation for 2,5m 10A led strip calls for 2,5mm² wiring all the way trough and your cheap flexible LED PCB from amazon/ebay is pretty far from that. But that depends heavily on what you actually have and if you've measured 6A then it's pretty reasonable to have the rest of the setup to manage 10A.
I'm a big fan of Amphenol mil-spec connectors. They're a bit expensive, but not terribly so. You could almost certainly find one that meets your requirements.
PCIE 8-pin connectors supports up to 150W (12V/12.5A), but they're meant for internal use, not chassis.

If you want to get 120W, chassis-mounted, your best bet is usb-c.

10 amps is a crazy ask. Are you trying to power the entire device with this port? If so, consider common ports (what's wrong with IEC C14?).
You could try these: https://www.amazon.com/PIN-PANEL-MOUNT-MICROPHONE-CONNECTOR/dp/B00H57AJEI/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?sr=8-6

https://www.amazon.com/5-PIN-CB-MICROPHONE-PLUG/dp/B00H573MO2/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?sr=8-1

Both of these match up nicely and are rather beefy though they don't actually say the current rating.

There's also these that are rated for 300V 15A https://www.amazon.com/5-08mm-Terminal-Connector-Pluggable-Connector-Phoenix/dp/B0CM3Y1WS5/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?sr=8-1
- There's also these that are rated for 300V 15A https://www.amazon.com/5-08mm-Terminal-Connector-Pluggable-Connector-Phoenix/dp/B0CM3Y1WS5/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?sr=8-1
  
  I use something like this when repairing screw terminals that my students have applied too much torque to and broken the through hole pins on. It's a great type of connector. But if we're talking portability, then it's maybe not the most ergonomic.
How about a 6 pin connector?

Cable side connector with strain relief. https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/amphenol-industrial-operations/PT06SE-10-6P-SR/341057

Bulkhead connector. https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/amphenol-industrial-operations/PT02SE-10-6S/341071

To include or exclude the strain relief, add or remove the "(SR)" from the part number.
Dang 10A is kind of beefy, what is this for?

Do you need IP rating?

If you didn't need 10A I would have recommended M12 connectors
- A few meters LED strips.
  
  According to the spec sheet only 7.5A should be necessary with a recommended 25% margin for a total 9.4A for the power supply. I rounded up to 10 for simplicity, and that's the spec of the power supply I have.
  
  Measuring max current at peak brightness is only at ~6A though, so 10A isn't strictly necessary.
  
  IP rating isn't necessary, it should all fit into a small box with some circuitry for PWM signaling used inside a normal room.
  
  Would Molex Mini-Fit work for you?
  
  Are you concerned about the voltage drop on the strip itself? A second connector feeding power to the opposite end might be wanted.

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