Question E-ATX Case with USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 on the Front

[GinaMoBo]

Hello Experts,
Allow me to ask this collective of brilliance and experience a question:
I want to upgrade to a ASRock W790 Board. The specs are here:

ASRock W790 WS

Supports 4th Gen Intel Xeon W-3400 and W-2400 Processors (LGA4677); 20+2 Power Phase, 90A SPS Design; 14 Layer Server-Grade Ultra Low-Loss PCB; 8 x DDR5 DIMMs, Supports Quad Channel ECC Registered memory, up to 6800+ (OC)<span style=color:red;>*</span>; 4 PCIe 5.0 x16, 1 PCIe 4.0 x16; 4 Blazing...

www.asrock.com

My only requirements for a Case is that it fits THIS E-ATX board, and has USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 on the Front panel of the case.
Many cases say they support USB 3.2 on the front, but not Gen 2x2 specifically.

Who of your experts can help me?

 

[Tech Junky]

You just need a USBC port. They're all the same it's just the header on the MOBO that boosts it to 20G speeds.

 

[Paperdoc]

^ That's not quite right. It IS true that the Type C front panel socket can used for any USB 3.2 port. BUT the CABLE from that down to your mobo is a particular one for the Gen 2x2 version. It ends in a plug called by many a USB Type E to fit the Type E socket on the mobo (key no. 14 on the mobo drawing in your manual on p 7-8). Details of that header are on p. 37. So your CASE must come with that type of cable feeding the front panel Type C socket (normally the cable and socket are a one-piece assembly installed already). The Type E connector is not the same as the one commonly used for USB 3.2 mobo Gen1 or Gen2 headers. (These Gen1 mobo headers are on p. 36 in the manual, key nos. 13 and 29 on the p 7-8.)

Hints on what to look for. The more common USB headers on a mobo each actually contain TWO USB ports, so the cable from there to a case headers usually feeds TWO sockets for plugging things in. So if your case has only two Type C sockets on the front, it is likely that they are fed by a single cable from a "normal" USB 3.2 mobo header. Even if the front has only ONE Type C, it MAY be fed from that kind of cable. You must look for some spec that one front Type C socket is for Gen 2x2, and/or that the cable that feeds it must plug into the newer Type E USB 3.2 Gen2x2 mobo header.

 

[Tech Junky]

Type E

USBC front panel cases use this connector and thus the marketing for 20G is just a way to get more profits. There's nothing special about the wiring to the port itself.

I've used a few different fractal design cases and not had an issue getting 20G speed from the ports.

What would be nice is if mobo companies would put a thunderbolt header for the port instead. The only obstacle there would be cable length and quality to ensure 40G speed.

 

[Paperdoc]

I agree the Type C front panel socket IS designed for use at Gen 2x2 speeds and should work (don't have one to prove it myself). My point is the MOBO HEADER for Gen 2x2 is always the new Type E one, and NOT the one for Gen 1 or Gen 2. So the CABLE feeding that front panel socket must match the Type E header. Even the wires are VERY similar. The difference for a Gen 2x2 port is that the mobo controller changes which signals it sends to the Type C socket. In Gen 2x2 mode, that socket becomes a SINGLE port and uses particular high-speed signalling on the lines, different from the way it uses the lines for Gen2 signals. IF you plug into that socket a Gen2 or Gen1 device, the controller will detect that and switch to using those slower-speed signal systems.

 

[Tech Junky]

@Paperdoc
Type-E connectors on the mobo are only designated for USBC use if the case has a port. If the case doesn't have a port then you don't use it.

Over the years though I don't recall seeing a case with USBC that doesn't use an E connector for the port. I suppose if you're in the market for some cheap $40 case it's possible that they might use the 19 pin USB3 connector instead and only provide up to 10G speed.

Chances are though if you're putting the money into getting the speed you're not dabbling in the cheap cases though. A decent $100 case should hit the mark for all of the ports / headers available today. It all comes down to the details but, this one is a simple designation of what's for sale on the market today. Finding cases with USBC ports is limited to a handful of options anyway.

@GinaMoBo
https://pcpartpicker.com/products/case/#f=3&D=16&sort=price -- limited to 12 cases when selecting 2x2
https://pcpartpicker.com/products/case/#f=3&D=4&sort=price - 296 cases when removing the filter

 

[Paperdoc]

You are right generally. Many cases use only the older Type A sockets for Gen1 and Gen2 versions. Although the USB people strongly recommend Type C for both Gen 2 and Gen 2x2, many makers use the Type A for Gen 2 just because so many people have devices with those connectors and NOT Gen 2, and are looking for convenient front sockets to use. On the other hand, a Type C socket may be fed from either a Gen 2 or a Gen 2x2 controller and mobo header. But the HEADER type will be different between those two Gen's.


HOWEVER, I do see cases with Type C sockets that are specified for only up to Gen 2. For example, this Corsair Corsair iCUE 5000D RGB case

https://www.corsair.com/ca/en/p/pc-cases/cc-9011242-ww/icue-5000d-rgb-airflow-mid-tower-case-black-3x-af120-rgb-elite-fans-icue-lighting-node-pro-controller-high-airflow-design-cc-9011242-ww#tab-techspecs

​

has three front panel sockets and confusing labelling, probably just older use of terms. The web page says it has "(1x) USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type C, and (2x) USB 3.1 Type A". Yet its manual shows the connectors from those case cables end in a Type E one on the cable for the "USB 3.2 Gen2 Type C" socket. I would bet that really should say "USB 3.2 Gen 2x2", and the label for the other cable to the Type A sockets that says "USB 3.0" should say "USB 3.2 Gen1" or maybe "3.2 Gen 2".

I also found the NZXT H5 Flow case with similar labelling that uses a single front panel Type C socket for "Gen 2" fed by a cable with a Type E plug, and another SINGLE Type A socket for "Gen 1" fed by a cable with a 19 pin USB3 connector that should come from a header with TWO ports. The ASUS TUF Gaming GT502 case uses similar labels and says its Type C port is suited to speeds up to 10 Gb/s even though its cable seems able to connect to a Type E mobo header for a Gen 2x2 speed of 20 Gb/s. It does have two Type A sockets for Gen1.

Bottom line I see is that the designs and labels for USB systems and their connectors have changed so often recently that there still are many cases on the market with labels that are NOT correct by today's standards. So knowing exactly what to look for in the physical details of the case can be necessary to get through this confusion.

 

[Tech Junky]

Bottom line I see is that the designs and labels for USB systems and their connectors have changed so often recently that there still are many cases on the market with labels that are NOT correct by today's standards. So knowing exactly what to look for in the physical details of the case can be necessary to get through this confusion

Completely agree. If it has an E connector it will go as fast as the header will provide on the mobo. You found 3 cases that might be an issue. There may be an instance as well where the case E connector doesn't have all 20 pins wired but I don't recall finding such an instance.