Question Power switch for open frame test bench

[Kledgie]

Hey guys. Never done this before. How do I go about powering on the rig on something like this?

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I would need to buy a power switch? Any help/advice would be great.

 

[solidsnake1298]

Look at the front panel header diagram for your motherboard and find the pins for the front panel power switch. Grab a screen driver, or something made of metal, and press it against those pins to bridge them. That's, essentially, all a power switch does.

 

[mindless1]

Rather than a "screen driver", I'd try a screwdriver 😉 but really, I'd grab the switch/wire/connector out of an old computer case or next time I was passing by some mom 'n pop computer shop, check their dumpster for thrown away systems or ask them to pull and save one for me for $2... or they're on ebay via slow boat from China if you're not in a hurry.

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... or more expensive but fast delivery from amazon.

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... or then there's me, wanting to do it fancy, I'd take a piece of acrylic, bend in a U-shape, cement it to the product tray, put a hole in it for a panel mount switch (solder wire+connector on), something fancy smantzy like this:

G25650 -

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[solidsnake1298]

Bah. Use a screen driver ( screw driver). You'll look cool when your friends see you do that.

 

[mindless1]

Somebody does sell a power switch directly mounted onto a pin header connector (or you could DIY make that) but I can't recall where I saw it, has been a few years.

Something else I saw that would be my 2nd choice is this, buy ready to go or DIY make something similar using a slot bracket. There's probably a cheaper seller out there somewhere.

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[Kledgie]

Look at the front panel header diagram for your motherboard and find the pins for the front panel power switch. Grab a screen driver, or something made of metal, and press it against those pins to bridge them. That's, essentially, all a power switch does.

Oh man, he's just got the mobo laying on the box too. Maybe I should just do that haha.

 

[aigomorla]

lamptron monetary swtich.

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Make sure you get the dimeter correct for the hole.
It comes in 12 - 16 - 22

I also recommend the wiring harness for them as well, unless u pretty savey with electrical.

 

[Hail The Brain Slug]

What motherboard do you intend to use? More and more motherboards are coming with onboard power and reset switches for this kind of thing (test bench/outside of case testing and benchmarking).

 

[mindless1]

^ True but I wouldn't want to run a system in that long term so it seems like, as just a testbed, it would be best for it to be able to handle any random mobo thrown onto it whether it has a power/reset switches already or needs that added.

 

[lenjack]

As mentioned above, just get a power switch, with it's 2 attached wires, from an old or discarded case, and plug them into the power switch connectors, on the board. Just press the button on the switch to power up.

 

[mindless1]

Oh man, he's just got the mobo laying on the box too. Maybe I should just do that haha.

Just don't lay it on the anti-static bag... I recall a topic, maybe not here, where it took days for someone to mention (so we realized the reason their setup wouldn't post was...) that they had the mobo's anti-static bag under it, thinking that was a good thing when it wasn't, because it's conductive.