Does Anyone Know Where I Can Buy a Self-Crimping Micro-USB Connector?

[spaceman5]

Hi all


I bought a USB Hub that contains 3x USB sockets + an Ethernet socket.

This hub connects to the host device via a USB-A Male connector,
and I would like to change it to be MicroUSB Male, to fir RPi 0 and 0W.

I do have a MicroUSB OTG Adapter Cable at home, which can help here,
but to make things more neat, it would be nicer to make the hub be MicroUSB without an additional converting cable.


I went to AliExpress, and typed microusb connector in the Search Box,
but the results I get seem to all be connectors that require soldering to tiny solder pads..


On the other hand, on a video, I saw this:















It seems to be a Self-Crimping MicroUSB Connector,
you insert the 4 wires into 4 holes, like you do with an RJ45 plug,
and after the wires are in, you bring another part of the connector, press it in using plyers,
and it's done..

No need to struggle with soldering tiny solder pads,
and also you get a much stronger holding of the wires than solder pads.


BTW,
the pictures don't show it,
but there's a cover that comes after the self-crimping,
so it looks like a really neat connector.


So my question:
Does anyone know where such MicroUSB Male plugs can be purchased?


They seem to be a really useful tool for converting USB-A devices to nicely fir the RPi 0 or 0W..


Thank you

[rpdom]

BTW,
the pictures don't show it,
but there's a cover that comes after the self-crimping,
so it looks like a really neat connector.

That does look neat. I've only used solder connectors and they can be a bit fiddly at times.

[ame]

You could buy a hub with a microusb connector:

https://m.aliexpress.com/item/1005004069485479.html

Or a USB to microusb shim:

https://m.aliexpress.com/item/1005003974376473.html

A solderable microusb connector:

https://m.aliexpress.com/item/1005004232854399.html

Or you could type "microusb crimp" into Google and find this:
https://m.aliexpress.com/item/32826516371.html

[ame]

Also, be careful with those hub/ethernet things. There are two issues. First they only mostly work. Second, they all have the same MAC address.

[ame]

One more option, you can chop a bit off a microusb cable and solder it to the PCB inside the unit. Advantage: it can be longer than the original cable.

[spaceman5]

That does look neat. I've only used solder connectors and they can be a bit fiddly at times.

Right.
Also, in addition to the tiny solder pads which are more difficult to solder,
some plugs are manufactured from a really low grade plastic,
and when you solder the pads, the plastic melts, thus ruining the plug..

And when you buy it you cannot know beforehand what you're going to get..
Is it good plastic that can stand heat, to will be a nightmare

Or a USB to microusb shim:
https://m.aliexpress.com/item/1005003974376473.html

That's cool,
didn't know about these.
Tho I'm afraid they create too much leverage (due to the total length of the origginal USB-A connector + this addition),
which might break the female connector on the RPi board..

Or you could type "microusb crimp" into Google and find this:
https://m.aliexpress.com/item/32826516371.html

Great!
Thank you so much

Second, they all have the same MAC address.

Thank you.
There is a command for changing the MAC Address,
it might work on them too, for those who buy them

One more option,
you can chop a bit off a microusb cable and solder it to the PCB inside the unit.
Advantage: it can be longer than the original cable.

Oh..
So instead of just replacing the plug at the end,
to replace the whole cable, from USB-A Male to Micro-USB Male..

That's interesting,.
(I am not so happy to intervene with internal solderings of products that work,
from the fear that the heat might ruin anything,
but this might be an option, if done carefully)

Really great ideas!

Thank you very much ame

[ame]

Really great ideas!

Thank you very much ame

You're welcome. Please report back how you get on.

[redvli]

Keep that stuff dry. Otherwise after a few years you will ask a question like: "Does Anyone Know Why My Pi0 Sometimes Reboots?"

Then some AI chat-bot will answer:

Follow these steps to power your Raspberry Pi Zero via soldering wires:
- Strip about 1/4 inch (6 mm) of insulation from both ends of the two wires using wire strippers.
- Tin the ends of each wire with solder to make them easier to attach to the Raspberry Pi Zero.
- Identify the GPIO holes on the Raspberry Pi Zero. The GPIO holes are located on the underside of the board.
- Connect the red wire to the 5V hole and the black wire to the ground (GND) hole. The 5V hole is the one closest to the edge of the board, and the GND hole is the one closest to the center of the board.
- Use a soldering iron to heat the holes and apply solder to attach the wires to the Raspberry Pi Zero. Make sure that the wires are securely attached and that there is no loose solder or exposed wire.
- Connect the other end of the wires to the power source (e.g. USB charger or battery) and power on the Raspberry Pi Zero.


My own comment now is:
All of the 10Mbps or fake 100Mbps or real 100Mbps USB-eth adaptors I own are unused as half of them turn out to be unreliable w.r.t. ethernet connection. With 'carrier lost' the easiest error once you connect a serial (debug) console on location.
If you want ethernet for an SBC, buy an SBC that has it onboard.

[spaceman5]

Keep that stuff dry.

What do you mean?

My own comment now is:
All of the 10Mbps or fake 100Mbps or real 100Mbps USB-eth adaptors I own are unused as half of them turn out to be unreliable w.r.t. ethernet connection. With 'carrier lost' the easiest error once you connect a serial (debug) console on location.
If you want ethernet for an SBC, buy an SBC that has it onboard.

You do not have to use unbranded chinese ones.
There are good ones, from TP-Link for example..

If you want ethernet for an SBC, buy an SBC that has it onboard.

Yes, my next board is one of the full RPi boards

[ejolson]

Keep that stuff dry.

What do you mean?

My own comment now is:
All of the 10Mbps or fake 100Mbps or real 100Mbps USB-eth adaptors I own are unused as half of them turn out to be unreliable w.r.t. ethernet connection. With 'carrier lost' the easiest error once you connect a serial (debug) console on location.
If you want ethernet for an SBC, buy an SBC that has it onboard.

You do not have to use unbranded chinese ones.
There are good ones, from TP-Link for example..

If you want ethernet for an SBC, buy an SBC that has it onboard.

Yes, my next board is one of the full RPi boards

Is this


https://www.amazon.com/TP-Link-Portable ... 01N9M32TA/

the one by TP-Link you were thinking of? It is USB3 so rewiring the input will be much more difficult.

I suggest just getting the OTG adapter


https://www.amazon.com/UGREEN-Adapter-S ... 00N9S9Z0G/

as it will be useful for other things.

[cjketle]

Second about beware of the no-name DM9601 clone base devices. IME, they are OK for setting things up on a Zero but I'd be a bit uncomfortable for long terms use. Issues include

- All have the same MAC address of 00:e0:4c:53:44:58
- They do not respond to broadcast packets unless set to promiscuous mode, hence MDNS does not work OOB
- The DM9601 is a 100BaseT device with a USB1 interface (Why??)
- They are often missing the magnetic isolation - still works but more susceptible to damage, best keep to short patch cables only

On the plus side, they do seem to be USB2 hubs.

If you run the following script once it will fix the MAC with a random one and turn on promiscuous mode

Code: Select all

#!/bin/sh
# Script to set up a fixed MAC for DM9601 clone devices
# These all seem to come with the same MAC 00:e0:4c:53:44:58
# This sets up a new address to be picked up by systemd
# Note - only for one such device
# Use Davicom oui range
#

# systemd-networkd link file in /etc/systemd/network
LNAME="10-dm9601.link"
# dhcpd hook script in /lib/dhcpcd/dhcpcd-hooks
HNAME="95-dm9601"

# Build a randomised MAC address using Davicom OUI
MAC=""
# Loop just in case not enough random hex characters found
while [ ${#MAC} -ne 17 ]
do
  D1="$(head -c100 /dev/urandom | tr -cd '0-9a-f' | head -c2)"
  D2="$(head -c100 /dev/urandom | tr -cd '0-9a-f' | head -c2)"
  D3="$(head -c100 /dev/urandom | tr -cd '0-9a-f' | head -c2)"
  MAC="00:60:6e:$D1:$D2:$D3"
done

# Build the device .link file to change the MAC
echo "# Set the MAC of the clone DM9601 device (if any)" > $LNAME
echo "# Generated by dmsetup on" $(date) >> $LNAME
echo "[Match]" >> $LNAME
echo "PermanentMACAddress=00:e0:4c:53:44:58" >> $LNAME
echo "[Link]" >> $LNAME
echo "MACAddress="$MAC >> $LNAME
echo >> $LNAME

# Build a dhcpd hook file to set promiscuous mode when network up
# This is because the device does not by default respond to mDNS 
# requests as it does not seem to see broadcast packets unless 
# it is set into promiscuous mode.  There will be some performance hit
# but this is unlikely to be a problem as the switch should filter out 
# other traffic not directed to the device.
echo "#!/bin/sh" > $HNAME
echo "# Generated by dmsetup on" $(date) >> $HNAME
echo "# Set promiscuous mode on network up if a dm9601 device" >> $HNAME
echo "if [ \"\$reason\" = \"BOUND\" ]" >> $HNAME
echo "then" >> $HNAME
echo "  tsteth=\$(/sbin/ethtool -i \$interface 2> /dev/null | /bin/grep dm9601)" >> $HNAME
echo "  if [ \${#tsteth} -ne 0  ]"  >> $HNAME
echo "     then /sbin/ip link set \$interface promisc on 2> /dev/null" >> $HNAME
echo "  fi" >> $HNAME
echo "fi" >> $HNAME
echo >> $HNAME
chmod +x $HNAME


# Copy the files to the proper locations and delete temps
sudo cp $LNAME /etc/systemd/network/
sudo cp $HNAME /lib/dhcpcd/dhcpcd-hooks/
rm $LNAME $HNAME

echo Reboot to set DM9601 MAC to $MAC permanently on this installation

Chris K

[spaceman5]

Is this the one by TP-Link you were thinking of?
It is USB3 so rewiring the input will be much more difficult.

Actually I was talking about this:

TP-Link UE200 (USB2, 100Mb/s):
https://www.tp-link.com/us/home-network ... ter/ue200/

It's just a USB Ethernet NIC,
it does not include a USB Hub in addition, unfortunately.

I mentioned this because redvli mentioned bad chinese USB Ethernet NICs..


And indeed, TP-Link only makes a USB 3.0 Hub+Ethernet,
I did not find a USB 2.0 one that has both..

Second about beware of the no-name DM9601 clone base devices.
IME, they are OK for setting things up on a Zero but I'd be a bit uncomfortable for long terms use.

You know, out of the unbranded chinese ones, there are nowdays ones based on the RTL8152 chipset.
That's what is used in the TP-Link UE200.
(I bought the TP-Link UE200, and not a chinese one, since I wanted a good one and not an unbranded one..)

If you run the following script once it will fix the MAC with a random one and turn on promiscuous mode

Thank you cjketle.

[redvli]

I found out that some connectors (the metal, don't know what, not gold-plated at least) develop corrosion in outside conditions or a half open stable with animals. No direct rain, but varying humidity. Typically stuff from Aliexpress.

W.r.t. non-Aliexpress eth adaptors: The price is too high, so I bought non-Raspberries with on-board RJ45 and much smaller in total.

[spaceman5]

How is "WRT" related to USB Ethernet NICs?

WRT (OpenWRT) is a firmware for Routers..
Or when you say WRT you refer to something else?

[ame]

How is "WRT" related to USB Ethernet NICs?

WRT (OpenWRT) is a firmware for Routers..
Or when you say WRT you refer to something else?

WRT = with regard to (and variations thereof)

[spaceman5]

WRT = with regard to (and variations thereof)

Oh..
This short is problematic when talking about networking