Uses Asus M32CD with AS51 board and front USB hub wiring. USB devices aren't connecting.
Uses Asus M32CD with AS51 board and front USB hub wiring. USB devices aren't connecting.
Hey there. It seems like every time I ask a question, Google leads me to this forum. I’ve checked all my sources but still can’t find a solution. I’m using an Asus M32CD-AS51 [VivoPC Tower] and have the motherboard model visible in the photo. My front hub has two USB ports that aren’t working. After uninstalling and reinstalling the drivers, I’ve tried all the usual checks to let BIOS use them. I’ve run a lot of tests and still nothing. The rear USBs are fine, plus the audio and microphone connection on the front hub is functioning. I’m unsure if power is reaching the motherboard through the four-pin USB header. If I could test that, any advice would be great. I thought about looking into the correct SATA routing since it might affect them too. I have the AAFP and USB-PWR1 headers installed. I know SATA 6G_1 is for my SSD drive, 6G_2 for the HDD, and maybe 6G_3 for the DVD drive? I imagine USB 2/3 and 3 would be connected to the front hub, but I’m not sure how the SATA port colors on the board match those of the hub or what the wiring should look like. If I can’t figure it out or if the front hub is faulty, I’ll consider swapping it with a mini PCIe X to USB3.0 adapter and running them from the back. Anyone with help would be really appreciated! Also, I’m not sure what the white 5-pin connector does.
It seems they're incorrectly using SATA connectors for non-SATA purposes. The front plate has two USB3 connectors that match the blue and white SATA ports, so I recommend connecting those to the yellow USB3_12 ports, and the remaining two to the grey USB2_12 ports on the right side.
I located a decent but not outstanding image of the board. It's an OEM unit, lacking several headers you'd expect. For instance, the usual USB 3.0 (20-1 pin) or USB 2.0 (10-1 pin) connectors on the front aren't present. The specs list four SATA ports at 6Gb/s, which should correspond to the left four, but they seem mislabeled—likely meant for FIO_CON1 instead of CR_CON3. The small non-SATA connector (CR_CON1) is unclear about its placement. Overall, this board looks quite disorganized. I recommend connecting a cable from blue to yellow and testing it with an old drive you don’t mind losing. If it functions, check the remaining ports; otherwise, consider skipping them.
Yup indeed, my bad, even noticed it with the names but promptly forgot about it by the time I wrote the post. CR_CON likely stands for "Card Reader" and thus would be one of the USB2s. I have no idea what the 4th is for, there are 2 for the USB3s and one for the card reader, but why a 4th? Unless they are splitting things as much as to have the USB3's high speed lines on one SATA each, and the USB2 lines for both ports in the 4th connector... in which case the order of the 2 USB2s might matter. It's a pile of mess. This front panel might have been designed looong ago before the 20-pin USB3 header was introduced, at least I hope so...
Hey team! I realized the motherboard came out of the box, nothing unusual about it. I thought it had eight SATA adapters and that was a plus since aftermarket boards usually don’t. Now I see only four, which isn’t too bad. I’m also puzzled about why all the front hub accessories use SATA-style ports. No problem with the card reader either—we’re safe there. Right now I’m using the rear headphone and mic jacks, so that’s fine. My main concern is the USB connectors. Should I just connect the 3-wire 4-pin USB-PWR1 and the two SATA adapters, or should I also hook up the AAFP1 port? I want to keep only the front USBs working and cut down on extra wiring.
AAFP handles front panel audio, probably. You’ll probably require the three FIO units—black, red, and blue. I think blue and black connect via USB3, while red links to USB2...
Thanks for the update! Front USBs are functioning properly now—black and blue connected to USB3 1/2, red to USB2 1/2. I was relieved it’s working after not being worried before. It would be great if everything runs smoothly. Based on the picture you shared, do you think the audio signal passes through the AAFP1 wiring or is the red SATA connector also linked to audio? Also, considering the connector and wire positions, should I try flipping the AAFP1 connector? I want to avoid any sudden movements. This custom build has been optimized to its limit, but I’m curious about the setup.
It looks like you can't flip the AAFP connector, but maybe you need to swap the ends between mobo and FP. There's no power on there so no risk really. The 4th SATA shouldn't be needed but we never know, if it still doesn't work it might be worth trying to put it.
The two yellow ports marked USB3 1/2 are connected to the black and blue USBs on the front interface. The front USBs are now functioning properly. The two white connectors on the front interface (SATA and wire style) both labeled CR remain unconnected, as we believe they relate to the Card Reader which I don’t require or need. The red SATA-style connector might be linked to audio—uncertain if it should connect to one of the original four genuine SATA ports. Changing the connector ends on the front interface and the motherboard didn’t help; you’re correct, they can’t be swapped because the pin on the connector is capped. Why would a motherboard include four USB SATA-style ports?
It seems the connection didn't work with one of the real SATA ports, likely because it was the last "special" right-side port. This might have happened before the USB3 front panel connector was introduced. It could also be due to having many SATA cables available and not wanting a cluttered setup since standard devices are usually installed that way.