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Card Edge Connector
Industrial, IT Datacom
When you're laying out a board and the PCIe slot footprint calls for a through-hole connector that won't walk off the PCB during wave soldering, the traditional ribbed-fork 164-pin design remains a workhorse. This is the connector CONSHARE builds for system integrators who need a mechanically stable, cost-effective slot that holds up across high-volume production runs — not a flashy component, but one that quietly does its job thousands of times over.
The contact geometry here isn't arbitrary. A ribbed fork-type terminal — two prongs flanking a central rib — creates three distinct contact points against the plated through-hole wall. That matters in real-world manufacturing because it compensates for the hole tolerance spread you'll see across different board fabricators. If your EMS partner runs a slightly looser PTH drill spec, the rib geometry still bites in and holds the pin firmly during soldering.
More importantly, the fork design gives you a visible solder fillet on both sides of the board. Inspectors can verify joint formation top and bottom without cross-sectioning. If you've ever chased a field-return for an intermittent PCIe slot, you know that solder inspection access is not a minor thing.
Parameter | Detail |
|---|---|
Pin Count | 164 |
Contact Style | Ribbed fork, through-hole DIP |
Contact Plating | Gold over Gold Flash (G/F) |
Termination Pitch | 2.5 mm |
Insulator Material | PA66, black |
Insulator Flammability | UL94 V-0 rated |
Mounting | Through-hole, wave-solder compatible |
Packaging | Tray |
Marking | Unbranded (no logo) |
G/F plating puts a thin gold flash over a nickel barrier layer on the contact interface. The nickel does the heavy lifting: it blocks copper migration and keeps the contact surface stable through years of thermal cycling. The gold flash on top prevents oxidation during storage and gives you a clean, low-insertion-force mating surface for the first few thousand cycles.
For a slot connector that's typically mated once during board assembly and rarely touched again, this plating strategy hits the sweet spot — enough corrosion resistance for warehouse storage and shipping, without the cost penalty of a thicker hard-gold deposit you'd never fully utilize in a static-mating application.
Cost-sensitive motherboard builds where the PCIe slot is mated once at assembly and rarely reseated afterward
Industrial PC and embedded systems prioritizing mechanical robustness over hot-plug cycling
Replacement and repair stock for boards already laid out around a 2.5 mm DIP footprint
High-volume production where tray packaging and through-hole soldering keep line costs predictable
Your design needs hot-plug or surprise-removal support — a slotted side connector with a dedicated detection switch is the better path
You're pushing PCIe 5.0+ signaling speeds, where tighter signal-integrity margins call for CONSHARE's SMT non-slotted side connectors with shorter signal paths
Board real estate demands a low-profile or right-angle footprint
This isn't a connector for every PCIe slot on every board. It's the connector for the slot you need to build reliably, economically, and in volume.
A typical scenario: a mid-tier industrial board manufacturer needs to build 5,000 boards for a kiosk and digital-signage fleet. The PCIe x16 slot hosts a mid-range GPU installed at assembly and left untouched for the product's lifetime. The 164-pin through-hole connector mounts cleanly, solders in a single wave pass, and tray-packaged units feed straight into the insertion station without kitting complexity.
Many fielded industrial boards from the 2010s are still in active service. Replacement slot connectors for board-level repair need to match the original DIP footprint exactly — same 2.5 mm pitch, same pin-1 orientation, same tail length. The unbranded variant is particularly relevant here: it lets repair depots maintain a single part number without brand-mixing concerns on mixed-inventory shelves.
Every production batch goes through CONSHARE's standard inspection protocol: first-article dimensional verification against the CAD reference, contact plating thickness measurement via X-ray fluorescence, insertion-force and withdrawal-force testing on a sampling basis, and visual inspection under magnification for insulator flash, contact alignment, and tail straightness.
Option | Details |
|---|---|
Contact plating thickness | Tunable gold deposit for extended cycle life |
Insulator color | Standard black; other PA66 color options on request |
Packaging format | Tray standard; tube or tape-and-reel available |
Private labeling | Custom logo emboss tooling on insulator body |
Pin straightness tolerance | Tightened spec available for automated insertion lines |
Standard tray-packaged units ship from CONSHARE's established production line with typical lead times of 3–4 weeks for stocked configurations and 5–6 weeks for customized variants. Tray packaging is specified for this connector specifically because it protects contact tail geometry better than reel packaging — through-hole pins with extended tails are vulnerable to bending during tape winding, and trays keep them straight from factory to production line.
This is a traditional through-hole slot connector built for mechanical reliability and cost-effectiveness. For Gen 4/5 signaling where signal-integrity margins are tighter, CONSHARE recommends the SMT non-slotted side connector series, which is engineered with shorter signal paths and controlled impedance for higher data rates.
The insulator is molded without any brand marking. This suits system builders who want a clean visual appearance on exposed boards, repair depots needing brand-neutral replacement parts, or OEMs applying their own labeling downstream.
PA66 (nylon 6/6) offers the best combination of three things: dimensional stability at soldering temperatures, mechanical toughness for insertion cycling, and cost efficiency. It withstands wave-soldering peak temperatures without warping when the profile is set correctly. The black compound also provides UV resistance for longer-term storage stability.
Gold Flash (G/F) deposits a very thin gold layer — typically 0.05–0.1 µm — over the nickel barrier. Full hard gold deposits 0.5 µm or more. For a slot connector mated a limited number of times, gold flash is sufficient and significantly more economical. Full hard gold is reserved for connectors subjected to high-cycle dynamic wear.
Yes. PA66 is rated for lead-free reflow and wave soldering. Ensure the connector body does not exceed 260°C during wave soldering, and verify your thermal profile against the specific solder alloy in use.
