Case Upgrade with a Manual-less mobo

[kira-i-]

Hi there,

So I'm upgrading my pc case from a slim emachines case to the rosewill challenger. I've been doing alot of research on this and I feel pretty solid on everything except the wiring for the front panels. Since the mobo doesn't have a manual, I'm not sure what to do with the wiring.

Right now I'm thinking either one of two things:
1) Write down (if possible, I'm a hardware newb) what components each wire is connected to and exactly what spot they go into on the mobo.

2) First find the power through trial and error by trying to turn on the switch everytime. And then basically just go from there for every component.

I heard somewhere that if the USB's are connected to the wrong spot that it could ruin them so I'm not sure if this is the best strategy. Anybody have any suggestions?

Here's my current setup:
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0337331

And here's my last thread:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/319840-31-changing-case

 

[AdrianPerry]

What motherboard do you have? There's a good chance you'll be able to download/view the manual online.

The most confusing bit will probably be reconnecting the pin connectors http://pctechguide.com/images/tutorials/mboard/power.jpg (for power button, reset button ect). Id possibly take a photo or make a note of where each of those go and which way round. Its not really a big deal if you get them wrong, but the PC buttons (power and reset buttons) wont work properly, if at all, until they are placed in the right place.

 

[kira-i-]

Thanks for clarifying that. I was actually considering taking the whole power button from this computer over to the new case haha. I'm glad I won't have to bother with that.

And I spent a good hour looking for the type of motherboard I have but the only thing I was able to fine was that some motherboards might not have a name. I guess some emachines just use generic motherboards because they never really expected people to move them around. Whether that's true or not I pretty much gave up looking for the manual. I'll just take a few pictures of the pin connectors before I unplug them. Thanks for your help!

 

[kira-i-]

Best answer selected by kira-I-.

 

[AdrianPerry]

If you do find you get stuck or something doesnt work when you reconnect everything, just shove a few pics up on here and im sure myself or someone else will be able to tell you whats wrong and how to sort it