What is the difference between a socket and a female header?

[Rocky Stevens]

Subject says it all - I thought that a socket was female, which
headers were then stuck into. But if that is the case, what is a
"female" header, if not just another name for a socket? Is a female
header somehow designed better to be soldered onto a board, whereas a
"socket" is better designed to be soldered to wires (i.e. for a cable)?

 

[Rich Webb]

On Sun, 23 May 2010 09:47:31 -0700 (PDT), Rocky Stevens
<rocky.stevens@gmail.com> wrote:

Subject says it all - I thought that a socket was female, which
headers were then stuck into. But if that is the case, what is a
"female" header, if not just another name for a socket? Is a female
header somehow designed better to be soldered onto a board, whereas a
"socket" is better designed to be soldered to wires (i.e. for a cable)?

There are two complementary pairs (plugs / receptacles (AKA jacks)) and
(male / female). "Headers" would generally be receptacles (stationary,
board or console mounted) and so could consist of either male pins or
female sockets.

A system such as PC/104, for example, has both male and female headers,
located on the top and bottom of the board, in order to allow stacking.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PC/104

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_of_connectors_and_fasteners

--
Rich Webb Norfolk, VA

 

[Sjouke Burry]

Rocky Stevens wrote:

Subject says it all - I thought that a socket was female, which
headers were then stuck into. But if that is the case, what is a
"female" header, if not just another name for a socket? Is a female
header somehow designed better to be soldered onto a board, whereas a
"socket" is better designed to be soldered to wires (i.e. for a cable)?
The pins damage more easily, and a cable can be replaced,

so put the pins on the cable.

 

[Tim Wescott]

On 05/23/2010 09:47 AM, Rocky Stevens wrote:

Subject says it all - I thought that a socket was female, which
headers were then stuck into. But if that is the case, what is a
"female" header, if not just another name for a socket? Is a female
header somehow designed better to be soldered onto a board, whereas a
"socket" is better designed to be soldered to wires (i.e. for a cable)?

Or is it all an effort to be prissy, or politically correct (which two
are often the same thing, these days).

--
Tim Wescott
Control system and signal processing consulting
www.wescottdesign.com

 

[Peter Bennett]

On Sun, 23 May 2010 09:47:31 -0700 (PDT), Rocky Stevens
<rocky.stevens@gmail.com> wrote:

Subject says it all - I thought that a socket was female, which
headers were then stuck into. But if that is the case, what is a
"female" header, if not just another name for a socket? Is a female
header somehow designed better to be soldered onto a board, whereas a
"socket" is better designed to be soldered to wires (i.e. for a cable)?

There's considerable variation in terminology for some parts - you may
have to look at the things to see what they really are, and how they
are normally used.

I'd consider a male header to be a rectangular array of square posts
on (usually) 0.1 inch centers, designed to be soldered to a pc board.

A female header is a thing designed to mate with a male header, but
also designed to be soldered to a pc board, rather than mounted on a
cable.

I'd say a socket is a female connector having any contact arrangement.
It may be suitable for soldering to a pc board, or for mounting on the
end of a cable.

--
Peter Bennett, VE7CEI
peterbb4 (at) interchange.ubc.ca
GPS and NMEA info: http://vancouver-webpages.com/peter
Vancouver Power Squadron: http://vancouver.powersquadron.ca

 

[bw]

"Rocky Stevens" <rocky.stevens@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:35fb0709-56c2-4667-b487-959da6c69b1c@o39g2000vbd.googlegroups.com...

Subject says it all - I thought that a socket was female, which
headers were then stuck into. But if that is the case, what is a
"female" header, if not just another name for a socket? Is a female
header somehow designed better to be soldered onto a board, whereas a
"socket" is better designed to be soldered to wires (i.e. for a cable)?

The pins determine the gender, not the parts containing the pins.

 

[Michael Black]

On Sun, 23 May 2010, Rocky Stevens wrote:

Subject says it all - I thought that a socket was female, which
headers were then stuck into. But if that is the case, what is a
"female" header, if not just another name for a socket? Is a female
header somehow designed better to be soldered onto a board, whereas a
"socket" is better designed to be soldered to wires (i.e. for a cable)?

If it sticks out, it's male, if it takes in, it's female. I remember

saying something about the gender of connectors thirty years ago, and
awoman near by instantly understood what I was talking about, it's just
like real people.

What gets confusing is socket/plug. Generally, the fixed thing becomes
the socket, the thing at the end of a cable is a plug. But then when
the gender switches from "what is normal", people sometimes think
it needs renaming.

So look at the common AC cord. It's a plug, because it's at the
end of a cable, and fits in the wall socket (so named because it's
fixed in the wall). There's a good reason for why the plug has
the male connector on it, and why the socket is female. If the
genders were reversed, you'd have a male connector sticking out
of the wall with 120vac on it, not a safe situation.

So it is common for souces of voltage to be female, so the voltages
are not exposed, and the receivers of voltage to be male, since if
not plugged in the exposed male connector isn't exposing any
voltage. But even then that's not consistent, since for things
like audio connectors, anything mounted is female, while anyting
on a cable is male.

Michael

 

[krw@att.bizzzzzzzzzzzz]

On Mon, 24 May 2010 02:36:05 -0500, "bw" <bwegher@hotmail.com> wrote:

"Rocky Stevens" <rocky.stevens@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:35fb0709-56c2-4667-b487-959da6c69b1c@o39g2000vbd.googlegroups.com...
Subject says it all - I thought that a socket was female, which
headers were then stuck into. But if that is the case, what is a
"female" header, if not just another name for a socket? Is a female
header somehow designed better to be soldered onto a board, whereas a
"socket" is better designed to be soldered to wires (i.e. for a cable)?

The pins determine the gender, not the parts containing the pins.

....unless you're buying RP-TNC cables. :-(

 

[Michael A. Terrell]

"krw@att.bizzzzzzzzzzzz" wrote:

On Mon, 24 May 2010 02:36:05 -0500, "bw" <bwegher@hotmail.com> wrote:


"Rocky Stevens" <rocky.stevens@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:35fb0709-56c2-4667-b487-959da6c69b1c@o39g2000vbd.googlegroups.com...
Subject says it all - I thought that a socket was female, which
headers were then stuck into. But if that is the case, what is a
"female" header, if not just another name for a socket? Is a female
header somehow designed better to be soldered onto a board, whereas a
"socket" is better designed to be soldered to wires (i.e. for a cable)?

The pins determine the gender, not the parts containing the pins.

...unless you're buying RP-TNC cables. :-(

Along with the original .062" and .093" series Molex connectors that
let you install each pair of contacts however you want.


--
Anyone wanting to run for any political office in the US should have to
have a DD214, and a honorable discharge.