Digital Instrument Custom Cables, Replacement Connectors, and Screws

This guide is intended to cover connectors, backshells, screws and washers designed for use with NI HSDIO devices. It does not explicitly cover other NI product families such as DAQ, Switches, C Series, or R Series, although some models may use similar or the same parts. It also does not cover legacy or End of Life (EOL) parts or products.

• To find more information about other NI Digital Instrument accessories and general information that applies to all Digital accessories, visit the Digital Instrument Accessory Guide Main Page.
• To find more information about NI Digital Instrument cables and general information that applies to all Digital Instrument cables, visit Digital Instrument Cable Guide Main Page.
• To determine compatibility of your terminal or connector block accessory with your NI Digital Instrument device or module, or your NI Digital Instrument cable, visit the Digital Instrument Cable and Accessory Compatibility.

These connectors or receptors are found on most NI HSDIO devices. Refer to the Glossary for any questions regarding connector terminology. 

• 0.050 - Pins on this D-Type connector are spaced 0.050 inches apart. This connector is found on NI 6533 and 6534 HSDIO devices.
• 0.8 mm - Pins on this connector are spaced 0.8 mm apart. This connector is commonly found on NI 653x, 654x and 655x HSDIO devices.

Check out the Popular NI HSDIO Models and their Connectors section, or the product manual for your product for more information on what connector is featured on your device. Additionally, NI Dimensional Drawings contains drawings for many connectors and the devices, modules, cables and accessories they are used on.

Note:

• When using board mount connectors with NI cables, NI recommends mounting the connector to a panel, enclosure, or similar mechanical support to ensure proper strain relief.
  

To provide a more secure cable attachment, NI now uses jackscrews to secure 68-pin cables to HSDIO devices and accessories. Each side of the cable connector contains two jackscrews that tighten into jacksockets located on all HSDIO devices and accessories. To make this conversion, use the Jacksocket Kit for Connecting Screw Latching Cables in the following table. Other replacement jackscrew, jacksocket, screwlock, thumbscrew and washer information is also provided.

You can order NI products by part number. For more information on any of the listed NI orderable parts, please contact an NI representative. NI orderable parts listed in this guide without a product page can still be purchased by contacting NI. 

For parts with a manufacturer part number, please contact the manufacturer or their vendors for further information about the product and purchasing.  Manufacturer part numbers represent functionally equivalent replacements that are currently available from the specified manufacturer. This may differ from the part found on your device, module, cable or accessory as NI continuously revises and improves their products.

Some parts are custom made for NI or are common parts in industry, and do not have orderable part numbers. Please use the specifications provided to find an appropriate part.

Below is a list of the connectors referenced in this guide that are found on the most popular NI HSDIO products. This is not intended to be a complete nor comprehensive list of all NI HSDIO products. Similar cables and connectors may be used with other NI products, and are not included here. You should first check your device's manual to ensure you are referencing the right connector for your device or module.

Note: These tables do not indicate compatibility between devices, modules, cables and accessories. Although they may share the same connector type, different wire mappings are used in different configurations.

• SCSI 0.050 D‑Type - Industry standard SCSI connector standard featuring 0.050 pin spacing that is used in the 68-position HSDIO cable and accessory connections. Click here for an example (68-pin).
• Backshell - Surrounds the male or female cable connector to protect the cable connections and to provide cable strain relief. Click here for an example.
• Cable Connector - Found on the end of the cable, may connect to a device, another cable, or an accessory through a mating connector. Click here for an example.
• Dual Stack - Two combined connectors stacked onto each other on a PCB-mount connector. Each connector accepts its own cable. Click here for an example.
• Infiniband - High density differential connector. Each differential pair in this cable is separated by a grounding pin to prevent cross-talk. - Click here for an example.
• Insulation Displacement Connector (IDC) - Also known as insulation-piercing contact (IPC). A type of cable connector that allows multiple conductor connections to a connector without soldering. Click here for an example.
• Jackscrew - Usually found on the cable end. Torqued down to connect to either a PCB-mount connector or cable-end jacksocket. Click here for an example.
• Jacksocket - Fixed mating connector receptacle for the jackscrew. Click here for an example.
• PCB-Mount Connector - Also known as board-mount connector. Found on printed circuit boards (PCB), printed wiring boards (PWB) and other custom interface boards, normally soldered on. Typically a cable connector plugs into the PCB-mount connector to provide connection to an accessory or other device. Click here for an example.
• Single Stack - A single connector end per cable or PCB-Mount interconnect. Click here for an example.
• Solder-Cup Connector - Opposite of the mating surface, wires are attached to the connector by soldering individual wires into cups. Click here for an example.
• Very-High-Density Cable Interconnect (VHDCI) - An improvement on a SCSI connector allowing a smaller footprint and fewer bent pins during connection. Click here for an example.

• Dimensional Drawings: HSDIO Accessories, Cables, and Other
• Product Manuals, Specifications and More for NI High-Speed Digital I/O Products
• NI Digital Waveform Generator/Analyzer Getting Started Guide
• Digital Instrument Cable and Accessory Compatibility
• Digital Instruments Accessory Guide
  • Learn more about the SCB-68 HSDIO
  • Learn more about the 653x Cable Adapter
• Digital Instruments Cable Guide
  • Learn more about VHDCI cables for Digital Instruments
  • Learn more about Infiniband cables for Digital Instruments
• Find the parts needed to make a custom cable, breakout fixture, or replace connectors and screws with NI DAQ hardware.
• Find the parts needed to make a custom cable, breakout fixture, or replace connectors and screws with NI Switch hardware.