Does anyone have any experience with Front I/O shields?

[ThePUNisher96]

I purchased a Fractal Design Focus G case because it has two 5.25 inch drive bays at the front. I've purchased an optical drive that I'll be using in one of those slots.

However, I've discovered that Front I/O panels are apparently a thing and was curious about sticking one in the other bay for more ports. Does anyone have any experience with this sort of thing? PC Part Picker doesn't seem to list Front I/O panels as one of the parts you can even add and I'm about to be a first time builder in the next couple weeks so I'm a total noob when it comes to determining whether or not a front I/O panel would even be usable in my case and with the rest of my components

[TylerDurden!]

yes, depends on what you want...they make them with audio, usb, fan controllers, fans, temp gauges, other stuff.  Just look on newegg, amazon, ebay...

 

[nick name]

Don't take this the wrong way, but have you googled it?  There are gonna be various options to choose from.  Or check on Amazon?  There are some with USB options, card reader options, and I'm sure other things as well.  

[ThePUNisher96]

15 minutes ago, nick name said:

Don't take this the wrong way, but have you googled it?  There are gonna be various options to choose from.  Or check on Amazon?  There are some with USB options, card reader options, and I'm sure other things as well.  

I've looked at various ones on Amazon, but I've never built a PC before and I was wondering how I would even install one.  Youtube's search function was not helpful for finding videos specific to installing front I/O shields

[nick name]

26 minutes ago, ThePUNisher96 said:

I've looked at various ones on Amazon, but I've never built a PC before and I was wondering how I would even install one.  Youtube's search function was not helpful for finding videos specific to installing front I/O shields

If you're searching for shields then that's the wrong terminology.  An IO shield installs on the back of the case as a cover.  I'm not sure what everyone calls their products that fit into the front bays.  

 

They're gonna have wires that connect to different things.  Maybe a header on your motherboard or to a card that installs into a PCIe slot.  Each one will be different.  

[Falkentyne]

Front I/O bay devices use 5.25" drive bays for certain functionality.  Fan controller hubs with knobs, LCD or OLED (if they even exist) displays is one such device.  Some older sound cards also came with 5.25" loaded I/O panels.  These are not so popular now, due to the lack of cases coming with 5.25" drive bays, and that's a shame, because they are attractive and keep wire clutter down.  Now they tend to be internal or USB or connect to some other RGB system hub or bloatware, rather than being good old knobs, dials and buttons.

 

Back I/O panels come with your motherboard only, as a I/O cover shield to protect against dust and other objects.  They don't come with cases and you can't buy any that are not made for your motherboard.  Many motherboards now have the rear I/O shield prebuilt on.