Corsair K65RGB USB Passthrough

[Guest]

So I've had this keyboard for almost two years now and I've always wondered why it has two USB ports, considering I cannot find a female USB port anywhere on this thing.

I checked the manual and it says it SHOULD be here, but it's clearly not.

 

Does anyone have any clue what kind of port this circular hole is?

[Eschew]

1 hour ago, Scharfschutzen said:

So I've had this keyboard for almost two years now and I've always wondered why it has two USB ports, considering I cannot find a female USB port anywhere on this thing.

I checked the manual and it says it SHOULD be here, but it's clearly not.

Hey there. Would like to point out that CORSAIR has a number of K65 RGB keyboards: the Gaming K65 RGB (SKU: CH-9000072-NA, older model), Gaming K65 RGB (SKU: CH-9000222-NA, newer model), the K65 LUX RGB, and K65 RGB RAPIDFIRE.

 

1 hour ago, Scharfschutzen said:

CORSAIR Gaming K65 RGB (older model). Both the older and newer Gaming K65 RGB keyboards do not have USB pass-through, and they have not been marketed as such on CORSAIR's site. As for what the hole is used for, I'm afraid I've no idea, but I doubt it's a port.

 

1 hour ago, Scharfschutzen said:

Pretty sure the image above isn't a K65 model; K65s have the USB pass-through on the other side of the cord. Probably the CORSAIR K70 LUX RGB or K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE. I believe most (if not all) LUX and RAPIDFIRE keyboards do have USB pass-through, however.

[Guest]

Here is the bottom of the keyboard. It's labeled as a K65 RGB and came in the K65 RGB box.

 

Edit: Sorry, you meant the rendered image isn't a K65; you are absolutely correct.

 

According to the Quick Start manual, the second USB port is for USB 2.0:

https://www.manualsearcher.com/corsair/k65-rgb/manual?p=4

 

"Connecting via USB 3.0 » Use one connector (the one with the keyboard icon) when connecting via USB 3.0

Connecting via USB 2 » Use both connectors when using USB 2.0
Important Note: Plug in the connector with the two arrows icon first, and the connector with the keyboard icon second."

 

I honestly have never done this--have always used USB 2.0 with a single port so that's why I was so confused. I don't understand the purpose of the second port.

Edited August 6, 2020 by Guest
RTFM Better

[Eschew]

2 hours ago, Scharfschutzen said:

According to the Quick Start manual, the second USB port is for USB 2.0:

https://www.manualsearcher.com/corsair/k65-rgb/manual?p=4

 

"Connecting via USB 3.0 » Use one connector (the one with the keyboard icon) when connecting via USB 3.0

Connecting via USB 2 » Use both connectors when using USB 2.0
Important Note: Plug in the connector with the two arrows icon first, and the connector with the keyboard icon second."

 

I honestly have never done this--have always used USB 2.0 with a single port so that's why I was so confused. I don't understand the purpose of the second port.

1. Semantics. I'd like to point out that the manual very clearly specifies 'connector,' and not 'port'.
2. I don't have the physical board in my hands, so I could be mistaken, but would I be correct in assuming the CORSAIR Gaming K65 RGB keyboard's cord leads out from the keyboard and ends in two USB connectors? Specifically, two USB Type-C connectors?
3. According to this discussion on the Corsair User Forums, one of the connectors is a power cable, while the other is a data cable. Direct quote and further explanation:

Quote

The order was important for the original K65/K70/K95 RGB keyboards because those needed to connect first the POWER cable and then the data one (if you used USB 2.0 it required both cables for power). Plugging in the data cable on those would not make them recognized by the OS since there wasn't enough power for them to boot up.

[Corsair Nick]

Based on the part number on your K65 RGB Gaming Keyboard, there is no USB pass-through.  This was a feature we added to newer versions like the LUX and Rapidfire.  We include 2 USB cables on the majority of our keyboards for power requirements.  Motherboards using USB 2.0 ports would require both plugs, while USB 3.0 only requires one.  Keyboards with the pass through would utilize the second USB connection for the data transfer.