UPGRADING REPAIRING PCs

7
Parallel Ports,
Printers, Scanners,
and Drives
Chapter 7
Parallel Port Connectors
Three different types of parallel port connectors are defined by the
IEEE-1284 parallel port standard. In Figure 7.1, the DB-25 connector
used on PCs for parallel cables (also called Type A) is on the left.
The Centronics 36 connector (also called Type B) is in the middle.
Virtually every parallel-interface printer, from the oldest dot-matrix
to the newest laser printer, uses the Type B connector. Hewlett-
Packard introduced the Type C connector and has added it to most
of its recent laser printers, although it still uses the Type B connector
as well. Type C is a high-density connector that uses a cable
with an integral clip, as opposed to the clumsy, easy-to-lose wire
clips used on the Type B port.
2.089
Type A
2.716
0.840
1284
Type B
1.713
370
1284
Type C
Figure 7.1 The three types of IEEE-1284 parallel port connectors.
You can see these connectors, along with all the others on the back
of your system, in Chapter 14, “Connector Quick Reference.”