I've retired & want to dabble in electronics.

I was wondering about using display connectors to connect, say a 8X8 RGB LED matrix to the controller. Gather all of the wires from the columns & solder them to a connector (USB, HDMI, Thunderbolt, etc.) & then run a cable from the connector on the matrix to a connector on the controller board. I wouldn't want to use VGA or DVI because I don't want to fool with screwing & unscrewing the connectors. Do likewise for the rows. I suppose that it would work because the connectors & cable are dumb. It would make the project tidier.

But then again, one would need only short cables & the store-bought cables are long. One would have to shorten the cables & solder on the connectors. One could use heat shrink tubing but there would be no stress relief capability.

I suppose that it would work, wouldn't it?

Another option would be to use parallel ribbon cable & connectors, if they're still available. They'd probably be easier to modify.

 

I suppose that it would work, wouldn't it?

No.

It is all speculation until you choose the display.

 

No.

It is all speculation until you choose the display.

I'm not going to use the cables to connect a display. I want to use the cables to connect, as I previously stated, a RGB LED matrix to the LED controller. Instead of having a rats' nest of wires going from the LED matrix to the controller board, use USB, parallel ribbon, SATA, etc. cable to connect the LED matrix to the controller board. It would make the project tidier.

I suppose that it would work because the cable & connectors are dumb.

 

There is an almost unlimited number of board to wire connector types. Some are more DIY friendly than others.

http://www.molex.com/molex/products..._connectors&channel=PRODUCTS&langPref=english

These are nice for DIY prototype boards.
http://www.molex.com/molex/products...troduction&parentKey=wire_to_board_connectors
http://www.molex.com/molex/products...troduction&parentKey=wire_to_board_connectors

 

Another option would be to use parallel ribbon cable & connectors, if they're still available. They'd probably be easier to modify.

Using ribbon cable makes more sense than using VGA, HDMI, etc connectors which are associated with a specific protocol. Using individual wires is also an option.

Google for "8x8x8 LED cube" to get some ideas how a 3D matrix is wired. There are some that use RGB LEDs and require a lot of wiring.

You could opt for using the shift registers you mentioned in a previous thread and only need a handful of signals. I built a 5x7 LED matrix and used 9 I/O's to drive it; 7 for the rows, 1 to increment a column decoder, and 1 to reset the column counter. To wire my prototype, I used ribbon cable with Dupont connectors.

You can get male-male, male-female, and female-female for a few cents per jumper. You can also buy the connector pins, cable, and housings separately and roll your own. The housings come in various sizes (1x1, 1x*, 2x*). If you go that route, buy a crimp tool made for those pins.

 

It really depends on what you want to connect to what and how you plan on making the connection.
There are an infinite number of possibilities.

I once designed a commercial unit that had eight panel displays, each one displaying four digits with selectable decimal points and flashing display option. They were all wired to the controller with a single wire plus power and ground. It did not use RS-232, RS485 nor a UART.