What the 9-position count means for your BOM
The TE AMPLIMITE HD-20 5-747904-2 is a 9-position D-Sub plug with male pins, the standard DE-9E shell size layout used for RS-232 serial ports, VGA cables, and industrial control interfaces. The connector uses solder cup termination, meaning each wire is hand-soldered into the cup on the back of the pin, not crimped or IDC-terminated.
Grounding indents and shell construction
The steel shell is tin-plated and includes grounding indents — those dimples on the side of the shell that bite into the mating receptacle's shell to establish a low-impedance ground path for shield current. This matters for EMI-sensitive applications where the cable shield must be drained before the signal pins make contact. The shell is unthreaded (no screwlocks), so the connector relies on the mating receptacle's hardware or a separate locking mechanism for retention.