geekhack
geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: _rubik on Mon, 23 September 2019, 00:02:19
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So I'm in the market for a SDL to USB, and was wondering if anyone here has experience with making those cables. I can't find any information, nor the proper 8ping SDL connector needed.
Is this actually feasible, or should I just shell out the unreasonable 50 smackers for a cable off Ebay?
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for pin-outs you may find all the information you need on soarer's converter thread (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=17458.0) as for connectors i think that you can find them on mouser(https://www.mouser.fr/ProductDetail/TE-Connectivity-AMP/1-520424-2?qs=sGAEpiMZZMvlX3nhDDO4AI9lzSNf5Mj4mO3mK7p7p64%3D) you would also need a teensy/arduino nano to make it work and i guess you can find a scrap usb cable by yourself but it will never be as clean as the one on e-bay.
The model M does not speak USB but PS/2 so you need an active converter (this is where the teensy come into play).
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Orihalcon's cables are pricey but extremely well-made and attractive. Contact him directly for an off-ebay discount.
He said that he could only buy the SDL connectors in quantity so that was a "barrier to entry"
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for pin-outs you may find all the information you need on soarer's converter thread (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=17458.0) as for connectors i think that you can find them on mouser(https://www.mouser.fr/ProductDetail/TE-Connectivity-AMP/1-520424-2?qs=sGAEpiMZZMvlX3nhDDO4AI9lzSNf5Mj4mO3mK7p7p64%3D) you would also need a teensy/arduino nano to make it work and i guess you can find a scrap usb cable by yourself but it will never be as clean as the one on e-bay.
The model M does not speak USB but PS/2 so you need an active converter (this is where the teensy come into play).
Sadly active converters are harder to find these days (more expensive than they should be, in other words). I have seen a quite a few usb cables kicking around though, so I'm not sure what you mean by 'speak usb'.
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Orihalcon's cables are pricey but extremely well-made and attractive. Contact him directly for an off-ebay discount.
He said that he could only buy the SDL connectors in quantity so that was a "barrier to entry"
I'll see what he says, maybe we can organize a GB?
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for pin-outs you may find all the information you need on soarer's converter thread (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=17458.0) as for connectors i think that you can find them on mouser(https://www.mouser.fr/ProductDetail/TE-Connectivity-AMP/1-520424-2?qs=sGAEpiMZZMvlX3nhDDO4AI9lzSNf5Mj4mO3mK7p7p64%3D) you would also need a teensy/arduino nano to make it work and i guess you can find a scrap usb cable by yourself but it will never be as clean as the one on e-bay.
The model M does not speak USB but PS/2 so you need an active converter (this is where the teensy come into play).
Sadly active converters are harder to find these days (more expensive than they should be, in other words). I have seen a quite a few usb cables kicking around though, so I'm not sure what you mean by 'speak usb'.
He meant the keyboard does/will not communicate over USB. So you cannot just grab a cable with this kind of connector, add a different connector to the other end and have it work. You'll need some kind of electronics in between. That's usually a Teensy (https://www.pjrc.com/store/teensy.html) combined with this (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=14618.0) or this (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=17458.0) software. The cables you've seen for sale have the electronics built-in. They're not just a straight cable with different connectors on each end.
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If you need more cables, you can refer to it here.
https://www.allicdata.com/product/Cables-Wires-Management/Cable-Supports-and-Fasteners/1532.html (https://www.allicdata.com/product/Cables-Wires-Management/Cable-Supports-and-Fasteners/1532.html)
https://www.allicdata.com/product/Cables-Wires-Management/Cable-Supports-and-Fasteners/TL-600/1670578.html (https://www.allicdata.com/product/Cables-Wires-Management/Cable-Supports-and-Fasteners/TL-600/1670578.html)
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Orihalcon still sells them on ebay. I was puzzled when I saw this post.