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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: Snowdog993 on Sun, 22 February 2015, 17:17:41

Title: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: Snowdog993 on Sun, 22 February 2015, 17:17:41
Does anyone have a spare Model M LED panel they don't need?  I could really use one.  It will connect to a 1993 1391401 controller.  I found a topic on it on here from March 2012, but didn't want to pull up that thread and necro everyone on it.
https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=55556.0
I don't know where to get them.
I believe I may need the ribbon too, but I suppose I could use cat5 wire if I need to.
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: 0100010 on Sun, 22 February 2015, 17:49:01
Order one from Unicomp.  They aren't listed on the site, but you can open a support ticket with them to get one.
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: Snowdog993 on Sun, 22 February 2015, 17:54:11
Order one from Unicomp.  They aren't listed on the site, but you can open a support ticket with them to get one.
That's interesting.  I just don't want them to mess up and give me one of those 42H controllers or something.  I'd probably have to send them a picture of what I need, and hope they have it.  You may be right.  I just don't understand why they wouldn't have them to order directly on their site to begin with.
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: Snowdog993 on Sun, 22 February 2015, 17:57:05
UGH Double post.
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: 0100010 on Sun, 22 February 2015, 18:03:28
I think the part number for that LED PCB is 1393296.
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: fohat.digs on Sun, 22 February 2015, 18:04:12
mess up and give me one of those 42H controllers or something.

Ha Ha Ha Ha

42H controllers are the only ones that I have ever experienced failing!
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: Snowdog993 on Sun, 22 February 2015, 18:07:35
I guess I could just make one if I have to.  It doesn't look too hard to do.  I was hoping someone just had one lying around.
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: 0100010 on Sun, 22 February 2015, 18:14:20
This thread has good images of the traces : https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=55556.0
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: Snowdog993 on Sun, 22 February 2015, 18:29:00
This thread has good images of the traces : https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=55556.0
Yes I found it there.  If you read my first post, that's the thread I was referencing.
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: keyhopper on Sun, 22 February 2015, 20:45:48
The Model M that I bought didn't have working LEDs either, and I fixed it jumping the ribbon connector with wires. It seems that the ribbon was somehow disolved or fried with overcurrent , maybe because of water ingress at some point in its lifetime.

The wires I used were telephone extension wires, which had the advantage of being single filament wires, easy to push through both connectors.

Luckily I kept the pictures:

[attachimg=1]

[attachimg=2]

[attachimg=3]

It would be very rare for the small LED pcb to be damaged, it has no logic in it, all it has are LEDs and a connector.
If the LED were damaged, you could solder new LEDs with your favorite color (blue, red, etc). There is a current limiting resistor in series with the LEDs on the main board, so you don't have to worry about the mainboard.

Cheers!
.KeyHopper.
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: keyhopper on Sun, 22 February 2015, 20:50:41
Also, in my case, I had tested conductivity between the ribbon cable extremes, and there was like 1Mohm there, so the ribbon was no good anymore, not even after careful cleaning.
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: Snowdog993 on Sun, 22 February 2015, 21:02:20
I need a LED PCB.  Does anyone have one at all?
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: keyhopper on Sun, 22 February 2015, 21:14:08
If I were you, I'd make my own out of a cut piece of solderable breadboard PCB, just a bit of soldering required:

       http://www.amazon.com/Solderable-BreadBoard-matches-tie-point-breadboards/dp/B0040Z3012/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1424660769&sr=8-1&keywords=bread+pcb

       http://www.amazon.com/Solderable-BreadBoard-matches-tie-point-breadboards/dp/B0040Z6OK6/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1424660769&sr=8-10&keywords=bread+pcb

but they should be available for cheaper at a local shop or elsewhere.

The model M LED pcb is extremely simple. A common wire and three individual wires to the LEDs. Mind the polarity, I think VCC was common and gnd was sinked individually for each LED.

Cheers!
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: Snowdog993 on Sun, 22 February 2015, 21:17:17
If I were you, I'd make my own out of a cut piece of solderable breadboard PCB, just a bit of soldering required:

       http://www.amazon.com/Solderable-BreadBoard-matches-tie-point-breadboards/dp/B0040Z3012/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1424660769&sr=8-1&keywords=bread+pcb

       http://www.amazon.com/Solderable-BreadBoard-matches-tie-point-breadboards/dp/B0040Z6OK6/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1424660769&sr=8-10&keywords=bread+pcb

but they should be available for cheaper at a local shop or elsewhere.

The model M LED pcb is extremely simple. A common wire and three individual wires to the LEDs. Mind the polarity, I think VCC was common and gnd was sinked individually for each LED.

Cheers!

Yeah thanks, I may just go to my local Radio Shack or something and find one.  Maybe get a few LED's while I am at it too.
Title: Re: Model M LED Panel help.
Post by: rowdy on Tue, 24 February 2015, 04:02:07
I'd just like to say that this is the best way of handling very old threads.

Don't necro them - start a new thread and post a link to the original one :)