3 May
2016
3 May
'16
10:20 a.m.
On Mon, 2 May 2016, Robert Jarratt wrote:
I decided to attempt the construction of an adapter.
But it is the
connectors which always bite me because I don't know what all the types of
connector are. I naively assumed that an IDC 10-way (2x5) would do the
trick, but it is too wide to go into the male connector on the board.
What kinds of connectors exist for ribbon cables that can be used to go into
a 2x5 connector, but which don't have a lot of space at the sides?
I think this header is intended for a crimp wire receptacle, like:
<http://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/pcb-connector-housings/8215708/>. This is
non-polarised though; getting one that is polarised and with the right key
might be a bit of a challenge. Alternatively a PCB socket like:
<http://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/pcb-sockets/7655648/> would do too; again
getting a polarised one seems tough.
I don't know which of the two solutions the original DEC SROM "dongle"
used. I can only find 3 references quoting the part number, which is/was
96-RM001-01. It provided for a standard DECconnect cable, so I think it's
actually quite likely that it was just a small daughtercard with a PCB
socket, line driver and receiver ICs (DEC documentation quotes 1488 and
1489, but with a pair of wires used for communication that looks like an
overkill to me -- a single IC like MAX232N would do IMHO; RS sell them
individually even) and their associated passive components, and then an
MMJ socket, all on the PCB. Obviously these days you probably want a DE-9
connector instead. ;)
I wonder if I shouldn't actually make something like this myself just for
fun -- to have a way to peek at my DEC 3000's internals even though it
appears healthy overall.
Maciej