Fujitsi 2444AC 9-track tape drive/PDP-11

[Chuck Guzis]

On 5/1/19 6:58 PM, Dennis Boone via cctalk wrote:
>  > I got a great pair of cables for this project.  50 conductor, 50 pin
>  > IDC, 10 feet long.
> 
> So the minicomputer vendors in the 80s typically used twisted pair
> ribbon for these things, as in the 1700/50 stuff Glen was talking
> about.  I don't know how long a cable would need to be for that to be
> critical.

Yup--good old Spectra-Strip Twist 'N' Flat shown here:

http://www.spectra-strip.com/ecpartsearch3.cfm?partID=361&cfid=109257980&cftoken=e6f2501d4301db0d-A0328E4C-C60A-DD93-BF83E6D9C0B9DA8A

Expensive if purchased new stock, but since SS has gone through a couple
of corporate acquisitions, you can sometimes find it on the surplus
market under its old Eltra brand for considerable savings. Odd that
Eltra also once owned Converse shoes...

I"ve got a big spool of the stuff in my parts cabinet that will probably
outlast me.  Purchased surplus with the box water-damaged somewhat,
which didn't affect the spool inside.

The bigger problem is finding really decent IDC connectors--so much of
the stuff nowadays is of Chinese clone manufacture and not very good.
I'll go out of my way to pick up NOS T&B Ansley IDCs.

But plain old flat straight ribbon cable in a 10" length will do for the
2444; even at 6250, frequencies aren't much higher than 1MHz.

--Chuck