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Unorthodox pinouts

Posted by TheRollingPeepstones@reddit | vintagecomputing | View on Reddit | 17 comments

Unorthodox pinouts

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ThisAccountIsStolen@reddit

Boards that had already entered production (or were released under draft specification) prior to the standardization of 1.0 in November 1995 didn't necessarily follow the standardized pinout. They usually came with a header adapter that converted their nonstandard pinout to the official standard pinout, provided the board was sold after the 1.0 specification was released. Some sold the cable as an optional accessory and just marketed the board as "USB Ready" instead.
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TheRollingPeepstones@reddit (OP)

Exactly! The kids don't know how good they have it these days, with (mostly) standardized connectors :) Unfortunately, I don't have the header adapter that may have come with it 30 years ago, so it's up to me to make one. I guess I could technically use a PCI-based solution, but now I am hellbent on using the one on the board as it was intended by the manufacturer. As for it making perfect sense: indeed, I do remember having early cases with built-in front panel USB ports that had separate headers for each port, similar to the connector on this one: [https://i.ytimg.com/vi/vJGKsNAJQ3s/maxresdefault.jpg](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/vJGKsNAJQ3s/maxresdefault.jpg) With those, it definitely would work either way. Unfortunately, those are all but extinct!
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ThisAccountIsStolen@reddit

They're actually not extinct, Startech still sells them on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/StarTech-Motherboard-4-Pin-Header-USBMBADAPT/dp/B000IV6S9S You can also get ones meant for Arduino/RPi or other SB computers, like these, which have individual pins, and are even cheaper. https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/adafruit-industries-llc/4449/11569127 Or just make your own if you've got a crimper and the terminals. It's a 5 minute job.
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TheRollingPeepstones@reddit (OP)

Oh, yes, those do exist. I was looking for a version that connects to the back panels of a regular AT-style case, and that seems to be extinct, at least I couldn't find any like that. Either way, I'm impatient, so a home job it will be!
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ThisAccountIsStolen@reddit

That's exactly what I'd do myself, too. Best of luck!
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TheRollingPeepstones@reddit (OP)

Thank you! This computer (sans the board as I had to replace that) was left for me by my dad in the '90s when my parents divorced. It was my only computer for many years. It holds a sentimental value!
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ThisAccountIsStolen@reddit

Nice that you were able to hold onto it. Too bad the board didn't survive, but still, the sentiment is still there regardless. Cheers
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TheRollingPeepstones@reddit (OP)

Let's say that I wasn't able to get that board to come to life yet. I'm not 100% sure it's dead, but I can't find documentation for it, unfortunately. Jumper manual would be nice for starters, but I looked far and wide :)
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Chrunchyhobo@reddit

What board is it? I've got a lot more manuals than I have boards (if I see em, I save em), might have what you are looking for.
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TheRollingPeepstones@reddit (OP)

It's a Progen TX430B. This one: [https://theretroweb.com/motherboards/s/progen-technolog-tx430b](https://theretroweb.com/motherboards/s/progen-technolog-tx430b) Thank you for checking!
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Chrunchyhobo@reddit

Had a good dig though my folders of manuals and unfortunately I don't have anything for this board. Sorry. :(
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TheRollingPeepstones@reddit (OP)

No worries at all, thank you so much for looking!
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Chrunchyhobo@reddit

I'll have a dig through my folders after I get off work, fingers crossed I've got what you need!
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ThisAccountIsStolen@reddit

I wish I still had all of mine. I had three, 5-drawer filing cabinets full of product manuals, for every product (from motherboards to full systems to accessories) I ever sold at my shop, dating from the '80s when I opened it to 2018 when I sold it. Unfortunately I thought it would be better to include the manual library with the sale of the business, and that's the only thing I've really regretted in regard to selling my shop—that I didn't keep those or take the time to scan them all before I sold the business. Hopefully you can find a manual for OP, that would be awesome!
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Sample_And_Hold@reddit

Fun story: many adapters would also ground pin 10 on the connector, which shouldn't matter anyway. But I once came across a motherboard that for some reason would disable the secondary IDE channel if pin 10 was grounded (and the connected CD-ROM drive would stop working). It took me a return/replacement until I managed to figure out what was going on with the secondary IDE. Even the dealer was perplexed once I showed it to him.
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TheRollingPeepstones@reddit (OP)

This is the kind of stuff I was looking for! The wonderful mysteries of pre-standard tech.
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TheRollingPeepstones@reddit (OP)

Anyone "loves" dealing with unorthodox pinouts? A while ago, on one of my 486 systems, I wasn't sure why the serial port wasn't working until I realized it looked exactly the same as the normal pinout, but with the pins in a different order. Nothing fried, luckily. Now here's this Gigabyte Socket 7 board that has USB on it, but with an 8-pin connector where the two ports' connectors go the opposite ways. Go figure... gotta make a special connector for this one! (Technically, I could probably try to find USB ports where each pin has a separate connector, but this will probably be easier.)
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