EEVblog Electronics Community Forum
Electronics => Beginners => Topic started by: cdev on April 22, 2021, 01:50:29 am
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Hello, I am trying to make one of these cables so I can use a monitor, keyboard and mouse to successfully use a repurposed firewall machine as a regular computer with ten gigabit ethernet network interfaces.. I'm on my third try. This is what I want so I can use the machines internal VGA headers.. (it has two, one for the server part and one for the LOM which I know literally nothing about.. But I'm curious what I can do with this harware which wasnt that expensive (although I bet the electricityit uses will be unles I can slow down the fan, which is super loud..Proably can be controlled if I can just bring up the bios.. ) This is the cable I need to make. to adapt the internal header to a standard VGA monitor ..
https://pinoutguide.com/Audio-Video-Hardware/checkpoint_utm-1_pinout.shtml
Ive tried two kinds of ribbon cable some light blue ribbon cable made by BERG electronics (a dupont company).. and rainbow ribbon cable. Both are kind of old. But they are the exact kinds of cable other people use, as far as I can see.. successfully.
my problem is when I have finished making it the way it seems supposed to go, many but not all, not all of the connections have continuity..
So, you IDC cable experts, I know you are here, what are the magic things I need to do to make a great 10 conductor IDC cable. (often used for JTAG cables, and serial interconnects too.. at least I have used them for that..in the past. I have a bag of IDC connectors with little teeth in them its supposed to pinch the ribbon cable. I was using my vise grip pliers to squeeze it shut. I used a plastic T-square to get the angle right, pretty much.
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Just make sure the key on the connector points the same way. That is if the first one points away from you, the second one should too. For "setting" the connector, press evenly. I like to tap it with a hammer, but put something like wood in between the hammer and the connector. This will distribute the force and apply it evenly.
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you can always get one of these IDC crimp tools if you have a few to do
http://www.farnell.com/datasheets/3195121.pdf (http://www.farnell.com/datasheets/3195121.pdf)
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I've always just used a nice hardwood block on top and a hammer.
PanaVise (and others) make small arbor presses for doing this.
3M makes (expensive) presses: https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/3m/3640/248519 (https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/3m/3640/248519)
If you have a beefy drill press (and you won't hurt it) you could even use that.
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And one size fits all, presumably, right?
you can always get one of these IDC crimp tools if you have a few to do
http://www.farnell.com/datasheets/3195121.pdf (http://www.farnell.com/datasheets/3195121.pdf)
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I just use one of those small vices that clamp to the edge of the bench. Pressing is always going to be more controllable and accurate than hitting, where a lot of the energy is lost in the rebound, block of wood or no.
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Make sure that the IDC connector you are using matches the conductor spacing of the cable - I use a small panavise vise and gently tighten it down to squeeze the cable between the connector and the back.
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I've always pressed them in a vice, just an ordinary metalworking vice with smooth jaws.