SE/30 hack: MacCon + IIsi Pivot = Fits (sorta...)

[BadGoldEagle]

Hey guys.

I just received a special package from our very own Bolle. It's an Asante MacCon. Thanks again mate! It's looking great.

I wanted to add ethernet to my SE/30 but I also wanted color... And as some of you may already know, the Radius IIsi Pivot is electronically compatible with the SE/30's PDS but they're absolutely not physically compatible with one another...

A couple of months ago, I started working on a bespoke PCB that would allow the IIsi card to fit inside the case. I wasn't really going anywhere with this thing. 

In comes the MacCon. It has a passthrough and it looked like a MacCon+IIsi Pivot combo might fit inside the case. And it does, sorta...

The pictures speak for themselves.

  

Here's how it looks like right now if I try to put the bucket back on... Close, but no cigar.



Dearly beloved, we are gathered here to join together this Radius Pivot and this Asante MacCon... LOL



The honeymoon starts tomorrow. I'm pretty excited.

A close up of the connection between the two cards.



And here's my getto right angle adapter... Is this the adapter some of you guys were talking about? Or is there a better solution? I think this is OK, but I do need to test the connections with the MMU, just to be extra sure...



SO, now I need to cut a tiny piece off that Pivot card. What's the best way to tackle this problem you reckon? A file? A saw? Dremel perhaps? I don't want to kill this thing.

It looks so promising! 

 

[Bolle]

Where did you get the angle 120 pin connector?

I just ordered a few of those on mouser. No way to get those in europe - at least I did not find any.

Ordered 50€ worth of connectors to not having to pay the 20€ of shipping mouser puts onto your order if you are located in europe.

I am going to solder the connector directly onto the Asante card.

Edit:

I used a tiny metal saw to chop off the end on my IIsi card.

I did just receive the parcel from mouser today and did not yet get around to test if things simply fit.

 

[BadGoldEagle]

Where did you get the angle 120 pin connector?

I just ordered a few of those on mouser. No way to get those in europe - at least I did not find any.

I got them from digikey -> https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/te-connectivity-amp-connectors/5650874-5/A32307-ND/811097

Yeah "Euro" connectors aren't available in Europe I think. That's kinda ironic when you think of it...

Those things cost me a fortune a year ago. I think I paid approx 16 bucks a pop. (not including shipping  > )

Soldering the right angle connector directly to the Asante is a good idea. I'm not 100% sure the card will fit though with this modification. I'll have to check that first. When you plug directly the new connector on top of the old one it creates a slight gap that clears the chassis...

 

[BadGoldEagle]

Ok, I've just tested it and the Pivot clears the chassis with the right angle connector installed on the MacCon side. That's good. However, the Pivot barely fits with the daughter card installed. The video header needs to be removed (no big deal, 'cos we don't really need to plug in the OEM cable).

Speaking of the video connector, how are we going to route the cable to the MacCon's AUI port? I don't think there's enough of a gap between the daughter card and the DA-15 connector to individually solder each pin to the corresponding video signal... What do you think?

 

[trag]

I have a bunch of those connectors as mentioned near the bottom of this posting:

https://68kmla.org/forums/index.php?/topic/15517-fs-tantalum-rework-capacitors-for-those-old-boards-10set/?p=154955

However, I don't think that would have helped Bolle, as the Post Office has become very unreasonable about the cost of shipping packages to Europe.  Things that used to cost two or three dollars now cost $14 to ship.

 

[beachycove]

...the Post Office has become very unreasonable about the cost of shipping packages to Europe.  Things that used to cost two or three dollars now cost $14 to ship.

How else are they supposed to keep those 100,000,000 Chinese “free shipping” sellers subsidized on eBay?

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Best way to do this is to desolder the existing passthru connector from the NIC and replace it with the "wrong angle connector" so you get a straight connector to connector stack and less electrical problems (capacitance?) from Rube Goldberging multiple connectors every which way.

 

[TPope]

How do we get the flat cable that run from the Radius card to the Asante AUI port? Thanks

TPope

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

LOL! I just spent the afternoon cleaning up the files for my RCPII/IIsi bobtail hack! It involves rewiring the pins and components so as to remove the "panhandle" of the card.

On some of the Asante NICs all you need to do is unplug the AUI passthrough card and connector. In that case the Pivot cable bolts right up where the AUI connector was on the backplane plate.