Identifying strange connector \ VOGONS

Identifying strange connector

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First post, by Kippykip

Posted on 2020-01-18, 07:21

Kippykip Offline

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Joined: 2020-01-18, 06:56

Hey guys, I recently acquired an old slot 1 based IPEX computer. I used to own one of these around 2002-2008 myself and was the PC that got me so much into Doom (as it was the only game I owned fast enough to run).
It's basically a low budget Australian OEM computer with cheap off the shelf parts in the inside.

When I got it, the PSU, CPU and RAM were all dead, there were some bad caps on the motherboard too, and a rusty/corroded nail just rolling around in there. But today I've finally got it running after replacing these and the caps.

However, on the back there was this flimsy DA-15 male connector on the outside.

Turned out it was literally held in by a zip tie and was just resting on the outside.

I do remember this PC having built-in sound though growing up, but this machine I've got now has non-working side panel USB ports, plus the sound isn't working unless plugged on the back.
But when investigating the cables actually go to that floating DA-15 connector!

Has anybody seen a breakout cable like this before? I thought it was some weird gameport plug, but when directly connecting it, it must short against something as it instantly shuts the computer off.
Instead what I'm thinking, was there maybe some proprietary breakout extension cable that made a 2xmale USBs, a mic/speaker out or something and literally just forwarded the plugs on the back onto the sidepanel?
I don't actually remember this on my unit, but then again I have found a Pentium 2 variant instead of a celeron which has a different motherboard than the one in mine. (Mine being a ECS P6LX-A+ board of some kind)

I'm just really confused, anybody seen anything like it?

Reply 1 of 2, by jmarsh

Posted on 2020-01-18, 10:36

jmarsh Offline

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Kippykip wrote on 2020-01-18, 07:21:

Instead what I'm thinking, was there maybe some proprietary breakout extension cable that made a 2xmale USBs, a mic/speaker out or something and literally just forwarded the plugs on the back onto the sidepanel?

I mean, that is literally what is stamped on the back of the case below the port.

Reply 2 of 2, by Kippykip

Posted on 2020-01-18, 10:50

Kippykip Offline

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Posts: 2
Joined: 2020-01-18, 06:56

jmarsh wrote on 2020-01-18, 10:36:

Kippykip wrote on 2020-01-18, 07:21:

Instead what I'm thinking, was there maybe some proprietary breakout extension cable that made a 2xmale USBs, a mic/speaker out or something and literally just forwarded the plugs on the back onto the sidepanel?

I mean, that is literally what is stamped on the back of the case below the port.

Yeah that's what made it easy to find where the cables were going, but it's still so weird to have sitting like that. Especially just zip-tied poorly floating.
I guess whatever cable is meant to plug into it is missing.

Regardless I did some toying around and discovered this:

Plus my right speaker is completely busted, but it's also weird that I can't find a pinout for a right speaker at all. So despite having two speakers, it's like this machine is hardwired to be mono to begin with? What the hell?
The only two aux pins I found has one that appears to be direct AUX -> speaker anyway, making the speaker output really quiet.
Then the other one actually outputs proper amplified audio into the speaker.
But no L & R channel stuff at all.

The MIC plug on the side does appear to be mono however with just the ground and positive pin.

So I soldered up a weird adaptor out of a spare snipped aux cord and some header cords from a raspberry pi kit I had in my parts box:

So yeah instead of that dodgy zip-tied connector I now have a dodgy AUX plug going through the same hole. I soldered the L & R speakers together so it's stereo->mono.
A shame the right speaker is actually dead completely and it looks terrible but at least internal sound is working now!

As for the USBs, I might just get two of these adapters with the header plugging into the side panel, and the actual male USBs go to the ports in the back:

There's no headers on the motherboard for extra USB's anyway. So this will do.
I don't think I'll ever find the official IPEX breakout cable or whatever it is today, knowing how hard it was tracing the actual computer which is barely documented to begin with.

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