AX44 - making a cable with 20 pin IDC connectors and ribbon
cable.
This guide assumes you use care and common sense - I am not
liable for any damage to your gear since you made the cable!
(just a legal disclaimer - unless you plug it in wrong or fail to
properly insulate the foil shield you can't go wrong)
IDC = "insulation displacement connector" as in a connector
you
press into place with no soldering. You can find ribbon
wire both flat and round-packed at Digi-key, as well as
connectors, also try Newark and Mouser. These guys
have a good selection Atex
1 - the stuff:
This is everything but the clear
packing tape you need to wrap the
cable.
2.- crimp
line up carefully with the end
of the wire flush with the connector
and all the little ridges in
the grooves! The red line is used to denote
pin 1 so pay attention. If you
use a "keyed" connector! (like the
original Yamaha cable).MUST
pay attention when you install this
cable that
pin 1 marking on the 2416 and the red line line up!
Plus - at the AX 44 end
- use the original cable to note the line and
which way it faces going into
the AX44/DSP Factory.
3.- Crunch it!
Using a small vise or (if you
are good) a pair of "vise grip" pliers
compress till you hear the "click"
of the locks that hold the little
backbar of the connector in
place.
4.- Check it!
This is crucial if you use the
keyed connector with the little
knobby spot in the middle of
one side.
5.- Wrap it!
Here you see the laid
out cut to length self adhesive foil I use.
Best not to put the ground
wire in at this point as it will not
make as good contact as
in the last step. the foil does not
have to go to the very
edge of the IDC, as long as it comes
within a couple of inches.
6.- Neatness counts!
The foil I use is pretty
thick so wrinkles are bad news .
7.-Finished with the foil
Ready to place the gound wire and
wrap with clear packing tape.
(you could use brown just as well -or even
duct tape) But the
tape is ESSENTIAL to keep the grounded shield
from blowing up
your PC/Mac since the cable could touch
one of the hundreds
of exposed connections on your video, sound,
SCSI, or DSP
cards.
8. ground it!
strip back a couple of inches of insulation
from a piece of stranded
22 ga. or so wire that you have a
fan shape of bare wire laying against
the foil, you can use a small piece
of tape to hold it down so it doesn't
move while you wrap the insulation
on. Add a lug (soldered or crimped)
onto the other end. (about 12 inches
total length should be fine)
At this point - WRAP with plastic
tape. I just lay the packing tape on
length wise and fold it over like
the foil. -using two strips as to be sure
it is insulated.
9.-Install it!
Assuming you have a powered case or
power extension for
the AX44. You can feed it out
of a punch out (you know all the
useless ones they give you on the
back of the case) or out of an
unused slot.