I’m really tired of the freak gaming hardware and bought an Epson Q203A. She has Fujitsu Peerless switches and this is a bit different from modern switches. Actuation force is really more than MX or other Chinese switches but it is a characteristic point for her. The main frame and keycaps look so clean as you can see and do not have yellowish stains. Let’s get to the main issue, she has a five-pin male 180° DIN connectorExternal link (yes she has a male plug pls respect her :D) and it isn’t compatible with modern systems. I’ve seen several DIN to USB marker projects on marker markets and other geek stores but if I bought a connector from these markets, I’d have paid about 30-45 dollars (including shipping). So I’ve ordered a five-pin female DIN to PS/2 converterExternal link on Aliexpress and I’ll buy a PS/2 to USB converter from a local tech store. Actually, I can convert it by soldering but I want to keep its originality. When they arrive, I’ll post an update for converting stuff.
03.06.2021
I’ve got a five-pin female 180° DIN to six-pin male PS/2 converter and a female PS/2 to USB converter but I couldn’t get it run. When I plugged in all the cables and connectors, the USB connector warmed up extremely. I have tried it on my desktop, laptop, and brother’s laptop but the keyboard hasn’t responded at all. I guess the first connector is broken. I’ll try another DIN5 connector and if that doesn’t work either, going to buy a RasPi Zero and solder my AT/T socket to its GPIO Header but I don’t know how I’ll do, do not even know mikroC.
06.06.2021
I’ve ripped off the keyboard and saw there is a membrane circuit and old-fashioned PCB. Actually, I want to replace the whole PCB but I have no general circuit & keyboard matrices knowledge of that. I don’t even know which part of the daughterboard will be soldered to Arduino or whatever. Some people had recommended mapping the matrix on the current PCB and wiring that to a Teensy / Arduino. And completed some research. I’ve asked how to do it on Redd*t and they said that’s an XT keyboard and got a suggestion about a DIY converter with a Teesy board but those boards are ridiculously overpriced in Turkey so I bought a new adapter from locals. If it doesn’t work, I’m gonna try the DIY one and if none of them work, I’ll map the matrix and wire to Arduino.