Yes! and .. maybe.

[Mehridian Sanders]

Well, as with a lot of postings that I am finding nowadays... Buyer beware. I did just get a Speech Synthesizer for $20 with shipping. Whether or not it works has yet to be seen. I will keep you all posted. and if I can do the Power Pass through I more than likely will. I don't understand why (probably because I did not dig deep enough) power does not pass through the SS to other peripheral sidecars. 

 

I am very fortunate to have a legacy games dealer around the bend from my house. I was able to get one of the WICO Joysticks which worked out well

 

[+Ksarul]

The power pin from the console terminates at the Speech Synthesizer, mainly because there is not a lot of excess power to be had at that point. It is generally better to inject power from a nicely regulated external power supply to peripherals beyond the Speech Synthesizer, as you will usually get much better operation of said peripherals. Sometimes jumpering the console power past the SS works for a specific device, but YMMV.

[wierd_w]

One of the reasons I think I should go ahead and proto-board build a breakout module for a pico-ATX.  In addition to the +5v taken from the main motherboard edge connector, it also provides a separate set of rails intended for hard drives, which includes a GND and +5v rail, which could be connected to the same rails on the sidecar bus behind a diode. (Cut circuit trace leading to edge connector, put diode on as bridge over the cut, then put the injected power after that.)  My soldering skills are practically non-existent though, so the end product would be very unattractive.  I would need to incorporate a stand-alone +5v to -5v conversion IC though, because the pico-ATX itself does not supply the -5v rail. (Its makers consider it to be a legacy voltage that 'nobody uses anymore'. The intended application is for use with mini-itx boards, which use modern components, and have no need for a negative voltage rail.)

 

That would give me a Ti that can power quite a few devices on the sidecar bus, and could comfortably run a TiPI and the like, as well as let me use a commodity +12v DC wallwart (of suitable wattage. I would use a universal supply in the 10-15A range, with a 120W picoatx) instead of the original stock transformer doorstop. 

[+Ksarul]

Note that there is a Meanwell power supply (already referenced in another thread about replacing the console power supply) that supplies all three regulated voltages from a single wall wart. . .that might be a lot easier to deal with.

[Omega-TI]

30 minutes ago, Ksarul said:

Note that there is a Meanwell power supply (already referenced in another thread about replacing the console power supply) that supplies all three regulated voltages from a single wall wart. . .that might be a lot easier to deal with.

 

Yes, it's << THIS ONE >>.  I'll be ordering mine once Greg has the internal board ready for sale.

 

They currently have 65 in stock, that should be enough for us TI'ers here on AA.