strange atari 260st .... keyboard only?

[Kamelie1706]

Hi

 

has anyone any idea what this is?

 

I did not yet dismantle it fully but did not find much yet … seems only the keyboard !?

 

from eBay Germany…

 

i have never heard of a 260st with a separated keyboard. It does not look either as a mega st/ste keyboard from what I understand the connection on the back …?

 

 

 

Edited August 25, 2021 by Kamelie1706

[gilsaluki]

I remember early magazine articles, before the ST's actual release, that Atari has shown 260STs and were planning its release, but it was cut from the lineup when chip prices fell before full release.  

[Kamelie1706]

Do you remember if the keyboard was separated?

 

the few 260st I have seen were “all-in-one”

[bfollowell]

That picture of the ports definitely doesn't look fresh from the factory. It also doesn't look homemade or modded though. I wonder if this could be a mockup or a prototype?

 

[Kamelie1706]

I was indeed thinking about a prototype for the same reasons!

The round/din connection next to mouse/joystick port has 5 pins and a cable extender was included. I wonder what it could be for? I need to dismantle the keyboard to see what is on the back … maybe a surprise!

 

Edited August 26, 2021 by Kamelie1706

[Kamelie1706]

The din 5 pin matches physically the midi port … but must be something else.

 

any record of Atari keyboard having 5 pin din connector? 
 

i first thought some kind of AV connection like on 8 bits series but must get the power from somewhere ?

Edited August 26, 2021 by Kamelie1706

[+DarkLord]

Looks something like a "DeskTopper" case, where the keyboard from the original ST

is taken out and the case is covered with an enlarged top. I had one for a while that

I used with a Falcon. Pretty nice actually.

 

[Kamelie1706]

Interesting! Never heard before of “desktopper”…

[Kamelie1706]

Ideally I would like to use this keyboard to master a mega ST4 I am restoring.

 

Any adapter available din5=>6pinRJ12 normal Mega connection?

I can also make one but would need schema for connection

 

Found  a compiled information here but not coverring the standard 5pinDin connection

https://www.exxoshost.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1346

[MasterMotorola]

13 hours ago, Kamelie1706 said:

Ideally I would like to use this keyboard to master a mega ST4 I am restoring.

 

Any adapter available din5=>6pinRJ12 normal Mega connection?

I can also make one but would need schema for connection

 

Found  a compiled information here but not coverring the standard 5pinDin connection

https://www.exxoshost.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1346

 

That's the Freekeys keyboard that came with the DeskTopper as DarkLord mentioned (see Toad Computers ad below from 1995/96).  Is there any way to check which wires from the keyboard are running to the DIN connector?   You could also bypass the DIN and solder the ends of the RJ12 directly to the mount on the Freekeys.

[Kamelie1706]

Should be possible to at least identify color wire cables continuity at this level … unless some connections include “logical gate” which activate only with power.

 

Sorry if I say dummy things … still need to upgrade massively my basic electronic knowledge!

 

 

[anzac]

On 8/25/2021 at 6:36 PM, gilsaluki said:

I remember early magazine articles, before the ST's actual release, that Atari has shown 260STs and were planning its release, but it was cut from the lineup when chip prices fell before full release.  

260STs were sold in Europe in low numbers IIRC

[Kamelie1706]

Here is the continuity report.

I number the din pin from left to right based on the picture 

 

1 - brown right

2 - red right

3 - orange right

4 - no continuity found

5 - black left

 

Does it sound about right to you?

 

is there a different purpose of for the 2 serial ports as they do not seem map the same way with the din?

 

 

[snarkdluG]

The two 9-pin d-sub connector is for mouse/joystick. The keyboard controller chip is located underneath the keyboard and handles the mouse/joy. So they just relocated them for easy access. Mouse has two buttons but Atari only uses 1 button per port so right button on mouse is the same as fire on joystick port.

 

The 5-pin DIN probably has 5V, Ground, Transmit data, Receive data and Reset from the main board. Reset can be omitted since it can be made on the keyboard with some small circuit.

Edited August 29, 2021 by snarkdluG