Couple Questions on a Chicony KB-5162

User avatar
hellothere

24 Nov 2021, 23:06

The "badge" on this is literally tape. "KMT"? Something like that.
1. It's got a clicker. Anyone know how to turn it off? It's way more annoying than the simple beeps from a Zenith Z150. (Speaker is mounted in the bottom case just above where the F6 key is.)
2. It's got a Macro key. Anyone know how to use it?

Yes, it's really, really yellow.

* Green Alps.
* PCB says KB-5162/5161A, Alps REV-A.
* BAE.
* Seven screws and two snaps.
* Metal mounting plate.
* The horizontal number keys and function keys are single-shot ABS. I think everything else is double-shot.
* The bottom case just has a model sticker (KB-5162) that says "Made in Taiwan R.O.C." and a serial number.
* AT/XT switch. 5-pin DIN. Beefy coiled cable.
* Looks like mostly Costar stabilizers.
* Actually feels pretty good to type on.

Oh. The misc Alps parts you see scattered about are from an orange Alps KB I'm working on.
Spoiler:
IMG_14632 - Copy.JPG
IMG_14632 - Copy.JPG (1.39 MiB) Viewed 3112 times

User avatar
Polecat

25 Nov 2021, 04:47

The Macro key on older keyboards was used to call up an external macro program, rather than to reprogram the keyboard internally. On some Focus boards it generates a backslash (at least in Windows), but one with a different scan code than the normal backslash, so it can be reassigned separately. If you're running a Soarers you can reassign it there. The old macro programs in the DOS days, when these keyboards were made, were a TSR (Terminate-and-Stay-Resident) that you set up once, and loaded manually from the command prompt, or automatically through Autoexec when booting. Prokey, Superkey, Smartkey, and several others were all the rage. There was no memory or other hardware inside the keyboard to save anything there, so the Macro key was just there as a convenience to call up external programs.

The beeper probably has a key combination to turn it on and off. Possibly Ctrl, Shift, and/or Escape, combined with another key. If all else fails you can cut the wire, or install a physical switch on the speaker.

User avatar
hellothere

25 Nov 2021, 21:58

> The Macro key on older keyboards was used to call up an external macro program, rather than to reprogram the keyboard internally.
Sounds about right. *Sigh* Well, I gambled that it was going to be green Alps and I was right. I also gambled that it wouldn't have any rust and I was right, so a mostly useless to modern keyboards macro key isn't something I should complain about. I'll play with it more, at some point.

While I don't have any problems making a Soarer's or Hasu converter for this KB, I'm hoping it works just with a 5 Pin DIN to PS/2 and a PS/2 to USB adapter. That's a bit easier to do :D

> The beeper probably has a key combination to turn it on and off. Possibly Ctrl, Shift, and/or Escape, combined with another key. If all else fails you can cut the wire, or install a physical switch on the speaker.
I played around with a bunch of combinations and none worked. As I will not keep this keyboard, I'm probably going to do the switch thing. I bought some microswitches awhile back for another keyboard that had a broken AT/XT switch, so I know I have some extras.

I have at least one other Chicony KB in my work area, here. I'd like to see if it has a couple leads for "BZ" ("buzzer") on the PCB. On this 5162, the connector is right next to the keyboard cable connector. If it's on other Chicony PCBs, it might be something cool to add, just as a little extra.

User avatar
Polecat

26 Nov 2021, 00:56

hellothere wrote:
25 Nov 2021, 21:58
> The Macro key on older keyboards was used to call up an external macro program, rather than to reprogram the keyboard internally.
Sounds about right. *Sigh* Well, I gambled that it was going to be green Alps and I was right. I also gambled that it wouldn't have any rust and I was right, so a mostly useless to modern keyboards macro key isn't something I should complain about. I'll play with it more, at some point.

While I don't have any problems making a Soarer's or Hasu converter for this KB, I'm hoping it works just with a 5 Pin DIN to PS/2 and a PS/2 to USB adapter. That's a bit easier to do :D

> The beeper probably has a key combination to turn it on and off. Possibly Ctrl, Shift, and/or Escape, combined with another key. If all else fails you can cut the wire, or install a physical switch on the speaker.
I played around with a bunch of combinations and none worked. As I will not keep this keyboard, I'm probably going to do the switch thing. I bought some microswitches awhile back for another keyboard that had a broken AT/XT switch, so I know I have some extras.

I have at least one other Chicony KB in my work area, here. I'd like to see if it has a couple leads for "BZ" ("buzzer") on the PCB. On this 5162, the connector is right next to the keyboard cable connector. If it's on other Chicony PCBs, it might be something cool to add, just as a little extra.
It will most likely work with a cheap USB converter. I just mentioned the Soarers because that's an easy way to reassign keys. Regarding the beeper, that would be covered in the User's Manual, if it came with one. Some keyboards came with a Quick Reference card instead, which I've seen for other Chiconys. You might get lucky searching online, but presumably only the versions with linear switches would have had a beeper, and it seems like most Chiconys had clicky switches.

User avatar
hellothere

26 Nov 2021, 21:07

> Regarding the beeper, that would be covered in the User's Manual ...
Didn't get the original box or any manual. Another "I'm lucky" event: KB had one layer of thin bubble wrap (small bubbles, too) and USPS didn't stomp the box flat. (No offense to any USPS employees who are on this forum. I've had more than a few damaged packages.) I, however, wrap stuff like people are going to play catch with the package.

The manual would have been in German, anyhow :D.

User avatar
hellothere

26 Nov 2021, 21:15

Side conversation. What would be the biggest, loudest buzzer/beeper I could put in one of these? I don't know what the voltages/amps for a 5-Pin DIN are, but PS/2 is supposed to be 5V and something like 275 mA.

User avatar
Polecat

26 Nov 2021, 23:01

That depends on what's driving it. A mechanical buzzer usually runs on DC power, in this case 5 volts. A speaker takes a low impedance AC signal. A piezo buzzer can be either, 5 volts DC or a high impedance AC signal,depending on whether or not it has an oscillator/driver circuit inside. So the device needs to match the signal. What exactly is in there uh, currently?

User avatar
hellothere

27 Nov 2021, 19:48

Looks almost exactly like one of these. I wouldn't call it a speaker. It's glued onto the bottom case of the KB and the only "writing" is "TSC," which I assume is the manufacturer of the clicker. Two wires, black and red. Just a direct connection to that "BZ" lead on the PCB. No other things in between.

User avatar
Polecat

27 Nov 2021, 21:24

That's a piezo transducer, probably without driver electronics. So the signal feeding it would be a DC pulse, high impedance. If you connect a speaker there (low impedance, usually 4 or 8 ohms) you won't get much volume. A matching transformer and speaker would get you more volume, but might not be a pleasing sound. A 10K ohm dynamic microphone element would be similar, used as a speaker, but again might not give the sound you want. If you want something really loud you could try a mechanical solenoid like IBM used, but that would need an external source of power and driver electronics.

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