Question Looking to revive a very old system - tm-486sps mobo.

[avz3]

Here is an odd one! I have a very old pc TM-486SPS mo bo based pc that I would like to revive. I've connected it and it seems to work. the problem is that I don't have a keyboard - it has to be with a 5 pin din plug, which as you well know, no longer exists. the mouse should connect by a 9 pin d type connector to the com port. so, here comes the odd question - is there a way to connect usb type keyboard and mouse to it? are there any ready adaptors or is there a way to make some sort of modification in order to connect them?

 

[Lutfij]

is there a way to connect usb type keyboard and mouse to it?
You will need to fabricate a harness for your task.

are there any ready adaptors
There are but none that fits your predicament. Case in point, like this one;

CME U2MIDI Pro: USB to MIDI cable with MIDI routing and filters

The world's most accurate USB-to-MIDI cable with advanced routing and filtering of MIDI messages via its free UxMIDI Tool software

www.cme-pro.com

You can look up USB to MIDI adapters in Google and you get a bunch of hits but for your use case, you need a USB female port(for the keyboard end) and MIDI male ports(for the motherboard end).

This might come in handy;
https://retrocomputing.stackexchange.com/questions/1132/how-can-i-connect-a-din-plug-keyboard-to-usb
for when you fabricate an adapter after sourcing the ports standalone and some wire + soldering supplies.

Further reading;

http://reddit.com/r/modular/comments/r3d672/newbie_question_how_do_i_connect_a_usb_midi_only/

Moved thread from Systems section to Computer Peripherals section.

 

[Eximo]

MIDI? That is an audio standard.

1x
AT Keyboard
1x
Floppy interface
2x
IDE interface
1x
Parallel
2x
Serial

You can certainly find new old stock AT and PS/2 keyboards. Serial mice are a little more rare, but USB adapters should be pretty straight forward. Still serial after all.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/185830749264

By the time you've spent the money to build adapters, of purchase them, you can just have a keyboard at your doorstep.

 

[palladin9479]

Here is an odd one! I have a very old pc TM-486SPS mo bo based pc that I would like to revive. I've connected it and it seems to work. the problem is that I don't have a keyboard - it has to be with a 5 pin din plug, which as you well know, no longer exists. the mouse should connect by a 9 pin d type connector to the com port. so, here comes the odd question - is there a way to connect usb type keyboard and mouse to it? are there any ready adaptors or is there a way to make some sort of modification in order to connect them?

Yes such things exist, though they usually aren't cheap.

I do lots of retro gaming and have several older computers that I've revived / rebuilt and I bought this to make it monumentally easier.

https://github.com/dekuNukem/USB4VC

That will let you use any USB keyboard / mouse / gamepad on anything with a PS2, AT(thats you), XT, DB9 serial (also you) and DB15 port. It's not cheap as you need to buy a Pi + Pi power bar go with he adapter board and assemble the whole thing but it's been working wonders for me. I have a USB Keyboard, USB Mouse and USB Gamepad all being converted to PS/2 and DB15 gameport.

 

[TerryLaze]

Or you could daisy chain a 'AT to ps/2' connector with an 'usb to ps/2' connector.
(ebay, amazon, anywhere)
Make sure the correct side is female/male when you order them.
As far as I remember not all USB devices are compatible with the AT standard, or maybe it's just usb mice that have issues with serial.

 

[Eximo]

Or you could daisy chain a 'AT to ps/2' connector with an 'usb to ps/2' connector.
(ebay, amazon, anywhere)
Make sure the correct side is female/male when you order them.
As far as I remember not all USB devices are compatible with the AT standard, or maybe it's just usb mice that have issues with serial.

That lets you plug an AT -> PS/2 or AT -> PS/2 -> USB, not the other way around. He is wanting to use modern peripherals with an old system.

Going the other way is more complex, but they are out there.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/204036492056

Just not that cheap. (I am not vouching for that one in particular)

I just use originals myself. Still have a few Serial mouse around and several AT keyboards.

 

[Paperdoc]

The KEYBOARD issue is relatively easy. The wiring for a keyboard is the same no matter what connector system it uses. So a combination of two adapters can get you there, assuming the keyboard has a USB2 male on its cable. These two will get you from USB2 female to 6-pin PS/2 male and then to 5-pin DIN male to fit into your mobo's 5-pin DIN female socket.

https://www.amazon.ca/uxcell-Mouse-Adapter-Connector-Green/dp/B009N7XK4Y/ref=sr_1_9?crid=35T50WUWOERSB&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.SprZxt6vudQzgPXK-h2vuJu7CpjGDXqaYbPYLBKvRNXMQJ0F6kmENTiudu8YltlwE_MQu4FHSaEms1QFspNfqRwHXM5GXxMU7nlXQ1eHkysIJmhqx-WqoSV-RbKdfYky0_NHOwAV8KKnWaSWcgF7ynvYxkf6Jtb18LkiALXrMlQQKDeV247nB-cV7Efg-GcWF69b2ce5fQBLaHwkuMThQA.HzwJaDmqkmpL5ZeDfZ_YNuhZF59AASQOsqNshQVrkrY&dib_tag=se&keywords=adapter+female+USB2+to+5-pin+DIN&qid=1749655109&sprefix=adapter+female+usb2+to+5-pin+din,aps,78&sr=8-9

https://www.amazon.ca/Kentek-Female-Keyboard-Adapter-Converter/dp/B07KVF5TV9/ref=sr_1_5?crid=35T50WUWOERSB&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.SprZxt6vudQzgPXK-h2vuJu7CpjGDXqaYbPYLBKvRNXMQJ0F6kmENTiudu8YltlwE_MQu4FHSaEms1QFspNfqRwHXM5GXxMU7nlXQ1eHkysIJmhqx-WqoSV-RbKdfYky0_NHOwAV8KKnWaSWcgF7ynvYxkf6Jtb18LkiALXrMlQQKDeV247nB-cV7Efg-GcWF69b2ce5fQBLaHwkuMThQA.HzwJaDmqkmpL5ZeDfZ_YNuhZF59AASQOsqNshQVrkrY&dib_tag=se&keywords=adapter+female+USB2+to+5-pin+DIN&qid=1749655109&sprefix=adapter+female+usb2+to+5-pin+din,aps,78&sr=8-5

I did not find a good adapter to connect a male USB2 mouse cable connector to a male (with pins recessed) 9-pin D Serial socket (COM port). The "trick" here is that the adapter required actually does need a chip in it to convert between USB2 and 9-pin Serial signals. I did find many that appear designed to do that job for a 9-pin serial device (the mouse) connecting to a more modern USB2 socket on the mobo. But it is NOT clear to me whether that type can work in the opposite direction. PLUS, such devices can come with a 9-pin connector of either male or female gender, so that has to be done right. Of course, such an adapter will need a female USB2 socket for input from the mouse.

 

[geofelt]

Why not use a pci based USB expansion card in one of the pci slots.
For example:
https://www.newegg.com/p/2S7-09HH-00WR5

 

[SkyNetRising]

Why not use a pci based USB expansion card in one of the pci slots.
For example:
https://www.newegg.com/p/2S7-09HH-00WR5

Because there are no PCIE slots on such computer.
Only VESA LB and PCI.

 

[geofelt]

Because there are no PCIE slots on such computer.
Only VESA LB and PCI.

OOPS!
I did find a pcie to pci adapter card that would allow a conventional pcie adapter card:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1971313380...pGXtX442hV/nUJqp53ql9Ddb0=|tkp:Bk9SR-i6kP3rZQ
A bit of a kluge though.

 

[TerryLaze]

Because there are no PCIE slots on such computer.
Only VESA LB and PCI.

OOPS!
I did find a pcie to pci adapter card that would allow a conventional pcie adapter card:

https://github.com/FreddyVRetro/ISA-PicoMEM
Picomem is a all in one isa card that also provides usb mouse function, not that cheap though, although if you would use all of it's features it's a steal.