[rescue] SS Voyager cable info sought

[wa2egp at att.net]

 -------------- Original message ----------------------
From: Don Y <dgy at DakotaCom.Net>
> der Mouse wrote:
> >>> [...SPARCstation Voyager...DC power cable...]
> >>> Second, absent that, does anyone know the pinout?  I'm not afraid to
> >>> bring out those connections on the machine to another, external,
> >>> connector, and likewise on the power brick...if I can be confident
> >>> I'll be getting the pinout right.
> >> Have you pulled down the Voyager manual from sun.com?
> > 
> > I have a copy of 801-3872-12 ("SPARCstation Voyager Service Manual").
> 
> That sounds right...
> 
> > It has a section on pinouts.  But....
> > 
> > - This gives the pinout of the "external battery connector".  It does
> >    not give the pinout of the cable, or of the (superficially
> >    physically identical) connector on the mains power brick.
> 
> Note that I don't have a battery pack and I am thus unsure if
> your "power brick" is the same as mine...
> 
> My power brick slides *into* the battery compartment on the
> Voyager.  The "funny connector" (well, actually, BOTH connectors
> are "funny"... the AC inlet is a two pin connector that almost
> looks like a figure-eight in cross section  :-/ ) mates to the
> connector in the bowels of the Voyager.  A power cord
> (off-the-shelf... though nowhere near as common as the cords
> you would find on, e.g., a "regular" SPARCstation) plugs into
> the opposite end (the power module is held in place by a
> door on the left end of the Voyager base).
> 
> *If* this is the same power module that is used *externally*
> to charge the battery, then obviously the connector that
> would normally mate with the Voyager's internal connector
> has to connect to the battery pack somehow.  (again, I don't
> have a battery so I can only guess)  I assume a 1:1 cable
> *if* the battery has a similar connector on the "exposed"
> end (i.e. the end that is accessible when the battery is
> *installed* in Voyager).

It is the same on mine.  There is an external cable to connect
the power brick to the battery when it is internal.  The 
connector looks like a five conductor USB and is the same
on each end.
 
> > - It does not even give that pinout completely.  The graphic of the
> >    connector shows pins 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, A, and B, but the pinout
> >    lists numbers 1 through 10.
> 
> I think you are looking at the connector pinout [1..10] of the
> *internal* DC-DC adapter.  Not pertinent.  :>
> 
> > Is this the manual you were talking about?  It's the only Sun doc on
> > the Voyager I've found a copy of so far.
> 
> I'll look through my archive and see what the P/N is -- but I
> suspect you have what I have (barring any differences in
> versions/revisions).
> 
> You *should* be able to slip the power pack into Voyager and
> run it off Mains power (in the interim).  I'm not sure I would
> call Voyager "portable" in the sense of using it without Mains
> (i.e. on battery).  Sun called it "nomadic" -- which I equate
> more with "you can tote it from one place to another much
> easier than a "real" SPARCstation.

Definitely can do that.  I've done it since my battery is dead
and won't recover.  I still will operate with the battery inside
and the power brick external.  Since you have no battery, the
power brick needs to be inside.


BTW, the Voyager could run from the batteries alone but not for
too long. :)

Bob