Vic-20 "JERMYN A23-2023" connector?

[jhonn]

Hi guys & gals,

I'd really need any ideas you could give me on my problem:

I recently bought an old VIC-20 system from an online auction site and the seller told me the unit was ok - it just needed the TV cable. So I bought the cable and what do you know - it still doesn't give any picture on the screen. On closer inspection there is a connector as shown in the picture protruding from the back of the VIC with several loose cables and that cant be ok, can it?

IF you have any idea on how I could reconnect those cables and on even what that particular connector is I'd really appreciate it, thanks!

 

[carlsson]

Uh, it looks like an IC socket, 2x12 = 24 pins? The only source of all those wires is the keyboard cable. However the keyboard connector consists of one long row of pins, not two shorter ones. Remove the screws from the bottom half, carefully open the VIC and take a picture of what's inside. Either it is some funky thing where a custom programmed IC was used to replace (??) a keyboard, or the keyboard is indeed connected to this socket for some otherwise unknown use.

As for the "TV cable", is that a 5 pin DIN to RCA cable for composite video, or an RF modulator or its antenna cable? The VIC-20 doesn't have built-in RF modulation, so you either need an external RF modulator (unless you already have one), or a semi-special cable for composite video - which gives superior image quality anyhow.

 

[MikeS]

Hi guys & gals,

I'd really need any ideas you could give me on my problem:

I recently bought an old VIC-20 system from an online auction site and the seller told me the unit was ok - it just needed the TV cable. So I bought the cable and what do you know - it still doesn't give any picture on the screen. On closer inspection there is a connector as shown in the picture protruding from the back of the VIC with several loose cables and that cant be ok, can it?

IF you have any idea on how I could reconnect those cables and on even what that particular connector is I'd really appreciate it, thanks!

---
Hard to tell without knowing where those wires go, but with 24 pins I'd suspect that someone's added this socket to plug in ROMs or EPROMs containing different games.

And it probably has nothing to do with your video problem, but I'm just guessing.

Added:
Having just read Carlsson's reply, that's certainly also possible; we really need to know where at least two or three of those wires go.

mike

 

[carlsson]

Hm, true. All those wires could lead almost anywhere. I just guessed they belonged to the computer in the first place. Depending on which ROM slot was abused, the machine may or may not boot up, i.e. if KERNAL is missing.

 

[modem7]

Guys. I know nothing about VIC-20s, but from the picture, it certainly looks like multiple pins on that socket are touching each other. Put that down as another possible cause.

 

[carlsson]

No, the VIC-20 is Short Circuit Resistant, or SCR for short. ;-)