Help: Homemade 20-pin to 15-pin VGA to revive iMac 350 / aligning the laser lens on slot loading

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Help: Homemade 20-pin to 15-pin VGA to revive iMac 350 / aligning the laser lens on slot loading

Hello. I'd like to revive my iMac 350 with an external monitor. Does anyone know user-friendly guide to build a homemade 20-pin to 15-pin VGA connector? Thanks.

Also, when I forced a CD that seemed to be too thick for the slot loading drive, the lens might have misaligned. I've opened it and the lens did not seem to be scratched or anytime. Does anyone have a DIY guide on how to align laser lens on this slot loading CD drive?

God bless,
Alvin

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My Homemade VGA 20->15 pin Connector

Hi Alvin,
Can't help you with the CD drive but I have made a 20->15 pin connector, check out my page here:
http://www.applefritter.com/node/10574
There are several links but the two below the VGA connector should help. This connector is quick to make. The female VGA end and hood came from a electronics store, the cable was a Mac internal floppy drive connector.
Good luck,
David

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Thanks. I'll check it out and

Thanks. I'll check it out and start working on it.

God bless,
Alvin

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I finally got time to try to

I finally got time to try to revive this iMac. I checked the pin-outs for the 20 pin and 15 pin at http://www.hardmac.com/articles/39/page3
but the VGA pin outs have 5 GND but the 20 pin only has 4. How do I go about this? I forced pull a the VGA connector from a broken AGP card from a PC by the way. Thanks.

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Soldering the VGA connector

I bought a VGA connector and hood from a electronics shop. It has the pins marked in small embossed numbers on the plastic. Then I cut one of the connectors off a Mac internal Floppy cable. It was easy to count from pin one to find the others. Soldering them is harder but start from the center set (6-10) and use a fine point soldering iron. I found one at a dollar store.

I just looked at the pinouts at http://pinouts.ru/Video/VGA15_pinout.shtml and I see what you mean about the number of grounds.

Follow this:
Floppy cable -> VGA connector
1 -> 12
2 -> 15
3 -> 5 & 10
9 -> 13
11 -> 14
13 -> 3
14 -> 8
15 -> 2
16 -> 7
17 -> 1
18 -> 6

Use a multimeter to check the lines if you are unsure.

David

Jon
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Depending on how your socket

Depending on how your socket is made you might be able to pull the pins out of it and solder to them one at a time, then put them back into the socket. Don't try to pull them out too hard, or you might ruin the socket, but I've done it on others long ago.

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