• Homebrew pi400

    From Daniel@3:770/3 to All on Thursday, November 21, 2024 23:44:14
    This past summer was a good time to lower the power bill and overall temperature of the den by transitioning to rpi's for my computing
    needs. The main pc was replaced by a pi400. Lovely, silent, low
    power. Lovely.

    Well, mostly so. I really don't like the keyboard and question why they
    went with it. The full sized keyboard is something I miss, you know,
    with the full row of function keys, dedicated number pad, full sized
    arrows, the pageup.down,insert,delete cluster. The keys themselves suck
    - where they often fail to register key presses and I have to fix
    spelling quite often. I had hoped that the keys would wear in and solve
    the problem, but it really just seems to be bad design. Hopes are it's
    simply bad luck and a bad keyboard.

    The problem is easy to solve by plugging in a usb keyboard, but it
    defeats the appeal and purpose of the all-in-one design.

    How hard would it be to rig the mobo into a full size keyboard shell?
    Design a new lower shell of a chosen keyboard to accomodate the mobo and
    port holes for 3d printing. A search online didn't yield evidence that
    it has been done yet. But if this thing with it's massive heat sync can
    fit in this small keyboard, it shouldn't have issues fitting in full
    sized keybord.

    Found a teardown video and saw a custom ribbon cable utilized to connect
    the keyboard to the mobo - so that's a complication. After a bit of
    searching, they utilized one of the four usb ports in the hub for the
    keyboard logic.

    Has anyone managed a similar project with the experience to share?

    Daniel

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From bp@www.zefox.net@3:770/3 to Daniel on Friday, November 22, 2024 00:42:49
    Daniel <me@sc1f1dan.com> wrote:

    Found a teardown video and saw a custom ribbon cable utilized to connect
    the keyboard to the mobo - so that's a complication. After a bit of searching, they utilized one of the four usb ports in the hub for the keyboard logic.

    Has anyone managed a similar project with the experience to share?


    The keyboard seems like an awkward place for the mobo. It's easier
    imho to use the monitor as the foundation and fasten the Pi to the
    back of it. Some Pi cases have keyed mounting holes that hang
    the case neatly on wood or sheetmetal screws set in a (carefully
    chosen non-interfering) convenient spot. Cables and keyboards are
    thus standard, ventilation is decent. The Pi is as safe as the
    monitor against mechanical mishap or abuse.

    Hope this helps,

    bob prohaska

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From druck@3:770/3 to Daniel on Friday, November 22, 2024 09:57:18
    On 21/11/2024 23:44, Daniel wrote:
    This past summer was a good time to lower the power bill and overall temperature of the den by transitioning to rpi's for my computing
    needs. The main pc was replaced by a pi400. Lovely, silent, low
    power. Lovely.

    Well, mostly so. I really don't like the keyboard and question why they
    went with it. The full sized keyboard is something I miss, you know,
    with the full row of function keys, dedicated number pad, full sized
    arrows, the pageup.down,insert,delete cluster. The keys themselves suck
    - where they often fail to register key presses and I have to fix
    spelling quite often. I had hoped that the keys would wear in and solve
    the problem, but it really just seems to be bad design. Hopes are it's
    simply bad luck and a bad keyboard.

    That's one of the reasons I never saw the point of the Pi400, with all
    the wires attached to the keyboard unit, particularly as the keyboard is
    small and not the highest quality. That and it reminds me of my first
    Acorn Electron, which I loved but hated at the same time for being
    slower than the BBC B and no MODE 7.

    All of my 'desktop' Pi's and their associated wiring go behind the
    monitors and TVs out of the way. In the study, I have a single high
    quality wireless keyboard and mouse which allows me to talk to a Linux
    Pi 5, a RISC OS Pi 4 and a Linux laptop connected to dual monitors. In
    the living room I have full sized wireless keyboard and trackpad, and in
    the bedroom a mini wireless backlit keyboard and trackpad talking to the
    Pi 5s connected to 4K TVs.

    ---druck

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Theo@3:770/3 to Daniel on Friday, November 22, 2024 10:02:55
    Daniel <me@sc1f1dan.com> wrote:
    This past summer was a good time to lower the power bill and overall temperature of the den by transitioning to rpi's for my computing
    needs. The main pc was replaced by a pi400. Lovely, silent, low
    power. Lovely.

    Well, mostly so. I really don't like the keyboard and question why they
    went with it. The full sized keyboard is something I miss, you know,
    with the full row of function keys, dedicated number pad, full sized
    arrows, the pageup.down,insert,delete cluster. The keys themselves suck
    - where they often fail to register key presses and I have to fix
    spelling quite often. I had hoped that the keys would wear in and solve
    the problem, but it really just seems to be bad design. Hopes are it's
    simply bad luck and a bad keyboard.

    The problem is easy to solve by plugging in a usb keyboard, but it
    defeats the appeal and purpose of the all-in-one design.

    How hard would it be to rig the mobo into a full size keyboard shell?
    Design a new lower shell of a chosen keyboard to accomodate the mobo and
    port holes for 3d printing. A search online didn't yield evidence that
    it has been done yet. But if this thing with it's massive heat sync can
    fit in this small keyboard, it shouldn't have issues fitting in full
    sized keybord.

    https://forum.diyperks.com/user-projects/raspberry-pi-400-x-mechanical-keyboard/
    https://www.printables.com/model/318803-raspberry-pi-400-mechanical-keyboard-upgrade
    https://hackaday.io/project/175844-the-mechanical-pi-400 https://www.tomshardware.com/news/orthopi-raspberry-pi-400-ortholinear-mod

    are a few examples I found by searching 'rpi 400 mechanical keyboard'.
    There are no doubt others.

    Found a teardown video and saw a custom ribbon cable utilized to connect
    the keyboard to the mobo - so that's a complication. After a bit of searching, they utilized one of the four usb ports in the hub for the keyboard logic.

    The keyboard has a Holtek HT45R0072 (one time programmed) microcontroller to convert the matrix to USB. Your options are either to repurpose this microcontroller, at which point you need to match the keyboard matrix of the Pi400 (hard):
    https://www.40percent.club/2020/12/orthopi.html

    or just ignore it and use a USB port. Another alternative is to cut the
    traces to the Holtek (or unsolder it) and use its USB lines: https://www.40percent.club/2020/11/raspberry-pi-400-keyboard-controller.html

    Theo

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Daniel@3:770/3 to Theo on Saturday, November 23, 2024 06:47:34
    Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> writes:

    Daniel <me@sc1f1dan.com> wrote:
    This past summer was a good time to lower the power bill and overall
    temperature of the den by transitioning to rpi's for my computing
    needs. The main pc was replaced by a pi400. Lovely, silent, low
    power. Lovely.

    Well, mostly so. I really don't like the keyboard and question why they
    went with it. The full sized keyboard is something I miss, you know,
    with the full row of function keys, dedicated number pad, full sized
    arrows, the pageup.down,insert,delete cluster. The keys themselves suck
    - where they often fail to register key presses and I have to fix
    spelling quite often. I had hoped that the keys would wear in and solve
    the problem, but it really just seems to be bad design. Hopes are it's
    simply bad luck and a bad keyboard.

    The problem is easy to solve by plugging in a usb keyboard, but it
    defeats the appeal and purpose of the all-in-one design.

    How hard would it be to rig the mobo into a full size keyboard shell?
    Design a new lower shell of a chosen keyboard to accomodate the mobo and
    port holes for 3d printing. A search online didn't yield evidence that
    it has been done yet. But if this thing with it's massive heat sync can
    fit in this small keyboard, it shouldn't have issues fitting in full
    sized keybord.

    https://forum.diyperks.com/user-projects/raspberry-pi-400-x-mechanical-keyboard/
    https://www.printables.com/model/318803-raspberry-pi-400-mechanical-keyboard-upgrade
    https://hackaday.io/project/175844-the-mechanical-pi-400 https://www.tomshardware.com/news/orthopi-raspberry-pi-400-ortholinear-mod

    I didn't htink of searching for the keyboards, I actually searched for 'homebrew raspberry pi 400.' They are a good start.

    Honestly, I'm not necessarily looking for mechanical keyboards. I've
    used only membrane keyboards my adult life and, well, my wife often naps
    on my den couch while I'm typing along and I think a clicky clacky keyboard would end that habit. I rather enjoy when she naps in there with me.

    I would focus this project mainly on a mass produced full sized keyboard
    with a decent sized bottom tray that can be hacked to hold the pi400 mobo.


    are a few examples I found by searching 'rpi 400 mechanical keyboard'.
    There are no doubt others.

    Found a teardown video and saw a custom ribbon cable utilized to connect
    the keyboard to the mobo - so that's a complication. After a bit of
    searching, they utilized one of the four usb ports in the hub for the
    keyboard logic.

    The keyboard has a Holtek HT45R0072 (one time programmed) microcontroller to convert the matrix to USB. Your options are either to repurpose this microcontroller, at which point you need to match the keyboard matrix of the Pi400 (hard):
    https://www.40percent.club/2020/12/orthopi.html

    I read the same thing - and it would be a pain in the butt since that microcontroller is, like you said, one time programmed so it's static.

    or just ignore it and use a USB port. Another alternative is to cut the traces to the Holtek (or unsolder it) and use its USB lines: https://www.40percent.club/2020/11/raspberry-pi-400-keyboard-controller.html

    This is exactly the information I was looking for. With good documentation, I surmise I could solder in some wires onto the USB lines and hack in a USB female. If I were to use a wired USB keyboard, I could cut the wire
    short, rewire the male usb port, and plug it into the female one I hack
    in. That way, if I want to replace the keyboard with something new, it
    would require no new soldering.

    Or I could make it permanent by cutting the wire short and solder them
    into the board. I have some reading to do.

    I saw the orange pi 800, which I hadn't heard of before. I considered
    buying it instead but it's way more expensive and the keyboard looks
    just as junky. And 4gb of ram shut me down.

    Thanks for the info.

    Daniel

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Daniel@3:770/3 to Daniel on Monday, December 02, 2024 17:03:16
    Daniel <me@sc1f1dan.com> writes:

    This past summer was a good time to lower the power bill and overall temperature of the den by transitioning to rpi's for my computing
    needs. The main pc was replaced by a pi400. Lovely, silent, low
    power. Lovely.

    Well, mostly so. I really don't like the keyboard and question why they
    went with it. The full sized keyboard is something I miss, you know,
    with the full row of function keys, dedicated number pad, full sized
    arrows, the pageup.down,insert,delete cluster. The keys themselves suck
    - where they often fail to register key presses and I have to fix
    spelling quite often. I had hoped that the keys would wear in and solve
    the problem, but it really just seems to be bad design. Hopes are it's
    simply bad luck and a bad keyboard.

    The problem is easy to solve by plugging in a usb keyboard, but it
    defeats the appeal and purpose of the all-in-one design.

    How hard would it be to rig the mobo into a full size keyboard shell?
    Design a new lower shell of a chosen keyboard to accomodate the mobo and
    port holes for 3d printing. A search online didn't yield evidence that
    it has been done yet. But if this thing with it's massive heat sync can
    fit in this small keyboard, it shouldn't have issues fitting in full
    sized keybord.

    Found a teardown video and saw a custom ribbon cable utilized to connect
    the keyboard to the mobo - so that's a complication. After a bit of searching, they utilized one of the four usb ports in the hub for the keyboard logic.

    Has anyone managed a similar project with the experience to share?

    Daniel

    Well, I'm still on the quest for my modded Pi400. I'm currently on one
    of the keyboards that seemed promising in terms of shell depth
    (Logitech K120 with silicon membrane). The illusion, I realize, is in
    the full-sized keys and their travel with the membrane below. I'm sort
    of addicted to this thing, as it's plugged into my pi400.

    Anyway, after work I'll be making a voyage to the next city over from
    mine and their goodwill. Going to buy up any potential keyboard from the electronics area and see if any will fit a pi400 mobo.

    At some point, I will give up on doing a simple shell mod and design an extended lower shell for 3d printing. The big challenge for me is the
    size limitation on the printer areas. They don't seem large enough to
    fit an entire length of a full keyboard. I'll have to design a two-piece
    shell and rely on the screws.

    I have three of a particular model of Dell keyboard SK-2885. So far,
    it's the closest thing I have that's moddable. I made a little video
    about it on rumble, check it out.

    https://rumble.com/v5unst5-homebrew-raspberry-pi-400-hackconversion.html

    For five minutes I considered hacking a pi5 but realized it would be a
    serious undertaking of engineering, a skill I lack.

    D

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Michael Schwingen@3:770/3 to Daniel on Tuesday, December 03, 2024 16:47:16
    On 2024-12-02, Daniel <me@sc1f1dan.com> wrote:
    Well, I'm still on the quest for my modded Pi400. I'm currently on one
    of the keyboards that seemed promising in terms of shell depth
    (Logitech K120 with silicon membrane). The illusion, I realize, is in
    the full-sized keys and their travel with the membrane below. I'm sort
    of addicted to this thing, as it's plugged into my pi400.

    I am typing this on an original IBM Model M. Since I have a disassembled
    spare sitting next to me, I just checked: a normal Banana Pi Board (same
    size as an old RPi) fits fine into the space under the keys at the back - so
    if you de-solder the GPIO header and solder in an angled connector, this
    might work ;-)

    You would need to convert the keyboard to USB, eg. using https://www.schwingen.org/modelm-usb/

    cu
    Michael
    --
    Some people have no respect of age unless it is bottled.

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Daniel@3:770/3 to Michael Schwingen on Friday, December 06, 2024 06:33:34
    Michael Schwingen <news-1513678000@discworld.dascon.de> writes:

    On 2024-12-02, Daniel <me@sc1f1dan.com> wrote:
    Well, I'm still on the quest for my modded Pi400. I'm currently on one
    of the keyboards that seemed promising in terms of shell depth
    (Logitech K120 with silicon membrane). The illusion, I realize, is in
    the full-sized keys and their travel with the membrane below. I'm sort
    of addicted to this thing, as it's plugged into my pi400.

    I am typing this on an original IBM Model M. Since I have a disassembled spare sitting next to me, I just checked: a normal Banana Pi Board (same
    size as an old RPi) fits fine into the space under the keys at the back - so if you de-solder the GPIO header and solder in an angled connector, this might work ;-)

    You would need to convert the keyboard to USB, eg. using https://www.schwingen.org/modelm-usb/

    My brother has a plethora of model m's. They're fine and all, just out
    of production and expensive.

    I've made strong inroads. A colleague of mine runs a small 3d print
    business and I've discussed what I want to do.

    He showed me that there are tons of pi400 projects already done and
    plans on thingiverse as we speak. They're all, mostly setup for
    mechanical keyboards.

    So we're going to use a project already created and adapt it for a
    larger keyboard, then slice it up so it'll fit on his print area.

    The nice thing is, I have an existing bottom shell that seriously only
    needs a small tweaking. We can fix an existing model with the
    measurements of the keyboard I want to use and adapt it from there.

    The keyboard I selected is a HP SK-2885 because the keyboard assembly is conveniently attached to the top shell.

    So, I'll keep the progress updated and will post videos as we go.

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Daniel@3:770/3 to Daniel on Tuesday, December 10, 2024 22:48:32
    Daniel <me@sc1f1dan.com> writes:

    This past summer was a good time to lower the power bill and overall temperature of the den by transitioning to rpi's for my computing
    needs. The main pc was replaced by a pi400. Lovely, silent, low
    power. Lovely.

    Well, mostly so. I really don't like the keyboard and question why they
    went with it. The full sized keyboard is something I miss, you know,
    with the full row of function keys, dedicated number pad, full sized
    arrows, the pageup.down,insert,delete cluster. The keys themselves suck
    - where they often fail to register key presses and I have to fix
    spelling quite often. I had hoped that the keys would wear in and solve
    the problem, but it really just seems to be bad design. Hopes are it's
    simply bad luck and a bad keyboard.

    The problem is easy to solve by plugging in a usb keyboard, but it
    defeats the appeal and purpose of the all-in-one design.

    How hard would it be to rig the mobo into a full size keyboard shell?
    Design a new lower shell of a chosen keyboard to accomodate the mobo and
    port holes for 3d printing. A search online didn't yield evidence that
    it has been done yet. But if this thing with it's massive heat sync can
    fit in this small keyboard, it shouldn't have issues fitting in full
    sized keybord.

    Found a teardown video and saw a custom ribbon cable utilized to connect
    the keyboard to the mobo - so that's a complication. After a bit of searching, they utilized one of the four usb ports in the hub for the keyboard logic.

    Has anyone managed a similar project with the experience to share?

    Daniel

    Wellp, glad I didn't very far on my homebrew pi400 project. Now that
    they quietly released the Pi500, I'll be focusing on that now.

    I still have to watch the youtube reviews of it.

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Daniel@3:770/3 to Jonathan B. Horen on Wednesday, December 11, 2024 04:15:48
    "Jonathan B. Horen" <jbhoren@gmail.com> writes:

    On 12/10/24 17:48, Daniel wrote:
    Wellp, glad I didn't very far on my homebrew pi400 project. Now that
    they quietly released the Pi500, I'll be focusing on that now.
    I still have to watch the youtube reviews of it.

    I read Jeff Geerling's recent write-up on it (https://www.jeffgeerling.com/blog/2024/pi-500-much-faster-lacks-m2)
    as a "mixed review", and would be wary of investing even the $120 for
    one (the kit, or $90 for the standalone). YMMV

    Jeff's review was the first one I watched, and currently watching the tearapart. From appearances they utilized a better keyboard than the
    crap on the Pi400. And if this is the case, my homebrew project won't be
    going anywhere.

    I'll be ordering the standalone when someone has them in stock. Right
    now, I can't find a vendor who has it available.

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Andy Burns@3:770/3 to Jonathan B. Horen on Wednesday, December 11, 2024 09:36:28
    Jonathan B. Horen wrote:

    Daniel wrote:
    Now that they quietly released the Pi500, I'll be focusing on that
    now.

    I read Jeff Geerling's recent write-up on it (https:// www.jeffgeerling.com/blog/2024/pi-500-much-faster-lacks-m2) as a "mixed review", and would be wary of investing even the $120 for one (the kit,
    or $90 for the standalone).

    Presumably, before too long there will be a Pi5x0 where the M.2 socket
    and associated components are fitted.

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Daniel@3:770/3 to Andy Burns on Wednesday, December 11, 2024 15:47:39
    Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> writes:

    Jonathan B. Horen wrote:

    Daniel wrote:
    Now that they quietly released the Pi500, I'll be focusing on that
    now.

    I read Jeff Geerling's recent write-up on it (https://
    www.jeffgeerling.com/blog/2024/pi-500-much-faster-lacks-m2) as a
    "mixed review", and would be wary of investing even the $120 for one
    (the kit, or $90 for the standalone).

    Presumably, before too long there will be a Pi5x0 where the M.2 socket
    and associated components are fitted.

    I was wondering why it was ommitted on initial release, and the only
    thing that came to mind was, they hadn't finalized its design and wanted
    this initial version out for xmas.

    Jeff did a teardown on his second channel and soldered a m.2 socket
    hoping it was properly designed. He found the power lines weren't traced
    in so no power.

    He assumed they'll release a pro version with the socket populated and
    powered.

    There also seemed to be an area on the main board with poe
    considerations, which would be dope. The switches on my network have poe capabilities so that would make my day.

    The device isn't in stock anywhere yet, so I will hold off a few months
    and get it in the spring.

    D

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Andy Burns@3:770/3 to Daniel on Wednesday, December 11, 2024 16:00:17
    Daniel wrote:

    Jeff did a teardown on his second channel and soldered a m.2 socket
    hoping it was properly designed. He found the power lines weren't traced
    in so no power.

    There were some nearby component missing too, maybe the Rev1 board has
    bugs, and they need a Rev2 (or whatever) but his soldering job looked relatively clumsy (bridged pins etc).

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Daniel@3:770/3 to Andy Burns on Wednesday, December 11, 2024 16:46:59
    Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> writes:

    Daniel wrote:

    Jeff did a teardown on his second channel and soldered a m.2 socket
    hoping it was properly designed. He found the power lines weren't traced
    in so no power.

    There were some nearby component missing too, maybe the Rev1 board has
    bugs, and they need a Rev2 (or whatever) but his soldering job looked relatively clumsy (bridged pins etc).

    Yeah, it was pretty bad, at least he was honest about it.

    I am sure things were missing to keep the circuitry disabled and I'm no engineer.

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From The Natural Philosopher@3:770/3 to Daniel on Wednesday, December 11, 2024 16:54:59
    On 11/12/2024 16:46, Daniel wrote:
    Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> writes:

    Daniel wrote:

    Jeff did a teardown on his second channel and soldered a m.2 socket
    hoping it was properly designed. He found the power lines weren't traced >>> in so no power.

    There were some nearby component missing too, maybe the Rev1 board has
    bugs, and they need a Rev2 (or whatever) but his soldering job looked
    relatively clumsy (bridged pins etc).

    Yeah, it was pretty bad, at least he was honest about it.

    I am sure things were missing to keep the circuitry disabled and I'm no engineer.

    Why would you put support chips on if you were not going to install an
    M.2 socket anyway?

    I think he called it right in that this is a bare bones model, and more upmarket versions will emerge in due course.

    --
    The lifetime of any political organisation is about three years before
    its been subverted by the people it tried to warn you about.

    Anon.

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Theo@3:770/3 to The Natural Philosopher on Wednesday, December 11, 2024 18:10:07
    The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> wrote:
    On 11/12/2024 16:46, Daniel wrote:
    Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> writes:

    Daniel wrote:

    Jeff did a teardown on his second channel and soldered a m.2 socket
    hoping it was properly designed. He found the power lines weren't traced >>> in so no power.

    There were some nearby component missing too, maybe the Rev1 board has
    bugs, and they need a Rev2 (or whatever) but his soldering job looked
    relatively clumsy (bridged pins etc).

    Yeah, it was pretty bad, at least he was honest about it.

    I am sure things were missing to keep the circuitry disabled and I'm no engineer.

    Why would you put support chips on if you were not going to install an
    M.2 socket anyway?

    I think he called it right in that this is a bare bones model, and more upmarket versions will emerge in due course.

    Looking at: https://www.jeffgeerling.com/sites/default/files/images/pi-500-m2-socket-install.jpg
    https://www.jeffgeerling.com/sites/default/files/images/pi-500-pcb-bottom.jpeg

    I think there's a MOSFET and some decoupling capacitors missing (to the left
    of the middle larger hole), so the power isn't connected. There may be a
    pair of missing capacitors in series with the PCIe lane, but I can't immediately see the footprints for those.

    Theo

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Theo@3:770/3 to Theo on Wednesday, December 11, 2024 18:45:01
    Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> wrote:
    The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> wrote:
    On 11/12/2024 16:46, Daniel wrote:
    Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> writes:

    Daniel wrote:

    Jeff did a teardown on his second channel and soldered a m.2 socket
    hoping it was properly designed. He found the power lines weren't traced
    in so no power.

    There were some nearby component missing too, maybe the Rev1 board has >> bugs, and they need a Rev2 (or whatever) but his soldering job looked
    relatively clumsy (bridged pins etc).

    Yeah, it was pretty bad, at least he was honest about it.

    I am sure things were missing to keep the circuitry disabled and I'm no engineer.

    Why would you put support chips on if you were not going to install an
    M.2 socket anyway?

    I think he called it right in that this is a bare bones model, and more upmarket versions will emerge in due course.

    Looking at: https://www.jeffgeerling.com/sites/default/files/images/pi-500-m2-socket-install.jpg
    https://www.jeffgeerling.com/sites/default/files/images/pi-500-pcb-bottom.jpeg

    I think there's a MOSFET and some decoupling capacitors missing (to the left of the middle larger hole), so the power isn't connected. There may be a pair of missing capacitors in series with the PCIe lane, but I can't immediately see the footprints for those.

    Ah, I see them now. To the right of the spot on the silver chip are four
    tiny spots for passives, oriented at compass bearing 135 degrees. I can't
    tell from the photo or video whether they're populated or not, but those
    will be the series capacitors.

    Theo

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Mortar M.@1:124/5016 to Daniel on Wednesday, December 11, 2024 22:41:11
    Re: Re: Homebrew pi400
    By: Daniel to Daniel on Mon Dec 02 2024 17:03:16

    ...I have to fix spelling quite often.

    Go on any social media site. Nobody would notice, unfortunately. Glad to see someboy still bothers to do it, though.
    --- SBBSecho 3.23-Linux
    * Origin: End Of The Line BBS - endofthelinebbs.com (1:124/5016)
  • From Charlie Gibbs@3:770/3 to nospam.Mortar.M on Thursday, December 12, 2024 23:11:00
    On 2024-12-11, nospam.Mortar.M.@f1.n770.z1205.fidonet.org (Mortar M.) <nospam.Mortar.M> wrote:

    Re: Re: Homebrew pi400
    By: Daniel to Daniel on Mon Dec 02 2024 17:03:16

    ...I have to fix spelling quite often.

    Go on any social media site. Nobody would notice, unfortunately.
    Glad to see someboy still bothers to do it, though.
    ^^^^^^^
    Making a spelling mistake while discussing spelling
    is a most frustrating thing. :-)

    BTDTGTS (been there, done that, got the scars)

    --
    /~\ Charlie Gibbs | Growth for the sake of
    \ / <cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid> | growth is the ideology
    X I'm really at ac.dekanfrus | of the cancer cell.
    / \ if you read it the right way. | -- Edward Abbey

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Daniel@3:770/3 to Theo on Friday, December 13, 2024 23:55:00
    Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> writes:

    Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> wrote:
    The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> wrote:
    On 11/12/2024 16:46, Daniel wrote:
    Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> writes:

    Daniel wrote:

    Jeff did a teardown on his second channel and soldered a m.2 socket
    hoping it was properly designed. He found the power lines weren't traced
    in so no power.

    There were some nearby component missing too, maybe the Rev1 board has >> > >> bugs, and they need a Rev2 (or whatever) but his soldering job looked >> > >> relatively clumsy (bridged pins etc).

    Yeah, it was pretty bad, at least he was honest about it.

    I am sure things were missing to keep the circuitry disabled and I'm no >> > > engineer.

    Why would you put support chips on if you were not going to install an
    M.2 socket anyway?

    I think he called it right in that this is a bare bones model, and more
    upmarket versions will emerge in due course.

    Looking at:
    https://www.jeffgeerling.com/sites/default/files/images/pi-500-m2-socket-install.jpg
    https://www.jeffgeerling.com/sites/default/files/images/pi-500-pcb-bottom.jpeg

    I think there's a MOSFET and some decoupling capacitors missing (to the left >> of the middle larger hole), so the power isn't connected. There may be a
    pair of missing capacitors in series with the PCIe lane, but I can't
    immediately see the footprints for those.

    Ah, I see them now. To the right of the spot on the silver chip are four tiny spots for passives, oriented at compass bearing 135 degrees. I can't tell from the photo or video whether they're populated or not, but those
    will be the series capacitors.

    Theo

    I'm going to wait for someone to hack a working solution then copy
    it.

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From The Natural Philosopher@3:770/3 to Daniel on Saturday, December 14, 2024 13:56:15
    On 13/12/2024 23:55, Daniel wrote:
    Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> writes:

    Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> wrote:
    The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> wrote:
    On 11/12/2024 16:46, Daniel wrote:
    Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> writes:

    Daniel wrote:

    Jeff did a teardown on his second channel and soldered a m.2 socket >>>>>>> hoping it was properly designed. He found the power lines weren't traced
    in so no power.

    There were some nearby component missing too, maybe the Rev1 board has >>>>>> bugs, and they need a Rev2 (or whatever) but his soldering job looked >>>>>> relatively clumsy (bridged pins etc).

    Yeah, it was pretty bad, at least he was honest about it.

    I am sure things were missing to keep the circuitry disabled and I'm no >>>>> engineer.

    Why would you put support chips on if you were not going to install an >>>> M.2 socket anyway?

    I think he called it right in that this is a bare bones model, and more >>>> upmarket versions will emerge in due course.

    Looking at:
    https://www.jeffgeerling.com/sites/default/files/images/pi-500-m2-socket-install.jpg
    https://www.jeffgeerling.com/sites/default/files/images/pi-500-pcb-bottom.jpeg

    I think there's a MOSFET and some decoupling capacitors missing (to the left
    of the middle larger hole), so the power isn't connected. There may be a >>> pair of missing capacitors in series with the PCIe lane, but I can't
    immediately see the footprints for those.

    Ah, I see them now. To the right of the spot on the silver chip are four
    tiny spots for passives, oriented at compass bearing 135 degrees. I can't >> tell from the photo or video whether they're populated or not, but those
    will be the series capacitors.

    Theo

    I'm going to wait for someone to hack a working solution then copy
    it.
    Wait for the Pi 501...with it all one the board already

    --
    Canada is all right really, though not for the whole weekend.

    "Saki"

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Daniel@3:770/3 to The Natural Philosopher on Sunday, December 15, 2024 21:11:45
    The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> writes:

    On 13/12/2024 23:55, Daniel wrote:
    Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> writes:

    Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> wrote:
    The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> wrote:
    On 11/12/2024 16:46, Daniel wrote:
    Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> writes:

    Daniel wrote:

    Jeff did a teardown on his second channel and soldered a m.2 socket >>>>>>>> hoping it was properly designed. He found the power lines weren't traced
    in so no power.

    There were some nearby component missing too, maybe the Rev1 board has >>>>>>> bugs, and they need a Rev2 (or whatever) but his soldering job looked >>>>>>> relatively clumsy (bridged pins etc).

    Yeah, it was pretty bad, at least he was honest about it.

    I am sure things were missing to keep the circuitry disabled and I'm no >>>>>> engineer.

    Why would you put support chips on if you were not going to install an >>>>> M.2 socket anyway?

    I think he called it right in that this is a bare bones model, and more >>>>> upmarket versions will emerge in due course.

    Looking at:
    https://www.jeffgeerling.com/sites/default/files/images/pi-500-m2-socket-install.jpg
    https://www.jeffgeerling.com/sites/default/files/images/pi-500-pcb-bottom.jpeg

    I think there's a MOSFET and some decoupling capacitors missing (to the left
    of the middle larger hole), so the power isn't connected. There may be a >>>> pair of missing capacitors in series with the PCIe lane, but I can't
    immediately see the footprints for those.

    Ah, I see them now. To the right of the spot on the silver chip are four >>> tiny spots for passives, oriented at compass bearing 135 degrees. I can't >>> tell from the photo or video whether they're populated or not, but those >>> will be the series capacitors.

    Theo
    I'm going to wait for someone to hack a working solution then copy
    it.
    Wait for the Pi 501...with it all one the board already

    I've heard rumor of it but is this confirmed?

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From The Natural Philosopher@3:770/3 to Daniel on Monday, December 16, 2024 11:29:18
    On 15/12/2024 21:11, Daniel wrote:
    The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> writes:

    On 13/12/2024 23:55, Daniel wrote:

    I'm going to wait for someone to hack a working solution then copy
    it.
    Wait for the Pi 501...with it all one the board already

    I've heard rumor of it but is this confirmed?

    I was actually semi-joking.

    But the demand for a fast Pi with nvme in a neat package is there all
    right.

    Although I have to say last night in a moment of idle curiosity I looked
    up the prices of used HP desktop machines with more grunt than a pi and
    they are, including case and power supply, going for less than I could
    buy a Pi setup for...


    --
    Civilization exists by geological consent, subject to change without notice.
    – Will Durant

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)
  • From Theo@3:770/3 to The Natural Philosopher on Monday, December 16, 2024 15:10:50
    The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> wrote:
    On 15/12/2024 21:11, Daniel wrote:
    The Natural Philosopher <tnp@invalid.invalid> writes:

    On 13/12/2024 23:55, Daniel wrote:

    I'm going to wait for someone to hack a working solution then copy
    it.
    Wait for the Pi 501...with it all one the board already

    I've heard rumor of it but is this confirmed?

    I was actually semi-joking.

    But the demand for a fast Pi with nvme in a neat package is there all
    right.

    Success: https://www.jeffgeerling.com/blog/2024/pi-modder-successfully-adds-m2-slot-pi-500

    Four capacitors (as I suspected) plus external 3.3V power, or adding extra components for a 3.3V SMPSU:

    Twitter thread from the guy who did it (using login wall bypass): https://xcancel.com/ChoptecOfficial/status/1868350222671478982

    Parts list from https://samuelhedrick.com/res/Pi500_M.2_mod_parts.csv

    Digi-Key Part Number,Quantity 1,Customer Reference,Description 123A-58M01,1,J1,CONN M.2 (NGFF) SOCKET 67POS
    AP3441SHE-7B,1,"U1",IC REG BUCK ADJ 3A UDFN20208
    MLZ2012M2R2HT000,1,"L1",FIXED IND 2.2UH 600MA 160MOHM SM ERJ-1GNF2201C,1,"R1",RES SMD 2.2K OHM 1% 1/20W 0201
    ERJ-1GNF1002C,1,"R2",RES SMD 10K OHM 1% 1/20W 0201
    ERJ-1GNF1003C,1,"R3",RES SMD 100K OHM 1% 1/20W 0201 GRM0335C1H220JA01D,1,"C1",CAP CER 22PF 50V C0G/NP0 0201 GRM188R60J476ME15D,1,"C2",CAP CER 47UF 6.3V X5R 0603
    CL21A476MQYNNNE,1,"C3",CAP CER 47UF 6.3V X5R 0805
    CL03A104KQ3NNNC,4,"C4 C5 C6 C7",CAP CER 0.1UF 6.3V X5R 0201

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: Agency HUB, Dunedin - New Zealand | Fido<>Usenet Gateway (3:770/3)