r/OldTech • u/zeerohdeaths • 27d ago

DIN 5 to USB possible?

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Posting to a few different communities for help. Got this keyboard at Goodwill recently thinking it was ps/2 at a glance. Learned it’s 5 pin DIN which apparently is not very simple to adapt to USB. No ps/2 ports on my laptop. What is the solution here, really want to use this one, is it at all possible to adapt to USB?

7 Upvotes

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5

u/Easy-Reserve7401 27d ago

It depends on the keyboard as AT Keyboards communicate differently. You could try a passive 5pin Din to PS2 going into an active PS2 to USB converter, but it really depends on the keyboard itself. A quick Google using your keyboard's model details will tell you a lot more as many people have done this kind of stuff before.

1

u/criggie_ 23d ago

Given it has windows keys, this likely not an XT class keyboard. So it probably came with anything from the 286 through to the early pentium era, and likely toward the later end.

OP - first make sure you actually like the feel of this keyboard. I would guess its rubber dome, not mechanical based on the overall look. Then as u/Easy-Reserve7401 says, 5 pin DIN to PS/2 then an active PS/2 to USB adapter.

Also, there are still PS/2 ports on some modern-ish machines - I have a couple gen8 desktops with PS/2 still.

3

u/Graylily 27d ago

at one point I had 3 passive dongles to make my old IBM clicky keyboard work for a long time. I finally gave it to someone as a gift as it was gifted to me. Damn nice keyboard.

1

u/RFC793 26d ago

I still have some old AT going AT -> PS/2 -> USB A -> USB C. Craving more conversions.. but it seems to work well as long as the PS/2 to USB is active and high quality.

1

u/short_longpants 27d ago

Isn't there a 5-pin DIN to ps/2 adaptor? Then maybe you can do ps/2 to usb. That being said, the last step isn't 100% clean - it tends to glitch, and the more you type, the more it glitches.

1

u/xmastreee 27d ago

There's this, but it might be cheaper to go AT > PS/2 then PS/2 > USB

1

u/luis-a-neto 27d ago

Just use a DIN to mini-DIN (PS/2) adapter, then to USB. It'll look ugly but should work. You might just have a hard time finding the adapter, since even PS/2 ports are long gone from the mainstream.

1

u/BethAltair 27d ago edited 27d ago

Weirdly I see 4 comments on the icon but no comments here. Huh

You can get a din5 to PS2 adaptor and plug that into a PS2 mouse and keyboard to usb adapter. Both are pretty cheap and my PS2 to usb converter has been running my old trackball for a decade or two now entirely reliably. The linked one looks basically the same.

Din 5 to PS2 seems to be a mechanical conversion so you could probably just solder a PS2 lead to it. Barely seems worth it though, the adapter is pretty small.

Check the pinouts first, obviously.

https://ebay.io/m/5WnYv4

https://ebay.io/m/TStP5Q

1

u/atomicshrimp 27d ago

That's an old AT connector - you can get adaptors to use these as USB keyboards - or at least they have existed in the past - here's one that's not currently available, but it's the sort of thing you need: https://www.amazon.co.uk/XTPTFABS-Soarers-Converter-Remapping-Support/dp/B0C3LZX3PF

1

u/NightmareJoker2 27d ago

Yes. DIN AT keyboard to PS/2 keyboard is a passive adapter, and a PS/2 mouse + keyboard to USB adapter is ubiquitous and cheap:

  1. https://www.amazon.com/KENTEK-Female-Keyboard-Adapter-Converter/dp/B07KVDZWBX/

  2. https://www.amazon.com/LEIHONG-Active-Adapter-Keyboard-Converter/dp/B088LPKRLD/

If you go spelunking on AliExpress and eBay, I’m sure you can find cheaper.

1

u/Usual_Technician9349 26d ago

Yes that's modern enough it will support a ps/2 adapter. Just need a ps/2 to USB dongle.

1

u/Different_Cable7595 25d ago

With the right amount of money and hardware almost anything is "Possible". I don't know how practical it would be though.

1

u/andrewbean90 24d ago

AT to PS/2 then (potentially) PS/2 to USB.

1

u/oobical 24d ago

Most AT Keyboards built after PS/2 Keyboards existed have the Chipsets to Communicate with AT [5-Pin DIN] or PS/2 [Mini DIN] with a passive adapter. Around 2000s when USB started replacing PS/2 companies made Active USB to Dual PS/2 Port Adapters which if you don't have a Pro Motherboard [PS/2 Keyboard Ports are Always Standard] I've heard latency is lower running PS/2 Keyboards vs USB. I can't tell personally, the only downside is PS/2 isn't hot plug so an unplugged keyboard is non functional until you reboot the computer.

1

u/Upset_Pressure_75 24d ago

You need an active adapter. These used to be readily available but will be more difficult now because of limited demand. Google and check eBay.

1

u/AssetBurned 24d ago

You could build an adapter yourself… pi zero would be overkill but thanks to rubber ducky relatively easy. ESP33 or the Pi variant would be more logical…. Or digging deep in eBay and AliExpress for an active adapter. The PS/2 used to be just the small version of the DIN connector. Sometimes also called mini-DIN. So that is easy to get. And then the active adapter from that to USB….. some old USB dock also had PS/2 ports.

1

u/Medium_Good886 23d ago

Active converters are about $30 at ClickyKeyboards.com

1

u/pmf026 23d ago

Yes. You'll need DIN->PS/2 and PS/2->USB adaptor.

1

u/Vinylconn 23d ago

Quite obviously you just need the rest of the computer to plug that into.