VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[Lee Gordon]

Because my booth is about 30 feet from my desk and ISDN line, I needed to run some sort of KVM switch from the booth back to my computer. Because I believe anything worth doing is worth overdoing, I didn't buy some ordinary KVM switch; I bought a pair of Gefen Cat5 3000R switches that will let me remote the keyboard, mouse, a couple of monitors, a pair of USB ports and probably some other stuff, all connected by Cat5. The problem is, I got these units on eBay and neither one came with a power supply. And the specs indicate they don't use run of the mill power supplies. Each unit takes a 1.45 amp AC power supply and connects to the unit with a 5-pin DIN plug. One is 16 volts and the other is 17 volts.

A quick search of the Gefen website did not reveal any reference to these legacy gadgets or their power supplies, but even if they did, I suspect buying OEM power supplies directly from Gefen will be expensive. Nor have I found any being sold separately on eBay.

Does anybody know where I might source power supplies that will work with these units, or, if necessary, get custom supplies made up? Thanks.
_________________
Lee Gordon, O.A.V.
Voice President of the United States
www.leegordonproductions.com
Twitter: @LeeGordonVoice

[heyguido]

Lee.... Try this one....

Talk to Gefen customer support to verify that this unit's output is compatible. 24 volts should be within operating tolerance, but I'd verify before purchasing.

http://sewelldirect.com/Gefen-24VDC-Universal-Power-Supply.asp
_________________
Don Brookshire
"Wait.... They wanna PAY me for this?"

[heyguido]

Lee.... Try this one....

Talk to Gefen customer support to verify that this unit's output is compatible. 24 volts should be within operating tolerance, but I'd verify before purchasing.

http://sewelldirect.com/Gefen-24VDC-Universal-Power-Supply.asp
_________________
Don Brookshire
"Wait.... They wanna PAY me for this?"

[dwpthe3rd]

I THINK a typical mini 5 pin power plug only uses 2 of the of the pins for power. However, please verify this through a source more knowledgeable than I. If I'm correct, it shouldn't be too difficult to determine the specific pin configuration for power - just open the unit and see which pins are dedicated to power..

Here's a link to a 15v dc supply that provides +/-5% of your power requirement. It should work if its amperage output is high enough and it wouldn't take a lot to snip the existing plug and rewire with proper din plug, probably also available from markertek. Don't know what your budget is, but it's $32 for two supplies with free shipping.

I'm betting you're an enterprising enough guy to make it work.

http://www.markertek.com/Connectors-Adapters/Power-Connectors-Adapters/Gefen-Inc/EXT-PS15US.xhtml

Dave

[Lee Gordon]

Thanks, guys. Unfortunately, those links are for DC power supplies and I need AC. The good news is, while the manual refers to them as "power supplies," I drilled down on Gefen's website to find the Discontinued Products and that page calls them "transformers." So it could be that all I need are a couple of step-down transformers to convert 110V AC to 16V and 17V. What's really strange is, the manual says the Send unit "can be powered from the USB cable without the external power supply." So if the whole thing can run on 5 volts DC, what the hell does it need 16 volts AC for?

The manual also gives pin-outs for keyboard/mouse and monitors, but not for the power connection. I guess the next step is to contact Gefen tech support to see if they have any transformers in stock and, if not, to see if they can recommend a substitute or at least provide me with the pin-outs.
_________________
Lee Gordon, O.A.V.
Voice President of the United States
www.leegordonproductions.com
Twitter: @LeeGordonVoice

[dwpthe3rd]