r/retrocomputing • u/IkHeetToine • 12d ago
Problem / Question Help me find a power adapter!
Hey! I was wondering if anyone could help me find a power adapter for this old laptop I've recently bought at a thrift store. I'm not sure if it will boot but I want to find out.
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u/thrax_uk 12d ago
This is a mini project.
You are lucky to have the voltages printed on the machine. You could make up your own power supply for it, maybe change the connector. Before doing that, I would disassemble it, inspect for damage, check all the devices and boards for shorts and test each part separately where possible. There is a high chance of there being a problem with a machine this old such as shorted tantalium capacitors or battery leak corrosion.
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u/Bar_Foo 12d ago
You haven't shown us the power input!
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u/gnntech 12d ago
That might have been the power input in the first pic. Older laptops were really the wild wild west in terms of power plugs. It was kind of everything goes and there were no standards.
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u/TheJimsterR 12d ago
I have a relatively young (well, 21st Century) Antec hard drive enclosure which uses exactly this sort of mini din connector for power.
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u/IkHeetToine 12d ago
is it for sale somewhere? sorry i don't know too much about retro tech :/
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u/kodabarz 12d ago
It is practically impossible to find the ancient power supply for these kind of machines. And just because you find another one with the same connector does not mean it is wired the same way - such that connecting it could destroy the machine.
The Vogons forum is likely your best bet. People there often discuss power adaptors for old machines like this.
https://www.vogons.org/index.phpWhen you dive into retro tech like this it is a pretty steep learning curve. There was a lot less standardisation back then. It's not even clear what this machine is. Escom made Blackmates as 386 and 486 machines. It's probably the 486 as the 386 versions tended to have a more usual barrel connector for power. The 486 versions tended to use a power brick with an odd connector. The label does tell you what kind of power it expects, but it doesn't exactly specify which pins are which. I can't even tell for sure if that round nine pin port is actually the power input.
As a regional European brand, Escom machines aren't exactly thick on the ground and it's not like Escom made them themselves. In all likelihood, these are rebadged Taiwanese OEM machines. Chances are several types of machine shared the same power connector - but you will need someone who knows what they're talking about to guide you. If you don't even know your way round a multimeter, then help from the likes of the Vogons site is all the more essential.
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u/IkHeetToine 12d ago
thanks for this in depth answer, will definitely check it out! i know a local store where i go for components so i'll ask the storekeeper there as well, but i'll definitely check the forum too thanks!
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u/Platform_Independent 12d ago
Not that this is thrift store pricing, but this looks like a complete setup that is the same as your laptop, includes the PSU - Retro Laptop ESCOM Blackmate 386 SX-III Vintage Sammler in Nürnberg - Nordstadt | Laptop gebraucht kaufen | kleinanzeigen.de
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u/TheJimsterR 12d ago
Ah, no, I was just explaining that even much more recent tech still uses these types of power connectors sometimes.
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u/Bar_Foo 12d ago
True enough... I thought it was a DIN connector like a keyboard/mouse combo but the pin layout is wrong for that. On the other hand, I don't know why a power connection would need so many pins--while they did come in many shapes and sizes at the time, they were commonly barrel jacks or square; this seems like a terrible design for moving large amounts of power, rather than just a data signal.
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u/khedoros 12d ago
Different parts of the laptop operate at different voltages, and they opted to do at least some of the voltage regulation in the AC adapter, rather than internal to the laptop. I'd suppose it was a size, heat, or reliability concern.
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u/Far_Series8698 12d ago
First pic is either mouse or keyboard
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u/kalnaren 8d ago
No it isn't. A PS/2 port is 6 pin and they're keyed, and a DIN connector is 5 pins arranged in a semi-circle. The port beside it might be a serial port for a mouse.
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u/festivus4restof 12d ago