
Soviet Keyswitch Replacement
BrettHallen/Conversion_Boards
Various boards to convert from one chip to another

Various boards to convert from one chip to another
Video Buffer RevB is an open-source printed circuit board by BrettHallen, from the BrettHallen/Conversion_Boards repository on GitHub. It is a 2-layer board of 21.5 × 11.7 mm with 13 parts on 4 nets, routed with 38 tracks and 10 vias.
It is built around the MMBT2222A. Its parts include 7 connectors, 3 resistors, 2 capacitors and 1 transistor.
Various boards to convert from one chip to another. Unless stated otherwise, they are currently untested.
A breakout board for the 5-pin DIN plug on this tri-voltage Mean Well PSU.
Breakout boards to simplify connecting various ICs to a logic analyser via Dupoint-style wires:
YouTube Videos:
Breakout boards for various D-sub type connectors:
Boards to convert between different ROM/PROM/EPROM types:
A breakout board for 5/6/7/8 pin DIN connectors.
Idea is to use a surface mount crystal in place of the through-hole crystal. Why? Spectrum clones from the former Eastern Bloc tended to use 14MHz crystals which are not easy to come by anymore in through-hole form, but surface mount versions are.
20-Jun-2025: Test boards have been fabricated, not yet tested.
Soviet-era electronics used a 2.5mm pin pitch rather than 2.54mm/0.1" pin pitch we are accustomed to in the West. This can cause problems with larger chips as they need to be bent slightly to fit. Hence this idea to allow a Western chip to fit into a Soviet motherboard, like an Intel 8080A to replace a Soviet КР580ВМ80А.
20-Jun-2025: Test boards have been fabricated, not yet tested.

The idea behind this design is to make a 2.5mm pin pitch IC socket for Soviet-era chips.
20-Jun-2025: Test boards have been fabricated, not yet tested.

Replacement designs for Soviet-era VM16 key switches.
26-Jul-2025: Initial PCB tested, requires adjustments

A board to bring out the pins of a 64-pin IC with 1.27mm pin-pitch (like the Yamaha V99x8 VDPs) to 2.54mm pin-pitch headers so it can be hooked up for experimenting with similarly-minded 2.54mm pitch stuff.

A very simple transistor buffer for converting RF-modulated video output to baseband video output by taking the video signal generated by the computer before it reaches the RF modulator can and passing it through an emitter follower.
Based on the design for the Sinclair ZX81 but could be used for other "quick 'n' dirty" mods to see if a computer is working.

| Qty | Value | Footprint | References |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | GND | Clueless_Engineer:Solder Pad 5x2.5mm | J4, J5 |
| 1 | +5V | Clueless_Engineer:Solder Pad 5x2.5mm | J1 |
| 1 | 100nF | Capacitor_SMD:C_0603_1608Metric_Pad1.08x0.95mm_HandSolder | C2 |
| 1 | 10µF | Capacitor_SMD:C_0805_2012Metric_Pad1.18x1.45mm_HandSolder | C1 |
| 1 | 2.2KΩ | Resistor_SMD:R_0805_2012Metric_Pad1.20x1.40mm_HandSolder | R1 |
| 1 | 3.3KΩ | Resistor_SMD:R_0805_2012Metric_Pad1.20x1.40mm_HandSolder | R2 |
| 1 | 750Ω | Resistor_SMD:R_0805_2012Metric_Pad1.20x1.40mm_HandSolder | R3 |
| 1 | GND Joint B | Clueless_Engineer:Solder Pad 21.5x2.5mm | J7 |
| 1 | GND Joint F | Clueless_Engineer:Solder Pad 21.5x2.5mm | J6 |
| 1 | MMBT2222A | Package_TO_SOT_SMD:SOT-23_Handsoldering | Q1 |
| 1 | V_{IN} | Clueless_Engineer:Solder Pad 5x2.5mm | J2 |
| 1 | V_{OUT} | Clueless_Engineer:Solder Pad 5x2.5mm | J3 |
It measures 21.5 × 11.7 mm and has 2 copper layers, 1.6 mm thick.
13 parts, built around the MMBT2222A. The full list of its parts is on this page, with links to each part's symbol and footprint where PCBKit's library has them.
From the BrettHallen/Conversion_Boards repository on GitHub, at the commit this page was made from: the board is Video_Buffer/RevB/Video_Buffer_RevB.kicad_pcb. PCBKit opens the board in the browser, with nothing to install.
Its repository states no licence, so its author keeps all rights: ask BrettHallen before reusing the design.

BrettHallen/Conversion_Boards
Various boards to convert from one chip to another


BrettHallen/Conversion_Boards
Various boards to convert from one chip to another

BrettHallen/Conversion_Boards
Various boards to convert from one chip to another


BrettHallen/Conversion_Boards
Various boards to convert from one chip to another


BrettHallen/Conversion_Boards
Various boards to convert from one chip to another

BrettHallen/Conversion_Boards
Various boards to convert from one chip to another

BrettHallen/Conversion_Boards
Various boards to convert from one chip to another

BrettHallen/Conversion_Boards
Various boards to convert from one chip to another

BrettHallen/Conversion_Boards
Various boards to convert from one chip to another

Neumi/open_echo
Open Source echo sounder / depth sounder / SONAR for bathymetry and research. Arduino based and compatible.

JGAguado/Smart_Plant
The Smart Plant is a board that can be plugged directly on the soil, close to the plant, that allows the measurement of the environment (soil moisture, environment temperature & illuminance), and presents the…

ElectronicCats/Minino
Minino is an original multiprotocol and multiband board made for sniffing, communicating, and attacking IoT devices. It was designed as a mini Cat that integrates the powerful ESP32C6, GPS, microSD and OLED.

LouDnl/USBSID-Pico
USBSID-Pico is a RPi Pico (RP2040/W RP2350/W) based board for interfacing one or two MOS SID chips and/or hardware SID emulators over (WEB)USB with your computer, phone, ASID supporting player or USB midi controller

atomic14/ch32v003-audio
A collection of audio projects for the CH32V003J4M6 RISC-V microcontroller, demonstrating various audio synthesis and playback techniques on an 8-pin, $0.10 microcontroller.

HandHeldLegend/GC-Ultimate
The 3D shell, buttons, and other associated models are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License .

onionharvester/boardwalk
A little gathering place for my PCBs. This is their favourite hangout spot! 🪼⋆.ೃ࿔*:・
