Power Connector Wiring

Besides using the original A500 power connector, which can be expensive to get hold of, Rämixx500 supports common and cheap DIN-6 or DIN-8 connectors.

I'm not providing wiring diagrams at this stage but you can easily make your own:

1. UNSOLDER the Line Filter (LF1 or LF99). This will effectively isolate the power connector.
2. Solder your (female) DIN connector of choice to your board and plug an unwired male connector end into it.
3. Take your multimeter and set it to continuity check (Beeeeeep!) mode.
4. If you look at the Line Filter footprint, you will see that it reports all the expected voltages. Put one of your multimeter probes on the hole marked as GND that is closest to power connector.
5. Randomly touch the pins protruding from the back end of the male connector with the other probe until your multimeter beeps: that will be where you need to solder your ground wire.
6. Repeat for the +/-12V and +5V voltages.

This way you can quickly come up with the correct soldering diagram. Note that some voltages might show up on more than one pin: this is deliberate and you are recommended to connect all of them, as DIN connectors aren't usually rated for more than a couple of amps and your A500 can easily draw 4-5A on the +5V line, for instance. This way the current will divide among several pins, keeping things safe. As a rule of thumb, no pin should remain unused.

Once you have soldered your cable, plug it in and turn on your power supply, then use your multimeter in DC mode to make sure that all the voltages reported in the LF1/LF99 footprint match. At this point you can solder your Line Filter back into position and rest assured that your plug is wired correctly.

Please be careful, as getting the wiring wrong after you have resoldered LF1/LF99 back in place can definitely damage a lot of the components of the A500 you have just built.

By the way, if you are looking for a suitable power supply, the Meanwell RT-65B or RPT-60B are popular choices.