Recently, P-LAB posted a new project, which allows use of C64 keyboards on Apple 1, Apple II, and generic ASCII TTL.
www.applefritter.com
I've had fun building a couple of these, and I can post a more detailed instruction if needed for anybody but they're very easy to assemble as far as hobby projects go. The Briel Replica 1 Plus uses the Apple II keyboard pinout (!). I opted to use right angle headers to keep the build very thin. Slide out pin 2 before assembling and there's no need to fuss with cutting it.
I first had success with a Commodore C16 Keyboard, but, you have to remap the pinout of the keyboard itself. There is no 'restore' key, so the reset button is still needed on the Briel replica 1 itself, but adding a remote one is easy at the moment since the 2 pins needed for it are unused by the C16 keyboard and thus open for a pushbutton if you need one. There are also a couple keys that could benefit from soft remapping, which I have on my short list to go through. It's not hard correlating the keyboard matrixes with each other (c16 vs c64), just mind numbing. This was my initial build on a Z80/Apple 1 expansion PCB, which proved quite useful for the task.
This photo was from before I realized that the pinout was completely wrong on the C16 keyboard; it was sent to me as "for use with C64" so I foolishly assumed it was actually from a C64. There was a collision between the two matrixes on the '5' key which led me to figure out the whole situation. I used the pinouts from this project to correctly route the ROW and COL pins. https://github.com/svenpetersen1965.../pictures/2224_-_Commodore_KB_Tester_Rev1.JPG
At that point, on to the BBS (bbs.retrocampus.com:6502) with the P-LAB WiFi Card!
Thanks to a generous user from the VCF, I was sent a Commodore 64 case w/keyboard. Today I got the time to assemble another adapter and test the C64 keyboard. As expected it works very well. I put the Appledore within the C64 case at the moment, and nothing damaging was done to the C64 case/keyboard/harness.
So... Why though?
A commodore 64 keyboard is infinitely cheaper than a period correct ASCII / Datanetics keyboard or replication. I don't mind using a PS/2 keyboard with the Briel Replica 1, but the Commodore keyboard really gives it a nice look paired with the monochrome monitor.
C64 Keyboard Adapter "Appledore" | Applefritter
I've had fun building a couple of these, and I can post a more detailed instruction if needed for anybody but they're very easy to assemble as far as hobby projects go. The Briel Replica 1 Plus uses the Apple II keyboard pinout (!). I opted to use right angle headers to keep the build very thin. Slide out pin 2 before assembling and there's no need to fuss with cutting it.
I first had success with a Commodore C16 Keyboard, but, you have to remap the pinout of the keyboard itself. There is no 'restore' key, so the reset button is still needed on the Briel replica 1 itself, but adding a remote one is easy at the moment since the 2 pins needed for it are unused by the C16 keyboard and thus open for a pushbutton if you need one. There are also a couple keys that could benefit from soft remapping, which I have on my short list to go through. It's not hard correlating the keyboard matrixes with each other (c16 vs c64), just mind numbing. This was my initial build on a Z80/Apple 1 expansion PCB, which proved quite useful for the task.
This photo was from before I realized that the pinout was completely wrong on the C16 keyboard; it was sent to me as "for use with C64" so I foolishly assumed it was actually from a C64. There was a collision between the two matrixes on the '5' key which led me to figure out the whole situation. I used the pinouts from this project to correctly route the ROW and COL pins. https://github.com/svenpetersen1965.../pictures/2224_-_Commodore_KB_Tester_Rev1.JPG
At that point, on to the BBS (bbs.retrocampus.com:6502) with the P-LAB WiFi Card!
Thanks to a generous user from the VCF, I was sent a Commodore 64 case w/keyboard. Today I got the time to assemble another adapter and test the C64 keyboard. As expected it works very well. I put the Appledore within the C64 case at the moment, and nothing damaging was done to the C64 case/keyboard/harness.
So... Why though?
A commodore 64 keyboard is infinitely cheaper than a period correct ASCII / Datanetics keyboard or replication. I don't mind using a PS/2 keyboard with the Briel Replica 1, but the Commodore keyboard really gives it a nice look paired with the monochrome monitor.
