Subject: Re: BC16D-25 cable, what's that?
To: Gunther Schadow <gunther@aurora.regenstrief.org>
From: Chuck McManis <cmcmanis@mcmanis.com>
List: port-vax
Date: 11/18/2001 11:09:14
At 06:22 PM 11/17/01 -0500, Gunther Schadow wrote:
>I have a big pile of DEC BC16D-25 cable. ...
>If you know what this cable is used for or if you want it,
>please let me know.

Hi Gunthar,

These cables are used to connect a CXA16 and some other 8 port DEC cards 
(the time share card for the VAXServer come to mind) to something called a 
"harmonica block" this is a box that has one of those centronics connectors 
on it on one side and 8 MMJ ports on the other.

Currently NetBSD does not support the CXA16 but VMS does and I've got one 
as my multiuser demo system.

The cables come in a couple of flavors, in one, one of the centronics has a 
right angle configuration to allow it to be used with a BA213 with the door 
on. In another both ends are right angles. I've not seen one that was 
straight on both ends but DEC made a _lot_ of different cables.

Did you get a pile of harmonica blocks with the cables?

--Chuck