Neon Trim Corporation Keyboard Mod Tutorial

EL Wire Keyboard Mod

By Eric Smith

- Disclaimer -
This guide is for information only. I will not be held responsible for damage or loss of equipment of any kind resulting from instructions contained in this document.

Let's start with the tools needed:

1. Screwdrivers
2. Soldering Iron with fine tip; small amount of solder
3. Drill (Variable speed is preferred) with 3/32nd inch drill bit
4. Volt Meter
5. Fine grit Sandpaper
6. Electrical Tape

Part 1: Install 5V Inverter inside keyboard

Step 1:Remove screws from the underside of the keyboard.
Step 2: Turn the keyboard back over and carefully lift the top half of the keys off. Some Keyboards may be different than this picture; this is a typical Dell keyboard. Those little rubber buttons are held on with a weak adhesive tape and are easy to knock loose.





Step 3: This is the Keyboard's LED circuit board. I used the underside of the connector to solder the red and black leads from the inverter. Remove any screws holding this circuit board down and gently lift up and turn over to expose the back side.





Step 4: Use a Voltmeter to find 5 Volt positive and ground to power the Inverter. After you have determined the best place to solder the power leads, be sure to shut off the computer and disconnect the keyboard before soldering. Be careful if you attempt to solder to a component like a LED or IC Chip: the heat from the solder iron can destroy components very quickly. CAREFULLY solder the Red wire to the 5V positive, and the Black wire to Ground.





OPTIONAL: An ON/OFF switch can be added at this point. This is not included with the Kit. The El wire runs cool and draws little power, so it can be left on all the time, but I prefer a switch so this is where I put it.





Step 5: Wrap the Inverter with black electrical tape to insulate the power leads.
Decide where you want to start the EL Wire and remove those keys. (I removed the ~ and 1 keys). Drill a hole for the El wire to enter the top side of keyboard. I had to notch the plastic barriers between the ESC and F1 keys to allow the EL Wire to pass through. The plastic is soft and easy to drill through, so go slow.





Step 6: Insert the EL Wire through the hole and make sure the inverter will fit with the keyboard closed. Neatly route the wires to avoid pinching when closed. Plug in the Keyboard and turn on the Computer. The EL wire should light up. Make sure the plastic plungers from the keys removed in Step 5 are lined up and work correctly. Replace screws into keyboard.

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	Step 1:Remove screws from the underside of the keyboard. Step 2: Turn the keyboard back over and carefully lift the top half of the keys off. Some Keyboards may be different than this picture; this is a typical Dell keyboard. Those little rubber buttons are held on with a weak adhesive tape and are easy to knock loose.

Step 3: This is the Keyboard's LED circuit board. I used the underside of the connector to solder the red and black leads from the inverter. Remove any screws holding this circuit board down and gently lift up and turn over to expose the back side.

	Step 4: Use a Voltmeter to find 5 Volt positive and ground to power the Inverter. After you have determined the best place to solder the power leads, be sure to shut off the computer and disconnect the keyboard before soldering. Be careful if you attempt to solder to a component like a LED or IC Chip: the heat from the solder iron can destroy components very quickly. CAREFULLY solder the Red wire to the 5V positive, and the Black wire to Ground.


OPTIONAL: An ON/OFF switch can be added at this point. This is not included with the Kit. The El wire runs cool and draws little power, so it can be left on all the time, but I prefer a switch so this is where I put it.

Step 5: Wrap the Inverter with black electrical tape to insulate the power leads. Decide where you want to start the EL Wire and remove those keys. (I removed the ~ and 1 keys). Drill a hole for the El wire to enter the top side of keyboard. I had to notch the plastic barriers between the ESC and F1 keys to allow the EL Wire to pass through. The plastic is soft and easy to drill through, so go slow.

	Step 6: Insert the EL Wire through the hole and make sure the inverter will fit with the keyboard closed. Neatly route the wires to avoid pinching when closed. Plug in the Keyboard and turn on the Computer. The EL wire should light up. Make sure the plastic plungers from the keys removed in Step 5 are lined up and work correctly. Replace screws into keyboard.