Alex850

I recently rewired a 2-button pedal from a Panasonic transcription machine with good results. The important thing about the Panasonic pedal is that it contains two momentary-on switches. So, my experiences should apply to any such pedal. Supplies needed for the conversion: An existing foot pedal 3-conductor wire (for a two-button pedal) or 4-conductor wire (for a three-button pedal) 9-pin female "D" connector (from Radio Shack) Soldering equipment and hand tools Procedure: Open the foot pedal, unsolder the existing wires and remove. (Alternatively, you could simply clip the old connector from the other end of the existing cord.) Solder in the new wire and attach the "D" connector per NCH's wiring instructions. Re-assemble the foot pedal. Plug the "D" connector into an available serial connector on your computer. Some newer computers have done away with the serial connection. In this case, disregard this entire post! You must "teach" Express Scribe which button is which by running the Foot Pedal Control Setup Wizard (Settings-Control). I initially had a problem when wiring my pedal. The NCH instructions called for wiring the "Play" function to pin 1 of the "D" connector, but it did not work for me. I discovered a "work-around". With Express Scribe Foot Pedal Control Setup Wizard running, I played around with a short jumper wire and shorted pin 4 with each of the other pins (on the back of the computer) until Express Scribe would play. I then wired into that pin. If you are uncomfortable playing with wires and soldering apparatus, any electronics technician worth his or her salt should be able to do the job for you in under 30 minutes.