Zumo User Forums

Strip the outer insulation, unbraided the shielding wires and twist them together to splice and solder to the black lead. A multimeter will confirm that the XT uses the shield as the negative connection. The center wire is the positive, splice to the red lead. Be sure the powered side of the SAE connection uses the insulated socket for positive.

SAE connectors of this type most often carry 12 volts. Since your use only carries 5 volts, I would label it as such as reminder NOT to connect a 12 volt device.

(reposting inline)

lkraus wrote: ↑Sun May 19, 2024 1:12 pm ...Be sure the powered side of the SAE connection uses the insulated socket for positive.

This is very important advice. Some SAE cables swap polarity, such as the alligator clip harness that comes with some battery tenders. You need a multimeter to make sure of polarity -- even a cheap one will do for this job. Getting it wrong will make the magic smoke come out of your device.

-dan

lkraus wrote: ↑Sun May 19, 2024 1:12 pm SAE connectors of this type most often carry 12 volts. Since your use only carries 5 volts, I would label it as such as reminder NOT to connect a 12 volt device.

This is an excellent comment that I certainly could have overlooked, thank you for the recommendation!

danham wrote: ↑Sun May 19, 2024 5:20 pm
Some SAE cables swap polarity, such as the alligator clip harness that comes with some battery tenders. You need a multimeter to make sure of polarity. Getting it wrong will make the magic smoke come out of your device.

I definitely want to avoid magic smoke, thanks Dan for this great advice also.

raesewell wrote: ↑Sun May 19, 2024 10:28 am I used Posi Lock connectors offset to minimise the profile.

Thank you for identifying the connectors you used, it’s been hard for me to find any other options besides SAE.

Would you be able to share a picture of your setup, including the connectors you used? I think they might be the “Posi-Tite” version, and I’d like to see what you mean by “offset”.

Offset means that one wire is longer than the other so the posi locks don't sit side by side. No pictures available as it's all buttoned up and heat shrinked. I just use ordinary Posi Locks.

I've used the normal Posi Locks a few times - they work really well. I've not come across the Posi Tite in the UK. I'd track them down if I needed a waterproof connection.

Hi, I'm new to the forum, in fact new to everything to do with GPS.
I've just bought a Zumo XT and it comes with a power cable that connects to a 12v source.
However, my bike has a USB port, but USB only outputs 5v.
If you use the supplied power cable does it bypass the battery in the Zumo and use 12v? Or, does the supplied power lead only have 5v output, same as the USB?
I don't really want to go to the trouble of wiring in the supplied lead if the USB does the same job

Thanks in advance.

Ron

Bigron wrote: ↑Wed Jul 24, 2024 4:51 pm Hi, I'm new to the forum, in fact new to everything to do with GPS.
I've just bought a Zumo XT and it comes with a power cable that connects to a 12v source.
However, my bike has a USB port, but USB only outputs 5v.
If you use the supplied power cable does it bypass the battery in the Zumo and use 12v? Or, does the supplied power lead only have 5v output, same as the USB?
I don't really want to go to the trouble of wiring in the supplied lead if the USB does the same job

Thanks in advance.

Ron

Hi and welcome to the forum.

The XT (not the XT2) runs on a power cable that feeds from the 12v battery. Mine is connected via a relay so that it turns off when the ignition is turned off. In the cable there is a small rectangular (cuboid) box - this is a step down transformer and also acts as a fuse - cutting the power if there is an overload or short circuit. This feeds 5v power to the bike cradle.

You can use the USB socket to power the XT - i f you have a 5v supply - but it is not advisable on the bike. The vibration of a motorccyle puts a strain on the connector, and on its soldered mount to the circuit board. Eventually that connector will fail - and there is little you can do with a Zumo when that happens.

(The XT2 uses a different system and the mount provides 12v to the XT2.)

jfheath wrote: ↑Wed Jul 24, 2024 6:02 pm The XT (not the XT2) runs on a power cable that feeds from the 12v battery. Mine is connected via a relay so that it turns off when the ignition is turned off. In the cable there is a small rectangular (cuboid) box - this is a step down transformer and also acts as a fuse - cutting the power if there is an overload or short circuit. This feeds 5v power to the bike cradle.

I first tried running my XT via USB but found that the USB output was not sufficient to fully power the XT resulting in a draw down of its battery. I then used the provided wiring harness to connect to an accessory circuit resulting in it powering off when the bike is turned off. Wiring to an accessory source is not required. You can wire directly to the battery. The downside is that you must turn the XT off or removed it from the cradle when parking the bike for a number of days. Otherwise is will go to sleep on the bike resulting in a low draw on the bike battery.