Pet Peeve time!

For Christmas, I sold my Super Everdrive to a friend so she could give it to her fiancè. Yeah, he loves it. So with what I sold it for, I bought a SD2SNES; a slightly better SNES flash cart that will do most of the special chip games that came out on the SNES. It's able to be updated from SD card for future implementations of special chips.

So, just for fun, I Googled SD2SNES so I could at least bookmark the main site. I figured since I have some searches up, I'd check out the video reviews on YouTube. There was a couple of them that made me cringe, not the review, but the way they said SNES.

Snes....as a word...Snes...

If you pronounce it like that, then the SD2SNES should be pronounced Sid2snes, right?

IT'S AN ACRONYM! It's like calling LEDs, leds.

It's an S.N.E.S, an acronym for Super Nintendo Entertainment System.

/rant.

NES Stereo mod...finalization pt. 2...

Yeah, I decided to get a 1KΩ potentiometer and swap out the 5KΩ one I had in before. In fact, I had to make the journey back to the electronics store twice to get the right pot (the one I got prior had a switch on it, I needed one without it).

Did it make a difference? I think it did. With the 5KΩ on there, it seemed that full separation kicked in at a shorter turn. With the 1KΩ in, I have better control on how wide to separate the 2 channels before I they were fully separated. I've only tested the channel separation with Super Mario Bros. 3.

I did have trouble with the new pot that I got. I'm not sure if it was because how it's situated, but this pot had it's terminals numbered, so it made it that the two terminals I originally soldered to (2 & 3) resulted in both channels being separated. Using a multimeter, I checked the pot and noticed that only the terminal marked "1" and the middle terminal had some sort of resistance, where the last terminal "3" was left open. Moved the wires to 1 and 2 gave me the results that I wanted. The 5KΩ pot did not have numbered terminals...hmmm...

I also got a knob to give a cleaner look to the pot. I used (and broke 2) cutting disks from a rotary tool kit I got from my wife several years ago (didn't know I had those things in there!) to cut the pot's shaft down a bit. It sits a little off kilter (hardly noticeable...but it's a personal mod, not a commissioned one), but works nonetheless.

Other than an RGB/S-Video mod, I'm not sure if there's anything else I could do to it...maybe add a crapload of LEDs to it? We'll see...

TG16 RErevisited...and slightly embarrassed...

I'll just let my shameful modding ways in the past show here:

This is how I left the mod when I finished it last...year...I think? Yikes! In my defense, it's my console, so I'd never let this one go (EVER!), so I wasn't to caring on how it looked.

This is the region mod using IC's that I made. Took at least 5 hrs to complete this thing (combination crappy soldering iron and ADD), and an additional 3 to install it...Yes, I left it in disarray.I'm gonna look for adhesive foam to put on the back of that board instead of  electrical tape.

...Yeah, I don't know even where to start with this thing. You have an audio preamp at the top-left of the pic. To the right you have the region change switch. To the lower left of the switch you have the S-Video circuit. Then at the bottom, there's all the power connectors to the 7805...what a mess.

Side shot of the region switch. 

This is after about 30 mins. I just tacked down wire paths with hot glue...but dumb me hot glued the region switch. I have that on disconnects...I does look a little better than the original pic, though, right?

And just the outside. Where the S-video jack stands is where I originally put the region change switch but made the hole waaaay too big. 

Now, if my day wasn't as long and tedious today, I would've cracked this open yet again to rework everything (shorten wires, resolder stuff, etc.), but just too tired to do it. I'm gonna go back in and redo it, though. I can't let this one go. 

I did manage to get better wire strippers. I lost my first cheapie set and have been using just scissors or my wire cutter to get it stripped...sometimes just frustrating. I got something like this now:

At least with this style wire stripper, I don't have to worry about smaller lengths of wire and holding them with 2 hands and potentially ruining the wire by adding too much pressure and strip more than the sheath off the wire....yup...

Anyway, I hope to get to fixing this one soon. I want to also add, at least, S-video to my PC-Engine Duo soon.

...Speaking of which, I'm also hoping to get a trade for a Power Base Converter for the Genesis that I have for a regular PC Engine. Hopefully this trade will happen soon. 

NES "Stereo" Mod...finalized...

Ugh. Finally got around to doing something. I finalized the stereo mod to the FL NES.

Connections inside the NES itself. There are 1 µF caps on pins 1 and 2 of the CPU. That piece of green tape is no longer there; it was mainly to provide insulation to the connections. I've also spot hot glued the caps and wires so they don't move.

Left and right RCA jacks and a 5K potentiometer. I may swap out the pot for a smaller one (1K maybe), but for now, this one works just fine. What it does is combine or separate the 2 channels coming out of the CPU (pins 1 & 2), giving it that kinda stereo sounding...sound....I also covered the exposed wire on the connector there with some hot glue...not copious amounts, just enough to cover the exposed wire.

Back shot. I may cut that potentiometer shaft down and get a decent sized knob for it. There's that possibility that I still swap out that potentiometer, though....hmmmm.

Anyway, I finalized this one. The only hiccup I had was pinching the wires from the board when I was finishing it up the first time (hence the electrical tape on the wires in the first pic). After a quick fix, everything worked perfectly. The only thing is because I'm using a slightly higher resistance potentiometer, the channels separate with just a small turn of the shaft...I wasn't vibing this potentiometer much. I may go searching for another pot tomorrow after some appointments I have to get to.

I even swapped out the power LED for a green one instead of a red one, and also performed the lockout chip mod (removing pin 4's connection on the NES10 chip), so no more blinky-blinky.

Regardless, it's done. I'm happy with it. This NES is my second one that I inherited from a family member. I still have my old one that I had when I was a kid, kept it stock, just cleaned and fixed the pin connector.

Props to GameTechUS (Jason) for the tutorial video he has. This is where I got most of the information from:
http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyUGc-ZrN4JSox9Kbvnxeug

I may have a look at my TG16 tomorrow and finalize that. Until then...

Trying to get back in mod mode...

Since returning from vacation, I've been trying to get myself back into mod mode. I've just been exhausted after work and putting the kids to bed that I just run out of energy and brain power to hold a soldering iron. Last night, I went through all my tools and parts so I can get, at least, all my mod stuff together to perform a mod.

First up is either getting my NES "stereo" mod fixed up and finalized or opening up my TG16 and cleaning up the current mod in there.

There's also my M1 Genesis that I need to fix up the S-Video mod too. It works on the CRT that I got a while ago, but it seems way too bright. I'm gonna swap out the current components in it.

Those are the main ones I would like to get done. After those, I want to attempt making another CMVS .

Hopefully, I can get pics of whatever I decide to do up in the near future.

Future beauty to add to my collection....

Whilst waiting for my family vacation to Disneyland in a week, I've been in talks to someone in the NG.com forum regarding a trade. Similar to what I did trading a region modded Sega Saturn for a Famicom, I'm trading an old Japanese Playstation for a Vectrex...that's right, a freaking Vectrex!

It's an old console, vector graphics, cool for it's time. Just another thing to add to my growing console collection. We're finalizing all the shipping and whatnot...I'm just pumped to add this to my collection.

Initial pics of the unit seem worn. There's chipped plastic, no overlays, some line streaking in the vectors on the screen. I don't care about the cracks and whatnot; it gives the console character. I'm gonna read more about repairing these things to see if I can get it cleaned up.

The biggest thing I'm worried about is discharging the CRT on it. I'm good at all my electronics stuff, so I'm confident on repairs...just the thought of getting jolted by the CRT discharge scares me...but I made a promise to myself to learn to repair these things so...well, I just look and feel better with my skills.

Oh boy...

I just got over a long winded trade in a group. Guy took forever to get just one, low end game to me (3 months). I nabbed a friend/moderator/mediator to complete this transaction, and it all goes to s**t.

All that matters is that he gets his stuff, I, after a few months, got mine.

Someone define the dilemma here...

I've traversed my fair share of forum posts. The one that constantly comes up is piracy...of older game console's games.

My question is this...Why is such a hot-button issue?

Take, for instance, the original Sega CD.

Sega no longer supports the console.
They don't re-release games from CD to, say virtual console.
They don't get a dime from any sales made today.

Who wins from all this?

Sega? No. They're getting monies from new games for new consoles (New Sonic, anyone?)

Does Nintendo get a cut of an NES or SNES cart I just picked up from a thrift store?

Will Sony and Rockstar Games get a cut of the $1 I spent to get GTA 3?

The one thing I can only think of that piracy of older games hurt is the resellers.

You know, the ones that sell "graded" stuff for 100x more than the game was worth at it's initial release date, now it's stuck inside a plastic case, never to be played?

Or the ones that sell loose games for 20x more than retail because it's rare? Do I want this rare game, even if it's crappy?

I might be missing something here, but really. If I want a flash card for all my cartridge based systems, or burn a CD/DVD for my disc based system, I'm going to do it. The company that produced it 20 years ago isn't getting a cut from its sales anymore.

CTFD, you nonchalant resellers. Someone will be suckered into buying your overpriced wares.

...however, Windy Gaming isn't pulling this crap. The owner is truly a gamer, and only sells to gamers, not other resellers. Top notch.

...now what...

I sit here contemplating on what console to hunt for next...Well, I guess it doesn't matter, really. If I see something that's not in my console collection, I'm scooping it up...within reason of price, of course.

Several options here:

Wonderswan
Neo Geo Pocket
Atari 2600 (proper console)
Atari 5200
Atari 800
Atari Lynx
Atari Jaguar
3DO (FZ-1)


....really, the possibilities are endless.

Portland Retro Gaming Expo...

So I went to PRGE this past weekend. I feel I should take the whole weekend next time, but eh. Whatev.

This was also the first expo of...anything...I've ever been to. Never went to PAX or SDCC or even RCCC (Rose City Comic Con).

Needless to say, it was fun. There was a whole section with Podcasters and others, a HUGE reseller area, a freeplay arcade, pinball, and console area, main stage where some DJs and Chiptuners did their thing, and a tournament area.

I figured while I was there, I sat through couple of panels. Joe DeCuir was one, who helped develop the Atari 2600, Amiga, and USB. Also sat through a Podcast of "Watch Out For Fireballs". Pretty funny.

I mainly went there for consoles, the biggest one I was hunting for was a 3DO. Well...

And yes, I talked the guy down. So I got the 3DO at half of what eBay auctions are going now, Return Fire for the 3DO (my personal favorite game) for $6, and GTA III and Gologo 13 for $1 each. I also got a manual for GTA: San Andreas because the one I got was missing it...and I was anal about that.

I got all the hookups for the 3DO. Clean on the outside...but the controller however...

Hmmm....Doesn't affect the gameplay at all, but I'm real anal about my controllers and having them be clean. 

The inside of the 3DO was a bit dirty too, so I may have a crack at that later, too. 

All in all, it was fun. Hey, I even got to see some cosplayers do this:

Yup...Halo Spartans playing DDR.

It's something...

Several things here:

First off, I had a nephew on my wife's side pass away in a car accident at the beginning of the month. Very sad. Really good kid. RIP, Tanner.

Second, I got a dresser from a family member that was the perfect height and strength for the big ass TV I got the other day. Using the drawers to put my bins of games and accessories for the consoles in it.

I got around to playing with whatever S-video modified consoles I had. Of course, like when I played the CMVS in component for the first time, everything in S-video shined pretty nicely. The Genesis was a little bright, so I may or may not go back in to swap out components.

The Master System worked really well, and that's with using the original schematic for both Sega systems.

I just got though playing on the TG-16 through S-Video tonight, too. I played 1943 Kai, which worked out well with all the bright colors and movements. I got so caught up in the game that I finished it outright. At least I know my region mod is holding up.

I may jump in again and try out the SNES and N64 on that TV though S-Video. I'm also contemplating leaving my Dreamcast inside to use with my main HDTV since I did the VGA mod to it...might as well play at a higher res, right?

Anyway, playing on the TG-16 reminded me that I still need to clean up the internals from all my mods. I may have to redo the LED power indicator I made for it.

Oh, I also need to add that I'm still actively hunting a PVM monitor. The CL deal I've been eyeballing has fell on the wayside. There was a couple that posted up in the free section, but after I contacted them, the "seller" changed his tune and wanted money instead of just giving them away....S**T! Oh well. I'm still gonna pick one up if it comes up on the free section again.

CMVS revisited...

No, not tinkering with it.

Going back on the last post with the Wega I picked up, I decided to do a quick setup with my CMVS, hooking it up through the component inputs on the Wega.

Now, the component outputs from the CMVS did not work on my LCD HDTV. To get a sharper image playing Neo Geo games, the best I could do on it was S-Video.

Tonight, on the Wega, it worked. The image was...WOW! Not really RGB, but damn good enough for it.

Still scouring Craigslist for a worthwhile table for it, but I think we may go a different route instead.

New(ish) TV for old skool gaming...

...or retro gaming, nostal gaming, whatev.

Newest obsession? Checking out the "Free" section in my local Craigslist ads. First score from that? A 32" Sony Wega.

...I know what you're thinking...no, not really, but I got this TV because I was feeling like playing Beatmania and all the Bemani series again. However, because of latency issues with sound, my LCD HDTV sucks for playing music/rhythm games. I'm keeping my "current" gen game consoles inside (in a sense of the Wii, PS3, and 360) for streaming videos and for the kids.

...I gave up cable TV because it was just getting stupidly expensive. That, and there was nothing really on that I thought paying a premium for was worth. I can get stuff streamed through Netflix or Hulu or whatever.

Back to the subject. Now, I'm looking through for a decent sized table to set this beast upon. Also, once in a while, there's a great thing that comes up on the free stuff. Take, for instance, a "possibly" working Neo Geo Big Red arcade cab...I hate myself for double guessing. I should've just jumped on it. There was also a deal for some games that I was hunting for, but I missed out on that also.

I'm staying diligent on the deals there. If I see something in the Free section that I want, I'm nabbing it.

As it goes for modding...I haven't done anything recently. Not sure what to do next...maybe that project my wife is waiting for....

To RGB or not to RGB...

I have several options here. I have a PVM (read: one of the BEST monitors for RGB gaming) I've been eyeballing on Craigslist, and a VGA scaler (read: a little card that ups the RGB on older consoles/JAMMA from 15KHz to standard VGA specs), both of which allows me to upscale my current old skool consoles to RGB quality specs. Both involve heavy modifications (again, read: I have to get RGB from the console(s) to a modified connector to either the PVM or the scaler), but probably well worth it in the end....choices.

I may just get that PVM since it's listed so cheap. But still...

I killed my Dual Shock 3...

I tried replacing the broken analog stick...didn't work. I has a sad.

Regardless, I may try to retrace and fix any traces I might have fucked up. But that will be another time. Too damn tired playing Last Of Us.

In this new state of "frugalness"...

Read: I have no money to get parts for any projects I had lined up, so I have to make due with all I have available currently.

I may start easy and go with my V-Tech toy joystick to Neo Geo controller first. Then S-video my PCE Duo since I was able to source more connectors. Fix up my VGA mod on my DC...get around doing my wife's knitting needle hack...I got stuff to do, but soooooo much anxiety.

It's my own damn problem, but I think by working on what I'd like to be done with, it'll keep my mind occupied and not worry about it. I have a bunch of stuff I can work on...I may even offer mod services later...again, damn parts...

Can't believe some things...

Like, how bad was your storage container or area did you keep your stuff in? I just cleaned a SNES Game Genie that had a faded label, dirt and misc. crap all over it and a DEAD FREAKING SPIDER INSIDE?

I'm so glad that I'm anal retentive. I clean up any and all games before I let it even be near my systems. The contacts were well worked, dusted the board off. I also managed to de-gunk the cartridge slot on the Game Genie. Just freaking filthy.

I did manage to test it, and glad to say that it works well. I only have a handful of SNES carts that would work with it.

I just now finished scrubbing the case down. Letting it dry before I do another repair on it. Seem the plastic cartridge lock thing snapped on one side. I'm just gonna Gorilla Glue it in and call it good.

Also, managed to find The Legend of Zelda: Links Awakening DX and Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge for Gameboy. Awesome. Cleaned those out and they work perfectly! Batter on the LoZ cart seemed to be OK since there were still game saves on it.

Gameboy revisited...

I've had this Bung Doctor GBXchanger forever. I've since written several games to it when I was back on Maui. This was in the Windows 98 era and parallel ports were the preferred method of "hacking".

...hate parallel ports...

Anyway, the last game I've ever flashed on my GB flashcard was Beatmania GB 3...that was almost 15 years or so ago! I have been reluctant on getting it to work, just because it seemed like a chore.

Fast forward to now. A couple of weeks ago, I found a Gameboy Color while digging at Goodwill. Now I wanted to get newer games on the card!

Searched and searched on where to get the software so I can do it. Ended up using GBX Tool. I also used an old notebook computer that an in-law had laying around, not being used, with a parallel port on it. PERFECT for just this sort of thing.

Installed WinXP on the notebook, installed GBX Tool, got the GBXchanger primed, ran the program:

Cannot read card

...f**k!...

Tried another program:

Cannot find giveio.sys

searched again, tried another program:

Error windows galore!

Searching again out of frustration sent me here:
http://www.assemblergames.com/forums/showthread.php?33610-write-and-dump-a-Doctor-GB-Card-with-an-XG-Writer&p=582522&viewfull=1#post582522

I'm saving it for future reference just so I can build the USB reader they show there. But it did send me to another card flashing program. Downloaded, installed, ran it:

Cannot find giveio.sys.

...

I thought I had this file properly installed...But I guess not. Searches lead me to this site:
http://www.cs.ucr.edu/~eblock/pages/pictools/giveio.html

I did as it showed.

Ran FlashMaster...read the card perfectly! But it kept giving me the "Shareware" popup. I figured that now I have that file properly installed, I could try running GBX Tool again...success!

I was able to read the card, taking the old game off, and put on some new games that I've been wanting to play.

....I'm exhausted. Sorry if things look all over the place. My brain's not here, ATM.

While I was gone...

We got a new car. Rather, a minivan. Low miles for an 07, pretty clean title. I'm happy with it.

Payments, however, will be painful.

I'm getting much digging done while I can. So far, I picked up from forums/FB groups:

A modifed and hashed AES joystick.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past for SNES
Final Fantasy for NES

From Goodwill digs:

A complete Wavebird controller for the Gamecube (I usually find these either missing the battery cover, the dongle, or both)
Mario Paint for SNES
A complete teal Gameboy Color (the ones I find usually are missing the battery cover)

The next mod I'm planning will be for the Neo Geo. I have a V-smile controller that I plan on hacking. It has 4 buttons that are perfect for the NG. The one I got also has one huge button that I'm sure I can reroute to be used for puzzle or shooting games. This'll be fun!

I may or may not do the Xbox arcade mini cab project this year. I have to make sure our funds align.

Not VG related, but...

My car died. I had it since I moved here in 2001...wow, if it survived until September, it would've been 12 years in my possession. And since it was a '97, it's roughly 16 years old.

I guess my April challenge couldn't have started at a better time.

I've (rather, we've; my wife and I) decided to not attempt repairs on it since I feel it's past its prime. We COULD just break down and get all the necessary repair work done on it, but we feel it best to move on to another, hopefully more reliable, vehicle. Time to start looking, I guess.

April Challenges...

As I mentioned before, I implemented monthly challenges instead of doing New Year's Resolutions, since you can break resolutions and you fail challenges. Anywho, my February challenges carried over to March, which now carried over to April (I gotta stop failing). I added to the challenge this month to not spend any more money on games or anything game related. Trading is ok, postage is just a formality on both sides of the trade.

So, no more hacking parts, no more games, no more thrift store digging...here we go.

To hold me over, I finally got the Everdrive N8 for the Famicom. I already got it set up and running, but since the mapper support isn't all that great, some of the games sound cruddy. Support, however, still goes strong since KRIKzz (creator of the Everdrive series) works on them personally and usually turns out quick and proper fixes....and no, I technically bought it last month. It takes time for stuff to come to the US from Ukraine.

Famicom A/V mod...sans Jail Bars!

Thanks to some forum peeps @ Neo-Geo.com, I figured out my jail bar problem.

According to one of the guides @ FamicomWorld.com, it said, coming from one of the "gurus" of the scene, that only a .01uF cap was needed to filter the bars. Turns out, it wasn't.

I upped the filter first to 32uF, then to 47uF. Like magic, the lines were a lot more faint.

...F**K!...

I just used some caps I had available. I'll have to swap it out in the very near future.

So, yay! I'm happy it's much clearer now.

Famicom...modified...

I done did it. I don't like playing games through RF, and I don't think I can ever go back to that. So what do I do?

I A/V modded the Famicom I got last week.

Was it easy? Kinda, but I'm used to crap like this.

Here's the mod itself. I took instructions from various sites.

It still gives me the "jail bar" effect when I'm playing, but it took a while to get to a decent point. What's not shown is the modifications I did to the RF box itself, since it's built together with the power circuit on the same board. I may go back in and try to use the mod I did with my TL NES...but at a later time. I'll live with the bars for now.

All buttoned up, primed and ready. I (brutally) removed the original RF jack and used a standard gold plated RCA jack for video. I removed the channel selector switch and added a 3.5 jack to use for sound. So yeah, I made it just like I did with the TL NES. I'm happy with the results.

I also broke down and got the Famicom version of the Everdrive N8 (a flash cart that uses SD cards). I can't wait to use it in this machine!

Fami, fami, fami...

Got the Famicom the other day. Along with an Avenue 6. All from WindyGaming.com. It took some figuring out, but I got it to work just fine.

I learned that my LCD needs to recalibrate signals coming from coax...probably common knowledge to most, not to me though. Anyway, it functions just fine. Very happy with the results.

Much thanks to WindyGaming.com for the sale and a lot of support. I suggest checking them out if you ever get the retro itch.

Here they are. Yes, I bought Gradius, too.

Dead computer...clean cartridges...

So, my desktop decided to go all AI on me and turn on and off at random. I showed it by switching the power supply off. Mobo might be going bad. Oh well. Time to build a new one.

In the downtime, I've managed to revive my brother's old notebook for use while I source parts for the new computer...damn, that thing's slow.

I've also been cleaning a bunch of cartridges. Did a bunch of NES and Genesis games I'm planning on keeping from that big haul from last year. Gonna clean up the Atari ones in a few days, seeing that I may be inundated from my pending Wisdom teeth removal tomorrow.

Speaking of Genesis games, I cleaned up a mod on a Model 1 Genesis I did a while back by securing wires for the A/V mod and shortening those wires. Put it with a disconnect for future openings. I'm trying to figure out how to get stereo sound without tapping the headphone jack connections just because of the volume slider and the static-y noise that comes from it. Will report success or failure in future reports.

NES "Stereo" Mod redux and an extension cable for the PC Engine...

I FINALLY got to break in my new soldering station. Took some getting used to, but the fact that it heats up quick makes it easy to get the project going and continue without unplugging and whatnot.

Anyway, I changed the "Stereo" mod up in that NES I did a while back. There was a tutorial, so to speak, that I saw that had no potentiometer. So, I went in, removed the mixer potentiometers inside, and hooked it up straight like that...Sounds a little better than with the mixer in there. I left it as is. 

*pic placeholder*

I also did an audio mod, adding a resistor to the unused expansion connector. This allows extra sound channels or something from Famicom games that have them. 

*pic placeholder*

I also, for the heck of it, made an extension cable using some cabling that I had and connectors I got from Fry's. 

*pic placeholder*

The stock cable from original PCE controller was too short (~3ft or something ridiculous like that). I used a 6 foot cable and extended that ishh. Now I can lounge on the couch while playing some old skool Ninja Spirit or Bonk's Adventure or something. 

Since I have the soldering station out, I'm going back in to clean up an old mod I did on a Model 1 VA7 (crappy model 1) Genesis. Maybe I might put that up for sale with all the spare Genesis carts I have from that score I got a while ago. 

Goodbye, Sega Saturn...

 I'm trading this little bit of kit in a few weeks. I had it just laying around, collecting dust. This is a Model 1 Saturn. I already have a Model 2, modified to play burns and region modded.

It's kinda bittersweet giving this guy up. This is one of the first mods I've done on a console. As I primed it to test (just installing a new battery for the CMOS) I was reminiscing on this mod:

It was the late 90's. The Playstation and Saturn were the current gen consoles. Also, X-Men vs. Street Fighter was popular in arcades. When it was released to home systems, I picked up the Playstation version (the only current gen console I had at the time)...popped it in to play against friends....DAMN LOADING TIMES!

A friend of mine just got the Saturn version of it. The game required the use of the 4 MB cart that was packed with the game (Japan version, the only one released). Because his console was for US region, he used another cart to load the game, then swap carts to get the 4MB to register...It took some time, but when we got it right, the fun would last all day and night.

He since got tired of the swapping and sold this Saturn to me. I was excited, but I could never get the swap just right. There was days that I just got tired of trying and trudged playing the Playstation version.

I got bored one night and Yahoo!'d (best search engine of the late 90's!) Sega Saturn import. I came up with a link to GamesX.com; a console information site for video information, controller pinouts, and some region modifications. That's where I read about the region switch; a DPDT toggle switch that will change the region of the Sega Saturn from one region to another.

I printed the instructions out, and pretty much studied it for a long time. When I was confident enough, I went out and bought the parts and went to it.

...The instructions said to cut or break the resistors that were in the way for the region mod. I still remember using my needle nose pliers and breaking those resistors off. If I knew then what I know now, I would've just used the soldering iron and desoldered them from there.

After a good 8 hrs taking it slow, I was left with a lovely region switch modified Model 1 Saturn. I remember electrocuting myself on the first initial test because I forgot to put the plastic shielding back under the power supply. That was fun.

After reinstalling everything properly, I first tested a US region game. Loaded up just fine. I then popped XvSF with the cart in place. Flipped the region switch, crossed my fingers, turned it on...On the first try, the game loaded. NO MORE SWAPPING! XvSF CHALLENGES WITH FRIENDS FOR DAYS!

I've since got a Model 2 that already had a region mod installed. I just put in a modchip to play burns and called it good. I was thinking of adding a modchip to this Model 1, but there were none available. All that exists is a mod for the modchip for the Model 2 that will work for the Model 1...forget it.

I know, though, that this baby will go to a good home and get played more than I did back in the day. I'll miss it.

I'm trading it for a Japanese Famicom. It's just something I've wanted to add to my collection since I've been hooked watching Game Center CX on YouTube.

Goodbye, Sega Saturn Model 1. You will always be the first console I've modified. May you give the same joy to your new owner as you did I back in the day. We will always that XvSF and KoF '95 to reminisce on.

2013's Challenge...

I'm doing a challenge thing than a resolution (since resolutions can be broken and be OK, for some reason...). My modding challenge is this:

Make a bartop arcade cabs using second hand parts and scrap wood. 

I'm planning on using an old Xbox as the main brain of it, which I already got for $19.99 at Goodwill. Tested and worked. Even got a bonus game with it. Softmod is in the future along with a bigger drive. I may attempt to do this or have it done by someone else. 

The monitor with be, again, from Goodwill. I'll be looking for a 17" LCD to use. 

I'm gonna reclaim joysticks from those Jakks Pacific arcade game things with Pac-man and Galaga on it. Again, searching thrift stores for that. 

Wood, I'm getting either from my brother in law from the wood place he works at in the scrap bin or from IKEA's As-Is area. They usually have slip sheets that are 1/4" or so that go for $1 a sheet. It's a decent size too. 

The only thing I may have to get new is buttons and some stuff from Ultimarc.com. I plan on making all controls JAMMA compatible, so I COULD use a JAMMA board...but that might change soon, too. 

Still trying to figure out how to connect the Xbox to the LCD...I guess I have time.