TL NES RGB mod done...

TL (Top Loading) NES or NES2..whatever people are calling it nowadays. Anyway, I finished installing the NESRGB in it.

It's been a while since I modded my TL NES. I did a simple A/V mod using a PNP transistor and some other components and tapping the video signal from the PPU. It worked, but not without it's own problem. Biggest one being jailbars on the video signal. So, NESRGB gets ordered and installed.

It's no different from the AV Fami installation. There's just one caveat: audio. What's not mentioned is that audio will need to be tapped directly from the CPU. It doesn't need to be tapped on the AV Fami since audio is already there on the connector.

Audio tapped on pin 1 and 2 on the CPU. Pin 1 needs to connect to the "A" pad on the NESRGB, pin 2 to the "B" pad. It does mention this part in the NESRGB pinout PDF, though...yeah, I missed that the first time, whatever. Audio can then be output to, in my case, the multiout connector from the "O" pad on the NESRGB.

Final installation. I ordered this piece from Laserbear.net. It was a complete kit (Adapter connector, multiout PCB, and the 3D printed back panel). I ordered it in this "Famicom Red" color; I really like the color offset. Plus it gives it some color from it's roots with the OG Famicom.

It's nice to knock out some of these mods that I've been meaning to do for a long time now. I did have an opportunity to get an Hi-Def NES kit (HDMI NES), but I skipped on it...I may regret that, but there's word that there's more being made with newer components. I have my old front loading NES that could benefit from that mod.

Next things I may be working on is my Coleco Gemini, Atari 2600 Jr., OG Famicom, or Game Gear. Stay tuned!

Sega Master System modding...

I've loved my Master System. It was my first 8 bit console. To this day, I still love playing it. 

I had already modded my Master System previously. I added composite, S-Video, and audio out jacks to it, making it amazing to play even now. But there was a few more things that I wanted to do to it before I say it's done. One is get a better RGB mod done to it, the other was modding it to output FM sound.

I finally got around to ordering the FM sound board from etim's FM sound board. There was some shipping issues, but we figured it out and it eventually got to me. 

The FM sound board is the board all the way to the right. I also ordered another NESRGB for my top loading NES. I don't think I need to document the install process for the TL NES since the install is exactly like the AV Fami. I'll post up pics of the final installation, though.

The board comes mostly assembled. I had to solder in the card edge connector to it. Per the instructions, I soldered the connector with a slight tilt. The instructions also said that the top shielding needed to be cut, but since I took the RF modulator out, I figured that I could just eliminate it altogether. That cable to the upper left of the board also comes preinstalled.

I stripped the cables to expose the 2 wires and the shielding. The wires needed to go in where a capacitor is removed. 

The capacitor C37 needs to be removed here. This is where the wires from the cable needs to go. I also had to scrape some of the solder mask to solder the cable's shielding wire to.

Here's all the wires and the shielding soldered in place. I put a small strip of kapton tape over some components near to where I soldered the shielding to, just to protect it from shorting out.

...Yeah, again, previous mod I did in my early days. I'm gonna go back in to clean it up. In the meantime, kapton taped to the bottom shielding. 

I tested the install, using my RetroTINK to my old monitor. Happy to say that it all works! I'll eventually get a video up with the comparison of both of them soon. 

The controller I used to test the Master System was a really old one. Button 2 felt really squishy. I figured since I had the soldering station on, I should try and fix this.

These are the membranes that was in the controller. That PCB is there just to show how worn out the membranes were. It's really bad.

I bought a package of 5mm buttons for another project. I had to flatten out the pins and trim some of the plastic from the bottom of the switch, just so it sits flush against the controller's PCB. I used my flush cutters to trim the plastic. The bottom of the switch in the pic is where it's been trimmed, the top is what was needed to be trimmed.

After figuring out what pin does what, I trimmed 2 legs off the switch and soldered it to the board. I tried to get them centered on the pad. However, even with it being flush against the PCB, the buttons were too tall to be in the controller.

The controller buttons needed to be trimmed. The button on the right was untrimmed. The left one has been trimmed with flush cutters. With that bit of plastic trimmed away, the new switches fit perfect under them. 

The new switches made the buttons nice and clicky. Much more responsive than before. I was thinking about also soldering those switches for the control pad part, but the pad is still functioning fine. That may be another project in the future.

For now, I'm happy with how my old Master System is now. Awesome sound, improved controller. Just gotta get the video even more improved and it's good to go!...then I can work on my Master System 2.

Arcade 1up modding...

 Working on getting an Arcade 1up modded with a Raspberry Pi. My friend (the PRGE Xbox work friend) bought this cab for a car sales lot that he works at to keep kids buisy, and the Pacman Arcade 1up that was there wasn't cutting it.

First off, the internals when I got it... 

...ugh...wire (mis)management...He said that there was controller issues, I check all of it and they were all wired wrong.

Wrong size hole saw used for the button holes for a coin button. That blowout makes it not only ugly, but it made it so the button wouldn't sit level in there. 

...ugh...

...UGH...

Monitor contoller...just hanging there...H A N G I N G   T H E R E !

The monitor was tilted back enough, but my friend wanted it tilted back even more.

...I don't even know what's going on here. I'm not gonna even think about what's going on here.

Speakers and amplifier mounted on the front panel. Unevenly spaced, no symmetry, self tapping screws to "secure" them to the panel...no...

Lastly, joystick wire connections...soldered on...barely...JUST   B A R E L Y !

As you can see, I already hate it. It had to be done to a point where it had to look clean.

I really didn't want to do this project...at all. But since I'm more familiar with Retro Pie setups, I ended up (reluctantly) taking the task.

FIRST THINGS FIRST! WIRE MANAGEMENT!

I took out all the wires and also desoldered all the joystick wires. I cleaned up the ton of solder that was on the joystick switches, then crimped on connectors to them. I zipped tied all the wires, put velcro tape on the USB joystick encoder, called it good.

I took the speakers in the lower panel out and tried to see if they would fit in the stock speaker location...they don't. So I may just keep it for a future project. The stock ones sound ok.

There was an issue with getting sound out from the Pi, so I had to force it to output audio from the 3.5mm jack to make it work. I relocated the amplifier to the back, far enough to be out of the way. To protect the cables going into the amp, I made and printed an enclosure that simply bolts on. I used hex screws and nuts to lock everything in place.

I had to do some trimming for the panel to allow it to tilt as much as possible. I ended up taking the sides out a bit and took the top off a little as well. Don't really care for it, but not my cab to make that decision. I'll have to use vinyl tape to cover up the old channels that the monitor panel used to slide into.

I put some kapton tape on the back of the monitor and some industrial strength velcro straps on to the new monitor controller board. The other one was stretching out the image too much. I also printed a mount for the Pi that hangs on the side panel with velcro tape. 

Here's how it looks currently. There's a panel we're waiting for to mount the coin buttons and I should be able to close it up. I managed to get some of the buttons to light up as well.

At this point, all that's left is more cable and power management. I'm ready to be done with this thing. 

There are more things coming up, just waiting on parts to come in.

Stuff done, no pics...

 I keep forgetting to carry my phone when I do stuff, so I have no pics. Shame on me....oh well.

I've been working on getting an Arcade1up Raspberry Pi conversion working perfectly for a friend. So far, it's been nothing but headaches for me. Audio doesn't work properly, the controls were screwed up, images were all washed out...Just a gigantic headache. I've sorted out the controls, so that's working perfectly. We're getting a new monitor control board, so that should help even more. 

I've ordered an LCD mod kit for one of my Game Gears (granted, it's a clone). It's just a matter of time until I get it. I'm contemplating on getting one of my Game Gears prepared for it. If I screw it up, I have at least one more that will work. I'm also planning on getting one consolized, but that's another story.

I got an ultrasonic cleaner. I figured it would come in handy for cleaning some PCBs from stuff I find digging at thrift shops or game conventions. I've tested it cleaning some arcade switches that I took out of the Neo Geo and the Atomiswave. The ones from the Neo Geo were really crusty. Most of the buttons were really sticky (slow response). I put them in the cleaner with a cleaner solution and let it go through a few 4 minute cycles. All the switches turned out pretty clean. I still have to test them to make sure they still work.

My mind is all over the place. I've been pretty exhausted. I should just take a break from everything for...I dunno, a month or so? I'm not really feeling like myself lately.

Original Xbox softmod DONE!

 Again, not without headaches. 

I took a week off of work, just to relax my brain a bit. I was hoping to get the OG Xbox hard drive swapped before we went out for a weekend family getaway, but because of winter storms, the new hard drive didn't arrive until the day we were leaving. That's fine. I just threw it in my office and we went on our weekend.

When we got back on Sunday, I took a little break from the drive then dove into swapping the hard drive. I followed a tutorial on YouTube to for an app that clones the stock (modified) hard drive to the new hard drive. I got to a point that I thought that I selected the wrong option and tried to go back a step. Instead, it ended up formatting my new hard drive and locking it.

...

I tried everything I could to get it to work, but nothing I tried worked. 

Feeling defeated, I texted my friend (the one that I help for PRGE setting up Xboxes)to help me get this drive back in order. I went over to his place, and maybe about 30 minutes later, we got the drive working with my Xbox again. While I was there, I had him update it to the latest version of the softmod and the updated dashboard to the latest version as well. All was good after about an hour.

As soon as I got home, I installed some games that I had already set up to the Xbox and ran some initial tests. Pretty much everything was good to go!

...tha-that's it. I'm hoping to get more things done soon.