cy
.
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2020
- Messages
- 142
- Likes
- 411
- Portables
- 7
After >100 hours of 3d modeling, lots of test fitting and assembly work, and many other challenges, my first original portable is finished!
The Cyxty Four
This portable was inspired by @Wesk 's Ashida Wii portable which took an original GameCube controller and "digitally frankencased" it. In other words, Wesk took a 3d scan of a GameCube Wavebird, stretched it, and turned it into a portable. This project applied that idea to the N64 by taking Wesk's Brawler 64 3d scans and essentially doing the same thing Wesk did. I didn't do anywhere near as good of a job as Wesk did with the original Ashida, but I'm still happy with the results and I plan to improve this build in a second revision down the road.
Here is a video I took of the Cyxty Four in action:
Here are some comparisons for yall:
As you can see, it's not much longer than the original Ashida, and it's only a few millimeters taller because the Brawler 64's geometry goes a bit higher than the Wavebird's.
The bottom of the unit has a headphone jack, fan intake, volume wheel, battery door, and two switches. One switch toggles the controls between the internal controller and the breakout box's player 1 port. The other switch toggles the composite video signal off for the screen to keep the original signal's integrity when playing on a TV or CRT.
On the top of the unit from left to right we have the following:
USB-C Charging port, USB 3.0 port (for the breakout box), Screen power button, Reset button, Battery indicator via RGB LED, and the power button.
The breakout box supports video out along with 4 player multiplayer!
Here's what it looks like:
It plugs into the aforementioned USB 3.0 port on the unit.
My video mentions the analog gate, but doesn't show a side by side comparison between my console and the original N64 controller, so here it is:
It is difficult to make out because the front part of the joystick is so big, but the analog gate works surprisingly well according to the custom Everdrive controller testing ROM.
It's internal time!
Under the motherboard rests two heatsinks, a 5 volt fan, the U-Amp, PMS1, Charging board, Volume Wheel, RGB LED, Power, Reset, Screen Power buttons and USB 3.0 port (which wasn't mounted yet when this picture was taken):
(Don't worry, I used more thermal paste than what's shown in the picture...)
With the motherboard in place, you're not able to see a ton because of the electrical tape. You can at least get an idea of what's going on inside though. Mounting was done using holes in the motherboard, and brackets were used to ensure the CPU, RCP and RAM are all making proper contact with the heatsinks and fan. When I unavoidably had to unscrew and lift the motherboard once in this build, both heatsinks and the fan were very stuck to the RCP, CPU, and RAM, so I know they're all making great contact with the cooling solution.
The front contains the screen, controller, speakers and nothing more. Yes I did resort to double sided tape and hot glue for mounting the screen driver board and controller PCB, but I wouldn't have been able to get a unit this thin without doing so.
Keep in mind that these pictures were taken a fair bit of time before closing up the unit, so residual flux, bad connections, or any other problems you may see in these may have been resolved between the time of taking the picture and me actually closing the unit.
Something else I'll mention is that this console is undervolted from 3.3v to 2.8ish volts using a PMS1 that I modified with help from @Y2K and @YveltalGriffin . Undervolting increases the battery life, lowers the internal heat, and is better for the components in general if done correctly, so I thank you two and @Wesk sincerely for encouraging me and helping me to do this!
I also want to thank @cheese @CrashBash @Gman @Teatimetim @CrazyGadget @GingerOfOz @Shank @Wesk @Redherring32 and other members of the community for giving me feedback, advice, and other help with this project. This wouldn't have been possible without you all!
The Cyxty Four
This portable was inspired by @Wesk 's Ashida Wii portable which took an original GameCube controller and "digitally frankencased" it. In other words, Wesk took a 3d scan of a GameCube Wavebird, stretched it, and turned it into a portable. This project applied that idea to the N64 by taking Wesk's Brawler 64 3d scans and essentially doing the same thing Wesk did. I didn't do anywhere near as good of a job as Wesk did with the original Ashida, but I'm still happy with the results and I plan to improve this build in a second revision down the road.
Here is a video I took of the Cyxty Four in action:
Here are some comparisons for yall:
As you can see, it's not much longer than the original Ashida, and it's only a few millimeters taller because the Brawler 64's geometry goes a bit higher than the Wavebird's.
The bottom of the unit has a headphone jack, fan intake, volume wheel, battery door, and two switches. One switch toggles the controls between the internal controller and the breakout box's player 1 port. The other switch toggles the composite video signal off for the screen to keep the original signal's integrity when playing on a TV or CRT.
On the top of the unit from left to right we have the following:
USB-C Charging port, USB 3.0 port (for the breakout box), Screen power button, Reset button, Battery indicator via RGB LED, and the power button.
The breakout box supports video out along with 4 player multiplayer!
Here's what it looks like:
It plugs into the aforementioned USB 3.0 port on the unit.
My video mentions the analog gate, but doesn't show a side by side comparison between my console and the original N64 controller, so here it is:
It is difficult to make out because the front part of the joystick is so big, but the analog gate works surprisingly well according to the custom Everdrive controller testing ROM.
It's internal time!
Under the motherboard rests two heatsinks, a 5 volt fan, the U-Amp, PMS1, Charging board, Volume Wheel, RGB LED, Power, Reset, Screen Power buttons and USB 3.0 port (which wasn't mounted yet when this picture was taken):
(Don't worry, I used more thermal paste than what's shown in the picture...)
With the motherboard in place, you're not able to see a ton because of the electrical tape. You can at least get an idea of what's going on inside though. Mounting was done using holes in the motherboard, and brackets were used to ensure the CPU, RCP and RAM are all making proper contact with the heatsinks and fan. When I unavoidably had to unscrew and lift the motherboard once in this build, both heatsinks and the fan were very stuck to the RCP, CPU, and RAM, so I know they're all making great contact with the cooling solution.
The front contains the screen, controller, speakers and nothing more. Yes I did resort to double sided tape and hot glue for mounting the screen driver board and controller PCB, but I wouldn't have been able to get a unit this thin without doing so.
Keep in mind that these pictures were taken a fair bit of time before closing up the unit, so residual flux, bad connections, or any other problems you may see in these may have been resolved between the time of taking the picture and me actually closing the unit.
Something else I'll mention is that this console is undervolted from 3.3v to 2.8ish volts using a PMS1 that I modified with help from @Y2K and @YveltalGriffin . Undervolting increases the battery life, lowers the internal heat, and is better for the components in general if done correctly, so I thank you two and @Wesk sincerely for encouraging me and helping me to do this!
I also want to thank @cheese @CrashBash @Gman @Teatimetim @CrazyGadget @GingerOfOz @Shank @Wesk @Redherring32 and other members of the community for giving me feedback, advice, and other help with this project. This wouldn't have been possible without you all!
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