Worklog Supa-64

[Goodie175]

Starting off my 2nd attempt at an N64 portable. The first time i tried was about 15 years ago when not too much information was avaliable about setting up such a portable besides hard to find forums, Youtube videos, and pictures on Googles image search.

First thing i did was trimmed my N64 board following the Advanced Trim Guide. This was the first time I trimmed a motherboard with the exception of snipping off a usb port on a Ps2 for the Ultra Slim mod. It was definitely nerve racking but following the guide definitely helped. After that I checked the voltage pins on the motherboard to make sure nothing was shorting to ground.

Making sure to remove the PIF circuitry before trimming the board I then ordered some PIF Relocation Break-out boards and awaited the arrival. The boards arrived and I wired them up as per the schematic. I got stuck at one point when my pin 6 and pin 7 were all connected even though the guide said they needed to be reconnected. Gman assured me it was fine and I persisted on.

I wired up some PTH80808WAD regulators with the correct resistors and capacitors and checked that they output 5v and 3.3v respectively.

Finally I was almost ready to test. I wired up all the circuitry, finished the relocation of the PIF, extended the cart slot, wired up my screen, and made sure the regulators were properly connected as well.

Flipped the power switch AAAANND.... NOTHING. my screen flickered every few seconds but nothing past that... I checked my wiring with a multimeter and it all checked out... made sure my PIF circuit wasn't wrong and checked voltages kn the motherboard. All was correct but it wasn't booting?

Took the game out (and against many peoples advice) gave it the ol Nintendo Blow. Plugged it back into the cart slot flipped the power switch AAAAND... VOILA! It booted!!!

As for now the project is going in the right direction. I didn't take as many pictures as I could have but I do have a working unit.

Also sorry for the messy desk

NEXT UP: Design a case to 3d Print

 

[Y2K]

Great work on the trim, looks fantastic! Can't wait to see what you come up with!

 

[Goodie175]

Great work on the trim, looks fantastic! Can't wait to see what you come up with!

Thanks, I need to work on my 3D modeling but I'm sure I can get something going

 

[Goodie175]

Okay so update time!

I found the files for Downings N64 portable and decided to give them a try rather than rack my head against a desk trying to make something decent. I did modify the Joystick to fit an OEM style instead of a PS2 or similar one. I just wanted the authentic feel of the gates when I move the stick. The D-pad is also wired up after making a custom PCB out of some perf board I had lying around. The screen is in place but I believe I need to sand down the cutout a bit as it fits a little too snuggly. I plan to wire up the rest of the buttons and print the back plates out within the next couple of days.

 

[Goodie175]

Update #2 finished wiring the buttons and joystick to the chopped up controller board. Screen and Audio controls are next and the top half should be done. I will be testing out the controls on another n64 to make sure everything is working properly. R, L, and Z will be wired up after the rear case is completed and they are accessible.

 

[Goodie175]

Update #3 hopefully second to last!

So I have the console fully wired up and it does work! The knky remaining things to do are to wire the R, L, and Z buttons. I am having a slight issue with the audio though... the audio does work you can hear it but there is also a ton of constant static. I used the connections for L and R audio from the diagram in the N64 Trim Guide : https://bitbuilt.net/forums/index.php?attachments/av_2-4-png.15216/

I took the Left and Right Audio and connected them to a PAM8803 amplifier then to the same speakers that are recommended for the ashida. I changed my grounding point for the amp to multiple different places as I thought maybe another connection could be interfering with the audio quality but any ground I used it just had the same static.

If anyone knows of a way I can resolve this I'd appreciate it as I really can't wait to finish up this portable.

The wiring for the amp is hopefully viewable from the pictures I uploaded.

 

[Goodie175]

Final Update

All is completed! I was able to fix the sound issue I was having by soldering pin 8 from the U1 chip to pin 15 of U4. I saw this fix in a thread by booshman I believe. After that the audio works perfect. I fabricated some slats to connect the 2 halves together and test fit until the case fit perfectly. Fit my 2x 18650 cells with the respective BMS circuit inside and finished wiring the front to the rear. All in all it turned out great I'm forever greatful to Downing for his 3d models as well! I didn't plan on using models made by someone else in the beginning but after seeing what great design it was I couldn't help myself