Dual-Voltage NES Controller Mod w/ USB charging

[candre23]

It's not quite finished, and it's only half working, but I think it's far enough along to show some pictures. Nothing is glued down yet. The atty connector will be flush with the side of the controller when it's done.





Press A for 3.7V

Press B for 5V

At least that's the plan. Right now, only 3.7v is working. I have to dig out my multimeter to track down the problem. I'll post more / better pics when it's 100% finished. It's 6:30 AM and I've been working on this since just after midnight. I think I should get some sleep first.

Thanks go out to everybody who gave me help and suggestions.

 

[Classic_Crisis]

that is sooo effing awesome.

 

[MrPuff]

One of the most badass mods I have seen on shear retro factor. I would totally pull out a NES controller and vape it.

 

[Grimtooth]

my first thought when looking at that was...

DAMMMIT... why did i get rid of my NES...

Now I am wondering how much tough it would be to get a controller...

Seriously awesome mod with huge appeal to anyone in my age group, I would have some incredibly jealous friends if i could pull that one off.

Are you just making it a USB PT or going battery box? how tall is it? could maybe stack 3-4 10440's in the directional control section I bet...

Grim

 

[ImYourSalt]

looks great! i'd love to get my hands on one of those

 

[Sgood1971]

that is sooo effing awesome.

This.

Please keep us updated.

 

[candre23]

Are you just making it a USB PT or going battery box? how tall is it? could maybe stack 3-4 10440's in the directional control section I bet...

It already has a battery That really bright bit on the internal pic is a foil-wrapped 220mAh LiPo. I'm getting the 3.7v directly from the battery, and the 5v from the USB circuitry. The USB circuit and battery are both out of a Digipower Jumpstart. You could definitely fit some 10440 cells in there, but you'd have to remove most of the remaining controller PCB and shave down a lot of internal plastic bits. As it is I had to cut out one of the screw posts to get the battery I'm using to fit. You'd have to glue down the d-pad and possibly the start and select buttons too (no room for the membrane, and no PCB to hold it in place), so you'd lose the "controller" feel. You'd also have to get creative with connectors, since there definitely isn't room for a traditional AAA battery box. I was actually considering something like a wide rubber band to hold metal connector plates on the ends of a 10440, but decided to stick with the LiPo.

 

[Global_Apathy]

what about a flat battery pack

 

[candre23]

Sure, if you can find one to fit. The jumpstart should even charge anything that's 3.7v.

 

[Craig Patterson]

OMG... you steal my glory? Get the idea from my site?

Craig

 

[jimmyjams]

Mother of god!! That is sweet!

 

[candre23]

OMG... you steal my glory? Get the idea from my site?

Nope. I had the idea for this before your site was even up. Besides, mine uses the original NES buttons and has a built-in battery, so I win.

 

[candre23]

As promised, more/better pics:












I found my meter and I've got 0V at the USB pin, which would explain why it doesn't vape at 5V. It looks like I fried the 5V boost chip somehow. Oh well, 3.7V works just fine and the board still works to charge the battery and function as a USB PT, and that's good enough for me. If anybody is interested in repeating this mess, I think the pics should give you enough of an idea what you need to do.

 

[redeyedancer]

Awesome mod

 

[doxzilla]

Sure, if you can find one to fit. The jumpstart should even charge anything that's 3.7v.

How about a Nintendo DS replacement battery? Those things are like 1200mah and aren't very big. Is the jumpstart expecting the mah of the battery to be within a certain threshold? Like would having it charge a battery with 6 times the capacity totally throw it off?

 

[candre23]

If it's a 3.7V battery it should work. Somebody in the original jumpstart thread tried it with an old cell phone battery and it did the trick. It took forever to charge though, since the board only charges at like 100mA.

 

[Global_Apathy]

you should add a mcu and make the konami code do something ... hmmm ... nerdgasm

 

[SavePaperVapor]

My birfday is coming up. hint hint.

 

[Raven_Blackblade]

Two words for ya...... DO WANT!!

 

[Sci]

Hey Candre23, you need to get one of those small digital recorders & record some original nintendo sounds. See if it will mount inside & let it fire off when you press the vape button.