gc-forever - Gamecube/Wii Forums

Hey put me down for one megalomaniac

i have not opened the list yet...it will be first come once the go on sale (after the original sign up list)

whenever i finally put these on sale, someone remind me to send the switch also....
with everything going on, i know im gonna forget that part unless im reminded...

okay, no worries

I hope I'll be able to order a full set!
The boards are really good looking, nice work megalomaniac

getting closer...

In the words of Yoda.

"Mine, mine"

*hits Megalo with his cane*

Seems like someone doesn't want his 3 MX chips anymore... lol
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dl ... 0884674858

HAHAHA too funny...thanks for sharing...
not a bad project if someone wants to try to make the circuit..
as ive indicated before, the tolerance is very forgiving as can be seen from the pic in the very first post of this thread...


maybe benni should have asked if he could send me his chips so i can make separate boards for him...
the current design does not allow to solder in a socket adapter and a socket would be a bad idea anyways since there is no reason to remove the chip...

oh well

hailrazer wrote:In the words of Yoda.

"Mine, mine"

*hits Megalo with his cane*

in the words of Count Dooku to Yoda:
"this is just the beginning"

Holy crap! I'm just coming back to this thread after a Hiatus (bought a house, job promotion, had a baby, all in about 6 months) and this is amazing! Mega, props on deciding to do it the right way; these are beautiful. I'm bummed to see that I didn't jump on the original list so i guess I'll just have to subscribe to this thread.

One last thing, I just realized that this project is well over a year in the making. That's definitely inspiration to start some of my own projects that I had been holding off on because I wasn't sure people would be up for waiting.

Keep up the good work!

If still available and possible, could I be put on the audio board only list? I think I'm going to get my hands on a component cable soon and I'd like to just add the digital audio to it

dantheman2865 wrote:One last thing, I just realized that this project is well over a year in the making.

over one year...heh...yea i keep surprising myself when i think how much time and effort ive put into this project for this long of a period...
i hope this does motivate you and others...
i myself have strived to provide the best possible solution with this design...as well as with the previous scrapped designs...
i was never been completely satisfied with the final outcome...ive known there was something better that could be done...



trying to duplicate a design is easy....
trying to create a new design can be challenging...like having a blank canvas and trying to paint a masterpiece...
i think the blank canvas was the the most fun yet stressful aspect of this project...
having the image in your head and then having the final product in hand is a great feeling...
but as i have eluded to in previous posts...this final design is special...this is only the beginning...
( to borrow a quote from transformers toys )..there is more than meets the eye...

A brief recap on the evolution of this project

looking back on this thread there were many discussions on possible direction for development...
a lot of thinking and analyzing...a lot of pre-run fitment trials...a lot of redesigns...a lot of beer drinking to help reflect
my favorite idea was (and always has been) to make this an external plug-n-play device...
anyone remember this pic i posted up about a year ago?




this pic was one example of the direction i had hoped for these boards to achieve..
of course the connection method i had developed for this was not up to my level of satisfaction standards...
at this point, i abandoned the thought and focused on internal only design in which i then developed the also failed "tower of pins"





i think i lost a lot of time on the tower of pins...i was never satisfied with the idea of hard soldering the MX board onto the mobo...
at this point i slowed down on development to drink some more...
some beer and BBQ really helps get away from the situation...
then i spent some time moving to another city...
spent some time doing a suspension lift on my jeep...
spent some time creating megaloader...
spent some time on the DVD adapter boards..AND BAM!! this turned out to be the pinnacle for redesign of the current mx boards...
the digital port replacement could be in the form of an FFC adapter board...
the MX board was redesigned with only a few changes...and the digital port replacement was created....


the the final result of all my beer drinking:



first i want to discuss the design of the digital port replacement adapter
the digital port and official component connector uses 22pins...
my FFC port replacement uses 22 pin connections to the mobo with only a 20 pin FFC cable...
there are multiple GND points which were all tied together on my adapter design which allowed me to use a lower cost FFC connector and lower cost FFC cable...
i assume its lower cost because 20 pin is more common that 22 pin???
so this simple method of "cheating" by combining GND's has allowed a cheaper final cost...


now lets talk about the main MX board
the MX board i designed uses an exact 1 to 1 pinout of the digital port / official component pcb...
...almost exact...
i am using 20 pins instead of 22 eliminating two redundant GND points...and allowing me to draw traces thru those two missing points...
i guess this also allowed me to "cheat" the design to make everything work in the end...


but as i stated...this board is special...
"more than meets the eye"


Flawless victory!
i am extremely thrilled to be able to finally unveil the last surprise about this project...
im also celebrating right now by getting extremely wasted...
since the main MX board is an "exact" 1 to 1 pinout, this allows it to accept an official digital port connector (minus two pins which have been removed)



this is the result of a functional test of the board with the connector:



and using a cereal box to cut up and make a mock up example:




so as ive said, "more than meets the eye"
this board is able to be used as an external device...more details on the requirements to make this external will be provided later...
i still have to solder up all the ide-exi boards and unveil that final project design....but i just wanted to post a quick pic shots of what can be achieved with this MX board design...
but what about the digital port connector??


note: "xxx" is a member on this forum, if you know who he is please dont bombard him with PMs...
well..this is where "xxx" comes into play...
i am currently trying to work a deal with "him" to obtain and wipe out the entire stash of cables he has come across...
i can remove the connector from the official MX board, attach the connector to my MX board...then VGA mod the official boards and resale to the portable modders...

this could be a win win situation...
the modders will have a VGA capable board ready...
my boards will have digital port connectors...
of course i do not believe there will be enough connectors for all boards so this offer will only be available to those who are willing to make the commitment to extra cost...


I am hoping to work out a deal with "xxx" to get official component cables and also waiting to get an available cable count,
i will open the sign up list soon...but i want a bit more time to work out details on the cable and also allow a few days for everyone to consider the following terms:

1. the component cable price from "xxx" is 60$...
2. "xxx" requested an additional 5$ "finders fee"...
3. I suggest a 10$ finders fee to show appreciation for offering the ability to obtain the cables to GC owners...
4. for those interested a total of 70$ will be provided upfront for the cost of the cable (a deposit)
5. after connector is removed and relocated to my board the board will then be sold to the interested party who provided the initial deposit
6. the official board will then be modded to VGA for the modders and will be put up for sale at the price of ~60$.
7. once the VGA mod board has been sold, i will refund the ~60$ cost
8. your total loss is ~ 10$ ( or alternative outlook: you purchased a connector for 10$ )
9. i will not provide external case housings...you will have to make that on your own...im kinda done with this project


note : stipulation #6 if you do not want to sale "your" official board, i will sent it to you with or without VGA mod (your decision)
also, if you have an official cable and would like to "upgrade" to my board, send me your cable and i will remove the connector and either sell your board or send it back...


a lot to think about...please consider you ideal usage: internal or external....
also the official name of this board will here on forward be known as the "MEGA3"

why 3?
1. YPBPR +
1. VGA +
1. Fiber optic audio
= 3

MEGA3

Gratulations, that looks really nice. I didn't really understand the calculation of the price. Did I get that right that we have to pay 70$ + 60$ and will get a 60$ refund later? Or how much do we have to pay? My english isn't that good. Sorry.

hunter291 wrote:Gratulations, that looks really nice. I didn't really understand the calculation of the price. Did I get that right that we have to pay 70$ + 60$ and will get a 60$ refund later? Or how much do we have to pay? My english isn't that good. Sorry.

good question...unfortunately im in the process of getting wasted and did not want to get into costs as it can get really confusing...
well maybe only confusing to me at the moment...but here is my attempt to breakdown final costs:

the 70$ up front fee ( deposit ) is to "potentially" obtain an official cable from "xxx"
the cost of the MEGA3 has changed for a few reasons...
i originally targeted and posted a price of 49$ plus shipping for the first 10 on the sign up list..(considering I would self manufacture the boards)
i will honor the 49$ price i originally posted for those first 10 on the sign up list since i already "committed" to that price....


since this project has evolved to include professional PCB production cost and extra FFC board and connector/cable costs, all boards after the initial 10 sign up list (meaning everyone else) will cost 65$
i apologize to anyone who may feel let down by final cost, but it is what it is...
please forgive the following statement but: tough shit if you dont like the price....this is what the total fees have come out to for this project...

i could be an asshole and charge 125$+ for this but my goal has always been to provide the lowest cost possible...
not to mention i do plan to put one or two of these on ebay for 250$ to see if i can actually make some kind of profit in the year plus development i have put into this project...



but for members here i do not think 65$ is a hard price to swallow considering its almost half the current price of an ebay component cable while having digital audio included....


so in the long run...as stated in prior post above:
70$ deposit for the official component cable...remove the connector and install onto MEGA3...
+ 49$ MEGA3 cost for the first 10
+ 65$ MEGA3 cost for everyone else after the first 10

since 70$ up front deposit minus ~10$ will eventually be returned, the final cost of the boards will be 59$ (for the first 10) or 75$ (for everyone else)..
this only pertains to those who are committed to having an external plug-n-play device...
also, good luck finding anything close to what i have designed at a cheaper price...



if this post sounds to aggressive, then you either cant afford these costs or you dont realize how great of a deal this actually is

Ok, I see. How much time is there between the first deposit (70$) and the second payment (50/65$)? Would be nice to know, so that I know if I can afford it.

hunter291 wrote:Ok, I see. How much time is there between the first deposit (70$) and the second payment (50/65$)? Would be nice to know, so that I know if I can afford it.

for example...
provide deposit now
then possibly one week turnaround to receive the cable and make mods...
then MEGA3 is ready for purchase...



there will be no guarantee to time of repayment for initial deposit
once the modded board is sold, deposit will be returned...it could be 1 week or 1 year....
or the official board will be sent back to "you" and deposit returned immediately...
only "those committed" will be willing to provide this deposit and wait for the reimbursement.... or receive original board back with immediate reimbursement....

this is the most fair and ethical solution i have considered to make the external MEGA3 a reality

man who is "xxx"? I'd love to get my hands on a official component cable for that cheap.

Diminuendo wrote:man who is "xxx"? I'd love to get my hands on a official component cable for that cheap.

hehehe...right

That's clever thinking and redesign. Hmm, I'm going to have to consider this option now. Does this mean the audio only boards are all spoken for?

Wooooah! It get's back to be an plug'n'play connector! Nice megalomaniac!
Also: the picture quality makes those boards look so professional. can't wait
I would totally take that original-connecter-option, but I would take that official component cable modded to VGA, too.
Possible?

Yea - me too...

I think i also want the mod i signed up already and want a new (MEGA3??), too...

And if i understand what you wrote then it means you can get official component cables cheap?
and for the external Mega3 you need the connecter soldered to the offical cable?
So then the cable has no use FOR ME without that plug BUT in the cable is a mx chip!?

So you can build MY external device with this cable?
(cause you have the connector and the mx chip)

Why not buying then a internal device i have already signed up and an extra external one?
I hope this is possible - the internal goes to my GC with WODE an the external is for testing and playing...

One last Question:
I have ordered "many" things now (from YOU) - can you tell me, how much it will cost and when you think you are ready to sell and to ship?
Cause i´m sick/ill and money is rare now ( i can´t work and i think it will last another month or two...) and i have to save money then!

I have ordered an internal Mega3, (maybe an external, too - when i understood)
a component cable,
a "Wode" plug in Adapter
a WKF
(are there some more oredrings i didn´t recognized?)

Thanks

am... where do we sign up...?

@DragonBoy: You just don't sign up at all. There was a list in the beginning but it's closed so far (see page 1). There will be subscription later when all this is finished, I think.
@Benni: I don't get it.

benni
i would like to at least try to limit the MEGA3 (internal or external) to one per person.
you decide if you want internal or external (external requires up front deposit for cost of official cable)

also benni i was wondering about a statement you previously made: viewtopic.php?p=9644#p9644
do you even have a DOL-001 Gamecube?