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First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 2:15 pm
by Kwanzilla
Hello fellow modders. I have decided to join the modding scene and wanted to make a gamecube portable. I just had a couple questions before I get started.

Cutting the motherboard:
I was considering doing the ALMOSTWTF cut for the motherboard. Is there any advice for not cutting off too much?

I'll post WIP pictures/videos once I get started.

Re: First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2012 2:31 pm
by _Nold_
Hey, cool!
As you may saw, i'm just working on my first portable, too ^^
So i'm hoping for many nice pics :D

An advice for cutting: Lot of patience and don't cut as closely as possible to "the red line" ^^

Re: First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 3:07 am
by Kwanzilla
Day 1 Progress Report:
Today I have opened up my gamecube and removed several of the connectors. I only had my iPod Touch with me so I had to use it for now. Anyone see anything troublesome yet?

Re: First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 3:13 am
by emu_kidid
looks fine. never needed macro so badly :)

Re: First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 4:05 am
by megalomaniac
have i been drinking too much, or are all those pictures blurry???


as for the burgundy color, you may have ripped off the traces, but you wont need em since you will cut em away during your board cut....
and if you dont cut, those just appear to be GND connections...
no real worries, the board still looks good so far...



suggestion....wire everything up before any cuts to ensure you have it all working....
then unsolder all your wires and cut the board and wire everything up again...
lets hope everything still works...


good luck...
and get better camera if possible...

Re: First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 5:42 am
by _Nold_
Nice unsoldering ^^

i even can't see a lot on your pic's please get a better cam next time >.< :)

Keep it up!

Re: First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 12:05 pm
by liquitt
aaahh there's nothing like looking at blurry photos on a hangover morning :D

Re: First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012 9:24 pm
by Kwanzilla
Took some better pictures today. I am getting ready to order parts for my portable. What is the best way to test if the motherboard is working? (wanted to test it before trimming)

Re: First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2012 2:09 am
by megalomaniac
damn...i must be sober, talk about having a moment of "clarity"


to test the board, connect wires as if the board was already cut
this serves two purposes, it confirms the board works and most importantly, "IMO" it will test your wiring is accurate...

Re: First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Fri Apr 06, 2012 10:11 pm
by Kwanzilla
Tested my uncut Gamecube and everything works just fine. I placed an order for:
Wiikey Fusion - http://www.modchipcentral.com/store/wii ... river.html
SD Gecko - amazon.com
6x 3.7V 2600mAh Li-Ion Batteries - http://www.batteryjunction.com/2600pcb-18650.html

Still need to figure out the following:
Casing
Screen
Controller Layout
Regulator
Audio

Going to make Mario's low battery indicator - http://forums.modretro.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=3640

Lots of planning to come.

Re: First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Fri Apr 06, 2012 11:04 pm
by Ashen
Those cells are intended for single cell use only:
These fully protected cells simplify usage with their integrated PCB. Perfect for your single cell application these cells are not for pack building as doing so will defeat the PCB protection which is matched to the correct voltage on a single cell. If you are building a pack please choose one of our other cells and the appropriate PCB.
Hopefully you can cancel the order and order the proper cell/protection/charger combo still.

If you plan on building a custom regulator you can get most of the parts free as samples from TI.com

Re: First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Fri Apr 06, 2012 11:22 pm
by Kwanzilla
Was able to cancel in time. Thank you for noticing so quickly! I am currently browsing through ebay from your suggestion to someone to look for canon bp battery packs. I came across this http://www.ebay.com/itm/Battery-for-Can ... 33532490d2 and didn't see any issues, but since I'm fairly new to this I wanted to check to make sure it's workable.

Re: First Gamecube Portable

Posted: Thu May 17, 2012 12:47 am
by Kwanzilla
Sorry, it's been a while since I've posted anything. I've been busy but now I have a decent amount of time to work on my portable. Right now I am trying to wrap my head around all the wiring I will need to do.