Worklog First Wii Portable Attempt

[zen_kyle]

Hello BitBuilt!
This will be my first post here, and I got to say I'm pretty excited. So a little backstory I was building a Gamecube portable initially and got pretty far before deciding to scrap the project and go for gold. I basically started with zero exp with soldering and electronics in general. I learned a lot from the peeps at GC-Forever and various youtube videos. I was able to manage getting a Rev C board down to almost the smallest cut and had all the ancillaries wired up too. I'm waiting for a Wii to come in the mail so i can get cracking and decided to make a worklog to document my progress and also get some much needed help from you guys. Heres some of my work with the Gamecube. I know the Wii is gonna be a whole other beast but I'm pretty stoked for the challenge. Any feedback/advise from you guys appreciated.

 

[The_Smeags]

Be sure to get the regulators needed otherwise you probably wont be able to make process.
EDIT: in the early stages

 

[cheese]

The Wii is 1000000x easier than the GC, just make sure to do all the softmodding with Portablize Mii before trimming!

 

[zen_kyle]

Be sure to get the regulators needed otherwise you probably wont be able to make process.
EDIT: in the early stages

Yea with the GC it was kinda nice to have the regulator board already there so i could test everything before having to build it. Its a little daunting knowing that one of the first things I do with the Wii will be making my own (i have never made/used voltage regulators) and that there's gonna be 5 of them! Good thing there's literally tons of info here and all over the web to help.

The Wii is 1000000x easier than the GC, just make sure to do all the softmodding with Portablize Mii before trimming!

It seems like a really straight forward mod with a lot of in depth info already on this site. Portablize Mii is an awesome resource, Im glad I stumbled across it before doing any type of cuts with a Wii.

I do want to keep the wifi attached even though i know its popular opinion to just scrap it. I literally just realized that there are people still playing PSO Online using private servers and that is still one of my favorite games of all time. it would be pretty dope to be able to play online again Those soldering pads are friggin tiny though!.

Thanks for the feedback! ill post more as soon as I get my stuff in the mail.

 

[cheese]

Its a little daunting knowing that one of the first things I do with the Wii will be making my own (i have never made/used voltage regulators) and that there's gonna be 5 of them!

5? 1v, 1.15v, 3.3v, and 5v, what's the 5th voltage? Regardless, the PTH08080s are super easy to use, just put a couple resistors (a specific resistance though!) between two pins, a cap on the input, and you're set.

I do want to keep the wifi attached even though i know its popular opinion to just scrap it. I literally just realized that there are people still playing PSO Online using private servers and that is still one of my favorite games of all time. it would be pretty dope to be able to play online again Those soldering pads are friggin tiny though!.

The gamecube one? As of now, the way we run gamecube games (through nintendont) doesn't support online/network play. AFAIK even with official stuff, you couldn't do netplay for gamecube games through any means on Wii...

Anyway, can't wait to see where this leads!

 

[zen_kyle]

5? 1v, 1.15v, 3.3v, and 5v, what's the 5th voltage? Regardless, the PTH08080s are super easy to use, just put a couple resistors (a specific resistance though!) between two pins, a cap on the input, and you're set.

Oops I meant 4 even still I don't want to accidentally fry my Wii by making a mistake.. I was saving that bit for last on my GC portable too. I think I noticed some people put two capacitors on the regulators is there any benefit to this?

The gamecube one? As of now, the way we run gamecube games (through nintendont) doesn't support online/network play. AFAIK even with official stuff, you couldn't do netplay for gamecube games through any means on Wii...

I saw a video of of someone using Devolution on the Wii to access private servers but they were using an official disk.. is this the only way it would work? The video was posted in 2013 so maybe its outdated a bit.. That's a bummer. Here's the video I watched just for reference.
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/UEByqyGMLh8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[zen_kyle]

Actually this appears to be the updated version for a different server.

 

[cheese]

Oops I meant 4 even still I don't want to accidentally fry my Wii by making a mistake.. I was saving that bit for last on my GC portable too. I think I noticed some people put two capacitors on the regulators is there any benefit to this?

I'm not entirely sure of the benefit, I've had consoles successfully boot/function without the caps on the output, but it may be a good idea to put them if you've got room and money for them.

I saw a video of of someone using Devolution on the Wii to access private servers but they were using an official disk.. is this the only way it would work?

I didn't actually know about this, however I would assume it to be the only way as I haven't seen any other USB loaders that support that.

The pack doesn't use devolution to launch gc games, however you may be able to get that to work, provided you own the original game (devolution requires you to verify your game at least once to play it). Official Devolution Thread.

Also, if you intend to keep the wifi on the board (instead of re-wiring it) you will be limited to a basic trim (aka ONLY cut the outer grounding plane). We do not support any intermediate trims as it requires a decent amount of work to get working, and will be an extreme hassle to troubleshoot if it stops working (as there are hidden internal layers that can cause problems). If anyone suggests a trim that is not a basic ground plane trim or the OMGWTF trim, they will be your only source of support for said trim.

Lastly, do you intend to make this a laptop styled portable? It may be slightly bulky as a handheld.

 

[zen_kyle]

I'm planning for a OMGWTF cut and i'm gonna shoot for getting the WiFi relocated (if i find i cant do it ill probably just start with a new board and cut the WiFi dream)

I have the original GC game and the Dreamcast Version too

When I was planning on a GC Portable I had a case design that I copied from the PSP that was about 40% larger. I made it a 3D file and used a program called Pepakura to convert it into a 2D printable file that I could build out of cardstock as a reference to see if i could mock up everything inside. Its a pretty crude design but if i know i can make it work with the size constraints I'll work on making it more ergonomic and aesthetic. Then I'll go about trying to copy that into a mold I can make into plastic. Its a precarious plan but it just might work..

 

[cheese]

Can't wait! I would suggest you try the wifi relocation before you trim to make sure you don't waste a board for nothing

 

[Aurelio]

Download the portablizemii pack with the wifi option enabled, but when you install it select the option to remove the WiFi.
In this way the Wii will boot even without the WiFi module, but you won't be able to boot into neek (or wii games) if the WiFi module isn't connected properly because the emunand won't have the NoWiFi IOSes installed.
After you made sure that your Wii boot into neek then it will mean that the WiFi is connected in the right way and you can enable it also on the sysnand, (if you really need to)

 

[BocuD]

Can't you just install the no wifi ioses in emunand as well? This sounds easier...

 

[Aurelio]

Can't you just install the no wifi ioses in emunand as well? This sounds easier...

Sure, if you select the option to disable the WiFi when you download the pack you get an emunand eith the IOSes already installed, but doing what I said zen_kyle can test if his WiFi relocation works without risking to make the board useless

 

[cheese]

Can't you just install the no wifi ioses in emunand as well? This sounds easier...

He intends to keep the wifi, but if you wire it wrong the console will be bricked if you choose keep wifi. If you have keep WiFi on the emunand that allows you to test it without bricking the console

 

[BocuD]

Oh, I see. I thought that he might be able to just skip the wifi relocation all together without even risking anything, and just doing bluetooth. But for testing without emunand no wifi ioses then you can indeed test it without risk.

 

[zen_kyle]

Can't wait! I would suggest you try the wifi relocation before you trim to make sure you don't waste a board for nothing

Good idea, I'm really hoping I can get it to work. Does anyone know why the WiFi is so finicky with the way it needs to be wired? My Wii should be arriving today

 

[Aurelio]

Good idea, I'm really hoping I can get it to work. Does anyone know why the WiFi is so finicky with the way it needs to be wired? My Wii should be arriving today

It works on a quite fast protocol, so it's very sensitive to interferences and crosstalk between the different data lines.
Follow my steps and you won't risk any board

 

[zen_kyle]

Download the portablizemii pack with the wifi option enabled, but when you install it select the option to remove the WiFi.
In this way the Wii will boot even without the WiFi module, but you won't be able to boot into neek (or wii games) if the WiFi module isn't connected properly because the emunand won't have the NoWiFi IOSes installed.
After you made sure that your Wii boot into neek then it will mean that the WiFi is connected in the right way and you can enable it also on the sysnand, (if you really need to)

I had to re-read this a couple of times before I understood what it meant. Its a clever work around, thanks for the advise! I dont have a lot of exp with Wii gaming or softmodding so this is all very new to me. I'm shocked at how much is now possible with the Wii its almost like the perfect console now.

It works on a quite fast protocol, so it's very sensitive to interferences and crosstalk between the different data lines.
Follow my steps and you won't risk any board

Thanks for clearing that up its been bothering me.

 

[Aurelio]

I had to re-read this a couple of times before I understood what it meant. Its a clever work around, thanks for the advise! I dont have a lot of exp with Wii gaming or softmodding so this is all very new to me. I'm shocked at how much is now possible with the Wii its almost like the perfect console now.

Sorry, I tried my best to explain myself in a clear way

 

[zen_kyle]

Sorry, I tried my best to explain myself in a clear way

Like I said this is all brand new to me so its my newbishness thats to blame lol