Worklog First wii portable for final paper

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Hello as a dutch student we have a final paper to finish pre-university education and i am allowed to make a WII handheld for a final paper, so i'm stoked to do it, but after reading tons on this website i still have some spots i'm clueless about, like wiring the display, but that will come later. First i wanted to make a parts list of everything that i need, so far i got this from all the guides:

  • Nintendo Wii, 4 of 6 layer board, currently got a 6 layer board wii at home, but unsure if getting 4 layer is worth is as people say making a 6 layer handheld is easier?

  • Powerport

  • Switch

  • Red changing board

  • 4x pth 08080w or Wii Power Management System (but this seems hella expensive to ship to EU)

  • Soldering iron (got one)

  • Voltmeter (got one)

  • 4x 18650 battery

  • 5 inch 480p screen? unsure if VGA mod is doable as a beginner so not sure which

  • 35x35x7mm fan + heatsink

  • pam8803 amp + 5x 20mm Round Mylar Speaker 1W 8Ohm

  • Squishy tacs x200

  • Fake gamecube controller to tear down

  • GC+ pcb board ( not sure how difficult it is without it currently because they are out of stock )

  • Flash drive
  • 26 gauge (for Voltage)

  • 22 gauge (for Ground)

  • 38 gauge (magnet wire)
this is currently all what i got so far, is there anything missing so far that i have not seemed to notice from other worklogs / guides?
 

Ekterm

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A 6-layer draws quite a bit more power and therefore needs more cooling, so a 4-layer is highly recommended and will greatly increase the usability of the portable. The 4-layer is not much harder than the 6 to trim, only the bluetooth relocation comes to mind where you need to scratch off solder mask and solder directly to the two traces rather than soldering to vias on the 6.

As for the screen, the easiest best quality option would be one that has native component input, the two I know of are the Eyoyo 5" or the L7009 7", more about them on the BOM - https://bitbuilt.net/forums/index.php?threads/portablizing-bom.367/
I haven't done the VGA mod yet, but yes it would be harder for a beginner with all the tiny soldering, but the screen would be a little cheaper.

The GC+ is pretty much DA WAE, as actual gamecube controller circuitry is much bulkier, needs more power, and isn't configurable. Apparently they are a good beginner SMC soldering difficulty, so you could just buy the parts and build it yourself.

Otherwise I think you've got everything, good luck on your paper!
 

jefflongo

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To elaborate on some points:

A 6 layer board uses almost twice the power of the 4 layer so you'll get around half battery life and will require a more robust cooling system, therefore 4 layers are highly recommended.

The PMS is also great to have because not only does it replace the PTH regulators but also it eliminates the need for the red charging board. The PMS is an all in one battery management and voltage regulator solution.

GC+ are stocked relatively frequently as of now so I would hold off and get a hold of one of those. It's also open source, so you could always build one yourself.

The VGA mod requires soldering to two pins on the AVE chip so it does require a bit of fine soldering but I believe it's totally doable by a beginner provided you have a decent iron, flux, and magnet wire.

That said, add FLUX to your list. An absolute necessity for soldering. And get some good stuff too like chipquik or kester 951.

26awg is not sufficient for voltage, unless it's low power. Use 22awg for all the main power lines.

You mentioned a voltmeter but you also definitely need an ohmmeter as well to measure continuity. I assume you meant multimeter that has this functionality.

Everything else looks good, how are you planning on creating the case? That's something to think about that takes a nontrivial amount of time. Best of luck!
 

BocuD

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General Kenobi
As a fellow dutch student lemme know if you need help / parts or want to meet up :D
Project looks fun, I wonder how they'll think of it at the university you want to go to. I'm assuming Eindhoven or Delft?
I'm actually in my 5th year vwo right now, so I'll probably be in the same position in about a year. You're in 6 vwo I'm assuming?
Good luck!
 
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A 6-layer draws quite a bit more power and therefore needs more cooling, so a 4-layer is highly recommended and will greatly increase the usability of the portable. The 4-layer is not much harder than the 6 to trim, only the bluetooth relocation comes to mind where you need to scratch off solder mask and solder directly to the two traces rather than soldering to vias on the 6.

As for the screen, the easiest best quality option would be one that has native component input, the two I know of are the Eyoyo 5" or the L7009 7", more about them on the BOM - https://bitbuilt.net/forums/index.php?threads/portablizing-bom.367/
I haven't done the VGA mod yet, but yes it would be harder for a beginner with all the tiny soldering, but the screen would be a little cheaper.

The GC+ is pretty much DA WAE, as actual gamecube controller circuitry is much bulkier, needs more power, and isn't configurable. Apparently they are a good beginner SMC soldering difficulty, so you could just buy the parts and build it yourself.

Otherwise I think you've got everything, good luck on your paper!
alright i'll keep an eye out for the GC+ stock, as for the 6 layer board or 4, im still planning on using the 6 unless i somehow messup the 6 layer board. and thanks, ill definitely look for a vga screen if can manage it
 
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To elaborate on some points:

A 6 layer board uses almost twice the power of the 4 layer so you'll get around half battery life and will require a more robust cooling system, therefore 4 layers are highly recommended.

The PMS is also great to have because not only does it replace the PTH regulators but also it eliminates the need for the red charging board. The PMS is an all in one battery management and voltage regulator solution.

GC+ are stocked relatively frequently as of now so I would hold off and get a hold of one of those. It's also open source, so you could always build one yourself.

The VGA mod requires soldering to two pins on the AVE chip so it does require a bit of fine soldering but I believe it's totally doable by a beginner provided you have a decent iron, flux, and magnet wire.

That said, add FLUX to your list. An absolute necessity for soldering. And get some good stuff too like chipquik or kester 951.

26awg is not sufficient for voltage, unless it's low power. Use 22awg for all the main power lines.

You mentioned a voltmeter but you also definitely need an ohmmeter as well to measure continuity. I assume you meant multimeter that has this functionality.

Everything else looks good, how are you planning on creating the case? That's something to think about that takes a nontrivial amount of time. Best of luck!
the only issue i have currently is that i do this with a friends, and we both have 2 6 layer wii's laying around, so it feels like a waste to buy a 4th, i know of the battery / more heath, but besides having the handheld working, using it much isnt gonna be a thing for us, as we already own different handhelds.

as for the pms, it seems great, besides the steep shipping price, another thing i think my school would like is the PTH regulator way as it seems like a more work type of style if you get what im saying?

For the flux, all look for it, never heard of it tho, we have never used it in school either when soldering or with other small projects i did. also thanks for the wire, i got the 26awg from someones answer on the sub so i assumed it was correct.

VGA is definitely gonna be looked into than, as for the voltmeter, i meant a multi meter yes, but not used to the term because we just say voltmeter in school.

The final paper in holland (atleast in my region) is always done in pairs. so my buddy is gonna try to make a 3D printed case, but we currently still need to look into that. Thanks for your time and answer tho!
 
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General Kenobi
As a fellow dutch student lemme know if you need help / parts or want to meet up :D
Project looks fun, I wonder how they'll think of it at the university you want to go to. I'm assuming Eindhoven or Delft?
I'm actually in my 5th year vwo right now, so I'll probably be in the same position in about a year. You're in 6 vwo I'm assuming?
Good luck!
Currently indeed in vwo 6, our school just started really late with "PWS".
as for the parts, currently really looking where to find the regulators, i can find all sorts of modules pth 08080xxx but unsure which is really the correct one. and thank you!
 

jefflongo

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I believe @Noah was saying there's a problem with international shipping right now on the store and that there are cheaper options. I wouldn't really say using the pth regulators + red board is any more diy since the pth regulators are a preassembled part that you just add a resistor and a capacitor to and the red board is a preassembled board as well, that mind you are less efficient than the PMS.

Just an FYI, building a portable is not cheap. The Wii is the cheapest part of the build. You can easily pick up a 4 layer for 15 bucks. Seems like a waste to spend so much on building a portable and to not spend the few extra bucks to get a 4 layer.

Flux helps make solder joints smooth, helps solder stuck, and separates bridging. Doing things like soldering to vias is pretty much impossible without flux.
 
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I believe @Noah was saying there's a problem with international shipping right now on the store and that there are cheaper options. I wouldn't really say using the pth regulators + red board is any more diy since the pth regulators are a preassembled part that you just add a resistor and a capacitor to and the red board is a preassembled board as well, that mind you are less efficient than the PMS.

Just an FYI, building a portable is not cheap. The Wii is the cheapest part of the build. You can easily pick up a 4 layer for 15 bucks. Seems like a waste to spend so much on building a portable and to not spend the few extra bucks to get a 4 layer.

Flux helps make solder joints smooth, helps solder stuck, and separates bridging. Doing things like soldering to vias is pretty much impossible without flux.
hmm that makes sense, the only thing is right now that the PMS is 40 bucks to Holland, and thats steep a price, ill have to consider it tho.

i for sure know it aint cheap, so my thinking right now is to buy a black or blue Wii from CEX and sell the white one on dutch eBay variant.

as for a random question, not really sure to put in a separate reply or not, but i've loaded portablizeMii on my Wii as of right now, after failing for a long time because i didnt read something properly but the issue is currently loading wii games.

Gamecube games run perfect, but any wii game i try to run go into a black screen and than the Wiimote disconnects, ive been looking around on the forums and people say its a USB problem, but ive tried 3 so far, so really unsure if i do something wrong or the that many USB brands dont work?
 
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GingerOfOz

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The SD card adapter seems to have pretty much universal comparability with most everything we've tried. Don't use super cheap brands, but Samsung and SanDisk cards have worked without issues.
 
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The SD card adapter seems to have pretty much universal comparability with most everything we've tried. Don't use super cheap brands, but Samsung and SanDisk cards have worked without issues.
Alright big thanks! gonna order one of those plus the rest of the components tommorow :D
 

BocuD

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If you need a 4 layer wii, i've got two laying around, you can have one for 15eur if you want :). Usually theres some good stuff on marktplaats (the dutch ebay thing), but if not theres this convenient site: https://www.mariowii.nl/wii_spel_info.php?Nintendo=Wii_-_Originele_Reserve_Onderdelen they sometimes have "scratched up" black wiis for 15eur as well. I'd get the PMS btw, ask noah about shipping, 40 is definetly too much. The PMS kinda does everything for you, battery management, regs, battery charging and all that so imo its worth it.
 
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If you need a 4 layer wii, i've got two laying around, you can have one for 15eur if you want :). Usually theres some good stuff on marktplaats (the dutch ebay thing), but if not theres this convenient site: https://www.mariowii.nl/wii_spel_info.php?Nintendo=Wii_-_Originele_Reserve_Onderdelen they sometimes have "scratched up" black wiis for 15eur as well. I'd get the PMS btw, ask noah about shipping, 40 is definetly too much. The PMS kinda does everything for you, battery management, regs, battery charging and all that so imo its worth it.
found a cheap one in my city that is a colored so should be a 4 layer, but thanks! ill ask him but if not, did u ever buy the regulators in holland? if so where?
 

BocuD

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I always bought my PTHs from farnell since they have a UK stock, they are quite cheap there. I used a proxy order thing though https://muxtronics.nl/onderdelen/ because you apparently need a KVK number to order from them directly. Looking at it now it seems the owner shut it down, so i dunno how it is now. I don't really use PTH regulators anymore though, Gman's Wii PMS really is much better considering the other features it has. (in my current project i'm using my own designs, though the regulator section on those boards are pretty much copied from Gman) If you still want to use the PTH regs i think ebay may be your best option. Make sure you buy them from the UK, Germany, China or France or something though as shipping from the US usually means import duties.
 
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I always bought my PTHs from farnell since they have a UK stock, they are quite cheap there. I used a proxy order thing though https://muxtronics.nl/onderdelen/ because you apparently need a KVK number to order from them directly. Looking at it now it seems the owner shut it down, so i dunno how it is now. I don't really use PTH regulators anymore though, Gman's Wii PMS really is much better considering the other features it has. (in my current project i'm using my own designs, though the regulator section on those boards are pretty much copied from Gman) If you still want to use the PTH regs i think ebay may be your best option. Make sure you buy them from the UK, Germany, China or France or something though as shipping from the US usually means import duties.
just out of curiosity, is there any possibility of me buying one of your designs? or isnt yours universal?
but thanks for the advice!

Update as of now, got a 4 layer board, but also found out that the 6 layer board i have is the one that uses the least amount of power of the 6 layer ones according to this: http://forums.modretro.com/index.php?threads/wii-board-revisions-guide.14059/ since i got the 30, but that note with it didnt seem nice so i bought a 4 nonetheless
 
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BocuD

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just out of curiosity, is there any possibility of me buying one of your designs? or isnt yours universal?
but thanks for the advice!
No, sorry, they are very much not universal and i don't plan on selling any designs. Once i complete a portable with them and know the designs are good i might open source everything though. But don't expect that to be anytime soon, as it'll take at least a few more weeks to finish my current project and a few months after that to properly test it.
Update as of now, got a 4 layer board, but also found out that the 6 layer board i have is the one that uses the least amount of power of the 6 layer ones according to this: http://forums.modretro.com/index.php?threads/wii-board-revisions-guide.14059/ since i got the 30, but that note with it didnt seem nice so i bought a 4 nonetheless
I wouldnt use a rev 30 board to be honest, as just the CPU got a die shrink here and not the gpu, so it only draws a little bit less power then a rev 01 would use. Rev 40 and up is the way to go for sure, they really do use that much less power.
 
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new issue: got the recommended kingston micro sd card reader, wiht a 64gb samsung evo, but the damn wii games still wont launch, any suggestions?
 

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new issue: got the recommended kingston micro sd card reader, wiht a 64gb samsung evo, but the damn wii games still wont launch, any suggestions?
Did you use guiformat to format the card? If not, do that.
 
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