Question Casual attempt at pWii, various questions

[Wulf]

I picked up a used Wii last night for $30 with a vague goal of portablizing it. My only experience with making things portable so far has been on a pNES (I may be more in love with making the acronyms than actually doing the work), which was a great learner system. Pics here for anyone that wants to see the battery/screen i'll be working with -
Spoiler: I didn't finish, or make it pretty, but it's technically portable and currently residing in a cardboard box with a hole cut around the screen.

I've been ripping apart my systems for various mods since I was old enough to hold a screwdriver, but my skill level on the soldering side of things is more along the lines of "persistent idiot" than "artist".

So anyway, first question. I have two 7.2v NiMH batteries. I could put them in series and power the Wii that way for a minimum of hassle, but a single battery is so much simpler. I haven't fully explored the Wii schematics but it seems to me that nothing but the 5v regulator expects a voltage above 5v. Is it possible to leave the 12v line unpowered, take my setup from the above pics (7.2v connected to 5v regulator - http://canada.newark.com/webapp/wcs...estType=Base&partNumber=72R3616&storeId=10196 ) and just supply 5v to a point just past the built-in 5v regulator?

This seems overly simplistic, but since all the other part's datasheets seem to have a max input voltage of 6v, I'm assuming they must all tap into the 5v.

I'll have more questions eventually, but I suppose that's an important one to start.

Sidenote - blue wii with no GC ports, any idea which revision? Anything special to note about it?

 

[JacksonS]

Unfortunately, the Wii's regulators (the ones that bring 12v down to 5v, 3,3v, 1.15v, and 1v) won't function on any voltage lower than around 10v. That why you have to use your own custom regulators for each voltage line if you want to use a battery setup lower than 10v. People usually use one PTH08080 regulator for each voltage line.

Your blue Wii is one of the latest revisions, so it is compatible with the Wii trimming guide that's currently available.

 

[Wulf]

Would that be one of these?

http://canada.newark.com/texas-instruments/pth08080wad/dc-dc-converter-non-iso-pol-1/dp/58K6010

Priced a bit higher than what I'm currently willing to devote to the project. Maybe on a v2. Though if I'm ordering specifically for this project, there's no reason the below wouldn't work at a lower price, right?

http://canada.newark.com/murata-pow...36-c/dc-dc-converter-switching-reg/dp/72R3615

...and some other equivalent one for 1.2v which I can't find with a quick filter-narrowing.

Is the one you mentioned just recommended because it's easier to have 1 type of something than a bunch of various types, or does it offer any other advantages?

 

[JacksonS]

I think the PTH08080 is generally much better than other regulators you might find at the same size, as in it's more efficient and produces less noise. It also offers more current than the second one you linked. That other one may not be able to deliver enough current to some of the voltage lines.
The PTH08080 is normally only half the price of the one you linked, like this.

 

[cheese]

If you go on ebay, they get even cheaper. Also @JacksonS, when suggesting things to buy, make sure you go on the appropriate website, CAD ($) price will always be higher than USD ($) price.
Try these, it's a little cheaper if you include shipping: http://www.ebay.ca/itm/152226981520

As for actually connecting them, I would suggest powering the other regulators directly from the battery vs from the 5V regulator, since they can pull a decent amount of current.

 

[Wulf]

I did some more searching after posting that link and found some that *should* be cheaper, but haven't looked into shipping yet. That's usually where these things ramp up in price. A bit more reading does lead me to believe that the PTH08080 is what I'll be wanting, if I can get it at the lower price.

Cheese, I wouldn't normally power the regulator off of another regulator when given the option, I was just basing that off of my apparently incorrect understanding that the other regulators had a 6v input max instead of a 10v input min. Thanks for the ebay link, I'll check it out tomorrow when I have some time.

Right now I'm just ripping it apart and finished with the portablize install. I hadn't heard of it until a few days ago, but I've gotta say, awesome job with all the work that went into that. It's way smoother than the last time I modded a Wii with the SSBM save. Only hiccup was when I noobed it up and had the USB in the wrong slot, but powered through that easy enough.

Anyway, back to it. Thanks guys.

 

[cheese]

Cheese, I wouldn't normally power the regulator off of another regulator when given the option, I was just basing that off of my apparently incorrect understanding that the other regulators had a 6v input max instead of a 10v input min. Thanks for the ebay link, I'll check it out tomorrow when I have some time.

Just making sure Definitely check out the shipping costs from digikey, however unlikely, it may be cheaper than the ebay listing (make sure to change the .com to .ca to get CAD prices instead of USD prices!)

 

[Wulf]

What input voltage range should the Wii accept?

I tried first with 14.4v. Red LED came on for 1 sec, then off.

Reworked some stuff and was providing 12.6v off batteries, and it did the same thing.

Reconnected regular power supply and it powered on fine.

Is it that sensitive or do I have something else going on?

Also, it seems like it would run warm, but not overheat without a fan and just an exposed heatsink. Thoughts?

Edit: It got warmer after running a bit longer, so I won't be pushing the fanless thing.

 

[The_Smeags]

Unles you provide a custom regulator (4 pth08080's or whatever kind of reg) you should keep it at a 12v range.

Although the wii creates less heat than the GameCube, its going to need a fan. Which you can reuse (the stock heatsink is also really good)

 

[Wulf]

Does anybody know the acceptable voltage range on the stock regulators?

 

[cheese]

Somewhere around 10.8v-12.2v AFAIK

 

[Wulf]

I've picked up one of these for a Pi-related project:

http://www.sainsmart.com/raspberry-...ch-screen-display-for-raspberry-pi-2-b-b.html

And I was wondering if it could serve dual-purpose.

I've seen 'dumb' adapters for component to DVI, and dumb adapters for DVI to HDMI... Could I connect Wii to HDMI simply by cutting up an HDMI cable, or is there more going on in those adapters than simply connecting to the right pins?

Edit: After more reading, the adapters seem to only adapt DVI-D to HDMI and not DVI-I. So I'll assume it can't be done, but it'd be great to hear otherwise.

Edit #2: What would be in something like this? https://www.walmart.com/ip/HDE-Wii-...t-10-ft-HDMI-Cable-for-Nintendo-Wii/159082954

 

[YveltalGriffin]

FYI, Wii2HDMI adapters are kinda iffy. I've heard on Reddit that they don't always support both 480p and 480i completely, and that the aliasing (jaggies) is verrrry noticeable when using them. Mostly everyone elsewhere online recommends true native 480p through component.

The screen you linked to seems like it'd be great. Just keep in mind the touch screen would be inoperable. Maybe rip off the resistive touch thingy?

 

[Shank]

Does anybody know the acceptable voltage range on the stock regulators?

I have run them off 14.8v battery packs no sweat. I remember running them as high as 28v without them breaking on stock regs in torture tests. It needs at least 10.1v minimum to boot IIRC, and its stock voltage is about 12v. If you keep it under 20v you SHOULD be fine, but the closer to 12v you are, the better.


Have you looked at this screen? Its 7" but it accepts Y/Pb/Pr natively so you wont have to convert video.

As for the Wii2HDMI, they aren't an ideal solution, but as of now we don't have many options for 480p on screens under 7". Ive heard mixed reviews about those adapters, as they come from different manufacturers. Ive heard nothing but good about the Sewell brand one, but I have never owned one myself.

 

[YveltalGriffin]

Yeah, I had a Wii2HDMI on the family Wii for a while, but when I started using Nintendont I found it didn't play nice with the 480p progressive output and had to nix it. I was using a Chinese knockoff one, though.

I wish the LMH1251 was easier to use. It seems like a great option for component to VGA, but then you look at the datasheet and realize an evaluation board requires so many buffers it's a little crazy for a beginner... ----> http://assemblergames.com/l/threads/ypbpr-to-vga-converter-board.45464/

 

[Wulf]

The screen you linked to seems like it'd be great. Just keep in mind the touch screen would be inoperable. Maybe rip off the resistive touch thingy?

As mentioned, if it worked at all it would be sharing the screen with my Pi. The touchscreen itself is pretty cheap and insensitive, but it works well enough for just tapping and launching things on the Pi desktop.

I have a second, smaller screen that I can use with the Wii that isn't HDMI-only.

I have run them off 14.8v battery packs no sweat. I remember running them as high as 28v without them breaking on stock regs in torture tests.

Damn. That's what I expected to be possible before even trying. So it's great that they should work, but concerning that they didn't. Maybe I just need to recharge my batteries. Hopefully. Does the power LED coming on for a few seconds signify anything specific? I spliced a barrel plug extension cable into the middle of the regular power adapter (...on the 12v side, obviously), so I can connect it to regular power or my batteries easily. I'm not overlooking anything obvious that would make using the existing power plug a bad idea, am I?

As for the Wii2HDMI, they aren't an ideal solution, but as of now we don't have many options for 480p on screens under 7". Ive heard mixed reviews about those adapters, as they come from different manufacturers. Ive heard nothing but good about the Sewell brand one, but I have never owned one myself.

I wasn't too attached to that piece of hardware specifically, I was more wondering how they did it.

I'm assuming it's a bunch of active electronics crammed into that shell though, and not some fancy passive stuff that I could wire up on my own?

 

[YveltalGriffin]

As mentioned, if it worked at all it would be sharing the screen with my Pi. The touchscreen itself is pretty cheap and insensitive, but it works well enough for just tapping and launching things on the Pi desktop

Duh. I just figured you'd want to embed the LCD in your portable and those resistive touch panels are pretty thick and obnoxious IMHO.

I'm assuming it's a bunch of active electronics crammed into that shell though, and not some fancy passive stuff that I could wire up on my own?

Yeah, looks like it. ---> http://assemblergames.com/l/threads/wii2hdmi-insides.57239/

 

[Wulf]

Neat. Thanks for digging that up.

Not sure what was wrong with it before, but I connected the Wii back up to 14.8v last night and it worked. I must've had something in contact with the motherboard last time I tried, so I suppose I should just be grateful the thing's not fried.

Anyway, things can get back on track now.

 

[Wulf]

What do most people do for controls? Just leave the bluetooth intact and 'wirelessly' control it from 2 inches away? I assume there are regulators in the wiimotes, what voltages can they take?

Or is that GC controller port fairly easy to tap into? More importantly, are there any important limitations when using a GC controller?

 

[cheese]

So far I've mainly seen portables with gamecube controllers integrated. The only downside is a very small set of old Wii games don't support the gc controllers, but most of those use motion controls anyway so it wouldn't really matter... As for tapping into it, yeah it's pretty easy, there's an entire section in the trimming guide for it.