cy
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- Sep 3, 2020
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Alrighty, I've kept this under wraps for long enough. For the past couple of months, I've been working on and off (mostly off) on a project I've been calling "OpeN64". This project aims to recreate ALL functionality of the original Nintendo 64 motherboard. This essentially means making a motherboard that will behave EXACTLY like the original N64 motherboard and have room for ALL of it's original components so you can relocate everything from an original board onto it.
As of right now, I'm only aiming to recreate an 03 revision motherboard since that board supports the RAM swap. To do so, I've been utilizing the Inside Gadgets N64 motherboard scan that was posted to the N64 compendium a while back. In order to achieve all of this, I want to move one step at a time and recreate a trimmed N64 motherboard first so I'll be able to populate that and hopefully improve my time trying to troubleshoot this project in the event that it doesn't work. Only after I have successfully recreated and stress tested a trimmed N64 motherboard will I move on to adding the remaining voltage regulators, and other critical components a normal unmodified N64 has.
No, this isn't an April fools joke. I'm genuinely serious about this project! To prove that, here are a few screenshots of the work I've done in CAD:
The schematic is unfinished right now. Really, I've been trying to start by making symbols for the major components, making all the connections in the schematic, and then making those same connections in KiCAD's PCB Editor. This may not be the best practice, but it makes the tedium of this project a lot more tolerable.
I wasn't able to get all the components on screen for this screenshot, but I think you get the idea.
@Y2K Was suggesting I use a better naming schematic that labels the function of each trace. I'm willing to do that, but documentation on each line's functionality is limited, and I'm not an electrical engineer. With that said, Y2K gave me a few diagrams and a solid path forward to better documenting the RCP lines myself, so stay tuned!
Here's a shot of it from the 3d preview for good measure.
A lot of these components in the PCB editor don't even have schematic data for them yet. I kind of just went crazy making footprints one day and today I decided to rearrange them just to get an idea of what progress for this project was looking like. I'd say all in all, it's coming along really well! At least the front is anyway! I haven't started making ANY connections for any components that don't yet have a schematic. Really, the extra footprint placements are just a mock up so I can get a better idea of how my progress is coming along.
Right now what I want from the community is feedback or suggestions on how I can make this project better. Remember that as of right now, my main focus is NOT to recreate the ENTIRE motherboard for historical purposes or to try and make an 1:1 copy of it aesthetically and visually. My goal with this project it to copy it's functionality electronically meaning my goal for now is just to make it function. Once I have a stable and functional motherboard that electronically recreates the N64's functionality to the best of my ability, we can look into possibly making it look the same aesthetically (I.E. 100% identical trace routing, silk screen, etc). I'm not certain that I'm willing to go that far with this project however. I think that recreating everything the best I can so that every component can be relocated from an original N64 board and made functional is what matters, at least for now.
I'd like to thank @YveltalGriffin @Y2K @cheese and @thedrew for giving me help and feedback on this project already. Of course I'm not anywhere near finished, but you guys have given me an outstanding starting point for this!
As of right now, I'm only aiming to recreate an 03 revision motherboard since that board supports the RAM swap. To do so, I've been utilizing the Inside Gadgets N64 motherboard scan that was posted to the N64 compendium a while back. In order to achieve all of this, I want to move one step at a time and recreate a trimmed N64 motherboard first so I'll be able to populate that and hopefully improve my time trying to troubleshoot this project in the event that it doesn't work. Only after I have successfully recreated and stress tested a trimmed N64 motherboard will I move on to adding the remaining voltage regulators, and other critical components a normal unmodified N64 has.
No, this isn't an April fools joke. I'm genuinely serious about this project! To prove that, here are a few screenshots of the work I've done in CAD:
The schematic is unfinished right now. Really, I've been trying to start by making symbols for the major components, making all the connections in the schematic, and then making those same connections in KiCAD's PCB Editor. This may not be the best practice, but it makes the tedium of this project a lot more tolerable.
I wasn't able to get all the components on screen for this screenshot, but I think you get the idea.
@Y2K Was suggesting I use a better naming schematic that labels the function of each trace. I'm willing to do that, but documentation on each line's functionality is limited, and I'm not an electrical engineer. With that said, Y2K gave me a few diagrams and a solid path forward to better documenting the RCP lines myself, so stay tuned!
Here's a shot of it from the 3d preview for good measure.
A lot of these components in the PCB editor don't even have schematic data for them yet. I kind of just went crazy making footprints one day and today I decided to rearrange them just to get an idea of what progress for this project was looking like. I'd say all in all, it's coming along really well! At least the front is anyway! I haven't started making ANY connections for any components that don't yet have a schematic. Really, the extra footprint placements are just a mock up so I can get a better idea of how my progress is coming along.
Right now what I want from the community is feedback or suggestions on how I can make this project better. Remember that as of right now, my main focus is NOT to recreate the ENTIRE motherboard for historical purposes or to try and make an 1:1 copy of it aesthetically and visually. My goal with this project it to copy it's functionality electronically meaning my goal for now is just to make it function. Once I have a stable and functional motherboard that electronically recreates the N64's functionality to the best of my ability, we can look into possibly making it look the same aesthetically (I.E. 100% identical trace routing, silk screen, etc). I'm not certain that I'm willing to go that far with this project however. I think that recreating everything the best I can so that every component can be relocated from an original N64 board and made functional is what matters, at least for now.
I'd like to thank @YveltalGriffin @Y2K @cheese and @thedrew for giving me help and feedback on this project already. Of course I'm not anywhere near finished, but you guys have given me an outstanding starting point for this!
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