Question Portable 64 attempt (help!)

[RetroRocket]

Hi there, I'm new here and could use your help and expertise. My background is in mechanical engineering and design, so electronics are a bit flummoxing beyond simple wiring. BUT I got it in my head to turn this N64 carcass I found in a bin into a portable with a custom, hardwood housing. I got the thing functioning, now on to the fun stuff.

I thought I might be able to use this digital picture frame, but routing through the included controller board seems problematic. Is there a way I can bypass it and go straight from the ribbon to composite or s-video?

 

[Stitches]

Hi there, I'm new here and could use your help and expertise. My background is in mechanical engineering and design, so electronics are a bit flummoxing beyond simple wiring. BUT I got it in my head to turn this N64 carcass I found in a bin into a portable with a custom, hardwood housing. I got the thing functioning, now on to the fun stuff.

I thought I might be able to use this digital picture frame, but routing through the included controller board seems problematic. Is there a way I can bypass it and go straight from the ribbon to composite or s-video?

You have to use a screen and board designed to take composite video. There's no way to make a board designed to take a specific signal type like that to accept composite video, unless it has a marked pin or via.

 

[YveltalGriffin]

Hey, is there a model number on the LCD? If so, does it happen to be "AT080TN42?"

 

[RetroRocket]

Hey, is there a model number on the LCD? If so, does it happen to be "AT080TN42?"

It is and does indeed. I managed to find a pdf of the specifications... But not sure if anything in here can help...

 

[YveltalGriffin]

Hmmm... Well, here's what I gather from your pictures and the datasheet:

The ribbon cable is... odd. Normally, you could buy a driver board for one of these LCDs and plug it in, since nowadays many ribbon cables are standardized. But this LCD has fewer color channels (only 18-bit RGB; most today are 24-bit), and the ribbon cable is split up into two weird half-cables. So no off-the-shelf driver board would fit it as far as I know.

Basically, this reaffirms Stitches' point. The screen can't natively accept composite video, and you can't replace the driver board for one that could accept composite.

 

[RetroRocket]

Hmmm... Well, here's what I gather from your pictures and the datasheet:

The ribbon cable is... odd. Normally, you could buy a driver board for one of these LCDs and plug it in, since nowadays many ribbon cables are standardized. But this LCD has fewer color channels (only 18-bit RGB; most today are 24-bit), and the ribbon cable is split up into two weird half-cables. So no off-the-shelf driver board would fit it as far as I know.

Basically, this reaffirms Stitches' point. The screen can't natively accept composite video, and you can't replace the driver board for one that could accept composite.

Ah, well that's a bummer. Thanks much! Guess I'll put this thing back together and find an alternative. I was hoping to repurpose something rather than buy another new screen. Looking into something that already has component or composite input like a dvd player.

Cheers!

 

[Matthew]

Looking into something that already has component or composite input like a dvd player.

Here is a screen that uses composite that's really cheap. It doesn't have any audio so you will have to get a seperate audio amp but I use it for my N64 portable and it works great (well for composite )

 

[YveltalGriffin]

Yeah, make sure to check out the BOM to find audio amps and other portablizing materials the community recommends.

 

[RetroRocket]

Cool, thanks guys! I'm eager to get the parts prepped so I can get back to the familiar environment of the woodshop

Side note; I checked several other digital picture frames and couldn't find any with sensible input options...it irks me because they seem like such a ripe, untapped resource.