Worklog PS2Go

[hazardousracerx]

I think its about time I start a work log for my PS2 portable project. As the title suggests, I'm calling it the PS2Go.

I have already purchased most/all of the necessary components and I'll be 3D Printing the case. The current case design is a work in progress but I'll post some images from Fusion 360 when the main design is closer to finished.

I'm not planning on doing anything special for this, basically following what others have done and putting it all together.

Feature List:
5" component display

Digital audio controls through the display if sound quality is acceptable​

3D Printed case
Games over SMB with Raspberry Pi 3 (USB Boot for stability & file access speed)

The Pi 3 wifi & bluetooth will remain active for ease of loading games onto the internally mounted USB. It auto-connects to my home wifi when powered on at home, and the bluetooth is for a remote serial console if the wifi stops working for some reason.​

Possible Features:
External AV Port to connect to Big Screen (Space dependent)
External Controller/Memory Card Ports (Space dependent, or may make a "dongle/dock" to connect them)

Major parts list:
PS2 Slim - SCPH-79001 (will be using the standard trim from the guide)
Eyoyo 5" Display using Component input (since the display has an on-board audio chip, I'm going to attempt to use it as the sound amp with some speakers I already have to eliminate the need for additional components)
Raspberry Pi 3B as a SMB server
128GB Samsung Fit USB drive (partitioned and used as the boot drive as well as game storage on the Pi)
3rd Party controller
2x 21700 5000mAh Lithium Batteries - Verified capacity (https://liionwholesale.com/collections/batteries/products/samsung-50e-21700?variant=12667804450910) purchased 4 to have 2 as spare to swap in if needed.
Using the Red CMB linked in one of the other posts/guides for charge and play functionality
5v 3A UBEC to power the Pi and display
Official Sony MC with FMCB or Modbo 5 chip (I have both, but I don't know if I want to soft mod or install the chip since I'm already soldering on the motherboard)
Soft-tact buttons for PS2 controls
regular tact buttons for various other functions.
Speakers: I have a few different kinds of speakers lying around and I haven't decided which I'll use. I'm leaning towards using the PSP speakers because of their size, but it depends on the sound quality when they are inside the case.

I have already been depopulating components from the Pi, PS2 and Display driver board. While I was removing components from the PS2, I was able to remove the Controller/Memory card ports and AV port without damaging any of the pins or the structure so I might make a "dock" that can plug in to the PS2Go to connect to my TV.

Regarding trimming the PS2 motherboard, do the lines drawn on the board look like they will be acceptable if I were to trim the board following those lines? The guide uses a different revision of Mobo than the one I have even though they are both from a 7900X model. Some of the components were placed in slightly different locations.

If these pics aren't good enough I can take some more and post them.

I'll keep updating here as I make progress.

 

[PvtDerp]

The lines you drew are pretty much perfect for a Standard Trim, but before you trim remember to remove any components that the lines go through. (Pretty much the ribbon connectors and the IC's). When trimming, cut a little before the line and then sand down to the end of the line.

 

[hazardousracerx]

Update and problem fix suggestions:

I trimmed the PS2 Mobo following the guide and verified there are no shorts although I might have cut a little close. The PS2 will power up and I get an intermittent video signal to the display.

I have attached some pics to show the wiring but I made changes after the pics were taken. Initially I had no video out and no sound the way that everything in the pics was wired. The wires used are 30AWG magnet wire for the signals and 22AWG Silicone coated tinned copper for the primary power wires. The 5V wire is 26AWG.

This first pic is how everything was wire initially. I moved the RGB video lines to the top of the board after I realized the mistake I made there. After moving them, I have an intermittent video signal, and it is extremely noisy when it it does go to the screen.

I marked up the second pic to show where the RGB connections are currently located.

The third pic is of the display driver board. I f*cked up a the Via for the green signal so I landed directly to the trace and verified there are no shorts. I entered the board through the back side to help with cable strain.

Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[GingerOfOz]

I'd recommend twisting each of your video signals with a magnet wire connected to ground. A drill works really well for this, the tighter it is the more protected your signal. Individual magnet wire stands if that length are going to pick up interference really easily.

 

[hazardousracerx]

I'll give it a shot after work tonight, but just to clarify, each signal wire individually twisted with a ground wire, or all 3 signals and a single ground?

 

[Gman]

I'll give it a shot after work tonight, but just to clarify, each signal wire individually twisted with a ground wire, or all 3 signals and a single ground?

Hey nice trim!

Yes you should twist each wire individually with ground. It's like a poor man's shielded cable.

 

[PvtDerp]

Also, you're not getting any audio because you gotta reconnect 5v to the audio IC aswell
(It's the 8 pin IC to the right of the 5v regulator)

Your trim looks pretty much perfect btw

 

[hazardousracerx]

Hey nice trim!

Yes you should twist each wire individually with ground. It's like a poor man's shielded cable.

Thanks!

Also, you're not getting any audio because you gotta reconnect 5v to the audio IC aswell
(It's the 8 pin IC to the right of the 5v regulator)

Your trim looks pretty much perfect btw

Thanks. I scraped the mask off the board closer to the edge so I wasn't soldering directly to the pin. In the pic its hidden under the 8.5V line. Once I moved the video lines to the top and got intermittent video, I was getting audio also, but disconnected it to troubleshoot video problems.


Edit:
LOL! I was just looking at the first pic and found a hair in the middle of the motherboard. If any new modders want to know how tiny the traces on these boards are, use that for reference.

 

[darkwing]

Looking good, you could try to connect the composite lines which can be a base point to figure out what's wrong.

Also if you are going to use the SMB way it looks like the traces for the 2 ethernet points on the edge of the board have been cut but it should be pretty easy to follow them to solder directly on the chip.

 

[hazardousracerx]

Update:
Made some twisted pairs for the video lines and now have a clean steady screen image.

Thanks for the suggestions!

Next up is getting a controller wired in to play with the settings and see if I can get rid of the green tint (either that or one of the RGB channels is not connected correctly).

Does the color look odd or is it just my eyes?

Took a macro shot to inspect the solder connections for the RGB signals in their newest location.

Current testing setup

Looking good, you could try to connect the composite lines which can be a base point to figure out what's wrong.

Also if you are going to use the SMB way it looks like the traces for the 2 ethernet points on the edge of the board have been cut but it should be pretty easy to follow them to solder directly on the chip.

I saw the cut traces after I cleaned up the trim. I didn't think anything of it until you mentioned it and I looked back at your diagram. Thanks for the heads up on that one! I've made a note to correct it before pulling my hair out at the lack of SMB connectivity.

 

[darkwing]

I saw the cut traces after I cleaned up the trim. I didn't think anything of it until you mentioned it and I looked back at your diagram. Thanks for the heads up on that one! I've made a note to correct it before pulling my hair out at the lack of SMB connectivity.

No problemo, I though I mentioned it just in case. No one wants to spend hours on troubleshooting for no reason

 

[hazardousracerx]

Update:

I have nearly completed the case design and have done some test fitments on printed parts. I'll grab some shots of the finalized prints before I do any sanding or painting, but I have attached some renders from Fusion 360. When I'm finished with everything, I will post the full Fusion 360 archive on Thingiverse (and here) if anyone wants to modify and use it in their own projects.

The main body is about 36mm deep (I may try to thin that down but I don't know if there is enough space with current component choice and PS2 trim. I borrowed @Gman 's idea for dropping the batteries out the back side, not to make it thinner, but to allow for the full sized joysticks to actually fit and still be a comfortable depth for play.

Once I print and fit all the stuff into the top of the case, I'll know if I can shave any depth from the case, my last fit test was pretty tight because of the Raspberry Pi. There is limited space below the PS2 Mobo because of the fan & heat sink and batteries, but I may be able to work that out later. I have 2 single depth USB ports on the pi, one as the boot USB port, and one as a spare. I may be able to relocate the boot port and remove the spare now that I have the bluetooth serial console working.

The row of buttons on the bottom are the screen controls and the power button for the PS2 (the round one in the center). I'll be printing the power button in a transparent PETG and drilling the center to add some 0402 LEDs to function as status lights and the Low-Power Indicator. The printed button will act as a diffuser for the LEDs so they won't be blindingly bright (I've used them before while modding PSPs and the ones I have are ridiculously bright for their size).

 

[jefflongo]

Looks hot

 

[Arceus]

Looks hot

Very hot

 

[hazardousracerx]

Update:
Grabbed some pics of the case before I started sanding... and sanding... and sanding...

Ended up having to reprint the top after sanding... ... I was a little careless and broke a few of the mount posts. Tried glueing and heat welding them back on but they weren’t strong enough.

Still have some more sanding to do with 1000 grit before I spray the first layer of paint and then... more sanding

 

[GingerOfOz]

Looking good! Honestly if you're painting, there's really no point in sanding past where you're at. A painted case is going to be rougher than a case sanded with 1000 grit sandpaper.

 

[StonedEdge]

Very hot

Nice case! I love the look of those shoulder buttons. Are you going to implement battery clips in the battery holders?

 

[hazardousracerx]

Looking good! Honestly if you're painting, there's really no point in sanding past where you're at. A painted case is going to be rougher than a case sanded with 1000 grit sandpaper.

Thanks! The main thing for more sanding is getting rid of the rest of the layer lines. I've been using 220 grit up to this point so the 1000 is more to smooth some of the grooves created by the 220 grit more than anything else.

View attachment 9488

Nice case! I love the look of those shoulder buttons. Are you going to implement battery clips in the battery holders?

Thanks! After I printed the buttons I decided that I was going to leave them unsanded because of how they look and feel. For the battery holders, I have some Keystone 209 contacts that will slot in at the ends of the battery box. Its a tight fit, but the batteries should not move once inserted.

If I have time tomorrow, I'll be spraying the first coat of paint. Its a flat black. I haven't decided if I'll do a clear coat or just leave it with the matte finish.

 

[GingerOfOz]

Ah, you've only sanded with 220 grit thus far? If that's the case I'd pick up some 300 and 400, because you'll have to go through a LOT of 1000 grit sandpaper to smooth out the gashes made by 220 grit paper, not to mention it would probably take you days to sand properly.

 

[MR.jailbreak]

nice i hope i find a ps2 model like that