The Wiiboy Color

GingerOfOz

no wario
Staff member
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2020 2nd Place Winner
2022 3rd Place Winner
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just so many i am so cool
This is the Wiiboy Color.

20200827_121943.jpg
20200827_104216.jpg


It's a project I started way back in January, and have been working on it on and off ever since. It's my official entry into the 2020 Summer Building Contest.

20200827_111822.jpg
20200827_151507.jpg


Features include:
  • 3.5" IPS 4:3 480p screen. Far and away the best screen I've ever put in a portable.
  • Custom molded Nintendo DS Lite buttons and triggers.
  • Nintendo Switch Joysticks
  • USB-C PD charging and data transfer
  • Digital audio via a custom U-Amp for headphones and a single speaker
  • BBLoader v1.1
  • GC+ 2.0
  • LMAO v2 trim
  • A variety of custom circuit boards to keep the internals as orderly as possible.
20200827_112124.jpg
20200827_104548.jpg


There are 4 significant custom PCBs inside of the portable. The features of those are as follows:
  • Front Controller Board:
    • Houses all components needed for GC+ 2.0
    • Has pads that fit DS lite rubber pads and the single speaker
    • Has a 30 pin FFC cable that connects to the triggers board. All voltage and data wires that would go between the halves go through this FFC.
  • Triggers Board:
    • Has the other half of the 30 pin FFC assembly.
    • Has spots for dual tact buttons and two Z buttons
    • Has spots for all MX circuitry to be relocated, including the RTC battery cell.
  • Custom PMS Board:
    • All regulators and battery management components
  • Ports Board:
    • Houses the USB-C port, headphone jack, and RGB LED.
    • Houses the USB drive, and handles all USB switching needed for connecting the portable to a computer.
    • Contains all the necessary circuitry for fast charging.
    • Has all U-Amp circuitry for that clear, digital audio.
The final internals ended up looking like this:
internals flat.jpg
internals angle.jpg


A full video on the build can be seen here:

Overall, this project turned out about as well as I could have hoped. The paint job could be considerably better, and some assemblies can be tweaked for better comfort and easier assembly. I'll be making adjustments to the design over the next couple of weeks to prepare to do commissions on these, so thankfully I've got a chance to fix all the minor flaws with it to make it the best it can be.
20200827_151848.jpg

And like any project of mine, there are people to thank:
Gman - For open sourcing the Wii PMS and U-Amp, as well as designing the Wiiboy/G-Boy line of portables. Open sourcing those designs let this project be so much cleaner, and the G-Boy has been an inspiration to me for years.
Aurelio - For creating BBLoader, GC+, helping me work out the USB circuitry, and everything else you've done to help me over these last 4 years.
StonedEdge - For helping with the USB-C stuff and sharing notes on the 480p panel.

The full worklog for this build can be found here: https://bitbuilt.net/forums/index.php?threads/wiiboy-color-worklog.3100/

Next on the list is to finish tackling my PS2 portable, and from there I've got a few other ideas bouncing around. Thanks for all the support the community as a whole has offered me over these past few years, my life is far different than it would've been without the help of the BitBuilt crew.
 
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That Louii in white was sick, this wiiboy in white is slick, you better make that ps2 in white too cause whatever you are doing, it's goood
 

caorsi

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Honestly I'm gonna gonna make a wii portable and stick it into a wii remote.

This looks amazing! The white makes it super pop!
 
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I was just going to leave a like but man I have to say that is absolutely sexy. Nice work! Even the wire management is insane!! Having a ribbon cable between two halves of the case is genius!
 

Beans

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Jul 2, 2020
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Oh God that is clean. Excellent craftsmanship and PCB designing Ginger. I hope to achieve this level of skill one day.
 
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What a Beaut! Love how compact it is and that logo is just icing on the cake. How is the audio quality, especially since you only have one speaker?
 
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This is a beauty. The white make it look so clean.

Can I ask you what is that screen?
 
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This project is so great. Is there any possibility of receiving design files (at least for boards) and instructions for building one?
 

StonedEdge

a.k.a. ClonedEdge
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This project is so great. Is there any possibility of receiving design files (at least for boards) and instructions for building one?
I don't want to come across as rude, but asking a member for their design files on the forums is genuinely seen as impolite. If Ginger wanted to open source his case assets and models for the WiiBoy color, he already would have done so. His Louii is open source, so it may be likely that he would too open source the WiiBoy at some stage as well. We always prefer to see new members make their own portables, rather than copy someone else's designs. The G-Wii and Louii are open sourced projects if you want to dip your toes into modding, though.
 
Joined
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This is the Wiiboy Color.

View attachment 13781View attachment 13777

It's a project I started way back in January, and have been working on it on and off ever since. It's my official entry into the 2020 Summer Building Contest.

View attachment 13779View attachment 13776

Features include:
  • 3.5" IPS 4:3 480p screen. Far and away the best screen I've ever put in a portable.
  • Custom molded Nintendo DS Lite buttons and triggers.
  • Nintendo Switch Joysticks
  • USB-C PD charging and data transfer
  • Digital audio via a custom U-Amp for headphones and a single speaker
  • BBLoader v1.1
  • GC+ 2.0
  • LMAO v2 trim
  • A variety of custom circuit boards to keep the internals as orderly as possible.
View attachment 13780View attachment 13778

There are 4 significant custom PCBs inside of the portable. The features of those are as follows:
  • Front Controller Board:
    • Houses all components needed for GC+ 2.0
    • Has pads that fit DS lite rubber pads and the single speaker
    • Has a 30 pin FFC cable that connects to the triggers board. All voltage and data wires that would go between the halves go through this FFC.
  • Triggers Board:
    • Has the other half of the 30 pin FFC assembly.
    • Has spots for dual tact buttons and two Z buttons
    • Has spots for all MX circuitry to be relocated, including the RTC battery cell.
  • Custom PMS Board:
    • All regulators and battery management components
  • Ports Board:
    • Houses the USB-C port, headphone jack, and RGB LED.
    • Houses the USB drive, and handles all USB switching needed for connecting the portable to a computer.
    • Contains all the necessary circuitry for fast charging.
    • Has all U-Amp circuitry for that clear, digital audio.
The final internals ended up looking like this:
View attachment 13774View attachment 13773

A full video on the build can be seen here:

Overall, this project turned out about as well as I could have hoped. The paint job could be considerably better, and some assemblies can be tweaked for better comfort and easier assembly. I'll be making adjustments to the design over the next couple of weeks to prepare to do commissions on these, so thankfully I've got a chance to fix all the minor flaws with it to make it the best it can be.
View attachment 13775
And like any project of mine, there are people to thank:
Gman - For open sourcing the Wii PMS and U-Amp, as well as designing the Wiiboy/G-Boy line of portables. Open sourcing those designs let this project be so much cleaner, and the G-Boy has been an inspiration to me for years.
Aurelio - For creating BBLoader, GC+, helping me work out the USB circuitry, and everything else you've done to help me over these last 4 years.
StonedEdge - For helping with the USB-C stuff and sharing notes on the 480p panel.

The full worklog for this build can be found here: https://bitbuilt.net/forums/index.php?threads/wiiboy-color-worklog.3100/

Next on the list is to finish tackling my PS2 portable, and from there I've got a few other ideas bouncing around. Thanks for all the support the community as a whole has offered me over these past few years, my life is far different than it would've been without the help of the BitBuilt crew.
I love the Nintendo WiiBoy!
 
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