Worklog Xii-Boy Ultra (V3)

[Xenii]

Hi all !
Welcome to the first episode of the Xii-Boy Ultra's worklog !

I'm very proud of the Xii-Boy Pocket's result. However, there are still some things I need to upgrade.
If you liked the Xii-Boy Pocket, you'll love the Xii-Boy Ultra

I will do my best to update this worklog as much as possible. I hope you'll enjoy it !

Let's start !

What are the goals of this new Xii-Boy Ultra ?
The main goal is to make the cleanest and easiest portable Wii to build.

I'll ask you a simple question: What makes a portable clean or not ?
- The wires: There is nothing uglier than a spaghetti portable.

My solution ? Get rid of every wires inside the Xii-Boy.
To give an idea, the Xii-Boy Original has approximately 70 wires and the Xii-Boy Pocket around 15.
This is great, but not enough.

The Xii-Boy Ultra will normally have no wires.

This huge challenge will make the Xii-Boy Ultra very clean and, above all, very easy to assemble / disassemble.


One of the biggest flaw of the Xii-Boy Original / Pocket is the old RVL-PMS.
This board is amazing, however, it has two major flaws.
The first one is that the PMS has a problem with charging. If you don't put your portable in the transport mode, it will discharge your
batteries so low that you won't be able to recharge them.

The second one is the battery level indicator. Showing red when we're under 20% is great, but not enough precise.


To correct that, I'll use all the 4LayerTech PCBs.
Considering the RVL-PMS 2 is much better optimized, I'll get a bit better battery life.
I'll also be able to see the temperature and the battery level at any moment. Much better !
It will also allow to automatically set the fan speed. This is also a flaw of the old Xii-Boys.
The fan constantly plugged on 5V is great, it cools the Wii flawlessly, however, it makes a lot of noise.

The best 4LayerTech board is probably the RVL-DD.
This board gives the best video quality possible. Unlike VGA, I'll be able to use the Wii menu and, above all, all the games.

My favorite part about 4LayerTech boards, is that I can solder them on another PCB. That means I'll be able to design a big Main PCB.
This new Main PCB will also give me the opportunity to remove the 2 triggers PCBs the Xii-Boy Pocket has. It will also replace a lot of wires,
especially the ones between the RVL-PMS and the Main PCB.

I also want to remove the voltage wires between the PMS and the Wii motherboard. My 22 AWG wires are very hard to bend. Putting the Wii in place when it is plugged to the PMS is very tricky and very scary. Instead, I'll use the Power Strip or a bit remixed version.


I also want to innovate. The Xii-Boy Pocket's triggers are great and give a very good feeling.
However, I really want to get rid of the old THMF07 Dual Tact Button.
Instead, I'll use analog triggers. I'm currently testing the @Wesk 's analog trigger system prototype using Nintendo Switch Joysticks.
This system is great because it is the only one which fits in the small, compact and thin Xii-Boy case. Also, the Switch joysticks are very precise.

I currently have good results. I'll keep you updated here


Also, I didn't put buttons to change the screen settings. That means you cannot change the luminosity of the Xii-Boy Pocket's screen.
I might change that for the Xii-Boy Ultra.

Also, I'll entirely remodel the case. The Xii-Boy Pocket's case is made from the original Xii-Boy case.
That means the case isn't very optimized. From the outside, it changes nothing. But if I want to make any changes, this is tricky, and take a lot of time.
For the Xii-Boy Pocket, I did publish the case files on GitHub. That's great, but I only shared the STL files.
For the Xii-Boy Ultra, I'll share the STL and the f360 file. That means making an edit on the case will be very easy.

One of the main goal of this new Xii-Boy Ultra is to make the new easiest portable Wii to build.
I also want to make a complete documentation about it. I'll speak about everything you need to know to start your first portable.
From how to solder to where to put the final screw, including the software part. I'll probably make a Git Book.


To sum up, here are all the changes / upgrades the Xii-Boy Ultra will have:
- Wire Free build for a better and easier assembly / disassembly process.
- All the 4LayerTech boards for a better portable.
- RVL-DD for the best compatibility and video quality.
- New Analog Trigger system.
- Maybe luminosity control buttons.
- New case.
- Better documented.

That's it !
This was a very small episode. I just wanted to share all the ideas and upgrade I want to implement !
If you have any ideas to upgrade the Xii-Boy, or any questions, do not hesitate to tell / ask me
I hope you're hyped by this new Xii-Boy !

Have a wonderful day and see you next time !

 

[Bryceshaw06]

So excited for this, Xenii! The idea of a wire-free portable Wii that’s clean and simple to assemble is amazing, and will be perfect to allow more people to make their own portables!

 

[Xenii]

Hi there !
Welcome to the episode #2 of the Xii-Boy Ultra Worklog !
This will be a very quick episode, I just wanted to share my latest work.

A few days after the first episode, I've modeled and made a few tests about the future analog trigger system.
My latest prototype is pretty neat, and I really like the feeling.
There are just some software parts to work on.

When the trigger isn't pressed, it is equal to a neutral position of the stick. That means, in that position, the stick is at the midpoint of the Y axis.
So in this state, the trigger shows ~138 in the Button Tester which is pretty logical considering the stick is at the half of the axis. I've heard that @Aurelio is working on a calibration feature for the analog triggers which could solve my problem.

To sum up, the hardware part of the analog trigger system is done.
And, I would like to have some feedback about it.

I'm wondering about the tolerances, the appearance or above all, the feeling of my system.
So, if you have a 3D printer (SLA or FDM), the time, a Switch joystick to destroy and most importantly the desire to do it, could you please print the joined STLs and give me some feedbacks ? I would be very grateful

This test print is compatible with this button: Current Button
It isn't a huge deal if you don't have it. The most important part is clearly the analog system.

The final button will be this one: Final Button
Thanks to @YveltalGriffin for the recommendation !

How to assemble the prototype ?

First, you have to print the 3 parts there are in the joined ZIP. If you have the button I've used, you can print the "fixation.stl" file. Otherwise, just print the "case.stl" and the "trigger.stl" files.

I personally print mine with my FDM 3D printed in 0.12 mm layer thickness.

Then, you'll need a Joycon's Stick. If you have one with a broken cable, or other, it would be perfect. Preferably take one with a working mechanism.

! You won't be able to reuse the stick after that !

First step, you'll need to remove the stick itself form the rest of the mechanism. To do that, you can use pliers and rotate the stick at 90°. You should be able to remove the stick. Sometime, the stick breaks inside the mechanism, this could happen. It isn't a huge deal, you'll normally be able to fix that later.

Here is an example of a correctly removed stick VS a broken one:

Then, you'll need to disassemble the stick. Simply remove the back metal cover. On the flex PCB, remove the button. It is just an adhesive band with a little metal part. You can use a little blade.

If the stick broke, you can remove the white mechanical parts. With two pliers, you'll normally be able to remove the black part that broke.

Then, you can reassemble the stick. You'll now have to install the trigger. There are two options: First, you put it at 90° and rotate it. Or you can just put it from the top by pressing on it. You should hear a "click".

Once you have your modified stick, you can screw it in the case. You can use random screws that fit. I personally used M1.7x4 (The same as the XiiSBar or the Xii-Boy Pocket)

If you decided to test it, you can give me feedback under this post, or on Discord.

Thanks a lot to every person who will print the prototype and give me feedback. This helps a lot. I'm very grateful !


After modeling some print test, I did start the new case ! I really want to share the F3D file to make any modification a lot easier than STL.
That means the file has to be as clean as possible.

The Xii-Boy Ultra size will be the same as the Xii-Boy Pocket. It will normally keep the 145 x 86 mm form factor.

I've also changed a bit the button placement.
Here is the old one compared with the new one: (old VS new)

That's it !

Thanks a lot to every person who helped me, I'm very grateful
Huge thanks to every person who will print and give me feedback about my Analog Trigger System.

Have a wonderful day and see you next time !

 

[Xenii]

Hi there !
It's been a while, but I think it's time to update this worklog.
So, welcome to the episode #3 !

First, I wanted to thank the person who did print the trigger prototype and give me some feedbacks.
They were pretty positive I might need to adjust a bit the tolerances, which seem to cause problems on some printers.

I also made a great advancement on the case.
Like I also said, I'm remodeling the case entirely. I'm proud to say that the top part is done !
It is slightly different, but generally the same (for the moment).

As you can see, the start button is now centered. Thanks to the people who answered the poll about this in the BitBuilt Discord server
I also decided to use the same speakers as the Xii-Boy Pocket. They are very good in my opinion

I also upgraded my PC so using KiCad and Fusion is now way faster

A few days after, I received some OEM DS Lite buttons:

I just wanted to say a huge thanks to Modding Marius and @supertazon who were super nice and decided to give them to me !
I will finally use OEM button and membrane on this build. I've quickly checked the feeling on a Xii-Boy Pocket case, and it is so much better !
Huge thanks to you guys

I also contacted @Aurelio to know if a trigger wizard integration could be possible on RVLoader. He was super nice and decided to first see if my system could work with RVLoader. He took a lot of time to make some custom version of the GC+ 2.0 firmware, and then give it to me to install and test. After a few ones, I'm glad to say that this system is 100% working. The feeling is amazing and it is super precise. If I'm not mistaken, it will be available in an upcoming version of RVLoader.
I also wanted to say a huge thanks to @Aurelio for the time he took to help me. I'm super grateful

I also remodeled the bottom case. There are a few more changes there, but the biggest one is probably the analog triggers, which take a lot of room.

As you can see, the triggers are a bit bigger. Also, the Z buttons are now centered. This is due to the fact that the stick are
way bigger than the previous THMF07 button. This is also the layout the WiiBoy Color uses. I think it will be better, the current layout
makes the Z buttons almost inaccessible.

The case is almost done. The only thing which remains is nothing else that: the custom PCB...

The first one I had to do was the Controller PCB.
I first thought how I could get rid of all the wires. I also decided to remake some better membranes pad.
The 4 squares on the Xii-Boy Pocket are great, and work great, but it could be better. When you press on a button, it is generally not enough.
You have to press just a little bit more to detect it. With the advices of @YveltalGriffin, here is the new one:

I also worked on the schematic of the board:

And, above all, the routing
After a few days, and a lot of help and advices from @YveltalGriffin, it was done !

This new Controller PCB uses a new stick layout. The same as the WiiBoy Color. This lets me the room to fit a GC+ 2.
The routing is now cleaner. The audio traces are now surrounded entirely by ground, which should minimize parasites.
The rumble motor traces have been isolated as much as possible of the rest of the traces, to avoid any issues.

For the wire free part, this board will be connected to another one through a 16 pins connector.
On the bottom, we have also 3 connectors. The left and right one are for the speakers, and the middle one is for rumble.
Speaking of rumble, @YveltalGriffin advised me to use a LRA rumble motor, which feels much better.
These connectors are PicoLock, I didn't know them, and they are perfect, super thin
There are also two connectors for the sticks which should be hall effect stick by the way


So yup, I think that's all for this episode !
I didn't have a lot of time to make a huge progress, but I'm pretty glad of the work I've made.
Special thanks to:
- @YveltalGriffin for the time he took to help and advise me about PCB design
- @Aurelio for the time taken to make the analog trigger system possible on Xii-Boy Ultra
- @supertazon and Modding Marius for the OEM buttons
- @SimplyStevii for their general help
- And everyone who helped me or answered the few polls I've posted on the Discord server

Thanks everyone, have a nice day, and see you next time !

 

[Xenii]

Hey everyone!
Welcome to the episode #4 of the Xii-Boy Ultra's worklog!
I first wanted to wish you a happy new year! All the best

It's been a while I didn't update this worklog. So, I hope you'll like it!

First of all, I decided to change the side buttons layout. The Xii-Boy Pocket uses this layout, which is great, but could be really
annoying if you press the power button by mistake. After a poll on the BitBuilt Discord server, I will place the Power and Sync button on the top of the Xii-Boy Ultra.

Here is the current layout compared to the new one (only mockup for the moment )
The orange button will be the volume. Using the RVL-AMP from 4LayerTech, we'll be able to select which way we want to control the volume (Side buttons or buttons combination)
Red buttons will be for brightness control. I'll speak more about it later. Finally, the blue buttons will be Power and Sync.

After that, it was time to work on a new PCB! The Xii-DD!

This PCB will sit on the screen. It replaces the old VGA driver board. As you can see, the RVL-DD will be soldered on it.

Here is the board finished. Designing this board was complicated because I had to entirely restart it multiple times.
This board contains two connectors. J2 will connect this board to the Controller PCB.
The other one (J1) will connect the whole top part to the bottom part of the Xii-Boy Ultra. No wires!

It also has a very tight fitment between the bother boards and components of the build. This board will probably be 1.2mm thick to avoid any colliding issues.
The board has been routed to avoid any issues. It uses the 3W rule to avoid the electromagnetic field for expanding to other signals, which could cause issues.


Next step was the Xii-Strip!
I first wanted to use the @loopj's Power Strip which is a very great board. However, solder it might be tricky. So, I decided to create my own version!
This version is more optimized for LMAO and OMGWTF trim by using some bigger voltage input spots. The connector is also placed differently for being optimized for the Xii-Boy Ultra.

I also 3D printed the board to test the fitment, and after two attempts, it was perfect!

Then, it was time for probably the best board of the build: The Xii-Flex Ultra!
I first started to design the FFC male footprint. And, well, it might be a bit bigger (I think)

The Xii-Boy Pocket's Xii-Flex uses a 17P connector. This new version now uses a 50P connector
The routing of the board was really tricky, because I had to route it as clean as possible. I took a few weeks to design it.
Here is the final result!

So, what does this new board includes to be that big?
Well, it handles everything the original Xii-Flex had. But here is a little list:
- WiFi
- Bluetooth
- i2C
- USB
- SPI
- U10
- GPIO (Volume, Brightness and HS)
- GCC
- Digital Audio
- Digital Video

All of this, in one flex, without any wires.

I also spoke with @Aurelio. I was wondering if we could add brightness control buttons to avoid a button combination (because I hate that)
We decided to use two GPIOs for it. An upcoming version of RVLoader will allow you to use the button, but it isn't implemented for the moment.

Like on the Xii-Boy Pocket, the Xii-Flex Ultra will be connected to the Main PCB. Then, some of its data will go on the Xii-DD through the 40P connector shown before.
Considering both of the Xii-Flex Ultra and the Xii-DD must have the same pinout, I had to remake the routing every time something changed. It was a huge mess, but it's finally over

I'm super happy to announce that there is only one PCB which remains: The Main PCB!
It will probably take a lot of time to design. It will be a huge 4 layer board. I'll show it in the next episode!

After that, I had an idea of which colors could the Xii-Boy Ultra have. I think making something like an Orange Fantastic N64 color could look amazing.
I made a little render in Fusion.

The case would be manufactures by PCBWay. It would cost around $55 without delivery.
What do you think? Does it worth it?

I'll also order some parts very soon.
For the sticks, I decided to use Hall Effect sticks. I always had issues with normal sticks, and I want to definitely, and forever, get rid of them!
The Xii-Boy Ultra will use 4 sticks, 2 for the main sticks, and 2 for the triggers.

I think that's it for this episode.
Before concluding, I wanted to say a huge thanks to @YveltalGriffin for the time he took for checking the routing of my boards. I'm very grateful
Also, special thanks to:
- @supertazon, @Bryceshaw06 and @SimplyStevii for their general help and advices
- @Aurelio for the time taken to select which vias we could use to implement brightness control on the Xii-Flex Ultra
- @CrazyGadget for his advices about cases
- @thedrew for his advices and recommendation about Hall effect sticks
- and everyone who helped me!

Thanks a lot, have a wonderful day and see you next time!

 

[Bozmodz]

Absolutely Stellar work!

 

[Xenii]

Hi there!
Welcome to the episode #5 of the Xii-Boy Ultra worklog!
I'm very happy of the progress I've made for this episode. It is probably the longest episode I've ever written, so I hope you'll like it!

It was time, and you waited for it, but this episode is almost entirely consecrated to the Main PCB.
The Xii-Boy 3 Main PCB is the biggest and the most complex PCB I've never made.
I also had a lot of issues, and I took a lot of time to choose how to solve them.

First, I modeled the board in Fusion.

When I said it was the biggest, it's the biggest
First issue, fitting all the voltage polygons in that small zone is very tricky, and I would probably need a 6 layers board, a thing that I'd like to avoid. I would like keeping this board relatively cheap.

To change that, I decided to rise the board by around 1mm. It has a much trickier fit, but it was the only solution.
It allowed me to sit the board directly on the sticks, and to remove the sticks holes, which took a lot of place.
Here is the new shape!

As you can see, there are big holes near to the fixations. Considering the board is much bigger than the previous XB2 version, installing it in place would be trickier. XB2 uses a very tight fit, because I haven't really thought about it. I've now tested and adjusted the holes size to avoid this issue.

However, rising it added another worrying issue: there is almost no space to bend the Picklock cable which powers the Wii motherboard.
If I let things like this, it would be almost impossible to put the motherboard in place, and we risk applying way too much pressure on the motherboard, which could break it.

To add another issue, the PMS-PD3 from 4LayerTech doesn't fit at all
I was pretty worried about this one, and I thought I'd need to recreate it from scratch on my board.

I then found a solution. By removing some material in the cooling setup, I was able to increase the Main PCB size!

I've exported the sketch again, and this time, it fits!

For the Xii-Strip issue, I decided to completely remove the Picolock connector, and replace it by some pogo pins. Here are the pins and the new Xii-Strip!

Those pins can handle 6A, which is way more than I need, but I decided to put two per tension to avoid the console to turn off is the console is bend.

After all those issues, it was finally time to route that bad boy up!
As you can see, the board directly integrates battery clips. Finding one with correct dimensions and specs was difficult. @YveltalGriffin suggested me to use the same as the Gboy, but by reversing it to make it through-hole. This clever idea will make the battery clips much stronger, and will allow me to fit them in the shell!

After finishing the schematic, I've imported my components and tried to fit them on the board. However, I had some terrible fitment issues around the connectors and the side buttons.

It bothered me, because I really liked those buttons, and I wanted to keep them. However, I didn't have the choice, and I changed them for these, which I believe are exactly the ones used on the Wii motherboard for the front side buttons.

After all those issue, I finally finished the schematic!

The new challenge was to fit all those components in that shape. Believe me, it was quite tricky

Here is the board with the components placed!

And then, I found another big issue. Probably the biggest, and the most discouraging of the whole project.
I made a mistake in the schematic. The biggest was that the connector between the Main and the Xii-Flex Ultra and the connector between the Main PCB and the Xii-DD were plugged completely wrongly.
Here is what it should look like, and what it actually looked like...

Considering I don't have enough room to cross traces here, I had to entirely remake the Xii-DD (again...)
It really bothered me, because my routing was good, and was hard to find, so remaking it was just not a motivating thing to do.
But, after some hours, it was done, and correct.

It's not better than last time, but I'm happy that it isn't worse...

And here is the board, normally done!


After correcting this issue, I finally started the Main PCB routing!
Like last time, USB traces are integrated on the board. I made clean and properly calculated impedance traces.
Everything has been routed very carefully to avoid any issue. Here is the routing done!

Here is a list of everything this board contains:
- WiFi and Bluetooth connectors
- RVL-Amp, PMS2 and PMS-PD3 from 4LayerTech
- Integrated battery clips
- Xii-Strip pogo pins
- All side buttons
- RT and LT trigger buttons
- Connectors to the Xii-Flux Ultra and the Xii-DD
- PCB battery protection
- All wirefree!

PMS2 already has some battery protections, but it's more for charging. It doesn't really have protection while using the batteries. To correct that, the Xii-Boy 3 will re-add a feature that has been removed from our portables: a PCM (Protected Circuit Module)
PCMs are exactly the little board attached to this kind of flat batteries: (This board could also contain a BMS in that case)

PCM is pretty simple and was a great protective feature to add.
Pretty simple too, only 5 components!

It will protect the batteries against shorts, overcurrent, overvoltage and undervoltage.

Speaking of Xii-Flex Ultra, I modified a bit the Bluetooth part. I also printed and tested it on a motherboard. It seems great!

Also, I realized that adding the trigger joystick connectors on the Main PCB would be pretty hard, and not practical at all. The Z buttons were also way too far from the board, so I decided to make a little Trigger PCB!

It's a very simple board which only contains 3 connectors and 2 buttons.
Here is the schematic and the PCB!

I also ordered and received the speakers!
They are exactly the same as the XB1 and XB2. However, I received them this time with a much shorter cable. Considering they already have a JST on it, I decided to replace the Picolock by JST connectors on the controller PCB.

And hopefully, there is just the room for them between the batteries! Amazing!

I also received some hall effect sticks. I ordered 4 including 2 for the triggers, but however, those hall effect sticks are made differently inside and are not compatible with my analog trigger system. I'll order and use normal sticks instead.

This PCB required to change a bit the trigger layout. Here is the new and final one:

I also added the new side buttons!

I then decided to print the case and the PCBs to see if everything fits nicely

And it does! Everything fits well!

Next step is to verify every PCBs. I'll take probably one week to check that everything is routed / connected properly, the connectors are in the correct way, the schematics are correct, etc. I shouldn't mistake, the board will be pretty expensive, and I don't have infinite money

I'll keep you updated when I'll order them.

However, I'm really happy to announce you that the design of the PCBs for the Xii-Boy 3 is done!!!
Everything is going really well, and once I'll receive the PCB, we will really be close to the goal.

Last thing, I'm happy to announce that the case is done. It will probably need some further tests and adjustments though.
Here is a final render of it, with the definitive colors!

I think this is all for this episode. I made a lot of progress, and I hope you liked reading it!

As you can see, I always take the time to thank every person who helped me. I won't change. I just wanted to address my best thanks to @YveltalGriffin.
Yveltal took the time to check every single board of that project. He gave me some feedback, things I had to upgrade, routing issue, and other.
The help he gave me is enormous, and if the boards look that clean, it's mainly thanks to him. Thanks a lot Yveltal, I'm very, very grateful

Also special thanks to:
- @supertazon, @Bryceshaw06 and @SimplyStevii for their general advices and thoughts
- @Aurelio for his help about triggers and brightness control system.
- @thedrew for his help about hall effect sticks
- and everyone else!

Have a wonderful day and see you next time!

 

[thedrew]

Wow, looks great! you can really see all the time and effort gone into this!

 

[Kirbo]

Just discovered this stellar work!!!

 

[JamesPi]

Wow, I didn't expect so much progress in a single update! Absolutely amazing work.

 

[Xenii]

Hi there!
Little update: I’ve ordered the PCBs!
They should take around 4 days of production and another 4 days of delivery. I’ll make a post when I receive them!

I also decided to order 5 test prints in resin to find the perfect tolerance for the screen friction fit fixation. I had issues with the XB2 about that, so I decided to order 5 prints with each time 0.05 mm of difference. I’ll keep everyone updated of my results

I’ve also ordered the last components on Aliexpress including screen, FFC cables, PCM chips, screws, etc

Next step is to order the components through Digikey and the PCBs through 4LayerTech.

That’s it. Have a nice day!

 

[Xenii]

Hi there!
It's time for a little update!

Everything has been ordered, and almost everything has been received.
I first received the Digikey components. They arrived really quickly, like 2 days after the order.

I also received some AliExpress packages!
I bought some components, a quieter fan, a little metal fabric to mimic what @Luigid used on his XB2, some dyes and the screen!
Furthermore, I first wanted to buy PCBWay orange dyed case. It'd be awesome, but also really expensive. A few days later, I saw the wonderful job of @subierekt who dyed a case by himself. The result is absolutely stunning and after searching more, I found some on AliExpress!

To sum up, instead of the expensive PCBWay shell, I'll order everything through JLC3DP in translucent resin and dye it myself using orange dye.
The process seems pretty simple, you just have to mix hot water + the dye and put the case inside for like 15 seconds.
Dying a case is great, but I need a little protection layer. Hopefully, the Xii-Boy 2 was first planned to be painted. So I still have the matte protection lacquer.

But I really wanted to show you something amazing. I finally received the JLC blue boxes. Delivery costed a lost, but I think what you'll see is worth it.
The print tests of the screen were great, and it helped me a lot to find the perfect tolerance. I currently have great result, but it still not as good as it was on the FDM print tests. I'll add a little lip on the screen hole to mimic the FDM layers that stick the screen in place.

The box also contained something else: Lemme show you the most beautiful parts of the Xii-Boy Ultra: The custom PCBs!!!

I decided to order them in black. It was more expensive, but it's way more beautiful!
I'm very glad of the result. JLC made an amazing work.

Next step is to finish their assembly. I'll trim a Wii very soon, maybe tomorrow if the weather is better.

The completion of the XB3 is getting closer!

Huge thanks to:
- @YveltalGriffin for all the help given to have such as clean PCBs
- @Bryceshaw06 for the general advices and the huge work on the upcoming XB3 assembly guide
- @supertazon and @SimplyStevii for their general advices
- @Aurelio for the huge work of making analog trigger possible on Xii-Boy 3
- The 4LayerTech team for the amazing help and service
- and everyone who helped me!

Have a wonderful day and see you very soon!

 

[fiftyfive]

Is this going to be a kit like the G-Boy (I've never made a portable console before)

 

[Xenii]

Is this going to be a kit like the G-Boy (I've never made a portable console before)

Hi, this is going to be open source for sure, so everyone will be able to make it. There will also be guides and assembly advices.
I think selling XB3 kits. It's planned, but I don't know if it will be possible yet. We'll see!

 

[fiftyfive]

Hi, this is going to be open source for sure, so everyone will be able to make it. There will also be guides and assembly advices.
I think selling XB3 kits. It's planned, but I don't know if it will be possible yet. We'll see!

I'm definitely going to build this! Let me know if I can be of assistance.

P.S: Is there gonna be a Wii trimming kit kind of like the Thermal Paste practice from YeesterPaste to make it a good first portable

 

[mynameislogan]

I'm definitely going to build this! Let me know if I can be of assistance.

P.S: Is there gonna be a Wii trimming kit kind of like the Thermal Paste practice from YeesterPaste to make it a good first portable

I reinstalled Windows and forgot the password for this account since it was keyboard spam but I'm very excited for this portable

 

[Xenii]

I'm definitely going to build this! Let me know if I can be of assistance.

P.S: Is there gonna be a Wii trimming kit kind of like the Thermal Paste practice from YeesterPaste to make it a good first portable

I haven’t thought about that. It’s definitely a good idea, we’ll see how we can implement it!

 

[JamesPi]

Hi, this is going to be open source for sure, so everyone will be able to make it. There will also be guides and assembly advices.
I think selling XB3 kits. It's planned, but I don't know if it will be possible yet. We'll see!

Oh, that'd be awesome if you sold kits. If you're not able to distribute the parts in the end, I would be happy help out as needed.

 

[sharby2010]

Hi there!
It's time for a little update!

Everything has been ordered, and almost everything has been received.
I first received the Digikey components. They arrived really quickly, like 2 days after the order.

I also received some AliExpress packages!
I bought some components, a quieter fan, a little metal fabric to mimic what @Luigid used on his XB2, some dyes and the screen!
Furthermore, I first wanted to buy PCBWay orange dyed case. It'd be awesome, but also really expensive. A few days later, I saw the wonderful job of @subierekt who dyed a case by himself. The result is absolutely stunning and after searching more, I found some on AliExpress!

To sum up, instead of the expensive PCBWay shell, I'll order everything through JLC3DP in translucent resin and dye it myself using orange dye.
The process seems pretty simple, you just have to mix hot water + the dye and put the case inside for like 15 seconds.
Dying a case is great, but I need a little protection layer. Hopefully, the Xii-Boy 2 was first planned to be painted. So I still have the matte protection lacquer.

But I really wanted to show you something amazing. I finally received the JLC blue boxes. Delivery costed a lost, but I think what you'll see is worth it.
The print tests of the screen were great, and it helped me a lot to find the perfect tolerance. I currently have great result, but it still not as good as it was on the FDM print tests. I'll add a little lip on the screen hole to mimic the FDM layers that stick the screen in place.

The box also contained something else: Lemme show you the most beautiful parts of the Xii-Boy Ultra: The custom PCBs!!!
View attachment 37941View attachment 37940

I decided to order them in black. It was more expensive, but it's way more beautiful!
I'm very glad of the result. JLC made an amazing work.

Next step is to finish their assembly. I'll trim a Wii very soon, maybe tomorrow if the weather is better.

The completion of the XB3 is getting closer!

Huge thanks to:
- @YveltalGriffin for all the help given to have such as clean PCBs
- @Bryceshaw06 for the general advices and the huge work on the upcoming XB3 assembly guide
- @supertazon and @SimplyStevii for their general advices
- @Aurelio for the huge work of making analog trigger possible on Xii-Boy 3
- The 4LayerTech team for the amazing help and service
- and everyone who helped me!

Have a wonderful day and see you very soon!

This is so cool I’m definitely going to build this. This is a amazing work you’ve done!

 

[Xenii]

Hey there!
It was time: Welcome to the episode #6!
I have some crazy progress to show you, I hope you'll like this episode!

A few days after the last post, I received everything I needed to continue this project!
However, itt was only missing one thing: the 4LayerTech stuff. It was clearly the package I waited the most!

During that time, I decided to assemble the custom PCBs!
Starting with the simplest: The Xii-Strip!

Well, it only has one thermistor, so it was pretty fast and easy to assemble

I then started the second PCB: The Trigger PCB!

I decided to use my mini hot plate to save some time. It was the first time I used it, and it went well!
After some little reflow on the connectors, it was done!

I'm very happy of those buttons, they feel fantastic! Thanks @YveltalGriffin for the recommendation!

Next one: Controller PCB!

Unfortunately, it was the first PCB to contain mistakes. The biggest on this board is that I didn't order the proper JST connectors for the speakers.
They used 1.25mm, and by measuring, I got and ordered 1mm of pitch... It's really not a big deal. To correct that, I just ordered new ones on AliExpress, we'll see later how I'll solder them...

Next one: Xii-DD!
It started getting harder. Controller PCB already had the biggest connector I've never soldered: 18 pins.
The biggest connector XB2 uses is only 17 pins. Xii-DD is another level: 40 pins
After some cooking time, and some reflow with my beloved ChipQuick SMD291 flux, It was looking decent!

After soldering the easier 18p connector, Xii-DD was done!

It was time for the hardest and biggest PCB of the whole project: the Main PCB

Starting with those 40 and 50 pins connectors! It went really well! I also soldered the side buttons, and I think they aren't as satisfying as XB2 ones are,
but they feel really good. I really like them!

Cooking done!

The hardest was now behind!
Next challenge; the Pogo pins!

It wasn't really hard, it was just kinda tricky to make them flat.

After a few hours of soldering, the bad boy was done!

It's looking really good!

The testing phase has begun!
I first started the PCM circuit. Battery are charged, I tested the tension between the PMS2 B+ and B- pads, and it got 2.94V...
It seemed really low to me. Battery were around 4.11V, so I guess something is wrong...

I asked @YveltalGriffin for help, and he told me that by default, PCM might be disabled. To activate it, I just had to short B- in and B- on the Mosfet IC for a brief time.
But it still didn't work...

We then noticed that the Mosfet IC was soldered backwards...
I just reversed its orientation, and it worked! Great news!
Actually, to test it, I'd like to short something to get a 4A spike on the batteries. But, doing that is risky, and impossible at that point, still no PMS2 in my mailbox...

I spent approximatively one day and half assembling the board. It was now missing two main things: 4LT, and a trimmed Wii.

So I started hacking a trimming a Wii!

Trimming went well! I sanded it and checked the resistances, they were all good!

A few days later, I received the 4LayerTech package!

Btw, big thanks to the 4LayerTech team for their great service! The boards are amazing!


I quickly placed them on my PCB to see if they fit well, and they do!

First thing I've done was to solder GC+ 2 on the Controller PCB for testing.
I solder a GCC cable to the GC+ 2 and turn on a Wii!
And.... It works perfectly! No mistake here, everything is working fine!

I also had to test the triggers, which are tricky to test on XB3 just because I add to connect all the boards together.

After testing all that mess together, it works!
As you can see, I also tested LRA rumble motor, hall effect sticks and the new connectors for the speakers.
Everything works! I just have to really configure rumble once the build will be closed. Those GCC cable wires are super thin, it cannot deliver enough current for the whole boards which causes little issues with rumble.

Next step was to test the Wii motherboard!

But after spending hours, I wasn't able to make it boot. I really don't understand, I have a black screen, no booting, U10 is working though...
I tested everything, but it still didn't work. Two days later, still no solutions...

Considering I didn't have a lot of free time, I decided to trim another Wii and spending time later on that trim.
3 hours later, the second trim was done, sanded, and the resistances have been checked.
This one boots! YAY!!!

It was finally time to test everything together.
I first had to solder the required stuff on the trimmed Wii.
Starting with the Xii-Strip!

However, I quickly noticed that it won't be possible... The mistake is really stupid: I designed it in 1.6mm thick, which makes the board impossible to solder.
I couldn't reorder board, so I had to find a solution. Wires? NO WAY!!!

My solution is stupid and dump, but I didn't find better...
I simply used solder wick...

Well, it's a really stupid idea. It looks like garbage. But, it works, and I didn't have a better solution.
No worries, though, final revision will correct that. The Pogo pins exist in a taller version, and Xii-Strip just has to be ordered thinner.

You already saw it, but I also soldered the Xii-Strip Ultra!
I first scratched and tinned the vias:

And finally put and solder the flex!

I then checked all the video connections between the flex and the AVE pins.

After some reflow, it was good!

Bluetooth is also attached to the flex but soldered on the other side.
It was pretty easy to solder. I thought it would be harder.
Anyway, here is the final result!

It looks gorgeous!

Final step: Soldering 4LT stuff on my remaining PCBs.
Here is the Main PCB finally done!

After some cleaning, I just corrected a little mistake on that board as well.

I didn't connect PMS-PD3 properly. I used normal 5V instead of the UP 5V.
Technically, it works as well while the console is on, but we can't access the data when the console if off.

Correction done, it's time to finally test Wii + Xii-Flex + Xii-Strip + Main PCB!!!

I was really stressed. I took my courage, inserted the battery, press the power button, and...
Nothing...
LED even didn't turn on... What is going on? What did I do wrong? I was really confused and lost.

After chatting with @SimplyStevii, they told me LED wasn't set in addressable by default in RVLoader.
Ok so this explains why LED didn't turn on.
It still doesn't explain why video doesn't work.
After the classic troubleshooting tests, I thought: Maybe the Xii-Flex was causing some impedance discontinuities by making some stubs, or kinda antennas.
To test my theory, I had to connect the Xii-DD.

At this point, I thought the project was dead. I wasn't scared of testing DD, I was really testing just in case, I didn't hope anything...

And as planned: nothing...
I started checking every solder, every contact between DD and the AVE through all my mess, but still nothing.
And by looking on the 4LT website, I noticed that my screen was plugged backwards...

Holy moly, it was frustrating, but it might not be dead.
I had hope. I plugged the screen in the correct orientation, turn the Xii-Boy 3 on, and...

HOLY MOLY!!!!
I didn't expect it to work anymore. You cannot imagine how much I screamed of joy after that
To retest my theory of impedance discontinuities, I then soldered composite video again.
But still nothing. After asking @YveltalGriffin, he didn't believe in my impedance theory.
Considering Yveltal is always right, I asked him if he had any ideas of what's going on.
And then, he answered me:

Well, yup, it was only that. Xii-Flex hardwires 3.3V to mode. Considering I did enable VGA on this Wii, it just disabled composite and enabled VGA.
I felt stupid, but happy at the same time.

It was time to continue the test process!
Bluetooth first!

YAY!

I basically tested everything, and everything works!
Fan, WiFi, Audio, Controls, Screen, everything!

Huge thanks to @Aurelio who took a lot of his precious time to make brightness and volume over buttons working!
It's truly amazing and works extremely well. (I don't have any videos or images though)

I did then work on the case. I printed some final cases, and everything fits well!

To sum up: Everything has been tested. Everything works.
It's truly amazing, and it makes me really happy.
I'm happy that the most complex board I've never designed works almost first try!
I can't believe it!

XB3 will need some little corrections like adding a mode jump on the Xii-Flex, reducing the Xii-Strip thickness, correcting the Controller PCB JSTs, correcting the Main PCB about the UP pad, etc. But I mean for a first try of making wire free possible, I think it's an amazing milestone reached!

So, what's left to do?
It's what I'm currently working on: finishing the small things on the shell and order it through JLC3DP!

I also modified how the screen is fixed. I added a little "lip" to mimic the FMD layers that stuck the screen in place.
I hope everything will come together nicely!

I'll probably order that this week, but I already want to say that XB3 is almost there!
I think it's all for that episode!
Next one will probably be the last. I hope you're hipped as much as I am!

Thanks a lot to:
@Aurelio for the RVLoader modifications for XB3
@YveltalGriffin and @SimplyStevii for the help about PCB, settings, and other
@supertazon and @Bryceshaw06 for the general help
and everyone else who helped or motivated me!
I'm very glad of seeing that what I'm doing is liked! It makes me really happy. Thanks a lot for all your support

I hope you liked this episode!
Have a wonderful day, and see you very soon!