View Full Version : Sega Nomad mods
duo_r
07-15-2012, 12:55 AM
Recemtly picked up a Nomad here and started doing some mods to it. Work done so far:
• enabled SMS mode (play Sega Master games)
• JP region mode (hold A when booting up)
• LCD swap with new 3.5" screen
• Modded battery pack with Lithium ion battery - 5+ hours gameplay
• new green power LED, turns orange when low
• s-video output
The new thing that I did today was add a controller port for player 1 (Nomad only has a port for P2). This means it is the ultimate portable home console. Here is the video of the first run:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92thd3L04HY
theclaw
07-15-2012, 04:12 AM
TONS of options in there. :) A few less orthodox.
Yeah very few fun uses for switching to JP mode powered on. To play US Streets of Rage 2 in Japanese without region force cheat or similar is an odd exception. Its lockout occurs after boot.
One issue is how replacement LCDs handle PAL related stuff. 50hz mode on some becomes grayscale without a fix. (I briefly had a Nomad affected by that, but never got it fixed)
duo_r
07-15-2012, 10:35 AM
Yeah I had the PAL mode hooked up to start, but it was really annoying to see the screen change every time I paused the game so I disabled. The screen would go B/W temporarily but then return to color after. Since I don't plan on playing PAL games I decided to disable the hold start option.
TONS of options in there. :) A few less orthodox.
Yeah very few fun uses for switching to JP mode powered on. To play US Streets of Rage 2 in Japanese without region force cheat or similar is an odd exception. Its lockout occurs after boot.
One issue is how replacement LCDs handle PAL related stuff. 50hz mode on some becomes grayscale without a fix. (I briefly had a Nomad affected by that, but never got it fixed)
duo_r
07-23-2012, 02:15 AM
Ok some finished pics of the additional mods.
Here you can see the P1 controller port, and also the physical reset button. Also the brightness wheel was replaced with an on/off switch for the LCD, for improved battery time when hooked up to a TV. The reset button is resessed enough that it won't be accidentally pushed. You have to give it a good press with your finger.
http://img268.imageshack.us/img268/581/imagekor.jpg
http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/2117/imagextjj.jpg
And here you can see the S-video port and also the LCD buttons to control the brightness and screen settings:
http://img220.imageshack.us/img220/480/imagehpa.jpg
theclaw
07-23-2012, 03:05 AM
Yeah I had the PAL mode hooked up to start, but it was really annoying to see the screen change every time I paused the game so I disabled. The screen would go B/W temporarily but then return to color after. Since I don't plan on playing PAL games I decided to disable the hold start option.
OK save it for later. Can always find space for a micro switch.
APE992
07-23-2012, 12:26 PM
Put in a delay for the PAL/NTSC mode. There is a "switchless" mod using a PIC microcontroller that will do just that. If you need one programmed I can do that for you.
duo_r
07-23-2012, 12:37 PM
So you have to hold start longer to kick in? Yes that sounds awesome please drop me a PM.
Put in a delay for the PAL/NTSC mode. There is a "switchless" mod using a PIC microcontroller that will do just that. If you need one programmed I can do that for you.
Looks very nice! I also added the LCD menu controls to my Nomad. How did you go about the reset button? Is it a simple switch grounding pin 10 on the ribbon connector? For that I did the 4071 GATE via start/mode switch.
I really should do the SMS trick, how hard was that?
duo_r
07-28-2012, 12:47 PM
Reset button - was sourced from an old computer that I had, it was just a simple pushbutton switch. I actually pulled the reset pin off the cartridge port, I already had to do work in there so it was no biggie. Yeah OR Gates are nice, but I didn't have one and also like having a physical button like my Genesis console.
SMS mode - just one wire and two solder points. One of the points is to a very small IC. I used very thin kynar wiring and it wasn't bad. You just need to make sure you don't short the pins next to it after the install. It really wasn't that bad. Confirmed it worked by playing SMS on my Everdrive MD flash cart.
Looks very nice! I also added the LCD menu controls to my Nomad. How did you go about the reset button? Is it a simple switch grounding pin 10 on the ribbon connector? For that I did the 4071 GATE via start/mode switch.
I really should do the SMS trick, how hard was that?