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View Full Version : 72pin switcharoo - is it possible?


n8littlefield
10-05-2005, 09:30 AM
I was sitting here looking at my working Yobo and my busted toaster thinking. Would it be possible to take the 72pin connector out of a clone system (or find a place to order one) and solder it into a toaster NES? Maybe mod the case so the cart comes out the top?

Even putting a new 72 pin in the toaster gives the same issues after awhile, so I figured if you could combine the super reliability of a clone toploader with the compatilbility of a toaster, you'd have the best of both worlds. Has it been done/attempted before?
Jagasian
10-05-2005, 10:56 AM
I have seen a mod where somebody used the connector from their Game Genie to replace the 72-pin connector in the NES. The NES's connector is U-shaped, but the toploaders and Game Genie connector is straight. Hence his mod required cutting a cart shaped hole in the back of his NES, as that is the direction the Game Genie connector pointed once installed.

It should be noted that with proper care, you can keep an original toaster's 72-pin connector working, without replacement. I use 99.99% isopropyl alcohol to clean all of my games and I use Stabilant 22 to help keep them in good condition and to improve conductivity between the cart and the 72-pin connector. My toaster is still hooked up to my TV (currently playing Zelda 2), and it is still using its first 72-pin connector.
chadtower
10-05-2005, 02:26 PM
On a lot of NES, even that won't help. Everyone seems to want to ascribe the problem to one cause, such as pin fatigue, or corrosion, or dirt, etc etc....

It's really a combination of all of those factors, so there is no real 100% solution to bad NES connectors.
n8littlefield
10-05-2005, 04:39 PM
Well, my toaster was working but the cheap ebay connector I bought had to keep being bent back every month (eventually leading to a pin breaking off). I figured that a more permanent option would be to find a cheap clone online and do some creative surgery. I didn't realize there was a connector built in to the Game Genie - that might make it even easier.
Blue60
10-05-2005, 06:55 PM
i was thinking the same thing with my N64 (i like to plan ahead on problems that i might have) you can try the thing with a Game Genie with your NES if you do post pics :)
john_soper
10-05-2005, 08:25 PM
I didn't realize there was a connector built in to the Game Genie - that might make it even easier.
It would be interesting to see a NES Game Genie that could work without having a connector :P
Blue60
10-05-2005, 08:32 PM
LOL LOL i would like to see that
InsaneDavid
10-06-2005, 01:15 AM
The original NESp project used a Game Genie as a direct cartridge connector between an NES mainboard and the cartridges...

http://www.classicgaming.com/nestable/
n8littlefield
10-06-2005, 08:48 AM
The original NESp project used a Game Genie as a direct cartridge connector between an NES mainboard and the cartridges...

http://www.classicgaming.com/nestable/

Thanks for the link, they actually have an alternate place to buy just the connector for like 3 bucks! I think I have a winter project once my next paycheck comes in (I need solder, wire, etc).
squirrelnut
10-11-2005, 04:12 AM
A bit late to this party but i desoldered the connector off the game genie and directly soldered it onto the nintendo. It works beautifuly. Soldering all those pins is a real PITA though.
n8littlefield
10-11-2005, 02:33 PM
How did you end up modding the case? I found a source for 72 pin connectors like the one built into the Game Genie, but now I'm trying to figure out how to configure everything internally.

Do you have the games going into the back of the system?
squirrelnut
10-11-2005, 09:25 PM
acutally im trying to mod the system to fit into an old computer case (along with an snes and genesis and maybe atari). You can possibly mod it to come out the back or threw the front. Saw a guy who did that once. Didn't much care for either look.
rbudrick
10-13-2005, 05:30 PM
If you take a standard 72 pin connector and shave the sides off so the ZIF end fits onto the motherboard, you can use the snug end for games. Has been 100 percent reliable for me for years since I've done that. I think I had to stick 2 dimes underneath the connector to prop the ZIF up to make contact, but it has never failed me.

-Rob
Jagasian
10-13-2005, 06:03 PM
Why not just get a top-loader pin connector linked from NESp's site, and then solder individual wires to each pin on the board side of the connector. Then solder the other end of the wire to the board. That way the connector can face the correct direction. All that is left is to somehow fasten the connector in place, facing towards the toaster's opening. Then you have the only benefit of a top-loader, that is a more reliable pin connector, and you also get all of the benefits of a toaster: better video quality, a better looking console, etc.
squirrelnut
10-13-2005, 08:35 PM
Why not just get a top-loader pin connector linked from NESp's site, and then solder individual wires to each pin on the board side of the connector. Then solder the other end of the wire to the board. That way the connector can face the correct direction. All that is left is to somehow fasten the connector in place, facing towards the toaster's opening. Then you have the only benefit of a top-loader, that is a more reliable pin connector, and you also get all of the benefits of a toaster: better video quality, a better looking console, etc.

whats his website? ive never heard of that connector before...
n8littlefield
10-13-2005, 08:53 PM
That's exactly what I'm planning on now. The 72pin from nesp's site is 3 bucks, plus 5 bucks handling, plus shipping, so probably about 10-12 bucks total. I'm ordering it soon.
Jagasian
10-13-2005, 09:41 PM
Why not just get a top-loader pin connector linked from NESp's site, and then solder individual wires to each pin on the board side of the connector. Then solder the other end of the wire to the board. That way the connector can face the correct direction. All that is left is to somehow fasten the connector in place, facing towards the toaster's opening. Then you have the only benefit of a top-loader, that is a more reliable pin connector, and you also get all of the benefits of a toaster: better video quality, a better looking console, etc.

whats his website? ive never heard of that connector before...

Here is a direct link. The NESp site was linked earlier in the thread, but not directly to the part info:
http://www.classicgaming.com/nestable/connector.shtml

Does anybody have any good ideas as to how to mount such a connector in the toaster NES, once individual wires have been soldered from the connector to the NES motherboard? Maybe superglue it to the spring loaded toaster tray? It would be nice to mod it in such a way that didn't involve cutting through the NES case, yet used the top-loader-style connector, as it grips carts better.
squirrelnut
10-13-2005, 09:49 PM
Why not just get a top-loader pin connector linked from NESp's site, and then solder individual wires to each pin on the board side of the connector. Then solder the other end of the wire to the board. That way the connector can face the correct direction. All that is left is to somehow fasten the connector in place, facing towards the toaster's opening. Then you have the only benefit of a top-loader, that is a more reliable pin connector, and you also get all of the benefits of a toaster: better video quality, a better looking console, etc.

whats his website? ive never heard of that connector before...

Here is a direct link. The NESp site was linked earlier in the thread, but not directly to the part info:
http://www.classicgaming.com/nestable/connector.shtml

Does anybody have any good ideas as to how to mount such a connector in the toaster NES, once individual wires have been soldered from the connector to the NES motherboard? Maybe superglue it to the spring loaded toaster tray? It would be nice to mod it in such a way that didn't involve cutting through the NES case, yet used the top-loader-style connector, as it grips carts better.

They have industrial strenght velcro (it can hold a computer up to a wall). or just super glue it onto the top with a correct spacer. Maybe even take a peice of metal and make a bracket out of it that can go inbetween the support posts on the back.

Damnit now i got a lot of ideas. Looks like im buyin some stuff from him :P

anyone know where i can get a connector like that for a snes and a genesis and atari 2600 and n64?
n8littlefield
10-14-2005, 08:42 AM
I'm HOPING to mount it right at the front of the system, and then seeing if I can get the cartridge door to open the opposite of the normal way, so you would have it open down, like a mailbox, that way the cartridge could go in the normal place, just upright.
InsaneDavid
10-15-2005, 01:18 AM
What's going on here, Jagasian and squirrelnut playing pass the buck here or something?

Everything mentioned in their posts concerning the connector replacement at the NESp site (from Newark In-One I'm guessing) was already mentioned by me and elaborated on by n8littlefield. :roll: I mean, there was one point where your side conversation kinda just rolled over things that n8littlefield was telling you.

As for repositioning the new connector to face the original toaster NES case opening you could always use a couple old IDE cables to give you the opportunity to place the cartridge input at any angle you want. That's how Ben Heck did it for a long time.
Jagasian
10-15-2005, 01:56 PM
As for repositioning the new connector to face the original toaster NES case opening you could always use a couple old IDE cables to give you the opportunity to place the cartridge input at any angle you want. That's how Ben Heck did it for a long time.

OK smart guy, I already understand that a wires can be used to position the connector in any direction, but how do you then mount the connector so that it doesn't move when carts are inserted?
Bratwurst
10-15-2005, 02:24 PM
The Cinch 72-pin card edge connectors that the NESp website suggests are total crap. Their grip is too weak to make a good connection with some cartridges and they're not gold plated. I tried three of them and brought it to the attention of the guy behind the website, who apparently doesn't care to mention the superiority of other connectors out there.

The connectors I have had the best luck with are those found in the Galoob Game Genie. They're gold plated, thicker with the right pitch and spring resiliency, the pin contacts are slightly broader.

This is one of my older modifications where I soldered a connector directly to the motherboard, flipped it upside down and mounted the thing to the underside of the NES case interior. I had to detach the video/audio modulator and run shielded wiring so I could keep the ports in the same spot, also the controller wiring had to be extended:

http://www.angelfire.com/apes/madmeat/toaster1.html

One of my future projects I need to finish is keeping the motherboard in its original location and simply running a ribbon cable to a new card edge connector mounted by brackets in the 'mouth' of the NES deck.


OK smart guy, I already understand that a wires can be used to position the connector in any direction, but how do you then mount the connector so that it doesn't move when carts are inserted?

I have had excellent results with plastic spacers and JB Weld. Unobtrusive to the outside, unlike drilling holes and using bolts and nuts. On a properly prepared/sanded surface, the tensile strength of JB Weld likely surpasses any force you'd exert inserting and removing a cart.
Jagasian
10-16-2005, 12:10 PM
Bratwurst,
I hope you have success with your ribbon cable / mounting based mod. Do you think you could mount the connector in a way that that from the outside it looked just like a normal un-modded toaster... with the exception that games didn't blink? Please write up a tutorial once you are done.
Bratwurst
10-16-2005, 12:44 PM
Bratwurst,
I hope you have success with your ribbon cable / mounting based mod. Do you think you could mount the connector in a way that that from the outside it looked just like a normal un-modded toaster... with the exception that games didn't blink? Please write up a tutorial once you are done.

All you'd have to do is mount the bracket holding the cart connector deeper to the rear of the NES deck so the NES cartridge can be completely inserted. Maybe make a rail the cart can slide into for stability, or keep the old loading bay and just prevent it from lowering anymore.

My personal preference is to have some of the cart sticking out because I'm obsessive with the condition of my labels and they're easier to grip and pull out with that concern in mind. I have some free time this coming week, will probably take some pictures if I get on it.
rbudrick
11-14-2005, 05:51 PM
http://nesdev.parodius.com/bbs/viewtopic.php?t=698&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=30

Just thought I'd post a link to the solution I was talking about earlier in this thread. THe topic sorta came up on NESdev, so I figured I should explain what I was talking about. This method has never failed me. The backwards connector rules.

-Rob