My handmade NES Arcade Controller

[stardust4ever]

UDATE: I've scaled back the project a little. It doesn't make sense to have an embedded NES system without a screen, so I'm leaving out the system and audio circuits, just doing an arcade style controller. Changed title to reflect this. Scroll down to my last post for updates.

UPDATE 5/14/2012: My controller is finished!

View more photos here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/3020351...7629736738048/

I had to use a 555 timer in monostable (one shot) operation to prevent malfunction of games which poll the controller multiple times. It produces a single 5ms pulse to the counter chip which eliminates the multiple latch pulses in games like Super Mario Brothers 3. Toggling any button on and off with every latch pulse will freeze SMB 3 instantly! I learned that the hard way. I also eliminated the 7400 chips by using a couple of reverse-biased diodes to combine the turbo AA/BB with the A/B buttons to prevent shorting the counter output to ground when both buttons are pressed. I am also using a simple NPN transistor to act as a NOT gate to invert the latch signal prior to the 555. It also has a 4-speed rotary selector switch (3.75Hz, 7.5Hz, 15Hz on-on-off-off, and the absolute maximum achievable turbo rate of 30Hz on-off-on-off) and a slow toggle switch which connects to the START pin.

All in all, there are a total of three IC chips mounted on the solder-board:
CD4021
74161
CMOS 555

= = = = = = =

I would like to build a self-contained NES system shaped like a giant NES controller, with built-in top-loading clone NES system. It's an idea I've been entertaining for quite some time now. I've thought about doing SNES, but the button layout would likely be too complicated.

The entire unit will be self-contained except for the telivision/monitor which will be connected via an external coomposite hookup. Probably will be built out of Plywood, and feature real arcade controls with an output NES port for player 2 / Zapper use. I plan on cutting a cartridge slot into the top side for the cartridge, and bolting the clone system underneath the slot so that you just push the cart in through the top. I may line the hole with leather so that it doesn't abrase the carts. It will also have a built in amp and speaker with a full range driver.

Parts:

Yobo or Hyperkin or Retrobit square top-loading NES clone (Say what you want about the quality of cloned hardware, but they are adequet for general purpose gaming, better compatability than most emulators, and I'm not butcherng a rare collectable top-loading NES, with inferior RF output I might add, for this project)

Plywood (I may also need to have them cut for me at the hardware store since I lack access to a table saw, and my circular saw is likely too inaccurate)
Sandpaper, Spraypaint, and adhesive vynyl sheets for controller overlay pattern.
Glue, screws, Power tools, Soldering Iron, etc. Basic stuff.
Perforated steel plate or screen to cover speaker hole.
Joystick (I'm assuming I need an 8-way joystick if I expect to use diagonals)
8 Arcade buttons, two red (A/B), four black (Start/Select/Turbo),
and two white buttons on the sides for pinball emulation (wired in paralell to Joystick Left and A buton)
Hookup wire
Breadboard from Radio Shack
Power switches and a reset button.
4021N IC for the "brains" of the NES controller (no donors will be harmed)
At least 10 1K resistors for grounding the arcade circuits.
A 555 timer with an adjustable pot and an appropriate R/C ratio for turbo button control
LED indicators for power and turbo finction

Some simple logic gates for combining the output of the 555 timer with the turbo/A/B buttons. 74xx series logic chips should suffice.

RCA connectors for audio/video output from the back of the unit. I'll probably use a male/male adapterglued into the wall of the console. The clone system will have a short 1-foot RCA type cable connecting the composite video. RCA-3mm Stereo audio adapter for the Amp input.

Salvaged parts:
A old 200-watt Shuttle PC power supply (the molex connector will supply 5V for the Clone and 12V for the Amp). Probably overkill for this project, but it's free. The Pwr-On pin on the motherboard power connector will be connected to the main power switch for turning on the system.

An old Cambridge Soundworks 5.1 surround system I have colecting dust. The analog pots on the sound system are all full of dust and have severe crackle issues, so it can no longer be used as a sound system. I will wire a new 10K pot to the outsite of the console for volume control, and run hookup wire which will solder to the old amp board. The sole output will be the center channel used as a mono sound source to drive a single full-range speaker. The other channels will remain unused. The sound output should be balanced provided both the left and right sound channel inputs are tied together. While the system originally ran on 15V, the supplied 12V should be adequet for audio playback at low volume levels.

Two full-range speaker drivers I salvaged a while back from an abandoned hi-def rear-projection TV which was discarded on curbside. I'll probably just use one of them as a mono sound source, or wire them in paralell for fuller sound.

Controller port #2 from the clone console for Player 2 / Zapper support.

================================================== ========
The schematic for the NES controllers are well documented. I can build the analog turbo control from a carefully selected ratio of resistor/capacitor values in conjunction with a potentiometer. I'm looking for a range of about 2-20 Hz variable speed botton mashing, covering a much wider range than the NES Advantage. My college major is Electrical Engineering, so I know a lot about circuits.

My biggest potential isues, are what are the best arcade parts to use and where to get them for a reasonable price. Also what thickness plywood should I use? How big should I make the controller and still have everything fit inside? What is a good spacing for the A/B buttons? Also, the Arcade controlls are designed to be mounted on 3/4 inch plywood, wheras the switches and pots they sell at Radioshack are designed to be mounted on much thinner 1/16 inch thick project enclosures. Do i need to leave the back end open for ventalation, or install a low-RPM cooling fan? I don't expect the cabinet to pull a lot of wattage, but the components probably shouldn't be sealed off. I also may need to access the guts from time to time. A hinged bottom should do the trick.

Tips, advice appreciated.

[wiggyx]

So you're trying to make something like this, correct?



If so, I'd just do it like this guy did.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-...ES-Controller/

Or do you want to build something shaped like an actual arcade cabinet with a large controller-clone interface?

[skaar]

I don't see why you wouldn't go with a toaster if you're chopping it up anyway... just make the cart slot externally accessible up near the control panel.

Or hell, just a PC with emulation.

[stardust4ever]

Hahaha, the guy that made that must have been a master craftsman. I probably couldn't do one half as good. I'm thinking mine will be no larger than a typical school desk. Also, I wanted to build it with genuine arcade controls rather than being a true scale replica of an NES controller. I may also decide to just skip the speaker/audio if it's too much trouble.

It sill be something similar to this NES Arcade, but the guy used a PC emulator, something which I'm kind of against. I want mine to be hardware-based.
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-...cade/?ALLSTEPS

Thanks for the replies. Nobody even replied to my basically identical post on NintendoAge. Again, I'd rather not get into modding of a genuine NES system. The Toaster has far better video quality than the rare top-loaders, but it would be difficult to mod one into a top-loading system without somehow running 72 wires from the cartridge loader to a spare connector.

I'm just trying to decide right now what the best arcade controls to buy are before I start this project.

UPDATE: I've decided to tone down the project a little, and just build an arcade controller. It will basically be like a huge NES Advantage with real arcade parts. I ordered the controls from Ultimarc.


2 x Classic Pushbuttons from Happ Controls.
Color: White

2 x Classic Pushbuttons from Happ Controls.
Color: Red

4 x Classic Pushbuttons from Happ Controls.
Color: Black

1 x Mag-Stik Plus
Color: Black

1 x Ball-Top handle for Mag-Stik Plus. Long Length.
Color: Black

The Mag-Stik Plus is expensive, but it's the only joystick they had in stock that can be freely converted between 4-way and 8-way operation. without going inside the cabinet. The ball-top handle is a must in my opinion for true arcade feel.

They all should work with up to 3/4 inch plywood. I may decide to use 1/2 inch so it won't be super heavy. The only power tools I currently own are a plugin handheld drill (more powerful and cheaper than the cordless type), circular saw, and a power sander (handlheld). I can get the appropriate cutters for the joystic and button holes, just simple circular holes should be fine. I'm not sure what sizes I need yet, or what dimensons I want to cut the panels. Time to grab some graph paper and draw out some plans. I want it to be beefy, but still fit comfortably in my lap whilst sitting on a couch.

I'm going to buy two new aftermarket extension cords for NES, one to cut up and one to connect to the controller. The controller will be large and heavy, so connecting a flimsy cable which can get tangled and snagged is not a good idea. The plug end of the donor cable will stick out the backside of the controller, and the extension cable will serve as a disconnectable cord, so if it gets yanked or tripped over, it'll just pull from the socket without damage. It's also replaceable.

[stardust4ever]

Bump. See the first post for updates on my completed controller!

[treismac]

It looks great! I would, however, change the color of the outside casing to the soft grey of the horizontal rectangles that run parallel. I think that would look more pleasing.

[ubersaurus]

Nice! There's actually a PCB out there called a Cthulhu which is effectively designed to allow an arcade stick to work on multiple systems, and one of the supported ones is the NES. Though I do wish he was able to get 7800 support... there's a system that could have used better controls.

[Kiddo]

Wow. I'd like to have a stick like that for my NES. O:

</has failed at getting the Messiah NEX Joysticks one too many times for his liking>

[stardust4ever]

I was trying to match the look of the original controller. The original NES marquee was black with grey horizontal bars, and had red lettering for start, select, and A/B. The off-white plastic showed through surrounding the buttons and d-Pad. I used Valspar Almond gloss spray paint for the base (plastic color), followed by Rustoleum hammered black and hammered silver for the marquee. I omitted the red letters, because it would have been one last prime opportunity to royally screw up the pain job if not done properly. I used painter's tape for the blocking the black/silver outlines. Look at the photo stream on Flickr. The metallic silver had glare from the ceiling light in the first photo, making it appear lighter than it was in the thumbnail. I'll admit the almond was actually left over from a previous project, but I thought it would make a nice off-white color for the controller plastic (the off-white plastic of the original NES controllers are slightly more yellow than the neutral light, light grey off-white of the SNES controllers). Looking back, the NES controllers hae a little more grey and a little less yellow than the Almond spray paint, but overall, the effect was nice.

The digital turbo control works flawless for arcade games, and the ability to switch between 4-way and 8-way joystick control by pulling up on the knob and twisting, is quite a nice little perk, depending on the game being played. I have a lot of arcade-style NES games in my collection, and switching to 4-way just feels right for games such as Pacman, Donkey Kong, and Galaga. Even Super Mario Brothers feels perfect in 4-way mode, although any game which requires diagonals (like run-and-guns or fighters) needs to be switched to 8-way.

As a neat little perk, I have flippers connected to joyleft and "A" button, for authentic simulation of pinball games. One little "Easter Egg" is that it is possible by pressing the left flipper and tilting the joystick to the right, to press "L" and "R" simultaneously. This allows Mario to perform backwards "moonwalking" in Super Mario Brothers, but due to H.I.D. limitations, this button combination does not work properly when used with a PC emulator and USB-NES adapter.