DufenTech

This is an entire NES system built into just the controller. A nice easy way to

Features:

• Plays either 76 built-in games (Mario, Contra, Tetris, etc.) or plug in a cartridge.
• Backlit Nintendo logo.
• Has player 2 port, for duck hunt or two player contra, whatever. Just about every game works on it.

To switch between the built in games and the cartridge there is a three position switch. Middle position is off, to the left is the built-in games, and to the right is the cartridge.

Power is supplied by a 12V jack. It can use any 9-12V power supply for power. Or if you have a TV with composite hookup in the car or van you can use a 12V cigarette power cord and play on a trip.

BUILD PICS

Parts used:

• Super Joy III NES clone
• Nintendo NES controller
• NES controller port
• DC jack + matching 12V power supply
• AV cable
• Small project Box
• Black printer cable
• 3 position slide switch
• (2x) 3MM white LED’s + a resistor

Case Work

First I had to disassemble the controller. That involved getting the front face sticker off without damaging it. Having tried this before I knew it was tricky. The stickers get brittle after a while, and the glue holding them on can get really hard or just completely ready to let go. If you just go and pry at a brittle sticker it’s a 50/50 chance it will be ruined, in my experience. Not wanting to waste a controller I came up with a way to get it off safely. So first I picked the “youngest” looking controller and took it apart. Then I heated up some water on the stove to a hot level but not boiling. Then I held the front case half with tongs and held it in the water, checking it every 30 seconds or so to make sure the plastic wasn’t getting too hot which would cause warping. After a bit the sticker glue softened up from the heat and the sticker came off like it was coated in butter. I could have reused the adhesive that was already on it, but since it was so old I decided not to. I took goo gone to the back of the sticker and on a flat surface delicately removed all the old adhesive.

The case was pretty simple on this. But the wiring wasn’t. Seems like it’s always one or the other. On the NES case I cut out a cartridge slot, LED backlighting hole, switch hole, drilled out the cable hole to fit the larger cable, and cut off the the bottom screwpost and filled with epoxy putty (not shown). Then filled in any scratches or areas that weren’t smooth with spot putty, then sanded smooth. I left the Nintendo logo alone, it was too cool to pave over. Then several coats of gloss white paint made it look nice.

For the wire junction box, I cut out holes for the NES controller cord (printer cable), AV cable, player 2 port, and power jack. I was doing this tired and managed to screw it up by making them too big in a few tiny spots, not a big deal but enough to bother me. After some sleep I patched up the spots I had over dremeled, then painted and sanded the case. Then I superglued the controller port and power plug in place.

Wiring

The NES clone used was a Super Joy III. It came in a N64 styled controller case. After seeing it would work with a Japanese-to-US cartridge adapter, I took it apart. Then desoldered everything from the board, and laid out the cartridge adapter. I followed the traces from the adapter to wire the connector to the board. The wires had to be soldered through the case. The case had already been sanded where the connector met the case, so the connector was superglued in place.  Hot glue was added as well to keep the stress from  cartridges from breaking it loose.

The original NES control board was used. To give enough room underneath for the NES clone, the controller chip was flipped to the top of the controller, and pins bent over to connect to the original traces. Room for the power switch had be cut out as well and the traces rewired.

The junction box connections were soldered together. This connected lines from the AV plugs, power, and player 2 port to the NES clone. The wires were then encased in hotglue to keep them from coming loose.

Then all the wires for the LED backlight and the rest of the connections were soldered. The power switch was superglued in place. Hot glue held the LED’s in place.