I just received some photos of the first industrial prototype, layout version 0.3 (1 out of 7 units). Note that the PCB appears way too large if you look at it that way. This was necessary so it would tightly fit into the enclosure without additional spacers. If you don’t like it, you can still chop it off. More news:
- Custom made *SNES and *Genesis cartridge connectors, video-game quality
- Extension pins for up to 4 *SNES gamepads
Can’t wait to have them in my hands, to test the new connectors and to implement the gamepad part of the firmware. There will be at least one more prototype revision before the thing can go into production.
Where’d you get these connectors? Were they made specially for snega2usb (expensive)?
I have them made according to my specifications. They’re not too expensive, but the catch is that I’m going to have to order a huge number of each type.
Would you care to release the specifications?
Some day perhaps. Definitely not by the end of this year.
There are lots of snes controller to usb diy sites out there so it shouldn’the that hard to add to the code if oyu have the IO’s. You could also just add another micro and build in a usb hub so they all show up as separate usb devices. The new pcb looks good, the smt work is much neater. The only thing I can suggest is refrain from making 90 degree corners for your traces. use 45’s wherever you can. You will find it is also easier to clean up traces that way.
It doesn’t take a hub to make the controllers appear as separate devices. I heard some emulators are still having trouble with the HID/joystick class, so for compatibility reasons, the snega2usb will probably show up as mass storage (for the cart interface) plus a keyboard (for the controllers).
This is coming along much more quickly than I anticipated. Great work, Matthias! I can’t wait to get my hands on one of the boards. I am actually considering integrating the module into my HTPC case, but we shall see…
This looks fantastic! What price would you be looking for when you sell this?
Oh nevermind found it in the FAQ.
Have you tried the Super Gameboy Snes cart with it? I would be very interested to know if that works as I would like a simple way to take screen captures from my gameboy camera.
Without even trying, I can guarantee you that the Super Gameboy will not work with the current hardware/firmware of the snega2usb. After all, it is not a ROM cartridge but instead houses a fully fledged Gameboy, which obviously cannot be accessed in a reasonable way through a virtual ROM file. Some day, some hacker might figure out a way of interfacing to the SGB, but that won’t be me for sure :-)
Ah that makes sense. Thanks for the reply and info.