Under voltage warnings on RetroFlag NESPI case - best power supply?

[sonicsheppard]

Hi everyone,

So a few days ago I changed from the Flirc case to the RetroFlag NESPI since they looked great, however I've started to get those very pesky undervoltage warnings and slowdowns, despite never having them with the Flirc case.

I'm assuming this is down to the the NESPI case have a seperate power supply which also powers the additonal USB ports, and GPIO with fan attachments - which I also have.

I was wondering if anyone else is experincing this with the NESPI case, if anyone has any workarounds, or if anyone can recommend a very powerful power supply? I'm currently using a 5V 3A supply which was fine with the Flirc case.

Details:
Pi Model or other hardware: Raspberry Pi 3
Power Supply used: 5V 3A mains power.
RetroPie Version Used: 4.2.20 script
Built From: 4.2 RetroPie image, fully updated.
USB Devices connected: 256GB HyperX USB drive, Bluetooth dongle, Rapoo T-series wireles keyboard/mouse pad.
Controller used: Wii U Pro and Sony PS3 bluetooth controllers.
Error messages received: N/A
Log found in /dev/shm/runcommand.log (if relevant): N/A
Guide used: N/A
Emulator: All tried so far.

My Raspberry Pi 3 is also quite heavily overclocked, with the following settings at 1080p:

arm_freq=1300
over_voltage=4
temp_limit=80
core_freq=500
gpu_freq=500
sdram_freq=500
sdram_schmoo=0x02000020
gpu_mem_256=128
gpu_mem_512=256
gpu_mem_1024=256
dwc_otg.speed=1
overscan_scale=1
dtparam=sd_overclock=72
dtoverlay=pi3-disable-bt

I have multiple heatsinks as well as a mounted fan, as not only am I recieving undervolt warning but the NESPI case also gave temperature warnings!

Does anyone have any suggestions, or am I going to have to go back to the Flirc case, sacrificing looks for performance?

Thanks everyone!

[Darksavior]

@sonicsheppard Lower your overvoltage. I can get 1300 with only 2 overvoltage using an official pi 2.5a charger. I'm using the example settings from https://github.com/RetroPie/RetroPie-Setup/wiki/Overclocking

Also, not all chargers are created equal. I'm not using your case, though.

[sonicsheppard]

Hi @Darksavior

Thanks very much for your reply!

I will lower my overvoltage setting to 2 as you suggest and see if that helps.

[sonicsheppard]

Hi @Darksavior

It seems that lowering that over_voltage value to 2 has greatly helped!

I've only had one instance in the last 30 minutes, rather than seeing it every few minutes when it was set to 4.

Was wondering, would you suggest lowering it further to 1, or is it even needed for the overclock settings I'm using?

Thanks so much for your help dude, hugely apprecieted!

[cyperghost]

@sonicsheppard Are you using a USB data cable or an USB power cable to connect to power source. The data cables have 4 wires and they are usually a bit thinner as these "power USB cabels". It also helps a bit to keep cable length as short as possible.

I ran my Pi3 with 2 BT controllers and 1 KB connected (not overclocked) stable with just 1,5A power source since more than one year.

[sonicsheppard]

Hi @cyperghost ,

I'm 99% sure it's a USB power cable. Its quite thick, and it's 5V and 3A, and it says Power Adaptor on it. It's 1m in length, so quite short.

I did purposely try to get the most powerful supply I could (3A) and a short cable so I could experiment a bit with overclocking. Hence my surprise at getting very frequent voltage warnings on the NESPI case when I had no issues at all with Flirc.

[cyperghost]

@sonicsheppard Just for clearance as I'm not native speaker - I mean such a device and you can use an extra cable. Not a fix connected cable to the wall charger ;)

[Darksavior]

@sonicsheppard said in Under voltage warnings on RetroFlag NESPI case - best power supply?:

Hi @Darksavior

It seems that lowering that over_voltage value to 2 has greatly helped!

I've only had one instance in the last 30 minutes, rather than seeing it every few minutes when it was set to 4.

Was wondering, would you suggest lowering it further to 1, or is it even needed for the overclock settings I'm using?

Thanks so much for your help dude, hugely apprecieted!

I haven't really done any extensive testing other than using the examples. Since I've had no issues with the provided settings, I never bothered to test out overvoltage=1. As it was already mentioned, you can try a thicker gauge usb power cable.

[cyperghost]

@darksavior It's also possible that it is from the case itself. It provides a power connector pluged in and then powers up the Pie via GPIO pins. So the connectors themself provide some resistance.

[Foldedpencil]

I am having the same issue with the case. I think I'm going to return it and get a different one and see if it does better... I haven't seen this cited as a common issue, so I'm hoping it just a manufacturing defect.

[amputato]

i am also getting voltage warnings with this case, too bad i really like the case! i've never overclocked anything before, can i change the overvoltage value without changing clockspeed? does changing the value work?

[Foldedpencil]

Just an update, I got a replacement Nespi case and I'm no longer having any issues with the voltage. Seem like there is some manufacturing variation. I suggest that if you have this issue you try and get a replacement.

[dexter]

@foldedpencil I'm having undervoltage issues as well. I contacted the seller already, just curious what the process was. Did you have to ship the defective one back? If so, was it before or after you received your replacement? I'm a little worried, cuz I removed the nespi label, and added a Nintendo label.

[Foldedpencil]

@dexter I purchased it from retroflag on Amazon and Amazon handled the return. They gave me a free shipping label and told me to use it anytime in the next 30 days (it could have been longer, I don't really remember). I ordered another one, waited for it to arrive, switched them out, and sent the old one back in the new ones box. You could easily keep the top part from the old one (I did that so I wouldn't have to fiddle with switching out my fan). Good luck!

[dexter]

@foldedpencil good idea! Thank you!

[Foldedpencil]

@dexter By the way, how easy was it to apply the Nintendo decal? I'm considering getting one, but I'd hate to get it crooked. They aren't really that cheap, but do they look good/durable?

[dexter]

@foldedpencil I actually haven't put it on yet, but I did remove the nespi logo with a magic eraser. No scuff marks or anything. I'll let you know how the application part of it goes.

[amputato]

thanks guys i got my money refunded. will reorder a working one hopefully

[SgtJimmyRustles]

I'd say try to get a power supply that's rated at 5.25v. That should allow the voltage to drop .25 which would still give you 5v to go with.

[dexter]

@foldedpencil so I got my new nespi case and even got to keep the old one. Still having the same issues. Guess I have to try a new power supply. NES label was kind of a pain to put on (I chickened out, and had my wife do it) but it looks great