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    Famicom (not Mini) build (WIP)

    Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved Projects and Themes
    famicomfamicom minines
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    • FlyingTomahawkF
      FlyingTomahawk
      last edited by FlyingTomahawk

      Hi guys

      Got me a Famicom today for 540Yen and I think it would make a good case for one of my RPis.
      Not sure yet what I'm gonna put in there either a Pi Zero or the RPi 3.
      There seems to be plenty of space inside it and I might as well get me 2 8-bitdo FC30 controllers and replace the originals with those.
      I still need to do some homework before I can start there is much I need to learn from other builds first but eventually I'll get it done so stay tuned.

      Here a couple of pics and I also found a nice

      of a Famicom Mini teardown and comparison to a original size Famicom.

      alt text
      alt text
      alt text

      edmaul69E 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
      • edmaul69E
        edmaul69 @FlyingTomahawk
        last edited by

        @FlyingTomahawk if you completely remove the controllers i would be interested in buying them from you.

        FlyingTomahawkF 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • FlyingTomahawkF
          FlyingTomahawk @edmaul69
          last edited by

          @edmaul69

          Roger that. I'll keep that in mind.
          They are not that good looking though I can take pics later and post them so you can see.
          They had 3 other Famicoms and they all had better looking controllers but the body looked all yellowish and not so clean like this one.
          So I had to decide good looking controllers or good looking body.

          edmaul69E 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • edmaul69E
            edmaul69 @FlyingTomahawk
            last edited by

            @FlyingTomahawk i still would have interest. I couldnt get myself to shell out the price for one when all i wanted was the controllers. I am stoked to see someone is going to put a pi in one. I actually took a red and white nintendo wii and made my wii color schemed like a famicom. I wanted to get a famicom and remove the big bubble decal on it and put it on my wii but i never found a famicom with a good decal for a decent price. I need to find someone who can print one for me. I was going to buy a white mechanical keyboard and buy the keys in the color scheme of a famicom keyboard. But i forget who made the keyboard and keys. Then i color schemed the wiimotes in red and black like the controllers and was going to use a gold skin on them but decalgirl stopped selling the skins by the time i was going to get them.

            FlyingTomahawkF 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • FlyingTomahawkF
              FlyingTomahawk @edmaul69
              last edited by FlyingTomahawk

              @edmaul69

              "big bubble decal" ...explain more please.
              Do you have a picture of it?

              I am stoked to see someone is going to put a pi in one.

              They had 4 of em in the junk corner so I thought for $5-6 why not. Junk means here that they haven't tested if it still runs or not or if all buttons work on the controllers, doesn't include AC adapter and no TV cable.
              It does kinda hurt to think about cutting into it though. It looks kinda nice in good condition and all.
              But I think I can get Famicoms anytime again over here if something should go wrong.

              edmaul69E 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • edmaul69E
                edmaul69 @FlyingTomahawk
                last edited by

                @FlyingTomahawk the sticker that says family computer on it. For $5-6 if you can get them that cheap i really would be interested. And you could add a little for yourself on top.

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • spruce_m00seS
                  spruce_m00se
                  last edited by

                  I would buy one if you can get it for around 15 usd. if it had both controllers and was in reasonable nick, I dont have one in my collection yet.

                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • FlyingTomahawkF
                    FlyingTomahawk
                    last edited by FlyingTomahawk

                    To get them is not a problem, the condition is one problem the other problem is shipping.
                    I think shipping is what is gonna kill this for you guys. Japan -> US

                    edmaul69E spruce_m00seS 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • edmaul69E
                      edmaul69 @FlyingTomahawk
                      last edited by

                      @FlyingTomahawk i have ordered several items from japan shipping was never too crazy to the us for me. I am in colorado usa if you can get an estimate so i have an idea that would be great.

                      FlyingTomahawkF 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • FlyingTomahawkF
                        FlyingTomahawk @edmaul69
                        last edited by

                        @edmaul69

                        Will do.

                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                        • spruce_m00seS
                          spruce_m00se @FlyingTomahawk
                          last edited by

                          @FlyingTomahawk Im actually in Dubai, so hopefully a little cheaper.

                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • FlyingTomahawkF
                            FlyingTomahawk @edmaul69
                            last edited by FlyingTomahawk

                            @edmaul69 @spruce_m00se

                            Here the shipping quotes I got for the Famicom only (No AC adapter and no TV cable).
                            The Famicom itself is 637g + 100g for packing material = around 737g

                            Colorado (registered Airmail) = 1820 Yen ($16)
                            Dubai (registered Airmail) = 1820 Yen ($16)

                            @spruce_m00se if you want to have a decent looking one then the prices rise quickly.
                            There are mint condition Famicoms around sometimes even with original Box and all but they are very expensive.

                            What I bought is "junk" it came with nothing just the body with the 2 controllers and no AC and no TV cable.
                            I didn't mind since I use it as a Pi project. $15 for a good condition one is most likely not possible to find.

                            I will keep my eyes open and if I find a few good ones I let you guys know but don't hold your breath.
                            If you don't mind a discolored or not so mint condition like mine then I can sure get one again sooner.

                            @edmaul69

                            Here pictures of the controllers.
                            I took one with flash so that you can see the scars better.

                            alt text
                            alt text

                            MadRikXIVM spruce_m00seS 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                            • obsidianspiderO
                              obsidianspider
                              last edited by obsidianspider

                              Awesome!

                              I look forward to seeing your progress.

                              Whenever I look at eBay for various video game "stuff" I am amazed at how many listings are from Japan. While I've never been there I have visions of every town having a shop like Super Potato stuffed with obsolete video game parts.

                              📷 @obsidianspider

                              FlyingTomahawkF 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                              • FlyingTomahawkF
                                FlyingTomahawk @obsidianspider
                                last edited by FlyingTomahawk

                                @obsidianspider said in Famicom (not Mini) build (WIP):

                                Awesome!

                                I look forward to seeing your progress.

                                Whenever I look at eBay for various video game "stuff" I am amazed at how many listings are from Japan. While I've never been there I have visions of every town having a shop like Super Potato stuffed with obsolete video game parts.

                                Super Potato is a must visit for all retro game fans! I have been there a couple of times it's like going for a treasure hunt soooooo many cartridges laying around from very rare and expensive behind glass to regular stuff decorating all the walls and even the ceiling.
                                The problem is that the Japanese ain't stupid they now exactly what is rare and valuable and what not. So finding a rare game for a decent price is a hard task.

                                obsidianspiderO 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • obsidianspiderO
                                  obsidianspider @FlyingTomahawk
                                  last edited by

                                  @FlyingTomahawk I would definitely never say that the Japanese are stupid, but for someone like me, something being a Japanese exclusive item in and of itself is a really cool factor. My Super Famicom was $30, including shipping from Japan, but because they were never made for the US market, that's neat to me. Ironically, the controllers are all over the place over here and I ended up getting those from a place in Colorado.

                                  There are some items I'd love to find for inexpensive, but I don't see me going to Japan any time soon, so I keep my eyes on eBay.

                                  📷 @obsidianspider

                                  edmaul69E 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                  • FlyingTomahawkF
                                    FlyingTomahawk
                                    last edited by

                                    Curious, can I plug in a bluetooth dongle into my Pi Zero and connect 2 8bitdo controllers?

                                    obsidianspiderO 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                    • obsidianspiderO
                                      obsidianspider @FlyingTomahawk
                                      last edited by

                                      @FlyingTomahawk You could, or you could get the new Pi Zero W with built-in Bluetooth. ;)

                                      Also, the Zero is slow as poo. Go with a 3 since you have tons of room in that Famicom.

                                      📷 @obsidianspider

                                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                      • FlyingTomahawkF
                                        FlyingTomahawk
                                        last edited by

                                        Ah, for Christ sake! I just got my Zero 1.3 not even 1 month ago and now they have already a new one with WiFi and Bluetooth???!!
                                        They could tell me that! I bought a Wifi dongle for $10 + $5 Pi Zero that's already more than the Pi Zero W cost.

                                        Regarding the speed, to be honest I never had any issues thus far. I have NES, SNES, MegaDrive and Gameboy Advance on it and everything runs smooth and nice.
                                        I could not recreate the issues others have mentioned in this forum.
                                        I need to Pi3 for my Arcade Fighting stuff (FBA, NeoGeo, CPS...)
                                        A bluetooth solution would help avoid drill larger holes to the case. I would only need a HDMI out put and a microUSB output if using a Pi Zero.

                                        obsidianspiderO 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                        • obsidianspiderO
                                          obsidianspider @FlyingTomahawk
                                          last edited by

                                          @FlyingTomahawk If you're going with the FC 30s, then definitely Bluetooth sounds like a good option (I haven't tried a Bluetooth controller yet, but it's on my "one day" list.

                                          Don't feel bad about the Zero W. It was just released yesterday. I'm still debating if I want to get one for my Burger King Gameboy Color project or if I'll be able to get by with no wifi in it. I'm thinking I won't need connectivity once it's built, but I do have a few other projects that a wireless Zero would be great for: AirPlay speakers and a multiple I2C display World Clock that syncs to NTP servers. :)

                                          📷 @obsidianspider

                                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                          • FlyingTomahawkF
                                            FlyingTomahawk
                                            last edited by FlyingTomahawk

                                            You read my mind. Yeah, I want to buy the FC30 Combo controller set which has the I and II stamped on it. And from the picture I think they might even fit in the same spot where the originals are.
                                            If you ever decide to get a Pi Zero then definitely get the one with WiFi and Bluetooth. I had had a hard time at first to get it setup with 1 USB port, transfer all the roms and theme and so on.
                                            Read more here: https://retropie.org.uk/forum/topic/8272/install-themes-into-pi-zero/1
                                            But you're also right once setup you won't need it anymore. One bluetooth dongle should suffice to connect anything, like keyboard or controller.

                                            obsidianspiderO 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
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