Building a new NES in 2021: Adding RGB to the Opentendo and NESessity!

[@Deez-Master]

Dunno why, but these open sourced DiY console builds really do it for me, nice content :)

[@LIRetroGaming]

Thanks, I’m glad that you’re enjoying the videos!

[@bernardaarondolecki]

Thanks for making this board as an option and open sourcing!

[@MrJohnnyPappis]

After watching the last video with the board, I've been sitting here like sponge bob going. I don't need it, definitely don't need it, I neeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed it!

[@LIRetroGaming]

Agreed, I love having both of these options and I recommend them

[@BasementBrothers]

Well, any RGB modded system with expansion audio connected will do more or less the same thing, if done right. These just happen to be really cool ways to build the system nearly from scratch.

[@MrJohnnyPappis]

Just an update, I got one and my buddy got one! Cant wait to get started!

[@lenniegodber7805]

A criminally under-subscribed channel

[@SchielMusic]

You could update the design of power supply module to use some kind of fine pitch wire to board connector system instead of direct soldering and it would make the install even cleaner and easier.

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yes that would definitely be a nice change to the power supply. I’m still learning a lot about PCB design so I’m getting there slowly. But at least it’s available on github so anyone could potentially modify it and make it better

[@Darkl0ud_Productions]

More of this guy please!

[@littlefreak3000]

I would love to see a USB-C PD power supply replacement. With PD you can request 12v at up to 3 amps. then you would just have to drop it to 5v. To have the 12v and 5v needed for the NES.

[@JohnAnderson4242]

C64 folks have been using those switch power regulators - they work great. I have them in my Commodore 64s

[@DrBeefy]

Please do more of these, I am curious to know what else is out there.

[@LIRetroGaming]

Absolutely. I really loved making this video and I’ll do more like this when possible

[@svorttsirhc1814]

Excellent audio in your video

[@Cwiiis]

Liking this before even watching it, this was what I was waiting for :)

[@Seuration]

you should consider retrobrighting that case for the NESessity...

[@LIRetroGaming]

Definitely, it’s on my list of things to do!

[@SuperLuigiGuy64]

Awesome 👍🏼 didn't even know you can install the multiout port.

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yeah that is a really nice option and it makes it compatible with HD Retrovision cables

[@Ziltr0]

I watched this video a few times over the last year, and finally caved in and got a 1.6 NESessity. Unfortunately, I was missing a few components which was no issue since I ordered them from Digitkey as soon as I noticed them missing. I have zero knowledge, and never even soldered before this project. The board is very easy to navigate. But now as I am finished with almost everything on, I am not getting any power to the board. It would be awesome to see an updated version of this video working with the very different 1.6 model. Until then, I am going to dig around and pray I can resolve my issue.

[@LIRetroGaming]

The NESessity is a pretty big project for a beginner so definitely take your time and go through all the components that were installed

[@stevemcknelly5036]

I've already started on my NES rebuild. I'm just waiting for Low Budget to restock the NESessity board and I'm trying to find a Blinking LED loader. All because of your videos. :D

[@LIRetroGaming]

That’s awesome, really glad to hear that! I know that low budget is ordering more supplies and they should be back in stock very soon

[@lowbudgetify]

I have more PCBs and parts on order. I should have the bare PCBs available early May and the kits ready late May on Tindie. Thank you

[@stevemcknelly5036]

@@lowbudgetify Awesome! Thank you!

[@flekkzo]

I keep going back to the idea of using USB-C for power, as it’s easier to find those power bricks. Need a beefier one, but still a lot easier :)

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yeah that should work as an option as well

[@littlefreak3000]

With PD you can request 12V in form the power block and then just have to do a 12v to 5v which is super commoon. I believe the the stock power supply just produces 2 12v lines and 2 5v lines.

[@fruitsnackia2012]

someyears back i modded my nes to run off apple charger usb for fun. worked without issues.

[@2000freefuel]

I have yet to see an adapter to replace the Original Nintendo keyboard for the Famicom, it was a simple scanned key matrix consisting of 72 buttons and an audio tape interface. something that should be easily adapted with an Arduino or Teensy 4.1 micro.

[@LIRetroGaming]

Agreed, a microcontroller should be able to handle that

[@2000freefuel]

@@LIRetroGaming it also seems that upgrading to the SNES multi out connector is the way to go if you want to add RGB output. IDK if that also carries S-Video or not but I guess you could always put that connector on the back.

[@ATARIVISION]

Dude is that metroid for the famicom disk system at 20:00 😂

[@LIRetroGaming]

It certainly is!

[@Nytroman24]

Bravo, i wish i had half the talent and patience as you do, how have i only just seen this channel!? subscribed forever keep it going!

[@LIRetroGaming]

Thanks so much and I’m really glad that you enjoyed it!

[@s1rdeath]

This was so cool the sound was so great in different from the other wow... I'm not good at stuff like this but it was awesome to watch this ty for sharing.

[@MarcosAurelio-nm7ei]

Amazing!!! but why not use component video, with 3 connectors or HDMI? Wouldn't the video signal be better?

[@LIRetroGaming]

RGB and component video are identical in quality, so it’s just a matter of personal preference. HDMI is another great option, but unfortunately those kits are no longer being made

[@MarcosAurelio-nm7ei]

@@LIRetroGaming But RGB signal is transmitted by only one wire as in composite video, and component video is 3 way. Doesn't that impact the quality?

[@ZodiacalLight]

@@MarcosAurelio-nm7ei RGB is transmitted by 4 wires. R, G, B, and sync.

[@MarcosAurelio-nm7ei]

@@ZodiacalLight Not when the signal is transmitted by composite signal, on RCA cable with only one way. In the component signal, each signal is transmitted separately. There are 3 connectors on this cable.

[@Greyhoundsniper]

Hope someone does this diy board but with the Wii for specific cases on og shells or portables

[@LIRetroGaming]

That would certainly be cool, but soldering those chips for the Wii would be very difficult

[@pixeltao]

Is the CPU socketed on this install of the NESessity board? I was wondering if I should socket both the CPU and the NESRGB board, or solder the CPU directly to the board to get more breathing space underneath the NESRGB board.

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yes, I did socket both the CPU and the PPU. I’m not so biased about socketing the other chips but I decided to do that with these chips because they are original

[@stgigamovement]

Many of the oldest and most compatible bootleg Famiclones such as the original Dendy used clone CPU and PPU chips that were not an NES-on-a-chip. So if one put chips from one of those into this type of board with a Blinking Light Win and a custom shell, it would be possible to effectively make a whole new NES from non-Nintendo parts.

[@LIRetroGaming]

I had forgotten about those Dendy NES clones. That would probably work here!

[@stgigamovement]

@@LIRetroGaming just keep in mind that there's a wee clock speed difference between Dendy, PAL, and NTSC CPUs, and that the Dendy is closest to PAL in both CPU and PPU. So while it's possible to use an earlier Dendy for this board instead of Nintendo's own parts, just keep in mind that the differences exist. But it does mean that one doesn't need to cannibalize an NES, and can instead go for low hanging fruit that would be ubiquitous (many more companies than Dendy did this type of clone, so one wouldn't be cannibalizing a piece of history if done to a visually horribly-designed older famiclone. Also there are newly manufactured controller extension cables made nowadays that could be used to replace the controller ports with some passion utilized, and one can use an alternative power LED. Basically this means that at the cost of an older famiclone with ugly case design, one can make a whole new NES entirely from non-Nintendo parts, given the fact that custom new shells exist. Also the company that made the Dendy chips (UMC) still exists and likes to focus on older circuits "UMC is content with being a solid second-tier player offering older technology - as much as a decade behind TSMC - used in important but more mundane components, such as those that tune radio frequencies or manage power supply in mobile and consumer electronics." So getting New Old Stock or newly made Dendy chips is also an option given how long after the last non-NoaC famiclones UMC made those chips for. Remember that the NES CPU is a 6502 with integrated audio, including PCM. There is still heavy demand for 6502s, and they are still made. The NES PCM can either be 1bit DPCM, or it can be direct register writes to the 7bit DAC register that the DPCM feeds. Having 7bit PCM, 2 square waves for beeps, and a 6502 on the same package would actually be useful for certain industrial devices that need a basic processor and a means of auditorily alerting the user, so in the case of the CPU newly manufactured Dendy chips from UMC would not be outlandish. Plus you would need a real NTSC PPU, so it would actually be possible to make an entirely newly manufactured NES apart from the PPU with newly manufactured Dendy CPUs. Also know that Dendy chips are not exact clones of the official chips, namely in the audio department, but it's very minor.

[@Brizzle19868]

Question.. for expansion audio, you added the 1k resistor to one side of the 100k resistor and then added the 47k to the other side of the 100k resistor?

[@TheIN4CER]

Plus is not temping to extend the sound nobes to the out side of the box?

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yeah I have though about that too. But really once they are set correctly you don’t need to mess with them

[@WadeVillines]

Nesessity 10:05

[@RetroGamingBroadcast]

Any chance you have looked over the ver1.6 build? I just built the 1.6 after finding this video but I’m curious because in the new instructions they do not show removing or not installing the composite parts.

[@fredgarza5515]

I like the nessecity board, but I prefer the power board you fixed and used with the opentendo because it has the multiout port. Could you use that board with the nessecity?

[@LIRetroGaming]

I don’t think it would be easy to use that board with the NESessity. But you can always add a multi out port to the NESessity - it would just have to be cut into the shell instead

[@fredgarza5515]

@@LIRetroGaming 1i wouldn't mind doing that...but do you have a wiring diagram on how that would work?

[@leobgoo6350]

Awesome! Fantastic work - thanks!

[@bernardaarondolecki]

Should this still work fine with Tim Worthington’s NESRGB v4? I am preparing to do my first console mods and I want to make sure I have the output method set before I make my orders. I have several carts on different sites ready to get parts for a few systems, but doing a no-cut NESRGB has been a dilemma. I may need to look into using this diy option since I have not been able to find anyone who is currently selling prefabricated power modulator boards. I will save it and next week look into the process and see if I would be able to figure out completing the process. If you know of anyone who has newer versions, I’d be interested. Cheers~

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yes this should be very similar for the new v4 NESRGB. The only difference is the in game reset and palette swapping, which you can use my NESRGB v4 video as a guide

[@aemun83]

Can you use a multi out on the nescisty?

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yes absolutely

[@ray73864]

Any chance for an upated BOM for it, that has the missing part numbers filled in (based on what you bought for yours)? I ordered 5 of the power boards to go with the 5 OpenTendo boards I have, just trying to work out the BOM for this thing.

[@LIRetroGaming]

I included the BOM for the power module on the GitHub page, and all the required parts should be there. You can email me at 1uprestorations.com and I can help to clarify if needed

[@mrmostlyharmless]

Wow I want one!!!

[@HLGDarksol]

Confirmed: adding RGB improves video quality.

[@axelkusanagi4139]

I keep thinking the cartridge connector is Jamma...

[@LIRetroGaming]

I have been working on a few arcade restorations lately so I get that!

[@ericochoa4034]

Could you still add expansion audio to the back of the PCB like on a original board on the opentendo instead of where you put it?

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yeah, that would also work

[@ericochoa4034]

@@LIRetroGaming thanks!

[@TheIN4CER]

Are you ever going to do a HDMI version if it becomes available for you? Otherwise love your content 😉

[@stevemcknelly5036]

The problem is Kevtris dropped HiDef NES because the HDMI chip was discontinued. I wish someone would pick up the project and redesign it.

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yeah I would totally do it if they were available

[@stevemcknelly5036]

@@LIRetroGaming Someone will need to pick up where Kevtris left off for that to happen. Either get his board templates and rework them for a new HDMI chip or start over from scratch.

[@leowatley]

can you add a socket for the ppu on the rgb board, or would there be clearance issues or something during reassembly?

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yeah that is the problem. It ends up being too tall and it does not fit in the case. So you cannot socket the ppu

[@leowatley]

@@LIRetroGaming that's what i figured. thanks for the quick answer! just started watching your channel and i'm really digging the projects like these.

[@drewfranklinaustin]

Hey do they have supper nes version of the NESessity

[@LIRetroGaming]

No not yet. But I hope that someone make some thing like that soon!

[@nukedoom]

I was really expecting you to add some RGB lights to the NES lol

[@LIRetroGaming]

Ha! That would be a fun thing to add as well

[@AdamBath]

Is there anyone who sells the Spinks board?

[@LIRetroGaming]

The easiest thing to do is to go to the github page I created and download the files. You can have it printed by PCBway and then you can build it yourself

[@bernardaarondolecki]

As on December 2022, I am also trying to find preassembled boards for sale. This is the fourth person that I have found who has made them but does not sell them.

[@NovvaOfficial]

So, I've assembled my NESessity 1.6 with an NESRGB and a multiout. I am experiencing just a black screen when I boot up a cart. No Audio, no video, just a black screen. I haven't observed any shorts anywhere and I'm curious where I should start. NESRGB shows LED 1 on. It's my 2nd NESRGB build, but my first NESessity build. I've removed the composite circuit on the board as you have shown. Any tips?

[@LIRetroGaming]

Really hard to help without photos, but I would try to test the NESessity by itself first without the NESRGB installed

[@yeolemillinial8295]

i don't understand why the openentendo doesn't have the components to do RGB by default

[@LIRetroGaming]

That wasn’t the goal of the developers and it also adds more complexity to the installation. I certainly enjoy having RGB but not everybody cares about that

[@tonecv]

Very good ! Next...HDMI output board

[@LIRetroGaming]

I certainly will do that - but the HiDef NES is no longer sold. Maybe some day!

[@Muahdib76]

I know that this is several months since this was posted but was wondering how I would bypass the NESRGB sound using Voultar's QSB for a multiout. If I did run the sound through the NESRGB would the potentiometers do anything to the individual "channels" even though it would be sending out the signal in mono on the multiout. The QSB that Voultar has uses a ribbon cable which makes for a clean install and I'd like to use it if possible but worry it would invalidate the sound quality of the NESessity. Any thoughts?

[@LIRetroGaming]

My understanding is that the QSB would most likely be set up for dual mono output, not stereo sound like the NESessity outputs. But the only advantage of the QSB is an easier install, so personally I would not bother with it on the NESessity

[@Muahdib76]

@@LIRetroGaming Cool. Thanks for the quick reply and awesome videos you provide!

[@dailyskeptic]

Where can you get NESessity as a full kit? The Tindie link looks to be just the PCB

[@LIRetroGaming]

The full kit is also an option on the website. Right now he is out of stock but he’s getting new stuff very soon

[@RetroGamer-zz5jn]

Can u still buy this rgb add on? I’m start building opentendo next week with parts tht I have bought so far, still sourcing missing parts but I have eno to get started

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yes it’s still possible to buy that

[@LanceThumping]

Now if only we can combine these so that we could have an all-in-one NES board with HDMI out. It'd be cool to see the Famicom port and HDMI port fit into the expansion bay then we'd have a no-cut HDMI NES.

[@LIRetroGaming]

Something like that would be really cool. If an HDMI mod gets commercially made again, then at least part of this would be possible

[@VuRkka]

Can NESsessity be used with european power supply?

[@LIRetroGaming]

Absolutely, it can be used with a European power supply and it can also use the PAL Cpu and ppu along with the right crystal oscillator. This would give you a PAL NESessity instead of an American one

[@JimmiJam]

Hey great video been watching a lot of your videos recently, do have any tips for soldering to super small contacts?

[@LIRetroGaming]

Thanks, I’m glad that you are enjoying the videos! Yes I do offer some suggestions for soldering small contacts. You can see some examples of this in my PS1 digital video

[@intel386DX]

Why the new designed board have holes In it?

[@LIRetroGaming]

there are some holes that are required so that it can be screwed into the case

[@brucejones868]

which revision of the Rf board runs in nes without changes

[@LIRetroGaming]

Not sure what you mean exactly. The opentendo will work with all of those RF modulators

[@brucejones868]

@@LIRetroGaming understood and that I read in your source. and I understood that revision b would only be for RGB. I got it wrong?

[@brucejones868]

@@LIRetroGaming understood and that I read in your source. and I understood that revision b would only be for RGB. I got it wrong?

[@brucejones868]

@@LIRetroGaming I noticed that you don't have the RCJx plug rca bookstore. if you want i have her photoprint that i made on the eagle

[@ray73864]

Got myself the OpenTendo boards via JLCPCB, checked with PCBWay, but the delivery here to country Western Australia was just stupids amount of money. PCBWay wanted just over $100AUD for 5 boards + delivery, JLCPCB did the whole thing for $73AUD. The only issue I have is finding the crystal, PAL 26.601712MHz crystals are as rare as hens teeth... I found some on eBay for like $5AUD which I have ordered just in case the original NES ones I have die for whatever reason, but wowsers at how difficult they are to find. Would have liked to have gone Nesessity, but the pricing to get it to here in Western Australia is just too stupid for words :(

[@LIRetroGaming]

I’m surprised that those crystals are hard to find, I would have imagined that they are still needed in lots of applications. If you have a parts nes you can also salvage a crystal from there as well

[@ray73864]

@@LIRetroGaming Yeah, besides AliExpress and eBay, I've not found any at all. I have 3 NES consoles, my original one from the '80s, and 2 I bought off of eBay, the 2 eBay ones are going to become OpenTendo ones, so unfortunately I don't have any spare crystals besides those working consoles.

[@ridingnerdy6406]

Really wish the Hi-Def NES guys would hurry up and work on a new version or pass the project to someone else...

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yeah honestly I’m not holding out much hope. I would rather see another developer make something equivalent or better

[@ridingnerdy6406]

@@LIRetroGaming That's the best solution, but from what I've seen of the Hi-Def Nes I wonder if it's even possible for someone else to make a processor level digital video output without infringing on their design.

[@zhurnivuurg]

@@ridingnerdy6406If anyone ever gets far enough into developing an alternative, and the Hi-Def NES guys want to play "Intellectual Property Wars", then I'm sure a royalty could be negotiated. It would make the end product more expensive, but this is a luxury hobby. Most people who are into HDMI mods for the NES would probably still buy it, even if it were a $200 upgrade.

[@laurencepap6099]

Hi Long Island Retro Gaming, Thank you for your video, I found it really helpful and excellent explanation. I've been trying to build the opentendo with RGB running into an issue. I tried two sets of cpu and PPU just in case and two sets of rgb boards. Without a cart I get the expected flashing red, but with the cart in I get a blank picture with humming audio sound coming out of composite. I checked the IC around the board they were all getting 5V. I don't have access to original RF/power unit so I'm not sure what the 5 pins output should be on the spinks board. Now that I thought about it, could the trim capacitor need to be adjusted (i haven't done since I installed it), would that stop it from working. Are there any other things I should look out for? thanks!

[@LIRetroGaming]

I think it's tough to know exactly what the issue is without seeing some pictures. Is RGB working or have you only tested composite video? you can send me pics and more details at 1uprestorations.com

[@FcoMp]

does the opentendo and nesessity suffer from the same flickering issues and frame drops as original NES?

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yes, they both behave exactly the same as a real NES. They don't have extra RAM or other resources, so the same limitations apply and it's an accurate recreation

[@FcoMp]

@@LIRetroGaming I understand, It might be the way the games were created to overcome the original hardware limitation.

[@JOEL6780]

How much to mod my game gear?

[@LIRetroGaming]

You can see options here, or email George from the website if you are looking for something that is not listed - 1uprestorations.com/collections/game-gear-mod-services

[@aemun83]

Thanks for this

[@LIRetroGaming]

Thanks! Glad that you enjoyed it

[@ZachManner]

What cable are you using to go to the OSSC?

[@LIRetroGaming]

I’m using a retrogamingcables 8pin mini din scart cable. But you could also use different types of connectors like a super Nintendo multi out for example

[@ZachManner]

@@LIRetroGaming thanks! I’m definitely more interested in the multi-out option and using something like retrovision cables as that seems like a better option for me so it’s nice that the board has that option to add the multi-out.

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yes it’s extremely flexible which is one of the strengths of this project

[@VansterX]

You should add a male/female connector so you can easily disconnect the Necessity from the case.

[@LIRetroGaming]

Yeah I have thought about that as well

[@ColeRambaldi]

When RGB Module is thousand times faster then the main board.

[@Joe_Yacketori]

When doing any of the soldering for your projects, do you ever clean up the flux? Have you ever had problems with the flux bridging connections or screwing anything up in general?

[@bzuidgeest]

Out of curiosity I looked at the schematic for the original power board (www.neshq.com/hardgen/schem2.jpg and the schematic from your github repository. As far as I can see, your/spinks version pretty closely follows the original. I took a quick look at the datasheets for the original and replacement transistor and to me it seems the new one should work. But there are two components on the original schematic that are missing on yours. A capacitor and a small coil by the looks of it. I don't know if they are important. Might just be a little filtering, but then again nintendo might have had good reason to put them in. You did not go into a lot of detail as to why the original video out did not work for you. The original schematic if it's accurate also shows audio being derived from the video line so the filtering might be to remove an audio component from the signal. I'm not well versed in analog electronics. That training has worn away over the digital years, so take my comment for what it is :)

[@LIRetroGaming]

The original Spinks board had two problems: all the vias that should be connected to ground were just floating, connected to nothing. I connected all of them to the ground plane. The second problem was that the traces for the AV jacks were switched so I rerouted them to the correct locations. I still have a few boards left so I plan to experiment with this on a spare frontloader NES I have

[@bzuidgeest]

@@LIRetroGaming What about the problem you mention at 4:35 in the video with Q1? Seems to me that makes three problems with the original board.... and that was what I was replying on. I also noticed the link I gave had an ")" included on the end by accident. I removed it, should now work.'

[@Ronin7477]

I want this

[@chadwolf3840]

cool video

[@atsz.]

Anyone know if there are any reproduction NES housings you can get to make an NES with this kit? I don't want to mutilate an original one

[@LIRetroGaming]

Sadly there are no repro shells for the nes that I am aware of. If you go with the opentendo and the pcb I posted, then you don’t have to cut the shell

[@RetroPCUser]

I was going to suggest 3D printing, but, it mightn't be an easy task. However, that would be so cool.

[@bernardaarondolecki]

Castlemania has one for sale now. If you do a quick Google search, you might be able to find more options that are cheaper.

[@pokemonmandag2108]

HDMI next

[@LIRetroGaming]

If an hdmi kit gets made for the nes, I’ll definitely make a video

[@12345nope12345]

Skills!

[@jamesdavies686]

Dude, great channel but go to walmart and buy a can of acetone or 99.9% IPA and clean up your flux after you finish soldering, just looks way more professional and will prevent issues down the road. No clean flux or not, you really should clean it. You can see a ton of flux on the opentendo console at the beginning of the video and even more at 9:33

[@thakyou5005]

lol 468 Views looks like 4GB .