Raspberry Pi Zero inside an SNES Controller - The SNS-005Z

I received a raspberry pi zero recently and thought it would be a fun project to fit it into an official SNES controller
I was inspired by these similar projects:
jamespoole.me/2...
/ 677212612170555393
The main changes I was looking to try being:
Use an original SNES controller
Have HDMI out and power switch coming out the top
Run it on an internal battery (with charging port on the bottom)
I am really happy with how it came out
It runs for about 2 hours give or take, hooks up to any TV with just an HDMI cable and it was a great way to learn/practice soldering and electronics
Wiring Diagram:
www.dropbox.co...
Case Modifications:
www.dropbox.co...
Parts:
Raspberry PI Zero (v1.3) - www.raspberryp...
Super Nintendo Controller (model #SNS-005)
Powerboost 500c - www.adafruit.c...
Lithium Ion Polymer Battery (3.7v 500mAh) - www.adafruit.c...
Slide Switch - www.adafruit.c...
Mini HDMI Male to HDMI female adapter - www.amazon.com...
How to setup up the gamecon driver to work with RetroPie:
Blugoo's step by step - blug00.blogspot...
--- The only difference to watch for is that we are wiring up an SNES controller instead of an N64
--- So based on my wiring diagram above the modprobe command to use is "options gamecon_gpio_rpi map=0,0,0,0,0,1"
Also helpful is the readme file from the gpio driver here - blug00.blogspot...
If you have questions please don't hesitate to ask in the comments below. I'll do my best to help out.
Thank you!
Update 12/28/16:
@GroveMerida did a great write up on how he built his over at thomasannet.wix.... Lots of great photos and details there - Check it out!

[@thermodynamicist]

What a great slick little project! I love the idea of walking up to a tv, pulling a controller out of my pocket and being able to play games immediately. I also really appreciate the detailed instructions and especially the part of the video where you go over where you found the info needed to connect the controller board to the RPi. So many videos just gloss over the background research they do to make a project work, but you presented it in an interesting way, and gave proper credit to some of the awesome people who figured it out initially.

[@HackThePlanetNow]

Hey look someone who actually explained the process not just showing it off. Great job thanks.

[@davestratton7060]

I've never undertaken a project quite like this. I ended up making 5 of these, and the video was incredibly helpful. Kudos Anthony. Lessons learned: 1) I tried cutting corners with a USB based SNES controller. I tried three brands (Buffalo, Tomee, Gtron) and none of them were designed with extra room in the back of the controller. Buffalo will just barely fit everything, but you have to relocate two capacitors and a quartz resonator from the back of the board from the front, and its really difficult to do that because you have to angle the capacitors away from the buttons, and the resonator is meant to be soldered from the opposite side. They put them on the back of the board for a reason. 2) It is way harder to try to use threaded cable rather than solid core wire (rookie mistake) 3) You can save a little time if you carefully chip away at the white part of the snes wiring harness with a pair of cutting pliers until the metal prongs are exposed, and solder the cables directly to that; cover up with a little hot glue if you think they will push into each other when closing the controller. Overall, this saves you the time de-soldering the existing wiring harness. 4) Soldering the jumper cables to the GPIO through holes of the Pi zero is helped out a lot with just a touch of flux. (Again, I'm new to this, and had no idea how much easier flux makes it) 5) If you used the pinout graphic included in the video comments here , you can simply install the gamecon driver following the instructions on github.com/retropie/retropie-setup/wiki/GPIO-Modules. Just load up the retropie setup menu, and the rest is really intuitive.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Awesome Dave Stratton, very happy to hear the video was helpful! Thank you so much for writing the lessons learned as well, they are awesome guidelines. I went the solid core wire route as well at first and found stranded is definitely the better way to go - bending solid core in small space is no fun =) I love the idea of chipping away at the wiring harness vs desoldering it - great tip. Thanks again man

[@dennisjoslin]

Thanks for the tips!

[@squadri2328]

Using the Raspberry PI Zero, how did you get the gamecon drivers onto the board? I'm using windows 10, so I can't get mine to sync up to ssh to the board. Any way to get around this issue that you guys were able to find?

[@Hushpuppy247]

So i tried dave's suggestion in tip #3 and was able to expose the prongs from the harness. However, they snapped off when trying to close the case. At this point would i want to de-solder the connections on the snes board, then run the wires through and solder brand new connections (like when soldering to the pi)? New to this and want to make sure i'm doing it correctly.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Yes I would try desoldering the harness at this point and then doing through hole soldering directly to the board - it's how I ended up going in the video above and works pretty well.

[@ChaseJensen13]

This is a gread vid. I love how you walked through every step of how you built it and wired it up. Sadly most videos of custom portable consoles just show off the finished product but not the build itself. Great job going all the way through it in detail!

[@charlescothran4946]

This is one of the best retro-gaming on the pi video I have seen! I especially like the wiring info!!!

[@nidodson]

I am a pretty harsh critic, but this is a great video, very informative, detail oriented, and everything is explained very well. I would definitely encourage you to do more videos like this, and research transitions.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Thank you so much for your feedback and advice Nick!

[@brooksamillions]

You sir just tested positive for Rock n Roll.

[@jasonsimmons7869]

Great tutorial.I used this in addition to your instructables page. Built one. Works fantastic. Though I had to do a couple of work arounds to get the gamecon driver to work. But they were very simple. Basically used a keyboard plugged in while the controller was still open to get to the configure input menu, unplugged keyboard, configured with the pad. I'm sure there is a simpler way. But I'm not much of a linux guy. Anyways, TL;DR, thanks for the tutorial.

[@froddobaggins]

This looks like a fun little project. Definitely up there with the GameBoy Zero.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Thank you!

[@deerpoob]

awesome little build, the only thing I could think to add would be some sort of compact Bluetooth dongle so you can pair a second controller as well! who knows what that might do to the battery life though.

[@CodyEwok]

This video is so informative and has gotten me fairly motivated to start this project! YOU ROCK!!!!!

[@DASWEDE420]

mind blown. I can barely fit pi into SNES shell lol. you are lvl 90 electronics wizard.

[@jasonstults8986]

Truly amazing man. Awesome job, time and work you put into this. The ONLY thing i wish you could do is incorporate wireless system connection and controller to t.v. Not sure if there is a hdmi bluetooth adapator or something like that but probably to expensive. You should do same project with bigger controller and better single board computer. But still, my little nick picking aside, i tip my hat to you sir

[@tonyt3rry]

great video bud cant wait to do it with my zero i have sitting in my draw

[@josesoto4440]

Your version is so clean and sweet.

[@RobinHilton22367]

Just an idea but at 9:00-ish you could file down the two bottom posts by one or 2 mm then add a small washer to each before re-attaching the back panel so as to hold the original pcb in place and not put pressure on the added boards when in use. :)

[@hassanrehan6494]

Such an awesome thing! Would be great in the future to see the pi zero have a little more power because currently it has trouble playing PS1 games and above but games on consoles before that work perfectly!

[@guspaz]

Ideas for saving space in there: kynar wires (thinner insulation), trim the pi by grinding off the bits on the edge you don't need (like around that camera connector), and remove unnecessary connectors (unused USB ports, for example). You might be able to get all three components to sit flush on the back of the controller PCB next to each other like that.

[@gcole6]

Adam Zey this is a project for beginners so no beginner would try to trim the pi

[@lolindirlink]

the pi is easy (and cheap, especially the zero) enough for beginners to actually do that and more, if they want something to fit tightly, they must commit and it's actually a good thing to learn things the hard way.

[@GroveMerida]

Hey man ! Just wanted to say thanks for the video and inspiration. Almost finished mine out of a super famicon controller ! I just struggled a bit with the Retroarch configuration and gamecon driver install, just had to figure out how everything was working. I used a short HDMI converter just out of the controller, without a cable, we'll see how it lasts in time. Thanks again for the great work, it would have been a lot harder without your video ;-)

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Thank you for the kind words GroveMerida and glad the video helped. I would love to see how the HDMI port came out on yours - i'm looking for ideas to clean this up further =). I am working on a hackaday.io tutorial that goes more into the software and driver config side of things - hoping that helps clear up those steps for others looking to build one.

[@MasterControl90original]

Nice little hack! It should be also possible to make one with the composite video out, so that it can be use on both CRT and HDMI screens

[@itchyisvegeta]

This is awesome! Can't wait to see one of these inside a Game Boy Pocket or the first version GBA. Or even a GB Micro.

[@JMLRetroRoom]

Nice project! With some small refinements which you mention, I can see you selling these and making some dough. It's a perfect gift even if it only has NES and SNES. I have the rom sets so I could load it with games. Easy plug and play, aka perfect gift.

[@kadent2634]

Amazing job, I was thinking of adding a pi tft screen in the center but I'm not sure if there is enough space. Also I would have to relocate the start and select buttons as those are inportant. Great idea, I didn't start the project yet as I am still waiting for my 500 mAh battery +1 sub

[@UnshornKeyboardist]

THE CONTROLLER IS THE CONSOLE?!

[@nixietubes]

PSP did it first.

[@AJ-bx1le]

@@nixietubes ds

[@drafi0775]

@@AJ-bx1le the gameboy

[@amersaidat1905]

NONE OF THEM. The true console controller is THE PLUG-AND-PLAY.

[@nateps]

This is an amazing idea! Hats off to you!

[@diablo127]

I've found an error in your schematics. Clock and Latch are connected to the wrong gpio pins. By the way, I followed your instructions (and eccept for those small issues) it works great!

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Great catch! Very sorry about that - looks like I was off by 1 for both. I just fixed the diagram and reuploaded. Thank you again for your help.

[@diablo127]

Thank you for this great project :)

[@Zophedus]

Awesome. Great work Anthony!

[@Jaykav99]

About to do a nes one but this is the first I've seen that adds a battery...might attempt this one next

[@maxstatic]

Very cool! I'm building a pi into a nes cartridge, this will be my next project. Cheers!

[@TTSetters]

The pizero - you have to remember this is a $5 board. Single processor. Seems to run NES perfectly and Snes very well. I don't own one, and just went with pi 3 as I wanted to run nes,snes, sega master system, genesis, neo geo and psx. Pi3 at this point does that perfectly. PSX runs at or about 60fps its super smooth. PiZero from what I tested at a friends house didn't like anything other than nes and snes. In that regard, you could plop a pizero with a spare sd card you have laying around and have nes / snes on every tv in the house for dirt cheap :) I think if you use the pizero in this way and use it for the lower spec systems like nes/snes/atari 2600 etc then its cool.

[@tvgamecenters7030]

Damn! That is amazing, well done. I've been thinking about a RetroPie project in a PSOne but this is way cooler. I'd actually part with serious cash if this was available retail!

[@Timmymantwo]

Great video, I am getting the things to do this. Thanks

[@Dudelics]

I really wish I had the ability to do this sort of thing myself. Or not even the ability, just the drive/motivation to actually learn how to do it. Damn.

[@dethraid]

i forgot to mention... this is awesome!!!!!

[@atombabomb4268]

Fantastic work.

[@axodarap]

Amazing build man! Not sure if I missed it but have u tried how long the battery lasts?

[@lualdu3474]

Have you ever thought of making a second controller to connect to that one wirelessly? It would be awesome to play donkey kong country with friends on one of those.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

I am thinking through a way to expose the USB OTG port to try out a daisy chain approach as step 1 =)

[@valshaped]

+Anthony Caccese take a look at the test points on the bottom of the pi zero ;D

[@AnthonyCaccese]

+RubberBrony Amazing! Thank you for pointing me in that direction. The pads for D+, D-, gnd and 5v right? More straightforward than I was thinking initially. Now to find the right parts =)

[@valshaped]

+Anthony Caccese Yup! :D

[@caste215]

I tried this out and found the 500c couldn't handle supplying the usb port. I just plugged in an empty hub and it still caused the pi to crash. If you went up to the 1000c and supplied power directly from its pins you could but you would probably drain that little battery super fast.

[@ryoohk]

might want to use stranded wire vs solid core so the cabling won't be as stiff unless you want it to be.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Awesome tip! You're right that would totally make it easier to move the wire around in the case. It is a bit too stiff now. May try that in another revision.

[@ryoohk]

+Anthony Caccese cool :) glad I could help. I just ordered all my parts yesterday so when I start building mine I'll try using stranded ribbon cable for the controller to the pi.

[@ericyoung3480]

That is pretty stinking cool! Well done sir

[@daniellelievre1676]

Cool project. Thanks for the vid!

[@JoanneLorriman]

I've got mine up and running now... only problem is that retropie thinks the controller is number 2 instead of 1! time to look at the driver again 😁 also as a side note for anyone attempting this, a good way to make holes in the case is with a soldering iron with a wide tip. Acts like a hot knife and was very quick and easy. Don't breathe the fumes though 😜

[@juliomauro_]

amazing job man !!

[@RachelSchell]

Really appreciate the tools list.

[@yungbenji5898]

Dude! badass! I seen some where they made it on a cartridge, an had to use a contoller with a USB, but you made the console in the controller Legit Af!!! Im to dumb to try an make one, do you sell any of em?

[@davincent98]

i have a suggestion: do a reloop on the audio so that is easier to hear

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Thank you davincent98

[@MegaManNeo]

How difficult would you say was the whole wiring part between Pi Zero, the additional battery chip and the battery itself? I'm a total noob when it comes down to realize hardware projects with the RPi but you made it actually look really easy to rebuild. Having those lots of wires to place would be a real PITA for me tho, I think.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

This was my first project like this and it was about a weekend or 2 of work to plan and built it end to end. I spent the first weekend doing a lot of research, laying things out (testing fit) and playing with wires to make sure I was comfortable with soldering before finishing it. Second weekend was putting it all together. I would recommend watching a few tutorials on soldering, desoldering to see if they are interesting to you. If they are then this project can be pull off relatively easily. The most complex part was getting it all to fit, making sure the connections were correct and troubleshooting the driver configuration. But they are all easy to overcome. If you have watched this video and similar ones and got excited about building your own - that's the fuel you need to start =) I am here to help as well no worries

[@AntonioBrandao]

Is it possible to connect a regular game pad to the USB port and have a Player 2?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

There is a way to do this - something I am working on for a version 2

[@AntonioBrandao]

Anthony Caccese Thanks for the reply. That would be glorious

[@Giyvin]

I know having an orignal contrller is fracking bad ass, but you can cut down some of the pain by using a usb snes controller if you didn't have a relic around. Amazing project btw.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Agreed Barrie, USB would remove the need for the driver and simplify some of the wiring for sure. Thank you for checking this out!

[@JacobMexi]

Do you think there would be any way to mod the controller to have a port so another controller can connect to it? So that two people can play together? I imagine it would only take 1 more USB hub at the top or maybe bottom since there are SNES controllers for sale now that have a USB plug instead of the old 7 pin one.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

I think it might be possible. Been talking through ideas in another comment on this video started by Lualdu. There are test pads on the bottom of the zero to solder a USB port. Next big question is power.

[@JacobMexi]

Anthony Caccese I used to have a pirate/chinese knock off emulator that was basically one controller, a port to connect a second controller, av cables and a ac adapter port. Maybe that would work.

[@KenWalkersquatley]

Great project. Will make one as soon as the pi zero gets here. BTW, how did you remove the plastic from the inside of the controller?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

I used a pair of needle nose pliers and rocked the pieces I needed to remove back and forth. I am starting to document that process a bit in my hackaday post (look at step 3) - hackaday.io/project/16288-raspberry-pi-zero-inside-an-snes-controller

[@jusore]

Have you thought to use Recalbox? Some people said that loads faster than Retropie.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Thank you, I'll check it out to see what it can do.

[@01136428]

Great Video. If are worried about the battery moving around you can always use low tac double sided tape. How long does the battery usually last on this?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Good call on the double sided tape! The 500mAh Battery lasts about 2.5 hours.

[@RafaelAcurcio]

For how long can you play without the need of recharging the battery? Is it uncomfortable to the HDMI cable attached to the controller? Amazing project!!

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Thank you Rafael! With the 500mAh battery I get about 2 to 2.5 hours of play time. The HDMI cable has a tiny bit more weight to it than the original SNES cable but it's not noticeable during play and is comfortable.

[@phonixzero]

Awesome work! How long does the battery last. Also, ever think of using magnets instead of screws to hold it closed?

[@Madmorda]

It says 2 hrs in the description. Also, you don't want your project falling open if you drop it or it getting stuck to any wire or metal bits laying around. As a tinkerer, I can confirm that my workstation always has little metallic things everywhere. xD

[@phonixzero]

+MuffinsSpreadPlagues Noticed it said it after I posted :x was thinking about the magnets, I don't think it would pop open but yeah, it would stick to everything in my bag or on my desk lol

[@Madmorda]

+phonixzero Lol same here. earbuds would always be wrapped around it too

[@diablo127]

I've got an unused buffalo snes like controller...Maybe I could use that :) BTW, awesome work!

[@SR-pz3kd]

you should try to make one that can still be a snes controller while still having the ability to be used for retropie

[@camatheushung]

Hi Anthony. I have a question. Do you think that it is possible to use a raspberry pi 3 instead of Pi Zero? I don't want that the raspberry fit into the controller but I want to use the controller as a Makey Makey device. Cheers and regards from Venezuela.

[@patriksund70]

Hi, great video. I am trying to get a old (1992) original snes controller to work without results. Can it be that this one requires 5v?

[@that1review203]

Would it be a good idea to use a pcb for a game boy zero build

[@joshsamuelson1793]

I started my own version of this but I am going to use the long usb cable for power. The controller input will be wired like in the video though. I had a thought if I hot glue the controller bard down it should tighten up the buttons and keep the pcb from flexing. I am using a cheap Chinese knock off snes controller for this project. Without this video though I would have gotten stuck on making room in the shell.

[@dctaken]

have you thought of soldering wifi to the board once its out of its case? someone did it somewhere. i forgot where.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Oh interesting, I will look into that. I started looking at options for desoldering the USB data port so I can route it out the side of the controller as an alternative for accessing the filesystem without opening the controller - wifi would be an exciting alternative =)

[@Porkchop21]

How long does the battery last. would it be possible to do 1000?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Hi Steven, it lasts about 2 to 2.5 hours. I had looked at a 1000mAh measurement wise and it wouldn't fit it the space i was working with. I think 500mAh is likely the largest that will fit without making the bottom of the case a bit deeper.

[@Porkchop21]

Anthony Caccese can you play while charging?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Yes totally

[@airmansparky]

Anthony Caccese Hi thank you for this awesome build. I actually build my own with a few tweaks. I was wondering how powerful a charger you need to be able to play and charge at the same time?

[@briankc7356]

Soldering noob here. What exactly am I soldering to what? Do I need a GPIO header? Or do you just solder the wires directly to the pads? Thanks, awesome project, can't wait to try it out!

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Hi Brian, This may help learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-guide-excellent-soldering/tools I read through that before starting this project as it was my first time soldering as well. For this project you won't need any additional headers you'll be pulling wire through the GPIO holes and soldering at those points for all the parts that need it.

[@gustgalindo]

great video and an amazing idea. congrats

[@dakedres]

Maybe you could connect a micro USB wireless sender and receive to one of the micro usb slots and then connect an adapter to a normal usb then connect your thumb drive to that, you could add Roms wirelessly!

[@dhruvanavale1427]

If this is in a snes controller then it can fit in a modern PC controller(dualahock layout) right?

[@LazyBunnyKiera]

I like it. But you really need to invest in some 30 awg kynar solid core "Mod wire". Just search 30 kynar mod wire on ebay. You don't need venting holes, just use a thick thermal transfer pad, between the plastic back and the SoC. Plastic isn't a great conductor of heat, But it should be good enough. Since you only need to dump a couple watts of heat.

[@jeroenleroy1850]

So i could actually not understand you completely in the part but how long does the battery last aprox? Great mod! I'm working on a pi/nes hybrid with a 3d printed case :)

[@AnthonyCaccese]

It's my bad - the audio ended up being lower volume than I expected. Battery lasts about 3 hours.

[@Shadoph]

Hi, Anthony! I did this exact project early 2015, but with the Odroid W instead of raspberry pi Zero (since it didn't exist then). A few more differences though. I (stupidly) connected each button to different gpio pin and mapped all buttons. I had the hdmi port in the top of the controller, rather than let the cable stick out. And lastly; I had an original snes controller port in the controller. Allowing a second player to connect their original snes controller. I got that to fit since, the Odroid W have a built in battery connector and charging capability. The One thing I never solved was getting the power switch to to a full and safe shutdown. Dd you solve that? If so, how? Great video, man!

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Nice Jonas Löfström! I got very lucky with the wiring on mine because I found someone had written a driver for it - which definitely made it simpler to wire up. I got close to the possibility of having to wire each button individually before I found it =). How do you like the Odroid W performance and size wise? The clean HDMI port on the top sounds nice as well.

[@RandomName574]

Nice work!

[@Shane-Singleton]

So Anthony.. I've done the whole Retropie/Recalbox thing on a Pi3 but thinking this would be extremely handy. Interested in building two for me as gifts for my younger brothers? Everything sans roms.

[@Drunkshark42]

Hi, I would like to create the same thing but I've got a problem, my SNES controller got a USB output which means Positive, Negative, Data+ and Data-. Then I would like to know if there is a way to wire those to the GPIO pin. If so on which one ? ( GPIO 2, 3 ? ). Thanks for help if you can do so.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Will research and see what I can find

[@airmansparky]

You can solder the usb wires to the usb test pads under the pi zero. That's what I did. Here's the video I used to figure it out kzbin.info/www/bejne/omG6oWx3m65_j6c

[@StarTeam00]

3 Things: 1. This is FUCKING awesome and so are you, 2. Will this work with one of the newer USB SNES controllers? 3. How are you verified with only 350+ subs? Again, great project!

[@AnthonyCaccese]

1) Thank you! I very much appreciate the compliment and that you enjoyed the project. It means a lot. 2) I have been thinking about this more and more. It would be possible for sure (and in some ways easier than using an original controller - less custom wiring and no custom software driver). The main things to watch for I think would be fit and handling the wiring for the usb to the pi-zero. Main reasons I say that is the few usb controllers I have opened up have all had different circuit board layouts and spacing of the components. I found this video yesterday kzbin.info/www/bejne/iYPKm3evl9F1mqM and thought it was an interesting approach mouting the pi on the outside. I need to research more - sure there are a few ways to tackle it. 3) I have no idea =)

[@StarTeam00]

Although that video works the way you did it was much cooler and more sleek and portable, i wouldnt have to worry about chucking it in my bag and the pi getting damaged! Thanks for you input, understand how they could be different, just means we gotta find the right one, you've gained a subscriber, im looking forward to seeing more projects in the future!

[@Metu69salemi]

Hello, I really liked your video and I'd like to try to make myself one. Can you please help me software wise about this build? Your listing is already helpful, but I'm not sure how to make those linux things with this. Soldering is something that I think that I can manage

[@johnosborne4460]

super cool. I want one!

[@sickboysikotic]

If you had done this with pi zero w with Bluetooth, you could just set up the Bluetooth controller. I’m trying to add a screen to mine so it can be portable. This video gives me ideas though.

[@piplup2009]

always wanted try this with a snes or mega drive controller

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Mega drive controller should be possible as well. Retropie has a driver called Db9_gpio_rpi that should do the trick. It's a fun project for sure; please let me know if I can help in any way.

[@piplup2009]

Anthony Caccese thanks :)

[@hiphopaDIZZL]

what did you use to clear the plastic out of the controller case? awesome build man

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Thank you! I used a pair of needle nose pliers and rocked the pieces I needed to remove back and forth. Starting to document that process a bit here - hackaday.io/project/16288-raspberry-pi-zero-inside-an-snes-controller (look at step 3)

[@havihav]

great job kid .. thats awsome..!

[@Jarris2]

I am going to make this! So cool! What did you use to clean up the back of the case? What are sanding sticks? Will it run off of the direct power or do you have to turn it off to charge? Is there a bigger battery that could be used? Why can't I just use the "power in" micro usb charger to run the power?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

To clean up the back of the case I used a set of pliers and sanding sticks Sanding sticks are similar to sandpaper just in a more handheld form - check these out for an example www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000CDR5K8 It will run off direct power plugged in through the powerboost A bigger battery would unfortunately not fit in the build I have done - space is very tight In my build this isn't possible because that power port is behind the left shoulder button Hope this helps!

[@Jarris2]

Thanks for your help! Can I remove that power port and direct solder on a cut USB wire? I'm trying to figure out how to do that.

[@macelius]

Pretty dang awesome!

[@leighclaxton9492]

would it be possible to connect another controller to this?

[@nobledummy]

Helo! I just bought everything and just waiting to have some free time next week to start the project. some questions I have, since I haven't work with raspberry before: 1 - do you have some tutorial (an easy one) to how to install retropie on raspiberry? 2 - I have a mini USB to USB cable, and was wonder if I could disassemble the cable and leave just the thin wires, so maybe I could connect to the regular USB port from the raspi and have a second controller to connect. Do you think it is possible to connect the second controller in the data mini USB port from the raspi? thanks a lot hope to hear from you soon ;-)

[@crispycritter911]

I too am tackling this project as a Christmas gift for my son. I have noticed the Power Boost 1000 has the JST connector on the other side of the board. So I resorted to cutting it off and will directly solder the battery leads to the power boost directly. I am also going to combine another project that uses a few simple components and a couple of scripts that will allow one button on/off and low power shutdown as well (github.com/NeonHorizon/lipopi/blob/master/README.power_up_power_down.md). I also plan to install a single USB A plug to load roms, attach a second controller, or usb hub for wifi and keyboard.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

This sounds awesome. Would love to see how its wired up.

[@jeffbeckstrom9674]

Do I need the power switch and battery, or can I just use the on board power input hanging out of the controller plugged into a wall. And still get the pi zero to work the same way attached to the controller. And is there a way to attach a second controller to this for two player games.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Hi Jeff Beckstrom, a version could definitely be built without the powerboost and battery. This NES controller example I think could help as a guide for doing that - www.instructables.com/id/RetroPie-Inside-an-NES-Controller/?ALLSTEPS For a second controller... not in this version. Over the holiday break I am planning to build a version 2 that has an additional USB port exposed to allow for that.

[@sondretungesviknjastad992]

Hi Anthony! Amazing hack, love it! I want to build one of these myself. And want to add wifi to it as well. Do you think a Famicon controller will work the same way?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Hi Sondre, I have seen similar builds with Famicom and NES controllers - the gamecom driver has support for mapping those as well. With the NES controller, the main difference I have seen is the space to add the board itself is not as tall so it might be difficult to fit a battery and powerboost inside. This looked like a good starting point to see what's possible - hackaday.io/project/8703-zero-entertainment-system

[@Fronker]

Hi is there a guide for how to make the software changes, I know nothing as how to even get to make theses changes or raspbian. would retro pie and raspbian both be installed to make changes?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Franco Aguilar, I may plan to do a video tutorial of the driver setup (would be a few weeks) - for now please check the details in the video description for a written step by step.

[@martinansell1]

sorry to ask such a dumb question but what sort of wire do i need?

[@yourdaysbebright4738]

Just curious, but under regular operation (say, playing NES games), does the controller get warm enough to make your hands sweat worse than usual?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

It does get warm but not warm enough to be uncomfortable to play on

[@kristijonasgrigonis5386]

Hey, I really like your project and now I am trying to build this thing myself, but I am struggling with GPIO drivers :/ Could you make a video or instructions with pictures for GPIO drivers installing and configuring? Thanks.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Hi Kristijonas Grigonis, yes I plan to work on one but it will likely be a few weeks. For now can I help answer any questions? Have you gone through the steps outlined in the video description?

[@IfYouHadRobotEars]

can you build it without the battery? and when you start emulationstation does it ask for you to program it, like you would with a usb controller? thnx

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Yes that would be possible. I believe you would need to have a power cable coming out of the controller in addition to the HDMI. Something similar to this project done with an NES controller - www.instructables.com/id/RetroPie-Inside-an-NES-Controller/ With the gamecon_gpio driver and wiring Emulationstation sees the controller as Super Nintendo controller and asks you to assign buttons it during initial setup

[@interghost]

Great project and put me down for one if you do start selling them ha ha ;)

[@holyicecube1222]

www.ebay.de/itm/302161122939?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2648

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Nice Holy IceCube! I love your build... giving me some ideas =) How did you hook up the LED and the mini USB charging port on the bottom?

[@roachman5000]

Dude, awesome project! I'm trying to follow through with a build of my own but for some reason I cannot get RetroPie to recognize the controller. Any ideas? I followed your recipe to the letter (I think)....

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Hi Joe LaTendresse, first double check the gpio pin wiring - www.dropbox.com/s/ejuknjfanwvcx2d/sns-005z%20wiring.png?dl=0. Following that can you send me the details you have in your /etc/modprobe.d/gamecon.conf file? It should look something like this "options gamecon_gpio_rpi map=0,0,0,0,0,1" Last thing I can think of from there is making sure gamecon_gpio_rpi is listed in /etc/modules (order shouldn't matter) I'll see what else I can help with if none of those work out

[@roachman5000]

Fixed! It was entirely operator error on my part because I assumed I did not need to configure the SNES pad since the drivers were loaded, so all I had to do to was go in and configure it accordingly. Works like a charm now. Thanks for helping me out!

[@d3n4c3]

Thanks for the project and info. I'll be making one of these. Just curious, would it be possible to get two players?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Yes its possible - would need to add a breakout USB port which can be done by soldering to the USB test pads on the bottom of the pi zero.

[@robertsides3626]

Curious, how did you manage to shave down those extra bits of plastic on the back of the controller's case?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

To start I removed the posts by using a pair of pliers and just rocked the plastic back and forth. It takes a bit of work but it's not too bad. Then to smooth out any excess I used a set of sanding sticks. I marked up this photo with the specific posts I removed: www.dropbox.com/s/b372gvkajdp7i3q/sns-005z%20back.png?dl=0

[@funkmastafog]

Hey. Your video is great and I started to make my own. I connected the controller to the pi via your wiring guide. I installed the gamescon drivers but now my pi wont recognize the controller when I try to set up the inputs. Any ideas? Thank you.

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Hi funkmastafog, for the changes made in gamecon.conf file do you have the following... options gamecon_gpio_rpi map=0,0,0,0,0,1

[@funkmastafog]

Thank you for the response. I did not do that. When i went to install the package it installed correctly. But now i cant find gamescon.conf in the etc/mod folder. Maybe ill just do a full reinstall.

[@paulpjr3224]

Perfect I want to do this. How much do those is one of those Rasp Pi? How heavy does it make the controler?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

The Raspberry Pi Zero is $5. Other parts added up to around $40. Weight wise it's not that much heavier than a standard Super Nintendo controller - it just feels a lot denser because off all the stuff crammed inside =). Let me know if I can help with pointing out specifics on any of the other parts.

[@andreamitchell4758]

i can't beleive that powerboost board is like 3 times more than the pi zero and it does not even include the battery for $15 bucks amazing how cheap the pi zero is

[@AnthonyCaccese]

I know it's wild! I was blown away when they had Pi Zero's as the pack in for an issue of MagPi a few months ago. Great little computer to work with.

[@andreamitchell4758]

Anthony Caccese it can really add up with all the extras though i can buy the pi zero at a store where i live for $5 but it will be like 10 or 12 there for an hdmi adapter they have really good prices on most things but i can order that from aliexpress for like 90 cents ,but it will probably take forever to get here ,it's good living near a microcenter they have internet prices like newegg prices on most thing but some things are stll way cheaper from china

[@MarcoPinheiro]

WOOOW YOU ROCK DUDE!!

[@SterneBurg88]

Hey great project. They know if it works on a SNSP-005?

[@AnthonyCaccese]

Yes it does. I wired one up for a friend over the holiday using one - same approach and all.