SNES Gamepad to CD-I Adapter Project

[Fokakis79]

Success! I finally completed my SNES to CD-I converter! Now I can play all the CD-I I want.

Been trying to find an alternative to CD-I gamepads due to the fact the original gamepads are getting harder to find and more expensive. I discovered a few different projects to convert other console gamepads to use on the CD-I. I believe there is one for a Sega Genesis Controller, and one for a PC Gamepad. Finally which is the one I made, is to use a SNES Gamepad. This converter was designed by Laurent Berta. It works perfectly and is easy to do. I knew nothing about Arduino and it was still very minimal troubleshooting and building. It is also relatively cheap, I probably spent ~20 bucks on the whole project.

All the instructions can be found here:

https://github.com/anarterb/SNEStoCDi[img width=700 height=525]https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180320/adbb392b74198c24a75458af2b70dc45.jpg[/img]

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[MetalFRO]

Very cool!  I don't own a CDI, but these kinds of projects are useful.  I've seen conversions for using a Jaguar pad on a ColecoVision, for example, and would love to see an easier conversion of this kind for that, instead of having to gut the pad and re-do it.  With the 9-in DB interface common to both consoles, it's not outside the realm of possibility that such a device would work.

[Fokakis79]

Yeah, I love doing these kind of projects. I also heard of a project using the Atari Jaguar controller for the Atari 5200. I am currently trying to build my own masterplay clone or at least something similar for my Atari 5200. I should start a blog or thread dedicated to these homebrew controller ideas that are floating around on the internet.

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[MetalFRO]

Very cool!  If you ever find yourself working on a Jag-to-ColecoVision project, let me know

[Fokakis79]

I will look around. I have a colecovision but I don't have a power supply, so I don't really do much with it. I am always interested in trying out projects. 😀

I guess a new challenge would be to sit down and actually design and build my own setup. I think I need more experience building other peoples stuff. My electronic know how is kinda limited.

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[Fokakis79]

Very cool!  If you ever find yourself working on a Jag-to-ColecoVision project, let me know

Found this beast of a project!

http://www94.pair.com/jsoper/jag_adapter.html

Looks like a lot of work but doable. Might give it a shot after I finish up my Atari 5200 keypad project.




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[MetalFRO]

Ah, I've seen this before, on another forum!  Reading through the document makes my head spin - that stuff can be hard to decipher, when you've never delved into that world.

[Fokakis79]

Yeah definitely, confused me when I looked at. There is an option to just make the adapter for colecovision. Would require a little less work.

Might be a out of my skill range but still might give it a try. Figuring out how to build these things is getting to be kinda fun.



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[Duke.Togo]

That last converter is a lot of work. I'd think you could do the same thing with Arduino and separate code for each console.

[Fokakis79]

That last converter is a lot of work. I'd think you could do the same thing with Arduino and separate code for each console.

Hmm, possible. Would you write code for one sketch for all consoles to upload to the arduino or would you have three different sketches with code for each console?  Not sure if I am making sense or not.

Yeah, I agree that converter seems like nuts to build. I am always down to make things easier.

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[nupoile]

A couple things come to mind when reading the last few posts,

The Jag to INTV converter: One thing to keep in mind is that the INTV uses a 16 way joypad. People have made controllers and converters for it before but they are almost always 8 way. I don't think all that many games actually use all 16 ways on the standard INTV controller but it's something to keep in mind.

Arduino: This is even more on a topic I know little about, aren't you more likely to start having controller lag if you are running it through software before getting to the machine? That link Fokakis put up is all hardware I think, wouldn't that be faster? Old games are much more latency dependent than newer ones, so every little bit counts.

[Fokakis79]

I had to use software to program the arduino board. The software is loaded on my computer but not sure if there is actual software on the board itself. You are plugging the board into your computer using usb and then program it using the software on your computer. That is almost all I know. There might be lag but I haven't played around with it enough to notice.

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[Duke.Togo]

Hmm, possible. Would you write code for one sketch for all consoles to upload to the arduino or would you have three different sketches with code for each console?  Not sure if I am making sense or not.

I would write the code per console and upload as needed I suppose. Doing it in pure hardware would be faster, but I've seen folks using Arduino for controller translation already.