Time to get serious

[GoldenfrankO]

Well I've finally decided to start a case mod. I've got almost all the tools I'm going to need. I need some help though. Here are the questions I have...

1. Is it possible to move (map) the buttons on a Gameboy Micro, if so how?
2. My micro is pretty ugly right now (sliced with a knife, battery hangs out) is there a way to completely remove all the metal casing off of it?
3. This is my first mod like this, so I'm wondering if this is too much for a first.
4. Will I need to solder or rewire anything?

My plans are to either put the Micro into a SNES cart, SNES controller, or an NES Controller. I need opinions guys!!!

[sipsorz3]

I have no idea about remapping the buttons but the case itselfwould be cool as a controller, the SNES controller has 2 extra buttons so it would be nice to remap the volume buttons of the micro to the X and Y buttons from the SNES.

Didn't you want to do this a long time ago with an SNES cartridge?

[GoldenfrankO]

Haha yeah, but I never got around to it.

[Tibia]

1. Is it possible to move (map) the buttons on a Gameboy Micro, if so how?

On the SNES and NES controllers, yes. There are four contacts under the buttons. You need to solder two wires on pads that are diagonal from each other. The wires will go to a tact switch, or even a piece of circuit board from the controller. It's pretty straight forward. One wire goes on one side, the other wire goes on the other side. For the SNES cart, it would all depend on your layout. If you did have to relocate buttons, you would do it the same way.

2. My micro is pretty ugly right now (sliced with a knife, battery hangs out) is there a way to completely remove all the metal casing off of it?

Yes. There are some screws you're missing. Undo every screw you can find, and the metal should all come off, leaving just a bare mobo.

3. This is my first mod like this, so I'm wondering if this is too much for a first.

Putting it in an NES controller would be a female of the dog species for a first project. I was working on this with a friend for quite a while, and we killed more Micros than I remember trying to stuff them in. You have to make the controller a bit wider, and possibly a bit deeper. It takes a lot of work to look nice, as well. If you do an SNES cart, you've got a lot more room to work with, and you shouldn't need to add any depth to it.

4. Will I need to solder or rewire anything?

Most likely. The SNES cart would probably require the least amount of soldering and rewiring, but no matter where you mount it, you'll be relocating something. Best get practicing. The Micro is so damn small that you really have to be clean and precise with your soldering.

My plans are to either put the Micro into a SNES cart, SNES controller, or an NES Controller. I need opinions guys!!!

The SNES cart gives you the most room to work. The SNES controller would probably require nearly as much work as the NES controller, but I haven't actually tried that one myself. As for the NES controller, it's not impossible for a first mod, but it would be the hardest out of the three.

[GoldenfrankO]

Thanks Tibia... I got another question.... How do I move the cart Slot?

[joeyjoe9876]

just desolder it lol

[Vort]

just desolder it lol

Yeah, you also have to run wires from the original points on the board to the corresponding ones on the cart slot.

[GoldenfrankO]

Where could I get the wires? and what kind would I need?

[samjc3]

Thanks Tibia... I got another question.... How do I move the cart Slot?

well, very carefully. the solder legs are quite small, if im not mistaken, so you will need to be very careful. but yeah. desolder and run wire between them.

[Tibia]

If you have something like a dead controller, or an old 25-pin printer cord, you can get plenty of wire from that. IDE cable is also great for connecting cart slots, but be careful. It's not quite as flexible as the other wires, and sometimes, it will break inside the wire, ruining the connection.