will start soon on a n64p

Gamefreak271 · Post by **Gamefreak271** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 6:14 pm

ok i want to make a portable n64 but i still need to gather some supplies. im a little confused about the 3.3V thing can someone explain that to me? and then where can u get the regulators for the 3.3V? i heard in car adapters? plz explain this to me!

EDIT:srry about making two threads

daguuy · Post by **daguuy** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 7:27 pm

here's the dealy with the 3.3v thing:
N64 needs 2 differentvoltages to work. one of them (the 12v line) goes through a regulator so you can put anything from 7.2v-30v in that line. the other volatge it needs is 3.3v and that doesn't have a regulator, goes straight to the CPU, and needs to be very close to 3.3v to function properly. to get 3.3v from a higher voltage battery, you need a voltage regulator. the 2 kinds of regulators are linear and dc-dc convertors (also called switching regulators). resistors are not regulators. here's a thread about getting free dc-dc convertors (car adapters usually work too) and here's a guide for making portable N64. hope that helps

EDITL: forgot to mention switching regulators are much more feeicient than linear regulators

Gamefreak271 · Post by **Gamefreak271** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 7:33 pm

alright i think i get it much better now thanks daguuy but i the problem is i cant buy stuff off the internet (my mom doesnt really like the idea of buying stuff through it). any others places (perhaps a store) i can get these regulators?

daguuy · Post by **daguuy** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 7:35 pm

ouch, that'll be hard to make a portable without buying stuff online. best buy or circuit city have car adapters. get one that can output 3v (i don't think they do 3.3v) and at leat 1.5+A (1500+ma)

Gamefreak271 · Post by **Gamefreak271** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 7:37 pm

yes i know its hard without internet. ill just try and ask my friend to get them for me and ill just pay back

well ill try and check best buy or circuit city next time..

EDIT:oh and one more question which car adapter is good? i have no clue which 1. can any1 try and search best buy or circuits citys website and give me a link? thanks
im such a noob....

Zzebotes13 · Post by **Zzebotes13** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 7:41 pm

it's almost impossible to get the good electronics without the internet. my mom's the same way, but she'll buy things from the bigger websites like circuitcity.com or ebay.

Gamefreak271 · Post by **Gamefreak271** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 7:43 pm

is this a good one?
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp ... 7626358357

timmeh87 · Post by **timmeh87** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 7:44 pm

its sad to hear about all these people in the world who dont trust the internet, yet do trust any other random person in the 'real world' with their card information. credit card fraud happens just as often in either place, if you know what you are doing...

anyways. the friend thing is the way to go. hopefully you can find a kid your age with a paypal

and you dont need a credit card for the dc-dc's. but they DO get fed-ex'ed to your house. freak out your mom and say you stole her credit card

coolio · Post by **coolio** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 8:02 pm

I got that car adapter and I think it needs at least 11v because I was unable to get it to work on 10v.

Gamefreak271 · Post by **Gamefreak271** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 8:06 pm

coolio wrote:I got that car adapter and I think it needs at least 11v because I was unable to get it to work on 10v.

so do u think its not a good adapter?

Post by **marshallh** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 8:09 pm

I used that adapter for my first one, but you gotta have 12v for it to work. The TI DC-DC converters are much better, and they're free.

Gamefreak271 · Post by **Gamefreak271** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 8:12 pm

ok then i guess i should go for the TI dc-dc converters but is there anywhere else i can buy them? also whats the difference of a dc-dc converter and the car adapter?

daguuy · Post by **daguuy** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 8:16 pm

a car adapter is a dc-dc convertor but not all of them work on 7.2v, they output 3v instead of 3.3v, and they're big. no extra parts required to make them work though (caps). just get a ti one, it's really simple and free. maybe you could just make them deliver it to a freind's house instead of yours and pick it up there

timmeh87 · Post by **timmeh87** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 8:34 pm

Gamefreak271 wrote:ok then i guess i should go for the TI dc-dc converters but is there anywhere else i can buy them? also whats the difference of a dc-dc converter and the car adapter?

why would you want to BUY one if they are free?

and probably not. unless like digikey resells them... it would cost more anyways.

Gamefreak271 · Post by **Gamefreak271** » Thu Mar 02, 2006 12:26 am

ok i guess ill try to get them for free thanks for your help

EDIT:which one do i need?