Screen Flickering (NESp work-in-process)

codeman · Post by **codeman** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 6:48 am

mattb419 wrote:Also, I switched out the transistor in the video amp... seemed to improve the picture slightly, but didn't affect the flickering screen any.

Did you also take out the 220ohm resistor going to +5v? Also, changing the 33ohm resistor affects the contrast...i changed mine to 100ohms, it seemed to give me more flexibility with the contrast adjustment on the screen.

|TA|SolidSnake · Post by **|TA|SolidSnake** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 7:15 am

ok so i got the book and dam its so cool, it really tells you every thing you need to know about and how to build these guys but mattb419 i know you said you used a sheet of acrylic, but how? i ask this cuz last night i read the chapter about the nes and thats the one im going to do first, it just that it call for metal so i was just wondering if you have any advice for me, i really like the way your case came out.

Turbo Tax 1.0 · Post by **Turbo Tax 1.0** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 7:41 am

mybe you should try a Ni-Mh 9.6 volt battery from radioshack

Dean_Kreger · Post by **Dean_Kreger** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 8:58 am

Sir, you have a damn sweet NESp.

I really want that book now.

mattb419 · Post by **mattb419** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 9:49 pm

I'll try to respond to everyone here

codeman: I did remove the 220 ohm resistor. I'm happy with the picture quality... it's actually much better than I expected.

turbo: I'll try to dig out a higher voltage battery to test things out on. I don't want to buy a new battery setup unless necessary, trying to keep costs down.

solidsnake: if you look on page 131 in the book (under the picture of the rubber stopper), you'll see the paragraph where he talks about getting the 1/16" engraving plastic... This is where I substituted in the acrylic. It is just a tad thicker than 1/16, but it works great, and there's still plenty of clearance for the buttons. If you don't have access to a dremel or similar cutting tool, working with acrylic can be one of the most frustrating things you can do! I tried cutting it by hand for a couple small parts... I'd score it like 20-30 times with an xacto knife, and I still couldn't break it down the cut every time. If you have a dremel, I used an engraving cutter to cut close to the shape, and then a sanding drum to smooth it out. for the 90 degree cuts on the screen, I used a sanding disc. but essentially, if I can do it, it can't be that hard

thanks for all of the compliments as well, I do appreciate them!
-Matt

Turbo Tax 1.0 · Post by **Turbo Tax 1.0** » Sun Oct 02, 2005 11:25 am

mattb419 wrote:I'll try to respond to everyone here

codeman: I did remove the 220 ohm resistor. I'm happy with the picture quality... it's actually much better than I expected.

turbo: I'll try to dig out a higher voltage battery to test things out on. I don't want to buy a new battery setup unless necessary, trying to keep costs down.

solidsnake: if you look on page 131 in the book (under the picture of the rubber stopper), you'll see the paragraph where he talks about getting the 1/16" engraving plastic... This is where I substituted in the acrylic. It is just a tad thicker than 1/16, but it works great, and there's still plenty of clearance for the buttons. If you don't have access to a dremel or similar cutting tool, working with acrylic can be one of the most frustrating things you can do! I tried cutting it by hand for a couple small parts... I'd score it like 20-30 times with an xacto knife, and I still couldn't break it down the cut every time. If you have a dremel, I used an engraving cutter to cut close to the shape, and then a sanding drum to smooth it out. for the 90 degree cuts on the screen, I used a sanding disc. but essentially, if I can do it, it can't be that hard

thanks for all of the compliments as well, I do appreciate them!
-Matt

also just try turning the volume down it almost always happens to my snesp unless the batteries are fully charged so just try not having it up so loud

shmagoogin77 · Post by **shmagoogin77** » Sun Oct 02, 2005 1:41 pm

it looks good

mattb419 · Post by **mattb419** » Sun Oct 02, 2005 1:52 pm

turbo, you certainly know your stuff when it comes to these things... I had a 12 volt adapter laying around, so I hooked that into my portable... it worked perfectly! so now I'm at a crossroads... I can go get a 9.6 volt battery @ radio shack, but I really don't want to spend the extra $ after purchasing the sony battery (I had originally planned to do the psone first, which is why I bought that battery). Has anyone used these batteries with a NESp? Is there a way to alter the voltage regulator that powers the screen? I think I'll re-read the chapter on the psone portable in the book, and see how ben powers the screen there. (I should've thought of this earlier

) Thanks for your help turbo, I'm getting to the bottom of this much faster than I would've originally!

mattb419 · Post by **mattb419** » Sun Oct 02, 2005 2:16 pm

after looking back at the book, I hooked up the sony battery like ben did on the psone. That did the trick for me, everything works great now... now I can put everything back in, and start working on the back half of the case. I post occassionally with my progress.

|TA|SolidSnake · Post by **|TA|SolidSnake** » Sun Oct 02, 2005 2:51 pm

if you look on page 131 in the book (under the picture of the rubber stopper), you'll see the paragraph where he talks about getting the 1/16" engraving plastic

cool man thanks i just read it and now i know what to do, i just got the book a few days ago, so b4 i start building ny system im going to read the book from page one to the end of the nes chapter then start my portible(im on like page 50 something now)

O also can i use a FAM to build my port cuz it is a pain in the ass trying to find a nes, i think my friend is going to give me her old one but if i dont get it im going to have to go hunting for one, but i see that the Fam's are cheap as hell on ebay

mattb419 · Post by **mattb419** » Sun Oct 02, 2005 3:08 pm

solidsnake, I'm sure you could use a famiclone for your portable... just search through the forums, you'll find plenty of posts that talk about them... but there is one catch to this approach I would think - the step-by-step instructions in the book won't necessarily apply. I'm saying this all from guesswork (I haven't seen any famiclones in person), but I am going to guess that they are pretty different on the inside. If you're comfortable with this, you can save some $ going with a clone. Personally, I wanted to use ben's design for my first portable (and maybe the psone), but after that I will go off and make my own designs.
NES units aren't the cheapest, but there are good deals out there. do a search that returns the newly listed auctions on EBay, sometimes someone will post a low buy-it-now price and you'll get a good deal. or ask your friends. I got mine from a friend that just didn't want his anymore, and I got a great deal on it.

mattb419 · Post by **mattb419** » Mon Oct 03, 2005 10:06 pm

just wrapped up the final touches on my NESp. thanks to everyone for their input, it turned out much better than I expected. I pretty much followed the book, but made just a couple changes

- uses sony battery for power. can also use psone wall adapter for power. I am going to do a battery test tomorrow, to see how long it lasts.

- headphone jack that disconnects the speaker when headphones are plugged in.

- a/v outputs, so I can still play on the tv.

I'll try to post some more pictures in the next few days.

Weebl · Post by **Weebl** » Mon Oct 03, 2005 11:39 pm

Very nice, matt, I'm impressed. I will probably be using a Sony battery in my NESp as well. You seem like a pretty knowledgeable person (for someone so new to this), so it'll be good to have you on here. Congrats on a top notch first portable.

Solidsnake, make sure you check how much shipping is on one of those famiclones on ebay. The system itself may sell for about a buck, but the shipping is killer (29 seems to be the norm). My suggestion would be to buy a "broken" NES for fairly cheap (I got mine for 1 buck + 10 shipping) and then do as Ben shows you in the book to repair it. Bending the pins up isn't too hard, and it makes it as good as new. If you do that, you'll not only spend less to get the console but you also will have a guide telling you how to do it whereas with a famiclone you'd have to come up with it yourself. I'm fairly certain that a famiclone is completely different inside so it would probably be easier to go with the actual NES. That's just my advice.

madc0w · Post by **madc0w** » Tue Oct 04, 2005 8:00 am

well the famiclone is smaller, consumes less electricity, and you can get one from gannon for $18. I chose a famiclone because they are overall easier to work with. (imho)

mattb419 · Post by **mattb419** » Tue Oct 04, 2005 11:08 am

madc0w: I believe that solidsnake might be talking about the famicom clones that are on ebay (they kinda look similar to a NES, but aren't). I think you are referring to the infamous "super joy" NOAC. I might try my hand at a NOAC at some point, but I think I'd like to do something other than a NES for my next system... I'm leaning toward psone or N64.

weebl: Thanks for the compliment. I've been into electronics for a long time now (mostly home and car audio, and some little electronics projects, mostly mischief related

) I stumbled across ben's book at the bookstore... luckily for me it was in the computers section - I am a programmer by trade, and I was looking for a reference manual. needless to say, this book has been quite enjoyable, and I look forward to completing at least a couple more portables when time allows.
When you get ready to do your NESp, I'll try to give you the details on how I hooked up the sony battery (and any of the other changes too if you are interested).

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Screen Flickering (NESp work-in-process)

NESp finished!