Downing's 5th GeN64 Portable Kit

Hey there! This is Downing and let me be the first to welcome you to the guide of my first successful Nintendo 64 Portable Kit! This has been a passion project of mine for over a year but a concept that I've been wanting to see since I started in this hobby almost 16 years ago. 

In addition to what comes included with the kit, you will need some basic tools and a couple actual components that could not be included. 

Make sure your N64 is working properly BEFORE trimming the board down!! 

OK, once we know we have a working N64 and the kit in hand, the first step is to open the box and to verify all the contents are in there. 

That's right, for the first time ever I now have an actual online storefront for all things 5th Gen64 Kit related! That means if you need spare parts or what to buy a full blown kit, you now have a place to do so! 

As the kits progress and new techniques, issues or methods are discovered, they will be listed here and linked to their respective detailed steps or just explained in a dedicated step below.

Please check back to this step frequently if you're in the process of a build as it will have the potential to make a difference in how you're putting the unit together!

ISSUES

SECTION SUMMARY

Component Removal is our first step in preparing the N64 Motherboard for trimming.   

These Steps Will Require:

- Removing The Stock Heat Sinks
- Removing The Original Cartridge Slot
- Hitting A No Return Point
- Removing The DD Slot
- Stock Component Removal In Prep for Trimming

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OVERALL DIFFICULTY - EASY

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CRITICAL STEP AND/OR SAFETY NOTICE

STEP SUMMARY  We will be removing the stock heatsinks that came with the N64 and replacing them with lower profile, more efficient Aluminum RAM heatsinks.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- NONE

MATERIALS NEEDED

- NONE

PARTS NEEDED

- N64 Motherboard

STEP PROCESS

1. The three heatsinks come off with minimal effort as a simple twisting motion will remove them. Make sure the thermal pad comes off with the heat sink as we will not be needing them. 2. Discard or recycle these as we will not be needing them again.

3. Proceed to "CART SLOT REMOVAL"

STEP SUMMARY  Like the heatsinks, the Original Cart Slot needs to be removed as we will upgrading to a more modern (and clean) card-edge connector later on.

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DIFFICULTY - EASY

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TOOLS NEEDED

- NONE

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MATERIALS NEEDED

- NONE

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PARTS NEEDED

- N64 MOTHERBOARD

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STEP PROCESS

1. The cart slot is only held in by pressure and can be easily pulled from its seat. 

2. Grab the whole front & back as shown in Fig.3 and gently rock the cart slot front to back while pulling straight up.

3. The cart slot should pull right out and we can now set it aside or discard as we will not be using it going forward. 

Up to this point, by simply placing the cart slot and jumper pak back, you could put the motherboard back in the original enclosure and be on your way. 

These two videos are also pretty old but they do a good job of demonstrating the removal of all non-required components.

None of these components that are being removed will be used again, so if you damage them taking them off, don't worry about it. 

Continued

As was found out a couple weeks ago, N64 Motherboards Revision 8-9 (1999 or above) had a different placement for Cap C81, which subsequently came into contact with the blower fan and did not allow the N64 motherboard to be mounted properly. 

STEP SUMMARY 

 This step's difficulty is largely going to depend on if you took the easy "break the pins" method from the DD Slot Removal step, or if you took you time and removed each pin. Personally I've found it more difficult to pull the pins first rather than break them, but then we end up in this situation, which is the one most of you will probably be in, so here we go.

It's critical that the flex cable has a solid and obstruction free place to mount too, and to do so, we have to remove all leftover pins from the DD slot and the shielding that held it in place (the little oval slots).

DIFFICULTY - MODERATE

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

- NEEDLENOSE PLIERS AND/OR TWEEZERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SOLDER

- DESOLDERING BRAID OR PUMP

- FLUX - ISOPROPAL ALCOHOL

- Q-TIP OR COTTON SWABS

PARTS NEEDED

- N64 MOTHERBOARD

STEP PROCESS

1. Removing the remaining pieces of pins is a tedious process to say the least but is the only way to ensure a solid connection with the cart slot flex cable.

2. Heating up each pin from the front of the board and pushing the pin flush with the pad will make removal from the back side of the board much easier.

3. Once all 50 pins have been hit, flip the board over as seen in Fig. 3 and heat the pads while holding onto the pin with pliers and then remove. This may not be as simple of a process as it seems.

4. After all the pins have been pulled, clean the pins with ISO on both sides of the board.

5. Hit all the pins with FLUX and fill in with solder so there is a nice shiny dome on each pin and then clean all the remain FLUX off with some more ISO.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

We needed to remove the stock heatsinks because they were basically just solid blocks of Aluminum that were held in place by an even bigger heat sink plate. These newer, low-profile, self-adhesive heatsinks do a much better job dissipating heat, though I find their adhesion to be a bit sub-par, so we'll have to tack them in place with something a bit stronger.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- NONE

MATERIALS NEEDED

- GOOP

- Q-TIP

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (3) - BAG# 6 - ALUMINUM HEAT SINKS

STEP PROCESS

1. Remove the 3 heat sinks from the bag and peel off the backer.

2. Carefully place one heatsink on the CPU, the RCP and RAM chips as shown in Fig. 1-6

Though these are self adhesive, I prefer to add a bit of insurance to process.

3. With a small dab of "Goop", put a small bit on either side of all the chips/heatsinks. This will make sure they don't come off unless intended.

NOTE: Later versions of the N64 only have a single RAM chip, in which case, find the 1" long piece of black foam tape in the "SPARES BAG" to fill in the gap.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

Because we will be using our own Power Management Solution later down the road, we need to remove the onboard 7805 Regulator so we don't double regulate our 5v power rail.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- FLUSH CUTTERS OR DIAGONAL PLIERS

- SOLDERING IRON - NEEDLENOSE OR FLATNOSE PLIERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- N64 MOTHERBOARD

STEP PROCESS

1. Start by clipping the two small legs of the 7805, preferably with Flush Cutters as shown in Fig.1

2. Hit the whole back side of the regulator with some Flux.

3. With the soldering iron, begin to heat the regulator and the pad, keeping in mind that depending on what kind of tip you are using on your iron, may take a bit of time to heat up.

4. When the regulator starts to loosen up, take your pliers and completely remove the reg.

5. Clean up where you cut the legs and make sure what's left over has been removed and the pads are clean. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

Perhaps one of the biggest time savers to every come to portablizing, custom Flat Flexible Cables were a game changer when they came out. This mini assembly is a quick and easy alternative to cutting, stripping and wiring up 50 wires.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SOLDER

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - BAG# 4 - 50 PIN CART EDGE CONNECTOR

- QTY (1) - BAG# 4 - CART SLOT STIFFENER PCB

- QTY (1) - BAG# 4 - CART SLOT FLEX PCB

STEP PROCESS

1. Remove the Flex PCB and the Stiffener from the bag and look for the printed triangles on both as seen in Fig. 2&3

2. Flip over the Stiffener PCB so the arrow is face down pointing toward you and take the Cart Edge Connector and place it through the holes on the PCB with the text on the Connector facing you as seen in Fig. 4

3. Flip both over again so the arrow on the PCB is both facing and pointing up as shown in Fig. 6

4. Find the arrow on the Flex Cable and match the side and direction with the arrow on the PCB. NOTE: There are multiple versions of the Stiffener and some may just have a decal on them while later versions, the two arrows will overlay one another. This makes no difference in functionality.

5. Lay the Flex Cable over the Stiffener so the Cart Slot Pins are going through both of them as shown in Fig. 7&8

6. Begin to solder pin to pin, starting from on side and making your way across, being careful to make sure the Flex Cable and the Stiffener are all sitting as flat as possible on the Cart Slot.

7. Once complete, inspect all points to make sure everything is clean and soldered solid and that there are no tares in the Flex Cable. It is also highly recommended that you test each pin connection with a continuity meter just to make sure your connection is good. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

Once the cart slot assembly is complete and the solder points on the N64 have been cleaned up we can now connect the two. This step is very easy, but take your time to make sure you do it correctly as having to remove the Flex cable after it's been soldered tends to end poorly.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SOLDER

- FLUX

- ISOPROPAL ALCOHOL

- Q-TIP OR COTTON SWAB

PARTS NEEDED

- ASSEMBLED CART SLOT ASSEMBLY

- TRIMMED AND DRILLED N64 MOTHERBOARD

STEP PROCESS

1. Apply Flux across the solder points on the N64 as shown in Fig. 1&2

2. Repeat the process for the Flex Cable as shown in Fig. 3&4

3. Making sure that the text on the Flex Cable is facing up, line up the Flex Cable with the Solder points on the N64 as shown in Fig. 5&6

4. Like before, start on one side and start working your way to the other, one pin at a time. To make sure it stays as flat as possible I'll often use a precision flat head screwdriver to press the cable to the pad as I'm going as shown in Fig. 9-13

Now even though it may feel like it's soldered well at this point, we've only used solder from the N64 that was there from the boards preparation step earlier. To make sure it's really solid, we may need to hit it with solder from the top as well.

6. Take the Flux again and run across the top of the Flex Cable as shown in Fig. 14

7. Hit all the pads with your iron, adding solder to any that don't look to have the pad completely covered with solder.

8. When complete, clean up any residual Flux with the ISO and you should be left with a nice and shiny little dome of solder on each pin connection.

Now this section is not really a requirement on your end, but makes keeping track of various wires a much simpler task as the build progresses. As long as your wire gauges match the load, you really can use whatever wire and color combination you choose. 

STEP SUMMARY 

Again, this is an optional step, but I find that it makes keeping track of what wire is which, and also makes wire management far easier, it's highly recommended.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- CORDLESS DRILL

- FLATNOSE PLIERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- 30AWG WIRE OF VARIOUSE COLORS

PARTS NEEDED

- NONE

STEP PROCESS

1. For a standard Twisted Pair of wire, cut two strands of wire of two different colors (Red & White as an example) about 12" long. Fig.1

2. Feed one end of the pair into the chuck of the drill as shown in Fig.5 & 6

3. Pull the wires taught to make sure they won't pull out of the chuck. Fig.9 & 10

4. Grip the other side with the Flatnose Pliers and pull tight.

5. Squeeze the trigger of the drill and start to twist the wires together. Fig.11 & 12

6. You will want a fairly tight twist as the images show.

7. Repeat these steps for all the color combinations needed for the "Twisted Pair" section above.

8. For the "Triple Twisted" Section, repeat steps 1-7 but as you guessed, with one additional wire of whichever combination you need.

STEP SUMMARY 

In this step we will be wiring up the 3.3V and 5V lines to the N64. These lines will later connect to the main motherboard with the PMS and will send the correct and regulated power to the system. NOTE: Different board revisions may have different style caps or layout, but the they are still the same.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON - WIRE STRIPPERS (or Teeth if you live on the wild side)

MATERIALS NEEDED

- TRIPLE TWISTED 30AWG W/W/G FOR 3.3V

- TRIPLE TWISTED 30AWG W/W/O FOR 5V

- SOLDER

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- N64 MOTHERBOARD

STEP PROCESS

1. Look for caps C141 and C130 (Fig.2) These will be our solder points for 3.3V and 5v respectively.

2. At the base of each cap you will see a small solder point which we need to prep.

3. Apply a little bit of flux to both bases. Fig.5

4. Add a small amount of fresh solder to the base. Fig.6

5. Strip a small amount of the sheathing off one end of the W/W/G 3.3V set of wires, then twist them together to make a single strand. (Flatnose Pliers help a great deal with this). Then hit the wire with a bit of solder to make it solid.

6. Butt the wire right up to the solder on the base of cap C141 and hit it with the iron. Fig.7&8

7. Repeat these steps with the W/W/O 5V set of wires and solder to cap C136

8. Check to make sure the solder points are solid and are not shorting to any of the nearby vias!

9. Move the wires over to the right and feed them down between the other caps as shown in Fig.11

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

Wiring the audio is a fairly simple step, but depending on your version of the motherboard, maybe slightly different in the approach that is shown here. The rev used in this example was 2-4. See images to determine which board you have and the proper solder points.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

MATERIALS NEEDED

- TWISTED PAIR 30AWG R/W FOR AUDIO L&R

- SOLDER

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- N64 MOTHERBOARD

STEP PROCESS

1. Determine which rev motherboard you have by matching the layout of the board to one of the images from the Bit Built guides. This will determine the correct solder points for your board. All we care about are Audio Left (white) and Audio Right (Red) markings

2 Fig.1-8 basically show the same process for rev's even though the position may be different.

3. Flux the pins, add a small amount of solder to the pin and/or via depending on version and solder the W/R to their respective pins.

4. Again, make sure the connection is solid and are not shorting anywhere.

5. Clean up any residue with Isopropal Alcohol and Q-Tip

6. Move the wire over and feed between the same caps as the 3.3V and 5V lines. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

Now though technically you could have wired the video from the same source as the audio in the last step, composite video is susceptible to interference and can cause signal distortion. By wiring to the original output that you would plug into your TV, we take advantage of the onboard filtering caps which gives us much better signal quality. This step is universal for all board revs.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON - WIRE STRIPPERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- TWISTED PAIR 30AWG Y/B FOR VIDEO/GND

- SOLDER

- FLUX - HOT GLUE GUN (OPTIONAL)

PARTS NEEDED

- N64 MOTHERBOARD

STEP PROCESS

1. On the back of the board, locate the 3rd capacitor from the left. It should be the first one with a "test point" in front of it.

2. If you followed the trimming guide, that entire row of test points should be intact, however if you went in too deep, we may have to solder to another point and potentially lose the filtering caps.

3. Using the same wiring process as before, hit the test point pad/cap with flux and small amount of solder. Fig.2

4. Strip a very small amount of sheathing off both the Black and Yellow wires. Keeping the amount of exposed wire to a minimum will be critical here for the last step.

5. Solder the yellow wire to the pad and the Black wire to the ground via to the left of it as shown in Fig.6

6. Make sure the connections are solid and there are no shorts and then clean up flux residue with Isopropyl Alcohol. Though not shown, you can "pot" these connections in hot glue now if you like, keeping in mind though that you may need get at these points again later if video is not working, but it will help prevent shorts.

7. Fold the wire around to the top of the board and feed down between the same caps as the 3.3V, 5V and Audio lines. Fig.7

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY

Though the original controller had 3 lines, we only need to worry about the data line.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

- WIRE STRIPPERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- 1 STRIP OF 30AWG GREEN ABOUT 12IN LONG

- SOLDER

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- N64 MOTHERBOARD

STEP PROCESS

1. Because we trimmed off the through-hole pads, we need to wire to an alternative location.

2. Locate the DA1 diode.

3. Just below that is a cap with a test point which would read FIL2 if we didn't cut it off. But, hit the test point with some Flux and small amount of solder.

4. Again strip a small bit of sheathing and solder the wire to the test point/cap as shown.

5. Route the wire to the left to meet up with the rest of wires.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

The Reset Button is only needed if you plan to use Flashcarts like an Everdrive, but is recommended to install anyway.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

- WIRE STRIPPERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- TWISTED PAIR 30AWG O/B ABOUT 12" LONG

- SOLDER

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- N64 MOTHERBOARD

STEP PROCESS

1. Same routine as before, locate the test point that was under the reset button that has a trace going up to the PIF chip.

2. Flux and Solder to the test point and also to the base of the cap just to the right as shown.

3. Strip a small amount of sheathing from both wires and solder the Orange to the test point and the Black to the cap.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

This last step is optional, but it makes keeping the build tidy and clean and is highly recommended.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- PLIERS

- CUTTERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SCRAP 34 AND 30AWG WIRE

PARTS NEEDED

- WIRED N64 MOTHERBOARD

STEP PROCESS

1. To really secure the wires to the motherboard, I use 34AWG wire to loop through the vias on the mother board tie it down to the board.

2. Alternately, you can take small strips of 30AWG and twist it together with pliers to to hold them all together. CONGRATS! THIS COMPLETES THE WIRING PORTION OF THE N64 MOTHERBOARD!

STEP SUMMARY 

Mounting any kind of adhesive decal can actually be a fairly challenging and frustrating part any project, but following these steps and having the right materials will make this process so much easier.

Though this decal is laminated and is resistant to stretching and tearing, it is still a self-adhesive material which means as soon as it touches a surface, it wants to stay there. Rapid Tac is a cheap but highly effective fluid that both cleans the surface and allows for easy repositioning of the decal to line it up just right and I highly recommend picking up a small bottle. 

DIFFICULTY - MODERATE

TOOLS NEEDED

- SQUEEGE OR PAPER TOWLES

- X-ACTO KNIFE OR OTHER PRECISION CUTTING TOOL

MATERIALS NEEDED

- RAPID TAC

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - WEEDED VINYL DECAL

- QTY (1) - FRONT FACE PLATE W/ACRYLIC INSERT

STEP SUMMARY 

In this step we will be mounting the Front Face Bracket to the Front Face Plate in preparation to build the Front Face Assembly. A simple step, yet again requires the use of Super Glue so we have to work quickly.

SAFETY CHECK POINT PROTECTIVE GLOVES ARE HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- NONE

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SUPER GLUE

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - FRONT FACE BRACKET W/MOUNTING TABS - 3D PRINTED

- QTY (1) - FRONT FACE PLATE WITH DECAL - 3D PRINTED

STEP PROCESS

1. As shown in Fig. 1-6, hit the entire inner lip with a bead of Super Glue. Make sure every flat surface has a little bit of glue on it.

2. After, carefully take the Front Face Plate and place into the bracket.

3. Apply even pressure to all sides until the glue cures. It should feel like one solid piece and all the walls should be tightly adhered to the plate. Reinforce if needed.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

This is the exact same procedure as the last step, just with the Back Face Bracket and Back Face Plate.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- NONE

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SUPER GLUE

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - BACK FACE BRACKET - 3D PRINTED

- QTY (1) - BACK FACE PLATE - 3D PRINTED

STEP PROCESS

1. Just like the last step, hit the lip with Super Glue and apply even pressure to the plate. There should be no loose corners or moving walls and should feel like one solid piece. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

The controller module is the condensed version of an actual N64 controller. In fact, the main control chip came out of an original 1st party controller. It also has a built in FRAM chip for non-volatile memory card.

It's very important that you take your time with these steps because you have very tight tolerances to hold to avoid shorts and once these are soldered to the board, they are very difficult to remove.

DIFFICULTY -  MODERATE

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SOLDER

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - 5TH GEN64 MAIN MOTHER BOARD - PCB

- QTY (1) - N64 CONTROLLER MODULE

STEP PROCESS

1. Start by applying Flux to the pads on the N64 Controller section as shown in Fig. 1-3.

2. Apply solder to one pad as shown in Fig. 5 and line up the control module to the matching pad.

3. Solder the pads together and rotate the whole motherboard so you can easily access the other pads.

4. Align the pads and tack it in place by soldering another single pad.

5. Again, depending on your skill level, you can solder pin to pin one at a time, or you can use the heat and drag method. Either way, make sure all the pads on are soldered in place.

6. Next, take the Flux once again and go over all the pads again as shown in Fig. 12.

7. Hit the pads again with the soldering iron which should clean up and leave a nice bead of solder on each pin.

8. Give each pin a good close inspection to make sure no pins are bridged together and there are no shorts. Repeat the Flux and Heat if so until clean.

STEP SUMMARY 

The N64 PMS is a 4 Layer Tech innovation that takes all the guess work out of Power Management. This takes care of charging the batteries and making sure the voltages are regulated. Truth be told it does far more than that and is a remarkable piece of tech!

It also has another neat feature though in that it allows you to choose your charge rate through a series of jumpers on the PMS itself. The default rate is set to 1A, which when you have over 9A of total power between the 3 batteries, doing the math, you see that's gonna take a long time. With this board you have the option to choose 1A, 2A, 3A or 4.5A charge rates, which means fully cranked, will charge the portable in less than 2hrs.

Check out the full specs here at 4 Layer's N64 PMS

Installation is exactly the same as the Controller Board.

DIFFICULTY - MODERATE

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SOLDER

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - 5TH GEN64 MAIN MOTHERBOARD - PCB

- QTY (1) - BAG #2 - N64PMS MODULE

STEP PROCESS

1. Employ the same process and the controller board. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

The UAMP-2 is another 4 Layer Tech product which controls all audio functions for a variety of different consoles. Our specific use will be for its analog capabilities, which means we have to configure at jumper on the module otherwise we'll get no sound at all.

For more detailed info on the board, See 4 Layer's Specs of the U-AMP 2 Here.

Installation is exactly the same as the previous two modules, however you will notice that in this case, the module is upside down which is correct.

DIFFICULTY - MODERATE

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SOLDER

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - 5TH GEN64 MAIN MOTHERBOARD - PCB

- QTY (1) - BAG #2 - U-AMP 2 PCB

STEP PROCESS

1. As stated before, the soldering process is the same as the previous 2 steps, with one exception.

2. Once the Amp is soldered to the main board, find the pad on the AMP labeled J2

3. Using a bead of solder, connect the two pads and this will enable "Analog" mode on the Amp.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

Now that we're done making a Fluxy mess, we need to clean it up. Isopropyl Alcohol and Q-tips are our friend here.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- NONE

MATERIALS NEEDED

- ISOPROPYL ALCOHOL

- Q-TIPS

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) 5TH GEN64 MAIN MOTHER BOARD - POPULATED

STEP PROCESS

1. Like the clean up we did while prepping the N64 motherboard, we have to do the same here. Carefully remove all the Flux residue with the ISO and Q-Tips until you have nice shiny looking solder pads.

STEP SUMMARY 

Though this step looks unassuming enough, it's actually a real pain in the rear that actually earns a HARD difficulty rating. The main issue is with the LED's themselves, as they are surface mount, designed for solder paste and a reflow oven. In the future these may very well end up being a manufactured board and this step can go away, but for now, get ready for a "fun" time.

DIFFICULTY - HARD

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

- NEEDLE NOSE PLIERS or TWEEZERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SOLDER

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - BAG #2 - BACKLIGHT PCB

- QTY (5) - BAG #6 - WS2812B - RGB LEDS

STEP PROCESS

1. Remove the LEDs from the cut-tape and arrange them all in the same orientation with marked corner in the top left. See Fig. 3

2. Flux all the pads.

3. Put a small amount of solder onto your soldering iron directly and as shown in Fig. 8, hit the top right pad of every LED foot print. This will allow us to tack the LED in place while still granting a little bit of movement to align it correctly.

4. Place the LEDs down inline, taking them in place on the right while checking again to make sure the mark on the LED is in the top left.

5. Once the LEDs are tacked, Flux the very small pins on the LED's themselves as show in Fig.13

6. Adding small amounts of Solder to your iron, go around and hit the pins and pads of the rest of the LED board, being careful to not melt the plastic on the LEDs. This is the hardest part. 7. Once complete and the LEDs are securely soldered, clean up the Flux residue like we did in the previous steps. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

The Power/Volume Button Board is another simple, yet tricky board to assemble. Though not as bad as the LED board, we are still dealing with very small surface mount components that can be a bit of a pain to work with.

DIFFICULTY - MODERATE

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON - NEEDLE NOSE PLIERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SOLDER

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - BAG #2 - BUTTON BOARD PCB

- QTY (3) - BAG #6 - CKN12221-1-ND - LOW PROFILE TACT SWITCH

STEP PROCESS

1. Remove the PCB and tact switches from their respective bags.

2. Flux the pads on the SW1, SW2 and SW3 side of the PCB. Fig.4

3. Unlike with the LEDs, these tact switches have legs that are easy to hit with the iron, so you can hit all 12 pads with solder upfront.

4. Working your way left to right (if you're righty), place each tact as close to center of the box as you can get. This is important because if you are too far off center, the buttons will not press correctly later on.

5. Once all the pins have been soldered, hit them with FLUX again (Fig. 12&13) and then the iron to give the joint a nice clean and even finish.

6. As we did with the other PCBs, then clean the Flux residue with ISO and a Q-Tip.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

The 3rd battery is is a bit more involved though is still pretty straight forward. This whole assembly only consists of 4 parts, but you have to take up as much slack as possible when you solder, which we'll get into in detail.

DIFFICULTY - MODERATE

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

- MULTIMETER

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SOLDER

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - BAG #2 - BATTERY PCB

- QTY (2) - BAG #6 - 36-54-ND - 18650 BATTERY CLIP

- QTY (1) - 18650 BATTERY (NOT INCLUDED)

STEP PROCESS

1. Remove the components from their respective packages.

2. Take the Battery PCB and flip it over as shown in Fig.5

3. Take the battery clips and insert them as shown in Fig.6 and flip the board back over as shown in Fig.7

4. Make sure the pins of the clip are pushed as far to the right as they can go as shown in Fig.8 before soldering them in place. This will help keep the battery as tight as possible.

5. Rotate the board 180 and repeat the step with the other clip.

6. Once the clips are soldered, you can add the battery, but we have to make sure that we have the polarity correct.

7. As shown in Fig.11, the positive (+) side of the board has 2 thru-hole solder points we'll be using later and the negative (-) side has only one. We need to be sure that our battery is inserted the correct way.

8. All 18650 cells should be marked with a + or - and you of course need to match the two on the Battery PCB. Place the cell into the clips.

9. Double check with a multimeter as shown in Fig.16-17 by placing the positive lead to the + mark on the PCB and black to the negative. You should get a reading of 3.5v to 4v on the cell. If you get a -3.5v to -4v, you've got the cell in backwards and need to flip it!

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY

Now this step is actually easier to do once the Front Face Assembly is complete, however PCB prep technically isn't complete until this jack is added to the Main PCB, so we're putting it in this section. The images show a lot more complete than we've covered to this point because that's how this one was put together. You can either wait until the Front Face Assembly is complete or do it now.  

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SOLDER

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - BAG #2 - HEADPHONE JACK PACKED WITH U-AMP

- QTY (1) - 5TH GEN64 MAIN MOTHERBOARD - PCB

STEP PROCESS

1. Having the Main Motherboard mounted into the Front Face Assembly helps a great deal with the alignment of the headphone jack, which is why you can choose two wait until that portion is complete. However, you can still simply place the board in the case half and accomplish the same thing.

2. Place the jack into the hole in the front face bracket. It go in a little hard, but it should snap down into place with the 4 legs touching the pads on the Main Motherboard.

3. Solder each leg to the pads.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY

Mounting the LED board is much much easier than it was to put the LEDs on it!  

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- P1 PHILLIPS SCREW DRIVER

MATERIALS NEEDED

- NONE

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (2) - BAG #1/D or H - #1 X 3/16" PHMS - QTY (1) - BACKLIGHT LED BOARD - POPULATED

STEP PROCESS

1. Flip the LED PCB over so the LEDs are facing the Nintendo Logo.

2. Find the two standoffs on the case and match them with the screw holes on the PCB.

3. Screw them both into the standoffs. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

Much like the LED board, this PCB is mounted in place by just two screws, however, in addition, we have to juggle the main power and volume buttons. Now, if you wish to paint these buttons first, skip ahead to the "Painting Buttons" section first before returning back to this step.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- P1 PHILLIPS SCREW DRIVER

MATERIALS NEEDED

- NONE

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1ea) - BAG #5/G - VOLUME +/- BUTTON - SLA 3D PRINTED

- QTY (1) - BAG #5/C - PWR BUTTON - SLA 3D PRINTED

- QTY (1) - CONTROL BOARD PCB - POPULATED - QTY (2) - BAG #1/F - #2-56 X 1/8" PHMS

STEP PROCESS

1. Locate the 3 holes on the front face bracket.

2. Place the Power Button in the center position (it won't fit anywhere else) Fig.2

3. Place the Volume (-) button into the left hole as if you were holding the console while playing. 4. Repeat with the (+) button on the opposite side.

5. Flip the Control Board PCB so that the tact switches are facing the buttons, and then rotate the board so the 4 solder points are facing away from the screen cut as seen in Fig.5

6. Line the board up with the screw holes for the nut traps and mount the board in place with the two screws.

7. Make sure the board is tightly secured and give all three buttons a few good test pushes, making sure they click clean, clear and freely without feeling tight or hard to press. If so, you may have to make a few adjustments to either the PCB placement, or even how tight you have it screwed into place.

8. Once the presses feel good and consistent, we can then move onto the next step.

STEP SUMMARY 

Mounting the Speakers is a simple step that gets us that much closer to a fully populated "Front Face Assembly"

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- P1 PHILLIPS SCREW DRIVER

MATERIALS NEEDED

- NONE

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (4) - BAG #1/D or H - #1 X 3/16" PHSMS

- QTY (2ea) - BAG #3/B - SPEAKER MOUNTS & ADHESIVE FOAM PADS

- QTY ( 2) - BAG #6 - SP-15511L - WIRED SPEAKERS

STEP PROCESS

1. Remove the Speakers from their package and then remove the adhesive backer on the Foam Pads as seen in Fig. 2&3

2. Though Fig.4 & 5 show placing the pads on the Speaker Mounts, it was found later it actually is easier to stick the pad to the back of the SPEAKER ITSELF. This changes this step up a little bit and it will be corrected at a later date, though either way still get's the job done.

3. Locate the Speaker traps on the Front Face Bracket and Place the Speakers w/Pads attached, into them, one on each side, with the speakers wires facing in Fig. 9-11

4. Grab one of the Speaker Mounts and a #1 x 3/16" screw and start the screw into the Mount, just enough so the tip comes out the back a little bit. This will help with alignment when we go to screw it into the case.

5. The Speaker Mount needs to be aligned with the lip facing down and towards the speaker. Fig.14

6. Before we screw them in place, feed the one side of the Mount between the black and red wires of the speaker. Fig.14 & 15

7. Making sure the lip of the Mount is holding on to the bottom of the Speaker firmly, screw the Mount in place.

8. Repeat these steps for the other side. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

Though the Front Face Assembly only needs the R/L buttons, the Z buttons on the back face have the exact same set-up and it's easier to prepare all of them now.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- NONE

MATERIALS NEEDED

- GOOP

- Q-TIPS

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (4) - BAG #6 - 8X8X5MM SOFT TOUCH TACT SWITCHS

- QTY (4) - BAG #3/E - SOFT TACT SWITCH HOLDER - 3D PRINTED

STEP PROCESS

1. Apply a small amount of Goop to the center of the Soft Tact Switch Holder. Fig. 1&2

2. Place the Soft Tact Switch into the holder and press down to make sure the Goop bonds well.

3. Check and make sure no Goop has gotten up to the rubber of the switch itself as that can cause issues down the road.

4. If all clean, repeat this step for the rest of the buttons and set two aside for the Back Face Assembly a bit later on. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

This step can potentially be a little tricky due to the tight tolerances of where the tact switches have to fit over the buttons. The important part is to make sure the button feels right after it's been installed and does not feel "stiff" or "tight" in any way. This could mean having to sand down the button base a little.

DIFFICULTY - MODERATE

TOOLS NEEDED

- PRECISION FLAT HEAD SCREWDRIVER

- SAND PAPER/NAIL FILE (MAYBE)

MATERIALS NEEDED

- GOOP

- Q-TIP

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (2) - BAG #5/D - R & L BUTTON CAPS - SLA 3D PRINTED

- QTY (2) - ASSEMBLED SOFT TACT SWITCH MOUNTS

STEP PROCESS

1. With either the R or L button, do a test fit into the button cutout to make sure it fits cleanly and there are no burrs or obstructions that can get caught. The buttons will likely have small burrs on them from the SLA printing process so sanding these down could be necessary. Fig. 1

2. Repeat this for the other side and once all have been confirmed to freely move, leave the button in the cutout. NOTE: MAKE SURE THE BUTTON HAS THE LETTER FACING THE CORRECT DIRECTION AND WILL BE ON THE CORRECT SIDE! WITH THE CASE FACING THIS WAY FOR INSTALL, RIGHT IS LEFT!!!

3. Take one of the assembled mounts and flip it so the switch faces the button and overhang faces down. Fig.3 & 4

4. Carefully insert the mount into the side channels, stopping once the tact switch itself makes contact with button. Fig.5

5. The tricky part here is compress the switch actuator while pushing the switch mount into position, while keeping the button itself in place. This can be done using a precision Flat Head Screwdriver to gently compress the switch while also holding the button in place, allowing your other hand to push the assembly into position. Fig. 6

6. The channel has built in stops, so once you feel the assembly stop, you should be perfectly aligned.

7. Once the whole button assembly is in place, give the button as many test presses as you like to make sure it's to your liking, not tight and responsive. OPTION: If you think you need more clearance or want a bit more movement in the press, now is the time. Remove the assembly the same way it was installed, and on a flat surface, sand down both the base of the button and the tops of the two fins on either side of it. Doing so will give you a bit more clearance for your button presses.

8. If you are satisfied with how things feel, repeat the steps for the other side.

9. Once completely satisfied, take a small amount of Goop on a Q-Tip and roll it against the Tact Mount and the Channel at all 4 contact points. Fig. 12

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP If you came back to this step from the "Installing The Z Buttons" on the Back Face Assembly, Click Here to Return

STEP SUMMARY 

Although this took forever to really "dial" in the design, the installation process is now a breeze because of it and is done with just two screws.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- P1 PHILLIPS HEAD SCREWDRIVER

MATERIALS NEEDED

- NONE

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - BAG #6 - JOYCON - QTY (2) - BAG #1/D or H - #1 X 3/16" PPHMS

STEP PROCESS

1. Flip the Joy Con over making sure the the ribbon is facing up. Fig.1

2. Insert the Joy Con into the cutout and onto the standoff printed into the Front Face Plate.

3. Gently screw the Joy Con in place using its built in mounting brackets, being careful to to crank down too tight as they can break easily.

4. Flip the case over and the Joy Con should be centered nicely in the cutout. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

The process of SLA 3D Printing by its nature allows for some amazingly detailed surface finishes and mechanical tolerances. The downside is that it's a messy process but more than that, the process requires a great number of support structures which have to be removed. Though I have taken care of that part for you, the small burrs and bumps they leave behind will still be on them and have to be finished.

We will cover how to do that as well as prepare the B & A Buttons for the rubber membranes, as they are the only two that can't free-float like the others. SAFETY CHECK POINT PROTECTIVE GLOVES ARE HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- 80 to 120 GRIT SAND PAPER OR NAIL FILE

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SUPER GLUE

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (ALL REMAINING) - BAG #5 WILL BE NEEDED

STEP PROCESS

1. As we had to do already with the Power/Volume buttons and the R/L/Z, we have to clean up the D-Pad, C-Buttons and the B/A buttons.

2. Cleaning up the burrs is not overly difficult, but we do want to use cation so what we don't accidently scratch the visible surfaces of the buttons. This is why I prefer the use of Nail Files as they add a lot more control than standard sheets of sand paper.

3. Starting with the D-Pad, sand all the burrs of the bottom and along all the edges, making sure it's clean as possible. 4. Repeat the same process with the rest of the buttons, including with the Z-buttons if haven't already.

5. After this is complete, gather the A & B buttons and the two single button membranes and Super Glue. Fig.4

6. Place a very small dab of Super Glue on the tip of one of the single button membranes as shown in Fig. 5 and then place either the A or B button lightly on top. You will notice there is a center recess in the buttons for this very purpose.

7. Once again, the clock is ticking and we need to make sure the membrane and button are as centered to each other as possible. After it looks good and there is no visible glue outside where it was applied, push down on the button a few times to test if it pops back up like it should.

8. Repeat this process for the other button.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

Once the buttons have been prepped and cleaned up, placing them is next. This is an easy step, but we do have to be careful about button orientation, as it is a bit frustrating to get the buttons in place, put everything else in, only to realize things are backwards!

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- NONE

MATERIALS NEEDED

- NONE

PARTS NEEDED

- PREPPED BUTTONS AND MEMBRANES

STEP PROCESS

1. I generally start on the left side with the B button and work my way over. As mentioned before, double check your orientation and what button you actually have in your hand. Fig.2&3

2. Grab the A button and repeat the process. Fig.4&5

3. Moving on to the C buttons you will notice there are two variants. -^- and -<- 4. -^- are for the C-up and C-down and -<- are for C-Left and C-Right. Just keep a sharp eye as off all the button on this Front Face, those are the easiest to screw up. Fig.6-10

5. After the C buttons are placed, move on to the D-Pad. The D-Pad doesn't matter which way it goes in. Fig. 11

6. Placing the membranes is the next step and it does matter which one you use where. Grab the one with the hole in the center as shown in Fig. 12

7. This is for the C-Buttons and you will notice the case has an alignment pin built in for that. The pad should fit nicely over all the C-buttons and should not rotate.

8. Find the membrane that looks similar with the two lines in the center and place that over the D-pad. The membrane should fit inside built-in mounting bracket. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

In this step we will be installing the display for the system.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- NONE

MATERIALS NEEDED

- NONE

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - BAG #7 - ZJ050NA-08C LCD DISPLAY

STEP PROCESS

1. Peel forward the screen protector tab so it sits at 90ish degree angle. This will help with its removal after it's been installed into the case. Fig.2

2. Slide the screen in from right to left to make sure the tab doesn't get buried behind the case, making it difficult to peel off after.

3. We will firmly secure the display in place in a later step. 

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

This is where everything really feels like it's coming together and while the process itself is easy enough, this get's a Moderate difficulty rating simply because of how much a pain in the butt the Joy Con cable is to install.

Also please note that the main motherboard shown in the this step is about 2 versions behind what will be shipping in the kit. While this doesn't have any effect on the end product, you will see a few extra holes in the board that aren't there anymore and the color of course!

DIFFICULTY -  MODERATE

TOOLS NEEDED

- P1 PHILLIPS SCREWDRIVER

- PRECISION FLATHEAD SCREWDRIVER - TWEEZERS - NEEDLE NOSE PLIERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- NONE

PARTS NEEDED

- FRONT FACE ASSEMBLY - POPULATED

- 5TH GEN64 MAIN MOTHERBOARD - POPULATED

- QTY (12) - BAG #1/D or H - #1 X 3/16" PPHMS

STEP PROCESS

1. Feed the Main Motherboard into the base of the Front Face Assembly, using the headphone jack to align the board. Fig.1

2. You'll find that the edge of the motherboard rubs up against side Mounting Brackets. You will have to slightly push them back while pressing down on the PCB.

3. Once we're past the bracket, before we can screw the PCB down, we need to feed the ribbon cable of the Joy Con through the slot on the PCB. There is VERY LITTLE slack to work with and you can easily damage the ribbon if you're not careful, so take your time with this.

4. As shown through Fig. 2-5, lift the main PCB up and locate the ribbon cable. Using a pair of tweezers, carefully fish the cable through the slot. This is easier said than done.

5. Once the cable has made it through the slot (Fig.5), carefully check to make sure none of the button membranes have been knocked out of place or are uneven.

6. If all looks clear, press the board down flat against the standoffs.

7. The next "FUN" part is feeding the end of the Joy Con Ribbon Cable into the connector on the board. Using the Flathead screwdriver, lift the latch on the connector as shown in Fig. 6-7 (hahaha)

8. I find using Needle Nose Pliers work best for grabbing the hard part of the cable on the edges and feeding it into the connector. Fig.8

9. Once the cable is in the connector, close it down with your finger or screwdriver. Fig. 10&11

10. Next we need to secure the board in place using the 12 mounting holes and #1 screws. Fig. 11-16

11. After the screws have been placed, double check to make sure they weren't too tight and that all the buttons still press nicely and are not tight. If so, back off the screws next to the buttons that are tight, just a quarter turn at a time. You can really dial in your preferred button travel this way as well. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

This is an optional step where if you prefer, you can remove the VGA, Power and Video connectors. The only real reason you might want to do this is the ease of wiring directly to the pin vias instead of the pins themselves and that the board will sit flatter on the back of the screen. Again though, it is not required and there is plenty of room in case to not to not have to worry about space. NOTE: You will notice that the rest of the steps in this section shows that the connectors were removed, but again, it was personal preference.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- CUTTERS

- PRECISION FLAT HEAD SCREWDRIVER

MATERIALS NEEDED

- NONE

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY(1) - BAG #7 - DRIVER BOARD

STEP PROCESS

1. If you plan to remove the connectors, note that we can only take off the Power Connector (Fig.2), the Video Connector (Fig.3) and the VGA Connector (Fig.4) The screens button board connector needs to stay intact as if you plan to make any screen adjustments or have to change the input, you will need it.

2. You can remove these in anyway you wish, like de-soldering braid or pump, or you can just chop it up with cutters and then remove the pins. Just as long as you're careful not to damage any components on the board.

3. Fig. 5-7 shows the silk screen and the which pins are what.

4. If you plan to leave the board as is, you will have to wire to the pins directly in later steps. Fig. 8 and the pictures after it show the points we'll need to wire too when the time comes.

5. Though you won't need to do this step until later as well, the final Figs show how to connect the button board cable.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

Installing the Driver Board represents the last component of the Front Face Assembly and is fortunately a very easy step to accomplish! Sorry the images are a little "overexposed" in the sections.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- PRECISION FLAT HEAD SCREWDRIVER

MATERIALS NEEDED

- GOOP - Q-TIPS

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - BAG #7 - LCD DRIVER BOARD

STEP PROCESS

1. Make sure the connector on the driver board is pulled forward so that it is open.

2. Feed the Ribbon cable from the display into the connector as shown in Fig.1

3. Making sure the cable is straight, use the precision screwdriver to close the connector by pushing in the tabs on either side. Fig. 2&3

4. Hit the 4 mounting holes on the driver board with a little bit of Goop and then pull back the board so the top edge is inline with the Main motherboard PCB.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

A very simple wire-up to bring all that retro audio goodness to ear!

DIFFICULTY -  EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SOLDER

PARTS NEEDED

- FRONT FACE ASSEMBLY

STEP PROCESS

1. Each speaker has a red and black wire which should be coiled up a couple of times to help take out the slack, but can be uncoiled if you need to remove the motherboard later.

2. Tin the pads and end of each wire which is already stripped.

3. Wire the Red wires to the L+ / R+ pads respectively.

4. Wire the Black wires the the L- / R- pads respectively.

5. Tuck the coiled wires under the motherboard

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

Similar to the speakers, but we have to add the wires ourselves.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

- WIRE STRIPPERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- 30 AWG TWISTED PAIR - W/B - ABOUT 6 INCHES

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- FRONT FACE ASSEMBLY

STEP PROCESS

1. Use some Flux on the legs of the tact switches for the R&L buttons.

2. Tin the legs and the LT/RT/GND pads on the tact switches and motherboard.

3. Untwist about 1/2" worth of wire from either side of each pair of wire and strip off a small amount of sheathing on each wire.

4. Hit each wire end with Flux and tin them as well.

5. For the sake of keeping the wiring consistent, I make the left leg of the tact switch the "signal" line and the right leg the "GND". In this case, White on the left, Black on the right. Wire each set firmly to the tact switch.

6. Like with the speakers, coil up the extra wire, then proceed to wire to the pads. White to the LT and RT pads respectively, Black to the GND. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

Another simple and quick connection but this time with a three wire twisted set.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

- WIRE STRIPPERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- 30 AWG - TRIPLE TWISTED SET - B/W/O - ABOUT 6" LENGTH

- SOLDER

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- FRONT FACE ASSEMBLY

STEP PROCESS

1. Like with the R/L buttons, untwist about 1/2" of wire from the twisted set, strip a small amount of sheathing from each lead, flux and then tin all 6 connections.

2. Flux and Tin the L+/A/GND pads on both the main motherboard and the LED board.

3. Connect the L+ on the MB to the L+ on the LED board with the Orange wire. Connect the A on the MB to the A on the LED board with the White wire.

Connect the GND on the MB to the GND on the LED board with the Black wire.

4. Route the wire up and out of the way to the left.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

As mentioned at the "Preparing The Driver Board" section, I had chosen to remove the connectors on the driver board. If you did not, the placement will still be the same, you'll just have to wire to the pins instead of the pads. Also, the board will not sit flat against the display which you'll have already noticed by now. Again, it should not cause a problem.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

- WIRE STRIPPERS

- PLIERS or TWEEZERS (OPTIONAL)

MATERIALS NEEDED

- 30 AWG TWISTED PAIR - Y/B - VIDEO/GND - ABOUT 4" LENGTH

- 30 AWG TRIPLE TWISTED - R/O/B - 5V DISPLAY PWR - ABOUT 6" LENGTH

PARTS NEEDED

- FRONT FACE ASSEMBLY

STEP PROCESS

1. Like before, unwind, strip, flux and tin the ends of all conductors.

2. Tin the Video, GND and 5V pads that are seen in Fig.2

3. Using pliers, twist and connect the Red and Orange wires together to make them essentially one wire.

4. Wire the pair to either (or both) of the 12V pads on the driver board as shown in Fig.2 The right two pads are 12V, the left 2 are GND Wire the GND wire to one of those two pads on the left.

NOTE: THE PINOUT IS PRINTED ON THE BACK OF THE PCB IF YOU NEED TO MAKE SURE YOU'RE WIRING TO THE CORRECT PLACE.

5. Wire the other end of the R/O wire to the 5V pad on the Main Motherboard. Fig.4

6. Now take the Y/B Twisted Pair and wire the Yellow to the second pin on the video connector as show in Fig. 6

7. These pins alternate GND/V1 GND/V2, so be careful not let them cross over. Wire the GND to the first pad/pin on the video connector.

8. Wire the other end of the Yellow wire to the Video pad on the Main Motherboard, and wire the GND to the same GND pad as the display power.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY

A simple process, but if you're not used to working with 34AWG wire, it might be a bit tricky. Since you can't strip this wire normally, you have to first melt a bit of the "sheathing" off. To do this, simply put a dab of Solder on the tip of your soldering iron so it becomes a little molten ball and simply pass the end of the wire through it a couple of times. This will insure your actual solder joint doesn't have a bunch of non-conductive sheathing mixed in with it.  

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

- TWEEZERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- 34AWG WIRE - (4) 1" LENGTHS

- FLUX

PARTS NEEDED

- FRONT FACE ASSEMBLY

STEP PROCESS

1. The goal here is to connect each solder pad with on the Main Motherboard with the Control PCB. Flux and Tin the pads on both.

2. Prepare the 1" strips of 34AWG with the solder ball method.

3. I will normally then solder all 4 onto the Main Motherboard, leaving them all standing straight up.

4. Using a pair of Tweezers, I'll then wire the GND wire to the GND pad on the control board. Then take up what slack is left and tuck it down between the and Main Motherboard.

5. Repeat this step with Vol-, BTN and Vol+. Doing it that order will keep the wires out of the way of each other as you're going.

6. Make sure your connections are tight and the wire is routed cleanly under the board. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

In this step we'll be mounting the battery covers as well as the bottom battery terminals. Again this is kind of a more complex part of the build, but again, baby steps make it pretty easy. All the same tools, materials and parts from the last step apply.

STEP PROCESS

1. Grab one of the battery covers and locate the arrow that has been printed into it. Make sure this arrow faces the toward the top of the case as shown in the first two images, as the mounting holes are slightly different sizes.

2. Take one of the #1 x 3/16" Sheet Metal Screws and feed it through the top screw hole as shown in Fig. 1&2

3. Place the Battery Cover over the Battery on the back and find the mounting hole with the screw that was pushed through. Fig. 3-6

4. Once it's lined up, using the P1 Phillips, tighten the screw so the battery cover sits flat. Fig. 7-8 and the following image.

5. Repeat for the other side.

6. Next, grab one of the Battery Terminal Wedges and one LPP0204 Thread Forming Screw. Place the screw into the Wedge as show in Fig. 11

7. With the P2 Phillips Driver, screw the Wedge in place at the base of the battery with the flat side facing it. Make sure the screw starts to thread into the Battery Cover correctly, but DO NOT TIGHTEN FULLY. Fig. 12 and following image.

8. Repeat this for the other side.

9. Next take one of the Battery Terminals and like last time, make sure the domed end is face toward the battery.

10. Place the Battery Terminal between the Battery and the Wedge and then fully tighten the Wedge. You will probably have to hold the Wedge from spinning while you tighten and also holding the terminal. It can be a bit tricky, but in the end, the terminal should appear as shown in Fig. 17-19

11. Using the same technique as the last section, bend the terminal tabs down over the Wedge, being a little more careful though as the Wedge can move under pressure.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

The next step to secure the 4 square nuts into the traps for the Cart Slot Mounts.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- NONE

MATERIALS NEEDED

- GOOP

- Q-TIP

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (4) - BAG #1/G - #2-56 SQ NUT

STEP PROCESS

1. Layout the 4 Square Nuts.

2. Using a Q-tip or some other kind of spreader, put a small amount of Goop in each nut trap as shown in Fig. 4-6

3. Place one nut in each trap, making sure the Goop has a firm bond around it.

4. Use a Q-Tip to then clean out the thread and the screw holes as much as possible.

5. After the Goop dries, take one of the #2-56 machine screws and thread it through the nut and screw holes on the case a couple of times to make sure the threads are clean.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

This is the same exact process as the R&L buttons and you should already have the buttons and tact switch assemblies all ready to go.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- PRECISION FLAT HEAD SCREW DRIVER

MATERIALS NEEDED

- GOOP

- Q-TIP

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (2) - BAG #5/D - Z BUTTON - SLA 3D PRINTED

- BACK FACE ASSEMBLY

STEP PROCESS

1. Refer back to "Installing The R&L Buttons" Step from The Front Face Assembly.

STEP SUMMARY 

Another simple step is mounting the blower fan to help keep the system cool. 2 screws and we're done!

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- P1 PHILLIPS SCREW DRIVER

MATERIALS NEEDED

- NONE

PARTS NEEDED

- QTY (1) - BAG #6 - 5V BLOWER FAN

- QTY (2) - BAG #1/D or H - #1 X 3/16" PPHSMS

STEP PROCESS

1. Blower fans are a bit different than conventional cooling fans as these take in air from the face, but blow the air out the side. It won't seem like much when the case is open, but when it's closed up, it moves a fair amount of air through the unit.

2. Align the fan so the open end is pointing left towards the interior of the enclosure and the back of the fan is facing us.

3. Gently screw the fan to the standoffs as shown.

4. When complete, snip the connector and coil up the wire for now.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

SECTION SUMMARY

STEP SUMMARY 

This step is a simple repeat of the R&L Button wiring step but with a different color wire but in this case, we won't be wiring to the Main PCB just yet. 

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

- CUTTERS - FLAT NOSE PLIERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- FLUX

- SOLDER

- 30AWG - TWISTED PAIR - G/B -2 LENGTHS ABOUT 8" EACH

PARTS NEEDED

- BACK FACE ASSEMBLY

STEP PROCESS

1. As before, using the Flux, hit the legs of the tact switches and the stripped leads of the wire and then Tin them all. Fig. 1-4

2. This time however, start with the Z button on the right and solder the wire to the legs, again with the color on the left and black on the right. Fig. 5&6

3. Measure out a length that will get your right to the center of the Z button on the left, routing the wire loosely up by the curve of the case. Cut to length. Fig. 7&8

4. With your other length of wire, untwist about 1/2" and strip about 1/4" of sheathing off the Black and Green. Do the same with the other end of the wire you just Soldered to the other switch.

5. Twist the colored pairs together with the Flat Nose Pliers as shown in Fig. 9-13

6. Flux and Tin the wires and then solder them to the tact switch as shown in Fig. 14&15

7. Feed the loose part of the cable through the cable management ring. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

In this step we will be wiring up the two 18650 Batteries in Parallel with each other and prepping for attachment to the Main Mother Board. Fairly straightforward wiring like the last step, however remember that you will be working with live wires from here out.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

- WIRE STRIPPERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- SOLDER

- FLUX

- 22AWG WIRE - RED - 2 LENGTHS APPROX 10" INCHES

PARTS NEEDED

- BACKFACE ASSEMBLY

STEP PROCESS

1. Flux and Tin all 4 Battery Terminals as shown in Fig. 1-4

2. Strip a small amount of sheathing off the wire (1/4" max) and then Tin the wire.

3. Slightly bend the "Tinned" part of the wire so it's around a 90 degree angle to the sheathing.

4. With the wire facing up and too the left (Fig.6), solder it too the Battery terminal on the Top (+ Side) of the Right Battery.

5. Rotate the Assembly so that Solder point is right in front of you and you can make sure that it is secure and as flat against the terminal as possible and does not go above the battery holder. You can use pliers if need be to make sure is secure. Fig 7&8

6. Feed the wire up around the top like you did with the Z button wire and measure to the Battery terminal on the other side, leaving just a little extra for bending and twisting in the next steps, then cut. Fig. 10

7. Strip off about a 1/4" of sheathing off that wire and the other length and twist the bare wire together to make a single joint and then Tin it. Fig. 11-14

8. Like we did with the other side, bend the pair of wires at a 90 degree angle, face it up and solder to the battery terminal, again as close to the battery holder as possible. Fig. 15&16

9. Take the loose end and feed it though the cable holder like we did with the Z button cable. PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

In this step, not only will we be wiring up the Negative Battery Power, but we also need to partially wire up the Fan at the same time as it will share a ground connection and will need will need to be routed with the main ground line. The wiring here can be a bit tricky as we're trying to add multiple wires to a single spot, but in doing so, we cut out a lot of extra wire that would just be taking up space in the case otherwise.

DIFFICULTY - MODERATE

TOOLS NEEDED

- SOLDERING IRON

- NEEDLE NOSE PLIERS or TWEEZERS - WIRE STRIPPERS

MATERIALS NEEDED

- 22AWG WIRE - BLACK - 2 LENGTHS APROX 10" INCHES

- SOLDER

PARTS NEEDED

- BACK FACE ASSEMBLY

STEP PROCESS

1. Like last time, start with the right battery, Strip, Tin, Bend and solder a length of 22AWG Black wire into place. Fig. 1-3

2. Locate the wires that go to the fan. There should be a Red and Black wire that attached to each other. Locate the ends where you cut the connector off earlier and using a knife, gently press between the two wires (no more than a 1/4" total length of cut) to separate the two, then gently peel the wires apart right down to the fan itself. Fig. 3&4

3. Move the Red fan wire out of the way for the time being and cut the Black fan wire down to about 2" inches in length, then strip about a 1/4" of sheathing off it, Tin and solder to the same Battery terminal. Fig. 5-8

4. Next take the Red Fan wire and the 22AWG Black that is soldered to the terminal and route it down the front of the case using the built in cable holders. They may fit tight depending on the wire you chose, so if it's too tight, you don't have to use the holders. A few dabs of hot glue or Goop will suffice. Fig. 9-11

5. Grab the other length of 22AWG Black wire and with Black wire we just brought over from the Right battery, strip and twist together, Tin and bend like we did with the Red wires in the previous step.

6. Solder these wires to the Bottom Left Battery Terminal and run the line down with the Red and z button wires. Fig. 12-14

7. Next, cut about a 2" strip of 22AWG Black wire, Strip/Tin/Bend like before and solder to the Bottom Right Battery Terminal along with the Fan GND and the first GND wire we soldered to it. Fig. 16 This will be used in the next step.

PROCEED TO NEXT STEP

STEP SUMMARY 

The last step of this process is a double check to make sure the batteries have been installed and wired up correctly, as well as tidy up the loose wires and cover up some solder joints.

DIFFICULTY - EASY

TOOLS NEEDED

- DIGITAL MULTIMETER

MATERIALS NEEDED

- ELECTRICAL TAPE

PARTS NEEDED

- BACK FACE ASSEMBLY

STEP PROCESS

1. The most important part here is to test to make sure the batteries have been wired in Parallel correctly. With you Multimeter set to DC, put the Red lead to the (+) side of the right battery and the Black lead to the (-) side of the battery. You should get a reading between 3.5V to 4.2V