NES Front Loader - New Case Build Help

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xnakax
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Mar 01, 2018 10:08 am

NES Front Loader - New Case Build Help

Post by xnakax »

Hi everyone,

I am hoping someone here can give me a hand with a case build I am working on for a front loader type NES. Some things I am trying to modify in this build are the original power and reset buttons, I am also attempting to remove the RF Module completely and hardwire the Composite Video and Audio directly to the board. Problem I am facing is I can't really find any information or pictures out there of how to bypass all of the components in the RF Module so that it is no longer needed though I am fairly certain this is possible.

Does anyone have any pictures of how all of this is bypassed or is anyone willing to reach out to me in a chat program (any application will do) and help me understand better how to solder all of this to the board without frying it.

I will provide pictures today or what I am trying to do. So that maybe it makes more sense.

Thanks in advance.

UPDATED PICTURES:

Alright so the basic concept is to place buttons / 2.1mm Power Barrel Jack and RCA Video/Audio jacks onto an acrylic front. The Image below shows what I mean, though the actual
power jack and rca connections are moving to the side or back not the front.

Image
(I know I am horrible in photoshop)

These are the type of buttons I am trying to use, one is a latch type for power and the other a momentary type for the reset.

Image

I actually wired them up with clips to the blue connection following the wires from the original power/reset buttons and I actually got them to work, though I think I might have messed something
up with the power because after a while the screen went black and never recovered.

Image

So then I decided to remove the RF Module, which I did, but it also lifted up 2 of the pads, which from watching videos online I guess this happens at times. I have multiple boards so that isn't a big deal but I did try to reconnect the 5 pin to the board even though the mask and pads do not seem to be flat. So maybe someone could tell me if this board is ruined or not.

Image

Image

Anyway I am new to all of this and just looking for some friendly advice/help. I am really looking for advice on how to remove the RF Module completely and hardwire power/reset buttons, the power jack and the RCA connections. I am not sure where to make these connections and if any resistors ect. will be needed.

Thanks in advance anyone willing to respond.
Last edited by xnakax on Thu Mar 01, 2018 2:43 pm, edited 1 time in total.
lidnariq
Posts: 11432
Joined: Sun Apr 13, 2008 11:12 am

Re: NES Front Loader - New Case Build Help

Post by lidnariq »

The RF module is responsible for all of the following:

* Rectifying, filtering, and regulating ~9VAC down to 5VDC for everything inside the console
* Buffering and filtering both baseband audio and video
* Modulating, mixing, and remodulating the audio and video signal up to an RF frequency chosen by the switch on the back
* Mechanical stiffness to make plugging things into the power and RCA jacks easy and robust without fatiguing things

There's a reverse-engineered schematic of one of the two RF modulators here. It'd certainly be easy enough to just disable the RF output, but ... there won't be any visible change when not using RF out.

What are you hoping to achieve by removing the RF module?
xnakax
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Mar 01, 2018 10:08 am

Re: NES Front Loader - New Case Build Help

Post by xnakax »

It is more of an Aesthetic modification I am trying to do, where the main pcb will be mounted to a black piece of acrylic which will be attached to a wooden back and wooden base stand.

It will have aluminum standoffs with a clear acrylic sheet on the front which will have the buttons mounted into it.

This is an extreme example but think this: but at a much smaller scale and instead of a pc being mounted, it's a NES. The RF module is bulky and aesthetically unpleasing. There has to be a way to remove it or at the very least mount the component to a clean protoboard or something.

Image
lidnariq
Posts: 11432
Joined: Sun Apr 13, 2008 11:12 am

Re: NES Front Loader - New Case Build Help

Post by lidnariq »

xnakax wrote:So then I decided to remove the RF Module, which I did, but it also lifted up 2 of the pads, which from watching videos online I guess this happens at times. I have multiple boards so that isn't a big deal but I did try to reconnect the 5 pin to the board even though the mask and pads do not seem to be flat. So maybe someone could tell me if this board is ruined or not.
Ruined? I mean, sorta. You can strip the resist off the copper further along the trace and do a surface-mount style soldering job to reattach there. The copper also looks like it's still structural within itself, so to make it look prettier you might be able to use spray adhesive to get it to lay flat again.
xnakax wrote:The RF module is bulky and aesthetically unpleasing.
I was gonna suggest polishing it to a mirror finish, but it might be a little late for that.

Anyway, yes, as long as you manage the remaining three points of what I told you the RF modulator does, you can remove it. The only hard part is rebuilding it and having it look nice.
xnakax
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Mar 01, 2018 10:08 am

Re: NES Front Loader - New Case Build Help

Post by xnakax »

So I found a tutorial on how to do the Audio directly off the CPU pins with the fake stereo method using potentiometers and the required capacitors.

Is it possible to pull video directly off one of the pins as well on the cpu or ppu? If so could someone direct me to which pin/pins is needed to do that? Also does that method require some
sort of video amp to make it work correctly. Information on this is scarce for the front loader nes. There seems to be how-to's out there for adding composite video on the nes-101 top loader but not the front loader.

Any help would be appreciated!

Thanks
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