Entering the fray, with sega

[logical123]

Well, Im new here, so this is my introduction post. Hi, im logical.

Now that I have gotten that off my back, I was wondering, why doesn't anyone use a genesis 3 to make a portable? I just got one, and The board is pretty darn small.

Just so you know, I know nothing about any of this stuff. I've been wondering how I will get the system and screen to run with batteries even if they run at different voltages and amperages. Thinking without books is not good for me. But, the only way someone can learn is if they are taught.

Thanks in Advance

[khaag]

I think the biggest reason we don't see very many Genesis portables is because of the Nomad. There's just no real advantage to it.

Anyway, welcome to the forums!

[Life of Brian]

Welcome to the forums!

I never owned a Sega Genesis until a couple of years ago, so that's my personal reason for not making one portable. I don't have enough games yet!

As for power, there are always several ways you can go about it. I don't know the specific power requirements for whatever screen you intend to use nor do I recall exactly what the third revision of the Sega Genesis requires voltage-wise, but my guess is that the screen will require a higher voltage than the Genesis. If this is the case, get some batteries that match what your screen requires and then use something like a linear regulator (look it up) to drop the voltage down to what the Genesis needs. Make sure to use batteries that have enough "oomph" to them to last for more than a few minutes. Enough AA batteries wired in series may work for short term testing, but I suggest some RC car batteries (Ni-MH of course, not the lousy Ni-Cd) for starters.

There are some rules to follow when using linear regulators, but after you read up on them at wikipedia and these forums (use the search function!) then hopefully you should be up to speed. Feel free to ask if you have any more questions.

[logical123]

Well, I did some research, and i 'think' I know was a linear regulator is. I'm going to radio shack today, so Ill look arount in the ic area for some.

The sega genesis is rated at 9v, 300mA, but I got it to run without getting the onboard regulator hot at 6v or 4 AA batteries. I don't know what amperage that is, and I don't have an ampemeter. What ever. Im gonna look into rechargebles and such.

This forum is going to become my progress post also. I'll post pics and such on what I did etc.

Thanks in advance

[logical123]

Well, I found the audio, video, and ground outs on the genny, and I soldered leads from them, so that when I get a screen, I can test it out.

The screen I'm going to get is a 7 inch portable dvd player with a/v input. The dvd drive is dead, but the screen works fine. Without the dvd drive, I should be able to get down its size quite a bit. It comes with the working rechargeble battery and charger. Could I use a line regulator attached to that to power the genesis?

Also, I think im just going to leave controller ports, and use original controller instead of puting them in the case.

Thanks

[Skyone]

Now that I have gotten that off my back, I was wondering, why doesn't anyone use a genesis 3 to make a portable? I just got one, and The board is pretty darn small.

http://forums.benheck.com/viewtopic.php?t=13503

[Life of Brian]

It comes with the working rechargeble battery and charger. Could I use a line regulator attached to that to power the genesis?

Certainly. You would connect battery power directly to the screen's power input (because it's the battery that came with the screen, right?), and you would also connect the battery power to the "unregulated input" on the regulator. Then connect the regulated output to the Genesis board. Make sure to connect ground for the screen, Genesis, and regulator all together. Make sense?

[THON]

See my complete wiring guide