Official Gamecube IDE/USB interface thread (PROJECT BEGUN!)

Website · Post by **Life of Brian** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 2:44 pm

Count me in if this project comes to fruition. I've been experimenting with different GC layouts, and if that disk drive were gone it would make things easy. Plus added functionality never hurt.

Electric Rain · Post by **Electric Rain** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 3:45 pm

*looks at current page number* You know, this thread is awfully popular considering how much of it is comprised of Fail.

The only things I've accomplished are things that don't cost any money; that is to say, the PCB layout and the compilation of the loader program (big breakthrough, still). But hey, that should go to show you all that if I ever DO get any money, I might actually be able to get even further along with the project. I just hope that by the time I get it built, there are still a few people that care. After all, the Wii plays GC games perfectly. Who's still building PS1 portables? Nobody, because the PS2 plays PS1 games perfectly fine. You see my point, I'm sure.

grossaffe · Post by **grossaffe** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 4:00 pm

Electric Rain wrote:*looks at current page number* You know, this thread is awfully popular considering how much of it is comprised of Fail. The only things I've accomplished are things that don't cost any money; that is to say, the PCB layout and the compilation of the loader program (big breakthrough, still). But hey, that should go to show you all that if I ever DO get any money, I might actually be able to get even further along with the project. I just hope that by the time I get it built, there are still a few people that care. After all, the Wii plays GC games perfectly. Who's still building PS1 portables? Nobody, because the PS2 plays PS1 games perfectly fine. You see my point, I'm sure.

yeah, but wii's are still scarce so its a relatively big risk to attempt to portablize them. also, gamecube owners who upgraded to a Wii now have a spare gamecube lying around.

Electric Rain · Post by **Electric Rain** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 4:50 pm

grossaffe wrote:
Electric Rain wrote:*looks at current page number* You know, this thread is awfully popular considering how much of it is comprised of Fail. The only things I've accomplished are things that don't cost any money; that is to say, the PCB layout and the compilation of the loader program (big breakthrough, still). But hey, that should go to show you all that if I ever DO get any money, I might actually be able to get even further along with the project. I just hope that by the time I get it built, there are still a few people that care. After all, the Wii plays GC games perfectly. Who's still building PS1 portables? Nobody, because the PS2 plays PS1 games perfectly fine. You see my point, I'm sure.
yeah, but wii's are still scarce so its a relatively big risk to attempt to portablize them. also, gamecube owners who upgraded to a Wii now have a spare gamecube lying around.

Hmm... good points. Thanks.

toru173 · Post by **toru173** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 5:27 pm

I didn't have much money back then, still don't have a whole heap. What I had then was soldering skills, and now I have a bit of digital design knowledge as well. Hopefully, this means that I'll be able to help with any problems that may crop up.

I'm still really interested though. Good work on the loader program! Perhaps someone could summerize the work done so far, put everything in one spot? Possibly as a wiki, or even start a blog. It would get some community attention outside this forum, at the very least.

Dark-Aries · Post by **Dark-Aries** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 6:31 pm

Holy crap...22 pages...what a long read...

from what I read..this is almost done..you just have to revise the layout, get the pcb made...then solder components onto it? If it gets done in late 2008, early 2009 I'll buy one for sure!

Electric Rain · Post by **Electric Rain** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 7:37 pm

Start getting excited about this again... I will have big news in a few days.

To those of you who have stated they may want to buy one: Start thinking about whether you're serious or not. I will probably charge around $150 for the first versions, and I might be able to cut it down to $100 in later, stripped down versions (Ones without USB support, for instance.) The initial design will have a 44 pin IDE connector, for use with a 2.5" laptop hard drive. The hard drive will plug directly into the board. Future designs may include a CF slot or full-size IDE connector for use with full-size hard drives attached via an IDE cable, if there is a demand for it.

That's all you get for now.

vskid · Post by **vskid** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 7:42 pm

Electric Rain wrote:Start getting excited about this again... I will have big news in a few days.

It better be a prototype in the works or something similar.

If not, I'll start a petition for you to be banned until this project is completed.

Electric Rain · Post by **Electric Rain** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 7:45 pm

vskid wrote:
Electric Rain wrote:Start getting excited about this again... I will have big news in a few days.
It better be a prototype in the works or something similar.

If not, I'll start a petition for you to be banned until this project is completed.

Maybe it is, maybe it isn't... I'm not telling you... yet...

dragonhead · Post by **dragonhead** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 7:48 pm

Electric Rain wrote:Start getting excited about this again... I will have big news in a few days.

ooOo0oOooOo0o0oO0Oo0o

im actually thinking of picking up a GC soon to mess with. be neat to have a tiny gc with a CF card for games

Dark-Aries · Post by **Dark-Aries** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 8:29 pm

Damn 150 bucks...>_>

Do you take store credit?

lol...anyways I'll wait for the cheaper 100 dollar version to come out..that 50 bucks over is just a bit out of my budget sadly...

palmertech · Post by **palmertech** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 8:37 pm

I doubt there will be any appreciable price drop anytime soon.

grossaffe · Post by **grossaffe** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 8:55 pm

What about these makes them so expensive to manufacture?

dragonhead · Post by **dragonhead** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 9:53 pm

grossaffe wrote:What about these makes them so expensive to manufacture?

my guess is parts, labor, design work, program, and the PCB itself.

Electric Rain · Post by **Electric Rain** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 10:04 pm

grossaffe wrote:What about these makes them so expensive to manufacture?

Mostly, three things...

FPGA - $12.85
FX2 - $14.40
PCB - ~$32.50

Most everything else is a few bucks or a few cents. I should be able to get the PCB for much cheaper in bulk(ish) through someone else... Actual cost for a board will be around $100, actually. I guess I just threw in an extra $50 or so for the time it takes me to build them. But, I will probably come down on this. We'll say it won't be any more than $150.

It will help a lot if I can cut out the FX2; a lot of us won't have a need for that. Although, I believe Destop wrote a program to download ISOs via USB to the hard drive. Different people will have different needs, so I plan to make different versions, but first, we need to get a prototype built and see if this thing even works or if Destop has been lying to all of us!

Possible options may include:

1. FX2 or no FX2
2. IDE 40, IDE 44 or CF connector
3. Connectivity to GC via daughterboard and flat flex ribbon with the option of various lengths (current design), through-hole pads for direct wiring, or stacked (Destop's method; which involves desoldering the CN-101 connector from the original DD board and soldering it onto the PCB. This, of course won't help portablizers, since it's still a stacked design.)