Author Topic: Pc Engine Solderless (plugable) region mod  (Read 321 times)

seefuu1

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Pc Engine Solderless (plugable) region mod
« on: December 17, 2010, 01:23:55 PM »
UPDATE FOR THE SLOW 12.19.2010 THIS IS A SOLDERLESS /PLUGGABLE VERSION OF THE REGION MOD .IT REQUIRES NO SOLDERING TO INSTALL IT.THINK SOLDERLESS ADAPTER PS2/XBOX MODCHIPS XENIUM SPICE ETC ETC

On gameSx originally
http://nfggames.com/forum2/index.php?topic=4320.0

I'll get this bit out of the way first,the inevitable question that pops up from those WHO DON'T FECKIN READ ANYTHING OTHER THAN THE TITLE  ::) >:(

WHY DO THIS WHEN YOU CAN JUST MAKE AND SOLDER THE REGION MOD IC ?

We'll you can do that ,but this is aimed at  those folk who really don't want to mess about with a soldering iron ,or aren't comfortable/skilled with one and don't want to risk destroying anything with one ! So the implementation is here to show it can be done ,and hopefully it can be improved upon and made available for modders to sell to those type of people (like the solderless ps2/xbox mod chips).And there's not really a use/need for using the crimp terminals over soldering to the IC's matrix board,i used them just for the fun of it and for experimentation .

Details of the wire size ,crimp terminals etc can be found in my other guide ;
http://nfggames.com/forum2/index.php?topic=4283.0

I got to the end and then found i had forgotten one MAJOR part to solve.The lifting of pin 29 and how to attach the Vss / ground wire to it without soldering the bugger .But i fixed that flaw,and i hope someone can come up with a better method though.

Also you'll notice some pictures are not in the right order,the wire around the leg/pin 29 changes from copper to silver stranded  ;D and also the use of an old dodgy core grafx for showing lifting of leg 29 (which isn't leg 29  :-[



... ................................................................................
I'm not going through the whole thing of showing the fitting of the spdt slide switch ,cutting the matrix board ,soldering it etc etc ,for those parts, follow the links below
http://mmmonkey.co.uk/console/pce/region.htm
http://playoffline.wordpress.com/mod/pceswitch/



These wire cutters will fit inside the area and between the pins that have to bee snipped ,on the back of the HU card connector.




Turned Pin SIL PCB Socket 18 way
This socket has a pitch of 2.54mm
http://www.technobotsonline.com/turned-pin-sil-pcb-socket-20-way.html




more



Cut the plastic of of each and all of the sockets,so you're left with bare metal.Tin the pin end!


I cut my 8 core wire to this length.
16 bits for the back of the HU card connector legs/pins ,extra bits were cut for my Vcc and Vss connections on the IC and the spdt switch and the control wire going to the IC and also for  leg 29 on the console's pcb IC.

I Stripped both ends ,about 3 mm ,then tinned only one end ,the end which is to be soldered to the pin end of the SIL socket.



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These were for my Vcc connections.


Finished Vcc and Vss connections.


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Different mock up showing basically how my crimp terminals (minus heat shrink )would connect to the IC matrix board (2.54 mm pitch pcb headers ,ic plugged into a dil ? socket (which is useless as it would create a board that is too high to fit in the console).


DO NOT TAKE THE POSITION OF THESE CUT LEGS AS THE REAL POSITION ON THE BACK OF THE HU CARD CONNECTOR,THEY ARE JUST USED AS AN AN EXAMPLE .



Example cuts


SIL socket attached minus any heat shrink


The heat shrink must just cover the end of each SIL socket ,as they have a little protruding outer lip/ring which will touch the others,as long as it's insulated (which i ran out of shrink ,so used electrician tape instead on the finished 1st picture above)


Scalpel ,used for lifting leg 29 .Number 3 handle ,with a number 10a blade.
As leg 29 on the IC has no trace attached to it,making it next to no  risk when you gently pry the leg up off the pcb.


Example ,used on dodgy core grafx and not the correct leg/IC  .
Follow links in the first post .


Stripped and nearly ready for attaching to leg 29


One small needle,about 1mm or 0.5 mm thick.


Around and around we go


Once this is tightly wrapped enough,it will then fit over leg 29 and taped down to give a more secure fitting .


Where the needle point is is the thinnest ,so the bare wire is more tightly wrapped and a better, tighter fit around the base of the leg,the wider part of the needle wrap wire you can see showing ,doesn't pose a problem ,as it's is much tighter at the base.

Checking with a multi meter will show no faults with it.


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Different way to ground leg 29,using a SIL socket which is a perfect fit.Checking with your multi meter will show no problems with the connection (maybe some hot glue would add some further securing of the connection  )


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 Connecting up to show that leg 29 is connected fine


As above


As above


Vss /ground and leg 29 now connected to a Vss /ground point


Picture in wrong order,showing insulated tape under lifted leg


Vcc/ + 5 volt supply.Minus tape to secure it down to the pcb.

I looped the wire under and around the + 5 volt cap's Vcc / leg ,wrapped it around the wires insulation,then popped it between my thumb and forefinger and rolled it so it twisted very tightly around the cap's Vcc leg .


Remember,there's no point in using  crimp terminals,stick to soldering .


Old board,showing another point to get your Vcc/ + 5 volt connection from


Vcc / + 5 volt can also be got from the LEFT THROUGH HOLE.
Pogo pins/test pins ? could be of use there or you can use the same size wire i used here as it fits through.


As above


Vcc/ + 5 volt connection taped down and secure


I think that's it .Get it improved and get them available .

« Last Edit: December 19, 2010, 04:24:37 AM by seefuu1 »

SignOfZeta

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Re: Pc Engine Solderless (plugable) region mod
« Reply #1 on: December 17, 2010, 02:09:05 PM »
That link doesn't work so...I'm having a hard time trying to understand the improvements you've made. What I see is a really long winded explanation of some pretty simple stuff and my attention span-less mind wanders...:)

In summary, what have you done?

nikdog

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Re: Pc Engine Solderless (plugable) region mod
« Reply #2 on: December 17, 2010, 04:31:16 PM »
In summary, what have you done?
Didn't use solder. Atlest, thats all I got out of it. My mind kinda wandered too.

seefuu1

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Re: Pc Engine Solderless (plugable) region mod
« Reply #3 on: December 19, 2010, 04:07:44 AM »
That link doesn't work so...I'm having a hard time trying to understand the improvements you've made. What I see is a really long winded explanation of some pretty simple stuff and my attention span-less mind wanders...:)

In summary, what have you done?
I'll get this bit out of the way first,the inevitable question that pops up from those WHO DON'T FECKIN READ ANYTHING OTHER THAN THE TITLE

It's good to see that even with that added piece of info above for people like yourself ,still, you just can't help some characters.  :roll:It's like the packets of nuts you see, which state on the back "contains nuts" ,it's aimed squarely at such characters .

Even the title of the topic gives it a big feckin clue  to what it is,so i have to ask this,and please ,take this anyway you want ,are you a bit slow ,just like looking at the pictures and the like ,as i just continuously seem to come across those that look at the pictures and nothing else.

Good gear son

 
« Last Edit: December 19, 2010, 04:14:24 AM by seefuu1 »

SignOfZeta

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Re: Pc Engine Solderless (plugable) region mod
« Reply #4 on: December 19, 2010, 11:15:45 AM »
You typed all that and didn't explain yourself one bit, only added insults. Also your original post seemed to imply that the link was important but I couldn't read it because it was broken. Now that I see the link I realize its just the same thing you posted here. I didn't know that before.

Now I guess the point to this massive post with shitloads of huge pictures is...to do an IC mod with no solder and instead use a ton of terminals.

The reason I didn't understand your how-to here is because I didn't understand why the hell anyone would do this work this way. You say its for people who don't want to solder, but that didn't seem like a good enough reason for me. I was giving you the benefit of the doubt and assuming there was some real reason. Assuming that you didn't just get a new terminal crimper and want to use it as much as possible (which would explain the RGB cable too).

If you did the mod this way as a stunt or proof of concept, that's one thing, but if your purpose was to make a mod that is easier to do that soldering...you failed, sorry. This mod is way more complicated and guaranteed to be less reliable than just soldering. Some setups and system cards are well known to have problems with less than perfect connections, and you are using terminals...everywhere. This is not a recipe for success. Also, how the hell do you fit all that shit back in the case?

Perhaps the reason people don't get what you are doing here isn't that they are stupid, but rather that your mod is.

nat

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Re: Pc Engine Solderless (plugable) region mod
« Reply #5 on: December 19, 2010, 05:47:56 PM »
Maybe I'm missing something, but if this is solder-less mod, what's this comment all about?


...

Remember,there's no point in using  crimp terminals,stick to soldering .

...

blueraven

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Re: Pc Engine Solderless (plugable) region mod
« Reply #6 on: December 19, 2010, 06:30:59 PM »
Ok, The variation is understandable; but despite being "removable" it seems much more complicated than the regular mod. My criticism is that without photos that are readable, i.e. 500x500 pixels, I'm having a hard time grasping the intricacies of the mod and discerning how this is "solderless".

Could you modify the post to make it more accessible? Thanks. :mrgreen:

-raven
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