Best SFC/SNES adapter (PAL not required)

[neorichieb1971]

I am on the lookout for a discrete fully pinned adapter for a Super Famicom that allows the playing of US NTSC games.

I don't have any PAL cartridges and have no need for that. I simply want a bridge.

Can anyone recommend one that works really well?


Thanks,

Richie.

[Einhandr]

The super famicom version is a little more rare, but an old Xband modem is fully pinned and has a pass-through mode.

[neorichieb1971]

Will this one work on a SFC?

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/SUPER-NINTENDO-S ... Sw9IpXyakq

[kamiboy]

At that price why not just buy an SNES?

My solution was to use a mini, once the plastic tabs are removed it accepts both SFC and SNES carts fine. No ugly adapters needed.

[FinalBaton]

I bought this last month and so far it works well with all my SNES cartridges (granted I don't have many of them, only 5) :

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Brand-New-Protec ... SwYIxX4pNd

Not exactly cheap, but hey, I couldn't find anything else.

[KnuckleheadFlow]

I didn't want to spend $45 on a simple PCB extender, so I made my own for about $15. It's an option if you like to do shit yourself and are ordering capacitors or something from Digikey. Looks shitty, but I kinda like it that way.



(It's less noticeable in person)

Parts are:
- Female socket, 70 pins in 2 rows, solder termination, 0.100" (2.54mm) pitch, for cards 1.37mm to about 1.78mm thick. From TE Connectivity AMP: https://www.digikey.ca/short/393b1b

- Male edge connector, also 70 pins in 2 rows, solder termination, 0.100" pitch, 1.57mm thick. From Sullins Connector Solutions. https://www.digikey.ca/short/393b11
These are running out, of course, and once they become non-stock you'll probably have to order more than one to get it. Though I have seen minimum orders of 1 on non-stock stuff from Digikey before.

- 7/8" female-female standoffs. I just happened to have a few of these and they were the perfect size to clear to top top of the SFC. Anything longer will work of course.

- ribbon cable, FR4 perf board (green pcb stuff. The brown phenolic boards are too flimsy), screws

Pull the pins out from the 5th and 6th rows in from both sides on both connectors. Cut 3 strips of the prototyping board (Dremel with the black cutting disk makes it really easy), stack them then solder on the black socket. 3 strips stacked makes it nice and rigid, doesn't flex at all even though you have to press rather firmly to make everything properly seated. Cut 2 little pieces of the pcb and stick them where the 6th rows of pins were.


This will position the cartridge's connector properly. Cut slots in the blue connector, screw together with the standoffs, solder all the pins with ribbon cable and you're done.

The 0.100" pitch is a little different from the connectors Nintendo used so there will be a slight offset, but it really is close enough.

Things I would've done differently now are 1) Pulled out the pins on the 5th and 6th rows in from both sides of the black socket before I soldered in 2) sized the ribbon cable strips better and 2) made the slot spaces on the blue connector a little narrower.

I have to be careful plugging it in since it does take a bit of pressure to seat it properly but it still works fine though.

[neorichieb1971]

Thanks for the ghetto version but I've already bought the extender previously mentioned.

I think $45 is steep too, but i'm the type of person that if I want something and I can afford it.. I just kinda buy it.

[KnuckleheadFlow]

I figured you might've, but at least the parts needed are documented here in case someone else wants to have a go. If it hadn't worked (ie the pitch offset was too great) I too would've bit the bullet and paid the 1000% markup for one of those adapters. I'm just glad I didn't have to.
I'd originally bought a japanese super gameboy to cut up but I felt sorry for it and couldn't bring myself to put a hacksaw to it.

[neorichieb1971]

So many people feel that way. To have sympathetic feelings for a product that will manipulated for a purpose its not designed for.

I'm currently bidding on a Genesis cart to gut to house a Tengen Gauntlet IV that will not work. It worked for 20 minutes, but its a doomed oxidised PCB which Tengen Genesis carts are well renowned for.

I have no sensitivities about cannibalising a product that few want for essentially providing a donor for a product that quite a few people want.

[mvsfan]

I have gauntlet 4. Awesome game. so, do all the carts get like that or just certain revisions?