Optical S/PDIF Mods for SNES andGameCube

[Hamburglar]

I've done this mod to about 6 SNES consoles. I found the sound quality to be vastly improved, and I am using a really old Onkyo receiver (it's so old it doesn't even have component or HDMI; just s-video).

I personally thought the sound quality difference was huge, but that's just me. One word of warning: you will no longer get audio when using the Super Game Boy.

If you want me to do the mod for you, I guess you could PM me your info and we could possibly work something out. I have never bothered using the coaxial port by the way; I only use optical SPDIF ports (the red beam of light one).

Also I never encountered the issue where audio drops out if there's silence for too long? I suppose I never really encountered an SNES game with prolonged silence. My receiver is old though; maybe it doesn't even have the ability to switch things when it detects long periods of silence.

[EmperorZelos]

I've done this mod to about 6 SNES consoles. I found the sound quality to be vastly improved, and I am using a really old Onkyo receiver (it's so old it doesn't even have component or HDMI; just s-video).

I personally thought the sound quality difference was huge, but that's just me. One word of warning: you will no longer get audio when using the Super Game Boy.

If you want me to do the mod for you, I guess you could PM me your info and we could possibly work something out. I have never bothered using the coaxial port by the way; I only use optical SPDIF ports (the red beam of light one).

Also I never encountered the issue where audio drops out if there's silence for too long? I suppose I never really encountered an SNES game with prolonged silence. My receiver is old though; maybe it doesn't even have the ability to switch things when it detects long periods of silence.

I would but without digitilized picture I just fail to see the point xD

[Lawfer]

Does anyone have experience or know of a person with experience in performing the optical S/PDIF audio mod to an SNES and GameCube? Modding the SNES in this manner looks to be much more common then the GameCube as with the GameCube, you could just purchase a Panasonic Q that already has Optical S/PDIF output built in. But it is nearly impossible to find a Panasonic Q GameBoy Player.

The Panasonic Q Optical only works for movies, not games.

[Hamburglar]

I've done this mod to about 6 SNES consoles. I found the sound quality to be vastly improved, and I am using a really old Onkyo receiver (it's so old it doesn't even have component or HDMI; just s-video).

I personally thought the sound quality difference was huge, but that's just me. One word of warning: you will no longer get audio when using the Super Game Boy.

If you want me to do the mod for you, I guess you could PM me your info and we could possibly work something out. I have never bothered using the coaxial port by the way; I only use optical SPDIF ports (the red beam of light one).

Also I never encountered the issue where audio drops out if there's silence for too long? I suppose I never really encountered an SNES game with prolonged silence. My receiver is old though; maybe it doesn't even have the ability to switch things when it detects long periods of silence.

I would but without digitilized picture I just fail to see the point xD

haha I know you are kidding but I found the audio to sound way more "full" (and I am far from an audiophile). Best way to explain it is when switching between the regular A/V cables and optical audio, SNES games sounded way "fuller". They sounded way more muffled the analog way. It's one of those things where you don't realize how much better it could be until you hear it. I won't even get into the hum being gone from crappy scart cables or switches.

Again, the only negative is that Super Game Boy does not work over it with the mod. However, since you still need the A/V port to be occupied for video, you can just switch over to RCA audio when playing the Super Game Boy. That's what I do, anyway.

The thing that sucks most about the mod is the solder pins in the SNES are tiny, the mod is done 3 different ways depending on the motherboard revision, the digital chip you have to buy is ridiculously sensitive (super easy to fry), and the digital chip is also ridiculously tiny. Still, it's one of the best mods I ever did and would recommend anyone with the proper audio setup to give it a shot some day. Just be pretty handy with a soldering iron. I recommend a Dremel for mounting the optical prot.

(Also the optical audio ports are a pain to get because they're pretty much only made in Japan; so you have to get them from eBay shipped from Japan and they are a bit overpriced).

[EmperorZelos]

haha I know you are kidding but I found the audio to sound way more "full" (and I am far from an audiophile). Best way to explain it is when switching between the regular A/V cables and optical audio, SNES games sounded way "fuller". They sounded way more muffled the analog way. It's one of those things where you don't realize how much better it could be until you hear it. I won't even get into the hum being gone from crappy scart cables or switches.

Again, the only negative is that Super Game Boy does not work over it with the mod. However, since you still need the A/V port to be occupied for video, you can just switch over to RCA audio when playing the Super Game Boy. That's what I do, anyway.

The thing that sucks most about the mod is the solder pins in the SNES are tiny, the mod is done 3 different ways depending on the motherboard revision, the digital chip you have to buy is ridiculously sensitive (super easy to fry), and the digital chip is also ridiculously tiny. Still, it's one of the best mods I ever did and would recommend anyone with the proper audio setup to give it a shot some day. Just be pretty handy with a soldering iron. I recommend a Dremel for mounting the optical prot.

(Also the optical audio ports are a pain to get because they're pretty much only made in Japan; so you have to get them from eBay shipped from Japan and they are a bit overpriced).

I just wish there was a way to get the digital video aswell D:

[Hamburglar]

XRGB Mini