Favorite Raspberry Pi cases

[ClassicGMR]

This is still one of my favorite builds even though it is 4 years old. BenHeck of course.

 

[stigzler]

This:

or this:

[tthurman]

I like this one.

 

 

 

[ClassicGMR]

3 hours ago, stigzler said:

This:

Whaaaaa??

3 hours ago, tthurman said:

I like this one.

 

I like this one and the "woody" kit they sell as well!

These N64 cases look really cool! Affordable too.

Etsy TinyTendo N64 case

[hansolo77]

I could jump in here with a few of mine.  But I don't have any pics.  I'll say this though, that black handheld one looks nice.  I wonder if it's still available?  I'd love to have a portable game system like that, having never owned a Game Boy (etc), Lynx, or Game Gear.

[Adultery]

I have the Etsy N64 case, it does look nice. The cartridge was kind of lame though, save the money on that.

[ClassicGMR]

9 hours ago, hansolo77 said:

I could jump in here with a few of mine.  But I don't have any pics.  I'll say this though, that black handheld one looks nice.  I wonder if it's still available?  I'd love to have a portable game system like that, having never owned a Game Boy (etc), Lynx, or Game Gear.

Would love to see some pictures if you ever document them.

I think someone here linked this project some time back and I REALLY want to try it with a Samsung GX (for maximum geek-ness!!) :

[hansolo77]

Well, I did document it in a way.  It's a Nintendo (wasn't working).  I modified it to add a couple of DB9 plugs for SEGA/ATARI controllers, as well as a USB hub where the cartridge slot is.  Replaced the red LED with a blue one, and hacked up something terrible the back side where the power and HDMI plugs go.

Then I have 2 of these in my house (one for me and one for my Dad):

For my brother and my Aunt, I went with a cheaper (at the time) basic model:

These are great because the entire case (minus the black plastic bits) are made from a solid single piece aluminum with a heat slug that sits right on top of the processor.  This means the entire case is a heat sink.  I've never had a single overheat warning on any of my Kodi boxes.

As for other game systems.. I've also got a Pi inside an old (broken) PSX case (5501 model).  Modified that with some 3D printed (purchased from Germany) parts that replace the video plug with an HDMI, the serial port with an SD card ribbon cable, the parallel port with a 3.5mm headphone jack and RJ45 LAN plug, and the controller ports with 4 USB plugs.  I've got one of the USB plugs going to an internal 4tb hard drive, and this system is dedicated PSX.  I even have a wireless PS3 controller. 

I also built a RetroPi system in a Sega Genesis USB hub.  This is SEGA dedicated, except for the addition of the Streets of Rage Remake Port:

Or for better comparison:

and

NES Classic and SNES Classic, meet the Genesis Classic. 

[stigzler]

15 hours ago, hansolo77 said:

As for other game systems.. I've also got a Pi inside an old (broken) PSX case (5501 model).  Modified that with some 3D printed (purchased from Germany) parts that replace the video plug with an HDMI, the serial port with an SD card ribbon cable, the parallel port with a 3.5mm headphone jack and RJ45 LAN plug, and the controller ports with 4 USB plugs.  I've got one of the USB plugs going to an internal 4tb hard drive, and this system is dedicated PSX.  I even have a wireless PS3 controller. 

Damn Hans - I think I might have missed this one - did you do a built post? Looks good!

[tthurman]

You're slipping stigzler

More of an announcement than complete build thread, but still the intent was made clear.

 

[stigzler]

huh? thas for a megadrive build innit?

[hansolo77]

Yeah, here's the link to the 3D print kit for the PlayStation I used...

https://retro-emulation.com/raspberry-playstation.html

Just expanded it a bit.  I decided to use the PSX's original power board so I could keep the Power Button, Reset Button, and LED.  I was also able to use the original power cord.  It was tricky, required a lot of desoldering of all the original components on the board.  But in the end, I simply soldered wires from the 2 prongs of the power plug to a USB power adapter.  I then have the buttons wired up to the GPIO.  Everything works great.

[stigzler]

Build pics? Sounds interesting - would love to see a thread.

[hansolo77]

It's not the greatest looking thing.  I had to hack the CD lid up in order to make it all fit.  Plus, I'm waiting on a part so I won't have it fully working for another few days.  You probably wouldn't be impressed with photos.

[stigzler]

OK. No worries.

[RIP-Felix]

I'd like to see a full PS1 GameEX build that could use the disc/dvd tray. I'd love to be able to replace it with a UHD/Bluray drive and use the same tray disc tray. I doubt the feasibility though.

[hansolo77]

I'm still waiting on Tom and the crew to port GameEx to ARM processors.  I'd throw RetroPie out in a heartbeat.    I'm not sure what you could do to replace a PS1 drive try with a BluRay drive and have it work.  I guess you could do something like a USB powered external BluRay drive, and have it sitting inside the PS1 under the lid, then run the USB cable down to a Pi inside.  It'd be a really tight fit though.  I'm using a small 2.5inch laptop (external) drive and it's an EXTREMELY tight fit.  If money wasn't an issue, I'd be more inclined to doing something with a PS2, and use a NUC PC or something that's more powerful than a Pi so I could get PS2 emulation running and better N64.  Maybe even get some Dreamcast going.

(off topic) @RIP-Felix - did you try to get PSP or NDS running on your NesPI?  I've heard PSP is just barely doable but only for a select few games.  NDS is supposed to be really good with one specific emulator but it requires manual installing so I haven't bothered trying yet.  Just curious.  Always looking to expand my obsession with adding more stuff I'll probably never play. 

[RIP-Felix]

16 hours ago, hansolo77 said:

(off topic) @RIP-Felix - did you try to get PSP or NDS running on your NesPI?  I've heard PSP is just barely doable but only for a select few games.  NDS is supposed to be really good with one specific emulator but it requires manual installing so I haven't bothered trying yet.  Just curious.  Always looking to expand my obsession with adding more stuff I'll probably never play. 

No not yet. I'm sticking with PSX using  *.pbp (PSP format) images. Saved a lot of space (am getting 25-50% compression with PSX2PSP!) NDS is on the list non-essentials, but I ran out of room on my 32GB SD with PS1 images, it's my favorite system and I now prefer the Pi for emulating it (Save states, easy disc swapping, and when Retro achievements are introduced, Hello!) So just PS1, NES, SNES, Genesis, Atari 2600, GameBoy & color, and Gameboy Advance. I need to get a bigger SD, figure out how to image my card and put it on the larger one. My only gripe with Raspberry Pi 3 is the pathetic N64 emulation. That's a real bummer, it's my next favorite system after PS1.  Apparently an O-droid x4 can handle it way better, but not perfectly. It can even handle some Dreamcast games acceptably, but most poorly if at all.

In case anyone is wondering what Han is referring to, this is my NEStalgia Build (a Raspberry Pi powered MiniNES inspired by Daftmike's original work). [Link to build page]

     Yes those are cartridges and they function! The behavior of the power and reset buttons emulate the original NES by use of a custom python script running on the pi in the background. Under the cartridge slot is a NFC tag reader which reads an NFC tag inside of each cart. The name of the game is written to the NFC tag by first playing a game, which loads it's name into the last played list, then by holding the reset button for 3 seconds. The name stored into the last played list is copied to the NFC tag in the cartridge. The next time the pi is powered on with that cart inserted, the NFC reader sees it and tells emulation station to load that game instead of loading emulation station first. So it just loads the game like the Original NES would. If you press the Power button (which latches like the original), the script displays a black screen and starts a 30s timer. This gives you time to remove the previous cart and insert a new one. When you press the power button again with a new cart, it loads that game. You never even see emulation station! If you don't press the power button again withing 30s, the script sends the shutdown command to the pi and it turns off. There is no power cut off, technically the pi is in standby, but it draws a negligible amount of electricity in standby (like $1/year). If no cart is inserted when you press the power button, emulation station loads. You can of course return to emulation station at any time by pressing Start+Select. Also if you decide you want to go back to the game in the cartridge slot at any time, from any where, you can just hit the reset button and It will load the cart immediately. It's very intuitive!

     Actually this button emulation behavior was my idea, which is kinda cool (I'm sure someone else would have thought of it, I just requested it first). I actually contributed to this effort (even if it was a community project and a small contribution). The No Glue (interchangeable) trim is mine, however. No one else has that (Actually only 2 other people have it, they helped me test the models by printing in PETG and PLA, since I only use ABS), because I've been hoarding my redesigned 3D Case models (I'm not happy with them yet. I don't think they're ready for release). You can see them in the pics. Evan Wright (who designed the electronics) and Jared Kirchgatter (who designed the software) did the rest. There are other electronics kits available too, each for their niche audience. No nfc variants and so on. If you want to learn more, check out my build page (linked earlier) and the Mini NES and SNES Builders Facebook page. Just request an invite and you'll be let in shortly. And yes, a miniSNES is currently being developed (NFC capable).

[ClassicGMR]

Ooh Commodore64 build with a rebuilt keyboard so it works as a USB keyboard. I like it!

 

 

[tthurman]

WOW, that brings back memories!