Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum
Main => Consoles => Topic started by: hypernova on August 19, 2012, 06:32:25 pm
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The gamecube controller has a 5v pin up near the top of it to solder to. Does this mean I can put a few 5v LEDs connected to that which can run off that? If so, how much? If not, is there something that needs to be added? Resistor? Something else?
I ask because out of the multiple dozen LEDs in my cab, I didn't need any kind of resistor. Been numerous years since I built it, but I don't recall having to math out any resistors, and I certainly didn't buy any.
Thanks for your assistance.
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Put a small small resistor in there. It will help limit current. Won't always need it, but one day you might be happy it was there.
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Found some tutorials and resistor calculator for LEDs. I may just wire in a 9volt battery or something. I'd like to be able to set it up for multi console.
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You dont necessarily need a calculator for this. just put a 100 - 470 Ohm resistor in line and you will be fine. the idea is to limit what current goes through your LED. Too much current drain CAN (but probably wont) cause damage to the system. They are crazy cheap.
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You dont necessarily need a calculator for this.
I would think if you have no idea what resistor you need, a calculator is needed. Correct me if I'm wrong, but winging it with trial and error isn't exactly a smart thing when it comes to electricity.
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If you were trying to maximize light output or minimize consumption or you've got some sort of hokey setup, sure. But even with the calculator, you're rarely going to find an exact value anyways due to tolerances and limited selection. What he's saying is pick a reasonable value between X and Y and you'll be fine.
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Yeah in this case it's not super critical. I usually use about 150 ohms but I think that's on the low side, I'd probably recommend about 200 ohms really. Too low and you may be giving the LEDs a little more current than they're rated for and it may shorten their life but at 150 ohms I've never had any blow. Use a higher resistance just means you're allowing a little LESS current than they're rated for, which is fine, they just might not be optimally bright.
Not that critical. But whatever you pick, if you plan on doing this sort of thing a lot then I'd pick up a big roll of a couple of hundred of the same value for a few bucks on ebay. A lot of LED vendors on ebay will give free resistors if you buy bulk LEDs (and yeah they're China product, and I know first hand that China product can be squirrelly, but for low level components I honestly haven't had an issue.)
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All I'm saying is that someone like me, who's never worked with resistors on anything would need at least some sort of direction, either via the calculator, or everyone's suggestions in here. Just blindly placing a random resistor in there isn't the best option. I'm assuming they go higher and lower than the ranges you've said.
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The hardest part is usually getting the numbers you need, especially when buying from "black box" sources like eBay, etc. Once you have the numbers, the math is pretty simple:
R = (Vs - Vf) / If
Vs is your supply voltage (e.g. 5V).
Vf is the rated forward voltage of your LED at your desired current. This is typically given in the datasheet for the "ideal" operating current. For red and green LEDs, it's about 1.7V. For blue and white LEDs, it's usually closer to 2.2V.
If is your desired operating forward current. Again, this is typically specified in the datasheet. They'll give both a "typical" or "preferred" value and an "absolute maximum". Use the former. Vf (see above) is typically specified at this "typical" operating current. For normal LEDs, go with 10-15mA. For "super bright" ones, it's usually closer to 40-50mA.
To make the units work out, you need units of volts and amps. Your probably have milliamps (mA). One amp is 1000mA, so to convert mA to A, divide by 1000 e.g. 15mA is 0.015A.
You'll probably end up with a value you can't actually buy. Round up to the next standard value.
EXAMPLE:
I have a red LED spec'd at 1.75V at 15mA. I want to run this off of a 5V nominal supply.
R = (5 - 1.75) / (0.015) = 216.67 ohms. Round up to 220 ohms, the next standard 5% value. These are readily available at e.g. Radio Shack, etc.
Anyway, I suspect that the 5V supply to the controller can readily handle an extra LED or two. I wouldn't use a ton of superbright ones, though.
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Is it possible to wire a classic controller to a gamecube port on the wii and have a switch allowing it to keep its wiimote functionality by just having a switch between gamecube and wii outputs? anyone got a wiring guide? help would be greatly appreciated.
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The short answer is yes.
The long answer is it takes a lot of work. Almost not worth it.
IIRC, the Wii peripherals use I2c as the protocol, making the controllers a favorite amongst robotics. The GCN uses a "one wire" method that isn't the easiest to communicate with. You can certainly stitch the two together using a microcontroller. If someone hasn't done so already the components are there.
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Sorry, I only mentioned only one solution. There are other solutions of course but none that I can think of that is a "simple wiring" job.
The easiest is probably to add a pigtail, wire to the buttons directly, then sacrifice a GCN for the controller board. But that's just a waste of effort and controller.
The luckiest is to find someone who already did the heavy lifting as I described above and buy the adapter from them. But anything over the cost of a GCN controller isn't worth it IMHO.
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I was testing this out a few days ago, and my red LEDs were blowing when connected to the 5v node. They have an optional resistor that was included with the set, but it said it was for the 12v line. Do I still need a resistor for it if I connect to 5v? I'm guessing they'll connect fine to the 3.3v node without a resistor. Have other colors, but they have differing voltages. What's the general rule regarding voltage differences on LEDs?
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Yeah, you need a resistor. Not the one meant for the 12v lines though. At 5v, they'll be too dim if anything at all. There are situations where you can get away without using a resistor, this isn't one of them. Same applies as what was discussed above. Run down to rat shack and grab a few resistors in the ranges above.