Big GBA (DS Lite mod) Completed

Re: Big GBA (DS Lite mod)

Akira said:
the ds lite needs the wifi modulle to boot, without it it wont start.

if the ds turns on and immediatelyshuts down then there is a ground loop error.
most of the times because of the lcd ribbon cables not properly seated.

instead of that led you can also solder the backlite strip from the upper lcd to those points, that works for sure.

like here

DSC03027.JPG

yep, thanx for the tip akira :)

i figured it out mysteriously last night at 5am,
I was searching on youtube for ds touch screen fix videos and came across a display video fix, then I found a ds lite bios replacement video by bowserN64:



And I did it and my ds lite screen turned on!
It wasn't broken, my bios chip wasn't plugged in,
I'm very happy now, my mod works great now.

Also I did the same mistake you made for the brightness .
But I fixed it by taking the bios off and rep lugging it back in (that resets the system and fixes the no boot up from the brightness turn up mistake I made (same like you had done).

I tested my r4i works great, to make a slot one card work, you have to remove the upper screen.bmp pic from the theme installed and leave the lower one in or it will shut off the ds apron boot up of the flashcart.

As my acekard2i I haven't removed the top pic.bmp and the ds shuts off apon bootup of the card.

um, wifi module i think is a bit tad off, i think it's bios chip rather, as without it inserted on the motherboard the ds will boot the green light etc, but the screens when show up any info etc.

more of my mounting today, hotguled the led + got the man at the electronic store to make the led fit in my ds case, i still need to shorten the led's +/- wires to make the ds close properly as now it doesn't and is giving me a real headache :(



so, far this project has been very fun and easy to do :)

i'll post more info soon..
 
Re: Big GBA (DS Lite mod)

I finished my ds lite mod, after two days from finding out the wifi board needs to be plugged in to work the ds, I have been trying to fit in my wires and such, much frustration, as I tryed to fit my wires in there and failed quite a bit :(. After shortening them a bit and re soldering them I finally got my ds lite to close up fine had to cut a bit for the plastic of the Sid elf the Dpad area, not on the Dpad hole it's self.

I tested my mod with my acekard and r4i and made a mess with the brightness, but fix it by changing the setting of brightness on the cong. File of the flashcart firmware on my windows laptop to that same setting of brightness set on the ds, or the ds will shut off apon flashcart boot :(.

Presentation video + finished thread post soon (tommorow (maybe) or Sunday for sure)
 
Re: Big GBA (DS Lite mod)

SNEAKxxATTACK said:
Sweet. Glad to see this finish.

yep, im messing around with some emus and stuff today, i'll make the video tomorrow + post it when i finish it and iMovie it.

im making the specs etc for the finished thread i'll post tomorrow, excited :)
 
hey guys (sorry for my bad english)

my ds lite had a hinge crack for years and since a few months the top screen shows nothing but lines. so I decided to open it and see what's inside of the DS lite. I accidentally damaged the top screen cable. I put the DS back together, but it didn't work anymore. The bottom screen flashed for about half of a second and then the system turned off. But before my disassembly, I enabled auto boot in the settings. So the system boots when I insert a gba module. I wondered if it is possible to make the DS lite work without top screen. I researched on the Internet and found this topic about an led mod. I soldered an random LED to LEDA2 and LEDC2. The LED flashes when I turn the system on, but then the bottom screen flashes for about half of a second and the DS turns off (and also the LED).

Do I have to use a particular kind of LED or does every LED work?

I hope you understand me.
 
PcMaster said:
hey guys (sorry for my bad english)

my ds lite had a hinge crack for years and since a few months the top screen shows nothing but lines. so I decided to open it and see what's inside of the DS lite. I accidentally damaged the top screen cable. I put the DS back together, but it didn't work anymore. The bottom screen flashed for about half of a second and then the system turned off. But before my disassembly, I enabled auto boot in the settings. So the system boots when I insert a gba module. I wondered if it is possible to make the DS lite work without top screen. I researched on the Internet and found this topic about an led mod. I soldered an random LED to LEDA2 and LEDC2. The LED flashes when I turn the system on, but then the bottom screen flashes for about half of a second and the DS turns off (and also the LED).

Do I have to use a particular kind of LED or does every LED work?

I hope you understand me.

Np, man I perfectly understand you.
Um, no you can use any led, what led you use doesn't matter,
Just solder the points like in my worklog, and be sure to take the wifi chip, and remove it and place it back in it's place again.

There's a video on my worklog on how to do it for the wifi chip.
I did the mod and then my ds wouldn't turn on, but the removing & replacing the wifi chip back in place reset the ds and it worked out fine.
 
I tried another LED, but it doesn't work too :(

Is it possible to get the speakers working without the ribbon cable?
 
PcMaster said:
I tried another LED, but it doesn't work too :(

Is it possible to get the speakers working without the ribbon cable?

okay, man try these tips:

+ take the wifi chip, and remove it and place it back in it's place again.
+ remove the battery pack and put it back in.
+ find a DS lite top screen (or use one you have) if not buy a replacement one, and place it in the socket needed on the board (you need to do this to get your ds screen (bottom working again if the LED a brightness issue form the led (setting it to high for the led to handle and led shuts off system).

hope this helps, it helped me out.

um, for reconnecting speakers? yes, you can, check out akira's info and toqman's dslite mod in the finished threads.
 
I already removed the wifi chip and placed it back, didn't work.

The battery was also removed very often, since I have to take it out to disassemble the ds lite.

The brightness setting is at the lowest, I compared it with my other DS Lite.

Thank you, I will check out these threads.
 
PcMaster said:
I already removed the wifi chip and placed it back, didn't work.

The battery was also removed very often, since I have to take it out to disassemble the ds lite.

The brightness setting is at the lowest, I compared it with my other DS Lite.

Thank you, I will check out these threads.

Hay pcmaster, how did the mod go? Did you manage to fix the LED issue you had?
 
Hey, no it still doesn't work and I don't know why.

It only works in GBA mode (doesn't matter if Led is connected or not) but not in DS mode.

btw: I did a battery test with the DS Lite in gba mode (game: Mario Kart Super Circuit) and it lasted about 29 hours.
 
PcMaster said:
Hey, no it still doesn't work and I don't know why.

It only works in GBA mode (doesn't matter if Led is connected or not) but not in DS mode.

btw: I did a battery test with the DS Lite in gba mode (game: Mario Kart Super Circuit) and it lasted about 29 hours.

Um, have you set it to atuoboot in GbA mode? That can mess things up a bit, but if you reset the system (by wifi chip reset or battery reset the system should go back to factory settings.)

Um, also try to test and see if your ds slot works, if it doesn't you can boot into ds mode without a working slot. I have one that works (my first board I tested my mod on)

Also reconnect the microphone cable and the wifi cable back to their respective places on the ds motherboard.

Also, connect a ds top screen to your board, you need it to reset your system if something goes wrong and you want to know if your ds still works okay.

Hope this helps
 
I resetted the system many times, but autoboot still works.

The DS Slot worked before, I don't think it's broken now.

Does the DS need the microphone and the wifi antenna to boot?

I don't have a DS top screen. The one which was in this system is broken (ribbon cable damaged).
 
PcMaster said:
I resetted the system many times, but autoboot still works.

Humm, that is strange since when the ds is reset the autoboot setting dissappears.
There must be another reason why it is not going away.

PcMaster said:
The DS Slot worked before, I don't think it's broken now.

Humm, so you have tested it with a ds game and it works? Great! Then your ds slot isn't the problem.

PcMaster said:
Does the DS need the microphone and the wifi antenna to boot?

Um, not nessaraly, but you need them if your resetting your system or checking for any non working/problems in your system.

For my big gba, I'm using the wifi cable, but not the microphone as it broke (I was going to get a replacement, but never mind that).

They may be needed for some ds games, if your using this mod for gba games via flashcart slot 1 or gba flash cart, then you won't need them (unless you might use the wifi update for a ds flashcart for example).

PcMaster said:
I don't have a DS top screen. The one which was in this system is broken (ribbon cable damaged).

That must be your issue why you can't reset your system, you need to do the tips I gave you some posts up and plug in your ds top screen in your motherboard for the reset to work.

Also, you'll have to find a new ds top screen, they're easy to find and cost little.

Try ebay, amazon com/uk etc

search for "ds lite top screen replacement" if you have a lite or ds top screen if you have a phat model.

Hope this helps you.
 
Gamerlolwind said:
Humm, so you have tested it with a ds game and it works? Great! Then your ds slot isn't the problem.

Yes, the DS Lite was fully functional (but the top screen displayed only lines) before I accidentally damaged the ribbon cable.

Gamerlolwind said:
Also, you'll have to find a new ds top screen, they're easy to find and cost little.

Try ebay, amazon com/uk etc

search for "ds lite top screen replacement" if you have a lite or ds top screen if you have a phat model.

Thank you, but I don't want to spend any money on it at the moment. Maybe I will buy a topscreen sometime.
 
PcMaster said:
Gamerlolwind said:
Humm, so you have tested it with a ds game and it works? Great! Then your ds slot isn't the problem.

Yes, the DS Lite was fully functional (but the top screen displayed only lines) before I accidentally damaged the ribbon cable.

Gamerlolwind said:
Also, you'll have to find a new ds top screen, they're easy to find and cost little.

Try ebay, amazon com/uk etc

search for "ds lite top screen replacement" if you have a lite or ds top screen if you have a phat model.

Thank you, but I don't want to spend any money on it at the moment. Maybe I will buy a topscreen sometime.

I have a better idea for you, instead of getting a top screen, buy a another ds lite unit and try the led mod again (this time making sure to keep everything safe from damage or making any mistakes like the first try) that way you can have a better chance of successfully completing the mod the second time.

This worked for my big gba mod as stated in my worklog :)
Sure, I had to wait for some time for my second unit to arrive, but I knew what to watch out for the second time around and succeed :)

If you try a mod the first time and it doesn't work, try again, and you'll get your mod done evencutally, just don't give in, believe in yourself and keep trying.

That's my method for modding stuff (hope this helps you)

Gamer
 
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