Gamecube controller in a Wiimote

Discussion in 'General Modding & Electronics Information' started by st3vethesquid, Feb 24, 2016.

  1. (backstory if you care to know) I play Super Smash Bros a lot, and I dearly love the Wiimote+Nunchuck. I think it's the most comfortable and innovative controller ever made. I'm also quite stubborn about using tap jump in the game. This isn't really a problem, except I can't do up tilts. With a gamecube controller, you can have tap jump on, and set the c-stick to be tilts, so you can still do up tilts. So I wanted a controller that combined the awesome shape and corded flexibility of the wiimote with the gamecube controller's ability to have a second joystick.

    TLDR: What I want to do is take the internals of a gamecube controller and put them inside a wiimote. Basically, it would be a wiimote with a second joystick, connected by a gamecube cord to my WiiU so it's recognized as a gamecube controller.

    The plan: cut down the circuitboard of a gamecube controller, and put it inside the wiimote. Keep all the buttons and joysticks from the Wiimote and wire them up to the gamecube's circuitboard, and mod the case for another joystick. I might have to 3D print a new case for the Wiimote, I haven't decided on where I want the joystick yet.

    I am good at soldering, and my roommate paints/mods plastic models, so he'll have all the skills needed to help me with the case, and I have all the tools necessary. I wanted to ask you guys on the forum what you thought of the project, how feasible it is, and any cautions/advice that you have.

    My current concerns:
    - not all the buttons from the gamecube controller will be used, don't know if this would be a problem
    - don't know if the joystick for a nunchuck has a different signal output or required voltage from the gamecube controller
    - not sure how much I can trim the gamecube circuit board without breaking it

    I am open to trying this project with an arduino or something instead of the GC board, I know it's possible to emulate the controller output but I don't know if latency would be an issue.



    On a side note, it seems that I registered for this forum a long time ago, but never activated my account. It has the correct username and email, but when I resend the activation email, the activation email says I need to fax a waiver signed by my parent, and it doesn't give me an address to fax it to. I'm 19, and wouldn't have said I was younger than I am, so this activation email is just all kinds of screwed up. Is there any way I can get a mod to manually activate my account? PM me and I'll share the account details.
     
  2. Pinotte

    Pinotte Member

    That seems perfectly feasible!

    No it's not. Just make sure that whatever unused pots (triggers, analog sticks) are replaced with resistors.

    It's the same (10K pot).

    quite a bit: http://forums.modretro.com/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=8517
     
  3. That looks like it'll just barely fit in a wiimote... but it also looks quite hard. I have a third party controller I'll practice with first before I cannibalize my only spare.

    Speaking of which (in the likely case that I fail), is there a better place to get controllers for parts besides ebay? They're kinda pricey even when they're broken and in awful condition.
     
  4. Pinotte

    Pinotte Member

    Yeah official controllers are pretty expensive, the smash bros controllers are pretty much identical to the old ones and not so expensive on amazon(23$).

    Some third party controllers can be trimmed a little smaller than the official ones, but they aren't as reliable...