I'm just starting out modding consoles and I want to learn the basics of their cabling. How would I go about making my own Game Boy link cable? How could I make the sockets, and would it just be copper wire connecting? This might sound absolutely ridiculous to you guys, but you have to remember I don't know about these things. Is it even possible? ...and if it is, where should I start?
Not sure where you could buy the Gameboy connector ends. Probably be a lot cheaper to just buy a used cable. To get into modding solder experience, maybe practice on a junked PC card?
...uh, yeah. Well, this is a hobby, it just has to be fun and not always be useful/make sense. OP: How about you start off with a working link cable, then cut it apart and put it back together again? Sourcing loose connectors, or making them yourself would be a huge waste of time/resources imho... Anyways, yes those cables would be "just copper wire connecting" (at least those for the GBA are. I'd be surprised if the GB/GBC ones were more complex than their successors. At least as long as we're talking two players only.). Another fun project might be to get a bunch of two-player cables and splice them together into a single four-player "octopus" cable...? (For the GBA, again, I know this is purely a wiring job - not sure about the GB/GBC four player adaptors though.)
There aren't 4 player cables for GB/GBC, only GBA which uses non-passive components and would need a custom design to make.
I'm not sure how to read that. Do you mean GB/GBC 4P doesn't exist and GBA 4P needs active components, or GB/GBC 4P exists but needs active components?
http://www.consolepassion.co.uk/sites/default/files/nintendo-gameboy-four-player-adapter-loose.jpg No idea how they work, but of course they exist ;*) The skill itself does have practical applications. For instance, Virtual Boy collectors have been building VB link cables for years. Plus, being able to repair damaged cables--usually due to kinking or because some company was cheap and ran too thin a line--is a rather useful skill in its own right. Producing a new one is just an extension of that skill. As for the end connectors, if you were to try from scratch you can get short lengths of flat metal from a craft/hobby shop and bend it to shape. It will probably be more apparent what needs to be done when you dissect an original cable.
Yes, I knew the DMG-07 existed, that's why I asked you to clarify your statement And whaddya know, I even found a diagram of its internals just now - Seems like it indeed has quite a lot of internal logic compared to the later ones (not that hard really, since they have none at all). Well, maybe more than two players were something of an afterthought on the GB/GBC, but then big N decded to integrate it into the GBA.
In general BigN doesn't abandon its old ideas unles they suck really, really badly. Wireless controllers and built-in mics are NES era ideas after all. Eventually they hit the point where all this tech becomes practical ;*) I'm guessing most of that logic is merely to take overhead off the master. 4-player comms would be a bit more overhead to expect a GB to manage on its own. Want to say there's a couple more games that support it, and that there's some crossover with the list of 4-player NES support. Would like to see some homebrew utilize it.
