Sega Dreamcast HDMI Adapter coming soon ..

I was referring to the physical layout (hence "any compatibility issues (physically speaking)") Anthony817 and -=FamilyGuy=- picked up on it, good to hear, I'd be down for one.

 

I'd be down to pre-order one!

 

OzOnE,

I was wondering instead of physically creating another hole for the HDMI port, will it be possible to use the existing AV out hole? User could desolder the AV out port. That way users don't have to butcher their case. I am not sure this would be possible or not. Was just sharing my idea.

Thanks.

 

wow what a project ! too bad, we haven't heard any feedback since, is the project still well and alive? was wondering if the sega saturn could work too?? that would be awesome !

 

I would definitely buy 1 or more! Put me down for a pre-order.

Same as previous poster, is it possible to get this board working on a Sega Saturn?

 

Yeah it is still happening, they should have already gotten in more test batches in 2 or more months ago I think.

He just replied to me on his YT channel.

Things are still on track.

 

So will this be a 'quick solder board'? I know its a little more complex than that but what exactly will this be?

 

How do I get to be included on the batch of 30 list?

Ted.

 

oh that s great ! things are going well ! yay !

 

Out of curiosity does anyone know if this design will pass audio through HDMI?

Ted.

 

We are still looking to get some QSBs done for the DC etc., but for the time being it will need some wires soldering directly to the DC DAC (Kynar etc.)

So, until we get those made and tested, the installs will need to be done by fairly skilled solderers / modders initially.
(For consoles like the Gamecube though, it's far easier to solder wires to the Dig AV port pins.)

Yes, it will pass audio through to HDMI on most moddable consoles.

If a specific console doesn't give access to digital audio signals, then it will be possible to add a simple ADC chip (or 1-bit ADC circuits) for that. Most consoles which do have an accessible digital video bus usually have digital audio too though.

@duskdawn - yeah, you could probably fit the HDMI board where the AV port used to be.
The final prototype has a Micro-HDMI port on though, so obviously a much smaller footprint on the case.

The board also has a FPC ribbon cable connector on it. The idea being that for certain consoles, we will have a small daughterboard with the actual HDMI connector on it, so the main board can be installed under metal shielding etc. (like for the Gamecube, where space is tight.)

@Teddy Rogers - unfortunately, all of the first batch of boards are pretty much spoken for already.
The first batch will be for funding a much larger second batch.

Many people have mentioned crowdfunding etc., but I think that would put too much pressure on. lol
A fair few other people are equally put off by crowdfunding / Kickstarter campaigns as well tbh.

It's looking like it will be around Christmas now by the time I've moved house and got my workshop sorted.
Hopefully before then, you'll be seeing the first HDMI modded DCs, and maybe a few Gamecubes too.

OzOnE.

 

Great News and Hope to see more coming. Could you spit ball a price?
I have 0 Solder experience sadly.... but still want to get one. Would this work with a Saturn?

 

I'd like to be on the list for the Second batch.

 

OK, here's a non-exhaustive list of which machines can / should work with the HDMI board...

As you can see, there are far more machines in the 5 Volt era (pre 1994-ish) that people would be interested in.

I'm sure there are many machines I've left out.
Please let me know if you want me to check the schematics for a specific machine to see if it might be compatible.

Quite a few older machines would require a video core to be running on the FPGA to get true digital quality though.
(since those machines only output analog video directly from the chipset, and there's generally no direct access to digital video bus signals.)

Most video cores would likely need external SRAM or SDRAM though, which hasn't been put on the first version of the HDMI board for reasons of keeping the size / complexity / costs down. There may be future versions with onboard RAM, to hopefully support the more complex video cores.


3V3 Volt machines...

Soldering to the Video DACs in most of these requires a fair bit of skill (apart from N64 and "GC with Dig AV").
I'll be working on QSBs and / or flex cables to make those easier for modders...

Dreamcast (Tested and working - need to finish 240p scandoubler.)
Gamecube (1V8? Tested and working - need to finish 480i/576i/240p auto-switching / scandoubling.)
N64 (Tested and working - need to finish 480i/576i/240p/288p auto-switching / scandoubling.)
Wii (any point? Untested. Have one to test.)
PS1 (should work OK. Untested.)
PS2 (should work OK. Untested. - Have one to test. Limited space inside the PS2 Slim, but likely doable.)
Xbox (should work OK. Untested. Have one to test.)

5 Volt machines...

(these machines need a simple voltage translator / buffer board. PCB design not done yet, but won't take long)...

NES (I think kevtris has it covered. )
NeoGeo MVS / AES / CD (I have an NGCD to test)
Atari Jaguar (have one to test)
Panasonic 3DO (have an FZ-1 to test)
Sharp X68000 (don't have to test. Probably never will. lol)
FM Towns / Towns Marty (Don't have. haven't found schematic yet, to confirm)
Intellivision (have one to test)
Commodore Amiga 500 / 600 / 1200 / CD32 etc. etc. (have a 500 / 600 / 1200 to test)
Game Gear (already tested - yes, really)
Atari Lynx (already tested - yes, really)
Game Boy / GB Pocket / GB Color / GBA / Super GB / GB Player (tap LCD signals - should work OK. Space limited in some)
TurboGrafx 16 (exp port dig video?? may need a video core?)
PC Engine (may need a video core?)
Philips CDi
Atari 2600 (4-bit luma, 1-bit chroma phase. Analog audio)


The following machines are only possible with a partial / full Video core running on the FPGA...

SNES (have a partial unfinished core)
Sega Mega Drive (have a core)
Sega Master System (have a core)
Sega Saturn (no core yet?)
Sega SC1000 (have a TMS9929 core?)
ZX Speccy (have a core / ULA)
BBC Micro (have a core)
C64 / VIC-20 (have a VIC-I / VIC-II core)

Support for many other machines is possible.
Depends on whether digital video can be easily accessed etc.

Note: Analog audio may also need to be sampled in a few of the machines.

@Strogen / all - I can't take pre-orders at this time, but this forum will be one of the first places to know as soon as I'm closer to ordering a larger batch.

@LordFenixNC - I've been trying to keep the price of the board / kit below about $100 / €89 / £65 if at all possible, but this isn't set in stone yet. For machines requiring a voltage buffer, QSB, or flex cable, it may be a tad more than that.

I'm just itching to get the house move out of the way, then I can hit this project head-on.

Who would be prepared to do pre-orders at this stage?
The main issue I have atm (aside from finances for the next batch) is the difficulty of soldering to the video DACs in the popular machines at the top of the above list. This would require skilled solderers / modders until I can get the QSB / Flex cables sorted, which may take some time.

I've also not tested every machine of course, but most of them which don't require a video core should in theory work fine.
I need to check certain machines for space too - even though the final board is very small, it might be awkward to fit inside some consoles.

OzOnE.

 

I also have an RGB-out board design for the Game Gear which is working nicely.
It's possible the same board could be used for other machines that don't have RGB (again, some machines will require a video core to get true digital quality, so those may be a way off yet.)

There should be enough space inside machines like the Game Gear and Atari Lynx to use both the HDMI board and RGB board at the same time. I'm planning to add a Composite / S-Vid encoder to the next version too.

It will be possible to have a separate output pin for SPDIF digital audio on the HDMI board for many machines.
(If the audio DAC signals can be accessed in a specific console then that audio will be passed via HDMI too.)

I also realized the other day that it will be possible to add an HDMI board and a joypad to the Super Game Boy and Game Boy Player, for stand-alone operation.

I already bought a Super Game Boy last week, but I'm waiting for some solder to arrive.
(I'll have to solder at the dining table until we move. sigh)

I'm looking to get a Game Boy Player to test as well - it's actually easier to solder to the GBP, since it has test pads for most of the relevant signals. I'm sure it will be "amusing" playing on these without a console. hehe

OzOnE

 

WAIT... so you can get a Gameboy player for Gamecube to work THROUGH HDMI with gamepad support with NO gamecube or GBP disc?

 

Is there much demand for HDMI mods for machines and consoles that already have excellent emulators? Looking at this from a personal perspective and using the Amiga as a prime example, I wouldn't think of using or playing a game on these original machine(s) anymore. Particularly when you have an excellent emulator like WinUAE that far surpasses anything the original machine and mods could ever do. I can easily do a PC-on-Stick for these machines or from a HTPC...

Ted.

 

well Ted... here is the thing... That is you... You dont mind playing on a Emu... heck you may even prefer it. But then you have people who enjoy playing on Original Hardware.... You could have the same argument over playing a Port of a game VS the original release on the original Hardware... Its all about preference...

 

That is totally true and I respect that, it is why I mentioned in my previous post that my view was from a personal perspective. I was curious to know if there is much demand for a HDMI mod like this where a machine has a good emulator. If memory serves me correctly the Gameboy had a Kickstarter project for HDMI but it failed to reach the desired level of funding. Whether that in itself was directly or indirectly related to the diversity/quality of emulators available or simply lack of interest I have no idea. Food for thought perhaps?

Ted.

 

very true but you have to understand there is a really big % of people who just dont support Kickstarter and would want the creators to start their own FUND ME or something...