Gameboy Macro Core With Audio and Composite Out (From Old Nintendo DS Lite)

As an electrical engineering student at Florida International University (FIU), I have always enjoyed modding retro video game consoles. Through my journey, I've seen many mods for the DS Lite that feature composite output for playing on a big screen. However, most of these mods come with compromises, such as losing the headphone jack or having a large board dangling from the console. My goal was to create a more streamlined option that utilizes the space where the Slot 1 cartridges used to be, given that this mod is intended solely for playing Gameboy Advance games. This should breathe new life into a DS with a busted hinge or broken top screen.

To achieve this, I utilized Chat GPT and CoPilot to prototype various design options for the front shell. This included deciding where to place the speakers, determining the number of buttons to include, choosing the appropriate font for the title, and designing the console’s body shape with ergonomic considerations in mind. This collaborative approach helped me refine the design for both functionality and aesthetics.

The result is a custom Gameboy Macro that is essentially a DS Lite with the top screen removed, allowing it to function perfectly as a Gameboy Advance and play GBA games exceptionally well. The build includes:

• Only plays Gameboy Advance Games
• Removes X and Y button since that is not needed for GBA games.
• Two switch speakers to preserve stereo sound.
• Composite video out for playing on your TV like a Switch through the top.
• Is connected to the headphone jack so it senses to cut off internal speaker when plugged in
• Has 3D printed part that covers slot 1, hold the TRRS jack and screws the 2 halves together
• A small button on the back to switch the main screen display between the console and an external TV.
• USB-C for charging that is PD compliant.
• Uses a TRRS to RCA cable for easy connection to a TV.
• You can still plug in your headphones in the top jack for silent playing.

By following this Instructable, you'll be able to transform your Nintendo DS Lite into a sleek and functional Gameboy Macro with AV out, combining the best of portable and console gaming.

Here is a link to it working https://dai.ly/x8zd7x6 The video doesn't showcase the audio working though since i didn't have access to a television that had the typical RCA audio inputs. I ended up using a composite to HDMI adapter straight into a computer monitor that did not have any sound capabilities.

Lastly, this is a shout out for all the resources that made this project possible:

Bitbuilt - Has so much good information about portabilizing in general

Materials:

• Nintendo DS Lite
• Custom AV out board
• x1 TRRS SMD Jack PJ-382 10Pcs 3.5 MM Audio Connector SMD 4 Pins TRRS Stereo Jack Receptacle Right Angle Female for 4 Poles Phone Plug 14MM (aliexpress.us)
• x1 SMD Tactile Switch (I used one from a 6x6 kit)
• x4 220R ohm 0805 Resistors
• x6 470R ohm 0805 Resistors
• USB – C Board
• 6 pin USBC Female Jack 20/10/5pcs 6 Pin SMT Socket Connector Micro USB Type C 3.1 Female Placement SMD DIP For PCB design DIY high current charging - AliExpress
• x2 5.1K ohm 0402 Resistors
• x2 Nintendo Switch Speakers
• x1 330R Ohm 0805 Resistor
• 3D Printed Front Plate
• DS Flash Cart (to install av out firmware)
• Magnet Wire
• 30 Awg Wrapping wire.
• Kapton tape
• Double sided screen tape 3M 300 SLE is good
• Top Screen lens (if yours is scratched up)
• TRRS to RCA cable

Tools:

• Soldering iron
• Drill Bits
• Flush Cutters
• Sandpaper
• Wire cutters/strippers
• Solder Sucker
• Multimeter (optional for testing connections)
• Tweezers (optional for handling small components)

Below is what Chat GPT suggested:

Design Variations for Gameboy Macro

Layout Option 1: Classic Gameboy Style

• Buttons: Include all four AXBY buttons. Place the A and B buttons on the right side and X and Y buttons above them in a diamond layout.
• Font: Use a pixelated font for a retro look.
• Outline Shape: Rounded corners with a slightly thicker bezel for a vintage aesthetic.
• Speakers: Place the speakers symmetrically on either side of the screen.

Layout Option 2: Modern Minimalist

• Buttons: Use all four AXBY buttons. Arrange them in a tight diamond shape for a compact design.
• Font: Use a sleek, modern sans-serif font for the text.
• Outline Shape: Slimmer, rectangular shape with sharp edges.
• Speakers: Integrate small speaker grills into the top and bottom edges of the console for a clean look.

Layout Option 3: Ergonomic Design

• Buttons: All four AXBY buttons in a slightly curved layout to fit the natural curve of your thumb.
• Font: Use a bold, easy-to-read font.
• Outline Shape: Contoured shape with ergonomic grips on the sides.
• Speakers: Position the speakers towards the bottom edges where hands are less likely to block the sound.

Layout Option 4: Hybrid Console

• Buttons: Include all four AXBY buttons with additional shoulder buttons on the back.
• Font: Use a futuristic font style.
• Outline Shape: Combination of rectangular and rounded edges, similar to the Nintendo Switch.
• Speakers: Place the speakers on the front bottom and the top for a surround sound effect.

And these are some of the Images that CoPilot generated. I really liked the ergonomic one but couldn't really emulate while creating it in Fusion 360. I ended up going for the more minimalist approach that you can see in the last image.

I didn’t do anything exciting for this part, I just followed the instructions listed on the lost Nintendo History Website Lost-NDS-TV/fwpatch at main · LostNintendoHistory/Lost-NDS-TV · GitHub

This is a good guide too DS lite screen switching mod – Facelesstech (wordpress.com)

The main thing is that you need a flash cart like the ones below. Once you have done that, you should be able to go to the next step of disassembling!

For this part I also followed the guide on ifixit, Nintendo DS Lite Upper LCD Replacement - iFixit Repair Guide it was really helpful with its pictures and guidance.

Essentially, you want the following things from the Donor DS:

·        Motherboard

·        All the buttons and their membranes

·        The Shoulder triggers and their springs

·        The bottom screen

·        The light pipe for the led

·        The back plate of the lower portion of the DS Lite

·        The lens from the top screen

·        All the screws you took out to disassemble it. 

1. I designed the front shell using Fusion 360. Using my trusty calipers and the ds lite shell, I went ahead and started modeling the front.
2. One main challenge I had was covering the slot 1 cover to make room for the TRRS jack but still be seamless with the rest of the case. There was a lot of trial and error, but eventually I settled upon a fit that worked out well.
3. I recommend getting it printed in Resin at JLC, it almost feels like it is injected molded with how smooth everything is.
4. I never tried a final draft with FDM printing, so the tolerances may not suit that well.
5. The STL is attached here.

1. Using a thin razor blade, or your flush cutters, you are going to remove this connector to make room for the switch speaker.
2. You will want to desolder the proprietary jack Nintendo put on there. You can use a solder sucker or flush cutters to remove it.
3. You will also want to use the flush cutters to remove the slot 1 for the DS lite cartridges.
4. You want to do each of the 4 mounting points like circled here, and then you can bend it back and forth slowly to remove the pins that connect the cartridges to the motherboard. You don’t need this part anymore.
5. Also, you will want to go ahead and sand down the light pipe to fit the new faceplate. I used flush cutters to make it slightly proud, and then I hand sanded them until they were flush with the front. You may need a dab of super glue to keep it in place. When you install it at the end
6. Next you will want to go ahead and solder in the 330R 0805 Resistor as in the picture. This tricks the DS lite to thinking there is still an upper screen connected. I followed this guide when installing it Macro Tutorial (DS Lite) – Game Boy Macro
7. Next you will want to modify the back shell to make room for everything. I used flush cutters, and you can cut it out similar to the picture.
8. Next you will want to trim off these sections of the motherboard, this will make it easy to put it back in place.
9. You also will need to use your drill bits to make the hole for the SMD tact Switch on the back plate like the picture below.

1.     I used the usbc board that can be found here GitHub - rorosaurus/nds-lite-usb-c: A USB-C port for the Nintendo DS Lite

2.     Solder the necessary resistors and jack onto the PCB like the picture shown.

3.     Next you will want to line up the board to the pads like the picture here.

1. I designed the board in Kicad 7. You will need to order the board, I used JLC, I have the link to the gerbers here https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1baJBIqonX8mu55CanD9qSCSAJhEqG4QE?usp=drive_link
2. Solder the components like in the picture.
3. I start with the resistors; you can follow the schematic here.
4. Then you want to add the TRRS jack
5. The tact switch does require some trial and error, because drilling the hole in the case consistently is tough, I recommend just soldering one leg to see if it aligns.
6. Ensure that the connections are secure and test them with a multimeter if necessary.
7. You will want to then solder in the mounting points, I recommend doing this while the motherboard is in the final faceplate 3d print, as you will need to align the TRRS jack.
8. You can see how I test fit the pcb too with paper.

1. Solder the pads like in the pictures using the magnet wire. The points on the pcb are labeled, and I have diagrams that show where each point goes.
2. One thing to note, you will need to solder the “sense” pad to the “DS HP Pin 5” part in the diagram.
3. Some tips when soldering magnet wire:
4. Burn off the enamel coating with a blob of solder, so that you have a strong point of contact.
5. You will want to scratch the vias with something sharp like a x-acto blade or fresh tweezers. This is to make sure there is fresh copper when making the connections.

1. Connect the TRRS to RCA cable to your TV and switch the TV to the appropriate input.
2. Power on your Gameboy Macro Lite and check if the video output is displayed on the TV.
3. Use the button on the back to switch between the console screen and the external TV.
4. If there are any issues, double-check all connections and solder points.

1. I put some Kapton tape on the back of each speaker to prevent shorts.
2. I then put a dab of super glue on the back of each speaker.
3. I placed the speakers in the front DS lite shell Faceplate so that the alignment would be correct.
4. I then placed the DS Lite motherboard in place so that the speakers would be glued to the motherboard. This would make assembly and disassembly way easier.
5. Solder the switch speakers to the appropriate points on the motherboard as per the diagrams to preserve stereo sound.

1. Because I couldn’t figure out the logic to have both jacks switch properly, I ended up just covering the original headphone jack with a business card and using the TRRS jack as a headphone jack too. I just cut it to size and colored it black with a sharpie.

1. Place buttons, membranes and light pipe in the faceplate.
2. Carefully place the motherboard with the screen back into the bottom shell.
3. Reconnect any ribbon cables and screws that were removed earlier.
4. Place the back cover onto the bottom shell and secure it with screws.
5. You will then want to place the screen lense from the top screen onto the cavity. I used some double-sided tape to keep it secure. I believe I used some 3M 300 LSE.
6. You can essentially follow the ifixit guide backwards.

• No video output: Ensure all connections are secure and the AV out board is properly powered.
• Sound issues: If using the original speakers, make sure they are connected properly. Alternatively, consider using external speakers via the AV out.
• Screen not turning on: Double-check the ribbon cable connection to the motherboard.
• Charging issues: Ensure the USB-C module is correctly connected, and the power source is working.

Congratulations! You’ve successfully transformed your Nintendo DS Lite into a Gameboy Macro with AV out. Enjoy playing your favorite Gameboy games on a larger screen, and don’t forget to share your creations and modifications with the community. If you encounter any issues or have questions, feel free to leave a comment below.