NES Hardware Explained
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- Опубліковано 17 чер 2024
- In this episode I tear down an NES and show you how to identify some of its major circuits.
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Music:
“Back To You” by Evgeny Bardyuzha
“Money Printer” by Notize
“High Roller” by Rex Banner
“Turbulence” by Ramol
Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
0:50 NES Breakdown
2:30 Motherboard Circuitry
6:31 Reassembly & Testing
8:04 Conclusion - Наука та технологія
![10 Weird NES Facts! [Nintendo Entertainment System] | Nintendrew](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/DKOtyWggaNI/mqdefault.jpg)
I've found that cleaning the 72 pin connector is far superior to replacing it. Aftermarket connectors have a harsh grip and are made with inferior and harder metals that will damage the pins on cartridges. I've cleaned 5 different OEM connectors and they work like a charm. Please just clean and not replace.
REALLY harsh. I got a new one and it had a death grip on the carts that required pliers to get the cart out. I ended up shoving an everdrive in there permanently to test ROMs I make. No way am I having it ruin my collection!
This is VERY true. The system I got for this video actually plays better than my “refurb” I bought years ago with its replacement connector.
I've seen some suggest to boil the original connector, I wouldn't recommend that. I think its just fine to get it a good scrub with alcohol and then slightly bending in the connectors inwards a bit to make better contact with your games.
Agreed. I replaced mine about 15 years ago and it is really hard to get cartridges in and out. On the plus side it works without pushing the cartridge down. Unfortunately I threw out my original connector back when I replaced it. Also, it worked better but was still finicky, so I'm glad I know about the alignment screws now. I'll get in there and try adjusting it.
@@nict2yes boiling works. It makes sure the plastic comes back to its molded form. This is how you revive lego bricks who dont stick on each other to. But be carefull, dont actually boil it, id say take water of around 75c.
I've not seen anyone else cover the NES in such an in-depth and easy to digest way. Your videos have been a big push for me to get back into electronics and how systems work on a hardware level.
Also, would love to see a video about the Expansion Bus port. It's always interesting to think about all the things Nintendo could have done with it, and I'd love to see your take on it!
from what i've read, it seems to mostly be another set of connections same as the cartridge slot? if thats the case, it wouldn't open up anything remarkable.
I heard Nintendo made an add on device that never got out into the market that was supposed to connect to the internet so people could us the nes to do things like gamble or by lottery tickets. I think they were also thinking about creating a disk system attachment that played disks like on the Famicom Disk System too.
Yes, please talk about the expansion port.
yes we all want the expansion port video. please :)
Would love to see an expantion port video.
A video on the expansion port would be wonderful!
I’ve always wondered what that little plastic piece I could clip off was for
I'd be interested in watching a video about the expansion port!
You have my sub from this great video!
These videos never get old. Watch them over and over. Super informative and actually makes me believe that I know what's going on
I love how informative your videos are. Knowing what the individual components around the main chips do is a big help. Thanks!
A most excellent and informative exposition of the nes hardware.
Love the pace of the explanation. And I am curious about the expansion port.
I defently want to know more about the extension port
I love videos like these. I remember as a kid looking at the board in awe thinking it was so complex and having no idea what the heck these different chips and components like the pot were for.
This is fantastic thank you! I love this format and implore you to make more like it
You are a master in your field. Keep posting these type of videos with this level of detail. Thanks
Great video ! A video going into the expansion port would be nice as well.
Loved the break down!
Thanks for the great video! I'd love a future video on the expansion port.
Awesome, well produced videos! Thank you for creating this content. Super great learning tools while being fast paced enough to be entertaining. Subscribed :)
Excellent video, thank you very much
Great video!! A great introduction to the internals of the NES. The dremel on the way to the connection port AHH!!
When I filmed the B-Roll for that shot all I was gonna do is show the removal of the little cover on the bottom. I just happened to see my dremel sitting on the workbench and I couldn’t resist 😂
I once popped it off with a screw driver as a kid, luckily I didn't damage the motherboard (at least at that point).
I would love to see a video regarding the expantion port on the bottom of the NES. Awesome videos!
This is super interesting! I always wondered how it worked.
After almost 4 decades, finally.
Woo, first vid of yours I've seen. Really clear and understandable, and sparks my curiosity. Nice job. Now to go watch your other stuff.
Yeah this is a pretty good one to start at, hope you enjoy my other videos!
@@NesHacker I have been! Looking forward to more details on the sound hardware. I stumbled in here with a mild interest in chiptunes.
Great video awesome editing great commentary
Hey man, I just wanted to say, I saw a video from 2 years ago, and then this video. And you look a lot healthier and better, love your videos
Thanks so much. Yeah a few years ago I was very very thin, I’ve built up quite a bit since then :)
Fantastic video! 👏👏👏
It's nice to know that after all these years, I'm not the only one who is still fascinated by this piece of hardware.
Indeed, there are quite a few of us about
I did an incredibly simple mod to get expansion audio working on one of my NES consoles. Weird that it was as simple as jumping a few points on the motherboard together with a small resistor. That said, I really have no idea why that it works. Looking forward to the episode where you explore the unused expansion adapter at the bottom of the motherboard.
I'm also excited for him to cover that. I would really like to know what's going on in the NTSC NES in regards to that. As far as I understood, the expansion port was always functional, they just disabled/moved most of it since most NTSC games weren't published with the expanded chipsets that would've utilized it.
I literally bent pins in the cartridge connector up just a little so they would touch the cartridge without having to push it down at all. Worked for 20 years without ever having to blow in a cartridge. Was also a board I had to replace a chip on from another broken system. Was either the hex inverter or the lockout chip iirc. I was 14 at the time.
So happy you are back my mannn
Broseph, it’s like 3 videos in a row and I’m working on the next… I’m on what scientists call “a roll” :P
@@NesHacker yeasssssh keep em coming 🤟🤟🤟🤟🤟🤟🤟🤟😎😎😎
Fantastic content. I am a huge fan.
Amazing, very good!!
Great intro, you have my attention 💃
Would love to know more about the workings of that unused expansion port !
I just learned 6502 assembly in one of my comp sci classes. This is insanely cool!
Oh man, you’re gonna love the next video, haha 😂
Good stuff! I bought a motherboard alone for fun to go with my (complete) NES, and it was great to see an explanation of all of the components.
I am curious to hear more about how the cartridges act as extensions to the motherboard, i.e. the NES is actually not a complete computer without a cartridge. I know you covered cartridges before, but I mean more about how they work with the main board. This would inevitably lead to how mappers work.
I believe the Sharp SM590 is technically a microcontroller (not a CPU / microprocessor), i.e. it has its own RAM / ROM and only performs a single task, sort of like an Arduino / Atmel chip.
I actually meant to say “Microcomputer” chip cause that’s how they marketed them back in the day, but yeah it’s basically a microcontroller :)
That's a fair assessment, if you turn the console on the CPU will try to look for the Reset vector at the end of the memory space, but of course without a cartridge it will just find nonsense there, or maybe all zeroes? I'm not sure. But either way it will try to execute starting from that address and there will most likely be garbage instructions there or a zero, which is the opcode for BRK, so eventually it will end up in an endless BRK loop and it will keep overflowing the stack. Not that it will be able to communicate that to you in any way, but that's what will happen on the inside.
I'm not sure how complex you could potentially make a program that loads itself into the 2kB RAM and runs from there without needing the cartridge after copying itself. Interrupts can't be used anymore like that and the PPU will see garbage open bus data so drawing anything meaningful might be impossible. Not to mention that the cartridge has to connect the "CIRAM" pins to decide whether the internal VRAM is used or the cartridge provides its own. Without a cartridge bridging that connection in some way you basically have no nametable memory either.
@@vuurniacsquarewave5091Oh god… Now I wanna see just what could be done with only the 2K of ram…
@@NesHacker Sounds should work just fine, but even that's out of the question for the Famicom, which needs the cartridge to complete the circuit and tie the audio output and the input pins together.
This is so good!
Imagine going back in time and watching this as a kid in the late 80s.
Honestly, I wouldn't have understood it.
On a pretty deep level I think I make these videos to delight eight year old inner child :)
@@NesHacker Which is prob the same logic why I love your content :D
The amount of subscribers you have is so criminally low. A lot of "millionaire" channels don't have a fraction of this juicy quality that your videos do. Seriously amazing stuff; and educating, too (even though I'm too stupid to understand like 99% of it).
Well… hopefully I can keep bringing the content and the channel will grow super big someday. I think a lot of 1M+ channels refocus on growth which means targeting more general audiences and eventually “dumbing down” the content. My hope is that the quality and content of my videos can continue to carry me, without having to resort to such tactics :)
New to your channel. Can't wait to see more.
Well you’re in luck cause I am working on the next video right now 😊
@@NesHacker I still have my power glove in the box, and power pad.
Really COOL VIDEO!😎👍
Thanks for watching!
a breakdown of the nes-001 would be great
Good stuff
YES PLEASE make a expansion port video
I've fixed a lot of NES back in my time but I didn't needed to know that much, the majority of defects were in the voltage regulator 7805 by overheating it and that chip is present in every retro consoles so I was easy to find and replace, that's before parts were easy to buy online or at a near store
Throughout summer 2022, I have opened a few Famicom consoles and one NES console. I even did a mod that allowed cartridge audio (but I only tested with my Everdrive N8 Pro).
I just got over a cold and I am now dealing with a dog that has diarrhea. I’m having to lay awake. Waiting for the vet to open.
But I have this video and it is making my night so much better
Very nice.
I noticed you didn't talk much about the RF box... but it's got the bridge rectifier and the 7805 regulator in there too.
Even if you mod your console to output HDMI or component video, you can't just rip the RF box out without replacing the 5V circuit that feeds in and out of those thick chunky pins.
I fabbed up a PCB a couple years ago that takes a USB type A cable, it seems to fit nicely in the square hole where the barrel plug used to go, and solders back up to the original pins.
Yeah I am pretty crap with power electronics in general, so I chose to leave it the deep dive for a future episode while focusing on the digital electronics which I have a much better grasp on.
I should totally do my homework and make a follow up though.
More things to note:
They can be from either Alps or Mitsumi.
They do not use the same quality capacitors, which often fail.
The capacitors used by Nintendo on the main PCB rarely fail.
lol, the sneaky dremel was a nice touch.
I love that shot 😆
I would love a video on the expansion port. I know it wasn't officially used, but are there any 3rd party accessories new or old that used it?
I would love to see an expansion port video.
Thanks!
Try aligning the cartridge tray while the board is outside of the case. It's much easier that way. All you have to do is make sure that the loading tray is flush and holes centered on the main board to ensure proper alignment. Once that is done then put two screws into the back position, one on each side of the 72 pin connector to buckle it down before putting into the case. This is pretty much how they were assembled on the line.
Nice 👍🏻
I'm crying of joy ! 🤓
Yes. Please make a video about the 001 extension port.
I love this channel
D’awww shucks 🥹
yes!! extension port video!! what is / was/ possibility, intention for??
Not too sure if you know this but that cartridge elevator has a tab on the front that slides underneath the motherboard. You shouldn't need to mess around with those screws if you have that tab under the board.
Hm, well yes it does slip on like that, but the tightness and balance of the screws definitely affects the ability for games to easily play.
@@NesHacker Yeah? Hmm. I tighten mine down like any other screw and it always works first try. This is with perfectly clean games and with an OEM 72 pin connector that I re-bent the pins on to put them back to as close to factory as possible.
@@NesHacker I had my cartridge slot improperly on and I found fiddling with the screw tightness did the same thing until I realized my error when I watched some how-to video a ways back on how to rebuild an NES. If your cartridge slot is perfectly flush with the board making sure the tab is secured (not sandwiched between the connector and the motherboard at the end, it's supposed to wrap around) you may find that you don't need to "tune" it anymore. You may want to update your video to include this detail
@@werdsupAh heck, well you can’t really update videos on UA-cam. Maybe I could do a short about it? 🤔
@@NesHacker good idea! I was thinking you could annotate the video but this issue probably warrants its own coverage
I installed a Blinking Light Win in my NES years ago. Games boot up every time and no need to push down the cartridge anymore. 👍
That shirt is dope AF.
Where have you been all my life!? Seriously! This is some of the best sh*t I've seen. Anywhere. Keep it up and expect a Patreon subscription in a not too distant future. Thanks so much
This was very interesting, except I have a Japanese Famicom, so I would think there are some differences with that system(not the main components ofc though). I usually do a tear down of the systems I get but I haven't with the Famicom yet as it was sold as refurbished and AV modded and so didn't want to mess around with it lol(and it does run great too).
Having had an Atari 2600, Odyssey 2 and Atari 5200 prior to the launch of the NES, the NES was simply mind blowing to us at the time of release.
Yeah, no offense to those other systems… But the graphics, sound, and games for the NES were just out of this world in comparison.
Someone's 35 year old NES is now famous.
I have never seen this guy before but my first impression is man this guy looks smart
I remember my uncle coming over to modify my NES to accept a 13 in one game. Worked great!
Please make an extension port video!
These non-smd components look so cute )))
Haha 😂
"I bought a cheap maybe working NES on Ebay"
This dude has a great sense of humor.
In retrospect, there's a lot of screwing around in this episode :|
Can you do an NES Explained video on each opcode used in NES assembly?
Hmmm a whole video is on each opcode would be tough, cause there’s not that much to explain. A video that does all the op codes might be too long and dry for most viewers.
But how about a series of shorts that describes them all?
@@NesHacker You're probably right that a full video for each opcode would be too short, and again that a video containing every opcode would be too long. But I don't believe the shorts format is conducive to learning. What you've described would probably be a good reference material (even if I disagree with the format on principal due to the fact that it's often used manipulatively). However, I was hoping for something that explained not only what each opcode does in a vacuum, but also how they interact - examples of how they can be used in different situations. This would provide a greater frame of reference for NES assembly as a whole.
What about a series containing full length videos about categories of related opcodes?
Good thing that Famicom and NES-101 exist. This cartridge connector is more troublesome than I thought.
Viewers may wonder why the NES is so large compared to the board it contains. Maybe it has something to do with part availability, something just stuck out and it wasn't practical to make it smaller. Or maybe it had to do with plans for future internal expansion. Or maybe it was a heat exchange thing. Or maybe . . .
Nope. It was just big because they thought it would sell better if it looked more like a VCR, and those were big. That's also why they called it an "entertainment system" instead of a video game console. See, it wasn't a video game, it was a multifunctional entertainment suite with games, toys, painting programs, and more! OK, actually it only really played games in the U.S. (The Japanese Family Computer (Famicom), which was the _right_ size for its board, did get some weird peripherals like a modem that allowed you to buy, and sell stock (?!?), but these were never released in the U.S. and are technically not compatible with the NES, though some very minor changes allows them to connect.) But it was important for marketing, because the video game crash of 1983 had made U.S. distributors unwilling to sell or market video consoles. In 1985, many electronics gurus insisted that video games were a dying fad, so a new console was a hard sell in the American market. Hence R.O.B. the robot and other silly novelties, as well as the VCR-sized NES and what Tom7 calls "the SUV of cartridges" (NES cartridges are enormous for no good reason).
All that said, the NES is still superior to the Famicom in two important ways: its controllers were not wired directly to the console but could be unplugged, and their cords were much longer. That first one is big; I can't understand how they thought hardwired controllers were ever acceptable. I guess it was a different time.
Yeah I touch upon this in the CIC video from last year :)
Congratulations
The big problem with the cart tray is the tab on the bottom that needs to go under the system board. Unless you're mindful of that tab, it's very easy for it to end up on the top side and cause problems like what you were showing, all the way to the tray not even being able to lock down. This is due to the fact that the once you start tightening it down, you warp the cart tray. You shouldn't have any issue just tightening the screws on the tray down snug as long as you've got that tab under the board, your 72-pin connector is working properly... as well as the game.
Yeah that seems to be the case, though I’ve not done too much experimenting with my systems. I’m gonna mess with it some more and do a follow up since this wasn’t entirely clear to me when I made the video. Thanks for letting folks know! 😀
@@NesHacker No problem. I remember when I opened up my first NES back in the 90s and had all these problems after putting it back together and just kinda' dealt with it. Wasn't until I couldn't stand it anymore and figured I screwed something up, opened it up and found that darn tab.
What is the small portable TV that you connect the NES to to test it?
yes
Indeed
1:11 I swear I heard "are longer than the claw of a predator" (thinking of a velociraptor's claw)
Do you know much about the Atari 7800? Would love to know about that console from a fellow nerd!
Wow. Bangin' ass video. Looking forward to more.
Can you make a video covering the sega genesis, I know asm but I'm unfamiliar with the hardware itself
I’m honestly considering doing one soon, that thing is such a beast 😂
wait what about the lock out chip? I've heard if you cut a certian leg also helps with games working better on troublesome NES consoles.
Kinda but it’s a bit more complicated. It will definitely disable the CIC but honestly having clean carts and connectors does much more to remedy the issue. I’ve got a video planned where I show how to disable the chip without snipping leads or doing permanent damage as well, so keep an eye out :)
Probably inverters are used as amplifiers to protect chips?
4:44 This 7404 have something to do with the jail bars (vertical lines) issue on the Famicom. Because Famicom do not have this chip and greatly suffers this video issue , and NES doesn't. I traced the pin 22 on PPU on the Famicom it goes directly to the 5V , and in the NES it goes to that 7404 chip :) and this is next to the pin 21 the video output
On NES-101 the jailbars are due to the composite video traces from Pin 21 passing under the CPU where it picks up digital switching noise. IIRC, the HVC-001 Famicom had this problem too. The HVC-101 AV Famicom was eventually updated with the CPU and PPU positions reversed but early units had this same issue. An extremely rare version of the NES-101 with AV output instead of RF also has this fix but it seems it was only offered as a replacement to some Nintendo customers who complained about the NES-101 video quality.
NES Extension Port...... Yes, yes 🧿
You may want to put your Patreon link on your videos. :-)
Oops! I usually do, I’ll fix it when I get home 😂
Dude, where did you get that shirt?
No clue, I've had it for years
Hello..I have a collection of nes...I made the rgb mod on two of them and still managed to put snes control.If I connect two processors in parallel, like one on top of the other?? Can I improve performance ??? Is it possible??
Nope.
Bit confused on the reasoning behind the inverters of the controller ports. Id have just inverted the voltage signaling on the controllers themself
Yeah I was thinking about this the other day and I think they did it that way because the original Famicom had controllers that were hard soldered into the console. So they chose to put the inverters on the console board instead of the controllers and the design carried over when they reworked the system for the American market and made the controllers detachable.
High Quality
Only the best grade A content for my viewers 😉
Both hardware and software hacking is a thing you have to experience, especially as a retro lover. And I guess it’s just like owning classic cars, at some point you need to get out a screw driver to keep it going.
Yeah the biggest difference about owning classic cars is that it’s probably *way* more expensive 😆
@@NesHacker I guess so... I am not a car guy :D
I’m a little new here I know what a GPU is but what is PPU
Picture Processing Unit. It’s a single chip that handles generates graphics based on the data that gets set in the systems video memory along with the character data as provided by a carts character RAM or ROM. If you want to learn more, check out my “NES Graphics Explained” and “NES Carts Explained” videos 😀
Imaging somebody make a complete new motherboard of PCBWay and complete new cpu and ppu and vram/sram chips for the NES
FYI for anyone who wants to bench-power an NES: It uses 9v AC, not DC. I'm not sure about this, but I think it's possible to damage an NES if you feed it DC into the barrel jack.
1:22 what kind of monitor is that?
Check the video description, I have an Amazon link to that exact monitor in there. If you use that link and purchase one, it helps support the channel :)
SNES next?
Don’t tempt me, I got lost for 20 minutes reading tech specs for the snes and genesis today when I should have been working on the next video 😆
The nes is like the model-T of cars.