Assembled ChImp. Need help modding a Round 1 TE stick

Tech Talk
1

EDIT: After slaving over this mod and getting some help from a friend, I have done it. I officially have a dual-modded stick but with one issue:

The guide button is broken (or rather I accidently ripped off the part of the PCB that leads the guide button for the chip). This isn’t so bad on the PS3 side of things as Start+Select = Home. Unfortunately there is no alternative on the 360 side of things.

Lessons learned from this mod:

  1. Use stranded wire. Solid wire is great when you only have scissors as your wire stripper, but it becomes annoying when its to stiff to move.
  2. Extra hands are better. More people make the mod go by faster. Although hopefully I’ll be able to do this mod on my own next time.
  3. Careful when dealing with the 360 PCB again. I broke my guide button when part of the wiring for the PCB broke.

Thank you for everyone that helped me though the journey. Hopefully next time I do this mod (which I plan to do), I won’t break my guide button (and actually manage to solder the Home button to it properly) and it will be a lot easier.

2

Dual modding is considerably cheaper (and much more space effective) than owning two sticks. Not to mention, a dual-modded stick is much easier to carry around to a friends place. A ChImp board (a board that gives you both Ps3 functionality and an automatic 360/ps3 autodetection switch, though you WILL need a 360 board, either gutted from a madcatz controller/fightpad/TE/SE, etc.) You can buy the ChImp as a $30 kit @ lizardlick, or $45 assembled. I personally recommend the kit, but soldering is required… Another advantage is allowing you to use your custom high-quality sanwa/seimitsu items “twice,” which can easily run you $50?90 a stick.

Another awesome kit to check out to learn how to solder is?http://www.amazon.com/Elenco-AmeriKit-Learn-Solder-Kit/dp/B0009Z3JJA

It’s only about $13, and all you need is a set of pliers and a 9V to test it afterwards (Soldering iron included! I personally use the soldering iron from the kit myself!) You’ll need to buy some additional wire, but there’s enough leftover solder from the kit that you may be able to mod your stick afterwards.

I personally don’t know the prices on TEs. I prefer the SE, since I only want the box and the board.

Modding sticks isn’t terribly hard. Switching out pushbuttons or joysticks is mostly screw/unscrew. The hardest part is the dual system mod. There’s plenty of guides online, and around SRK, plus there’s plenty of members willing to lend a helping hand. You can always ask around. They’ve helped me a lot =) One video/walthrough you may find helpful is:
http://pineconeattack.com/2009/08/06/how-to-mod-the-madcatz-fight-stick-with-seimitsu-parts/

The video has all you need to see about switching out parts without modifying much else. It’s at the bottom of the page.

The SE tends to be avoided because the stock parts aren’t too amazing. TEs are nice in size for lots of art, but I prefer the SE because I’m going to throw out the stock parts, and since all I need is a box and the 360 board, there’s no need for the extra price tag. Not to mention, you can print out the art as a home-job on most 8.5x11 QUALITY paper. Just stick, cut, and laminate. It all is really preference, though. The TEs are great unmodded, probably pushing up the preference quite a bit.

All-in-all, soldering is required. Minimally, this is the guide to look at: http://www.donovanmyers.com/2010/02/dual-mod-a-mad-catz-fightstick-tournament-edition-using-toodles-chimp/

Some soldering will always be required with the dual-system mod, but I think if you get your feet wet with soldering and realize how easy it actually is, you’ll be like me, and would rather save on the kit rather than ordering it pre-assembled.

Think of soldering like metallic hot-glue gunning. You have an iron, and solder. You apply the heat to the solder, melting it. Now, melt it over holes in a circuit board, sticking and binding the wire/passive component (Such as capacitors, resistors, etc), Integrated circuit (“chips”), etc. to a circuit board. And you can always desolder, as well. You just need a desoldering pump/braided copper wire. You just melt the old metal on the board, and place a braided wire next to it, or suck it away with a pump. Really, I just suggest you get your feet wet with the kit above. You’ll realize how easy it is. A decent soldering iron only runs about $8, and it comes with one, so ~$5 is well worth every penny to learn an invaluable skill.

I know I didn’t answer all of your questions, but I hope this helps. :slight_smile:

3

I’m looking into Chimp’ing my SE stick also, but one thing that’s always bothered me was - where on earth would I place the Chimp board to? Loads of TE guides around, but I can’t find any showing me how to Chimp an SE, it’s a cramp box so I’m not sure where to put it after all the soldering. I’d like to use the assembled kit, but I’m thinking the screw racks would make it too big for the SE?

4

I suppose I can try to learn to solder this summer, it can’t hurt to try anyways. In the end I was more intimated by trying to solder.

Is the soldering kit you mentioned in your quote the actual soldering iron you use? If that’s the case, I think i will buy this and give it a shot.

If I plan to go with the Chimp (since I doubt I’ll need multi-platform support), what else would I need if I plan to dual-mod my 360 Round 1 TE stick? (what other tools, wires, etc)

That guide ( http://www.donovanmyers.com/2010/02/dual-mod-a-mad-catz-fightstick-tournament-edition-using-toodles-chimp/ ) seems great. However, it doesn’t go into 100% detail in certain parts. Is there a guide that will literally walk me through every single step of the way?

5

There a place where i can send my hori ex 2 (xbox 360) to be modded for ps3?

6

I haven’t done very much soldering myself either other than modding my original xbox. But from what I’ve read on the forums, the procedure isn’t as difficulty as it seems. I guess you’ll need to take each step slowly and fully understand each step that you are doing. In this site ( http://www.donovanmyers.com/2010/02/dual-mod-a-mad-catz-fightstick-tournament-edition-using-toodles-chimp/ ) I find pretty informative in what needs to be done to install the ChImp, aswell as Bomberman’s guide.

I’m still waiting on my two orders of ChImp boards from Lizardlick.com, can not wait till it arrives!!

Now if only I can figure out how to work this damn photoshop and make that Juri picture to work!!! uuuughhh!!:mad:

7

@gamerkim28?Yes, that is the iron I personally use. It’s really all you need. And soldering is a lot easier than you’d think. I was intimidated by it myself, but just follow the guide provided, and you’ll be soldering in no time =).

As far as other guides go, I really don’t have much. There is also an attached document with the ChImp. I understand you’re gonna want as much data as possible. It’s not terribly difficult. All you need besides the ChImp kit/assembled chimp is some basic soldering supplies: Soldering iron, solder, desoldering pump or braided copper, pliers, wire cutters/strippers, wire(Preferably multicoloered if you’ve got it. It just makes it easier to determine the connections. But electricity doesn’t know the difference between colors.) Most of this will be with your kit. You’ll just need some wire, solder and maybe some desoldering equipment (You should have leftover braided copper wire if you use the kit). You’ll have to remove the original USB wire from the 360 circuit board, then solder that to the ChImp.

@Airan?The TE and SE use the same circuit board. Solder the ChImp as if it’s to the TE in any guide. It should likely fit. I don’t like the screw terminals at all. I prefer to solder directly to the ChImp board. You should be able to fit it with the screws. There’s quite a bit of room in there. If all else fails, just pack wires together and get zip ties. Tying the wires together will clean things up considerably.

@Battosai?Look in the trading outlet forum, or make a post. I’m sure there are some SRK members who will gladly do the mod for you. If you don’t have a ChImp board, it’ll bump up your cost some, but a lot of modders will be happy to provide for you. Just be careful, and look for a good positive rep.

8

Soldering is easy. You should be able to find some YouTube videos on it. Make sure you pick up one with a good needle for precise soldering.

The solder will melt onto the needles, and then you just lift and point the needle onto the surface and it will harden up as it drips off the needle (since it’s hot, it is in liquid form on it).

I personally followed the stuff Donovan did on that tutorial. What parts did he not follow from your reading?

9

Wow, you solder way differently than me. Though, I’m glad you spoke up, I think I’ll have to give this a try next time, XD. Prolly would be useful on ICs, since you can’t keep heat on those too long. I just place the solder onto the point , heat it up with the iron, and let it form onto the point. Though, I like this technique should I ever need my other hand.

10

Yeah I have a solder needle, not even a gun, I hold it like a pencil and unfortunately I don’t have any magnifying glass, I had to get pretty close to look at the sections to solder. I have the cheap $5-8 solder kit from Radioshack, does the job well.

I learned that technique you described too when I was younger and they made me take a metal sheet cutting class in HS as a freshman elective. But I found that just letting the small and right amount of solder for your circuit areas simmer on the tip and then just dropping it onto the point worked pretty good for me, otherwise I would not have a lot of space to work with since the other connection points are SO close togther.

11

True, true. I’ve come with some close encounters with circuit boards. However, I also had to desolder, so, it wasn’t too nice.

Yeah, I just use a soldering iron that came with the kit I got to learn. It’s old faithful for me. Gotta love it.

Metal sheet cutting class as a freshman! I WANT THIS CLASS AND SCHOOL! I am so jealous ToT.

12

Mostly the actual points to solder. I feel like the guide already knows what and where you exactly need to solder. For example, I have not idea what the guide is talking about when he talks about soldering the USB cables to both PCB’s (along with the buttons). I seriously do not where where I should solder the wires to.

Also, I wish he would go into more detail about the solderless trick. I understand the method, but not what to do with the wires afterward? I don’t even know which trick and wire to use for the given mod that I am doing. In any case, I’d like to know how to solder them anyways because (as mentioned in the video) it seems pretty ineffective and I want to go all the way and do a neat soldering job to guarantee good connections.

Maybe more of this guide will make sense when I actually have everything with me and actually try it, but I can’t help but have questions, you know?
In other words: I need to be spoon feed me to entire way. I have no idea what I’m doing.

13

I suggest you just wait until Phreakazoid187 releases the TEasy mod. It should save you a bunch of time and headaches.

14

Okay, basic USB lesson: There are four wires to USB: Ground (Black) 5V (Red), Data- (White), Data + (Green). These are the only wires directly soldered to the board in the 360. PCB is short for Printed Circuit Board, btw. You have to remove these form the 360 board, as these are the “output” wires of the 360. You then need to solder these to the “Output” of the chimp, meaning the data is coming from the chimp board, allowing it to “intercept” the signals from the 360 board, which then outputs it to the USB. That’s kind of what happens in laymen’s terms.

I think it does become much easier when you have everything, but I don’t want to waste your money. If you have a friend who is handy in soldering and circuitry, I suggest you have them help you. You could also look for someone who’s a technician in the area, but that could cost some money, too. If there’s an easier mod coming out and soon (citing above), I’d suggest maybe looking into it.

All-in-All, you just need a little experience, methinks. Soldering isn’t scary or hard.

Oh, also, if you’re familiar with PCBs, you’ll be pretty familiar with what to solder together. The ChImp is very clearly labeled. Look at the board itself: http://www.lizardlick.com/images/chimp_kit.jpg (It’s much easier to read without the screw terminals in the way, another reason I prefer the kit instead of the preassembled board)

Ignore the middle portion, that’s just the area for the passive components/integrated circuits to be soldered on, which will already be attached if you buy it pre-assembled. Also ignore the parts that are to be soldered on in the top of the image. If you look at the right side of the picture, you can see it says “Wht D-, Red-5V, Blk G, Grn D+” These are the points that the USB wire going out to the Xbox/Ps3. If you look at the rest, you can see the holes around the top and bottom edges correspond to buttons that you can prolly figure. Home, Sta, Sel, etc. (Aside from 1P, 2P, 3K, etc, these are like 1P being []/x 1k being X/a) Don’t worry or mess with VCC. This is only for even more advanced mods, such as LED lights. Also, the XD± next to the four USB “output” wires is where Data+ and Data- are going to be connected to your 360 PCB.

^But as noted, it helps to be able to really see what you’re working with. Toodles really made his Circuit boards easy to work with.

I hope I’m helping you some. Experience always outweighs advice, in my opinion. I know it’s intimidating if you’ve never worked with circuits or wiring before

15

You know I just saw the post about the TEasy mod. That thing looks pretty sick.

However, I would actually have to wait on it. I kind of want to immediately get started on this and not to mention that I’d like to learn solder while I’m at it.

I guess I’ll wait on the TEasy mod as it has piqued my interest. Make a decision when it finally gets released with some guides out.

16

The biggest mistake you can make when learning how to solder is getting a soldering iron that’s too hot. Do yourself a favor and get a 15-20w. I started off with a 40w and burned my fingers far too much.

Gave up on it, met someone who taught me how and it became clock work.

17

I was like you, and got into soldering myself a lot due to modding. It just takes some practice and experience, honestly. Get your hands into it, and a circuit board isn’t too scary anymore. That’s just my opinion. XD

And impatience is a virtue, too. You can learn it the hard way before the easy way comes out ;D.

EDIT: Agreed with gl0ry. the 25 watter with the kit I mentioned is more than enough. 40w is just overpowering. Not to mention, it can damage ICs if they’re exposed to so much heat for an extended period of time.

EDIT, Round 2: Also, I mentioned about soldering the USB cable outwards. You won’t be able to do this if you order it pre-assembled with the USB jack out, this wont be necessary. However, if you do this, you won’t be able to use the original cable. You’ll need a USB A/B cable, a “printer cable.” It’s one less thing to solder, but your original cord that is in the TE will be useless. It’s not really THAT big of a time saver, considering you have to pay extra for the USB jack, then buy another cable, and you’ll still have to desolder the original and connect the 360 to the ChImp. Since you’ll have the original USB cable lying around, you might as well use it!

18

Couldn’t I splice 2 USB cables together? Like mentioned in the TEasy mod video?

Get another printer cable cut off one end and unsolder the stock USB cable and splice together. (Not saying this is cost efficient, just wondering if its possible)

At this point, I’m not sure if I want to jump into it. I do want to learn how to solder in general though. Gah, decisions, decisions.

19

http://a.yfrog.com/img214/7899/chimpmadcatz.png

20

^ The most comprehensive guide (Though effective). I don’t exactly understand what you mean with “splicing,” but it’s not really necessary, plus you’ll kill a printer cable. I’ll look up the video, but, it really seems not needed. I honestly don’t know, but you really don’t need to.

I’ll try to make a simplified diagram of that. I’ll be chimping a SE soon, once I get a 360 SE (Amazon delivery not even shipped. Lizardlick delivery shipped yesterday. Both were ordered on Tuesday. And Lizardlick is only a state away. XD) I’ll make a video. Was already planning on it, but I hope to make one just a little different ^^