Famicom Classic Mini Controller Port Mod

[TPR]

Yesterday I installed a controller port mod on my Famicom Classic so that I can use any of the NES Classic compatible controllers. Here are the instructions I followed:

Below are a few photos and here's the description for them:

1. The Famicom Classic does not have a "controller port" on it like the NES Classic does, so if you want to connect either an NES or SNES controller to the Famicom Classic, you can't without doing this mod.

2. Just like the original 1980s Famicom, the Classic comes with the controllers hard-wired into the console. And I mean hard wired. It's not a controller port inside the case, they are attached via a connector right on the board!

3. Another reason for doing the mod is that, keeping in with the theme of having the console be "mini" in order for the controllers to fit into the slots on the sides, just like the original console, the controllers also had to be shrunk down, which makes them almost unusable. They are "cute" absoultely, but not practical for playing games.

4. That being said, I used one of the left over extension cord connectors to convert the mini Famicom controller so that I can plug it in and use it if I ever wanted to. Interestingly enough, these controllers ONLY work on the Famicom console and not on the NES mini.

5. And now with this mod, I can use any number of controllers are compatible with the NES Classic connector including a number of controllers that were released for the Wii!

Thanks for reading!

 

[godslabrat]

I'm very perplexed at the lack of consistency in controller compatibility between Wii, Wii-U, NES Classic, and now FC Mini. They should all work but for some reason they don't..

[TPR]

I'm very perplexed at the lack of consistency in controller compatibility between Wii, Wii-U, NES Classic, and now FC Mini. They should all work but for some reason they don't..

 

They all seem to work just fine on the NES Mini and even on the Famicom with the mod. The Famicom controller has one less wire than the NES classic so I'm assuming that has something to do with why it is not compatible with the others.

 

I'm wondering if anyone has ever done a mod to an original full-sized Famicom controller to work with the Famicom mini? Hmm.....

[TPR]

Update! I swapped out the guts of an NES Classic Controller with an original Famicom controller and BAM! Now I have a full-sized Famicom controller attached to my Famicom Mini! It was almost too easy to swap the PCB. Took me less than five minutes since the guts of the original Famicom & NES controllers are the same, and the newer NES classic controllers are based on the 1985 original controllers, the board worked! No problem!

While I love the "mini" version of the Famicom controller (photo on the right) you can see it's just too small to be practical.

[Shawn]

The extra slack on the cords the way you did it versus the way the guy did it in the video looks much nicer IMO. Having a little more cord to play with makes it look like it's meant to be there instead of just tacked (hacked) on there. Nice job. Really digging the full size famicom controller mod too.

[TPR]

The extra slack on the cords the way you did it versus the way the guy did it in the video looks much nicer IMO. Having a little more cord to play with makes it look like it's meant to be there instead of just tacked (hacked) on there. Nice job. Really digging the full size famicom controller mod too.

 

Thanks!

 

I did that for exactly the reasons you said. While I get that they wanted to replicate the original console with the mini, I feel as though they should have released it with a controller port as a "compromise" to be able to use other controllers with it. The way I modded it is how, IMO, I feel the original should have been made. And when you put my modded version with an original version side by side, you can't even really tell which is which. Adding that bit of slack still makes it look like the controllers are "hard wired" into the machine, even though they are not....

[+save2600]

Neat! Will be nice to see adapters made for other consoles sometime too. Wouldn't mind using brand new SNES mini controllers on systems like oh, I don't know... the 7800 and PC Engine maybe.