Ive always wanted to do a console-pc mod. Ive seen dozens of NES pc mods, but only a few Playstation 1 mods, including this one from years ago and this recent one on this forum which is using a netbook motherboard.
The mod has to be the following
This is the hardware im using for this build.
DH61AG
The Motherboard was chosen as it is a Slim mini Itx motherboard, its much more low profile than the standard mini itx form factor and takes laptop ram lying down which will improve airflow. It also has two mini Pcie slots which i will be using for the wifi card and a Solid State Drive for faster booting, also reducing clutter inside the case. It also takes a standard Dell or HP laptop power supply which keeps more things outside the case. The i3 2015 CPU was chosen for the HD3000 graphics, as there is no room for a discreet card inside the playstation, the HD3000 is the best i can do, and should allow for PS1 and PS2 emulation, as well as some other basic games. I am concerned about heat in the case so i may have to underclock it.
As for the actual playstation, im using a 9000 series, which is the last model of playstation released before the psone. Its important to use this model as it lacks the removable slot for the parallel port on the back, which will make for easy cutting of the rear panel.
Heres the Unit i picked up second hand, was told its been chipped and it doesnt work. Which is good because i dont want to have to gut a working console. Its a bit grubby but will do fine as the first one is just a proof of concept, when i figure out how to put it together ill buy one in better condition.
Gutted, will need to do a lot of cutting to get rid of all the standoffs and walls and things, the 170mm board will only just fit.
Just bought a dremel, my first powertool. Cut away everything inside, looking a bit rough.
The motherboard fits okay but the controller block will have to be cut down quite a bit.
ok now it fits, Ive trimmed back most of the controller block. However one of the USB headers will not be usable, i may have to clip it if i want to hookup a usb converter to the ps ports.
Because of the lid mechanisim, theres only one place in the playstation that it can fit so these two bits can slide between the ports on the motherboard.
Ive had to cut heaps out to fit it in the case, but now that i know how it will fit i can get it right with the second one. as i said above, its just a proof of concept at this stage.
Im going to purchase another Playstation, this time cutting a hole to match the slim itx io shield. Alternatively i may forget the io shield and cut specific holes for each port. Since its such a tight fit, the ports stick out a bit too far which might make the io shield impossible to fit. Im probably going to go through a few playstations on this one.
One problem at this stage, because the placement of the cpu is right under the indented part of the cd tray, i cant fit the low profile cpu cooler i bought. The GELID Slim Silence i-plus is 28mm high but is about 5mm too tall for this case, will have to try something different. Looking for suggestions for cooling solutions, passive or otherwise, under 24mm.
Edited by Chewielewis - 2/25/12 at 9:01pm
The mod has to be the following
- Able to stream HD material and play it out accurately
- Able to run OSX and windows (will probably be using windows for emulation but i prefer OSX)
- Able to Emulate PS1 and PS2 games at HD resolution.
- Have only HDMI and Power connected in the back, no external hard drives, dongles, wifi antenne
- It must look Stock (At least from the front)
- Be able to play DVD's (And potentially Blu Ray in the future)
- Front connectors must be able to be connected with original Playstation controllers.
This is the hardware im using for this build.
- Intel DH61AG Slim Mini-ITX motherboard
$177 @ Amazon
- 4GB DDR3 SO-DIMM Ram ~$20
- Intel Core i3 2105
- BCM94322MC Half Mini PciE Wifi card $17.50 @ Ebay
- Dell Laptop Power Supply 150w
- Intel 310 Series 40GB SSD mSATA $94 @ Newegg
- LiteOn ETAU208 Top Load DVD writer
DH61AG
The Motherboard was chosen as it is a Slim mini Itx motherboard, its much more low profile than the standard mini itx form factor and takes laptop ram lying down which will improve airflow. It also has two mini Pcie slots which i will be using for the wifi card and a Solid State Drive for faster booting, also reducing clutter inside the case. It also takes a standard Dell or HP laptop power supply which keeps more things outside the case. The i3 2015 CPU was chosen for the HD3000 graphics, as there is no room for a discreet card inside the playstation, the HD3000 is the best i can do, and should allow for PS1 and PS2 emulation, as well as some other basic games. I am concerned about heat in the case so i may have to underclock it.
As for the actual playstation, im using a 9000 series, which is the last model of playstation released before the psone. Its important to use this model as it lacks the removable slot for the parallel port on the back, which will make for easy cutting of the rear panel.
Heres the Unit i picked up second hand, was told its been chipped and it doesnt work. Which is good because i dont want to have to gut a working console. Its a bit grubby but will do fine as the first one is just a proof of concept, when i figure out how to put it together ill buy one in better condition.
Gutted, will need to do a lot of cutting to get rid of all the standoffs and walls and things, the 170mm board will only just fit.
Just bought a dremel, my first powertool. Cut away everything inside, looking a bit rough.
The motherboard fits okay but the controller block will have to be cut down quite a bit.
ok now it fits, Ive trimmed back most of the controller block. However one of the USB headers will not be usable, i may have to clip it if i want to hookup a usb converter to the ps ports.
Because of the lid mechanisim, theres only one place in the playstation that it can fit so these two bits can slide between the ports on the motherboard.
Ive had to cut heaps out to fit it in the case, but now that i know how it will fit i can get it right with the second one. as i said above, its just a proof of concept at this stage.
Im going to purchase another Playstation, this time cutting a hole to match the slim itx io shield. Alternatively i may forget the io shield and cut specific holes for each port. Since its such a tight fit, the ports stick out a bit too far which might make the io shield impossible to fit. Im probably going to go through a few playstations on this one.
One problem at this stage, because the placement of the cpu is right under the indented part of the cd tray, i cant fit the low profile cpu cooler i bought. The GELID Slim Silence i-plus is 28mm high but is about 5mm too tall for this case, will have to try something different. Looking for suggestions for cooling solutions, passive or otherwise, under 24mm.
Edited by Chewielewis - 2/25/12 at 9:01pm
