View Full Version : Millenium Falcon Dreamcast
ptr.exe
February 25th, 2005, 16:47
Whilst bored searching google i found the legendary millenium falcon xbox, now this really impressed me and i wondered how they had fitted a console so big in such a small space, then i remembered i have a very similar toy, so after some looking i found it and as it's not vintage but made in '86 its worthless, so ive decided to do a DC millenium falcon with a spare DC i just bought.
So i gutted the MF to make enough room, took the boards and GD-rom out of the DC and tried to see how i could arrange them and ahve come to a conclusion - they won't fit. How the hell did he fit a huge xbox with a large front loading tray and i cant fit a small flip-top DC??
I'm still gonna do it but im gonna have to do something with the MF to make more room inside, in the xbox pics it looks like the MF is raised off the floor more than usual so i'll probably do that and put some of the stuff underneath where it wont be seen.
I'll post pics as i get along.
Oh and as for the other post about my front-loading DC ive left it for now in favour of this.
Darksaviour69
February 25th, 2005, 17:01
sounds like a cool project
Mental2k
February 26th, 2005, 22:53
I concur.
Geeky film, dead console, and yet we find both cool. How sad are we ;D Sad and proud!
ptr.exe
February 27th, 2005, 14:59
yeah i think this is the project that is finally gonna push me over the edge from 'into games' to 'sad games geek', oh well :)
EDIT: I just found that the xbox mf is more than twice as big as the one im using so at least mine will be alot smaller, but still a rip off of somebodies idea ::)
wraggster
February 27th, 2005, 16:04
from a star wars fan :)
Id love to see it
Eric
February 27th, 2005, 16:09
Its a very interesting idea and i find a lot of video game geeks love Star Trek and Star Wars so this is going to be a big one for those geeks
Mental2k
February 27th, 2005, 19:12
hmmm... could you put it inside a starship enterprise... ;)
quzar
February 27th, 2005, 19:30
I hope you mean '96 not '86 cause '86 would be a rotj falcon as oppoesd to kenner falcon
ptr.exe
February 27th, 2005, 21:02
I hope you mean '96 not '86 cause '86 would be a rotj falcon as oppoesd to kenner falcon
Sorry yeah i meant '95 and its made by 'lewis gallob toys' i assumed its worthless, please dont tell me its worth something as ive already gutted the insides and cut the bottom out to fit the mobo in. Already had an electric shock from the mains today should really be more careful.
As for the enterprise one it would be far to small in any model ive ever seen to do, but that would be cool.
Also ive got a circuit that makes sounds from the mf, it makes the laser sounds and ive wired it up to two blue leds in the gun turret on top so the lights flash in time with the sound, i was thinking having it turn on for a couple of seconds whenever the DC is first turned on, or possibly when a controller is plugged in.
Also im happy to see people like the idea :)
Mental2k
March 1st, 2005, 15:05
Now you'll have to post a vide of it running, once its all finished.
ptr.exe
March 1st, 2005, 18:56
Yeah, i'll post a video once im done :) which will be quite a while as im stuck for time between a-levels and actually playing games.
This is harder than i first thought, i thought it would be a simple put in case add few bits and do a decent paint job but it's get increasingly more irritating to fit the DC mobo into it, the mf just isnt wide enough. The DC mobo only just fits but then because i need to put it below in an extended bottom the 'legs' of the mf are in the way so i've had to hack them off and move them further apart which doesnt look great now but the paint will cover the fact that the plastic doesn't match.
I'll post a pic soon of the DC mobo and stuff fitting snuggly into the mf body.
EDIT:
Right i didnt want to post again so i'll just add to this one.
Ive made enough room for the DC mobo to fit and the mf is cut perfectly now i need to make the housing that will sit underneath the mf with the mobo in. heres a really basic mspaint pic of where everything is gonna sit.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/dcmf.jpg
Hopefully that explains where everything will sit
ptr.exe
March 23rd, 2005, 16:29
ive finally got round to doing some work on this project, i havent been on this forum in a couple of weeks either, nice to see a new look :)
Ive got some pics of the inside of the millenium falcon casing with the mobo sitting snugly in the newly built housing. If your on 56k, as i am, it will take about five minutes for this to load.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/mf1.jpg
^^This pic shows the mobo sitting in the bottom half of the mf toy with the clear housing around it.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/mf2.jpg
^^ this shows the GD-Rom assembly and although you cant see it its sitting on a new plastic mobo shield.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/mf4.jpg
^^This is the same, but with a BoR disc on the GD-Rom, which was kindly sent to me from another forum member but i havent been able to say thanks since the PM message was deleted in the transition to the new forum. So thanks to you :)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/mf3.jpg
^^This is the top of the mf toy fitted on, and you can see the disc through the gap. I'll cut out a ring in the top and add a spring set-up to make it flip top, and i'll fill in that gap and add the mf gun and radar.
Hope someone finds those remotely interesting :)
Theres still a couple of things i need to do such as solder to the mobo AV out a couple of wires that can link up to a standard AV out on the side of the mf, and maybe a built in VGA.
Paint the top, the toy as you can see looks very plasticy so i'll be spraying it the proper grey yellow-ish colour and adding more detail. Such as colour wash in the cracks.
Also does anyone know what the third wire on the fan does? it would really help as i dont want to have to break it to find out and no sites have a pinout for the controller board it connects to or the fan. I know its probably just a return of the +ve voltage to tell the DC the fan is connected as a safety precaution. Does anyone know for sure?
i'll post another update soon with pics of the flip top lid and lighting hopefully if maplins ever get some blue LEDs in stock.
Darksaviour69
March 23rd, 2005, 17:17
looking good
ptr.exe
March 23rd, 2005, 18:42
thanks DS69, obviously no-one else thinks so, why do i bother? :)
It looks pretty messy at the moment, but once its all fitted and finished it'll look much better.
Also, i forgot for the last post; need to do something with heat sinks, because with the new mobo shield being plastic (no heatsinks) and the lowered section of the mobo housing theres gonna be next to no cooling as air will flow straight over, need to think of something. Would really help if i could find out what the 3rd pin does on the fan.
wraggster
March 23rd, 2005, 18:50
star wars fans will love to see their console inside a millenium falcon ;)
ptr.exe
March 23rd, 2005, 19:03
yeah, hopefully as i want to sell it once im done, i enjoy making it but dont really have the room to keep it as theres no space under/ontop/around my tv for anymore consoles.
I'll probably put it on eBay with a starting bid of £49.99 that should cover the materials, and DC. Someone must be interested especially if i do a good paint job on it.
scrabbus
March 24th, 2005, 10:28
hey that is a piece of work my friend, never be dis heartened I've been a cartoonist for many years, tastes change etc, but as long as you stay true to your original idea you will do just fine. I also sculpt so if you were looking for any part, comm dishes, laser turrets etc, I would be happy to mould you some.
Mental2k
March 24th, 2005, 12:51
hey ptr, didnt see this thread had progressed, nice job, cant wait to see it finished. Post on a few forums that you're selling it on ebayer first to drum up a little interest eh?
ptr.exe
March 24th, 2005, 18:39
scrabbus, i actually need a comm. dish as the one from the toy is missing, if you could make it for me that would be ace. What sort of measurements would you need? radius of base, height?
what sort of cartoons? i wish i could draw... :(
Thanks M2K, it hasnt moved on much but at least its a start, it took me ages to get the main board to fit inside that tiny toy.
EDIT: I hate maplins. went there today for a few small parts, LED's, solder, serial ribbon etc. after waiting at the component desk for 15 minutes with staff saying i'll be with you in a moment and then disappearing for ages, someone finally serves me i tell him the code he says its in stock then disappears for ages comes back and said there arent any. It's probably not the staff's fault but maplins stores never have stock.
Mental2k
March 29th, 2005, 15:49
i know i said drum up support ptr, but the-force.net? You are gonna make a mint on this thing!
ptr.exe
March 30th, 2005, 16:23
Yeah, hopefully :)
I'm slightly annoyed though that no-one mentioned those pics were of a work in progress, most people must be thinking it looks pretty weak. Oh well still cool that it got posted at all :D
Thanks to Wraggster as both links on the sites are due to his/her news post.
UPDATE: Really need a site that has decent pinouts for the a/v port on the back as i know what pins are C Video and L/R sound, and can find pins on the board to solder to for CVideo and L sound but cant find a pin on the mobo for R sound as the pin disappears under the socket.
Maplins still dont have any blue LED's in stock.
Having alot of trouble trying to make room for the a/v socket on the bottom so you can plug in vga and other stuff, don't want the DC to just have composite connections that im soldering on.
Still cant figure out what the 3rd wire does on the fan, its not a speed control or a return of ground or +ve to tell the DC its connected, cant figure out what it is.
Also any ideas for a custom controller? maybe a paintjob or some sort of stuff added to it to match the mf DC.
Darksaviour69
March 31st, 2005, 13:37
7400 views for this topic,thats a record!, the next highest is Sold My Psp!!!!!!!!!!!!!
http://www.dcemu.co.uk/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=23565#post23565
with a mere 1590 follow by
VMU Backup CD v1.0.0 Released, 1254
ptr.exe
March 31st, 2005, 16:04
Cool! although alot of thanks should go to wraggster as him posting it in the news section led to many sites posting links and generated alot of interest.
shame not many replies though, will probably post pic later today with more stuff added.
ptr.exe
April 1st, 2005, 18:05
Finally got round to buying spare bits from Maplin and putting the flip-top mechanism on the mf. So heres a couple of pics, as always they are no where near finished and stuff is likely to change.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/mf6.jpg
^^ This pic shows the insides and pretty much all the bits that will be in the final product, excluding a/v outs and several more leds.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/DCmf7.jpg
^^ This pic is a close up of the insides, you can see the speaker and circuit i spoke of earlier that makes millenium falcon sounds, this will be wired to the lid detector switch so when you put in a disc it sounds and the lights flash (there will of course be a switch to turn this off as it could get annoying :p )
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/mf-blue.jpg
^^ Sorry this isnt the best pic but it shows the blue led shining through the fan at the front. It also shows the flip top lid from a lower level, im working on a better lid mechanism as the lid doesnt lift up enough.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/mf5.jpg
^^ This is a good pic to show the flip-top lid that i just added, with a DreamSNES CD-R in it. You can see the blue LED shining through the fan at the front but its not very bright due to the flash and i wired it to the 3.3V instead of the 5V just incase as im not sure of the LEDs max voltage.
Hopefully those pics help give an idea of what the final product will look like, especially the last one.
Theres still some major things to do:
1) Fill in the gap in the lid and attach the gun, and wire up the leds to use in the gun.
2) Sort out the mechanism so it opens slightly further. The one i used was from a scrapped CD player and doesnt work very well.
3) Put a clear white LED where the cockpit is, get some fine wire mesh for the back and put several VERY bright blue LEDs for the millenium falcons engines.
4) Paint the mf adding alot of detail.
5) Attach the controller port front to the millenium falcon, and cut the holes. Also get a longer ribbon to go from the controller board to the mobo.
Hope that someone finds this update interesting :)
EDIT: Sorry those pics are too large, i'll try to make them smaller.
Darksaviour69
April 4th, 2005, 12:11
very nice, keep up the work
ptr.exe
April 4th, 2005, 21:59
Yeah cheers, posted links on a couple of forums and im getting very mixed responses, some people think its cool, some say ive just ripped off the xbox Millenium Falcon (which i suppose is true) some just say that its crap and so is Dreamcast, you can guess what's their console of choice...
Zherae
April 5th, 2005, 02:35
That's flippin great, screw the naysayers. Can't wait to see it with the controller ports.
Mental2k
April 6th, 2005, 00:18
can it fly?;)
ptr.exe
April 6th, 2005, 14:52
can it fly?
Im working on it :D
It's going pretty well at the moment, and im considering over-clocking it if i can get some better cooling.
Also does anyone know of a guide for a VGA board that doesnt involve an IC chip as ive seen one but can't remember where and i cant find the IC that the other guide uses. Any help would be really useful.
RangerGuy
April 8th, 2005, 00:21
Yes, it is quite impressive.
FrierTuck
April 8th, 2005, 22:38
you should write a step by step guide, huge starwars/DC fans would love to make their own
ptr.exe
April 9th, 2005, 15:14
good idea FrierTuck, i was considering doing it buti thought it wouldnt be very useful as people will most likely use differant models of Millenium Falcon, but yeah i'll probably make a short tutorial outlining possible problems and any ideas i had, but not specific to the model of mf.
UPDATE:
I'm considering overclocking this DC if i can think of a way to get enough cooling down to where to CPU is, then this DC really will fly M2K :)
Mental2k
April 10th, 2005, 18:42
lol, ride on man, to the deathstar!
ptr.exe
April 11th, 2005, 17:19
Small Update:
people seem to be interested in where the controller ports will go, as several people have asked me on other forums so here are the controller ports cut into the side of the Millenium Falcon Dreamcast:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/MF-DCController.jpg
And this is without the top, showing the board fitted on.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/MF-DCController2.jpg
Also if anyone has any cool ideas of mods to add to this project i'd be very happy to hear them :)
Thanks.
pezza
April 12th, 2005, 00:45
I got the idea of the X-Falcon from the pc-falcon before it, so I don't see the dc falcon as a rip off at all, besides a dc is completely different to an xbox in design and it's a different falcon. Getting ideas from other ideas is what the mod scene is all about. Looking good ptr, i like the flip top!
Pez.
pezza
April 12th, 2005, 23:32
Here be my take on a Dreamcast Falcon.
saw this in Toys R us a while back and instantly thought it looked like good DC material.
Tiz almost finished, just need to cover the PSU with summin before I fry mid game swap.
was a real nightmare to make, the pad port ribbon being short doesn't help! 40 wire extension sorted that out, also dunno about anyone else but my DC always overheated after a long haul so the 3 fans should sort that out too.
hopefully will post a how to on my site soon if peeps r interested.
for a few pics see below.
console pics (http://www.darkops.co.uk)
FrierTuck
April 13th, 2005, 03:12
awesome, Dreamcast Falcon Pezza, it looks reslly cool
ptr.exe
April 13th, 2005, 15:14
Pezza, could you post those pics as i cant see them, i downloaded the files and that but still cant see them. Post them on the forum?
pezza
April 14th, 2005, 00:20
PTR, try this again m8.
pics (http://www.darkops.co.uk)
ptr.exe
April 17th, 2005, 16:27
Pezza, i can see those pics thanks :)
Thats one impressive piece of kit, if mine is half as good id be well pleased.
UPDATE:
Started a small fire trying to find a longer replacement for the controller to mobo ribbon aparently the people at the shop failed to tell me the ribbon couldnt have more than 2V going through it.
Sorry the pics are quite dark but the batteries ahd almost died so the flash was dim.
Heres the power button fitted:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/mf13Powerbutton.jpg
and heres the back 'engine' with fine mesh and some blue LEDs behind:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/mf11Engine.jpg
Im basically done now with the insides, apart from adding VGA and overclocking so now only have to work on the aesthetics like adding the LEDs and painting certain parts.
pezza
April 17th, 2005, 23:08
dude, that looks the bizniz, that top loader will be red hot! lovin it so far!.
Pez.
Jdemon
April 18th, 2005, 03:03
Most Impressive!!!!!
rcgamer
May 12th, 2005, 06:37
I'll revive this thread just to say that that is probably the coolest console ever . did you get it completely finished?
ptr.exe
May 12th, 2005, 20:47
no still working on it, due to oncoming exams i havent had time to do much but after the exams it will have my full attention. at the moment ive been doing bits to it;
i have added VGA and composite outputs. ive replaced the blue engine LEDs with blue cold cathodes. added the fan blowing directly down to the mobo area. made a custom star wars controller to go with it - will post pics soon.
Also the overclock is out of the window in favour of doing it to my standard DC.
I'll probably update with pictures in a few weeks.
ptr.exe
May 16th, 2005, 17:24
heres some pics of the star wars controller to go with it...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/mf15Controller.jpg
and it plugged into a DC and lit up...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/mf14controllerlitup.jpg
Basically its some clear plastic and fitted into the controller with two blue leds behind it taking power from the VMU port, although when saving the VMU needs more power so i fitted the button in the top of the contoller that you press to turn the leds off.
Darksaviour69
May 16th, 2005, 17:28
cool
ptr.exe
May 19th, 2005, 17:01
cool
not really, i'm pretty dissapointed with the outcome.
Also the mobo has completely blown due to bad wiring on the VGA causing a short, i'm gonna have to buy a new DC. I'm getting tired of this mod.
slak
May 27th, 2005, 00:35
not really, i'm pretty dissapointed with the outcome.
Also the mobo has completely blown due to bad wiring on the VGA causing a short, i'm gonna have to buy a new DC. I'm getting tired of this mod.
NOOO NOO NOOO! Don't quit the project! I think it all looks class! Believe me, if I had the dosh I'd make you an offer right now! If you promote in the right places & right forums and then list it on e-bay then you will make a MINT - or even if you just wanna keep it yourself, or give it to a Dreamcast fan ;) heehee. But not seriously, I know it must be well hard finding time with exams (I'm doing AS at the minute and trying to re-create my entire retro game project website, so I know it aint easy lol) but in a few weeks maybe time will become available?!
Sorry man, don't wanna seem like I'm tellin you what to do :o Just REALLY impressed by the work you've done so far :p Well done :D
ptr.exe
May 27th, 2005, 16:43
Im doing AS too :) there going okay so i will most likely start sometime soon, ive thought alot about this project and have decided to carry on as theres not much to do.
Im gonna make a differant controller that one looks crap.
Cap'n 1time
May 27th, 2005, 16:56
What exactly is that panel made from? perhapes you could spray point the whole of the controller and that panel with some thing similare to the dirty white look of the Falcon. It appears that the panel is a little glossy, could you sand it down to remove some of the gloss?
ptr.exe
May 28th, 2005, 14:16
The panel is made from clear polystyrene plastic, you can buy sheets of it from hardware shops for fairly cheap, its good stuff as you can use it for almost everything.
Yeah, i think the main reason i dont like it is the colour, i'll buy some matt grey closer to the colour of falcon, i'll start again as that controller is messed up.
ptr.exe
June 24th, 2005, 20:43
Just to once again let people know that this project isnt dead, its going okay i havent really done much with it for a while but all hardware is together, everything is fully fitted, just wanna adjust a few things and add another fan. I decided to use blue cold cathodes for the 'engine' lights, they look much better than the LEDs. Also redesigned the flip top mechanism for the 4th time as it was a bit sticky.
Dreambox
June 25th, 2005, 00:48
sweet i cant wait to see your finished product/mod!
Cross
June 25th, 2005, 02:04
I love it so far, don't quit or if u do send it this way, I'll give ya some cash for it. I did not know that u could O/C the dreamcast, it seems I need to research this as a side note and take mine apart. I never had a reason to but the enterprise idea is a good one and I was thinking of doing it either to the NCC-1701 D or the B, I really want the B but finding a model of that...not sure I can. Anyway keep this going!!!
ptr.exe
July 10th, 2005, 16:01
Probably the last update until i finally get round to putting everything together.
I painted the top first with an undercoat of grey then a sort of darker grey then masked off patches and did dark grey bits and light greay bits, then painted in the dark red sections and finished with a wash to give it that dirty battered look.
I will now definately overclock this dreamcast to 252Mhz, ive also greatly improved cooling for such a small case, the fan is now mounted on the side blowing air directly over the SH-4 and PVR2 and then out through concealed vents on the front.
I'll put the whole thing together and get some better pictures in a few weeks, it will then be finished.
ptr.exe
July 10th, 2005, 16:04
Probably the last update until i finally get round to putting everything together.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/m16Paintedtop.jpg
I painted the top first with an undercoat of grey then a sort of darker grey then masked off patches and did dark grey bits and light greay bits, then painted in the dark red sections and finished with a wash to give it that dirty battered look.
I will now definately overclock this dreamcast to 252Mhz, ive also greatly improved cooling for such a small case, the fan is now mounted on the bottom far side blowing air directly over the SH-4 and PVR2 and then out through concealed vents on the front.
I'll put the whole thing together and get some better pictures in a few weeks, it will then be finished.
Shiaoran
July 25th, 2005, 19:24
I once made a Mega Drive (Genesis) MF ^^
it was simple, I just put the MD in there, cut a hole for the joystick in the front, a hole for the power and the tv cable, a hole for the power, a hole for the reset and a big hole for the cartidge.
but yours is a real mod ^^
leggy
August 21st, 2005, 16:37
Just read the thread all the way through.
What a cool project!!
I wish I could do that.
ptr.exe
December 22nd, 2005, 14:07
Just realised i havent actually posted any final pics, i finished this ages ago and posted the pics over at dcemulation.com, i'll post them here when i get time.
ptr.exe
December 22nd, 2005, 14:15
i just remembered they were on photobucket, here are the finished pics:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/flip-topopen.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/cold-cathodes.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/headlights.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v651/ptrlynch/topMFDC.jpg
I'm currently working on a Sega Saturn project, i'll post once its done.
Darksaviour69
December 22nd, 2005, 14:40
wow, thats cool
Tomlo
March 6th, 2006, 04:58
Amazing work, now im thinking of what I could shove a sega console into...
Erghize
March 11th, 2006, 18:59
You could place it within an ATX PC case and then add an ISA Bus? :P
dc.hack
June 5th, 2006, 10:03
Thats frickin awesome.
GagaMan
June 5th, 2006, 13:55
Bloody Brilliant.
ptr.exe
June 12th, 2006, 17:21
You could place it within an ATX PC case and then add an ISA Bus? :P
I wanted to do something similar to that, put the DC inside my case along with my PC, then make a front loading DC drive that would go into one of the 5.25" bays, then attach the video out of the DC to the video-in of my TV card. I could play DC in a window on my PC :D
The main problem was getting the drive assembly to front load, I've managed to destroy two DC laser setups trying this - with some limited results - games will load but will often freeze on load screens as it's unable to read disc :(
I finish my A Levels in two weeks :D SO I'll have more time to do all the mods I've wanted to do for ages.
If I ever get round to it I'll post results here first :)
abeisgreat
October 4th, 2006, 19:16
a front loading dreamcast would ROCK!!!!!
port12345
May 10th, 2014, 04:50
yes i imagine this is often a opportunity which can be in the long run planning to thrust all people over the region through 'into games' to 'sad gaming games geek', oh yea correctly.
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