The RetroPi

[rygD]

And a short 5 - 10cm USB cable connects the Retrode2 with the Raspberry Pi.

You guys aren't using the GPIO? That seems kinda sloppy to be brutally honest.
EDIT: bandwidth looks like it might be an issue, roms are pretty big

I do like the case though, and the fact it gives those without much electrical knowledge to use the retro-pi project with a classic controller without having to purchase or wire one into the pi's GPIO port.

Only addition would be maybe make room to mount a 2.5" drive and sata adapter on the bottom somewhere? Would be cool to have an emulator system that could store your library in addition to running carts. Glaring omission from the retron IMO.

I'm still running the B+ and need an upgrade to the pi2 so I will probably be picking one up.

SD cards would work better for me since I use them in my Pandora and Everdrives.  Couldn't you just use a USB port?  I don't have a Pi, so pardon my ignorance.  Do they have a way to directly connect SATA drives?
Edit: added quote.

 

[WizardStan]

The whole point of the Retrode (and by extension the RetroPi) is that it plays original cartridges. There's a million and one devices with mass storage that can plug into your TV already.

If you want to store ROMs just use an external hard drive on USB, or buy a bigger SD card.

 

[rygD]

That is where things get a bit hazy for me.  I prefer using all original hardware, and I use Everdrives so that I reduce the wear and tear on everything.  I view the RetroPi as a self contained ROM dumper with the bonus of emulation capabilities for testing, and making it easier to transfer/back up those ROM images elsewhere.  

Perhaps how I would use it is why I am not more excited.  It fits the opposite of my preference by having original carts run through an emulator.  It is still something I would get if I had any spare money right now. 

Also, if WizardStan was directing the above reply to me, I don't need higher capacity SD cards.  I still have plenty of room left over on all of the ones I use for gaming and my Pandora.

 

[SNESFAN]

The whole point of the Retrode (and by extension the RetroPi) is that it plays original cartridges. There's a million and one devices with mass storage that can plug into your TV already.


If you want to store ROMs just use an external hard drive on USB, or buy a bigger SD card.

I'm not saying a spot for internal HDD is truely needed to have a useful product, just that it would be a cool addition if it didn't cost much if anything to add the space/mounting for it is all. Just having the ability to have it would be a good addition.

The only other real improvement I had suggested doesn't look possible due to technical limitations.

See http://shield.nvidia.com/android-tv it doesn't *need* the internal HDD to function as designed, you can always just use a external HDD, or USB drive, or sdcard as well. But it's nice to know they fit in a place for it, say you wanted to preform the upgrade yourself at a later date if you had the desire to do so.

I don't want to incriminate myself so I'll speak theoretically. I imagine there are some people out there that play a mix between real physical carts that they actually own and roms of ones they don't. Some of those people might also have a sizeable library that doesn't fit on affordable removable storeage and might require upwards of 1 TB for their library. When you get into all the systems retropi/retroarch is capable of emulating, it's not limited to the systems the retrode is capable of hooking carts into is essentially the point of having the option of having a significant storage option. Having that option internal would make the whole system look cleaner.

Looks like there is a small surplus of physical space in this thing due to the mismatch sizes of the components and this is one way some of that space could be utilized.

 

[ingoreis]

But...have you so much Snes and Genesis Roms that they dont Fit onto a 256GB USB Stick?


Or are you from the People who want to have all you can get and never realy play?


For me a 16GB Stick is enough for all exept the Playstation Emulation comes to the RetroPi too

 

[SNESFAN]

A USB drive would work, as would lots of other solutions.

I have lots of games I don't play very often and some I've yet to play. Is that the reason to deny a somewhat simple and what I would imagine a low cost request?

Playstation, Mame, sega cd, and dosbox can all have some significant storage requirements.

 

[gadgetoid]

I'm in the process of modifying a Megadrive to include a Pi and a somewhat brutally hacked PCB from an original Gold-Brick Retrode. ( I dremeled cuts in the side/corner of the PCB to fit it around the plastic posts in the Megadrive ). I removed the USB port from the Retrode PCB and soldered a cable directly to it- the USB port wouldn't fit around the cartridge slot, so it had to go. So internally I'm just routing a regular USB cable from the Retrode to the Pi.

One thing that bugs me- loading ROMs from cartridges is a little sluggish. I plan to write a script which caches the ROM dump and loads that instead where available. Since there will be no UI ( it will boot straight into the emulator and the reset button will fake a reset and reload the emulator with whatever cartridge is inserted ) I wont have the luxury of manually sifting through ROMs.

I'm slightly nuts, and am attempting to create something almost identical in appearance and function to an original Megadrive. I even soldered an RF modulator onto a Pi so that the original SEGA RF video cable works...

Anyway! I digress- I don't know if any of the challenges I face, or code I write, will be useful to this project- but I love the idea and it's something I've been wanting to happen for a while. There's a lot of interest in console emulation on the Pi, and even a simple feature like supporting classic controllers is pretty cool.

I'd still panel mount two of the USB ports on the front of such a product, though, for XBox 360 controllers and/or those SNES knock-offs with USB connectors on.

 

[rygD]

This may be a bit off topic, but have any of you current retrode owners tried to back up save files from a Game Boy Camera?  I know there are other options that might be a bit cheaper and better, however the Retrode/RetroPi has a lot more to offer, including a way to play my Genesis/Megadrive games since my Genesis has been misplaced.

 

[gadgetoid]

I "broke" my GBA/N64 adaptor- by soldering the N64 port on first so that soldering the GBA port was basically impossible.

 

[rygD]

Although it won't allow you to play GBA games, of which I used to have a ton, a Super Game Boy should work for playing GB/C games.  I use mine sometimes, usually for special features.  I wonder how it would work for my Camera back up I was asking about.  That might make a Retrode cheaper than a single purpose device for GB stuff.

Has the RetroPi kickstarter started?

 

[EvilDragon]

@Gadgetoid:

Did you already use the Retrode with the Pi2?

Right now, starting with Firmware 0.18, controllers are not found within the emulationstation (only with a 0.17), but N64 joypads need at least 0.18.

Also, transfer rate is only 46.5kb/s on the Pi2 (instead of the 350kb/s which the Retrode normally does), have you looked into this and found a solution?

Would be great if you did and let me know, otherwise, I need to try to find that out myself (I've got a few leads, but need to test).

 

[EvilDragon]

Has the RetroPi kickstarter started?

Not yet, got a bit of delay waiting for the final case design.

 

[fusion_power]

Has the RetroPi kickstarter started?

Not yet, got a bit of delay waiting for the final case design.

After monitoring tons of KS campaigns I recommend: before go life, please check and double check the perks! You can't change there anything if the campaign has started. And don't overdo "stretch goals", less is more there. ^^"

 

[EvilDragon]

No worries, we'll keep it as simple as possible.

 

[gadgetoid]

@Gadgetoid:


Also, transfer rate is only 46.5kb/s on the Pi2 (instead of the 350kb/s which the Retrode normally does), have you looked into this and found a solution?

I did wonder why it was so agonisingly slow. I'll have to look into this if I find the time.

IIRC I used keyboard mode to get my MegaDrive pads working in EmulationStation, it didn't seem easy to configure controllers. This is why I'll be connecting straight to GPIO in my final build for simplicities sake- although I imagine you'll be wanting to use the Retrode 2 PCB to handle that rather than designing another board.

Do you have any plans to sell all the cartridge and controller slot parts you use in the Retrode? I also tried to get hold of the original BRD/SCH files for the original Retrode so I could make myself a custom one, but Matthias is hard to get in touch with these days!

As someone who's in the process of finishing an active Kickstarter project- it'll always take longer than you expect it to take, even if you plan for it to take longer than you expect it to take

 

[Adr990]

Really stoked about this project.

Checking every day for the KS, good to see some progress.

So, is there a option to buy the custom RPi 2 case you made and Retrode (including all adapters available) via Kickstarter, without the RPi2?

Then I can already order a RPi2 to mess around with it, or even the Retrode right now with adapters if the KS is only for the case?

Edit:

"I'm planning to sell the case alone, the case including the Retrode2 PCB and the fully assembled case incl. the Raspberry Pi as well."

Ah I see.

Could you also add a option in the KS for the complete set, RPi2, Retrode2, custom case ,with all plugins?

 

[EvilDragon]

I asked the Kickstarter team - I cannot include the Raspberry2 in m y pledges, as it's not our product. Can only offer case, plugins and the Retrode in any combination.

 

[Adr990]

I asked the Kickstarter team - I cannot include the Raspberry2 in m y pledges, as it's not our product. Can only offer case, plugins and the Retrode in any combination.

That's fine with me.

Then I'll just order a RPi 2 right now already to play with it.

 

[gadgetoid]

I asked the Kickstarter team - I cannot include the Raspberry2 in m y pledges, as it's not our product. Can only offer case, plugins and the Retrode in any combination.

Kickstarter make up the rules as they go along. There's an active Kickstarter at the moment including one of our products. And Kano, a huge and successful Kickstarter, basically WAS the Pi with a keyboard and mouse, and they didn't take issue with that either. And those are just the ones off the top of my head.

What's a bigger deal is that the margins on Pi 2 basically don't exist, probably even less so if you stocked them to include in a Kickstarter, so it just wouldn't make any financial sense to include it.

We don't sell a Pi without a case or a kit, because we basically have to. Good ol' Jamie over at The Pi Hut does, though, and I recommend him for prospective Pi-buyers: http://thepihut.com/collections/raspberry-pi/products/raspberry-pi-2-model-b

Are you planning to stock Pi on DragonBox.de? And possibly accessories?

 

[EvilDragon]

Here is the RetroPi prototype.

It's a nice small retro gaming console

As you can see, all ports of the Raspberry Pi are easily accessible (even the MicroSD Slot), but they are well hidden when the device stands beneath your TV.

You can also still use the Retrode on your PC or use the Raspberry Pi as PC on your normal monitor