Super Genintari 4-in-1 Console - Nintendo, SEGA, and Atari

SuperGenintari is the latest mega-console mod by Richard DaLuz, a perfectcocktail of Atari 2600, Nintendo Entertainment System, Genesis andSuper NES enclosed in a retro-'80s bronze acrylic case, "formed andshaped on a homemade stript heater." It connects to a TV using a singlecable, running four games simultaneously, and probably cooksbread with the generated heat—like the video shows after the jump. Wetalked with Richard about his superconsole mod:galleryPost('supergenintari', 3, '');
Jesús Díaz: Great mix and cool retro look. Are these regular motherboards you are using?
Richard DaLuz: The systems inside the Super Genintari aren'tanything you have to special-order. They're all the same old systemsmyself and many others grew up with through the '80s/'90s and regularlyfind floating around at garage sales to this day.
I used the beloved old gray and white "toaster" NES board, a model 3Sega Genesis, the smaller redesigned SNES and an Atari Flashback 2 forthe 2600 portion, since it's much smaller and easier to work with thanretrofitting the original board from the '70s. It's still officialreworked Atari hardware and completely compatible as far as I know, soall is well. The basic rule was that if any of the systems couldn'tplay ANY game I threw at it, it was out. I tend to avoid the muchsmaller "pirate/clone" systems for this reason.
JD: You didn't have to do any modifications to the boards to make them fit?
RD: The only board I really had to do any "major" modificationto was the NES, and that was just a simple A/V amplifier mod usingparts that can easily be found at any Radioshack for pennies. Otherthan that, just a lot of tedious rewiring and soldering to relocate thecartridge connectors.
JD: You have any background in electronics?
RD: Believe it or not, very little! I took one class way back inhigh school that basically just taught me how to operate a solderingiron without burning myself and/or others. (I still can't even tell youwhat the hell Ohm's Law is without Googling it.) Other than that I haveno official training. Just a lot of dinking around by myself, findingout what works and what doesn't. It's an area that I've been curiousabout since I was a kid and still have yet to pursue professionally.This should be inspiring news to anyone else that's interested in thiskind of stuff.
JD: What was the final bill for this wonderconsole?
RD: Mmm. You'd have to shell out whatever the going rate is forthe four different consoles, plus about $50 or so for the casingmaterials, adhesives, machine screws and whatnot. Easily a couplehundred bucks if you're starting with nothing. But that's assuming youalready have access to the necessary tools you'd need.(Soldering/desoldering irons, screw drivers, clamps, wiring, etc.) Iended up spending much more than that considering how many changes Imade along the way though and that's something you have to considerwhen you're doing this kind of work. Nothing ever goes according toplan and the ole' wallet ends up taking the hit.
JD: And for how long have you been working on it?
RD: As far as what it's cost me in time... my God, I don't evenknow where to begin. I've been working on this damn thing on and offsince early 2002! Granted I've taken many "sanity breaks" for severalmonths at a time during the process and changed many things along theway, but that's still a long freakin' time. It's hard to come up with afigure for the time I've put into this thing, but know this... Iwouldn't allow myself to part with it for less that a few thousand. I'mpretty sure this thing literally has my blood in it somewhere!
According to Richard, the system is very easy to hook up. Just oneA/V cable is needed and you don't have to depend on any externaltransformer: he put all the necessary power in the case itself. Playingwith it is as easy as the video shows: just plug in, put the cartridgesin, turn the Super Genintari on, and enjoy.