Installation Guide For The NESRGB Board.

Additional details about NESRGB version 4.

Download and print the NES wiring diagram.

Some notes about the recommended RGB connector.

Some tools and materials are required

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Stage I: Remove PPU.

More info on desoldering the PPU is here on a separate page.

Removing the PPU is the most diffcult part of the installation. Here I describe a method using solder wick and a solder sucker. If you have access to a desoldering iron I recommend using it instead as it is by far the easiest way to remove ICs from plated through boards. Alternatively, I have heard that a head gun or SMT rework station can be used to successfully remove the PPU, but be careful not to overheat the board this way.

1. Pull apart NES and retrieve motherboard from inside. Identify the PPU chip. The PAL version is marked RP2C07, the NTSC version is RP2C02. It has to come out without damage to the chip or the board. The board is double sided with through plated holes.

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Use solder wick to remove solder from the legs of the PPU on the top side of the board.

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Use a solder sucker to remove the remaining solder from the bottom of the board. You will probably find it difficult to remove the solder from pins 14-17. That's because they are connected to a large copper plane which conducts the heat away from the solder joint. Skip these for pins for now. Remove the solder from all the others. Test that each pin moves freely in the hole before moving to the next one.

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Add lots of fresh solder to pins 14-17. Heat them all up at once and pull out the PPU out while the joints are molten. Be careful not to damage the pins of the PPU. Do not use excessive force. If another pin does not want to move, add extra solder then remove it again with solder wick/sucker.

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Stage II. Prepare NESRGB board.

** Note that the type of IC sockets and switch included with the kit has changed since this installation guide was first created. The older style is still visible is some pictures.

1. Open package and check everything.

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The following parts are included with the kit for the front loading NES.


2. Insert 40 pin socket into NES motherboard. Solder.

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3. Solder the two strips of round pin headers onto the NESRGB board. The best way (not pictured) is to insert the pin headers into the socket on the motherboard, then place the NESRGB board on top and solder in place. The way the pins will be perfectly aligned. Be careful to solder the pins into the correct position.

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4. Straighten PPU pins with pliers if necessary.

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5. Insert PPU and solder into place on the board. Do not put the PPU into a socket as there is not enough space (height) available for it to fit. Double check to make sure the PPU is in the right way around!

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6. Attempt to insert NESRGB board into socket on the motherboard, only to find there are some capacitors blocking the way.

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7. In this particular motherboard revision the two blue electrolytic capacitors (located at my middle finger) are in the way. Heat up their solder joints and pull them out a bit then lie them flat against the motherboard.

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8. Insert the NESRGB board uninhibited.

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If you have an NTSC version NES you should solder jumper J5. If you have a PAL version NES, you need to solder jumpers J4 and J7.


Stage III. Solder wires.

1. Cut, strip, and tin lots of wires to a length of 250mm. One length fits all. Use thicker wires for power and ground connections.

2. Solder wires to the voltage regulator. Check the wiring diagram for details. Both ground wires must be soldered - one is for the NESRGB board and other for connection to the internal NES voltage regulator.

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2. Solder wires to the switch, audio, and video connector board. Do not solder the video connector to the video connector board yet.

4. Wire up everything according to the wiring diagram. Don't forget to set the solder jumpers as required. The wiring diagram shows the wiring for a four position palette switch. The wring information for the three position switch is here.

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Stage IV. Mechanical.

1. Drill a 6mm hole for the audio connector. The audio connector is a 3.5mm jack socket which is designed to be mounted on a 2mm thick panel. The walls of the NES are approx. 3mm thick so in order to mount it you must recess the hole. Simply use a larger twist drill bit and turn with your hand a few times.

2. Drill a 12mm hole for the video connector. You must use a step drill bit for this hole. Plan the location of your holes carefully to avoid damaging the screw boss while drilling.

 22-holes.jpg (24108 bytes)  23-jack-hole-recess.jpg (27103 bytes)

3. Glue the video connector into position in the 12mm hole with epoxy. Once the glue has set solder the video connector board on. Make sure the pin label board is soldered on the right way around. The connector goes on the side with the circle.

4. Mount the voltage regulator board in a convenient location. Use a high speed cutting tool to cut a hole for the palette switch (optional).

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Change Log
30/8/2022 - Added link at the top for NESRGB4.
2/1/2016 - Added link to three position palette switch wiring details.
18/1/2014 - Rewrote seps 2 and 3 of stange II.
23/10/2013 - Fixed PPU part numbers.
20/10/2013 - Added paragraph about removing the PPU.
17/10/2013 - Created.