popsicle Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 For years I've been wanting to build some sort of homage to the Intellivision, and I've finally gotten around to making it happen. I have two Flashback units that went bad, so I had controllers to put to use. ByteKnight's Flashback upgrade was tempting, but I wanted to do this myself with a proper pc and contained monitor. Aside from the Ultimate PC Interface ($60) and miscellaneous paint/screws/angle iron, the rest was made from left over wood, plexi, an old XP computer and LCD monitor. Most notably, The black laminated particle board pieces that I mounted the monitor and motherboard to were from an old cd tower or something and were already cut to a workable length. Since I had four of these identical boards, I used them as the width dimensions for the build. Wood stain on the top, brown paint to match the controllers on the sides and front, and acrylic gold paint for the angle iron. It runs the very stable and accurate JzIntv emulator, and all functions (start, exit, pause, scroll) are mapped to the player one controller. The Ultimate PC Interface was a bit tricky to get working at first, but I'm very happy with the result. I've enjoyed discovering some of the excellent homebrew labors of love along with some old classics that I was unfamiliar with as a kid. My kids love playing Snafu, Utopia, Body Slam Super Pro Wrestling, and Shark! Shark! I am a huge fan of Cloudy Mountain and Tarmin, but never got a chance to learn Tower of Doom. Excited! I've ordered a gold plated plaque with the logo for the front drawer face, which has a magnetic double=push latch. Overlays and instruction manuals can be kept here with the controllers when it is not being used. The front end is a custom Mala background with a screenshot and the overlay image appearing in the controller graphic. Still need to put a proper back on it. 16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fushek Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 That is awesome! Gotta have that wood grain look to it. Very nicely done ... much kudos! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+fdr4prez Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 Pretty neat stuff. Where is the audio coming out of? I don't see any speakers anywhere Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Humblejack Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 Now this is what I'm talkin bout..... One of the best post on AA I've ever seen. Well I guess now I will be doing something simular.(In a few years maybe). Great stuff, thanks for the post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
popsicle Posted June 20, 2017 Author Share Posted June 20, 2017 Pretty neat stuff. Where is the audio coming out of? I don't see any speakers anywhere Thanks! I took some crappy pc speakers out of their plastic case so they were thinner. They are facing out the back on the bottom of the back of the cab. You can see them in the bottom left pic. There is a vertical shelf sandwiched in between the speakers and the cubby portion where the controllers sit inside. I originally had mounted the Ultimate PC interface wires through this so the controllers could plug in to this 'wall', but was worried about strain on them being pulled, so I instead left a bit of Ultimate wire through the holes so there was some give where the controllers plug into it (in case of rough play or a snag or something). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keatah Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 As the leading authority on emulator goodness I will have to think about it for a while. I will let you know if it passes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GenetixJ Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 Very cool man! I hope it brings you years of joy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HunterZero Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 It has to be asked - How did you manage to kill two Flashback units? - J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Byte Knight Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 Very cool - the Macintellivision! Thanks for posting your design! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
popsicle Posted June 20, 2017 Author Share Posted June 20, 2017 It has to be asked - How did you manage to kill two Flashback units? - J It's actually strange, because they were never misused. One just stopped sending any kind of signal. I checked all solder points, looked for cracks, broken wires with no luck. The other starts up but all controller buttons are gooned. Side buttons don't work (can't start game), can only move down on menu. I checked for stuck buttons, swapped out controllers with the old unit, etc. I can't figure either out 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+JasonlikesINTV Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 That's one sexy set up Thanks for sharing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr_me Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 (edited) I appreciate the photos. It's always great to turn junk into something awesome. Using an old Windows computer gives you lots of flexibility. The only downside is the power it consumes. I like how you have the screen shot and overlay in the game preview. I don't think you can do that with EmulationStation. Edited June 20, 2017 by mr_me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+nanochess Posted June 20, 2017 Share Posted June 20, 2017 I like it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrekMD Posted June 21, 2017 Share Posted June 21, 2017 Oh, that is absolutely cool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
popsicle Posted June 29, 2017 Author Share Posted June 29, 2017 A few minor updates -Added the logo plate for the front panel -Changed the fan cover to be black to better match the design -Replaced the top gold rail to one without screws to keep it smooth and shiny 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KylJoy Posted June 29, 2017 Share Posted June 29, 2017 Very nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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