Sega Genesis controllers on other systems

[Jess Ragan]

It's my humble opinion that controllers for classic game consoles (those released before 1985) really suck. I prefer to use a six button Sega Genesis controller instead, but the sad reality is that not all classic game consoles work well with them despite sharing a 9-pin D-shell connector. The ColecoVision in particular tends to input a lot of junk data you don't want when using the D-pad, randomly pressing numbers on a phantom keypad.

 

My question is this: could this problem be solved by removing "select," the seventh pin on the controller? That way, the ColecoVision recognizes it as an ordinary Atari controller. You'd lose the extra buttons, but at least there wouldn't be unwanted inputs. Alternately, a switch could be installed on the controller, letting you turn on and off the select wire at will. It'd work like a normal Genesis controller with the switch turned on, and an Atari controller with the switch turned off.

 

I've noticed that when people alter their Sega Genesis game pads to work with the ColecoVision, they take out the control chip and other components. I'm just thinking maybe it doesn't need to go quite that far.

[danm]

I have no idea about Coleco but here's how I rewired an Atari joystick extension cable to use Mega Drive controllers

 

https://www.atari-wiki.com/index.php?title=How_To_rewire_an_Atari_joystick_extension_cable_to_use_Sega_controllers

[Jess Ragan]

So this is what I did. I drilled out the bottom of a ColecoVision controller, inserted a 9-pin joystick port in the hole, and wired up all the inputs that I would need to use a Sega Genesis controller (up, down, left, right, fire, and ground). The problem is, while it sometimes works, it usually acts as if the fire button is being held or rapidly pressed. I've also had it crash the joystick testing software included with PiColeco.

 

I'm not sure what the culprit is here... I tested the wires with a voltmeter to make sure none were accidentally joined. Also, the controller still works as designed if you plug it into a ColecoVision without another controller daisy chained from the bottom... it's only when you start messing with the secondary controller that the input goes nuts.

 

Should I connect pin 5? (That's 5V or high ground.) Should I solder the fire button wire to the actual fire button, rather than the blue wire on the bottom of the controller? I'm just not sure what I'm doing wrong here.

[Jess Ragan]

I connected 5V and the controller presses buttons on the keypad with every direction, much as it would if I connected the controller directly to the ColecoVision. So it seems there was a good reason I omitted that. Fire button presses are still a problem, too, so I suppose I should move the wire up to the solder point next to the left button, rather than at the bottom of the controller where I've been taking it.

 

I also have an Edladdin ColecoVision kit coming in the mail, which will hopefully be a lot less painful to install than what I've been doing.

[NinjaWarrior]

Just make sure you don't end up frying your console by pushing buttons