Also, be very careful with the screws on the back, and remove them completely before flipping the back over. I suggest leaving the controller button-side down and lifting off the back, the buttons can easily fall out and go bouncing all over the place if you tilt the front. There are five screws on the back, and then everything just lifts apart. The first thing to do is to open the controller up and take it apart. This would have made it impossible to use the layout method I used, so be sure to check the controller insides and plan your parts accordingly! Towards the end of the project I pulled one of these spares apart to test something and found out that they were a completely different design, with the controller board pushed almost flush with the backside of the controller rather than close to the front (among other changes).

When they arrived, I noticed that the area around the buttons was greenish (almost a pale lime green) and the 'Super Nintendo' logo was different, so I set them aside as last-ditch spares. A note about SNES controllers: when I started this project I had only one old controller that I got with my original console, so I ordered two online to use as spares. There's a lot of possible substitutes for this, but you'll need something you can make precise cuts with. Multimeter - A simple continuity tester will work, I just used it to check for shorts.Дremel - I did need to modify some of the circuit boards. Solder - basic rosin-core electronics solder but you can make do with a hotter one if you're careful. Check the wattage, you want the cooler ones for electronics work. Soldering iron - a cheap one from Radio Shack worked for me. The cheaper the better, since you may end up needing to try a different model.ДЎ x thumb drive - a 4G Sandisk Cruzer I had lying around since I upgraded to an 8G drive recently Equipment used: This is a bit harder than the hub, since there's no way to tell what the inside components look like. Roughly $12.ДЎ x USB keyboard - I used an 'Alaska' keyboard. Parts used:ДЎ x SNES controller - I used an old one lying around from my younger years.ДЎ x USB hub - I found a tiny four-port hub that even had a clear casing so I could see the shape/size of the board inside. Naturally, the only part I did not get a spare for (the keyboard) was the only one I ended up breaking in the process.

Once you have parts that you know will work, considering getting a backup set in case you mangle something. I'd suggest taking a look at the next step (with the controller apart) before getting any parts. If you use different parts or have a different controller (see below) then you'll have to improvise your own methods, but the general ideas I used should cross over. Smaller is better, though your soldering skill may factor into it as well. Just be aware that there's always the possibility that a part may not fit the available space, and try to evaluate what you're buying as much as possible ahead of time. It's probably possible to find cheaper parts than I used, especially if you shop it around online. I apologize in advance for some horribly bland photography. This is my first instructable, suggestions are definitely welcome. A steady hand and a lot of patience can be a big help. I'm a software/networking person, though, and not an expert with a soldering iron by any means. Soldering/desoldering work is required for this, and I'm assuming you have some general knowledge of working with a soldering iron and continuity tester. The project ended up being a bit more difficult than I expected, and I tried to document as much of the process as I could. and since it lets me play a wider variety of games it seemed like a perfect thing to do. My brother inherited my NES from me, so all I had to work with was an SNES controller. This is not a very fancy method, just pulling together bare hardware bits to get the job done.ДЇull credit for the general idea goes to this howto for a similar project with an NES controller. This instructable will detail how I went about modifying an SNES controller into a USB controller with built-in flash drive.

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