Hack Like Heck: ShockSlayer

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Name: shockslayer

Element14 Community member since: February 13, 2018

Plan to Hack Like Heck: Focus on the comfortability of the case and controls.

Notable projects: A LOT of portables

More about the contestant:

What was your first project and what first got you into electronics?

As a kid I liked playing video games, and I was always interested in the non-standard stuff you could do with different consoles. Using external devices to hack the game to do something different enraptured me even from a young age - I often spent more time messing with that than playing the games themselves; a habit I still haven't been able to kick. When I was about 13 I picked up an N64 from a local shop, and found myself researching it to see if I could do something cool with it. Soon enough I found the Ben Heck Forums, and from there I started my first project, an N64 portable. Naturally it was a disaster, and so were the next ten, but I'm beginning to notice some improvement.

Have there been any projects where you really struggled with them and then suddenly had a major break-through?

Well, when you're young, failing at something you're passionate about is almost never a negative experience. Minuscule improvements build up, and you're already building the next one in your head when you're finishing the last one. I'd say there's always some kind of struggle in every project, depending on your experience. Custom regulators are second nature to me now, but when I first started I couldn't wrap my head around them. I was fortunate that I had the forums to lean on for guidance, but the early days were the wild west; you learned more by trying different things yourself.

As far as breakthroughs go, I've been behind a lot of the portablizing movement in general. I've done a handful of different things for the N64, GameCube and most recently the Wii, but for me the word breakthrough is most synonymous with something dumb I did when I was young. Back in the pre-Ashen days of GameCube portablizing, custom regulators and the voltage requirements on the GC was largely uncharted waters. It was a challenge because most portablizers used 7.4v packs for easy compatibility with PSOne screens, but the GC had a 12v requirement, and when people used custom regulators for the main voltage lines, they still stepped up to 12v for that input. I was messing around with one of my portables, and I decided to desolder the 12v line, and then stupidly stuck a screwdriver between the 5v and 12v input which were side by side. To my surprise, everything worked - and in the following trimming guides I was credited with figuring out that the 12v line just powered the audio preamp, which would work with a much lower voltage.

While you're pretty new to the element14 Community, you've been on the BitBuilt forums for years. What would you want element14 Community members to know about you that BitBuilt users would already know?

I asked a friend what he thought about the question, and he told me that when it comes down to it, I'm willing to help anyone as much as I can. After mulling it over, I think the reason that I am the way that I am is because when I look at the different members of the community, I see a reflection of myself. Especially new users who are just starting out and have no idea what they're doing. I remember way back in the day what it was like to be the new kid on the block, screwing up motherboards and unwittingly getting on people's nerves. But more importantly I remember all the different people who inspired me and helped me get to where I am now. So I'm trying to be like them.

In addition, if you were to legitimately poll the users of BitBuilt, I guarantee the number one answer would be that I like pigs. I just think they're neat. And ever since that became public knowledge, various people have sent me all sorts of pig stuff, so it's kinda my thing. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Want to know more? Ask in the comments below and tag shockslayer!