Virtual Boy Controller Extension Cable

thingiverse

Now that the Virtual boy can be modified with the VirtualTap and connected to a TV, the extremely short controller cable makes it very frustrating to actually use. Mellott32 on the VB forums created a set of connectors that you can use to make your own extension cable and it is excellent: https://www.planetvb.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?post_id=41671#forumpost41671 Only issue is, the BOM is $10 for male pins, $10 for female pins, $10 for the cable itself, and $30 for a set of crimpers or the ability to solder them to the wires. Additionally, the end of the cable that connects to the headset is too finely detailed to reliably print with a regular .4mm FDM machine, so you probably need to get at least one part printed in SLS or SLA. Since the VB uses standard VGA-style pins, I started looking around for other options and found some DB9-to-RJ45 adapters. This has a nice little plastic shell and the pins are already attached to the leads. Technically, all you have to do is stick the right colored pins into the corresponding holes on the VB and controller, and you could use these with no modification whatsoever. But as you can see, the [gaffer tape proof of concept](https://imgur.com/a/yYaEk1t) wasn't pretty. So I decided to make some adapters to allow Mellott32's connector models to attach directly to these. This should allow for a much easier, no-tool no-solder solution. BOM: * 1x DB9-RJ45 M/F adapter - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00066HL3W - $5.19 * 1x DB9-RJ45 F/F adapter - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00006IRQA - $3.55 * 1x Ethernet cable - Anywhere you can find one * 2x Printed parts for collars Since these are all just snap/slide fit you might find them to have a little bit of movement between the printed parts. They'll still work fine, but you can also put a few drops of superglue between the 3D printed parts during assembly to take out any looseness. And that's it! For about $15 you can now play your consolized Virtual Boy from the comfort of your sofa. Other notes: If you can't print the connector for the headset and don't want to order a SLS/SLA part, you can also just mount the female end directly to the headset with a command strip or double sticky tape, and plug the pins in directly. Since my console is just sitting in my entertainment center, I decided this would be easier and more robust than constantly plugging/unplugging such a potentially fragile 3d printed part (Also I put my RGB port in a funny spot that this overlaps with). [Here's my solution](https://imgur.com/a/QhpEmXt) for reference.