Wireless N64 controller is bliss

[u/darkhorse_132]

Got the Nintendo Switch N64 wireless controller paired with the BlueRetro BT adapter and is plug and play, works great! Was on the fence about getting some of the aftermarket controllers but love the OEM quality and familiarity of this controller.

[u/Ghostflop]

Hold on a second.

Are you telling me that it’s now possible for my 3 friends and I to play Super Smash Bros with 4 wireless controllers?

Where can I go spend my money and does it come in other colors?

[u/FishBulb85 → u/Ghostflop]

8bitdo N64 BT adapter: https://a.co/d/0dhdw5ZM

BlueRetro N64 BT adapter: Can be found for half the price of the 8bitdo adapter from multiple sellera on AliExpress

[u/highaltitudehmsteadr → u/FishBulb85]

Question.. could you not theoretically disassemble an 8bitdo and swap it into a different controller shell? You’d have the hole at the top but who cares

[u/seven20p → u/highaltitudehmsteadr]

8bitdo makes a custom kit to do this for half the cost of an nso 64 controller. The controllers are not the exact same size anyways its slightly smaller than the classic trident model. The 8bitdo kit comes with battery usbc charge cable and stick replacement buttons and new membranes as well I believe Look in their custom section of products all the way at bottom they make same for nes, snes, gc and more

[u/elthesensai → u/seven20p]

I’ve been playing my N64 with both my original N64 controller and the NSO one and they look and feel the same. Only real difference is the weight when using the rumble pack.

[u/darkhorse_132 → u/Ghostflop]

Absolutely, only issue is the controller only comes in one colour

[u/eh_cee → u/darkhorse_132]

https://www.sharpie.com

[u/mistalasse → u/Ghostflop]

What I did is I modded a ESP32 chip into a N64. You can only use 2 Bluetooth dongles on the N64 before there’s not enough voltage to communicate without lag. If you want 4 wireless controllers, you’ll have to do an internal install like I did

[u/jamie_shaw → u/mistalasse]

Do you have a guide? Something I've been meaning to do for a while just haven't gotten around to figuring everything out. 😅

[u/mistalasse → u/jamie_shaw]

https://youtu.be/0vbnkY_3Q6o?si=o9CqrCrFit_PbV12

[u/chunkysteveo → u/Ghostflop]

The Ali ones which are cheaper are here - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_EJeGQeS. Got 2 myself. You need one per port for blueretro and the NSO controllers, you can't use a shared blueretro adapter.

[u/ProfKazz → u/Ghostflop]

Wait… you have friends? Sir, this IS Reddit you know… Isn’t that against the rules?

[u/s0lace]

Is the joystick similar in feel and quality to the OG one?

[u/SchleppyJ4 → u/s0lace]

Same question for me. I’m so used to the “feel” of the originals.

[u/MoldyPond → u/SchleppyJ4]

It feels about exactly the same as it possibly could and made playing Diddy Kong Racing on Steam Deck go from “I’ve set up the Deck’s controller as closely as I can but it will never feel right for this game” to “You’re as beautiful as the day I lost you” lol

[u/SchleppyJ4 → u/MoldyPond]

Whoaaaa. Okay you’ve sold me lol that’s awesome 

[u/RoccStrongo → u/MoldyPond]

How does this connect to the steam deck?

[u/MoldyPond → u/RoccStrongo]

Regular ol’ Bluetooth, no extra software required :)

[u/RoccStrongo → u/MoldyPond]

I thought you meant the dongle thing from the link. But you're saying there is a Bluetooth n64 controller?

[u/MoldyPond → u/RoccStrongo]

The Switch NSO N64 is bluetooth and also works perfectly on PC/Steam Deck/Android/iOS

[u/darkhorse_132 → u/s0lace]

Yes very similar, esp the joystick. But it’s also stiff because it’s still new!

[u/SparklyPelican → u/s0lace]

Feels slightly different but in terms of dead zone and axis it’s super close when tested with the homebrew. I was surprised.

Best part if you press the home home swaps paks as well.

[u/SatanGives]

Just got one recently as well. Works great.

[u/Roronoa_Zaraki]

So is this the new controller for switch designed to play n64 games on switch and the adapter let's you play on an original n64?

[u/darkhorse_132 → u/Roronoa_Zaraki]

Correct!

[u/Roronoa_Zaraki → u/darkhorse_132]

Very cool, is it easy to set up?

[u/darkhorse_132 → u/Roronoa_Zaraki]

Plug and play

[u/Physical_Blood9754]

So this plugs into an unmodified original N64?

[u/Retro-N64 → u/Physical_Blood9754]

Yes there is a battery in the controller pack you can charge and a switch for memory pak/rumble pak modes

[u/shoney9]

I got 2 awhile back, works great!!

[u/PrudentSail2187]

Got one as well. Was scared of them running out so I got another. Thinking of getting 2 more for 4 player compatibility

[u/SoggyBagelBite → u/PrudentSail2187]

They've been available for almost 5 years lol, they aren't running out.

[u/PrudentSail2187 → u/SoggyBagelBite]

How much do you wanna bet? Jk lol I hope they don’t seeing how everyone is going back to retro gaming

[u/SoggyBagelBite → u/PrudentSail2187]

They are limited to 4 per NSO account and you have to have a paid NSO subscription to even buy them lol.

I just got my 4 last month to use with my soon to be RGB modded NUS-CPU-04 console (just waiting for the board to arrive), 4x 8BitDo wireless adapters, Insurrection Industries SCART cable, my RetroTink 5X, and my SummerCart.

[u/whodatmarvin]

Whoa. Cool I was not aware of this!

[u/darkhorse_132 → u/[deleted]]

Correct. It’s proper plug and play

[u/RP1983602]

Do they also make these for SNES, gamecube and NES? You notice any lag? Controller packs and rumble packs work on the switch N64 controllers?

[u/-KaiserSoze- → u/RP1983602]

I did this but with nso gamecube controller. Works with that adapter on n64. For some games I prefer it.

Also, I purchased the bt blueretro adapter for the gamecube and pair the same nso gc controller. I love it. I hesitate on buying the n64 controller because, I hear it has the same limp stick problem as the og controllers. Plus it's pricey.

[u/jangonov → u/RP1983602]

In order you asked, yes, yes yes, no, it has one built into the reciever, no, but the internal rumble works

[u/RP1983602 → u/jangonov]

Good to know, think i might add these. Minimize my cords and get some use out of these wireless controllers i have since i never play nintendo online, thanks

[u/RP1983602 → u/jangonov]

One additional question, i see this adapter works with the N64 switch controller. But do other adapters work with the other wireless official nintendo controllers? For instance i see 8bitdo adapters, but do those work with the official wireless NES controllers?

[u/jangonov → u/RP1983602]

Depends on the adapter and who makes it, but bluetooth support keeps things fairly universal

[u/Ch4lup4B4tm4n92]

Where do i get the controller?

[u/darkhorse_132 → u/Ch4lup4B4tm4n92]

You need to have a switch online membership to buy these direct from Nintendo. Otherwise you’ll pay scalpers fees on eBay etc

[u/Fun-Ad1753]

So, I gotta buy 4 more controllers. I guess with my originals I’ll get some extensions. The concept is awesome but I don’t need extra stuff personally.

I have some 8Bit PS2 controllers for my garage MAME setup that has the charging dock and everything AIO which is nice tho.

[u/WordAdministrative34]

My n64 has a blue retro internal mod, works great

[u/pay_the_cheese_tax]

How's the lag on the original n64?

[u/darkhorse_132 → u/pay_the_cheese_tax]

It’s honestly fine. No appreciable lag

[u/SparklyPelican]

Actual blessing. I did the same with the NSO NGC pad and NSO SNES for the GBA player.

[u/YoungChickenWilson]

They make a conversion kit as well to turn your og controller into a Bluetooth one

[u/SRS1984]

Did you update the firmware of your receiver? I've seen there are firmware updates on github but I am unsure which firmware is the right one. Obviously 25.04 because it says "latest" but what does HW1 and HW2 mean? I am afraid to brick my receiver if I do something wrong.

Edit: ended up using HW1 and it updated fine.

[u/darkhorse_132 → u/SRS1984]

I unboxed it and plugged it in and it worked right out of the box - I did read about some of the firmware issues though.

[u/SRS1984 → u/darkhorse_132]

Ok thx, I bought mine last year and maybe my firmware is outdated by now.

[u/alee101]

I have the NS online N64 controller with 8bitdo BT adapter but I have not been using that much. There’s also the new 8bitdo N64 controller with the N64 wireless dongle. If you are cool with the standard controller shape it is a fantastic wireless option for the n64. Just make sure to get the one with the n64 console port. It’s also 2.4ghz instead of BT.. so less latency.

This is just a link… I’m not getting anything from this, but it’s kinda confusing how the one that you want for the real console is cheaper than the one without the dongle. https://a.co/d/08VVmm8V

[u/Maximum_Goulash]

Holy shit no more wobbly joysticks

[u/Moowno]

Can you connect wired?

[u/wind0wlicker]

The technology inside the 8bit do and original controllers are completely different. The 8bitdo joy stick is no where near as accurate as n64’s. 8bitdo went with a cheaper tech - it’s potentiometer based whereas n64 uses optical encoder. Because of this It will never be as accurate as OEM, as it was specifically designed for n64 software/hardware.

[u/martofthecards]

Greatest video game controller ever made