Wii U Demo Console Thread
Lets discuss the Wii U Demo Kiosk consoles and document what we learn.
This post will be updated as things are discovered with the goal of turning it into a FAQ.
Some interesting info I've collected so far:
The Wii U demo console will not play retail games.
There are 2 versions of the demo console. One with a hard disk and no optical drive and one with an optical drive and NAND storage.
The optical drive variant seems to be more common. It has additional hardware in it with different connectors in the back. (Photo below)
The connector marked S-SW connects to the reset button on the kiosk.
The connector marked DRC DC IN is for a standard Wii U gamepad charging cable that supplies power to the gamepad.
The gamepad is hard wired into the console.
There are two main parts inside the gamepad cable.
Note: The console displays an onscreen message if the USB cable is disconnected from the WIS-007 but the wiimote still works via bluetooth. I am not yet sure what the purpose of the USB cable is.
Turning on the demo console with an SD card boots it in a service menu.
From this menu you can sync a retail gamepad to the demo unit. Since the RF/Wifi signal is routed to the back SMA connector and not to an internal antenna the range is very limited. The gamepad needs to sit right on top of the console.
I attached a wifi antenna with a makeshift male SMA connector and the range increased to several feet. (See photo below.)
The demo gamepad can be connected to the Wii via a male SMA to male SMA cable if the original cable is not available.
Questions:
Wii U demo console back panel.
WIS-007 module
Increased range for a synced retail gamepad! This was just a wifi antenna that I had laying around. I dont believe the Wii is putting out much power to this connector as its expecting to be connected via an RF cable.
This post will be updated as things are discovered with the goal of turning it into a FAQ.
Some interesting info I've collected so far:
The Wii U demo console will not play retail games.
There are 2 versions of the demo console. One with a hard disk and no optical drive and one with an optical drive and NAND storage.
The optical drive variant seems to be more common. It has additional hardware in it with different connectors in the back. (Photo below)
The connector marked S-SW connects to the reset button on the kiosk.
The connector marked DRC DC IN is for a standard Wii U gamepad charging cable that supplies power to the gamepad.
The gamepad is hard wired into the console.
There are two main parts inside the gamepad cable.
- A coax cable supplies an RF signal for the display using a 7.67mm male SMA connector on both sides.
- A 6 wire DRC cable with a JST connector supplies power to the gamepad.
Note: The console displays an onscreen message if the USB cable is disconnected from the WIS-007 but the wiimote still works via bluetooth. I am not yet sure what the purpose of the USB cable is.
Turning on the demo console with an SD card boots it in a service menu.
From this menu you can sync a retail gamepad to the demo unit. Since the RF/Wifi signal is routed to the back SMA connector and not to an internal antenna the range is very limited. The gamepad needs to sit right on top of the console.
I attached a wifi antenna with a makeshift male SMA connector and the range increased to several feet. (See photo below.)
The demo gamepad can be connected to the Wii via a male SMA to male SMA cable if the original cable is not available.
Questions:
- How much storage space does the NAND version of this console have?
- Can this console made to run unsigned code?
- Can selected videos/demos be deleted to make room for more?
- The "Export log data" function saves a .txt file to the sd card but appears to contain binary data. Can this data be decoded?
Wii U demo console back panel.
WIS-007 module
Increased range for a synced retail gamepad! This was just a wifi antenna that I had laying around. I dont believe the Wii is putting out much power to this connector as its expecting to be connected via an RF cable.
Comments
When run these disks add and remove content from your demo Wii U.
- What content does each disc have?
- Has anyone tried to copy these discs?
- Can the individual demos be extracted and then loaded on a demo Wii U selectively?
- How often were the demo discs released and how many are there?
- Once a demo disk is installed on a demo console will an older version refuse to run?
Here are the discs I've seen so far. If you have a different one post a photo and lets get it added to the list. If you know what is on it please include that as well.So it's possible to sync a retail gamepad by adding the antenna to boost signal? I know someone hardwired one in, but I couldn't find specific instruction other than the cords he was using. I'd love to be able to be able to NOT buy a kiosk wired gamepad and save $300-$500.
Also, one other question. Are the demos only accessible once a gamepad is connected? Right now mine just plays previews, but I think there should be demos for Rayman and a few others.
Thank you for starting this thread.
OK, this is where I'm a little confused. Where does the 'DRC DC IN' go to? Is it just a typical charge cord that goes from the wall into the back of the unit and then the power runs through the unit to the gamepad?
So it's possible to sync a retail gamepad by adding the antenna to boost signal? I know someone hardwired one in, but I couldn't find specific instruction other than the cords he was using. I'd love to be able to be able to NOT buy a kiosk wired gamepad and save $300-$500.
Also, one other question. Are the demos only accessible once a gamepad is connected? Right now mine just plays previews, but I think there should be demos for Rayman and a few others.
Thank you for starting this thread.
DRC DC IN is a power connector. A standard wii u gamepad charging brick connects to it. If youre not going to use a wired gamepad you dont need to connect it. It sends power to the demo gamepad over the cable.
You can sync a retail gamepad and once you do you can choose whatever demos are on the unit. Put a blank SD card in the wii and turn it on.
Without an antenna the gamepad needs to be super close to the wii u , pretty much touching it. Even my antenna isnt that great. as I am using the wrong kind of antenna. I have something better coming in the mail and will report back once it arrives.
What kind of cable is that other person using? Do you have a link to the info? I have a demo gamepad and will be trying to make my own cable for it unless I can find someone to sell me an original.
OK, this is where I'm a little confused. Where does the 'DRC DC IN' go to? Is it just a typical charge cord that goes from the wall into the back of the unit and then the power runs through the unit to the gamepad?
So it's possible to sync a retail gamepad by adding the antenna to boost signal? I know someone hardwired one in, but I couldn't find specific instruction other than the cords he was using. I'd love to be able to be able to NOT buy a kiosk wired gamepad and save $300-$500.
Also, one other question. Are the demos only accessible once a gamepad is connected? Right now mine just plays previews, but I think there should be demos for Rayman and a few others.
Thank you for starting this thread.
DRC DC IN is a power connector. A standard wii u gamepad charging brick connects to it. If youre not going to use a wired gamepad you dont need to connect it. It sends power to the demo gamepad over the cable.
You can sync a retail gamepad and once you do you can choose whatever demos are on the unit. Put a blank SD card in the wii and turn it on.
Without an antenna the gamepad needs to be super close to the wii u , pretty much touching it. Even my antenna isnt that great. as I am using the wrong kind of antenna. I have something better coming in the mail and will report back once it arrives.
What kind of cable is that other person using? Do you have a link to the info? I have a demo gamepad and will be trying to make my own cable for it unless I can find someone to sell me an original.
So I would connect a regular charge cable to the back of the Wii U unit and then it would transfer that power through the RF wire that connects to the wired gamepad? I'm also guessing a wired gamepad could just be charged before as well so this isn't 100% necessary to always have it plugged into the backl of the unit? It makes sense with the demo unit though as they'd obviously want power going to the gamepad all the time.
As for the mod, I think the person originally used a antenna like yourself, but then ended up somehow hardwiring a RF cable to a retail gamepad somehow. The cables they used are on this page. It's the guy with the Rabbids avatar. I don't think English is this guys first language. I specifically asked him about the mod in another thread on the same site, but he never replied. I can't access the page, but I am at work and the firewall seems to blocking the connection for whatever reason.
http://assemblergames.com/l/threads/wii-u-kiosk-console-how-to-load-demos.61311/page-3
If you can't access it, I believe this is at least one of the cords, but how it connects to the retail gamepad I have zero idea.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/IPX-u-fl-to-RP-SMA-Plug-male-jack-pin-pigtail-cable-RG178-15cm-for-Wireless-/152436419371?hash=item237deb2b2b:g:~FYAAOxyLm9TBWIV
So I would connect a regular charge cable to the back of the Wii U unit and then it would transfer that power through the RF wire that connects to the wired gamepad? I'm also guessing a wired gamepad could just be charged before as well so this isn't 100% necessary to always have it plugged into the backl of the unit? It makes sense with the demo unit though as they'd obviously want power going to the gamepad all the time.
As for the mod, I think the person originally used a antenna like yourself, but then ended up somehow hardwiring a RF cable to a retail gamepad somehow. The cables they used are on this page. It's the guy with the Rabbids avatar. I don't think English is this guys first language. I specifically asked him about the mod in another thread on the same site, but he never replied. I can't access the page, but I am at work and the firewall seems to blocking the connection for whatever reason.
http://assemblergames.com/l/threa...
If you can't access it, I believe this is at least one of the cords, but how it connects to the retail gamepad I have zero idea.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/IPX-u-fl-...:~FYAAOxyLm9TBWIV
The thick original cable on the kiosk has 2 components. the RF cable and the 6-pin DRC cable. Power will go through the DRC part. The RF portion is for video. Both halfs of the cable need to be plugged into the demo gamepad at all times for it to work. The demo gamepad has no battery.
The cable you linked will not work. It needs to be Male SMA (not RP-SMA) on both ends and dont forget the 6 pin DRC needs to be plugged in as well.
The male SMA connector.
So I would connect a regular charge cable to the back of the Wii U unit and then it would transfer that power through the RF wire that connects to the wired gamepad? I'm also guessing a wired gamepad could just be charged before as well so this isn't 100% necessary to always have it plugged into the backl of the unit? It makes sense with the demo unit though as they'd obviously want power going to the gamepad all the time.
As for the mod, I think the person originally used a antenna like yourself, but then ended up somehow hardwiring a RF cable to a retail gamepad somehow. The cables they used are on this page. It's the guy with the Rabbids avatar. I don't think English is this guys first language. I specifically asked him about the mod in another thread on the same site, but he never replied. I can't access the page, but I am at work and the firewall seems to blocking the connection for whatever reason.
http://assemblergames.com/l/threads/wii-u-kiosk-console-how-...
If you can't access it, I believe this is at least one of the cords, but how it connects to the retail gamepad I have zero idea.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/IPX-u-fl-...:~FYAAOxyLm9TBWIV
The thick original cable on the kiosk has 2 components. the RF cable and the 6-pin DRC cable. Power will go through the DRC part. The RF portion is for video. Both halfs of the cable need to be plugged into the demo gamepad at all times for it to work. The demo gamepad has no battery.
The cable you linked will not work. It needs to be Male SMA (not RP-SMA) on both ends and dont forget the 6 pin DRC needs to be plugged in as well.
The male SMA connector.
Shit, man, thank you. I don't know how many times I've asked people that own a wired gamepad that didn't know or didn't answer that question.
Yeah, I'm not sure about the cord... just what was listed in that random thread. Once it invovled opening up the console and gamepad I lost interest almost immediately. Sorry I couldn't be more help. Glad to hear that if I was to get a wired gamepad that a stock charger would do the rest to power the gamepad. That was always my biggest concern when looking into purchasing one. didn't want to spend the money if there was another speical cord to power the thing.
I'm looking forward to the parts you are buying to increase the signal. Please let me know how it works out. Other than that it already sounds like you know a hell of a lot more than I do about the consoles and demo discs. I would definitely be interested to find out the answers to some of the questions you posted above about potentially copying the discs and individually loading each demo. Again, I think the latter part would be way above my head. I wish a few more of these surfaced so there would be more information available. Only seems to be a handful of people online sharing information about the demo kiosks they aquired. I know 'N64GUY' on Youtube has a lot of the demo units, most of the demo discs, and a lot of information about them. I'm sure you've seen his posts on a few of those other forums too like assemblergames.
Personally, I'm not that gung-ho about getting more demo discs as I like that mine has the original demos on it when the Wii U was first released. I believe once you update the unit it overwrites what was on there before, but am not certain about that. Thanks again for the help.
I'm interested to figure out how big some of the demos are too. I beat a few challenges in NSMBU and it was unlocking new ones. Also, I beat the first two or three levels in Acorn Plains and it kept going. There were a few menus greyed out, but the ones that were open appeared to be the full game.
I have the initial release demos. 25 video game trailers including 4 playable demos for NSMU, Sonic Racer, NBA 2K13, and Rayman Legends. There are also 5 clips for accessories, console overview, eshop, multigame preview, and something else. Also laughed at WiiTV. Then there is the standard highlight clips when the gamepad is disconnected.
So glad I was able to pair a tablet to it. Really opens up a lot more content on these things.
Just imagine the poor Gamestop employees having to listen to the same Wii TV promo all the time. They would end up lowering the volume and ruining the experience when a perspective customer wanted to play a demo.
I picked up a 10 foot male SMA to male SMA cable on ebay. It plugs directly into the gamepad and the back of the Wii.
I used a regular gamepad battery to power it as I haven't worked out the power portion of the cable yet. -- but it works! I need to order some bits and pieces in order to make this a more permanent cable.
There is nothing mystical nor magical about this hardware. It just uses wired-rf instead of wireless-rf like the retail unit does.
Is there a way to hook a regular Wii mote and Nunchuck to the WiS 007 Module after the cords were cut? Thought about trying to splice something together so I didn't have to worry about battery life for the Wiimote haha
Have you tried just syncing it in the menu? The wired wiimote uses bluetooth like the wireless one. I power my wis007 and without a usb link they talk to my demo console.
Is there a way to hook a regular Wii mote and Nunchuck to the WiS 007 Module after the cords were cut? Thought about trying to splice something together so I didn't have to worry about battery life for the Wiimote haha
Have you tried just syncing it in the menu? The wired wiimote uses bluetooth like the wireless one. I power my wis007 and without a usb link they talk to my demo console.
Then that would mean that the WIS-007 only acts as a passthrough box. So theoretically you can wire it up in the same way a wiimote hooks up to a knunchuck. That means that this box only provides both 1) a passthrough for a nunchuck and 2) power. If you can dissassemble the box and create a pinout, then you are golden. I guess that means these can be used for a retail wii u also.
Is there a way to hook a regular Wii mote and Nunchuck to the WiS 007 Module after the cords were cut? Thought about trying to splice something together so I didn't have to worry about battery life for the Wiimote haha
Have you tried just syncing it in the menu? The wired wiimote uses bluetooth like the wireless one. I power my wis007 and without a usb link they talk to my demo console.
Then that would mean that the WIS-007 only acts as a passthrough box. So theoretically you can wire it up in the same way a wiimote hooks up to a knunchuck. That means that this box only provides both 1) a passthrough for a nunchuck and 2) power. If you can dissassemble the box and create a pinout, then you are golden. I guess that means these can be used for a retail wii u also.
Have you opened up the wis-007 to see whats going on inside?
Is there a way to hook a regular Wii mote and Nunchuck to the WiS 007 Module after the cords were cut? Thought about trying to splice something together so I didn't have to worry about battery life for the Wiimote haha
Have you tried just syncing it in the menu? The wired wiimote uses bluetooth like the wireless one. I power my wis007 and without a usb link they talk to my demo console.
Then that would mean that the WIS-007 only acts as a passthrough box. So theoretically you can wire it up in the same way a wiimote hooks up to a knunchuck. That means that this box only provides both 1) a passthrough for a nunchuck and 2) power. If you can dissassemble the box and create a pinout, then you are golden. I guess that means these can be used for a retail wii u also.
Have you opened up the wis-007 to see whats going on inside?
Not personally; however, there was an ebay seller who did, I took a screenshot on my phone a while back and thats what my reference is. I plan on taking it apart next week when I finally get back home so that way I can get an even closer look. It seems based on the picture, that I may have been slightly correct, it can be made into a passthrough judging by the fact that ps/2 use yet another plug to get hooked into the board, if anything the board itself can be modified. If anything, I just find a way to tap power and just straight up bypass everything to provide power and ignore all the circuits that I have no idea on what they are doing.
Is there a way to hook a regular Wii mote and Nunchuck to the WiS 007 Module after the cords were cut? Thought about trying to splice something together so I didn't have to worry about battery life for the Wiimote haha
Have you tried just syncing it in the menu? The wired wiimote uses bluetooth like the wireless one. I power my wis007 and without a usb link they talk to my demo console.
Then that would mean that the WIS-007 only acts as a passthrough box. So theoretically you can wire it up in the same way a wiimote hooks up to a knunchuck. That means that this box only provides both 1) a passthrough for a nunchuck and 2) power. If you can dissassemble the box and create a pinout, then you are golden. I guess that means these can be used for a retail wii u also.
Have you opened up the wis-007 to see whats going on inside?
Not personally; however, there was an ebay seller who did, I took a screenshot on my phone a while back and thats what my reference is. I plan on taking it apart next week when I finally get back home so that way I can get an even closer look. It seems based on the picture, that I may have been slightly correct, it can be made into a passthrough judging by the fact that ps/2 use yet another plug to get hooked into the board, if anything the board itself can be modified. If anything, I just find a way to tap power and just straight up bypass everything to provide power and ignore all the circuits that I have no idea on what they are doing.
I see one IC on the left side of the image. Lets look up the number and see what it does!
I see one IC on the left side of the image. Lets look up the number and see what it does!
I wish I could read it from here. If I had to guess, Something to do with power. But then again, I don't have the actual board available to me, so it looks like we are going to have to wait. However, I will let you know sometime over the weekend or early next week when I am home and moved in. I'm just hoping that there is no signal conversion. I didn't realize there was an IC in it, I assumed it was just pass through with the caps in there to possibly help stablize/filter noise in the circuit. Also looks like theres something that looks like two mosfets, perhaps to turn on the wiimotes when power is applied using some sort of wake signal, this worries me greatly. Especiall considering the terminals look smaller than I would like them to be. I guess we will find out soon enough.
the controller hub is a usb to i2c. one ic is the brains other is just to expand i2c to other ports. brains is PIC18F14K50. 5 pin header on back next to usb is a icsp. ive not seen if i can dump the chip yet. pc does see this device if pluged in as USB\VID_1398&PID_0004&REV_0000
Thanks for the info. That's exactly what I was afraid of. So by that logic, its safe to assume that these controller boxes will not work with retail units? If so, looks like I need to make a daughterboard after all which won't be that hard but I really didn't want to.
i do not know yet how the wiimote was modified to i2c.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/I2C-Wii-W...
i do not know yet how the wiimote was modified to i2c.
I've seen that before. Looks like it ignores one of the wires (I think it is for wake-up or something and focuses on just data and power lines for the nunchuck. I havent seen one for the wiimote only though.
Also, I found a solution to my pin connector issue, if you make a hook using 30 gaige wire, it will fit in and act like a pin. My plan is to not even make a board, just do a 1 to 1 connection and tap onto the main 3v line to get what I need to power the wiimotes.
I found out a few interesting things about the demo controller box. It actually has 5 power leds inside the box, no one can see them which leads me to ask "why?", but whatever. And the other thing is that the wiring on the inside seems to match the cut cord, which will make things easier. I also found out the gray and black wires are tied together to ground on the board. Thats about it for now. Ill post updates as I see fit.
Han, unless the demo box works with a retail console, there's no reason for you to open your demo controllers. Thanks for offering previously though. I don't want to risk damaging your stuff, I'd rather just go ahead and do my bypass.
Things left to do:
Wire strain releif design for both wiimote and nunchuck
Connect the two ps/2s using 30 gauge wire.
Mod the wiimote - remove connector in favor of wired solution and power
Mod the nunchuck for a wired solution.
I plan on having this done this week. Afterwords, I am going to stick to my word and finish the snes compatibility for my kazzo shell and continue to make my ROB repro parts. I also am going to make a bracket to mount a arcade joystick to the kiosk. This will be done over the next three months.
Update 2: got myself a wired wiimote now. Thats working correctly right now. It takes power right from the controller box and wired it up based on a pinout that I found online. Hopefully the data lines that hooked up is correct.
I'll post updates as I get down to doing it.
Hello! A days ago I managed to get a Wii U Demo Kiosk, I'm interested in the box too, my question is: Do anyone know if I can connect a Classic Controller? The "URCC" port works for that type of controller? Thanks in advanced
Here's the big kicker, none of us know how the damned thing is pinned out, if we had that then it would be easy. However, I can't say I've seen anything other than the wiimote and nunchuck. So I am going to go on a hunch and say no. However, I am working on figuring out a mod that will allow you to hook something like that up just haven't had time to do it yet. Got a wiimote working but can't get it to interact with the nunchuck which is probably the main focus of it.
Did you get the demo console? I'm not sure if it works with a retail console, I want to say no, but someone correct me if I am wrong.
So far my console has the Oct 2016 demo loaded onto it, but that's the only one. I'll probably keep it that way, as my kiosk has the paper inserts for those games (Super Mario Maker, Splatoon, etc).
Originally posted by: imanerd0011
I just picked up a WS001 demo console/gamepad to match with my Wii U Kiosk I got from Gamestop. I'm pretty excited to have the kiosk 100% the way it was in store! Especially since not very many of the demo console/gamepads made it into collectors hands.
So far my console has the Oct 2016 demo loaded onto it, but that's the only one. I'll probably keep it that way, as my kiosk has the paper inserts for those games (Super Mario Maker, Splatoon, etc).
Nice! Welcome to the club. I'm very happy with my kiosk and be even happier when I don't live in an apartment
Here are the ones I have, I do have a few multiples of some of these, but no way to see what's on there just yet.
Interactive Demo - January 13'
Interactive Demo - March 13'
Interactive Demo - June 13'
Interactive Demo - August 13'
Interactive Demo - October 13'
Interactive Demo - February 14'
Interactive Demo - March 14'
Interactive Demo - May 14'
Interactive Demo - November 14'
Interactive Demo - March 15'
Interactive Demo - May 15'
Interactive Demo - August 15'
Interactive Demo - November 15'
Interactive Demo - March 16'
Interactive Demo - October 16'