Step 6: Pinout the Console Cable
USB Pinout (Looking at the end of a USB cable that plugs into a PC or other USB port) ___________ | 4 3 2 1 | | _ _ _ _ | ----------- <- thicker half of cable where the contacts are. Pin Description 1 VCC 2 D- 3 D+ 4 GND
If you are using an extension cable, cut the extra connector off as far from the end that plugs into the console as possible. If you are using a sacrifice controller, cut the cable as close to the game pad as possible. In either case, we can as much cable length as we can get.
Remove some cable insulation from the now-exposed end. DO NOT REMOVE TOO MUCH. You want to remove about 1" of cable insulation; enough to make sure you can solder any of the wires to any of the DB-15 pins, and leave the wires short enough that the pull-stop on the D-Sub hood is grabbing onto the thick cable insulation.
We are looking for the individual wires that make up the cable, so we can identify what each does. In our Button Select USB example, there are only four wires.
Each wire should be a different color. We cannot trust the wire's color to tell us anything for certain about their function, even between otherwise identical pads. Technically, all USB devices *should* use the required colors of white, black, red, and green, but it is easy to find cheap make USB cables that do NOT conform to the standard, so we MUST test them against the pinout in the .H file. For this, we need a multimeter/continuity tester.
For each wire in your cable, you need to know which pin on the console connector it goes to. The USB connectors are protected by a metal shroud, so reaching them with a multimeter probe may be a little difficult. If you can't get the probe in to touch the pins, you can use a small piece of metal like a paper clip. Touch the paper clip against the probe tip and hold it there with your thumb. Touch the end of the paper clip to the pin inside the USB shroud. When the other probe touches the correct wire on the other end of the cable, the resistance will drop to almost nothing. Write down your results of which pin is which color.
Now that we know what color wire goes to what pin, we can begin connecting them to the UPCB plug.