How to Wire Solder your WiiKey

[tank27]

Ok. i have been reading this and other forums for about 3 days (I got my wiikey today in louisiana) trying to find out the best way to install this thing. I have never soldered anything in my life (insert your best n00b joke here). so I had some questions about what to do. I went to Radio Shack and purchased the usual items (30 awg wire, helping hands magnifying glass, 15w iron, .022dia 1.5oz silver-bearing solder, triwing screwdriver).

Now my question is once i get my wii open to the drive and get to the point how do i apply the solder. do i have to bring the wire, solder and iron together at one time or can i apply the solder to the iron then drip it to the wire on top of the solder pad.

I have read of different ways of doing it but not sure if what i am reading is accurate. also on the wii drive it seems that the solder pads have solder on them (i might be wrong) do i need to heat the pads on the drive then the wire then the solder. i guess im looking for a little strp by step here. i have a old dvd rom drive here i am going to practice on buit was looking for more clarification

[AceMilo]

Do yourself a favor and DO NOT try to solder the chip in yourself. For me, the wii is very easy to install chips for, but I have about 150 xbox's, a couple ps2s, ps1s, gamecubes, and other misc things under my belt. If you are not used to soldering VERY small points on pcbs, it is VERY difficult to do yourself. I commend you for wanting to do it yourself, but please do yourself a favor and have someone else do it who has experience.

Now, that being said, if you still want to do it yourself here are some guidelines:
1- Always practice on old boards you dont need anymore, and practice for at least 2 weeks until you feel you are confident to do the real thing
2- Make sure the iron is fully heated (radio shack iron should take 3-5 minutes before it is heated). I usually turn my iron on before taking the wii apart so when its apart, the iron is nice and hot.
3- Tin your iron with solder by applying solder directly to the iron, and shaking off the excess or wiping it on a wet sponge or rag. (btw I recommend rosin core solder, not silver bearing)
4- Tin all points you solder to first. My routine is first tape down the chip to the bench, then tin each point on the chip. To do this, heat the pad on the chip (flat part not the rounded part, it sticks out from the round part) with the iron for about 2 seconds and apply the solder onto the pad, not the iron. The heat from the iron will heat the pad to melt the solder and make a nice area to work with. When you tin the pad, apply the iron, apply solder to the pad, remove the solder spool, then remove heat, in that order. You will be left with a ball of solder on the pad, and it should be shiny. Next, I tin each point on the wii that needs to be soldered to in the same manor. Next I tape down the chip to the drive where I want to mount it. Now I strip the end of the wire and trim it as short as possible keeping it on the spool, do not precut lengths of wire. Next I heat the first pad on the chip that I tinned until the solder melts and attach the wire, then remove the iron keeping the wire as still as possible. You may want to tin the wire also, its not necessary but may help if you are unexperienced. Flux will also help, just apply on each point BEFORE tinning. Again, flux isn't necessary but will help the unexperienced. Next I measure out the wire and trim it a little longer than needed and strip more than I need and trim it short. Now I attach the wire to the point on the wii the same way as before. Repeat until the install is done. Finally, test and if its working tape down the chip and wires with electrical tape.

I hope this helps you, but I also hope you have someone else install it for you. If you don't practice for at least a week you will destroy your wii, guaranteed. Even with practice, you very well may still damage it. Good luck, and let us know how it went.

Almost forgot, when you do attempt the install, disconnect the ribbon cable and white power cable before installing, most noobs don't do this and the heat melts the cables and ruins them.

[tank27]

Thanks a lot. i have a few questions though

"To do this, heat the pad on the chip (flat part not the rounded part, it sticks out from the round part) with the iron for about 2 seconds and apply the solder onto the pad, not the iron. The heat from the iron will heat the pad to melt the solder and make a nice area to work with. When you tin the pad, apply the iron, apply solder to the pad, remove the solder spool, then remove heat, in that order"

What is the pad. you mean not the open circle but the oval on the PCB? i am not sure i know what you are talking about. also your telling me to get nice little balls of cooled down solder on all the points i want together then just heat them up and stick them together. sounds too easy?

[AceMilo]

The ground and power points have round parts and flat parts protruding from them, those are the pads you want to solder to, the flat parts. The other 4 are just pads that you can solder to directly in the same manor I described. I wish I took pics of one of the 3 wiikey installs I did over the past 2 days to show you what I mean.

[tank27]

my solder says high-tech rosin core. silver bearing solder. is that not good?

also how long do i need to leave the iron on the wii drive before it is hot enough. how do i know when it is hot enough

[dirtyweasel]

also how long do i need to leave the iron on the wii drive before it is hot enough. how do i know when it is hot enough
The iron is hot enough when solder melts immediately. DO NOT leave the iron on the board for any long period of time, it should only take a second.

my solder says high-tech rosin core. silver bearing solder. is that not good?http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062717

If that's the solder you got, that should be fine. A lot of people use the Radioshack solder. Four of the points you are to solder are small, so make sure you have thin solder. What I used was .015" diameter.

[dirtyweasel]

Also, It's a good idea to browse the forums for pictures of install jobs that other people did. That way, you know what good solder jobs look like and you can get ideas on where/how you want to place the chip and wires.

In the week I was waiting for my WiiKey to arrive in the mail, I browsed message boards and saved a lot of pictures. Give me your email address and i'll be happy to email some Wiikey install pictures to you.

[tank27]

That is what i have except is says rosin core on it also. i have been to a few forums to look at different mods. i just need to practice. i have a shift worker job so i wont be able to get into till wed night. i was shocked when i actually got the wiikey and saw how small it is. that is what scares me the most. shorting these contact points with solder. i got the 15w iron from the shack i hope the tip is small enough

i am just worrying about having to heat the contact point then let the point melt the solder. im worried about melting the pad. i bought 2 wiikey's just in case i mess up. hopefully i do it right the first time and can sell the others.

[Stefanic]

Hey tank,

I'm in the same situation as you, got my WiiKey almost a week ago now.
Doing preparation work in the evenings when I have time, will probably mod my Wii this weekend.

I tinned all the contact points of my WiiKey and also tinned all (6) the wires on each end.

Below is a picture of the tinned contact points of my wiikey (ignore the circles :rolleyes:) :
http://img46.imageshack.us/img46/4117/wiikeycirclesvd9.th.jpg (http://img46.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wiikeycirclesvd9.jpg)
Note: I'm also a newbie in soldering. Did it once before with huge 100W iron, doesn't help for this kind of job.

Hope it helps you out a bit, the scale of it all is indeed extremely small.
Also a good tip:
Use a multimeter (set to audio mode) to check all points you soldered that they aren't connected together.

[tank27]

what do oyu have circled under the c2. actually above it

tell me more about the multimeter. how to use it and why

[Stefanic]

The circles was because those 2 points are connected, and I didn't know if that was correct.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multimeter
You use it to check if there is a connection between 2 points, if that's the case for any 2 of the points you solder that's not good.
Just a tool to check if you didn't screw up. Takes some more time, but if you're as afraid as me to screw up, it's worth it I guess.

[tank27]

OK.... i have been practicing. i am very suprised how easy it is to get the solder down. it took me a while to actually get the solder to flow because it keep drawing up onto the iron but after a while it was easy with the pencil point to get the solder in those very little pads on the old drive im practicing with.

What i am having problems with is tinning the wires. i cant seem to get the solder to hold on to the wires. also how did you get th wire to stay still. did you tape it down or something.

[dirtyweasel]

What i am having problems with is tinning the wires. i cant seem to get the solder to hold on to the wires. also how did you get th wire to stay still. did you tape it down or something.You don't want a big clump of solder on the wire. A layer of solder was probably put on the wire, but you just can't see it since the solder is silver like the wire.

[tank27]

so just coat the wire with solder. that is what i see. i coated about 1mm of wire with solder

[thebman919]

so just coat the wire with solder. that is what i see. i coated about 1mm of wire with solder

Yes you just coat the wire. heres a video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jUaf394WIk

Do yourself a favor and DO NOT try to solder the chip in yourself.

If you are not used to soldering VERY small points on pcbs, it is VERY difficult to do yourself. I commend you for wanting to do it yourself, but please do yourself a favor and have someone else do it who has experience.



Thats not necessarily true. I had never soldered a day in my entire life nor seen it being done. I had to solder 3 pads on the wiikey and a further 3 to the actual legs of the chip (points 4 5 and 6) and no i wasnt the one who lifted the points. On top of that points 4 and 6 are right next to each other, and even further on top of that, i was using a 40Watt iron. I managed to do it all and solder it to the wii and its been working flawlessly for the past week. I wouldnt say it was anywhere near easy but with enough patience and preparation it is possible.

[RSaotome]

What i am having problems with is tinning the wires. i cant seem to get the solder to hold on to the wires. also how did you get th wire to stay still. did you tape it down or something.

Coated the wire with solders, use some flux if you can get any. flux works like a superglue (without the mess) when you soldering stuff. make sure your iron tip is freash/pointy so that none of the excessive solder stays on it. (did my friend's wii 2 days ago. almost mess it up with a bad iron tip).

as for noob/unskilled modder, i highly suggest you go for Quick installation. it is a 3-5 min job, without the hassle of wiring stuff. just put a little solder on the points and bridge them together, VERY simple.

Anyhow, if you want to do the wire install. practice, practice, practice. it is worth it, hey if you don't wanna break your 250+ investment, i suggest you do so.

ps. if you break your wii - let's hope not. i'm willing to fixing for a mini-amount of fee and you pay for the shipping of couse. I live in the NY, NY area.

[Alucard77]

I actually did this completely different then was mentioned here. Some people don't like this method, but I find it avoids burning or lifting any contact points.

Here is my quick step by step:
1- Strip and Tin all the wires
2- Dip the tip of all the wires into flux paste
3- Mount your chip before starting the work
4- Get the iron nice and hot
5- Tin the iron (get some solder on the iron, so it conducts better)
6- Put the wire on the pad you want to solder to
7- Take your iron, and on the tip of the iron melt just the smallest amount of solder. If you look at a ball point pen, the ball on the pen is equal to the amount of solder you should have on your iron.
8- Apply the tip or the iron with the pin tip of solder to the tinned wire, while the wire is on top of pad you want to solder to. The solder from the tip of the pen wil grab on to the flux on the wire, and connect it to the solder point without any issues.

The trick is to have as little solder as possible. If you have too much, you risk bridging points and so on. But this will definately avoid over heating your pads. At lot of newbies make the mistake and over heat their components. It's one thing to practice on an old item and not realizing you overheated something because there is no way to test it, and a whole nother thing to do it on something you want to work later.

[tank27]

I actually did this completely different then was mentioned here. Some people don't like this method, but I find it avoids burning or lifting any contact points.

Here is my quick step by step:
1- Strip and Tin all the wires
2- Dip the tip of all the wires into flux paste
3- Mount your chip before starting the work
4- Get the iron nice and hot
5- Tin the iron (get some solder on the iron, so it conducts better)
6- Put the wire on the pad you want to solder to
7- Take your iron, and on the tip of the iron melt just the smallest amount of solder. If you look at a ball point pen, the ball on the pen is equal to the amount of solder you should have on your iron.
8- Apply the tip or the iron with the pin tip of solder to the tinned wire, while the wire is on top of pad you want to solder to. The solder from the tip of the pen wil grab on to the flux on the wire, and connect it to the solder point without any issues.

The trick is to have as little solder as possible. If you have too much, you risk bridging points and so on. But this will definately avoid over heating your pads. At lot of newbies make the mistake and over heat their components. It's one thing to practice on an old item and not realizing you overheated something because there is no way to test it, and a whole nother thing to do it on something you want to work later.

This is actually the method i used to connect some wires to an old hard drive with no problems. i didnt use flux paste and maybe i need to go to radio shack and get some if it works that good.

[tank27]

on another note. on the wiikey points 1 and 2 are circles with a little horseshoe like silver pattern on them. where do i connect the wires and does it matter

[Alucard77]

You solder to the silver part on the horseshoe. If that makes sense :D

You may also want to look up some threads of peoples pictures who did the wire solder for the wiikey.

[tank27]

You solder to the silver part on the horseshoe. If that makes sense :D

You may also want to look up some threads of peoples pictures who did the wire solder for the wiikey.

i saw some pics and some have the hole filled up with solder

[tank27]

would you put a drop of flux on the wiikey and the wii drive?

[xllzerollx]

i soldered mine with 0 soldering sills, and 0 practice, uses a really fat solder, took me 2 hours, but i did it first try,but didnt worked after i asemble the wii toguether, so i then had to go back and fix one point but it worked fine after that.

[Alucard77]

would you put a drop of flux on the wiikey and the wii drive?

Yeah, the pics where they have the holes filed is almost a dual solder job. They trying to do quick solder and wire solder at once. Just do a whole wire solder.

Now for the flux. I only dip my tinned wire into the flux. Flux can do some nasty damage to chip as it heats up rather quickly. I am sure if you put the smallest dab of solder you would be fine. But if this is your first time, use the flux on the tin wire. As long as the wire is on the pad, and you use the solder from your iron, it will get attracted to the flux on the wire and considering it is touching the pad, will also make a connection with the pad.

[uniphase]

I actually did this completely different then was mentioned here. Some people don't like this method, but I find it avoids burning or lifting any contact points.

Here is my quick step by step:
1- Strip and Tin all the wires
2- Dip the tip of all the wires into flux paste
3- Mount your chip before starting the work
4- Get the iron nice and hot
5- Tin the iron (get some solder on the iron, so it conducts better)
6- Put the wire on the pad you want to solder to
7- Take your iron, and on the tip of the iron melt just the smallest amount of solder. If you look at a ball point pen, the ball on the pen is equal to the amount of solder you should have on your iron.
8- Apply the tip or the iron with the pin tip of solder to the tinned wire, while the wire is on top of pad you want to solder to. The solder from the tip of the pen wil grab on to the flux on the wire, and connect it to the solder point without any issues.

The trick is to have as little solder as possible. If you have too much, you risk bridging points and so on. But this will definately avoid over heating your pads. At lot of newbies make the mistake and over heat their components. It's one thing to practice on an old item and not realizing you overheated something because there is no way to test it, and a whole nother thing to do it on something you want to work later.

I did it a similar way. I'll post my guide soon with pictures.

[tank27]

why do you put the flux paste on after you tin it? i thought the paste was to help the solder

[Alucard77]

sure it does, but the solder will transfer from the tip of the soldering iron to the flux on the tinned wire. I do all this with a 12 Watt iron, so minimum heat is required. That is why I recommended my method, your applying minimum heat for a very small period of time.

[dirtyweasel]

would you put a drop of flux on the wiikey and the wii drive?A drop is a lot for such tiny points. If you use flux, just dab it on with a cotton swab.

[tank27]

ok. mod is complete and the config disk works but i dont have a gamecube controller so what now?

[tank27]

Wow i did it. i ran Barnyard with no problems. is there any USA NTSC games people having problems with that i can test?

[tank27]

ok. everything is going ok. burning using ridata at 16x and no dre's. all wii backups working just fine. had to do a reformat because even though i shut done wiiconnect it still had problems. also comtroller kept loosing connecting for some reason. all is good now.

anyone in need of 2 wiikeys let me know. no need for them now :)

[hacktek]

ok. everything is going ok. burning using ridata at 16x and no dre's. all wii backups working just fine. had to do a reformat because even though i shut done wiiconnect it still had problems. also comtroller kept loosing connecting for some reason. all is good now.

anyone in need of 2 wiikeys let me know. no need for them now :)

Congrats dude! I'm (hopefully) gonna install mine tomorrow. Started disassembling the wii today but the screwdriver i got from modshitstore.com is way too big so some of the tri screws would not come off and i didn't want to force it on them. Tomorrow morning i'll try to file the screwdriver and if that fails, ill just go to radioshack and get one. The method i've been using for practicing soldering is the one described by Alucard, except i did it without the flux. I got some flux today and i'll practice it with the flux and see how it goes.

EDIT: Tried the method with flux and it works excellent. Hope i can get this bad boy installed tomorrow xD

[Stefanic]

ok. everything is going ok. burning using ridata at 16x and no dre's. all wii backups working just fine. had to do a reformat because even though i shut done wiiconnect it still had problems. also comtroller kept loosing connecting for some reason. all is good now.

anyone in need of 2 wiikeys let me know. no need for them now :)
Nice going man, I'm going to try to install the chip this weekend.
Hopefully I'll be as happy as you afterwards :p

[tank27]

ill say this, i practiced on the smallest points i could find and the points inside the wii are even smaller. you dont know till you crack it open how small the space it is

[Alucard77]

Hopefully my advice was of some help. I actually forgot to mention something.

If you are soldering the Wii, an absolute must is this thing from radioshack. Absolutely great! Since the points are so small, this makes doing your work so much easier.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2104639&cp=&sr=1&origkw=magnifying&kw=magnifying&parentPage=search

[tank27]

Hopefully my advice was of some help. I actually forgot to mention something.

If you are soldering the Wii, an absolute must is this thing from radioshack. Absolutely great! Since the points are so small, this makes doing your work so much easier.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2104639&cp=&sr=1&origkw=magnifying&kw=magnifying&parentPage=search


lol. i bought one... i was only able to use it for checking connectors and tinning wires. it is such a small space i found it hard to use the glass and solder at the same time. very good for checking connections.

[hacktek]

Congrats dude! I'm (hopefully) gonna install mine tomorrow. Started disassembling the wii today but the screwdriver i got from modshitstore.com is way too big so some of the tri screws would not come off and i didn't want to force it on them. Tomorrow morning i'll try to file the screwdriver and if that fails, ill just go to radioshack and get one. The method i've been using for practicing soldering is the one described by Alucard, except i did it without the flux. I got some flux today and i'll practice it with the flux and see how it goes.

EDIT: Tried the method with flux and it works excellent. Hope i can get this bad boy installed tomorrow xD

Nope, install won't happen any time soon. Tried to file the screwdriver and it didn't work and no store in my area has it. So i'm screwed and waiting for the one i just ordered to arrive AND work -.-!

[tank27]

thats why you read up before you try to install.

is there a buy and sell on this i need to sell these wiikeys

[hacktek]

thats why you read up before you try to install.

is there a buy and sell on this i need to sell these wiikeys

Yup...i've informed myself a lot by reading these forums :D

[AceMilo]

thats why you read up before you try to install.

is there a buy and sell on this i need to sell these wiikeys

No, buying and selling is against the rules for now.

[tank27]

how do u use the config disc without a joypad

[Lush78]

download the 1.1 version of the config disk

http://www.wiikey.cn/resources.html

It will allow you to toggle settings with the reset button