Honestly, I entirely forgot about this forum, so here is my yearly forum post (which most of it is being cross-posted from my worklog on BitBuilt):
The Wii U Mini! (or at least, the trim)
While this does just cut the console in half, it still required a LOT of rewiring. Both NANDs, the SMC and RTC, the 5GHz module, Bluetooth module, and some voltage regulators are all required for this to be functional (at least, until we get IOSU patches for BT). The 2.4GHz WiFi module doesn't need to be relocated, as the connector footprint is inside of the trim line. Incredibly handy! the 6 SDIO wiring for the module is a pita.
I've also designed a few custom PCBs for this project, the first of which being minireg. It was supposed to replace the two core rails (1v and 1.15v), but it was a massive failure. I built it and 1v and 3v3 were having problems, so I'd need to order new ICs for those regulators from Mouser, which I haven't done because the stock core rails function just fine once the 1v PGOOD is held HIGH.
Next PCB I designed was a flex PCB, bt-rex. This, too, was a massive failure. The BT module footprint I made is wayyy too small, and I forgot that there were vias for the back USB ports anyway (The "final" trim line will leave the USB traces intact, so that just adds more salt to this wound). I could have probably made it work, but I also entirely forgot that the heatsink sits really close to the board, so the BT module wouldnt fit anyway. Looking back, I have NO idea WTF I was thinking while designing it.
The SD Card portion was actually useful! It definitely beats my manual SDIO wiring for the SD Card
The only real problem was that I mixed up DAT2 and the WP pin. Snipping the flex is not the end of the world, but it sucks that it didn't straight up work. :(
I am thinking of just re-purposing it to be a generic SD Card flex, since rewiring Bluetooth isn't that bad. Option B. is to at least move the BT module closer to the front and the SD card off to the side.
Next PCB! It wasn't designed specifically for this project, but it will make securing the 5GHz module much easier. It's another flex, and since I suck at names, I called it the drh-flash-flex. I have ordered these flexes, but I have yet to test them. They'll arrive soon, JLC just shipped them out two days ago.
The purpose of it is obvious: relocate the flash for the DRH. The "Why?" is because the flash is tall, and usually the 5GHz module sits ontop of the flash when its relocated, so securing it becomes a massive challenge.
I did prove out the relocation was possible with magwire. Pictures of that are here (imgur link because this forum doesn't like my 2MB phone pictures..?)
Final PCB I designed was so i can get off those small AliExpress regs I bought on my graduation day (this project has been going on for awhile!)
It's based off the PSU-Plus by CrazyGadget and YveltalGriffin that's used some Wii builds (Nolds Wii Micro, Wesks GC Micro, and CrazyGadgets/Wesks GC Nano), so loopj thought a fitting name would be PSU++, and he was totally right! The silkscreen and project files are still called "wiiu-psu-thing", but that's what I named it before posting it in BitBuilt.
I haven't ordered this PCB yet, but I see no reason why it shouldn't work, since the design has already been proven to work. I just swapped out some resistors and called it a day.
It should do what I want it to do: power all of the "low" current rails for the Wii U, along with a second 3v3 rail specifically to power the RTC and SMC to handle power-on. ATM, the console automatically powers on once its plugged into power, which I don't want. The added bonus is ECO (Standby) mode support, and thus, quick start support.
Here's a video of the console booting up. It's kinda old, but still kinda up to date, since I haven't changed much (except add a GCC port):
https://youtu.be/oiz9c9NwlOY
Hopefully some of you can give suggestions! I have yet to create the shell but I need to learn how to properly use Fusion 360 first. Baby steps!