USB4MAPLE is a Sega Dreamcast USB adapter created by megavolt85 that allows you to use a range of USB peripherals including third-party controllers, mice, and keyboards. VMU emulation is also supported by using a USB splitter/hub and connecting a flash drive + controller. Here you'll find information on how to build one yourself, a compatibility list, and the latest firmware. To keep up to date with the latest developments, you can also follow the forum thread here.
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Table of Contents
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Building Your Own
What you'll need
- Raspberry Pi RP2040 / RP2040 Zero Microcontroller
- USB4MAPLE Firmware (see next section)
- Dreamcast Controller Connector
- USB OTG (Optional)
- USB Splitter or Hub (Optional) (For VMU emulation)
Solder wires from the Dreamcast controller connecter to the RP2040 as shown below.
Adding OLED Display
You can emulate the VMU screen by adding a 0.96" 128x64 I2C display with an SSD1306 controller or a 1.3" 128x64 display with an SH1106 controller. The SH1106 1.3" and SSD1309 2.42" displays have also been confirmed to work.
Wire the display to the RP2040 as follows:
VCC to 3V3
GND to GND
SDA to GP26
SCL to GP27
Adding Buzzer
You can emulate VMU beeps by adding a PC buzzer / motherboard speaker. Both active and passive buzzers are supported but passive it recommended.
Wire the buzzer as follows:
Passive: One wire to GND and one to GP6
Active: One wire to GND and one to GP7
Firmware
FW-6-21-2025 (Latest)
Changes: Added support for ThrustMaster Ferrari GT Experience Racing Wheel.
FW-6-18-2025
Changes: Added support for HORI Mario Kart Racing Wheel Pro Deluxe and fixed button mapping on some controllers.
FW-4-15-2025
Changes: Added support for PC buzzers to emulate VMU beeps.
FW-4-11-2025
Changes: Added support for Qanba Obsidian, Hori Real Arcade Pro 4, Hori Fighting Stick 3, Mad Catz Arcade FightStick MS, and Toodles Kitty TE board.
How to flash / update
Press and hold the "boot" button (this button may be inside a pinhole if your adapter is enclosed) on the RP2040 and plug it into a PC using a USB cable. The RP2040 should show up on your PC as a drive. You can then drag-and-drop the firmware file onto it. The RP2040 will disconnect by itself, indicating that the firmware update was successful.
Controller Modes
USB4MAPLE offers several different controller modes suited for various games. To change modes, press and hold the Xbox, PlayStation, or Home button on your controller and then press the face button that corresponds with the mode you want. The player number LED on the controller will change to match the mode.
Xbox / Playstation Controllers
A/X: (1) Standard mode for all games. Right analog stick works as d-pad.
X/▢: (2) Dual-analog mode for Quake III Arena and Unreal Tournament.
Y/△: (3) Twin Stick mode for games that support the Twin Sticks.
B/O: (4) FPS mode which emulates the face buttons on the left stick.
8BitDo M30 / HORIPAD
C: ASCII Pad FT
Z: Arcade Stick
Joysticks
Button 11: Disable y-axis inversion.
Button 12: Enable y-axis inversion.
VMU Emulation
USB4MAPLE has a VMU emulation feature that allows you to save games to a FAT-32 formatted flash drive if you have one plugged in via a USB splitter or hub. Note that you cannot plug in a flash drive by itself; it must be paired with either a controller, mouse, or keyboard. The adapter will create dedicated virtual memory cards for every game if using GDEMU with the latest version of OpenMenu or DreamShell. Virtual memory cards are stored on the flash drive as *.bin files and can be opened with VMU Explorer. If just using a stock Dreamcast with a GD-ROM drive, only a single vmu.bin file will be created on the flash drive which will be used for all games. You can manage the contents of this file via the Dreamcast BIOS as you would with a physical VMU or via VMU Explorer.
Compatibility List
This is a list of devices that have been tested and confirmed to work with USB4MAPLE.
In addition to the controllers listed here, you can also use USB4MAPLE in conjunction with a Mayflash Magic-NS adapter (in XInput mode) to add support for a range of modern Bluetooth controllers.
Adapters
GP2040-CE Fighting Board
Mayflash GameCube Controller Adapter
Mayflash Magic-NS 2
Mayflash Magic-NS Lite
Mayflash Magic-S Pro 2
Mayflash Sega Saturn Controller Adapter
PlayStation 1/2 Twin USB Adapter
Smart Joypad PS1/PS2 USB Adapter
Raphnet N64/GameCube to USB adapter V3
Arcade Sticks
Astro City Mini Arcade Stick
ChImp PC PS3 Controller
Hori Fighting Stick 3
Hori RAP VX SA
Hori Real Arcade Pro 4
Hori Wireless Fighting Stick 3
Hori Xbox 360 Dead or Alive 4 Arcade Stick
MayFlash Arcade Stick F101
MayFlash Arcade Stick F300
Mad Catz Arcade Fight Stick MS
Mad Catz Arcade Fight Stick Tournament Edition
Namco PlayStation Arcade Stick (w/ PS1 adapter)
NEOGEO Arcade Stick Pro
Qanba Obsidian
Toodles Kitty TE
Controllers
8BitDo M30 Controller (in DInput mode)
8BitDo Micro Gamepad
8BitDo Mod Kit for Original MD Controller
8BitDo N30 Bluetooth Controller
8BitDo NEOGEO Controller
8BitDo Pro 2 Controller (in DInput mode)
8BitDo SNES30
8BitDo Ultimate 2.4G Controller (in DInput mode)
Betop BEITONG Fighting Gamepad BTP-C3
Densha De Go! Controller Type 2 (PS2)
GuliKit KingKong 2 Pro Controller (Android/iOS mode)
HORIPAD 3 Turbo
HORIPAD Switch Controller
HORIPAD Mini Switch Controller
iBuffalo Classic USB Gamepad
Mad Catz Modern Warfare 3 Xbox 360 Controller
Mad Catz Street Fighter X Tekken FightPad SD (PS3)
PlayStation 2 Controller (Official) (w/ PS2 adapter)
PlayStation 3 Controller (Official)
PlayStation 3 Controller (KAPBOM brand)
PlayStation 4 Controller (Official)
PlayStation 5 DualSense Controller
PowerA Enhanced Wired Controller (Switch)
Retro-Bit Legacy16 Wired Controller
Retro-Bit Sega Saturn USB Controller
Saturn USB Play Sega Controller
Sega Astro City Mini Gamepad
Sega Mega Drive Mini Controller
Thrustmaster eSwap Pro
Xbox 360 Controller (Official) (wired or wireless with a wireless receiver)
Xbox 360 Controller (Shengan brand)
Dance Mats
PlayDance DDR Dance Mat
Joysticks
Gembird JSK-420
Logitech Extreme 3D Pro
Logitech Force 3D Pro
PXN-F16
Keyboards
Dell KB216
Hexgears X5
Logitech G613
Logitech K400 Plus
Logitech K400R
Logitech K845
Logitech MK295 (keyboard only)
Microsoft Digital Media Pro
Phantasy Star Universe Wireless Keyboard
TECKNET TK-KB004
ThundeRobot K104
Mice
Logitech M170 / M171
Microsoft Basic Optical Mouse 2.0
Microsoft IntelliMouse Explorer 3.0
Uineer Wired Mouse
Razer Viper Mini
Razer Viper v2 Pro
Zowie EC1-CW
Racing Wheels
HORI Mario Kart Racing Wheel Pro Deluxe
Logitech Driving Force
Logitech Driving Force Pro
Logitech Driving Force GT
Logitech G25 Driving Force
Logitech G27 Driving Force
Logitech G29 Driving Force (in PS4 mode)
ThrustMaster Ferrari GT Experience
Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel (with wireless receiver)
Xbox 360 Wireless Speed Wheel (with wireless receiver)