Converting your mac into a Dolphin Wii.

I was hoping to have some advice and audience on this please?
I'd heard the wonders and praises about the Dolphin emulator and its ability to play Gamecube and Wii games in HD - but I'd heard a few issues with running on a mac.

I was wondering if anyone here knows or indeed has this setup?
So many questions to ask!

Like how does the mac recognise the remote? Through the bluetooth?
Any input and experiences you've had would be awesome!

I know for sure it works over bluetooth. I'm not quite sure how the whole sensor bar thing is supposed to work. I imagine you have to get that working yourself somehow without a Wii, get one of those Wireless ones or just find a couple IR LED's to put on your tv.

And apparently certain games won't work well, there's bugs, and you need to have the minimum specs. Most Macs released within the last couple years should meet those nicely... I think.

I'd like to have more info as well.

Also, for sensor bars, you don't even really need one. Just put something that emits ir light above your screen. You can even use candles.

Originally Posted by Vinyl Scratch

Also, for sensor bars, you don't even really need one. Just put something that emits ir light above your screen. You can even use candles.

I saw that you could use candles when the Wii first came out, but it's not that reliable... because candle light flickers and stuff.

The Dolphin emulator doesn't even play roms for me. It just sits there, mocking me. I can't get it to play anything. Assistance please? (I'm assuming it's okay to post this, seeing as how it's a Dolphin thread)

Performance under Mac OS X isn't as good as under Windows, so installing Windows via Bootcamp should be something to consider. But that's by no means a must.

As stated, remotes connect via Bluetooth. There isn't much that needs to be setup with a Mac, if I remember correctly, it's an easy process. And yes, the sensor bar works via IR, so any IR source should be good enough. A cheap method would be to buy some IR LEDs and create some simple circuit with a battery or two, which could then be easily taped to a monitor. Candles are nice and all, but hardly a permanent solution... (the wireless sensor bar is an easy option, but they tend to be overpriced).

The actual games themselves are generally in .iso format. There are homebrew tools to rip them using your Wii via SD card or via Wi-Fi. Alternatively getting them online is an option, but legally, uh... shady of course...

A lot of games run fine, but then again, a lot of games glitch at least partially. If you're looking to play SS, there are still issues with Motion+ calibration, and the paint effects don't really work. Games like Super Mario Galaxy lose the atmospheric effects around planets. But games like SSBB and TP run charmingly well, as do many GameCube games. There can also be a lot of tweaking that needs to be done to get a game running at acceptable framerates, and often some of the graphical capabilities need to be given up to achieve this.

Best way to get familiar with it is to download it, skim through the manual, and try to get a wiimote connected and a game running.

(I'm only 9 days late, posting this...)

And Flex, how about some details? Do you meet the minimum requirements? Are your games in a proper format (like, umm... not PS3 games or something)? How far do you get before it starts mocking you?

I downloaded the Wii remote support app (DarWiin or something) and that registered the remote fine - some issues with Fidelity, but I reckon that could've been fixed with an IR source as you said.

I at the time, thought after I had the emulator and Wii remote recognition I could happily insert my games and away. But sadly not. And I didn't have patience or knowledge to sit and rip games I owned. So deleted it all off my system out of frustration.

My unused Skyward Sword game disc lies mockingly in its box. :[

Yeah, it really doesn't work well under Mac OS on my friends mac, so windows might be a good option.

If you have usb 3.0 or an unused pci express slot, get a video card. 5770 will be an immense performance boost.