Nextronics Sensor Bar USB for Wii / Wii U / PC

Product Information

See the review for more details, but be warned that review is from many years ago and the landscape has changed quite a bit. Update: Since the creation of this article, Bluetooth Passthrough has been created as a new option for Wii Remote connectivity. By taking over the drivers of a Bluetooth Adapter, it allows unprecedented support for Wii Remote features, including the speaker and even 3rd party Wiimotes. However it doesn't work on all bluetooth adapters, and requires some setup to work. Even though it may not be the best option anymore, the DolphinBar remains a very easy all-in-one option for Wii Remote functionality, and we still recommend it for users. The DolphinBar does not current work with Bluetooth Passthrough.

There has never been an ideal solution for sensor bars. The sensor bar on the Wii is just a set of IR lights, it should be easy! It's not. Third party sensor bars are usually battery powered, and that means they chew through batteries like crazy, have automatic shut offs, and generally aren't as bright as the original Wii sensor bar. There are some USB sensor bars on the market, but generally they are battery first, USB second, and STILL turn off automatically regardless of external power! And that's not even including sensor bars that can't even get the LEDs right. The situation with sensor bars has been so bad, just turning on a Wii and using its sensor bar is the preferred solution for many. The Dolphin emulator lets you turn your PC into both the Wii and the GameCube. The Wii was fully compatible with GameCube games so the two system are very closely related. Ready to elevate your classic Wii gaming with enhanced flexibility and seamless play? We’re going to explore the world of replacement Wii motion sensor bars. Let’s get right into it.

Recommendations

After a 10 to 20 seconds it should vibrate and show a single blue LED. This means it has successfully connected to you PC. There are three major kinds of Wii Remotes. The original Wii Remote with no Motion Plus Inside, and two variants of the Wii Remote including Motion Plus. For Dolphin, connecting original Wii Remotes and the early Wii Remotes with Motion Plus inside is simpler, as you can just use the "1" and "2" buttons on the Wii Remote to connect to Dolphin. The later Wii Remotes with Motion Plus Inside (denoted by a -TR under the battery shell) changed the connection method and now you must use the red sync button under the battery shell to connect Wii Remotes to Dolphin. With the release of Smash 4 for Wii U, Nintendo created a new type of standardized GameCube to USB adapter to allow the classic GameCube controllers to be used on their (then) latest console. Soon, not only were there official versions of these adapters, but also tons of third party adapters. Because these use a standardized interface, Dolphin can use these adapters along with LibUSB to directly pass the GameCube controller to the emulated game. This bypasses the need to configure your GameCube controller, but also means that it can only be used as a "Native GameCube Controller" without third party drivers for their adapters.

To get a full Wii setup you’ll need a Wii remote (called a Wiimote) with the Nunchuk attachment and a USB powered sensor bar. Your PC needs to have Bluetooth so if you haven’t got that built in you’ll need a Bluetooth dongle.If you want to use a real GameCube controller in Dolphin, there are multiple options. There are many PC based USB adapters that allow use to use GameCube controllers as standard controllers that can be configured in Dolphin for the "Standard Controller" GameCube option and the "Emulated Wii Remote" option. Last on our list is the Aokin USB sensor bar. It works with the original Wii, the Wii U, and for those looking to emulate their Wii games on their PC using Dolphin. Try to put all your games into a Wii games folder. Dolphin needs to be told what folders you’re using for your games files so having them in the one place will make it easier. Again if you’re using LaunchBox use the Wii folder in the Games folder. Running a Game in Dolphin While its performance as a mouse leaves a lot to be desired, that is irrelevant for us. What counts for us and our users is how it improves the Dolphin experience, and improve it it does. The DolphinBar provides users with a solid sensor bar, easy to use Wiimote support, built in -TR compatibility without requiring a guide, and the added bonus of letting Wiimote accessories be used in the GCPad and other emulators! We recommend the DolphinBar to any Windows, macOS, or ( as of 5.0-876) Linux user who doesn't have Bluetooth or a sensor bar yet. When you boot up Dolphin it won’t know about any of your games. First we need to tell it where the game files are stored.

When you get hold of Wii games you’ll find they come in a range of formats from plain ISO dumps to compressed nkit files. Dolphin is very good at handling most formats so you’ll find pretty much everything will work OK. If you don't have a Wii sensor bar, you can use two lit candles placed approximately the same distance apart as the sensor bar. In the Wii settings, select whether the candles are above or below the TV, just like you would for the sensor bar. Point the WiiMote between the two candles, and the pointer will respond on the screen as usual. 2. What does the Wii sensor bar do?Speaking of USB compatibility, this MayFlash sensor bar connector has a USB plug that allows it to easily connect to your computer and be used for emulation. It’s compatible with the original Wiimote and Nunchuk along with the Wii classic controller as well. What stood out to us most, though, was the affordability of the KIMILAR sensor bar. Despite its low price, it didn’t compromise on quality or performance. Needless to say, it’s a popular choice among gamers looking for a reliable replacement. Through our hands-on testing, the KIMILAR Wired Wii Motion Sensor Bar proved to be a dependable and cost-effective solution, delivering everything it promised. Replacement Wii Motion Sensor Bars FAQs But mice don't work that way. Ever since the days of balls with wheels attached, mice have used a relative coordinate system. They have no fixed point of reference; all they do is measure how fast the mouse is traveling horizontally and vertically, and deliver that as X and Y "coordinates". Without a reference point, the mouse has no idea where it is in real space compared to the screen, it just knows its speed and direction. And for a mouse cursor on your desktop, that's all it needs. We've gotten a lot of requests to allow a Wii Remote or especially a Wii Classic Controller Pro to be used as a GameCube controller in the GCpad through the RealWiimote system in Dolphin. It makes sense; a lot of users have had to buy sensor bars, Bluetooth adapters, and even Wii Remotes for use in Dolphin, and they don't want to have to buy even more stuff to control GameCube games when they already have all these controllers. Unfortunately that's not how RealWiimote works, so all we could do was point them to third party tools like GlovePie - the very same GlovePie that is notorious for connectivity issues and an interface as intuitive as a DOS prompt.