Names off everything needed for 16 player Mario Kart EXCEPT 16 Friends

I will never get rid of my Wavebirds. I still have the matte grey and silver ones. I still use it for Smash today. At the time, it was legendary to bring over the Wavebird to a buddies house for Melee. 🖤

Your low-key humor is integrated so casually

I had 2 wavebirds and I used them to convince some of my friends that my other friend Mark could beat them at Smash Melee blindfolded. Mark and I had 2 wavebirds set to the same channel and only one receiver plugged into the game cube. Mark would turn off his controller but pretend to keep playing blindfolded, while I looked at the TV through my window with the actual working controller.

I own 4 wavebirds in pristine condition. I use them for backyard projector smash with my buddies. Still love them

The console its self is legendary imo

I still have my Wavebird I preordered from Circuit City and got on day one of it's release. It's a bit dirty as it survived a house fire but it still works perfectly. No stick drift or anything, which is miraculous considering how much I played with it. Gamecube hardware was made rock solid. I had a GC memory card that I dropped in the snow during the winter and couldn't find it(was about 7 inches of snow). I came back after the snow melted(weeks later) and found it pressed into the mud on the surface. I took it home and dried it off, and to my surprise it still had all my data intact and was working perfectly.

I still use my wavebird control for my gamecube. It was my first exoerience with good wireless controls.

One thing I loved about the Wavebird was the battery life, I could just stick the batteries there and forget about it for a very long time. Also, it may be ugly ( I guess? ) but I struggled to understand why did they get rid of On and Off switch on controllers when wireless became mainstream, the need of hold a button wait a prompt to pop up and select "turn off controller" options is kinda silly in my opinion... it's much more convinient to just switch it off in half a sec sometimes for when you're taking a quick break and want to save some battery, I don't know, maybe it's just me.

OR worse said cable snagging would damage the controller port. I will say Microsoft was smart in putting a breakaway plug in the controller cable.

You know what's crazy about the Wavebird? If you have 4 Reciver, you can actually controll 4 Characters in Smash with one Wavebird, using the same Channel. I also like the idea having one Wavebird and 2 Recivers having one each plug in a GC and a Wii and you don't have to change anything. Yes the Wavebird is amazing, even today.

One of my favourite controllers ever. At the time I bought 4 of them in the hope of using them in multiplayer scenarios. Sadly that never happen so I only ever opened one of them. Which means I still have 3 unopened wavebirds in my collection :)

Great video - really like how you're tweaking the formula of these and telling more of the story while keeping the teardown aspect within context.

Probably my favorite controller ever, especially with it coming when it did. It was the first legit, reliable wireless controller on the market.

The Wavebird and probably just the GameCube Controller in general is pretty much the best controller in it’s time (on par with the slimmer Xbox Controller) and the GameCube Controller still holds up extremely well today..

I remember we lanned up Double Dash one time in my friend's basement in jr high. What a pizza fueled night of insanity that was. Simpler times.

7:14 Love how smooth the transition is into taking apart the subject matter of these educational throwback episodes...

Really liked this video. A good mix of a teardown plus gaming history. Good job!

If your videos were more like this Spawn... I would watch so much more. I love how you broke down the history and impact that the wavebird had and still has today. Thats insane! I learned a lot! Thanks so much man! Very well done video!!!

I never had a wavebird, so I can’t attest to its quality, but the wired GC controller was legendary so I can’t see how a wireless version wouldn’t be even better.

11:06 Tell me about it; I traded my whole GameBoy Advance, and most of my GameCube (including Wavebird) and N64 collection because I wanted the Wii at launch day with a couple games. How stupid my 18 year old self was, now I have been spending these last few years trying to rebuild my collection.

Love this video format, feels more raw like your making things from genuine passion for the content

I really love this format of informative videos from you, do more.

I really enjoyed this style of video. The story and the production quality made it interesting to watch. Keep it up!

Great retrospective format for this! Would love to see more vids in this style

Absolutely love my Wavebirds. I use them on the Wii. I never could find an answer why they didn’t rumble. Now I know.thx

This is an awesome breakdown of the Wavebird. Good stuff. Also, your taste in background music is impeccable! Star Fox Assault had an amazing soundtrack and...is that Skies of Arcadia I hear?

Just took apart and cleaned up my old childhood Wavebird. Works like a dream now! Also, love the use of the PSO Episode III Tower of Caelum music in the background

I still have mine. Used it a lot back in the day and always was pleasantly surprised by how long the batteries would work. The Wii controllers felt like such a step back in that regard.

Dude, your channel is on fire right now! Pumping out video after video one more awesome and in depth then the last. SWM is becomming one of gamings GOATs really fast.

Love this type of videos from you! 👍

Really like the documentary style you went with this. Hope to see more of these eventually.

Great video Jon! Love this format

I loved my wavebird. Some of the most fond memories of my childhood and early adolescence are playing Melee with this thing. Also, I've never really liked rumble features and still usually turn them off if i have the option. I wonder how much of that preference was solidified by the lack of rumble in the wavebird.

I traded my gamecube, games and most accessories to get the Wii since it had gamecube built into it. Luckily i was smart enough to keep my wavebird and memory card. I just picked up another one at local chain store in great shape for $12.

Honestly i just love how much opinions spawn from one gaming video!

I wish I could post a pic with all my controllers on here. I still have a regular wavebird, and a platinum wavebird. The wavebird was the first GOOD wireless controller, and will always have a place in my heart.

I don't understand why a few people always dislike these videos. There's literally nothing to dislike... Just talking about controllers

I got the receiver years apart from actually having the wave bird lol, never had it when it first came out and they get harder and harder to get every year

This video was done well! Good job Jon!

10 years after, I’m still mad at my brother for selling our GameCube with all my favorite games and the wavebird.

Neo Geo Pocket Color in the back, I see you SpawnWave! :) That system was great!

I love videos like this Spawn!

I just remembered my childhood/puberty! Lol. Great video!

And the battery is insane!! I play my gamecube often and use my wavebird every time. I still have had the same batteries in it for the past 5 years and I still don't need to change them.

Awesome and very nostalgic video men.

Thank you for this in-depth video.

My wavebirds still work like a charm and I got them day 1. Such a great piece of technology. It is amazing to me that the first generation of technology outlasted my joycons.

Great segment!

Your Tech Waves always make me nostalgic for a different time in my life when things were much simpler. Keep up the great work!

I did eventually find a third party wireless GNC controller that still included rumble. It was white and blue. Also, we setup 16 player Double Dash LAN on 2 GNC's for my brother's bachelor party!

I LOVED the Wavebird controller so much. I remember getting Metroid Prime for Christmas and it was packaged with a Wavebird. It was awesome! Awesome video as always, Spawn Wave! I love these style videos.

Awesome teardown. I want a wavebird for myself. Maybe one of these days but I still gotta get a GCHD or a Carby V2 so I can play the GC on my modern tv. Alot of work can go into modernizing old systems.

I loved my wavebird. I finished windwaker from the bathroom with a well placed mirror. Also I typically don’t care for rumble so the wave bird lack of rumble was a selling point for me.

I like all your videos, but this is one of my faves. I didn't own a GameCube, going from OG XBox straight to the Wii. It doesn't matter though. It's a great watch anyway! I love learning about the history and importance of largely ignored, ground breaking peripherals that we can appreciate, as we can only do properly in hindsight. Also, you have a more relaxed cadence moving forward through the video that I liked.

Hey man, just saying, setting up a 16-player match of Mario Kart Double Dash sounds like an A+ piece of content 👍

I remember changing channels and turning the rotor to turn antenna to get the channel you wanted to watch . I did have a floor model tv from 1984 that had a remote to

I remember having the Wave Bird back then man, it didn’t vibrate but what a great controller! Super comfortable, affordable and the batteries last like crazy! I’ve been even more than a month with the first batch.

Idk how I’m just now getting this video notification here in 2022… I still have a GameCube and the wave bird controller. Don’t have many games for it but a few. I loved it when it first came out.

I still have my wave bird since when I had gamecube and have never used another GC controller since, even without the rumble motor left out

I never had one of these growing up. I just had my single purple wired controller that came with my purple system. It was the first game system I ever purchased with my own hard earned cash. It took until I was about 30 years old before I ever managed to find and purchase a wavebird controller. Got it for a decent price. I'm very happy with my silver one. Would like a couple more at some point for the future. But for now, I'm content with just the one.

Jak and Daxter! Loved that series. And, yes...I loved my Wavebird. It was a revelation at the time and felt amazing in my hands. It's bulkier size felt much better than the standard GC controller. And it was just as reliable as the wired controllers. My friends and I would always fight over who got to use the WB. Good times. :)

Fantastic video, these are popping up everywhere now for some reason. Not that I mind, but I find it interesting that now that people are talking about them, everyone wants to sell theirs.

Still have my WaveBird Wireless Controller for my GameCube, both the light gray and platinum colors. Bought the gray one using a $15 off savings coupon taken from the Nintendo Power magazine to use at at the store I chose to buy it from (shedding the price down to $30). Years later I bought a used platinum WaveBird at a retro video game store. When playing the GameCube, I refer to the WaveBird controllers now.

I opened mine recently again and I need to replace on of the thumbsticks. It is all in pieces right now. I just hope nothing has been lost. I loved the wavebird I just wish it ad rumble too. That was the only thing lacking about it. Ace all otherwise. Did wild stuff like send my nephew outside in the backyard still controlling the game. Did that myself too. Fun times.

LOL, @ 4:02, this advert is hilariously good! I'm in stitches! : p

I still have my baby. This controller was amazing.

The GameCube controller is still the comfiest controller I've ever used. Never got the Wavebird only because it didn't have the rumble. Used extension cables instead. COMFY AF. Fantastic video SpawnWave!

A fun nod back to "the good old days" of technology. In my grandfather's time, wirelessly transmitted television was the standard. When I was growing up with game consoles, the video standard was the RF switch. The awesome thing about it was that you could hook up several game consoles at a time by hooking one RF switch into another. While television was playing, all you had to do was turn a game console on, and the signal would automatically switch to the console. When you turned the console off, it would automatically go back to TV. The modern process of "switching inputs" was fully automated. Also, every TV had power, volume, and channel buttons on the front. Remote controls were around, but in case it was lost under the couch or just temporarily misplaced, you could manage easily, and weren't just screwed. Also, for you competitive gamers out there, input lag on CRT televisions was basically nonexistent. Overall, things are better now. But progress is 2 steps forward, 1 step back. And those steps back can get annoying. I really wish there was a modern equivalent of the RF switch. Audio and video in 1 cable, the TV only needs 1 input to support any number of devices hooked up to it, and whatever is in use will be automatically selected.

11:10 this can't be any more true that it hurts. I remember doing just that when Halo 3 came out and having to walk with my new 360 from GameStop to my house, took me a while hour round trip to do it. Now I live in forever regret...

Best controller ever! I remember that the wireless phone I had in my room would screw up the controller's signal whenever it rang, lol. Nowadays we're going back to wired controllers because the Switch Pro Controller is so darn expensive!

I have a GC, and have two wired controllers. Because I wanted to sit on the couch in my dorm room, I bought cable extenders, that gave me an extra 8 feet. They work great!

Born in 93 grew up with sega genesis dreamcast ps1 & ps2. That shit you said bout developing a hunch while gaming in the 90s was so true. Carpet gamer for life

I am so glad my sister found at her house my old Wavebird ...my cousin was tasked to go around their house searching for the receiver and he found it! Now i need the adapter for my switch lol

Great video, Spawn!

Great video pal

@spawnwave our first gen wave bird was able to reliable control from across the street outside and about 1/4 of a small suburban block away... I’d guess it was a solid 60-75 yards easy. We used our Nextel phones on two way radio to communicate when the character on the screen stopped responding to commands. Wave bird was just godly

5:30 I remember the homebrew Chat program that some people made so you could play online with Mario Kart, emulated MSN messenger of the day and sat as a man in the middle client to basically send your LAN packets over the net.

So true man. Keep up the great content 🤙🏽

I got to do the 16 player Mario Kart with my friends and family, it was awesome! Good times.

Wavebirds are by far my favorite controllers. I was lucky enough to find a japanese club nintendo wavebird controller on ebay in an auction a couple years ago that didnt destroy my wallet, and it's still to this day my most precious controller. It took me about 2 years of checking ebay regularly for this controller before finding one in an auction that wasn't nearly as expensive as they usually are. That was more than 7 years ago. Best deal I ever found on ebay.

I remember finding one in a pawn shop in 2006 for 10 bucks. I grabbed it and still have it to this day.

Excellent Video!

I like the GameCube style of analog trigger way more then the normal way, and honestly, I’m kinda surprised that the GameCube is the only controller, (as far as I know anyway) to use that style. I hope more controllers do it in the future because it’s very comfortable and satisfying to pull

15 years, man this makes me feel old.

I miss my wavebird! I still have the wired controller that came with my first gamecube, but I to this day have no clue where my bird went. I had the rechargeable battery pack for it and EVERYTHING.

I 100% agree with this assessment of the WaveBird. I still have two and use them with my GC, Wii, and Switch. Yes, the WaveBird works with the Smash Bros. GC controller adapter for the Switch. GameCube was one of my favorite consoles. Not so much for the graphical content of the games, but for how fun they were. My PS2 ended up collecting dust unless I wanted to play a DVD.

I was fortunate to do two 16 player Mario Kart LANs. I have two BBA and most of my friends had them as well as we all played PSO. It was crazy fun and I wish it had been out a little sooner. It would have been nice to do Mario Kart and Halo 16 player LANs when those were super popular.

I always wanted a Wave Bird when I was a kid. My neighbor Josh had one and we played a ton of games together. I still really want one, but I'm not really willing to go so much out of my way for one. If I see one at a convention for a good price, I'll buy that immediately.

Another great Tech Wave!!!!!

Anyone else have a Nintendo power subscription and remember the ads for the wavebird with someone playing GameCube while sitting on the toilet? Still have a wavebird and I use it on my Wii to play GameCube games and sometimes on switch to play smash ultimate. They were and still are very cool.

I didnt wake up planning to watch a video on the wavebird, but im glad i did haha

I didn't buy one of these until the Wii was out, where it became my goto controller for Brawl & all the GameCube gems I hadn't played yet. Still got it in fantastic condition.

This is the one thing that I need for my old GameCube

Loving the dramatic last sentence

These are awesome!! I got one new in 2003 an it blew my mind playing star fox adventures!!

I love the Wavebird. Remember when our family upgraded to 4 of them. Might be my favorite controller.

My NES came with the Satellite and two four-player games on one cartridge: World Cup Soccer and Super Spike Volleyball. It used IR like a remote control. We didn't use it much.

I loved my Wavebird. Through smart usage of the power switch (shutting it down when cutscenes or the like happened), I managed to double the battery life and save on buying AA's. Sadly, it died some years ago. And then I found out Nintendo won't make any more Wavebirds and I got really sad. RIP birdy. You will never missed.

the gamecube will forever be one of my favorite systems of all time and the wavebird is one of those reasons