How to hook up a Nintendo 64 to newer TVs

Last Updated on August 13, 2023 by Dave Farquhar

Setting up a Nintendo 64 wasn’t supposed to be hard, but it can get tricky if you can’t find all of the cables. Cables from some other Nintendo consoles will work, but not always. Plus, TV sets have changed a lot since the 1990s, so an HDTV won’t have all the same options as an older TV, which makes it much more difficult. So here’s how to hook up a Nintendo 64 to a modern TV, even a smart TV, and how to troubleshoot the No Signal indicator if you get one.

Cables exist to hook up your Nintendo 64 over composite video or S-Video like a VCR, or over HDMI for TVs that lack those options. If you hooked yours up and are getting a No Signal indicator on your TV, there are three possible fixes.

Table of Contents

  1. How to hook up a Nintendo 64 to a Smart TV or HDTV over HDMI
  2. Can you use a Wii component cable on an N64?
  3. Connecting an N64 to S-Video
  4. Connecting an N64 to composite video
  5. How to hook up a Nintendo 64 to RF
  6. Troubleshooting the dreaded N64 no signal
  7. N64 cartridges causing no signal
  8. Faulty or dirty memory expansion or jumper pak
  9. Incompatible video cable
  10. How to hook up the Nintendo 64 power supply and controllers

How to hook up a Nintendo 64 to a Smart TV or HDTV over HDMI

how to hook up a Nintendo 64
The AV plug on the back of the N64 resembles that of newer Nintendo consoles, but not all of the cables from newer consoles will work.

Some newer TVs, especially smart TVs, don’t have composite inputs like the old ones did. Fortunately, inexpensive SNES/N64 to HDMI cables are available now that sell for less than $15. That’s not much more than a composite or S-Video cable costs. And the same cable can do double or triple duty with an SNES and a Gamecube if you have either of those consoles. These cables plug into the Nintendo AV port and into an HDMI port on your TV. They also have a switch to allow you to choose 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratio. Use whichever you prefer. Most of these adapters can’t get the power they need over the video connections, so they need to be powered over USB. You can use the USB connector on your TV if it’s available, or use an old smartphone charger.

This is a viable option for HDTVs and Smart TVs that only have HDMI inputs, and gives you one more option if you prefer HDMI. Of all the options I outline here, this one is the most future proof. But it’s also the most likely to require you to buy something. If you’re in a hurry to get your console working and have some cables, keep reading for more options.

I’ll also give one additional caveat. The N64 is famous for being pickier about displays than other consoles of its era. Getting the image to look good on a flat panel is a challenge. The N64 looks fine on some flat panels, but terrible on others.

Back to the table of contents

Can you use a Wii component cable on an N64?

Some recent TVs have component outputs, which provide better quality than composite. While a component video cable for a Wii fits the N64’s video connector, they aren’t compatible. It’s possible to modify an N64 to use component video, but those mods have fallen out of favor. If you’re going to open your console and mod it, you might as well mod it for HDMI since HDMI provides better quality output and the cost and difficulty are comparable.

For someone who just wants to play some retro games occasionally, the inexpensive SNES/N64 to HDMI cable is the better option than component.

Back to the table of contents

Connecting an N64 to S-Video

For years, the highest quality connection you could use with an N64 without modifications was S-Video. Depending on the age of your TV, it may still be the best option. Since many DVD players used S-Video, many recent-ish televisions, including LCD televisions, have an S-video connection. And many higher-end TVs in the 90s had these connections for use with high-end VCRs or game consoles that supported it, so this still gives a true-to-the-90s experience. S-Video is just an improved form of composite video, so it wasn’t difficult to build into equipment, but it fell into disuse once better options came available.

To use this option, all you need to get is an N64-to-S-video cable (the same cable also works with a Super NES, Gamecube or Wii), then plug the cable into the video output of your N64, and plug the S-Video lead into the S-Video port on your TV and select S-Video on your TV using the remote.

Back to the table of contents

Connecting an N64 to composite video

how to connect a NES to a modern TV
This TV has a dual component/composite input. So on this TV, I would connect to the yellow/green jack on the left, and the red and white audio jacks on the right to hook up a Nintendo 64.

Composite was what a lot of us used in the 1990s with an N64, and millions of TVs have composite outputs, so this is an option likely to be available to many people. For this type of connection, all you need is an N64 composite video cable. One of these cables probably came with your N64 in the first place, or with another Nintendo console if you have one of those. These cables are also compatible with multiple Nintendo consoles, from the Wii back to the Super Nintendo of the early 90s.

Simply plug this cable into the square video output in the back of the N64, then plug the yellow video lead into the yellow RCA jack in the back of your TV, and the red and white audio leads into the red and white jacks in the back of the TV. If your TV doesn’t have two audio inputs, just use whichever one it has and leave the second one disconnected.

On some televisions, the set of component inputs does double duty as composite as well. On a TV like that, one of the jacks will probably be green and yellow. Try using that jack.

Just like S-Video, after connecting to composite inputs, select the composite input with your TV remote and turn on your N64 to play.

Back to the table of contents

How to hook up a Nintendo 64 to RF

Last and least, you can hook up a Nintendo 64 to RF if you don’t have any other options. Some newer TVs can still accept the broadcast analog signal that the N64’s RF connection used. For this type of connection, you need an N64 RF video cable. This is another cable that works with other Nintendo consoles if you have one.

Connect the square end to the square AV output on the back of the N64, then connect the round end to the antenna connector on your TV. Connect your antenna or other video lead into the round antenna connector on the N64’s RF converter. Next, insert a cartridge and turn on your N64, then perform a channel search on your TV using its remote. Your TV hasn’t seen an analog signal on channel 3 or channel 4 since 2009, if it ever did, so you have to instruct it to look. After the channel search finishes, you’ll see your N64’s output on either channel 3 or channel 4.

If you can’t get your N64 to work over RF, you probably missed the channel search step, or didn’t have your N64 powered on when you performed the search.

With analog television becoming increasingly rare, this isn’t an option that we can count on forever. But on a TV that doesn’t have any other connections besides HDMI, this option is the one most likely to work in a pinch.

Back to the table of contents

Troubleshooting the dreaded N64 no signal

What if your N64 turns on, you get the red light, you’ve checked the connections and they’re all fine, and the TV still says no signal? Here are the most common reasons your N64 may give no signal.

  • Dirty cartridges
  • Faulty or dirty memory expansion or jumper pak
  • Use of the wrong video cable

Let’s step through each of these possibilities one at a time.

Back to the table of contents

N64 cartridges causing no signal

If your N64 cartridges are dirty, it can cause your N64 to malfunction and your TV to indicate no signal. Try another cartridge, and try cleaning the contacts on the cartridge with a cotton swab. I also have a guide for more thoroughly cleaning N64 cartridges.

Wrapping some paper towel around an old gift card, adding a few drops of alcohol, and using the card/towel combo to clean the cartridge slot in the N64 itself can also be helpful.

Back to the table of contents

Faulty or dirty memory expansion or jumper pak

Dirty contacts on the memory expansion or jumper pak can also cause your N64 to malfunction and your TV to indicate no signal. Try cleaning the contacts on the pak with a cotton swab and some alcohol.

Back to the table of contents

Incompatible video cable

The N64 shares the same square connector with many other Nintendo consoles, but a cable to use the Wii with HDMI or component video, for example, doesn’t work on an N64. The N64 requires a different, more expensive converter for HDMI or component. Stick with a composite, S-Video, or RF cable with the N64. Or purchase a compatible N64 to HDMI cable and use that to connect your N64 to your HDTV.

Back to the table of contents

How to hook up the Nintendo 64 power supply and controllers

The power supply module snaps into the back of the unit, in the large rectangular-shaped void next to the video connector. The power cord plugs into the wall of course.

Cartridges plug into the slot in the top of the unit. Never plug or unplug a cartridge with the unit powered on. Power off the unit first.

Controllers plug into the four ports on the top of the unit. Plug in controllers from left to right, up to four controllers for four simultaneous players. The color of the controllers is purely cosmetic; any controller will function in any port.

If your N64 malfunctions and your TV gives a No Signal indicator, check the door on the top of the unit just in front of the cartridge slot. There should be either a memory module or a dummy module in there. It’s usually red. If it’s there, try turning the power off, unplugging the module, then plugging it back in. When this module is loose, it can cause the unit to malfunction. If that still didn’t help, I have more troubleshooting tips in the previous section.

Beyond this point, hooking up a Nintendo 64 isn’t quite like an NES, but it’s closer to that than the newest Nintendo consoles.

Back to the table of contents

If you found this post informative or helpful, please share it!