Add real strings to a Guitar Hero controller - OpenChord.org

Step 8 Wire it to the Arduino

Now we'll want to hook up everything to the Arduino. First, if you haven't already, cut the cable that used to go from the buttons you took out to the controller. Wire these to pins 8-12 (although you could change them in the software) and then the one ground wire (use a multimeter on the controller circuits to figure out which one) to a ground pin.

Next, connect the wires from the frets to pins 2-7, (although again, you'll probably wind up doing some software editing anyways).

Finally, take the ends of the wires coming off the strings and solder them to the diodes. Make sure you wire them so that the current can only flow away from the string side. Plug each of these diodes into the arduino on ports 13-19 (or whatever), again making sure that the diode is soldered such that current can only flow into the Arduino from the strings.

Finally, find the power switch and solder two wires from the power switch to the Arduino, making sure that the Arduino only gets power when the switch is turned on (Otherwise, your batteries will always be draining).