DS5Dongle BL618

A wireless DualSense controller adapter based on BL616/BL618. It bridges a DualSense or DualSense Edge gamepad over Bluetooth Classic (BR/EDR) HID to a host PC via USB HID, appearing as a standard wired DualSense (VID 054C / PID 0CE6) or DualSense Edge (PID 0DF2). Fully compatible with Steam, SDL, PS Remote Play, and more.

Ported from awalol/DS5Dongle (Raspberry Pi Pico 2W). The BT stack was migrated from BTstack to Bouffalo SDK (Zephyr-based), and the USB stack from TinyUSB to CherryUSB.

Unofficial project — not affiliated with or endorsed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. "DualSense", "DualSense Edge" and "PlayStation" are trademarks of Sony Interactive Entertainment. The USB VID/PID values (054C:0CE6 / 0DF2) are emulated so the host sees a standard wired controller; use at your own risk.

Supported Boards

Board	Chip	USB	LED	Debug
LCTech BL616 (default)	BL616 QFN32	Type-C native	1x blue (GPIO27)	External USB-TTL
Ai-M61-32S-Kit	BL618 QFN56	GPIO37/38 fly-wire	RGB + white (4 LED)	Type-C CH340
Sipeed M0S Dock	BL616 QFN32	Type-C native	2x red (GPIO27/28)	External USB-TTL

The default build target is LCTech BL616. build_macos.sh (and the build_lctech616.sh wrapper) builds for it out of the box; use BOARD_TYPE=aim61 or BOARD_TYPE=m0sdock for the other boards.

LED pin assignments and USB topology differ per board and are handled at compile time via board_config.h.

Hardware Requirements

LCTech BL616, Ai-M61-32S-Kit, or Sipeed M0S Dock dev board
DualSense controller (standard 0CE6) or DualSense Edge (0DF2, auto-detected)
LCTech BL616 / M0S Dock: just a USB-C cable (native USB)
For Ai-M61-32S-Kit: USB data cable (cut and wire to USB_DM/USB_DP header pins)
For LCTech / M0S Dock serial debug: USB-TTL adapter (CH340/CH341, 3.3V)

USB Wiring (Ai-M61-32S-Kit only)

The on-board Type-C port is a UART bridge (for flashing/debug). Native USB must be wired from header pins:

Pin 37 (USB_DM) → USB D- (white)
Pin 38 (USB_DP) → USB D+ (green)
GND              → USB GND (black)

If the host does not supply power over USB, the board needs separate power via its Type-C port.

LCTech BL616 / M0S Dock: USB is natively connected via Type-C. No wiring needed.

Getting Started

1. Bouffalo SDK (DS5Dongle fork — required)

The official Bouffalo SDK will not work with this project — it is missing the required BT HID net_buf pools and USB Audio request handling. You must use the project's SDK fork:

git clone https://github.com/sqlCRT/bouffalo_sdk.git bouffalo_sdk

The build script expects the SDK in ../bouffalo_sdk (a sibling directory of this repository) and builds against the fork's master branch. The fork is based on upstream v2.3.28 with targeted DS5Dongle BL618 modifications; see its README for details.

2. Dependencies

# macOS
brew install cmake
brew install make          # GNU Make 4.0+ required by SDK

# Linux (Ubuntu)
sudo apt install cmake make

3. RISC-V Toolchain

BL616/BL618 uses the T-Head extended ISA. A standard riscv64-elf-gcc will not work.

# macOS ARM64 — community pre-built T-Head toolchain
curl -L https://github.com/beckmx/bouffalo_labs_mac_toolchain/releases/download/v1.0/riscv64-unknown-elf-toolchain.tar.gz \
  | tar xz -C ~/riscv-toolchain

# Linux — the SDK ships its own toolchain, or download from T-Head

build_macos.sh auto-detects the toolchain under ~/riscv-toolchain/toolchain/bin.

4. Build

cd ds5dongle-bl618

# LCTech BL616 — default
bash build_macos.sh build      # incremental compile (-j auto)
bash build_macos.sh rebuild    # clean + compile
# or: bash build_lctech616.sh rebuild

# Ai-M61-32S-Kit
BOARD_TYPE=aim61 bash build_macos.sh rebuild

# Sipeed M0S Dock
BOARD_TYPE=m0sdock bash build_macos.sh rebuild
# or: bash build_m0sdock.sh rebuild

# USB speed — Full-Speed is the default (best cable compatibility);
# use USB_SPEED=hs for the High-Speed 480 Mbps variant
USB_SPEED=hs bash build_macos.sh rebuild

# Other commands
bash build_macos.sh clean      # clean only
bash build_macos.sh strip      # remove .o/.a to shrink build dir

Default board: LCTech BL616 (BOARD_TYPE=lctech616).
Default USB speed: Full-Speed (12 Mbps); pass USB_SPEED=hs to build the High-Speed variant (higher polling ceiling, more sensitive to cable quality).
Switching BOARD_TYPE or USB_SPEED triggers an automatic clean rebuild (CMake cache incompatible).

Output: firmware/{board}/ds5dongle-{board}.bin (~800 KB) plus boot2/partition files and a flash_prog_cfg.ini. Built binaries are git-ignored — attach them to a GitHub Release if you want to distribute prebuilt firmware.

Windows

On Windows, clone the T-Head toolchain and use the provided script:

git clone https://gitee.com/bouffalolab/toolchain_gcc_t-head_windows.git

build_windows.bat both         rem build Full-Speed + High-Speed variants
build_windows.bat rebuild      rem LCTech BL616, Full-Speed
build_windows.bat              rem incremental build
build_windows.bat flash COM5   rem flash via serial

build_windows.bat both produces both ds5dongle-lctech616.bin (Full-Speed) and ds5dongle-lctech616-hs.bin (High-Speed); a single High-Speed build is also possible via USB_SPEED=hs build_windows.bat rebuild.

The script expects the DS5Dongle BL618 SDK fork at ..\bouffalo_sdk (step 1) and the toolchain at %USERPROFILE%\Desktop\toolchain_gcc_t-head_windows by default. Override with the BL_SDK_BASE / TOOLCHAIN_PATH environment variables; other boards via BOARD_TYPE=aim61 / BOARD_TYPE=m0sdock.

5. Flash

LCTech BL616 — Dev Cube (UART/ISP mode)

Build the firmware first — the build script outputs ds5dongle-lctech616.bin, boot2_bl616_isp_release_v8.1.8.bin and partition_cfg_4M_nosec.toml into firmware/lctech616/.
Hold the BOOT button on the LCTech BL616, then plug the board into the PC via USB-C, keeping BOOT held until the board enters UART (ISP) download mode.
Open Bouffalo Lab Dev Cube, select chip BL616, and use the ISP (UART) flashing mode.
Select the board's COM port, then load these files:
- Partition table: firmware/lctech616/partition_cfg_4M_nosec.toml
- Boot2: firmware/lctech616/boot2_bl616_isp_release_v8.1.8.bin
- Firmware: firmware/lctech616/ds5dongle-lctech616.bin
Start the download.

Use the _nosec partition table (partition_cfg_4M_nosec.toml), not partition_cfg_4M.toml.

Alternatively, flash via the build script:

bash build_macos.sh flash /dev/tty.usbserial-xxx

Other boards follow the same Dev Cube flow; use the files generated under firmware/{board}/.

Usage

Connect the LCTech BL616 board's Type-C port to the target host (power + USB data). For serial debug, additionally connect a USB-TTL adapter (CH340/CH341, 3.3V)
Put the controller in pairing mode (hold PS + Create for 3 seconds, light bar flashes)
Watch the on-board blue LED for status (see LED table below)
The host should see "DualSense Wireless Controller"

Ai-M61-32S-Kit note: its Type-C port is a UART bridge (flashing/debug only) — native USB must be wired from header pins (USB_DM/USB_DP/GND) to the target host, see USB Wiring above.

LED Status Indicators

LCTech BL616 has a single blue LED (GPIO27); states are distinguished by blink cadence:

State	Pattern (single blue LED)
Idle / waiting to pair	Slow blink (~1Hz)
Scanning	Fast blink (~3Hz)
Connected	Solid
Just disconnected	Blink (~1Hz) for ~3s, then back to idle slow blink
Battery ≤20% (discharging)	Medium blink (~1.7Hz)
Battery ≤10% (discharging)	Fast blink (~3Hz)
Auto-off	Off after 1 min (on by default; battery warnings unaffected)
Event acknowledge	Single flash
Bonds cleared	Triple flash

Ai-M61-32S-Kit note (RGB + white LEDs): idle = purple slow blink (1Hz); scanning = purple fast blink (~3Hz); connected = green solid; just disconnected = red slow blink, auto-transition to purple after ~3s; battery ≤20% = green-yellow medium blink; battery ≤10% = red medium blink; event acknowledge = blue single flash; bonds cleared = blue triple flash.

Sipeed M0S Dock note (two red LEDs, GPIO27/28): LED0 (near Type-C) blinks for idle/scanning, LED1 stays solid when connected; disconnect = both sync blink; battery warning = LED0 fast blink; critical = both blink.

BOOT Button Gestures

Gesture	Action
Single click	Switch to the next paired controller (up to 8 remembered)
Double click	Disconnect current controller + scan for a new one (link keys preserved)
Long press (3s)	Clear all bonds + start scanning (triple LED flash to confirm)

Features

Implemented

BT Classic HID Host: inquiry, SDP, L2CAP, SSP auto-pairing
Full input passthrough: sticks, buttons, triggers, gyro, accelerometer, touchpad, battery
Full output passthrough: rumble, RGB light bar, player indicators, adaptive triggers
Audio passthrough (bidirectional): UAC1 4ch 48kHz OUT → Opus encode → BT 0x39 dual-frame report (547B, speaker/headset); BT mic Opus → decode → UAC1 2ch 48kHz IN (microphone)
HD haptics: USB Audio Ch2/Ch3 → 16:1 decimation → BT 0x92 haptic tag
DualSense Edge full support: auto-detect → unlock handshake → profile prefetch → 437B descriptor, PID auto-switch (0DF2)
Multi-controller memory: remembers up to 8 paired controllers, single click to switch
Controller-initiated reconnect via L2CAP server registration (passive model)
Robust reconnection: periodic scan retry (~30s), connection watchdog (3s no-input detection), Link Supervision Timeout (5s), system reset fallback for stale ACL cleanup
Idle timeout: configurable 0–60 min auto-disconnect (default 30 min)
PS shortcut: short press → Win+G, long press → Win+Tab
Configurable polling rate: 250Hz / 500Hz / real-time (~750Hz, follows the BT report rate)
Button remap: remap any controller button to another controller button (Feature Report 0xFB)
MuteLight: mic button LED control (toggle on/off via the controller mute button)
USB remote wakeup: 6-state FSM + Boot Keyboard + auto power-off after 5s suspend
USB stealth mode: hide the USB device until a controller connects (configurable)
Custom controller light-bar color (default white), plus on-board RGB status LED
USB serial number: unique chip ID from eFuse (configurable, on by default)
Trigger motor power reduction: configurable 0–10 levels
Volume lock: prevent the host from changing controller speaker/headset volume
LED auto-off: steady LEDs turn off after 1 min (on by default; battery warnings unaffected)
Battery alerts: ≤20% green-yellow blink warning, ≤10% red blink critical
Multi-board support: LCTech BL616 (default), Ai-M61-32S-Kit, Sipeed M0S Dock — compile-time board selection
Build-time log level control (LOG_LEVEL 0–3)
FreeRTOS multi-task architecture (BT / USB / Audio / Mic)

Known Limitations

Item	Description
Single active controller	One controller connected at a time; up to 8 pairings remembered (single click switches)

Controller Feature Compatibility

The USB side presents DualSense-compatible HID descriptors (auto-switching between DS and Edge; standard wired layout plus dongle-config Feature Reports 0xF6–0xF9 / 0xFB), so hosts treat the dongle like a wired controller.

Feature	Data Path	Supported
Sticks / Buttons / Triggers	HID Input passthrough	Yes
Gyro / Accelerometer	HID Input passthrough	Yes
Touchpad	HID Input passthrough	Yes
Battery level	HID Input passthrough	Yes (+ on-board LED low-battery alert)
Adaptive triggers	HID Output SetStateData	Yes
Rumble	HID Output SetStateData	Yes
RGB light bar / Player LEDs	HID Output SetStateData	Yes
HD haptics	USB Audio Ch2/Ch3 → BT 0x92	Yes
Controller speaker	USB Audio Ch0/Ch1 → Opus → BT 0x39 tag 0x93	Yes
Controller microphone	BT Input → Opus decode → USB Audio IN	Yes
3.5mm headset (output)	USB Audio → Opus → BT 0x39 tag 0x96	Yes
Mic mute LED	BT Input mute button → MuteLight control	Yes

Configuration

Settings persist via bt_settings and are read/written over USB Feature Reports 0xF6–0xF9. They can be changed from a web page without rebuilding (see Web Configuration). Highlights (defaults):

Option	Default
Controller mode	Auto (DS5 / Edge / Auto)
Polling rate	250Hz (250 / 500 / real-time ~750Hz)
Idle auto-disconnect	30 min (0–60, 0 = off)
LED auto-off	On (after 1 min)
Custom light-bar color	White
USB serial number	On
USB stealth mode	Off
PS shortcut	Off
USB remote wakeup	Off
Haptics gain	1.0 (1.0–2.0)
Trigger motor reduction	0 (0–10)
Volume lock	Off
Mic / speaker passthrough	On

Project Structure

src/
├── main.c              Entry + FreeRTOS task orchestration + data bridge
├── bt_hid_host.c/h     BT Classic HID Host (Inquiry + SDP + L2CAP + SSP)
├── ds5_protocol.c/h    DualSense protocol definitions + CRC32
├── usb_gamepad.c/h     USB composite device (Gamepad + Boot Keyboard)
├── ds5_usb_audio.c/h   USB Audio Class 1 (4ch 48kHz ISO OUT + 2ch 48kHz ISO IN)
├── audio.c/h           Audio pipeline (sinc resample + Opus encode/decode + haptics + mic)
├── usb_wake.c/h        USB remote wakeup FSM
├── state_mgr.c/h       SetStateData conditional merge manager
├── config.c/h          Configuration system (bt_settings + 0xF6-0xF9)
├── dse.c/h             DualSense Edge profile management
├── remap.c/h           Button remap
├── led_status.c/h      LED status indicator (RGB on Ai-M61 / dual-red on M0S Dock / single on LCTech)
├── board_config.h      Board abstraction (LED pins/polarity, USB type, board name)
├── debug_log.h         Build-time log level macros (LOG_ERR/WRN/INF/DBG/ISR)
└── FreeRTOSConfig.h    FreeRTOS configuration
lib/
├── opus/               Opus codec (fixed-point, xiph/opus)
├── opus.cmake          Opus source file list
└── opus_config.h       Opus build configuration
firmware/               Board flash configs + local build output (binaries git-ignored)

Architecture

┌──────────────┐          ┌──────────────┐          ┌──────────────┐
│  DualSense   │◄─ BT ──►│ BL616/BL618  │◄─ USB ──►│   Host PC    │
│  Controller  │  BR/EDR  │ LCTech/M0S/ │  HID     │  Steam/SDL   │
└──────────────┘  HID     │   Ai-M61    │  Device   └──────────────┘
                          └──────────────┘

Data flows:

Input (Controller → Host): BT L2CAP receives Report 0x31 → strip HID header/seq/CRC → 63-byte payload sent as USB Report 0x01
Output (Host → Controller): USB EP OUT receives Report 0x02 → State Manager conditional merge → BT Report 0x31 (78B with CRC32) → L2CAP send
Audio OUT (Host → Controller): USB Audio ISO OUT (4ch 48kHz) → double-buffer PCM accumulation → polyphase sinc resample 512→480 → Opus CBR encode (160kbps) → haptics decimation → 0x39 dual-frame report (547B) → L2CAP send
Audio IN (Controller → Host): BT 0x31 mic Opus frame → queue → Opus decode (48kHz mono) → mono-to-stereo → ring buffer → USB Audio ISO IN (2ch 48kHz)
Feature (bidirectional): GET_REPORT from BT-side cache (DSE profiles support NAK gating) | SET_REPORT adds CRC32 and forwards via L2CAP control channel

Web Configuration

The companion web configuration tool is intentionally not open-sourced, in order to protect the interests of early users. The web configuration page is currently available at ps5.ds5678.top. The open-source firmware can still be configured from a web page (USB Feature Reports 0xF6–0xF9 / 0xFB), but online OTA is not supported in this open-source build. If you are comfortable with WebHID, implementing your own configuration page is straightforward — with AI assistance it can be done very quickly.

Acknowledgements

awalol/DS5Dongle — original Pico 2W implementation, core protocol reference
bouffalolab/bouffalo_sdk — BL618 SDK + Zephyr BT stack
CherryUSB — USB stack
xiph/opus — Opus audio codec (fixed-point mode)
Linux kernel hid-playstation.c — DualSense protocol offset reference
BL618 porting developed with Cursor + Claude Opus 4.6

License

This project is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0 (GPL-3.0). Anyone who uses or modifies this code in a distributed product must make their source code available under the same license.

Third-Party Notices

Code is ported/adapted from awalol/DS5Dongle, which is licensed under the MIT License (Copyright (c) 2026 awalol) — see NOTICE for the full text.
lib/opus is the xiph/opus codec, BSD-3-Clause licensed (see lib/opus/LICENSE_PLEASE_READ.txt).
CherryUSB and bouffalolab/bouffalo_sdk are external build dependencies, Apache-2.0 licensed.
The Linux kernel hid-playstation.c (GPL-2.0) was used as a protocol/offset reference only; no kernel code is included.

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
firmware		firmware
lib		lib
src		src
.gitignore		.gitignore
CHANGELOG.md		CHANGELOG.md
CMakeLists.txt		CMakeLists.txt
LICENSE		LICENSE
Makefile		Makefile
NOTICE		NOTICE
README.md		README.md
README_CN.md		README_CN.md
TODO.md		TODO.md
build_lctech616.sh		build_lctech616.sh
build_m0sdock.sh		build_m0sdock.sh
build_macos.sh		build_macos.sh
build_windows.bat		build_windows.bat
defconfig		defconfig
flash_prog_cfg.ini		flash_prog_cfg.ini
proj.conf		proj.conf

Navigation Menu

Repository files navigation

DS5Dongle BL618

Supported Boards

Hardware Requirements

USB Wiring (Ai-M61-32S-Kit only)

Getting Started

1. Bouffalo SDK (DS5Dongle fork — required)

2. Dependencies

3. RISC-V Toolchain

4. Build

Windows

5. Flash

LCTech BL616 — Dev Cube (UART/ISP mode)

Usage

LED Status Indicators

BOOT Button Gestures

Features

Implemented

Known Limitations

Controller Feature Compatibility

Configuration

Project Structure

Architecture

Web Configuration

Acknowledgements

License

Third-Party Notices

About

Releases

Contributors

Languages

Latest commit

History

Folders and files

Repository files navigation

DS5Dongle BL618

Supported Boards

Hardware Requirements

USB Wiring (Ai-M61-32S-Kit only)

Getting Started

1. Bouffalo SDK (DS5Dongle fork — required)

2. Dependencies

3. RISC-V Toolchain

4. Build

Windows

5. Flash

LCTech BL616 — Dev Cube (UART/ISP mode)

Usage

LED Status Indicators

BOOT Button Gestures

Features

Implemented

Known Limitations

Controller Feature Compatibility

Configuration

Project Structure

Architecture

Web Configuration

Acknowledgements

License

Third-Party Notices

About

Topics

Resources

Stars

Watchers

Forks

Releases

Contributors

Languages