Arcade & Retro Repairs & Mods, all new recipe, with no added MSG...

horgan_p

Fenrir ODE arrived this morning for my Saturn.
Opened Saturn to fit, notice incompatible Saturn.
Scream at the gods. Put Fenrir on marketplace.

Hows your day going ?

o1s1n

sugarman wrote: »

Where did you pick up a battery? I replaced mine with a holder recently but havent gotten around to sourcing a battery locally. Harder to find than I thought.

Nabbed one on ebay, here ya go!

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-ML2032-ML-2032-Rechargeable-Replacement-Battery-for-BIOS-CMOS-Dreamcast/293687503109?_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.SEED%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20160908105057%26meid%3D978a69936dbb45c1ac56476780032947%26pid%3D100675%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D15%26mehot%3Dnone%26sd%3D114458301810%26itm%3D293687503109%26pmt%3D0%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D2380057%26brand%3DUnbranded&_trksid=p2380057.c100675.m4236&_trkparms=pageci%3A438d92a6-3566-11eb-b55a-6a312cb011d0%7Cparentrq%3A28a8589d1760a9cc32e856bdffcd35af%7Ciid%3A1

o1s1n

sugarman wrote: »

Cheers! ..and did they actually post from the UK? Always weary of those kind of listing saying they post from the UK but ends up being China and having to wait weeks for it.

Yeah I thought it might be one of those auctions but I actually got it in about a week

horgan_p

sugarman wrote: »

Would you not try source another Saturn instead?

Thats a devil of an idea. I'll give that a shot

80s Synth Pop

The 2 player link mode in the Rave Racer Twin was not working. The link is through a small Namco PCB. Same one used in Ridge Racer, Ace Driver, Final lap etc

The PCB for a twin cab has various part numbers
2272961401
2272961402
2272961403
Or a single cab one is 8619962101

I had these as search alerts on ebay for over a year and nothing ever came in.

The link PCB is bare bones so it was likely the relay part that had failed. I had a search alert on ebay for that part too: an Omron LZN4 5v. These are surprisingly hard to find but since the data sheets say it is a nf4 5v relay, I added that as yet another ebay alert.

Finally after a year of waiting, a match from ebay came in for a Panasonic nf4 relay. €8

Bad relay removed:



New one installed:



Link play working at last!

Wow,didnt know you had a twin driver.
that one looks neat enough

o1s1n

That's some level of patience waiting for that relay part to appear on ebay! Just goes to show, wait long enough with ebay and things always turn up, it's just a matter of time.

Lovely looking cabinet.

Colonel Panic

My top loader NES has failed on me! I RGB modded it in Sept and all was well, but recently, I'd find Zelda show corrupted tiles and other games just show a blank screen.

Leaving the machine on for 30 mins and resetting fixed this a couple of times, but this week, when I really wanted to get stuck in it's wrecked!

Caps look find, RGB MOD reseated and 5V getting to various components, cleaned cart slot and games confirmed working in a Famicom with an adapter.

I don't have a scope, unless you count a toy version I haven't assembled yet so I can't really see what's happening over time on any pins.

CathalDublin

You’d assume caps if it was working after a while, aging caps often look completely normal, caps are cheap, I always just replace them in any board or console I’m working on immediately

Colonel Panic

I'm inclined to agree. May as well get cap kits for a few of my consoles now just in case something else begins to fail!

o1s1n

My PS2 HDD stopped working a few months back, tried reseating it a million times and it just wouldn't detect. Gave in and decided it was probably broken so I've been half looking at pre loaded ones on ebay but haven't pulled the trigger as of yet.

Was recabling my setup this evening and picked up the PS2 to move it somewhere else. I'd forgotten to screw in the network adapter, so when I picked up the console it immediately slid out, along with the HDD - both crashing down on the floor with an almighty bang. (it's an old style IDE HDD so has a bit of heft to it!)

'Well, if the HDD wasn't broken before, it definitely is now..!'

Plugged it back in just to keep everything neat and together, decided to turn the console on:



WHAT.THE.FECK.

I liken what just happened to crashing your car into a wall to get the engine going again :pac:

The Last Bandit

Sounds like a case of stiction, the heads can stick to the platter if used for a long time and just need a bit of persuading to free up. Although chucking across the room is not the typical solution

Keithchap

Hi All,

Hoping you can help me out here folks. I have an arcade machine that was having a few niggles. Joystick wasn't working and also mid game the it was freeze up after a few minutes, music would continue but the screen would be frozen. I figured out the joystick problem, I just needed new cherry microswitch, so that's sorted.

But on to the main problem now with the freezing, I mentioned it to a friend and he said the first thing to do is replace the power supply, as it could be that. So I found a replacement power supply and made the switch. Here is a photo of the original:



Here is a photo of the one I replaced it with:



This looked like the right one. When I received it seemed identical, the component connection were the same, the new one had a group of 4 connectors that came away, this made sense as the original one was actually too big and had 4 connectors hanging out the side once connected. The difference I am concerned about is a missing white wire that according to the colour code is "-5V". This wire is in the old one and where it should be on the new component connection it is blank. I did a search online but can't get a grip on what that white wire is for. Images of the two component connectors below.



So not knowing if it served any purpose I connected everything back together and turned the machine on. Everything appears to turn on, CRT screen, pc, fan etc however all I get on the front is wavy white noise (as opposed to fuzzy white noise if just the CRT is on with no power to the motherboard), pic below)




Here are some other various photos in and around the unit.







Does anyone know what the white "-5V" is for? Am I barking up the wrong tree?

I reconnected up the old power supply and now I get the same with that, so I've gone and made it worse, at least I could get a few minutes of gameplay before .

It's been out of order for over a year now, hard to find the time with three small kids but would love to get it up and running again. I think at this point I need an expert to come and take a look but if you guys can give me any help and suggestions of things to try that'd be great.

Thanks

Keithchap

80s Synth Pop wrote: »

The 2 player link mode in the Rave Racer Twin was not working. The link is through a small Namco PCB. Same one used in Ridge Racer, Ace Driver, Final lap etc

Sweet, I used to head into Dr Quirkeys on O'Connell street every day after school to play that game, mid 90's, loved it, I think I had the high score at one stage. I'll never forget the flick of the wrist and the drop to 6th gear for the S bend :-)

80s Synth Pop

Usually the -5v is for sound if it's used at all.


Can you check the output of the old psu with a multimeter to see if the 5v and 12v outputs are spot on?

Also try tweaking the sync pots on the monitor remote board to see if it comes back. That image looks like what you would see if one of the pots was turned to low or high.

Is the game playing blind? Can you hear any sounds from the game?

Keithchap

80s Synth Pop wrote: »

Usually the -5v is for sound if it's used at all.


Can you check the output of the old psu with a multimeter to see if the 5v and 12v outputs are spot on?

Also try tweaking the sync pots on the monitor remote board to see if it comes back. That image looks like what you would see if one of the pots was turned to low or high.

Is the game playing blind? Can you hear any sounds from the game?

Thanks, I'll need to get a multimeter so.

I have no idea what sync pots are, I'll google it to see if I can find them.

No nothing now, no sounds, only the noise of the fan, lights on inside and the fuzzy screen.

Keithchap

80s Synth Pop wrote: »

Usually the -5v is for sound if it's used at all.


Can you check the output of the old psu with a multimeter to see if the 5v and 12v outputs are spot on?

Also try tweaking the sync pots on the monitor remote board to see if it comes back. That image looks like what you would see if one of the pots was turned to low or high.

Is the game playing blind? Can you hear any sounds from the game?

Hey, thanks again.

OK so I think I figured out the sync buttons, you mean these right? If so they did affect the screen, but didn't resolve the issue. The game isn't playing blind anyway as there are no sounds.



As for testing the power supply I managed to borrow a multimeter and figured out how to use it, I feel like I've already achieved something :-). Here are the results, I tested both the new PS (Power supply) and the old one, here is a table of the results. They look a little high on both but seem similar, that said, the machine isn't working with either of them now.

o1s1n

Those two pots you are adjusting there look to be on the back of the flyback transformer - don't be messing with those. They're for adjusting the focus and brightness but directly of the electron beam. There are many more adjustments you can play with before going near those.

Just on a site note, try to stay as far away from the flyback transformer and the cable coming out of it as much as you can, that's where the scary high voltage lives.

Is there a small pcb somewhere with lots of pots on it? Something like this:

There should be one that controls sync.

A place you might find it is if you check around the front of your cabinet, under the control panel or under the monitor bezel, lots of machines have them there so you can adjust the monitor while looking at it.

Keithchap

o1s1n wrote: »

Those two pots you are adjusting there look to be on the back of the flyback transformer - don't be messing with those. They're for adjusting the focus and brightness but directly of the electron beam. There are many more adjustments you can play with before going near those.

Just on a site note, try to stay as far away from the flyback transformer and the cable coming out of it as much as you can, that's where the scary high voltage lives.

Is there a small pcb somewhere with lots of pots on it? Something like this:

There should be one that controls sync.

A place you might find it is if you check around the front of your cabinet, under the control panel or under the monitor bezel, lots of machines have them there so you can adjust the monitor while looking at it.

Thanks.

Unfortunately I already twiddled with those but I'll come back to that and get them sorted when the game is machine is up and running.

The only thing I could find with anything turnable is these two:

First pic is a close up, sending is for context on where they are.



The flat copper bar is part of the frame that is holding the electronics for the screen and the screen itself. This board is underneath that.

Gradius

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUL5TiUYAss

Cletus there should give you a better idea.

There will be some more adjustment pots somewhere on the chassis (the circuit board attached to the monitor). Different monitors have them in different places.

But just in case it wasn't made clear, don't blast yourself while adjusting anything. Have one hand in your pocket, and be VERY particular about what you are and aren't touching.

One of the little turnable pots will be the synchronisation, usually only takes very slight adjustment.

That big blue circuitry block is essentially the PC, think they're called a "game king". Could well be busted. But either way, you should be able to adjust the signal on the monitor first, then move on from there.

80s Synth Pop

Those pots adjust the focus and brightness. As said above there should be another board that does the sync. One will do vsync and the other hsync.


What game board have you installed. Is it a pc or the original virtual striker board?

Hopefully your measurements are off as sorry to say running 7v+ on a 5v old game board may fry it.


Also are all connectors in firmly to the right place? One of your first photos seems to show a big transformer not connected to anything. Maybe it's an old unnessessary stepdown transformer but it could be a monitor isolation transformer and that is needed for monitor safety.

As mentioned above do be careful especially around the monitor as it can kill.

o1s1n

Just rereading back over your initial post.

What's in the machine game wise? Looking at the photos and you mentioned a fan, I take it that it's one of those Chinese multi game thingies?

It's a bit late now, but the first thing to do before changing the power supply would have been to put another game in it, something might have just gone faulty with the multi game board, they can be quite unreliable.

If that didn't work then I'd have gone to the PSU as you have, if there's something wrong with it (ie not supplying enough power to the game board) then it can freeze - you can especially get this with power hungry boards, with those multi game tend to be.

When the picture was freezing, did you still get a proper, colourful image on the screen, just not moving?

If so then I wouldn't be adjusting the monitor at all as it sounds like it was working perfectly before your multiboard went on the fritz.

When the game turns on, are there sounds initially? If so, and you're not getting any sounds now, it can't be the monitor sync unfortunately as you'd hear the game running, just with a rolling picture - so the monitor isn't the problem.

Sounds like something has gone screwy with the PSU install and either the game board isn't getting enough juice or it's wired incorrectly.

When you plugged in the old PSU, is it now exhibiting the exact same problems as the new one? (so a weird black and white static image?)

Sorry for all the questions! Just trying to troubleshoot in my head as I go along

Keithchap

Thanks All, you're very kind.

Thanks Gradius, I'll watch that video.

I'm aware of the voltage and am avoiding the back of the CRT as much as I can. Thanks.

I'm pretty sure it's not a screen problem, the screen was working fine before. The game would freeze but a perfect picture would still be on the screen, just frozen.

"Also are all connectors in firmly to the right place? One of your first photos seems to show a big transformer not connected to anything. Maybe it's an old unnessessary stepdown transformer but it could be a monitor isolation transformer and that is needed for monitor safety."

Those were just the two power supplies after I'd removed them. The pic inside the unit with the component power supply connectors were just dangling because I had removed the power supply. I took photo's as I was taking the original one out so pretty sure, but not 100%, that I have them in the way they were and they seem to be connected well.

"What game board have you installed. Is it a pc or the original virtual striker board?"

It's a PC, running Windows 98. Has a few hundred games on it.

"Hopefully your measurements are off as sorry to say running 7v+ on a 5v old game board may fry it."

Unless there is something wrong with the multimeter. I ran it to test "DC", V with the bar and the 3 dots on the multimeter. Black connected to ground (black wire), red to the coloured live. I had shorted circuited the fan (grey wire) so the fan was running the whole time which was the only way to get a current. It is strange that both have the same high readings.

"It's a bit late now, but the first thing to do before changing the power supply would have been to put another game in it, something might have just gone faulty with the multi game board, they can be quite unreliable. "

I do regret jumping straight in with a power supply change, given I have made things worse!

"When the picture was freezing, did you still get a proper, colourful image on the screen, just not moving?"

Yep, proper colourful image, just not moving. You'd get a few minutes of game play before it would freeze. When this was happening is when I obviously should have posted here, hindsight and all that. After freezing background music would still be playing but no gameplay sounds like firing etc.

"When the game turns on, are there sounds initially?"

Yes there are sounds usually but not now, so don't think it's anything to do with the monitor.

"When you plugged in the old PSU, is it now exhibiting the exact same problems as the new one? (so a weird black and white static image?)"

Yep, exactly the same. Although now I've fiddled with the tuning on the monitor it's a it brighter and with a fixed squiggle, but both PSU's behave the same now and had the same waving pattern before I twiddled with the monitor knobs.

Keithchap

Quick video of the inside. There is an old power supply and unconnected wires in the bottom of the cabinet.

Optimus Prime

If it’s a windows 98 pc plug a monitor into it and make sure it works. Rule that out anyways.

eddhorse

Keithchap wrote: »

Thanks.

Unfortunately I already twiddled with those but I'll come back to that and get them sorted when the game is machine is up and running.

The only thing I could find with anything turnable is these two:

First pic is a close up, sending is for context on where they are.



The flat copper bar is part of the frame that is holding the electronics for the screen and the screen itself. This board is underneath that.

That looks like the 2019 in 1 board.

eddhorse

Also your white sync pots are the far side facing the front of the cabinet. Marked in red rectangle.

Keithchap

eddhorse wrote: »

Also your white sync pots are the far side facing the front of the cabinet. Marked in red rectangle.

Perfect, found the sync pots, thanks. But they are just related to the screen right? which going by some of the previous posts doesn't seem like the issue?

Keithchap

eddhorse wrote: »

That looks like the 2019 in 1 board.

Fantastic,thanks, yep that is the board alright. If I have to replace it at least getting one of those will make it a lot easier. It feels a bit daunting to have replace this JAMMA board with a different type, assuming I would have to do some soldering, make new connectors? I was hoping to get this one up and running but maybe I need to bite the bullet at some stage.

Keithchap

Optimus Prime wrote: »

If it’s a windows 98 pc plug a monitor into it and make sure it works. Rule that out anyways.

I found the connector for the monitor, looks like I need a 9 pin VGA, I have a box full of old cables in the attic, I'd be surprised if there wasn't one there, I never throw out cables!



I also found the PCB dangling in the bottom compartment of the cabinet. Could that be an issue perhaps?