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

horgan_p · 03-12-2020 11:46am

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 · 03-12-2020 1:52pm

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 · 03-12-2020 1:59pm

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 · 03-12-2020 3:37pm

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 · 19-12-2020 1:41am

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!

21-12-2020 10:21am

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

o1s1n · 21-12-2020 11:11am

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 · 29-12-2020 6:36pm

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 · 31-12-2020 8:36pm

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 · 31-12-2020 8:56pm

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 · 17-01-2021 6:13pm

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 · 17-01-2021 7:03pm

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 · 30-01-2021 2:32pm

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 · 30-01-2021 3:29pm

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 · 30-01-2021 3:35pm

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 · 30-01-2021 3:55pm

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 · 01-02-2021 8:15pm

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 · 01-02-2021 8:47pm

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 · 01-02-2021 9:22pm

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 · 01-02-2021 9:32pm

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 · 01-02-2021 9:33pm

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 · 01-02-2021 9:48pm

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 · 01-02-2021 10:59pm

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 · 01-02-2021 11:03pm

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

Optimus Prime · 02-02-2021 1:14am

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

eddhorse · 02-02-2021 12:16pm

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.
Arcade-Jamma-PCB-2019-IN-1-Multi-Game-Board-Arcade-VGA-CGA-output-game-board-2019.jpg

eddhorse · 02-02-2021 12:23pm

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

Keithchap · 02-02-2021 4:17pm

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 · 02-02-2021 4:22pm

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 · 02-02-2021 4:25pm

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?

eddhorse · 02-02-2021 4:31pm

EDIT sorry this is for swapping game board :

You just need to swap the jamma connector on your cab onto a new board.

Its the big black connector that goes onto that blue board.

eddhorse · 02-02-2021 4:46pm

Keithchap wrote: »

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

Here's the manual :
https://www.arcadomaniashop.com/WebRoot/Store/Shops/es115644_ArcadomaniaShop/533B/3111/E3F2/AEF0/22F3/50ED/8963/F3F5/2019_in_1_game_king_manual.pdf

o1s1n · 02-02-2021 5:01pm

Keithchap wrote: »

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!

]

Great, yeah I'd say the first port of call is connecting the VGA out on that game board up to an external monitor, see what it outputs on another screen and if you're getting a similar issue.

I wonder does that PC game board output different resolutions? for some reason be outputting a signal the monitor doesn't like? (I see there's a 'video' button on that blue remote board for it that you just found)

That's excellent that you found where the sync pot is by the way, would be worth giving that a little bit of a twist just on the off chance that it's causing the problem if the arcade game board doesn't turn out to be the problem. If it doesn't change anything then just make sure to twist it back to the previous position.

eddhorse · 02-02-2021 5:36pm

More interesting videos here :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVUN7wKMAic

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

Keithchap · 02-02-2021 8:01pm

Thanks for the videos and manual.On the back of that I found a manual, same, just a little easier to read:

http://www.arcadomaniashop.com/WebRoot/Store/Shops/es115644_ArcadomaniaShop/4C22/104A/AB1E/EC41/3A57/50ED/8961/D917/MultiGameBox_174__-_Service_Book.pdf

Watching the videos the one the guy is reviewing in the one in the case, I seem to have the other slightly cheaper one that doesn't have the case. I can't find all of the switches he refers to, perhaps I need to physically remove the board to see everything on it, it's at a very tricky angle to work with atm.

One thing I am getting more worried about is the power being sent to each component. When I connected back up the PSU it seemed to only connect one way, although it is not a perfect match as there are 4 pins hanging off it. What I am trying to figure out now is the Voltage for the board wires, the wires don't seem to correlate to the colours on the PSU.

Edit to add, I managed to test the yellow and red wires on the board itself as some are accessible, they match the colours as per the PSU.

eddhorse · 02-02-2021 8:15pm

Keithchap wrote: »

Thanks for the videos and manual.On the back of that I found a manual, same, just a little easier to read:

http://www.arcadomaniashop.com/WebRoot/Store/Shops/es115644_ArcadomaniaShop/4C22/104A/AB1E/EC41/3A57/50ED/8961/D917/MultiGameBox_174__-_Service_Book.pdf

Watching the videos the one the guy is reviewing in the one in the case, I seem to have the other slightly cheaper one that doesn't have the case. I can't find all of the switches he refers to, perhaps I need to physically remove the board to see everything on it, it's at a very tricky angle to work with atm.

One thing I am getting more worried about is the power being sent to each component. When I connected back up the PSU it seemed to only connect one way, although it is not a perfect match as there are 4 pins hanging off it. What I am trying to figure out now is the Voltage for the board wires, the wires don't seem to correlate to the colours on the PSU.

Edit to add, I managed to test the yellow and red wires on the board itself as some are accessible, they match the colours as per the PSU.

What did the old power supply look like connecting there?
Its possible you just need to press MODE on that small board to cycle through the resolutions.

Keithchap · 02-02-2021 8:57pm

o1s1n wrote: »

Great, yeah I'd say the first port of call is connecting the VGA out on that game board up to an external monitor, see what it outputs on another screen and if you're getting a similar issue.

I wonder does that PC game board output different resolutions? for some reason be outputting a signal the monitor doesn't like? (I see there's a 'video' button on that blue remote board for it that you just found)

That's excellent that you found where the sync pot is by the way, would be worth giving that a little bit of a twist just on the off chance that it's causing the problem if the arcade game board doesn't turn out to be the problem. If it doesn't change anything then just make sure to twist it back to the previous position.

I found the sync pots alright but I can't access without taking off the the front glass and the panel over the screen, it's a big job. There are 5 knobs on the left, 4 on the right. Is it worth getting the glass off to test them? Could a freezing game be related to sync pots?

I also just tried to connect up an LCD monitor, switched between the various outputs, pal/secam, sega etc. Could get nothing on to the separate monitor. In fact, and this is probably because I fiddled with the CRT tuning knobs, I can't even get the screen to be dark fuzzy screen I had before, just a bright fuzzy one now. A point of note also is that whether I have the CRT in the cabinet connected via the VGA or not, the screen is the same now.

Screen before I posted here:

Screen now:

I hadn't managed to find a 9 pin VGA but there is actually a 15 pin, that from the video above is connected to the motherboard so that you can switch.

Keithchap · 02-02-2021 9:00pm

eddhorse wrote: »

What did the old power supply look like connecting there?
Its possible you just need to press MODE on that small board to cycle through the resolutions.

That is the old power supply but connected just now, it seemed so obvious the way it was connected with the large component connector that I didn't think I needed to take a photo of it before I disconnected it which of course I regret now as i'm doubting everything.

I'm going to lift the the area where the buttons are now to test the voltage on them.

o1s1n · 02-02-2021 9:14pm

The image as to how the picture looks now - does it look like that after you played with the pots on the back of the flyback transformer earlier?

What you are seeing now looks like what are called 'retrace lines' - theyre a result of the screen voltage on the flyback transformer being too high.

So if you reckon this is a result of you moving those pots, it would be a good idea to bring them back down to where they were originally - you should hopefully then see the picture you had before. Just be super careful!

Regarding the remote board you found with the sync pot - there'll be one pot there for what's called v.sync, then the others will control lots of other things on your monitor like brightness, contrast, vertical and horizontal image placement.

The v.sync pot basically dials the sync in, think of it as tuning an analogue signal in on a tv - you have a rolling picture, you twist that pot, the rolling slows down till you get to a point where it has a stable image.

I don't think that's going to solve your issue though as if it were a sync problem you'd still kind of be able to see the video image, it would just be rolling.

Keithchap · 02-02-2021 9:24pm

o1s1n wrote: »

The image as to how the picture looks now - does it look like that after you played with the pots on the back of the flyback transformer earlier?

What you are seeing now looks like what are called 'retrace lines' - theyre a result of the screen voltage on the flyback transformer being too high.

So if you reckon this is a result of you moving those pots, it would be a good idea to bring them back down to where they were originally - you should hopefully then see the picture you had before. Just be super careful!

Regarding the remote board you found with the sync pot - there'll be one pot there for what's called v.sync, then the others will control lots of other things on your monitor like brightness, contrast, vertical and horizontal image placement.

The v.sync pot basically dials the sync in, think of it as tuning an analogue signal in on a tv - you have a rolling picture, you twist that pot, the rolling slows down till you get to a point where it has a stable image.

I don't think that's going to solve your issue though as if it were a sync problem you'd still kind of be able to see the video image, it would just be rolling.

OK thanks, I've reset it them back. Picture isn't as bright now but is still has the vertical lines, I can't get it back the way it was.

But as you said, it's probably not the screen. Also, the machine had gone a bit flakey before it started doing the freezing thing. Sometimes you'd turn it on and all you would get a is a powered/slightly brighter than black but totally blank screen, and I would have to turn it on and back on again to get it to start up. That could be an issue related to what the guy in the video says, powering off a windows box using power rather than a proper software shut down is probably going to cause issues over time.

Keithchap · 03-02-2021 11:31pm

So I've probably hit the end of the road with this line of investigation. I'm going to start swapping out component's to see if that helps, starting with the RAM, €12 delivered, it's worth a punt.

It doesn’t sound like it would be a problem with the CPU except maybe overheating but the fan is running well.

I have an old Dell PC at home so was hoping to harvest that but nothing fits so far, slightly different RAM, different connectors for the hard drive.

Will see how the RAM goes, next step would be to buy adapters and hook the HDD to the old PC, see if I can boot off it.

Another step could be to actually use the old PC and get a JAMMA adapter for it, if the HDD is working of course, or at least retrievable.

Final step, just buy a multigame JAMMA box like Pandora.

Thanks again for all your help, I learned a lot over the last few days, it's very much appreciated.

Will let you know how I get on.

Gradius · 03-02-2021 11:56pm

Keithchap wrote: »

So I've probably hit the end of the road with this line of investigation. I'm going to start swapping out component's to see if that helps, starting with the RAM, €12 delivered, it's worth a punt.

It doesn’t sound like it would be a problem with the CPU except maybe overheating but the fan is running well.

I have an old Dell PC at home so was hoping to harvest that but nothing fits so far, slightly different RAM, different connectors for the hard drive.

Will see how the RAM goes, next step would be to buy adapters and hook the HDD to the old PC, see if I can boot off it.

Another step could be to actually use the old PC and get a JAMMA adapter for it, if the HDD is working of course, or at least retrievable.

Final step, just buy a multigame JAMMA box like Pandora.

Thanks again for all your help, I learned a lot over the last few days, it's very much appreciated.

Will let you know how I get on.

If I was you I'd get a multijamma board first, like Pandora's box. But make sure it's crt compatible and not hd!

If that's an original arcade crt, it should be possible to just unhook the jamma connector (the black oblong connector going to the game king), connect a Pandora's box and that should be job done.

It must be frustrating, I reckon if someone in the know had a look inside in person, it'd be a 60 second job

Also, that white screen may be because you turned up the brightness all the way?

If I was to suspect anything, it's that the game king board is bollocked. I'd go back to step 1, put the old power supply back and try the Pandora's box. Even if you have a white screen you'll hear the game, then you'll know it's just an adjustment of the monitor.

Better yet, if someone lives nearby they should help this bloke out, pop over with a jamma board and get it going! Looks like it should be really simple!

Gradius · 04-02-2021 12:09am

Just to add to my previous post, I know I picked up a gameking board some time ago, but I didn't test it because it needed its own power supply.

In other words, there was the power coming from the jamma connection PLUS another power supply for the board.

So for that reason, there's a chance the connection going into that gameking isn't simply jamma (and that's why it looks weird)....so connecting that edge connector might nuke a jamma standard board.

Oh messy! Could be wrong of course

Keithchap · 04-02-2021 9:11pm

Gradius wrote: »

If I was you I'd get a multijamma board first, like Pandora's box. But make sure it's crt compatible and not hd!

If that's an original arcade crt, it should be possible to just unhook the jamma connector (the black oblong connector going to the game king), connect a Pandora's box and that should be job done.

It must be frustrating, I reckon if someone in the know had a look inside in person, it'd be a 60 second job

Also, that white screen may be because you turned up the brightness all the way?

If I was to suspect anything, it's that the game king board is bollocked. I'd go back to step 1, put the old power supply back and try the Pandora's box. Even if you have a white screen you'll hear the game, then you'll know it's just an adjustment of the monitor.

Better yet, if someone lives nearby they should help this bloke out, pop over with a jamma board and get it going! Looks like it should be really simple!

Thanks. I'm in Ashtown in D15 if anyone is near by!

I had a guy out here once when I was giving away an office desk on adverts, he was building a cabinet at the time, when he saw mine he was impressed so I fired it up and we had a quick game of SFII, I kicked his ass hehe, but I cheated by using Dhalism, had I used a proper character I like Ken or Ryu I would gave had it handed to me on a plate hahaha. If you're out there buddy ;-)

Before I went near the PSU it wasn't starting up at thatpoint anyway, no sound. So I think it's like you said, bollocked.

There are some other power leads coming from the PSU and they are hooked up. The Jamma board which I assume is the top deck has a power light on, I also tested some of the leads attached to it, they have power.

I think it is standard Jamma except for perhaps audio, that was in the video shared earlier so I may only need to change 1 wire.

Colonel Panic · 04-02-2021 9:54pm

I RGB modded this toploader NES in Sept and in Dec, it started showing corrupted visuals when I first turned it on, but that went away if I left it powered on for a bit and reset.

Then it plain stopped working at all so I figured I'd recap it.

Recapped and my original test game, Snake Rattle N Roll, wouldn't boot, but a few other Famicom and NES games would show something like the pic below.

I'm thinking of checking all PPU address/data pins first, as it looks like it's looking up wrong palettes and tile info but this is super vexing as it was fine for months and I played the crap out of it. It quickly became my favourite console and looking at eBay prices, I got a bargain buying it from this forum!

(Excuse the widescreen, it's that stupid 5V on the mode pin that Retro Gaming Cables to. It needs to be 12V for 4:3 for why bother?)

KeRbDoG · 05-02-2021 12:45am

If you wanted you could send it to me and I could pop in my NESRGB board (with my PPU) to narrow down the issue

Colonel Panic · 05-02-2021 9:38am

Thanks KeRbDoG, that's really nice of you! It would help for sure.

I'm gonna try and put some time aside to troubleshoot over the next few days so if I can't figure it out, I'll take you on on the offer.

Steve X2 · 13-02-2021 5:35pm

Saturn PSU swap. ReSaturn PSU for standard PAL PSU.
I decided to give one of these a go. I'd already swapped a PAL PSU into this Jap NTSC machine years ago, so this is its third PSU.

It's a more or less straight forward swap out. You just need to check what PSU is inside the Saturn and set the jumpers on the ReSaturn board accordingly.
I insulated the bottom of the new board with some Kapton tape and stuck some heat resistant rubber pads underneath to make sure its nice and stable(not really needed, but no harm).
One issue I did come across was interference/noise on the video signal. It turned out to be the crappy cheap external 12v PSU I was using. I swapped that over to something much better and the noise was gone(don't cheap out on the external brick!).

It's been running non stop for nearly 6 hours now without issue. No temperature issues(external brick is 23c and the actual ReSaturn itself is around 30-34c).
I'll probably grab another one of these for my ODE Saturn and he also makes a Dreamcast version that looks tempting.

https://rexusnexus.com/home/

Inviere · 13-02-2021 6:23pm

That's interesting, looks like a nice solution. Am I right in thinking the replacement Psu needs an external brick that feeds it 12v?

Steve X2 · 13-02-2021 8:56pm

Inviere wrote: »

That's interesting, looks like a nice solution. Am I right in thinking the replacement Psu needs an external brick that feeds it 12v?

Yes that's exactly it, standard external 12v brick with at least 5 Amps.

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

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