Famicom World

Family Computer => Technical & Repair Assistance => Topic started by: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 07, 2012, 09:26:51 pm

Title: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 07, 2012, 09:26:51 pm
i thought i would make a video to make things a little easier to for you guys to see what my issues are and my thoughts.

your help will be greatly appreciated :) thank you guys in advanced


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLVogAWaQ08
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: Frank_fjs on August 07, 2012, 09:45:01 pm
How did you clean the carts exactly? What type of cleaning chemical did you use?

Looking inside the Famicom cart slot, do you see any bent pins?

To me it looks like dirty cart contacts or a dirty cart slot, but in the video you mention you have cleaned those so assuming you've done it properly, looks like it could be a more serious hardware fault.
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 07, 2012, 09:57:17 pm
i used Q tips, and rubbing alcohol, if i could figure out how to get these things apart i could clean em better, there are no bent pins that i can notice, of course this is my first famicom,  all i know is when i cleaned the pins with a cloth towel and credit card, it was a tight fit every time, it did this also before i cleaned the games and system, so i  everything i have done, didn't make it any better. like i said before if i could open the carts, i would use a magic eraser which is how i clean my NES games which works way better then any other thing Ive done
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: Frank_fjs on August 07, 2012, 10:15:08 pm
Okay, well it doesn't sound like a dirty contacts problem then.

I'm not technical enough to be able to diagnose the exact fault, but to me it does sound like a hardware fault. I suppose your options now are to buy another loose Famicom (they're dirt cheap so you won't be losing too much money) or see if you can find a console repair person in your area.

Of course I don't know the nature of the original sale, so a return/refund might be possible also.
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 07, 2012, 11:20:35 pm
thanks, ive figured out how to open the shells, kinda hard but eye glass flat head seems to do the trick, i was able to actually clean the pins more, and got done with 2 of the games, the one game that just doesn't work at all, seems to have some issues,  and the other one does not look much better, i am able to kinda make out the characters, but back ground is boxy and pixelated, no form to em at all


i cant really tell if its the system or these carts, i don't know, id hate to spend another i dunno how much for another famicom plus shipping, go to find out its these games, considering this is my first famicom, and my first experience with it, makes me not want to buy another one, thinking that well this one could do the same thing

Post Merge: August 07, 2012, 11:44:23 pm

ok scratch the cart issue, onces and a while if i just let the game go with the sound and the pixels it will flash and the music with do this single tone pause noise,  but that doesn't explain why one of the games doesn't give me any more then a black screen,

1 flashes different colors
1 plays very distorted
1 chars show but everything is distorted and pixelated
1 black screen no sound
1 plays intro  white bar on the top freezes and flashes,  then plays sound, chars are visible everything else is distorted but doesn't freeze or pause
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: fredJ on August 08, 2012, 01:31:48 am
you should probably buy a tested one next time.... look around the Byu/Sell for cheap famicoms.
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 08, 2012, 01:52:09 am
i bought it from this site for 20, i was told it worked, senseiman sold it to me, im happy with everything ive got from him, he gave me some advice, which brought me here, and to try to play around with the  rf  connector, i bought 5 famicom games this famicom, and a super famicom from him,  it came to a total of 125 with shipping through SAL,  ill get some pics after work, best i can do is 8 mp but it has focus on it, so i should be able to get them. , you want both sides? front back and cart slot? oh and i also discovered, before i went to work, that, the big Capacitor, that sits in the very back on the small pcb gets warm and quick. but that could be normal for all i know lol , im more of a computer guy, i wish i knew more about consoles -.-
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: famifan on August 08, 2012, 07:19:42 am
man, that's definitely bad connection between the cartridge and famicom's slot. If you sure that you're inserting the cartridge properly try to replace the slot.
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: HokusaiXL on August 08, 2012, 07:21:51 am
Check the cart slot pins, and you may have to use an emery board to sand off corrosion.  You can get them at any drug store, walmart, or any grocery store for that matter.  And they're cheap.  They're thin enough to push down into the cart slot and it'll clean most of the corrosion off the pins.  But as said before, you may have a few bent pins.
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: famifan on August 08, 2012, 07:36:32 am
original slot is worn and it's better to replace it with new one.

slot's desoldering can be easily performed by one by one pin desoldering. New slot costs less then 1$ without shipping.  :crazy:
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: P on August 08, 2012, 10:23:10 am
Check under "Tools & Parts" on Tototek. It's 4$ for a 60 pin connector but shipping from Hong kong is cheap.
Where do you get them for less than 1$ famifan?
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: famifan on August 08, 2012, 10:52:25 am
Quote from: P on August 08, 2012, 10:23:10 am
Check under "Tools & Parts" on Tototek. It's 4$ for a 60 pin connector but shipping from Hong kong is cheap.
Where do you get them for less than 1$ famifan?

http://водолей-нск.рф/price/dendy/?parts (http://водолей-нск.рф/price/dendy/?parts) right here. retail price is about 20RUR ~ 0.7$USD. But it's russia only online-shop.
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: P on August 08, 2012, 02:37:54 pm
Oh yeah the Dendy uses the same cartridges and thus the same connector. Too bad it's Russia only, Russia is so much closer to Sweden than Hong kong.

Anyway DigitalxxxFr34k you could try testing the connector with an multimeter first and see if it really is faulty before you go ordering spare parts.
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 08, 2012, 03:34:06 pm
here are pics :)

Post Merge: August 08, 2012, 03:35:57 pm

alright it wont let me post all the pictures so if there is any good site i can post them on and  put just a link down, please tell me

Post Merge: August 08, 2012, 03:54:01 pm

sadly i don't have a  multimeter nor would i know how to operate it,  i work on computers, but i know those well enough that all i need is a screw driver, and a few pieces of software , everything else i learned how to do  through videos on youtube  or google, i diagnose issues related to what issues i have, like replacing a DVD drive in my xbox360, or the laser in my ps2, or disabling the lock out chip and replacing the 72 pin connector, in my NES. as soon as i seen it done, and then do it my self, i never forget how to do it, written, or drawings don't help me much for some reason, just how my brain has worked since i was a kid lol.  makes life at times tough. oh and if any one does not want to type out my full SN, you can call me Digi or Jeff :)


http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee14/Digitalxxxfr34k/IMAG0229.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee14/Digitalxxxfr34k/IMAG0227.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee14/Digitalxxxfr34k/IMAG0224.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee14/Digitalxxxfr34k/IMAG0215.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee14/Digitalxxxfr34k/IMAG0214.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee14/Digitalxxxfr34k/IMAG0209.jpg






Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: P on August 08, 2012, 04:26:41 pm
OK Digi, a multimeter is really handy even for less complicated everyday stuff like checking batteries with the voltmeter function or testing if cables are faulty or not with the ohmmeter function. If you are gonna repair your Famicom it will probably be very handy. You can find a decent digital multimeter for not too much and tutorials in laylanguage online.

Quotei diagnose issues related to what issues i have, like replacing a DVD drive in my xbox360, or the laser in my ps2, or disabling the lock out chip and replacing the 72 pin connector, in my NES. as soon as i seen it done, and then do it my self, i never forget how to do it

Yeah that's the way you gotta do it. Relying on others all the time won't always work.

Unfortunately I recall that the connector was soldered to the main board so you might have to desolder it on the underside in order to change it.  :octorok:

Oh one more thing. Working on that carpet might be a bad idea since it may cause static electricity which might be bad for the board.
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 08, 2012, 05:06:19 pm
you got a point, i should probably  invest in one, and its a cloth that i use to lay on my foot stool when i work on something, i don't have space for a work bench, and soldering is out of the question, if anything i will replace the whole thing i already have 80'sFreak offering me the guts, but he is also trying to help me with the issue on the fhis one, just in case its fixable,  i don't know,  i would be willing to sell the guts on this famicom to some one who can fix it, soldering is really not a strong skill, i got a iron, and a pump, but im  not very good at it -.- looks like its hopeless really, the seller i bought from here said it all worked, i wanna know what happened from there to here 3 games are pixelated and 2 games don't work at all, it all came from the same guy, the super famicom i bought from him tho works flawless

Post Merge: August 08, 2012, 05:07:45 pm

well what do you recomend on cleaning it, i used a paper towel and some rubbing alcohol with a credit cart
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 08, 2012, 05:32:43 pm
ok well i used one of those clothes you use to clean LCD screens, shined a flashlight in  the slot, and double checked the carts pins, the one i manage to disassemble the pins are clean and still the same pixel mix, so i think you might be right thanks for your help alot, and thank you every one for the advise but i think i need new guts, sucks being my first famicom -.-
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: HokusaiXL on August 09, 2012, 09:03:39 am
I would still try an emery board.  It'll fit inside the slot and can scrape off what the cloth usually can't get.
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 09, 2012, 12:14:01 pm
I can see the pins quite well when I shined a flash lite in it, there's nothing on them, they are shiney look new, I think a connection some were with in the pcb is what the issue is the seller is sending me a guts for one so I can hope nothing goes wrong this time lol ill keep that in mind if I notice some stuff I can't get off the pins by doing the credit card cloth trick
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: Frank_fjs on August 09, 2012, 10:02:47 pm
P.s. just for the record, I don't think senseiman was trying to deceive you or rip you off. It was most likely an honest mistake or shipping damage etc, he's a nice guy and wouldn't deliberately mess you around. :)

It still sucks that your Famicom isn't working though, so I feel your pain and hope it gets resolved soon.
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 10, 2012, 05:05:53 pm
Quote from: Frank_fjs on August 09, 2012, 10:02:47 pm
P.s. just for the record, I don't think senseiman was trying to deceive you or rip you off. It was most likely an honest mistake or shipping damage etc, he's a nice guy and wouldn't deliberately mess you around. :)

It still sucks that your Famicom isn't working though, so I feel your pain and hope it gets resolved soon.


he is a nice guy, he gave me advise of what i should do and where i should go to try to get this working, i know he didn't do it on purpose,  and i will continue to buy stuff from him,  he said it worked, and it didn't weather he got lucky with it, or something happened between there and here, and we worked it out, and im very thankful to his kindness, when really he did not have to go out of his way :)
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 10, 2012, 08:33:50 pm
yes i have one, and i have no solder nor am i really good  at it, so far ive only gotton the hang of LEDs, and a wire to a pin or 2 wires togeather ..... >.< i tried it with a megadrive because the video wouldnt stay, and i i replaced the cord n what not, and so i tried to resolder the points around the area, lucky enough i didnt make it any worse, but i didnt make it any better, i ended up selling it to some on for 10 bucks so they could do an AV mod on it
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: GohanX on August 13, 2012, 11:34:30 am
Quote from: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 10, 2012, 08:33:50 pm
yes i have one, and i have no solder nor am i really good  at it, so far ive only gotton the hang of LEDs, and a wire to a pin or 2 wires togeather ..... >.< i tried it with a megadrive because the video wouldnt stay, and i i replaced the cord n what not, and so i tried to resolder the points around the area, lucky enough i didnt make it any worse, but i didnt make it any better, i ended up selling it to some on for 10 bucks so they could do an AV mod on it


You don't really need any soldering skills for what 80sFreak is talking about. He means just touch each pin with the tip of the soldering iron for a second to melt the solder. Sometimes the solder points lose contact after so many years, but reheating them can repair the connection without doing something as difficult as replacing the whole slot.
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: DigitalxxxFr34k on August 19, 2012, 12:53:35 am
alright thanks, you made it sound much easier lol
Title: Re: Famicom Issues please help
Post by: fredJ on August 20, 2012, 01:49:34 am
i recommend a soldering iron with small tip....