– Retrodrömmar
In another post about the Playstation Portable, I write about how to softmod the unit. In this post I will demonstrate how to replace the analog thumbstick, which becomes subject to wear and tear over time. A symtom of a failing analog stick is “drifting”, that is, in a game, the stick will pull in a direction without you touching it. Although there are guides…
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Like any other old controller, the SEGA Master System gamepad can be worn over time, which causes faults such as non-responsive buttons, or directions on the d-pad to stop working. One of my controllers would not react when I pressed up on the d-pad, and in this post I will describe how I repaired it. Disassembly the SEGA Master System controller To disassembly the controller,…
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The Amiga series of computes were created by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s as 16-bit successors to iconic machines such as Commodore 64 (and Commodore 128). In this post I will write some notes about how to keep the keyboard membrane of your Amiga 500 in good condition. I recently bought an A500 on Swedish eBay in relatively good condition, but the keys did…
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In this post I write some notes about fixing a Game Gear with a very dark screen. The dark screen is one of the symtoms of failing capacitors in the console. This is a common problem with the Game Gear, and the procedure to replace the capacitors is pretty straight forward, although challenging in my experience, as I will further describe below. Step 1: Disassemble…
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I recently bought a Commodore 128 (C128) on Swedish eBay for a good price. In this post I will write a few notes about the disassembly of this lovely machine (I wanted to inspect the insides, and give it a good clean). The C128 was introduced in 1985 as a sequel to the popular Commodore 64. By default, the C128 runs in “Commodore 128-mode”, but…
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When the cartridges for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) becomes dirty, you will experience problems getting the console to recognize them, which results in a flashing white screen, and similar issues. The simple solution is to clean them! In this post I will show you an excellent way to get your games clean again. You will need: A Gamebit screwdriver. A white eraser. Isopropanol alcohol….
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I recently puchased a few Nintendo Entertainment Systems (NES) together with some games. These were sold “as-is”, and the seller(s) reported problems such as the consoles were just blinking etc. In this post I will summarize what you can do to get your NES games running again: from simple cleaning measures, to more advanced solutions, which require you to disassembly your NES. Clean the cartridges!…
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In this post I will cover how to fix a Dreamcast controller port not working. Essentially, it involves replacing a broken fuse at the controller port board. While you are doing this, you can also replace the Dreamcast cmos battery. I will not describe how to disassembly the Dreamcast, since it is quite trivial (see, Dreamcast disassembly). What you need for this fix is the…
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In this post I will show how to repair the Super Nintendo (SNES) power supply. I am working with a psu for a PAL SNES unit. This psu also fits the PAL Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). If your SNES is not powering on properly, you will want to check if your psu is functional. To do so, use a multimeter set to measure “AC”, and…
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The RedOctane X-Plorer is possibly the best guitar controller ever made, suitable for games such as Guitar Hero, Band Hero etc. I spent many hours with this controller, together with my two favorite GH games: Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, and GH: Metallica. So, when I found a broken RedOctane X-Plorer for ~$5 in a charity shop, I was pleasantly suprised! The guitar had…
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