The hardware fixes and import playing thread

| The Rules | The Front Page | The IRC Channel |

Who told you about this place?

Pages:
1
2

The hardware fixes and import playing thread; Updated March 30
Topic Started: Saturday, 28. March 2009, 23:00 (326 Views)
famicommander	Saturday, 28. March 2009, 23:00 Post #1
Jukebox Hero Posts: 7,570 Group: Admins Member #1 Joined: Jul 24, 2008	Since retro consoles are old by definition, sometimes you're going to have to deal with break downs and otherwise wonky behavior. Check this thread to find out if there's a fix for your system or games. And of course, if you've got a fix that someone else might be able to use, post it. We'll also let you know how to play imports on your various systems. I'll update the original post as needed. Save Batteries This fix applies to 3DO, Neo Geo Pocket Color, Saturn, Dreamcast, VMU (consoles) as well as Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Nintendo 64, NES, Genesis, Master System, Super Nintendo, and others (cartridges). If your Saturn or 3DO won't save anymore, you need a new save battery. If your Dreamcast or Neo Geo Pocket Color require you to input the date and time every time the console gets unplugged, same deal. And if your Dreamcast VMU only works when plugged into a controller, you need new batteries. The battery you need is a CR2032. It's like a watch battery, and you can find them on eBay, at RadioShack, or even local dollar stores. Not all the systems use this battery by default, but it's compatible with all of them and will last longer. So if you close up a game cartridge and it seems thicker than before, don't worry about it as long as it still fits in the slot. So, for the consoles it's pretty straight forward. On the Saturn and Neo Geo Pocket Color, there's simply a little door on the back of the system(s) that houses the battery. Open it, replace it. Done. The Dreamcast and 3DO are a bit more complicated. You'll have to disassemble the systems themselves to get to the batteries. If you ask me, it's not even worth the effort on the Dreamcast. But you need a save battery for your 3DO, so be careful and give it a try. For the VMU, it's just a small screw. It needs two batteries. Here's a guide I wrote earlier that will help replace the batteries in the cartridges themselves: 1. Take the end of a ballpoint pen. Get a lighter, and get the flat end of the pen very, very hot. Let it start to melt. 2. As it's beginning to melt, force it over one of the screws on your cartridge and blow on it to dry. 3. Using the pen as a makeshift screwdriver, remove all of the screws. 4. Take some needle nose pliers, and very carefully pull the battery out. Break the metal tabs off the battery itself, but not the PCB board. If you do that, then you will end up needing a soldering iron. 5. Buy a CR2032 battery. 6. Put the battery in between the two tabs that you made sure not to break off. Tape it in, making sure that the battery will stay in place even when shaking and dropping the cartridge. 7. Seal it back up. You're done. The reason tape is preferable to soldering is because soldering can be dangerous for beginners, especially when batteries are concerned. You could blow that battery up, and nobody wants that. Also, if your battery ever dies again, it will be much easier to replace. NES-specific fixes Do you have to blow into your NES cartridges to make them work? Chances are, you need a new 72-pin connector. You can find those on eBay for pretty cheap. This guide will walk you through the simple process of replacing it: http://www.jandar.net/nes72pin/ If you want to play Famicom games (Japanese NES imports) on your American system, you'll need a small piece of hardware called a 60 to 72 pin connector adapter. It acts as a go-between from your cartridge to your system. You can find them all over the internet. SEGA Saturn If your Saturn gets a "drive empty" message, it means that your laser isn't properly reading the disc. Here are some steps you need to take to get it running again: 1. Clean the laser with a q-tip and small amounts of rubbing alcohol 2. Blow the dust out of the system with a can of air. 3. Make sure the laser mechanism is moving freely. You may have to lubricate the gears inside. 4. Make sure the disc is spinning freely. You may need to realign the spinning mechanism or remove hair or other things from the inside. 5. Disassemble the system. There are five phillips-head screws on the bottom of the system. After you've got it apart, remove the ribbons connecting the drive to the board from both ends. Clean them, and blow the dust out of the connections. If none of the above work, there are only a few more things you can try. Either turn the system upside-down, or put a book on the cover to see if the disc door is the problem. If not, your laser mechanism is wearing out. I've heard reports of people squeezing more life out of their systems by turning them up on a side. This reduces friction since your laser mechanism doesn't have to work against gravity anymore. But realistically, you need a new system. There are many ways to play imports on the Saturn, but the best way is to buy one of these: http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-13-71-k8-49-en-70-1b2.html That will allow you to play imports, it will expand your RAM for games that need it, it will allow you to cheat in some games, and it will let you back up your save files so you don't lose everything when your battery goes out. You can find them for a lot cheaper than the link above; that one is just pretty informative. Dreamcast If your Dreamcast stops reading discs, there's one question we're going to ask you: Have you been playing burned games, or running any content off a CD-R? If you have, you've toasted your system. Congratulations. Don't pirate Dreamcast games. It's going to wear out your laser. Beyond that, Dave provides us with a solution to the problem that makes your Dreamcast not read discs, or randomly return to the main menu during gameplay: 1. Unplug the console and turn it upside down. 2. Take out the modem. 3. Remove the few screws holding the top cover on. 4. Back behind the drive, there is a latch mechanism that the lid pushes back. This tells the console that the lid is shut so it can begin to spin the game. 5. Secure that latch down so that the console ALWAYS thinks your lid is closed. 6. Reassemble the Dreamcast and test it. If that doesn't work, the above fix for the Saturn could also help. And finally, imports. There are a lot of ways to do it. The easiest way is to get a GameShark, but those cost money. You can also use the swap trick, similar to what Dave described above. But the most reasonable way is probably to burn a boot disc. When you put a boot disc into your Dreamcast, it lets the system boot up thinking it's playing a game from your region. Then you put in your game from Japan or Europe, and you're ready to go. Since a boot disc is only in your drive for literally a matter of seconds, it's not going to wear out your laser. To burn a disc, you'll need a program capable of burning .iso files. Nero, DiscJugglar, or something similar will do fine. Google "Utopia Boot Disk" and download and burn the most recent version. PS2 imports There are many ways to play imports on a PS2 but it can be done most easily if 3 prerequisites are met: 1. you have a PS2 slim (any model) 2. you have Magic Keys. 3. you have Swap Magic The magic keys are a few small pieces of metal that are installed underneath the lid of your PS2 slim. This allows you to perform a swap trick. These are very easy to install and do not void your warranty as there's no disassembly of the PS2 required. The Swap magic disc is basically just a PS2 boot disc. However, unlike the Utopia boot disc for Dreamcast, downloading an iso and burning it to disc will not work. You must have an actually pressed copy of the disc for it to work. Once you have all the required parts and have them installed, just pop in the boot disc until it loads to its menu. Take it out once it has stopped spinning and replace it with your import game. Press X to load the game and off you go! *more on the way* Edited by whoozwah, Monday, 15. June 2009, 00:03.
	Kyle Orton (7-4) in 2009: 214/344 (62.2%), 2447 yards, 12 TD, 6 INT, 1 fumbles (0 lost), 0 rushing TD, 87.9 QB rating Jay Cutler (4-7) in 2009: 253/404 (62.6%), 2671 yards, 16 TD, 20 INT, 7 fumbles (1 lost), 1 rushing TD, 74.4 QB rating


whoozwah	Saturday, 28. March 2009, 23:51 Post #2
Geek of the Week Posts: 3,184 Group: Moderators Member #10 Joined: Jul 24, 2008	A way to fix Dreamcast not reading discs: 1. unplug the console and turn it upside down. 2. take out the modem. 3. There are a few screws holding the top cover on it. take them out 4. back behind the drive there is a latch mechanism that the lid pushes back. This tells the console that the lid is shut and to spin up the game 5. secure that latch down so that the console ALWAYS thinks your lid is closed. 6. reassemble the Dreamcast and test it. This is basically like setting up your DC for a swap trick. I used to have problems with my DC not booting discs or kicking back to the main menu during a session. After I secured that latch down I haven't had any problems with it since. This is an easy easy fix to try before just saying that the laser is shot.
	You can call me Dave.


famicommander	Monday, 30. March 2009, 11:28 Post #3
Jukebox Hero Posts: 7,570 Group: Admins Member #1 Joined: Jul 24, 2008	Updated.
	Kyle Orton (7-4) in 2009: 214/344 (62.2%), 2447 yards, 12 TD, 6 INT, 1 fumbles (0 lost), 0 rushing TD, 87.9 QB rating Jay Cutler (4-7) in 2009: 253/404 (62.6%), 2671 yards, 16 TD, 20 INT, 7 fumbles (1 lost), 1 rushing TD, 74.4 QB rating


whoozwah	Monday, 30. March 2009, 11:51 Post #4
Geek of the Week Posts: 3,184 Group: Moderators Member #10 Joined: Jul 24, 2008	awesome.
	You can call me Dave.


famicommander	Monday, 30. March 2009, 11:55 Post #5
Jukebox Hero Posts: 7,570 Group: Admins Member #1 Joined: Jul 24, 2008	I'm going to do some handhelds next, I think.
	Kyle Orton (7-4) in 2009: 214/344 (62.2%), 2447 yards, 12 TD, 6 INT, 1 fumbles (0 lost), 0 rushing TD, 87.9 QB rating Jay Cutler (4-7) in 2009: 253/404 (62.6%), 2671 yards, 16 TD, 20 INT, 7 fumbles (1 lost), 1 rushing TD, 74.4 QB rating


whoozwah	Tuesday, 26. May 2009, 17:44 Post #6
Geek of the Week Posts: 3,184 Group: Moderators Member #10 Joined: Jul 24, 2008	I may have another post to add to the OP in a little bit regarding imports and the PS2. Stay tuned.
	You can call me Dave.


whoozwah	Tuesday, 26. May 2009, 20:20 Post #7
Geek of the Week Posts: 3,184 Group: Moderators Member #10 Joined: Jul 24, 2008	fucking hell, CAVE shmups are fucking expensive to import...
	You can call me Dave.


H8sMikeMoore	Thursday, 28. May 2009, 14:27 Post #8
Darth Shredder Posts: 3,435 Group: Members Member #43 Joined: Sep 27, 2008	what the hell is a shmup
	WELCOME TO THE NEW AGE where wealth is weighed in spirit and Justice flows like fish from our mouths to those who hear it. Unstable by its greed, a world we never owned comes tumbling down and with it, all its kings. We stand behind the masses. Xbox live: NECROTROPHIC add me.


bigcheese	Thursday, 28. May 2009, 14:48 Post #9
got ta get the fuck out Posts: 1,666 Group: Members Member #74 Joined: Jan 27, 2009	shoot-em-up
	I fail


whoozwah	Sunday, 14. June 2009, 23:51 Post #10
Geek of the Week Posts: 3,184 Group: Moderators Member #10 Joined: Jul 24, 2008	I just discovered an awesome bit of infromashuns that some of you may or may not have already known regarding the PS3: It's apparentlly region-free. That means I can still play Yakuza 3 even if they never localize it. I just gotta buy an NTSC-J copy of it on teh intarwebz. That's fucking awestastic.
	You can call me Dave.


AzureEm	Monday, 15. June 2009, 00:05 Post #11
Someone told me long ago, there's a calm before the storm. Posts: 2,303 Group: Members Member #89 Joined: Apr 9, 2009	PS3 games are, in general, region free. Its up to the developers to decide to slap region coding into their product. But really, why would they do that? It'll be like losing extra costumers on purpose.



whoozwah	Monday, 15. June 2009, 00:05 Post #12
Geek of the Week Posts: 3,184 Group: Moderators Member #10 Joined: Jul 24, 2008	BTW, updated first post with instructions for PS2 imports.
	You can call me Dave.


Heavy_Metal_Jesus	Thursday, 18. June 2009, 17:10 Post #13
I've got a halo 'round my head Posts: 974 Group: Members Member #54 Joined: Oct 9, 2008	AzureEm Monday, 15. June 2009, 00:05 PS3 games are, in general, region free. Its up to the developers to decide to slap region coding into their product. But really, why would they do that? It'll be like losing extra costumers on purpose. Extra costumers? Well, I suppose the reduction in possible audience would result in less cosplayers, but I hardly see how that's a negative.
	†≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡≡†


AzureEm	Thursday, 18. June 2009, 17:44 Post #14
Someone told me long ago, there's a calm before the storm. Posts: 2,303 Group: Members Member #89 Joined: Apr 9, 2009	You know what I meant.



whoozwah	Friday, 19. June 2009, 18:56 Post #15
Geek of the Week Posts: 3,184 Group: Moderators Member #10 Joined: Jul 24, 2008	100% confirmed. Action replay cart for Saturn boots imports with absolutely no issue. I just got DoDonPachi in the mail today and it fired right up.
	You can call me Dave.


bigcheese	Friday, 19. June 2009, 23:04 Post #16
got ta get the fuck out Posts: 1,666 Group: Members Member #74 Joined: Jan 27, 2009	I just heard that you can't play multi-disc imports if you're Saturn isn't modded. Is this true?
	I fail


whoozwah	Friday, 19. June 2009, 23:18 Post #17
Geek of the Week Posts: 3,184 Group: Moderators Member #10 Joined: Jul 24, 2008	dunno. I'm probably going to import shmups which none of those are multiple discs.
	You can call me Dave.


famicommander	Friday, 19. June 2009, 23:30 Post #18
Jukebox Hero Posts: 7,570 Group: Admins Member #1 Joined: Jul 24, 2008	bigcheese Friday, 19. June 2009, 23:04 I just heard that you can't play multi-disc imports if you're Saturn isn't modded. Is this true? I think it's only Azel: Panzer Dragoon Saga that doesn't work (Better known as Panzer Dragoon Saga).
	Kyle Orton (7-4) in 2009: 214/344 (62.2%), 2447 yards, 12 TD, 6 INT, 1 fumbles (0 lost), 0 rushing TD, 87.9 QB rating Jay Cutler (4-7) in 2009: 253/404 (62.6%), 2671 yards, 16 TD, 20 INT, 7 fumbles (1 lost), 1 rushing TD, 74.4 QB rating


NamelessFragger	Thursday, 9. July 2009, 22:11 Post #19
Basic Member Posts: 250 Group: Members Member #48 Joined: Oct 1, 2008	To clarify: Panzer Dragoon Saga (US/Europe) = AZEL: Panzer Dragoon RPG (Japan) The former is overpriced (though not to the degree of Radiant Silvergun). The latter is pretty affordable, but I hope you know Japanese! (I sure don't.) And when you say "modding" a Saturn for region bypass, do you mean the region jumpers, or a modchip?



bigcheese	Thursday, 9. July 2009, 22:12 Post #20
got ta get the fuck out Posts: 1,666 Group: Members Member #74 Joined: Jan 27, 2009	What do you mean by region jumpers?
	I fail


1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous)


Go to Next Page
« Previous Topic · Video Gaming · Next Topic »

Pages:
1
2