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While the Game Gear logo is really bland on the Majesco Game Gear, I have to say I prefer that all-black paint job Majesco applied to the thing.
Now, let me ask about build quality. Is the difference as big as with the Genesis 3 compared to a Genesis 1 or Genesis 2?
They pretty much look and feel the same. The Majesco units are ever so slightly lighter in weight, probably due to some fewer items on the motherboard (like the parts required to support the TV Tuner).Quote:
Originally Posted by Ace
They are made out of the same exact plastic castings so cosmetically other than colors they are exactly the same. I assume Sega shipped the molds to Majesco plant in Mexico since all the exterior parts are completely interchangeable.
At least I don't have to worry about the thing breaking in my hands(from what I've felt though, Game Gears are built like tanks). I'd just go for a capacitor replacement as soon as I get the unit.
By the way, would you be able to take pictures of the screens between the Majesco and Sega Game Gears?
I had a real tough time getting good screen shots but at least you can tell that the Majesco version has better color resolution and somewhat sharper detail. Both screens look a LOT better in person.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ace
http://heartland.chevelles.net/RCsto...eencomparo.jpg
I'm not really seeing a difference other than what could be compensated by the brightness adjustment on those shots :daze:
I heard there isn't much difference in the color/brightness but rather the sharpness in motion. The original gets so blurry when you move!
I'm curious, anyone know how many internal revisions the system has? I once had a standard gray and a blue console on hand. Opening both I learned that the internal setups were different- different positions for screws, etc., making swapping the guts from one to another rather impossible.
What games does anyone recommend? This post inspired me to drag out my old Game Gear, and I've got the standard Sonic pack-in, World Series Baseball, Surf Ninjas (which sucks so bad), Shining Force (which won't boot up no matter how many times you try) and a copy of Road Rash floating around somewhere. Any I should think about picking up online?
Edit: If I can get a Master converter, what master games are recommended?
I don't really know of much on the Game Gear, but definitely get the Sonic games.
And if you want to get even more than what's on the Game Gear, buy a Master Gear converter. With it, you'd be able to play Master System games on your Game Gear.
Of course, being as I've never seen a Master Gear anywhere, I'll be making my own with a Game Gear cartridge I don't like(or one that's broken), just like I did with the Genesis: I made my own Power Base Converter out of a Genesis football game. I will post a worklog when I get started on it.
Just came back from one of my local game stores with what appears to be a pre-BIOS Game Gear(it has a bigger power plug), but things don't look very promissing. The unit just refuses to turn on, but I'm pretty sure it's the guy's fault(the one who sold it to me) for being clueless as to the polarity and voltage(it's clearly indicated on the F-ing thing!) of the power supply(is it center negative like a MegaDrive Model 1?). He put a 12V positive center power supply in the thing. I'm pretty sure he killed it with that, but it looks as though it wants to turn on. With some batteries that were in the shop, the power LED just briefly blinked for a split-second. Did the guy kill the unit?
UPDATE: I got it working(turns out the power supply was bust and the battery terminals had battery acid leaked all over them)! Sure enough, it IS a pre-BIOS Game Gear! But something tells me it was imported... FROM GERMANY! I see a sticker with what appears to be German writing. It says this: TÜV Rheinland. Also, the model number doesn't match that of the North American Game Gear. The North American one has model number 2110, however this particular Game Gear has a different model number: 2110-50. I don't know if it's universal on all pre-BIOS Game Gears, but if the 2110-50 model number doesn't match the North American model number, where does it come from?
I've only just found the love for my Game Gear too (mainly due to the aforementioned Master System power adapter meaning I don't need to buy 6 batteries every 3 hours)Quote:
Originally Posted by celticsfan
Games I recently picked up were
GG Shinobi - exclusive Shinobi game that's awesome
CJ Elephant Fugitive - Awesome
Micro Machines - pretty much a perfect conversion (though it probably just is the Master System version anyway)
Sonic the Hedgehog - it's just a port of the Master System version, it an alright game, pretty impressive for the time.
Oh my God, the clerk was lucky he didn't fry the Game Gear! The power plug is VERY loose and doesn't always get power.
Now, the system appears to have been tampered with because the plastic inside the system on the power plug is melted. Could that explain why my Game Gear's power plug is loose?
By the way, can anyone open their US Game Gear(pre- or post-BIOS, I don't care)? It appears I have a European one! The motherboard ID on this Game Gear is IC BD GG MAIN EUROPE. I'm pretty sure that's enough to confirm I now own my very first European import system! And surprisingly, not a single capacitor has leaked! Talk about an acquisition full of surprises, including one that may cause issues: the insides of the system is FILLED with leaked battery acid, but thankfully, it's only on the battery terminals and all it did was flake onto the inside of the casing(nothing got stuck on the PCB). Time to pass some Windex on the inside.
One thing I'd like to ask: which capacitor type is most susceptible to leaking? The box type, the surface-mount silver electrolytics, or the normal electrolytics on the board with the power switch and power supply input?
GGs are region free, and all models run at same speed and use exact same clocks.
First thing you do with any GG is replacing all the caps there are and cleaning things up from the capactor leakage (as its corrosive) (its not battery acid in most cases).
The surface mount caps are the most troublesome, others can get bad, but usually they're not.
I have both Sega pre-Majesco and Majesco GG's Systems, surprisingly enough, the latest Majesco screens seems to definitely be a bit better quality, sharper indeed....Haven't messed with any of them yet really, internally speaking....But I'm sure there are a few mobo differences as well....
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I have battery acid in my Game Gear, not electrolyte(and the battery acid is nowhere near the PCB). There isn't a single trace of electrolyte on the board(it's very clean). The speaker works 100% fine, the screen okay, but I did notice what appears to be line noise on the screen(dependent on the sprites drawn). Is that a screen issue or capacitor problem?Quote:
Originally Posted by TmEE
Those surface-mount ones are the capacitors in the black boxes, right? As are the silver caps?
Another thing about the screen: I can't find a good brightness setting for it. The screen is either too dark or the colors are washed out. Is that due to the backlight always being turned on and whose brightness can't be adjusted? TmEE, how were you able to reduce the brightness of the Game Gear's backlight?