Do you own any broken consoles? State here!

Just curious if any of you own broken consoles and if so, what ones? And if possible, how did they break?

Me:

I own one broken PSOne (the smaller one i got) How i broke it? Well, i lost the original grey transformer for it and grabbed one of those universal voltage ones. I setted it to the correct voltage and correct polarity to test it. It powered up, but the spindle didn't work. So i turned it off and stupidly (thinking it would fix it lol) reversed the polarity over and tried it again. Fried it and didn't power up, not even when putting it back into the correct polarity, still wouldn't power up. :bang:


I also own an Amstrad 464 with the monitor that works, but the tape drive is broken. When the play button is pushed down, it won't turn. So reading tapes is out of the picture.


Gameboy Pocket. Powers on, but the screen is jumbled up. Thick black bars onscreen when powered up.

Sega Mega CD Model 1. I own 2 of these, but one of them never decides to power up after trying to dismantle it to clean the contacts. Possibly a blown cap. Thought the same was happening to my working one.


So i think thats about it. What broken consoles do you own?

Well, I don't have any totally broken consoles to the point of complete unusability, but I have ones that have technical problems where you could still call them broken.

TurboExpress: No sound except from headphones and stuck turbo switches. The sound is from blown caps-- quite fixable, but I'm not good enough at this kind of stuff yet to do it.
Game Boy Color: No sound except from headphones as well. Probably a blown cap, like the TurboExpress?
Gamepark GP2X: The control stick snapped out of place while my brother was playing Dynamite Headdy on it, and now it rolls around limp in its assembly. I can't control the system at all. This is a common thing and it will usually click into place again, but I can't get mine to do it so I think it's really broken. If I can get a USB board for this, I can at least use a USB controller to control it and use it as a home system, but they're hard to get these days.
Atari 7800: It *might* be broken. If you play it for more than about 20 minutes at a time, it'll just shut off. However, it may be as simple as an AC adapter replacement. I received it in this condition-- I figure that it's acting funny because it was sitting in my uncle's attic for at least a decade, probably closer to 15 years.

Oh, and if computers are gaming related, I've got a couple completely dead laptops that I can't revive.

XBox - still powers on, but disc tray is unresponsive, and I cannot get into it since I do not have the right kind of screwdriver. Probably gonna sell all my XBox games since my controllers were already converted for computer use and my XBox is a worthless piece of shit now. I'm giving up my XBox scene and just stick with finding out a way to convince my mom to get me a DSi flashcard so I can finally play Doom on my DSi.

A few stuffed Game Gears, screens with thick black lines or no pixels. Was keeping these for video out to TV. Done that so I should have a clean out.

A couple of Mega Drive 1's and 2's stuffed boards (corrosion, other issues etc) keep for parts, should clean these out too.

A stuffed SNES board, kept that for tracing purposes, helped me work out how to do all-region, switch free modification. Done that, might keep that one just in case for something else.

2 SMS1's might be able to get one of these going from the 2, They start up fine then slow down to a stop and game freezes, could just be cap replacement?

I think thats about it, I do have 2 spare XBOX drives (samsung) and a xpare XBOX360 DVD drive for some reason.

Only one I've got is my original Sears Tele-Games VCS console. I got the wise idea that I could possibly remove the cartridge pin connector from the mainboard for cleaning, much like replacing the 72-pin connector on the NES. BAD IDEA. Never try that stunt at home, kids. The VCS pins are basically made to stay inside the plastic housing that surrounds them. Oh well.

I have..

a dead famicom pirate console. (guy that showed it to me used the wrong voltage)
he then gave it to me for free, i figured one day I'll put a GBA in it or something.

a dead N64, which i got from my sister who says it wont boot games anymore.
(i tried it and only Mario 64 would briefly turn on but then it would show a green screen)
Keeping this for parts i guess..

A Gameboy Advance first model, well its not broken but with the horrible original screen it might as well be.

A Pal Sega 32X, which is kinda broken.. I had my dad mod 50/60hz switches and Jap/Eng switches in it,
but something went wrong and a trace is now gone, still works but only works on 50hz.
(FYI my dad has modded/fixed quite a lot of my consoles all with success)

MSX Monitor - Turns on for 2 minutes before giving me a black screen,
could be caps related.

I want to get a broken Nomad to possibly get it fixed. Other than that, nothing.

I have a SNES that has issues with Mode-7. It works fine with games like Street Fighter II, but the moment the game goes into Mode-7, I get large black bars across the screen. Mario Kart is a total mess.

I have about 3 Genesis 2s that I can't sell. Two have dead controller ports and another has a finicky ac port. I could fix but I don't want don't sell anything like that.I just picked a Sega Cd that is a messed up. I had to fix the fuse, then the stupid cd open switch, and now I am trying to get it to actually read discs( any help would be nice). i have a dead Saturn and about 4 Nes that need to be "rebuilt". I am sure there is more but I don't want to think about it.

I have 2x Saturns with non working CD drives and dead PSUs, and 3x Dreamcasts with non working CD drives and one of them with dead PSU, then I have few dead Famiclones, one dead MD clone and 3 dead GGs and a dead Xbox too

Broke PS2 I accidentally broke when that stupid silver strip they put in came out. Never got around to buying another strip.

Broken Sega Genesis 1, I'm going to tinker around with it but I need an adapter for it.

I had one Nomad which died due to one of those Summer power surges, you know what I'm talking about. I also have an Atari 5200 Model 2 which I dredged out of the fleamarket, it just plain doesn't work. It displays video, but I think the pins might be screwed up.

People with Saturns that have dead PSU's, check the socket where you plug the power cord into. Where the plug goes into, the socket isn't supported very well (only by the "back wall") and the pins that go through the board are very thin and snap if the lead is pulled in and out. That's what happened to mine and another I fixed for someone. You can't really tell until you take the socket off the board as it had a plastic lug that goes through the board (for all the good it does).

Those dead Saturn PSU's I've got have blown TOP202 PWM generators

I thought my Sega CD was broken (bad caps), but recently realized the Genesis was the problem. (again, probably bad caps) Though the Genesis works fien otherwise. (other than rainbow banded video and RF audio that some TVs output as very noisy/staticy)

I have a VCS (light sixer) which is missing all 3 main chips (probably all dead regardless, we removed them and apparently lost them). Long story short, universal power adaptor probably got set to the wrong polarity which burned things up real quick. (killed the voltage reg too) At least 2 chips shoewd physical damage from overheating, 1 with a nice chunk of insulation blown off the middle, and another one with a crack in a similar spot iirc. So RIOT, TIA, and the 6507 got removed, and we swapped in the chips from my grandpa's heavy sixer and it worked fine.
So all it needs is a new RIOT (MOS 6532), TIA, and MOS 6507, and it's good to go. :roll: (all socketed BTW) I'd immagine the best option would be finding a cheap/free dead VCS and canabalize that. (though for later models, I think the chips were soldered in, so that would be a bit more work)

I use that heavy sixer now anyway though. What annoys me more is that my uncle gave away his light sixer and a good chunk of games plus paddles, sticks, racing wheels, and keypads a couple years ago (along with one of my joysticks and paddles apparently...). And he'd onyl bought the stuff around 200/01 too. (said a bunch of the games "stopped working" ...)

At least he still thinks he's got a SMS II packed away somewhere, and a loose 32x with it as I recall. (I had no idea what a 32x was last time I saw it 7-8 years ago)

i've got a broken DC that blew shortly after i region modded it, the case is mint so i use it for spare parts now.

Ive also got a model 1 geny thats power light is always on when the scart is plugged in but the power is not... very weird... still plays games though

oh and a dead SNES that died from to much action replay usage... never worked out why it stopped working just did

You have the SCARt going to some switchbox or splitter ? In any case, your MD is subject to death since the line in SCART cable that is used to autoswitch the TV to RGB in is feeding power to your MD through that pin.... some devices use 12V on that line and this can lead to spectacular(with smoke and possibly fire) death of that MD...

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Originally Posted by TmEE

You have the SCARt going to some switchbox or splitter ? In any case, your MD is subject to death since the line in SCART cable that is used to autoswitch the TV to RGB in is feeding power to your MD through that pin.... some devices use 12V on that line and this can lead to spectacular(with smoke and possibly fire) death of that MD...

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really? oh dear :P

yeah im using a scart splitter so i'll make sure i dont use that with it anymore ;)

cheers chap!

I have a SNES that had a power supply burn-out just recently... it was the same one I had since I was a kid. I also have a NES that really needs a new 72-pin connector, all nothing major.

Good replies people. :D

Forgot to add.

I own 3 broken Gamegears with the 4th one which is best working one with the screen on it's way out. Of the 3 broken ones, 1 has no sound and a large black line on the screen which is also dim, and 2 others with no sound and dim screen. One of them has a flaky power socket.

My Game Gear lost its sound and a Saturn with a badly chewed up Av Out port from previous owner trying to use a Genesis RF switch with it... still works.

Got a fair bit:

-Atari 2600 Light Sixer: has a dying TIA chip and broken switches.
-Genesis Model 1(x3): one has a dead controller port(VA7), the second never worked(High Definition Graphics VA6), the third has no more video encoder(it broke).
-Genesis Model 2(too many): all are completely dead due to either a damaged ASIC or broken video encoders(and the traces are damaged).
-Genesis Model 3: ASIC is ruined(failed Virtua Racing compatibility fix), been using it for spare parts(mainly capacitors).
-Super NES(x2): dead PPUs.
-PlayStation(gray model x3): one is missing its video encoder(it's a 5501, which has a CXA1645), another has a dead power supply, but all have one common problem: dead or broken lasers(torn ribbon cables, broken spindle motor, broken spindle).
-PSone(the smaller white PlayStation): broken crystal(no joke; it's sectioned clean in half LENGTHWISE... what the hell??? I haven't been able to find a suitable replacement crystal of 17.734MHz).
-NES: will not power on(now used for spare parts).
-Fat PlayStation 2(x2): one won't turn on(probably a blown fuse), the other reads a disc, boots it past the PlayStation 2 logo, then crashes or returns to the Memory Card/disc menu(if a PlayStation game is put in, it won't even recognize it and give a Red Screen), and I can't figure out why that happens.
-SuperJoy X(one of those Famicom-in-a-controller things): dead on-board controller.
-FC Twin: this one is half-dead; the Super NES side is fine, but the NES side has a damaged sound circuit, and every time I try to fix it, it works for a bit, then the sound either cuts out completely or starts to pop as if it wants to cut out.
-GN Twin: NES side won't respond to Player 1's inputs, Genesis side has no more Player 2 inputs(and is currently sitting in my Genesis 3).
-GEN-X: Completely dead; Genesis side had broken traces, NES side won't read anything or output video.

Oh yeah. I also got those Pirate NES-on-a-chip controller clones.

-Super Joy III. While playing it, something inside it blew and that nice burning smell of cheap plastic fumes spewed out. The video output did always have an abnormally bright contrast to it. It rapidly got worse to the moment it packed in. Must be the encoder caps that went along with it. Dismantled the thing and chucked it in the attic lol.

-Power Player. Same as above. Something blew and that same plastic smell. Never worked again since. (was my first Famiclone).

-Gun Boy. This was still working, but lost the battery case and dismantled the thing until a few delicate wires inside the thing snapped out of the glue that held them together.

Not to worry. I own yet another famiclone called the Power Joy. Wonder how long that one will last. :?

nope, all my game systems fully work.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by FoxHound

badly chewed up Av Out port from previous owner trying to use a Genesis RF switch with it... still works.

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what? how?

"hmmm, round plug should go in the thin slot, right?"

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Originally Posted by 17daysolderthannes

what? how?

"hmmm, round plug should go in the thin slot, right?"

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Sorry I meant the port still works with a Saturn type cable even after they damaged it trying to use the Genny RF which was in the lot I purchased it with.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by FoxHound

Sorry I meant the port still works with a Saturn type cable even after they damaged it trying to use the Genny RF which was in the lot I purchased it with.

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whoops, I confused the Saturn with the DC, the Saturn is alot more similar to the Genesis.

At least 10 broken saturns (power board and laser issues) about the same in broken dreamcasts (laser issues mostly).

Apart from that all my consoles are in perfect working order.

If I add computers then it's a whole different story...

I've got a dead NES and a dead Saturn, both I'm about to fix. I've also got a semi-dead Virtual Boy, which I'm planning on fixing too within the next month or so.

Hmm... my cat once dumped a glass of tea on my Saturn, thought it was over. But nope, everything I have works.

Problem I have with my Saturn is the laser sometimes clicks when seeking. Sometimes it works, sometimes it don't.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by King Of Chaos

I've got a dead NES and a dead Saturn, both I'm about to fix. I've also got a semi-dead Virtual Boy, which I'm planning on fixing too within the next month or so.

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Common bad cart connector in the NES? (planning on some aggressive cleaning+polishing+pin resetting or outright replacement?)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Jasper061992

Oh yeah. I also got those Pirate NES-on-a-chip controller clones.

-Super Joy III. While playing it, something inside it blew and that nice burning smell of cheap plastic fumes spewed out. The video output did always have an abnormally bright contrast to it. It rapidly got worse to the moment it packed in. Must be the encoder caps that went along with it. Dismantled the thing and chucked it in the attic lol.

-Power Player. Same as above. Something blew and that same plastic smell. Never worked again since. (was my first Famiclone).

-Gun Boy. This was still working, but lost the battery case and dismantled the thing until a few delicate wires inside the thing snapped out of the glue that held them together.

Not to worry. I own yet another famiclone called the Power Joy. Wonder how long that one will last. :?

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Wow, you've had some pretty poorly-built clones! There is only one reason why my FC Twin, GN Twin and GEN-X are dead: failed mods(mainly new sound circuits). I only ever came across 2 Famiclones that had problems: the SuperJoy X I previously mentioned, and one of today's modern Famiclones, the RetroBit Retro Entertainment System(it's like the Yobo FC Game Console Version 2). That one has a stupidly-designed regulator circuit; it works off a direct 6V(which NOACs can tolerate), but the original FC Game Console works off 9V brought down to 5V by a 7805 regulator. On the RES and the newer FC Game Console with a red power LED, the 7805 is replaced by... a transitor. WTF???:confused: That transistor blew in my RES(I was given the system for free, so I figured: hey, I wanted Yobo's FC Game Console since 2006, here's one I can try to fix up, even if it's RetroBit's version, not Yobo's), and I mean literally, as there was a hole in the transitor, so I swapped it out with a 7805. Works wonders; and it's A HELL OF A LOT BETTER than the original Yobo FC Game Console; that one has line noise in the video, saturated video, and the oh-so-common "reversed sound channel duties" problem that are common on Famiclones(believe it or not, those sound problems originate from when Famiclones first started being made. I have a MicroGenius IQ-501, which is so old, it uses a full motherboard rather than an NOAC, and it has the same "reversed sound channel duties" problem as today's NOACs! Famiclone tech really didn't evolve much).

[dumb-ass joke]
I totally gave my GoldenEye cartridge a blowjob and slammed it into my N64 as hard as I could and for some reason my N64 does not work anymore NINTENDO FUCKING SUCKS!!!1!!!!1111!!1
[/dumb-ass joke]

I have Three.
Original Nintendo: Flashing screen.
Turbo Express: Almost no sound.
Turbo Grafx 16: Poor video quality.

Here's how to fix each problem:

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Originally Posted by Chris

Original Nintendo: Flashing screen.

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Tighten and clean the cartridge slot.

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Originally Posted by Chris

Turbo Express: Almost no sound.

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Replace all the capacitors.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Chris

Turbo Grafx 16: Poor video quality.

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Are you using RF on your TurboGrafx or Composite via either a TurboBooster or TurboGrafx CD interface unit? If you're using RF, odds are the board inside the modulator in the TurboGrafx is cracked. Resolder the connections where the board is cracked. If you're using your TurboGrafx via Composite, you may need to replace the capacitors either in the TurboGrafx, TurboBooster or TurboGrafx CD interface unit depending on what you have.

Thanks Ace, I'm using RF on my Turbo Grafx 16 and it's been that way since I got it in 1999.

I have a GBA:SP that turns off as soon as it is turned on, be it on AC power or not.
A Game Gear. Enough said.

I've got a Game Gear that works fine other than the fact that it won't work with Game Gear games for some odd reason (SMS games, oddly enough, work fine).

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Originally Posted by ApolloBoy

I've got a Game Gear that works fine other than the fact that it won't work with Game Gear games for some odd reason (SMS games, oddly enough, work fine).

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A cartridge connection issue perhaps?...I have a MD2 that worked great with SMS games, but didn't played Genesis/MD games at all...Finally checked pin by pin of the cartridge connector, it had one trace corroded (an address pin) that wasn't doing a proper contact because of it.....Works great now...
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