FABombjoy

For those in the US that want to save on shipping, I'm in talks with Matthias to get a shipment of the CDs. Hopefully I can have them available in short order!

I'm in for one!

The "Z" signal is stuck on. In my experience this is usually because the cable from the CPU board to the Power board needs to be reseated. Pull and reconnect the connector J301 on the CPU board, and J402 / J506 on the Power board. Pull and reseat them a few times to help clear away any buildup that may have formed over the years. See if that helps! If not, you'll need to follow the Z signal on the schematics to find the culprit.

I've a/v modded a handful of Intellivisions using the circuit that the above auction is based on (circuit is here). It does work, rather it can work, but to get it spot on I've had to tweak each install in some unique manner. A few of the tweaks I've used are listed in that Wiki, and I've also had to add bypass caps to calm noisy chips down, and maybe a few other things that I'm forgetting. In my experience, the Inty 2 is harder than the other versions to get a clean picture out of.

I wondered who was popping up in my craigslist searches. I figured these were remnants from the media place in Okemos... can't remember the name now. Good luck with it, and I'll be sure to drop by next time I'm on that side of town! For anybody in mid-Michigan that's never been to it, the Mega Mall is in a former grocery store, and is filled to the brim with booths. Totally worth the drive.

It does appear to have a total power loss, so it's time to grab the voltmeter and dig in. The easiest place to start would be to measure AC at the inputs to the power board PCB. If you've got nothing there, follow it back to the switch and transformer input/output. If you have AC at the power board, then check the regulated & unregulated outputs.

Either/or is fine, really. The unreg 11.5 or 12v feeds a pair of 7805s. The regulators are heatsinked to the hills and the main input cap is rated at 16v.

I'd like a manual, too!

No, you would email them and ask if BKF is an appropriate cleaning agent for plated connectors. Again, your choice in words says to me that you are more interested in winning an argument than arriving at a sound, preservationist-centric cleaning strategy. The passive-aggressive "quoting", phrases like "blatantly false", "100% false" and so forth. Perhaps you don't realize what you're doing, but it is how I perceive it. Food for thought. To address your original complaint, I revise my original statement and change "definitely" to "possibly".

To me, your tone suggests otherwise. I can't comment on the photograph as it does not represent a scientific approach. Look, obviously you're having none of what I have to say. Why not email a 3rd party manufacturer such as Molex, AMP/TE, or 3M and get their opinion?

I have done this exact thing that you are describing. It has removed the gold plating and then shined up the copper, making it appear gold-like. I am a bit confounded as to why you seem to have taken my previous post as a personal attack.

BKF is probably OK for copper contacts, but it will definitely remove any protective plating if present (like the gold on the NES games & OEM NES pin connectors).

I couldn't tell you what set I have, but plenty of ROM sites have both. These 208 EPROMs are a 100% match for the Joust listed as "1984".

The 1N59918 is a typo - it should read 1N5991B Edit: If it's hand written... I guess it's a writeo

I have a Joust lab loaner marked 208. After dumping it and checking against the 5200 ROM set that I have, it's a match for a file marked as a 1984 release. Has anybody compared the 1983 and 1984 versions? Mainly I'm just curious as to what the changes are and I can't seem to find any details about this release.

Possibly a defective 4052B (IC302) or shorted C230 / C231. Assuming that your voltages are on par, there aren't very many involved components, but you'll have to open it up to find out.

Me too, if it's not too late!

If I'm interpreting your description, you're seeing what appears to be an almost conveyor belt-like pattern in the center 2/3rd square of the screen. Going from memory, a couple things that help w/ the Inty 2 1: Tap your video/audio directly at the modulator 2: Add a bypass cap across the +5 / GND on your circuit. 1000-2200uf should be adequate. 3: Hookup wire is fine. Shielded might buy you some gain in quality but I've had no problem with hookup wire. Just move your wires & circuit around while it's on and you'll know instantly if they're picking up interference or if it's coming from the video source or due to unclean power. I can't remember which chips are the noisy ones, but adding more bypass caps across the chips can help too. Inty 2 units are definitely noisier for A/V mods than other versions.

Oh I believe that DeOxit works. It's just really expensive for the quantity, and some of their claims are a bit silly (Clearer video, cleaner audio, etc). If you use metallurgically appropriate cleaners you'll save a ton of money and have the same positive results. I've had it restore completely non-functional copper connectors, but there is a time element. Don't let it sit on them for too long or you'll really have to reclean the connector. If you google "diy copper cleaner" you'll get some recipes. Always flush with rubbing alcohol or similar volatile solvent once done.

I don't know what the base metal is, but the platings don't oxidize under normal environmental conditions... Like how the change in your pocket isn't corroded / rusty. The price of DeOxit combined with all of the woo-factor on their website really puts me off. I'm sure it's fine for what it does, but if you read their literature it's geared around extreme conditions, high-vibration environments, etc. Again, under normal conditions, gold / nickel / tin platings don't oxidize, so it isn't really "oxidation" that harms connections so much as "dust-and-crud-itation". As long as your pin / game cleaning strategies are non-destructive to the factory gold platings - no sandpaper, no erasers, no polishes - you'll have better long term results. Oily films left behind by contact cleaners typically just attract more dust. Not all connectors / games are gold plated, but most are. Some are copper or nickel/tin (I can't distinguish them by sight). Copper is the most susceptible to oxidation but you can clean it with a vinegar & salt solution. I only use spray contact cleaners when accessibility / repair is difficult, like in outdoor or automotive applications. In those cases, where a connector is in place for prolonged periods of time, there is a possible advantage to having a protective film as it helps maintain a water/oxygen free contact space.

As long as the OEM pin connector hasn't been damaged, scratched, etc, boiling should be harmless. OEM connector plating doesn't react with water / oxygen. Boiling would be a similar strategy to the ultrasonic cleaning that I mentioned above. Just shake it out and let it dry once done. A properly cleaned OEM connector will perform flawlessly with no bending necessary. I don't really believe that the pins bend or become loose over time in normal use, only that the standard cleaning methods aren't optimal. Overbending the pins compensates by increasing contact pressure, but also increases the possibility of additional wear on the contact surfaces. I've searched for evidence where someone has taken measurements from an unused connector -vs- a non-functioning connector but I can't find any. So many OEM connectors have been bent, sanded, etc., that each connector must be inspected before cleaning to ensure that is hasn't been damaged. Once upon a time I advocated the sanding method, but once I really analyzed the connector I realized that this is a horrible, horrible idea. As an example of how well a cleaned OEM connector works, part of the tests that I put a refurbed NES through include unlatching and relatching the cart holder while a game is active; clean OEM connectors won't crash or have corrupted graphics, even while partially raising & lowering the cartridge (you can't fully unlatch or the cart will no longer contact the pins). The original NES cleaning kit is the best and not terrible difficult to find. Since it's design allows cleaning while fully latched, it actually does a good job of cleaning the contact surfaces on both rows of pins.

That plastic is pretty tough. I have a multi-part cleaning process that I use, including a heated ultrasonic cleaning in a respirator-worthy chemical bath, and the plastic holds up just fine.

I have a couple inexpensive ones in stock. It's decent for the price and beats using a flathead.

Great stuff, very happy with my purchase!

Bought some 5200 items from Mayhem. They arrived quickly and exactly as shown!