Does anyone know where to buy SNES cartridge batteries?

[MaximRecoil]

They are CR2032 but they have 2 solder tabs spot welded to them, with about 18mm spacing between the tabs. The original one in my Super Metroid cartridge is labeled "Maxell CR2032 T". There is a site in the UK that sells them (near the bottom of the page) but I wouldn't want to pay overseas shipping.

 

You would think that a Google search for "SNES battery" or "Super Nintendo battery" would turn up a dozen sites with the correct battery, but all I can seem to find are places selling the ones without tabs and/or places with ridiculous instructions for adapting ones without tabs, which involves breaking the old tabs off the existing battery, and some electrical tape (good grief).

 

The Sanyo CR2032-T14-1 on this site looks like it would work (which is cheaper on Mouser.com). Does anyone know for sure?

[SINGLE TOOTH]

From memory, the Cartridge batteries are awfully similar in size and shape to a PC motherboard battery. I don't think it really matters what battery you put in there, as long as it is the same voltage. Probably 1.5v.

 

I don't think I would try it on Super Metroid first though....

[MaximRecoil]

From memory, the Cartridge batteries are awfully similar in size and shape to a PC motherboard battery. I don't think it really matters what battery you put in there, as long as it is the same voltage. Probably 1.5v.

 

I don't think I would try it on Super Metroid first though....

 

A PC motherboard battery is the right type (CR2032) but it doesn't have any tabs. It uses a battery holder. There is not enough room in an SNES cartridge to mount a battery holder and be able to put the cartridge back together properly (though it would be convenient if you could).

[Scumdogg]

Can't you buy these batteries and the small mounting tabs at like Radio Shack?

[MaximRecoil]

Can't you buy these batteries and the small mounting tabs at like Radio Shack?

 

The mounting tabs are spot welded to the battery at the factory. I'm pretty sure that Radio Shack doesn't carry them, as there is very little demand and Radio Shack is more interested in selling cell phones these days than being an actual specialized electronics store. They are not shown on Radio Shack's site; only the basic CR2032 without tabs (which you can get anywhere, including the grocery store).

 

What I need looks like this:

 

[Prodos8]

The best thing to do is install a battery clip. Then you can you 'leadless' batteries available just about anywhere.

[MaximRecoil]

The best thing to do is install a battery clip. Then you can you 'leadless' batteries available just about anywhere.

 

If you mean a battery holder then they are too big, unless you know of a really low-profile one. Actually I'd just prefer the correct battery because there is no chance of them losing the connection momentarily, like if the cartridge is dropped or something. I'll probably just order the one from Mouser.com that I linked to.

[DragonmasterDan]

The best thing to do is install a battery clip. Then you can you 'leadless' batteries available just about anywhere.

 

If you mean a battery holder then they are too big, unless you know of a really low-profile one. Actually I'd just prefer the correct battery because there is no chance of them losing the connection momentarily, like if the cartridge is dropped or something. I'll probably just order the one from Mouser.com that I linked to.

 

It's weird that Super Metroid already needs a new one, I have 8-bit games with battery backup that still works.

[MaximRecoil]

The best thing to do is install a battery clip. Then you can you 'leadless' batteries available just about anywhere.

 

If you mean a battery holder then they are too big, unless you know of a really low-profile one. Actually I'd just prefer the correct battery because there is no chance of them losing the connection momentarily, like if the cartridge is dropped or something. I'll probably just order the one from Mouser.com that I linked to.

 

It's weird that Super Metroid already needs a new one, I have 8-bit games with battery backup that still works.

 

It doesn't need a new one yet. I just want to replace it because it is about 13 years old now.

[shadow460]

Batteries Plus has the tools to spot weld the tabs on. The have the tabs as well. It cost me about $4 each to have Pokemon Gold, Pokemon Silver, and Shining Force: Sword of Hajya fitted with new batteries.

[MaximRecoil]

Batteries Plus has the tools to spot weld the tabs on. The have the tabs as well.

 

That's interesting. That's something they do right in the store? The closest one to me is an hour away though, so I'll see how these Sanyo batteries from Mouser.com work first.

Edited December 9, 2007 by MaximRecoil

[Bruce Tomlin]

Yes, they do it in store. I was able to rebuild a Newton eMate battery pack thanks to them welding tabs to a few pairs of NiMH AA cells for me.

[shadow460]

Yep. I watched one of their pros repair my two Pokemon games. Someone new did Shining Force and he burnt the cartridge case with the soldering iron. I could have killed him, especially since all I needed was for him to weld the contacts on and let me solder it all in at home.

 

On a side note, if you have the original battery, they may use the tabs from it.

 

You know something, though? Li-Ion batteries are getting smaller, and I've seen some that have their chargers built right in. I wonder if it's possible to install such a device into an SNES game. Even Shining Force would have enough room for a second board, provided it's surface mount. From there you could trickle charge the battery with that internal charger. The whole thing would be powered from the Vcc line into the cartridge.

Edited December 10, 2007 by shadow460

[MaximRecoil]

Yep. I watched one of their pros repair my two Pokemon games. Someone new did Shining Force and he burnt the cartridge case with the soldering iron. I could have killed him, especially since all I needed was for him to weld the contacts on and let me solder it all in at home.

 

That sucks. I wouldn't want anyone else to solder anything for me either. I worked in a PCB factory for 2 years, inspecting and soldering about 1,000 boards a night. I also trained new-hires to solder (and desolder). The PCB's we made were for commercial fire alarm systems like you would find in a hospital or a school, which were classified as "life-saving equipment", so they were very particular about the quality of the soldering (as well as everything else). I have the same model of Metcal soldering iron at home that they had for us to use at work too. They retail for about $450 new, but I got a good deal on a used one. They are amazing -- nothing else compares IMO, not even a $1,000 Hakko.

 

I'll post back here about how those Sanyo batteries with the tabs work out.

Edited December 10, 2007 by MaximRecoil

[shadow460]

Got a link to 'em? I'm kinda wondering if Sanyo has some rechargeable coin cells, especially NiCD or those Li-Ion that come with a charging circuit of some kind.

 

Wait a sec...I wonder what cell Sega used in the Dreamcast? IIRC, that's a NiCD coin cell of some kind.

Edited December 10, 2007 by shadow460

[MaximRecoil]

Got a link to 'em?

 

Yeah, check the last line of my opening post. They look like this:

 

 

They are just standard CR2032 batteries, except they have insulation and spot-welded tabs. They look perfect for an SNES cartridge battery replacement to me.

[MaximRecoil]

Got a link to 'em?

 

Yeah, check the last line of my opening post. They look like this:

 

 

They are just standard CR2032 batteries, except they have insulation and spot-welded tabs. They look perfect for an SNES cartridge battery replacement to me.

 

Well, those Sanyo batteries work perfectly. The spot-welded tabs are the same as the original batteries and they are a direct drop-in replacement with no problems. I used one to replace the battery on a Super Mario World cartridge, and it saves games like it should with the new battery. I bought them from Mouser.com (link). Just make sure you get the polarity the same as the original battery. On the original battery, one of the tabs is fatter than the other, along with one of the solder holes being fatter, so it is not possible to get the polarity wrong. On these Sanyo batteries, both tabs are the same thickness so you could get the polarity wrong if you don't take note of which way they are supposed to go beforehand.

[Cinder6]

Good to hear they fit, since I just ordered a bunch of them I'd been looking to put in a battery holder, but gave up after I found none that could fit (though this was a Genesis cartridge).

[MaximRecoil]

Good to hear they fit, since I just ordered a bunch of them I'd been looking to put in a battery holder, but gave up after I found none that could fit (though this was a Genesis cartridge).

 

Yeah, I looked at a few CR2032 battery holders I had on old PC motherboards and they were all too tall to fit in an SNES cartridge too. The original batteries only have about 1/8" of headroom when the cartridge is screwed together, so I doubt there would be any CR2032 battery holder that would fit in there and still allow the cartridge to be screwed back together.

[Cinder6]

Yeah, I looked at a few CR2032 battery holders I had on old PC motherboards and they were all too tall to fit in an SNES cartridge too. The original batteries only have about 1/8" of headroom when the cartridge is screwed together, so I doubt there would be any CR2032 battery holder that would fit in there and still allow the cartridge to be screwed back together.

By "looked at", do you mean "violently pried off", like I did? Anyways, I hear the holders work well in an NES cartridge if you solder some wire leads to them and tape them on some other part of the cartridge. Sounds like it should work, since I can only think of one NES game that actually fills the entire cartridge (and it doesn't have a battery, anyways). I've also seen people on some forums saying that they put a holder in a Genesis cart, but every time I ask which one they used, or where they found it, or...ANYthing, the topic goes strangely quiet.

 

One thing that could just possibly work in these smaller cartridges using a horizontal holder. You'd have to solder wires to the leads, then the wires to the battery connectors on the PCB. Either tape the holder or let it "float". The reason this might work is because the horizontal holders I've found are all about 5mm thick; Genesis carts need at least 6mm headroom from the PCB to the casing. The only problem with this is that Genesis and SNES carts are shorter than NES carts...EA carts might work for the Genesis, though.

[MaximRecoil]

By "looked at", do you mean "violently pried off", like I did? Anyways, I hear the holders work well in an NES cartridge if you solder some wire leads to them and tape them on some other part of the cartridge. Sounds like it should work, since I can only think of one NES game that actually fills the entire cartridge (and it doesn't have a battery, anyways). I've also seen people on some forums saying that they put a holder in a Genesis cart, but every time I ask which one they used, or where they found it, or...ANYthing, the topic goes strangely quiet.

 

That would work. It wouldn't be my first choice though. I don't like the idea of something taped inside the cartridge. Also, since these batteries have been known to last for 15-20 years, it is not like having a holder for it is a huge advantage. A correct style replacement, securely soldered to the PCB, is definitely my first choice. Fortunately the correct style of battery is available. I have no idea why the information about where to get such batteries is not readily available on the net. In fact, the top search result on Google for "SNES battery" is to a page with ridiculous instructions (link). Basically what those instructions say to do is, break the spot welds on the original battery and remove it, leaving the original tabs still soldered to the board. Then, slide a new ordinary CR2032 (no tabs) in there so it is contacting the original tabs that are still soldered to the board. Then, tape the hell out of it.

 

No thanks.

 

I have a better idea. Buy the correct style of CR2032 battery in the first place (or have one made at Batteries Plus like was mentioned earlier in this thread).

[Cinder6]

Also, since these batteries have been known to last for 15-20 years, it is not like having a holder for it is a huge advantage.

 

True. Although, strangely enough, I just had a battery die on me after only being in use for 6 months. Extremely frustrating, as I lost my Phantasy Star IV saves. This is why I'd been looking at a holder. To be fair, I'd gone the cheapo and easy route by swapping a battery from a <$1 sports game, but when I did so, I tested the battery and it read 3.0v. In a few days, I'm going to test the current battery I'm using. It could be something wrong with my game.

 

And yeah, the instructions on that site are a joke. I actually tried to follow them once. Have you ever tried to break the spot welds? I used an X-acto knife attachment for my soldering iron, and even after working on it for 15 minutes, I still hadn't broken 1 of the six (!) points. Ugh, no thanks. After I got the whole thing out with the soldering iron, I took pliers to both tabs and yanked. They started to come off, at least. The tabs also started to break. Worthless, worthless instructions.

[MaximRecoil]

And yeah, the instructions on that site are a joke. I actually tried to follow them once. Have you ever tried to break the spot welds? I used an X-acto knife attachment for my soldering iron, and even after working on it for 15 minutes, I still hadn't broken 1 of the six (!) points. Ugh, no thanks. After I got the whole thing out with the soldering iron, I took pliers to both tabs and yanked. They started to come off, at least. The tabs also started to break. Worthless, worthless instructions.

 

Yeah, and even if you do manage to break the tabs off without mangling everything, the final result is still a dubious electrical connection secured with tape. I noticed that this thread is now the 4th Google result for "SNES battery", so maybe it will help people find the correct battery for this type of replacement. Mouser will probably wonder what's with the sudden popularity of Sanyo CR2032-T14-1 batteries, lol.

[shadow460]

You can actually flex the old solder tabs so they will apply pressure to a new battery. It's not a strong as secure soldering, but it does work.

 

I think the best solution is a small rechargeable battery, but it would need an additional board inside the cartridge. If there's not enough room for that, then direct soldering is the way to go. In some cases you can back your game saves up to a Game Shark, then transfer them right back onto the cartridge. In other cases, you'll need to work with the cart powered up in order to keep your game saves.

 

Actually, that's not entirely correct...you could solder in to whatever points the battery traces go to on the board (usually ground and to a power IC of some kind) and this would hold power on the SRAM chip that has your games saves. From there, you'd desolder the battery normally and install the new one. After that, unhook the power supply and you're good to go.

[MaximRecoil]

You can actually flex the old solder tabs so they will apply pressure to a new battery. It's not a strong as secure soldering, but it does work.

 

I think the best solution is a small rechargeable battery, but it would need an additional board inside the cartridge. If there's not enough room for that, then direct soldering is the way to go. In some cases you can back your game saves up to a Game Shark, then transfer them right back onto the cartridge. In other cases, you'll need to work with the cart powered up in order to keep your game saves.

 

Actually, that's not entirely correct...you could solder in to whatever points the battery traces go to on the board (usually ground and to a power IC of some kind) and this would hold power on the SRAM chip that has your games saves. From there, you'd desolder the battery normally and install the new one. After that, unhook the power supply and you're good to go.

 

If you knew the pinout of an SNES cartridge, you could simply wire power and ground from a suitable power supply to a 62-pin card edge connector (like this one) in order to have it powered up while you change the battery. I'd rather do that than try to have it in a powered up console while changing the battery, or soldering additional leads to the cartridge's PCB. I suppose you could even do it with alligator clips from a power supply to the right contacts on the card edge of the PCB, but having the correct type of card edge connector would be a more secure arrangement while working on the PCB.

 

I didn't realize you could upload and download saves with a Game Shark. Does this work with all battery-backed SNES cartridges? And are Game Sharks for the SNES hard to find and/or expensive?