Lynx LCD Replacement/VGA-Out by McWill

[Greg2600]

I saw that cowdog360's interest has waned in doing these in the USA. Is there anyone else willing to mod?

[apr2499]

I saw that cowdog360's interest has waned in doing these in the USA. Is there anyone else willing to mod?

[cowdog360]

I saw that cowdog360's interest has waned in doing these in the USA. Is there anyone else willing to mod?

 

Right now I'm pretty booked up with customers, and life has been getting pretty busy as well. I'll probably continue to do the Lynx mods, but maybe not the gamegears as they are more difficult and take more time. However, krip316 also does both of the mods, so you can also check with him as well!

Edited June 14, 2016 by cowdog360

[bdoi]

I am doing the mods in France, if there are interested french guys ....

[cowdog360]

Does anyone know what the ribbon cable size/pitch is for the original Lynx II LCD's? I'm thinking about making a simple adapter board that you can just plug a ribbon cable into and then has the 9 wires out on the other side to solder to the mcwill mod. That way it's easier to install/remove if you want.

[tripp]

Sorry if this has been asked, but it's just too much browsing for me to check out...

The question is how is the battery life compared to the original screen? Thanks

[leonk]

about the same. but even if battery life was HORRIBLE I would still do the mod again. It's so amazing compared to oem screen!!!

 

Even using my Canon 5D and L lenses I cant capture how amazing this looks in person!

[superdude]

Interested in Game Gear Replacement McWill screen. Pm me details plz Mr McWill! Thank you

[Brocan]

Good day @McWill , i'm really interested in game gear & Lynx replacement screens. Please can you send me a PM with details of how i can get it?

 

I've just sent a PM to you!

 

Thanks in advance!

Edited June 25, 2016 by Brocan

[Orange-Phantom]

Sorry if this has been asked, but it's just too much browsing for me to check out...

The question is how is the battery life compared to the original screen? Thanks

 

I've measured the current draw between an original Stock Lynx 2 and a Modded Lynx 2.

 

The results that I have show the modded Lynx 2 with the McWill screen uses more power than a stock Lynx 2. At 7.2 V (rechargeable battery voltage) my modded Lynx 2 is drawing nearly 60% higher current that then stock Lynx 2) I've posted a link showing the results below.

 

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/247305-old-stock-lynx-vs-new-mcwill-screen-recom-power-reg-power-consumption/

 

Being honest the higher power draw doesn't matter. You can use good rechargeable batteries such as the Panasonic Enloops, just don't rush into swapping you power reg out as what seems to be the fashion at the mo. It's permanently wired in and will drain you batteries in about 3 days even when you're not using the Lynx and if of a switching type won't work much below 6.5v. Much better to change the FET and as a belt and braces the Zener diode that provides the voltage reference to the High Efficiency power regulation circuit.

 

The quality of the screen is amazing. If you haven't done this mod then I highly recommend that you grab a McWill screen and do it. It's quite frankly a huge improvement over the original! My Lynx with the McWill screen is the Lynx of choice for me!

Edited June 26, 2016 by Orange-Phantom

[GadgetUK]

 

I've measured the current draw between an original Stock Lynx 2 and a Modded Lynx 2.

 

The results that I have show the modded Lynx 2 with the McWill screen uses more power than a stock Lynx 2. At 7.2 V (rechargeable battery voltage) my modded Lynx 2 is drawing nearly 60% higher current that then stock Lynx 2) I've posted a link showing the results below.

 

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/247305-old-stock-lynx-vs-new-mcwill-screen-recom-power-reg-power-consumption/

 

Being honest the higher power draw doesn't matter. You can use good rechargeable batteries such as the Panasonic Enloops, just don't rush into swapping you power reg out as what seems to be the fashion at the mo. It's permanently wired in and will drain you batteries in about 3 days even when you're not using the Lynx and if of a switching type won't work much below 6.5v. Much better to change the FET and as a belt and braces the Zener diode that provides the voltage reference to the High Efficiency power regulation circuit.

 

The quality of the screen is amazing. If you haven't done this mod then I highly recommend that you grab a McWill screen and do it. It's quite frankly a huge improvement over the original! My Lynx with the McWill screen is the Lynx of choice for me!

You've touched on a hot topic there!!! - Do you know what type of zener to swap the original out for? I was thinking about doing this myself as a precaution as I understand its the zener that kills these systems. Is it 5v3? I was thinking of swapping it with something that can handle more current, rather than the tiny little thing that Atari fitted.

[cowdog360]

The stock one is a 1N5991B, which you can't find anymore, and it's a 4.3V zener diode, 500mW.

 

The replacement I've been putting in every Lynx I work on it the 1N5229B: http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/fairchild-semiconductor/1N5229B/1N5229B-ND/977567

From what I can tell in datasheets, it is very similar in spec to the original. I could only find it in thru-hole style, so you'll have to bend the leads and solder it onto the SMD pads on the Lynx II. On a Lynx I, ZD1 is thru-hole, so it is a perfect fit.

[GadgetUK]

The stock one is a 1N5991B, which you can't find anymore, and it's a 4.3V zener diode, 500mW.

 

The replacement I've been putting in every Lynx I work on it the 1N5229B: http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/fairchild-semiconductor/1N5229B/1N5229B-ND/977567

From what I can tell in datasheets, it is very similar in spec to the original. I could only find it in thru-hole style, so you'll have to bend the leads and solder it onto the SMD pads on the Lynx II. On a Lynx I, ZD1 is thru-hole, so it is a perfect fit.

Thanks, I've ordered some 1W 4.3v zeners. They are through hole but not bothered - will be able to fit without too much of an issue. I am going to swap out all the diodes in all 4 of my Lynxes with the new 1W diodes. I suspect there's a lot less chance of failure with a 1W part.

[cowdog360]

Interesting, what 1W zener did you end up using?

[Orange-Phantom]

Ah Cowdog360 has beat me to it!

 

I'd also replace the FET too. It's this that is actually doing the physical regulation by being high frequency switched. It's this that separates the 9v to the 5v side. This also explains why there is a 100uH choke (L15) after this FET. Over years of being high frequency switched the FET can fail. I've seen it first hand on motor speed controllers. I suspect that a-lot of Lynx failures are down to the FET failing. The Zener is just a voltage reference hence why it doesn't need to handle too much power. No harm in it being able to deal a higher wattage though!

 

Cowdog360 found this FET to be compatible. I've also checked the specs and it's a good replacement. The digikey part number for the N-channel mosfet Q12 is: 2SK2231TE16RQCT-ND​.

[tripp]

 

I've measured the current draw between an original Stock Lynx 2 and a Modded Lynx 2.

 

 

The quality of the screen is amazing. If you haven't done this mod then I highly recommend that you grab a McWill screen and do it. It's quite frankly a huge improvement over the original! My Lynx with the McWill screen is the Lynx of choice for me!

 

 

 

thanks alot for the info! I have McWill's LCD replacement modded and yes it's perfect (along with the SD-card reader from SaintT I'm just enjoying the ride to browse all those games at the moment . Cheers.

Edited June 26, 2016 by tripp

[+davidcalgary29]

Just received my modded unit from bdoi...wow! I can't believe what a difference this makes! There are so many details that I previously missed on 'Xenophobe' that it seems like a completely new game.

[JagChris]

Can we put a faq up? And was there not mention of a bios update/modification with this? Someone here is upgrading screens here in Oregon without that. What are the differences?

[McWill]

Since September 2015 there is no newer firmware available. The current firmware has retro-style / scanlines (both LYNX and GG).
The first batches haven't retro-style or scanlines. I am the only one who is upgrading the firmware of the boards (cause of copy protection).

[cowdog360]

Can we put a faq up? And was there not mention of a bios update/modification with this? Someone here is upgrading screens here in Oregon without that. What are the differences?

 

Who's doing the upgrades in Oregon, just curious? That'd be pretty cool if another local is doing some. I'm in Vancouver, WA, and I've done quite a few for Oregon folks as well as across the US.

[Bill Loguidice]

I could probably use an update to mine as well. My modded Lynx 2 won't boot up the flash cartridge.

[cowdog360]

I could probably use an update to mine as well. My modded Lynx 2 won't boot up the flash cartridge.

I doubt the scanline firmware update is going to fix that. I'm assuming you have SainT's SD card? Does your modded Lynx have the "5V regulator mod"? I'm curious with the McWill screen and SD cartridge if we're starting to see power draw issues.

[Bill Loguidice]

I doubt the scanline firmware update is going to fix that. I'm assuming you have SainT's SD card? Does your modded Lynx have the "5V regulator mod"? I'm curious with the McWill screen and SD cartridge if we're starting to see power draw issues.

 

I'm assuming it doesn't, since it was done (by someone else) well before that issue was discovered. It's likely to be some type of power draw issue because the cartridge works on an unmodified (but crappy) Lynx 2 I have, and all standard cartridges work fine on the modded Lynx 2.

[cowdog360]

 

I'm assuming it doesn't, since it was done (by someone else) well before that issue was discovered. It's likely to be some type of power draw issue because the cartridge works on an unmodified (but crappy) Lynx 2 I have, and all standard cartridges work fine on the modded Lynx 2.

Hmm, I'd try it on both AC adapter and batteries to see if there's any difference.

After that, I'd replace the zener D13 and MOSFET Q12 to spruce up the power section, perhaps replace at least C39 and C40 power supply caps as well if they haven't been done.

[GadgetUK]

 

I'm assuming it doesn't, since it was done (by someone else) well before that issue was discovered. It's likely to be some type of power draw issue because the cartridge works on an unmodified (but crappy) Lynx 2 I have, and all standard cartridges work fine on the modded Lynx 2.

See my comment on the other thread (Saint SD card pre-order thread). It sounds like your 5v level is a little low. It's entirely possible that the 5v level is dropping a tiny bit more with the SD card vs a original Lynx card, and if your 5v level is a little low due to failing MOSFET / zener diode, then it might not be enough to feed the regulator on the SD card board. Cleaning your Lynx slot might help with this.