LED Backlight replacement help for Model 1

[imall54]

Hello I was wondering if there was anyone who made a guide for installating the LED Backlight from Handheld Legends into the Model 1 Lynx. I found this guide for the model 2: https://www.instructables.com/id/Atary-Lynx-II-LED-Backlight-Install/

 

Is the model 1 similar to the 2 in terms of installation or is there somewhere that has a guide?

Edited July 6, 2020 by imall54

[Makara]

They are somewhat different as the Lynx II screen is contained inside a removable unit with the backlight, whereas the Lynx I has it all attached directly to the mainboard. It's more similar to the Game Gear.

[imall54]

22 minutes ago, Makara said:

They are somewhat different as the Lynx II screen is contained inside a removable unit with the backlight, whereas the Lynx I has it all attached directly to the mainboard. It's more similar to the Game Gear.

I'm coming into this almost blind so I'm not sure what I'll be looking at once I open it, but I could follow the instructions for the game gear and be able to do it then?

 

I mean I found a guide to remove the fluorescent light from the model 1 it's just installing the backlight I don't know anything about.

Edited July 6, 2020 by imall54

[Makara]

Here's a good pic of what it looks like behind the screen:

 

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Atari-Lynx-Motherboard-Top-Angle-Exposed.jpg

 

If I remember rightly, there are two of those white diffusers stacked on top of each other, you just need to remove them and put the backlight in there. Perhaps you could just remove one and use the other to clamp it in. The whole assembly is held with those rubber pins. I think it will be pretty straightforward.

[imall54]

53 minutes ago, Makara said:

Here's a good pic of what it looks like behind the screen:

 

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Atari-Lynx-Motherboard-Top-Angle-Exposed.jpg

 

If I remember rightly, there are two of those white diffusers stacked on top of each other, you just need to remove them and put the backlight in there. Perhaps you could just remove one and use the other to clamp it in. The whole assembly is held with those rubber pins. I think it will be pretty straightforward

So where exactly would I connect the two wires from the backlight to once I remove the fluorescent light?

[Makara]

You will need to test with a multimeter to find a 5v source, there should be a few places you can use.

 

I had a quick scan of the schematic and TP15 is marked as a +5v so that would work but I don't know how accessible that is. For ground you could do what the other guide says and use the negative speaker terminal, or just pick a component on the schematic that goes to ground and wire to the negative terminal (you will need to confirm with a multimeter).

 

[power]

curious, why would you do this over say a McWill screen?

[KevinMos3]

1) The battery life with the LED mod is amazing.

2) If you want to keep the more original look of the screen.

 

In my experience, the LED mod didn't look quite a good as the original backlight in some ways.  It seemed slightly more washed out, but the battery life made it worth it.

[+-^CrossBow^-]

On 7/9/2020 at 7:21 PM, KevinMos3 said:

1) The battery life with the LED mod is amazing.

2) If you want to keep the more original look of the screen.

 

In my experience, the LED mod didn't look quite a good as the original backlight in some ways.  It seemed slightly more washed out, but the battery life made it worth it.

Not sure which LEDs are being uses in these backlight mods specifically, but I would hope they aren't using the bright white ones that put our more in the blue spectrum than white? I would be curious what one of these LED mods looked like if they used warm white colored LEDs? They still won't be a warm in color as old incandescent bulbs but they are pretty close and bring more vibrancy to the lower color spectrum.

[KevinMos3]

1 hour ago, -^CrossBow^- said:

Not sure which LEDs are being uses in these backlight mods specifically, but I would hope they aren't using the bright white ones that put our more in the blue spectrum than white? I would be curious what one of these LED mods looked like if they used warm white colored LEDs?..

The ones I got from Handheld Legend were of the pure white type.  Definitely not warm white like an incandescent, but not bluish either.  I would like to see a warm white option, but these aren't bad.

Those lights work in Game Gear and Lynx, but in my opinion, the original Lynx screen is more tolerable to look at these days than a Game Gear one.

[imall54]

Well I basically want an option that reduces the battery life so I'm not going through batteries, but the Mcwill costs basically half as much as the system so I'm not 100 percent on that 

[VGR]

I removed the coil for this and now I can't adjust the contras I was repeating what I've done for game Gears but had no luck. Do I need to put a jumper wire somewhere? 

[+Stephen Moss]

On 7/7/2020 at 9:54 AM, Makara said:

I had a quick scan of the schematic and TP15 is marked as a +5v so that would work but I don't know how accessible that is.

Take 5V and 0V from the appropriate ends of C39, that should be easily accessible.

 

On 9/12/2021 at 3:14 AM, VGR said:

Do I need to put a jumper wire somewhere? 

It is not quite as simple as that as you need to generate a 20V supply, see my fuller reply here.