ScoreAddict Posted June 12, 2015 Share Posted June 12, 2015 (edited) And the resurrection continues! I have two Model IIs here. One works just fine the other does not turn on at all - no difference with batteries or psu. I switched the upper half of the bad unit with the other one and it works perfectly. So it's not the display, switches etc. So on to the lower half! The power connector had to be resoldered, but still no good. Next thing was to shorten the Q12. No difference, still nothing. I've measured the diodes on the board (at least the ones I could easily access, no idea if there are any under the shielding) and two seem to be suspicious: D13 (small diode) measures 196 Ohms in one direction and 355 Ohms in the other. D10 (big diode) measures through (like a fuse) The other diodes behave like they should. Any idea what's wrong here? Edited June 12, 2015 by ScoreAddict Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atlantis Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 I got a chance now to buy a Lynx 1 in new in box for $130, but I hesitate since lots of posts here say they just die after time.Some here say they put away their Lynx for a couple of years, and next time they turn it on it's just dead by no particular reason.Is Lynx a dying system? Is it worth to get into this if the system tend to die by several reasons? I'm no technician so maybe it's not for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aminor00 Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 I thought much the same thing but you've got to remember that the Lynx is now over 25 years old. As I'm sure you're aware, as electronics get older they "die" in various ways: capacitors leak, soldier joints fail under force, 1980's LCD pixel technology "rots" etc etc I'm learning from this forum that there are a few things that can be done to resurrect a dead Lynx such as the "5V Mod", new capacitors and the McWill replacement LCD screen. All of those things seem to promise many more years of Lynx gaming. I also asked if the Lynx was a dying platform and from the replies I got I was really pleased to see that there are still fresh releases coming in the years ahead. But even without the fresh releases one still has a good bit handheld history to play some fun games on. Or collect for. Or be part of a community of similar minded people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atlantis Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 Hi, thanks for a good answer.The community is living for sure - I meant more that console by console dies and becomes trash, only a technician can do anything about, and by that fewer functional Lynx will be around.I guess the bottom line is that I can't be that sure. Just wouldn't handle getting a broken one "new in box". But I'll have to take a chance, I guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aminor00 Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 You're right, you have to take a chance on the machines. You can of course ask the seller if the machine currently works and for them to send you a picture of it running a game. But it may go wrong later. All I can suggest is that you look around your area for more Atari fans. Or maybe collectors of other types of retro machines will have the necessary skills to help you? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nismorack Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 And the resurrection keeps going. Bought a broken Lynx with games (80 euros for basically 22 games and a broken lynx, of which 14 games I didn't have yet). Now I was aware the lynx was broken, the seller believed the screen was broken. But I'm not so sure. Inserting a cartridge and powering it on works in that the backlight goes on and the speaker gives the customary 'pop' when starting a lynx. But then nothing happens. The previous owner apparently used some kind of alcohol/benzine based cleaning agent to clean the connector (royally at that). Now I'll do further testing and compare it to another functional lynx I have. But if someone has ideas or suggestions on what could be wrong, I'm open to suggestions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StijnDW Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 Nismorack, problems like that are harder to diagnose. check if something behind shield heats up within a couple of seconds. That's an indication of something has gone awfully wrong. Pinpointing exactly which chip can be a b**** because the shield is not easy to remove. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nismorack Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 I tested it and something behind the shield heats up very quickly. Which I guess means something is seriously broken. A bit of a shame. If anyone has suggestions on how to go about it I'd love to know. Otherwise I'm going to swap out the mainboard with that of another lynx which has less pristine outer shell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StijnDW Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 As said, you will first need to remove the shield and narrow down the chips that get hot.Then replace them with new chips.Most likely its the 2 DRAM chips but there could be more damage.For all that matters Mike and Suzy are damaged as well ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoltan Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 Hello guys, the dreaded "no power" issue just struck down on one of my Lynxes, no power with either batteries or psu. I disassembled the case, bypassed the q12 MOSFET with shorting the jack middle pin and negative battery terminal and voila, it turned on. So I have an issue with the q12 MOSFET, I have been googling for a while, seems like there are a few compatible variants but it seems all kind of confusing to me. Here is what I came up finally, I am planning to buy some of these, any idea if it will work? Here is the part name: Fairchild MTD3055VL N-channel MOSFET Transistor, 12 A, 60 V, 3-pin TO-252And here is the webshop I am planning to order it: http://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/mosfet-transistors/7614549/ Would be extremely helpful if someone who has some affinity regarding these things could advise me on this. Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7800fan Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 Wish I could help there, I get my replacement transistor from console5: http://console5.com/store/parts/transistors/3055e-n-channel-mosfet.html however the seller is in USA so it would be a few weeks and not cheap to ship it. 3055E and 3055VL at a quick glance appears to be about the same. The number and pinouts do match so it is probably OK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoltan Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 Wish I could help there, I get my replacement transistor from console5: http://console5.com/store/parts/transistors/3055e-n-channel-mosfet.html however the seller is in USA so it would be a few weeks and not cheap to ship it. 3055E and 3055VL at a quick glance appears to be about the same. The number and pinouts do match so it is probably OK. Yeah I checked out that site too, would have ordered from there if it was a UK store. I ended up buying the ones I linked in in my previous post, hope I will be lucky and things will work out. Either way I will get back here to let you guys know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+karri Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Why don't you order from RS? It is located in UK and I use it all the time. Actually I pay nothing for delivery as I pick up the goods from yeoy.fi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoltan Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Why don't you order from RS? It is located in UK and I use it all the time. Actually I pay nothing for delivery as I pick up the goods from yeoy.fi Yeah I ended up ordering from them the mentioned "Fairchild MTD3055VL N-channel MOSFET Transistor". Unfortunately things haven't worked out the way I was hoping for. I removed the original mosfet (it was a pain in the @ss) then I put this new one in. But honestly the space is just so small there that i am not sure if I messed up something, did a short or damaged one of the small components around that area as the Lynx is still dead. So at this point I am not sure if the mosfet that I bought is simply not compatible with the Lynx (here is the link for what I bought: http://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/mosfet-transistors/7614549/) or simply I messed up something during installation. Also I tried to short the Lynx again between the battery negative terminal and the jack middle pin and it came to life again, but after like 10 seconds someting started to burn inside of the Lynx as I could see smoke coming out of it. So I immediately broke the short/ switched it off. At this point I am not sure what to do. Probably the best would be if I permanently short it and install some kind of mechanical switch, so when I click the switch the Lynx would turn on. This way I would also eliminate the small amount of standby battery drainage that has been observed by others on this forum. I will think about it, also probably read a little bit about these things as I am a complete noob when it comes to these things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BadPricey Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 Permanently shorting something out doesn't sound like a good idea. ? Hopefully someone with a little more experience can help you out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andromeda Stardust Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 Also I tried to short the Lynx again between the battery negative terminal and the jack middle pin and it came to life again, but after like 10 seconds someting started to burn inside of the Lynx as I could see smoke coming out of it. So I immediately broke the short/ switched it off. At this point I am not sure what to do. Probably the best would be if I permanently short it and install some kind of mechanical switch, so when I click the switch the Lynx would turn on. This way I would also eliminate the small amount of standby battery drainage that has been observed by others on this forum. I will think about it, also probably read a little bit about these things as I am a complete noob when it comes to these things. Sorry to hear you let the magic blue smoke escape... I am almost considering at this point just parting with my Lynx collection as opposed to trying to fix these things or buy replacements... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael David Morsette Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 Sorry to hear you let the magic blue smoke escape... Here, this worked for me when I lost the smoke from a capacitor in my Robisapien: https://www.sparkfun.com/products/retired/10622 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andromeda Stardust Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 Here, this worked for me when I lost the smoke from a capacitor in my Robisapien: https://www.sparkfun.com/products/retired/10622 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stylee Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 silly question, does this diagnostic using Headphone GND to Batt - work on the Lynx1? I know someone mentioned it is Q11 on the Lynx1 but not sure if this is the same test. A workmate has a Lynx1 which is dead, might get him to bring it in to test also can you perform this powering the unit off batteries? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdoi Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Hi Guys I have just received a lynx II. There are 2 problems :- the lynx switch on when I plug the Dc power supply without tuching any button.- the game works because sound works. But the problem: there is no video on the screen, the backlight works but nothing more. I tried another working screen and the same.. Is anybody has an idea on this issue? thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stylee Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 (edited) hi bdoi, im quite new here but from what i can gather it sounds like the MOSFET is being bypassed by a cable running from the bat - to the headphone GND on the board, could be the previous owner did it to get the system running again as this would result in the system powering up as soon as a power source is available circumventing the power switch but i could be wrong. does the same thing happen with batteries? Im sure someone here will point you in the right direction, some of the guys here know these consoles inside out Edited December 4, 2015 by stylee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdoi Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Hi stylee Yes I be just tried with batteries: it did the same , power on without touch any button. It power on even without game!! And I can't shut it off with power button. And I inspect and no trace of a wire from the headphone to battery minus Really weird... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andromeda Stardust Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 Hi stylee Yes I be just tried with batteries: it did the same , power on without touch any button. It power on even without game!! And I can't shut it off with power button. And I inspect and no trace of a wire from the headphone to battery minus Really weird... Someone must have already modded/repaired it. There's no way the unit will power on without a cart, either through the adapter or the batteries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stylee Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 Someone must have already modded/repaired it. There's no way the unit will power on without a cart, either through the adapter or the batteries. Hi Stardust, Would this potentially happen if someone had replaced the MOS or another component with the wrong replacement part? My curiosity is getting the better of me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andromeda Stardust Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 Hi Stardust, Would this potentially happen if someone had replaced the MOS or another component with the wrong replacement part? My curiosity is getting the better of me I don't know honestly. The power trace actually passes through a pair of pins inside the cartridge. I'm not sure if it's before or after the regulator though. If this connection is broken, the Lynx will not recieve power from the battery or AC adapter. The Mosfet that switches power on/off remains connected even when power is off, which is why it is recommended to physically remove cart when Lynx is not in use so that this transistor doesn't drain the battery. Removing the cart will break the connection to the power supply. The fact that your Lynx powers on without a cart means a connection to power supply has been made elsewhere besides the cart slot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
AtariAge on Instagram
Watch us on YouTube
Chat on Discord
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.