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/vr/ - Retro Games

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1421457 No.1421457[DELETED]  [Reply] [Original]

>Bought NES from ebay
>Blinking light + flickering gray screen on all four games
What should I do?
I already tried the gentle wiggle which apparently fixes the problem for most people on Youtube.

>> No.1421458

Any method that doesn't involve opening up the console would be great

>> No.1421459

it takes awhile to get good at tosters
your NES is fine
1.Clean the games nigger
2.dont put them in deep
3.try left then try right
4.rinse and repeat

you will eventually fine your sweet spot

>> No.1421462

If it's refurbished with a new pin-connector, try turning the system on without pushing the game down.

>> No.1421471

>>1421458
Are you serious?

>> No.1421473

>>1421472
It's really easy to open. You will need a screwdriver.

>> No.1421474

If this is your first NES, get used to it. Replace the 72-pin connector ideally, but really even a shit-beaten old NES can be made to work with just the right cart positioning etc.

>> No.1421472

>>1421471
100%

>> No.1421480

>>1421458
Don't be such a chicken shit. Disabling the 10nes chip will solve your problems and it's just one quick snip. My nes games work first time almost every time.

>> No.1421485

>>1421474
>Replace the 72-pin connector ideally
Aftermarket pin connectors are cheap junk and rust after a while. They're even worse than the stock ones as far as reliability.

>>1421457
OP you have to bend the pins into shape and clean your games.

>>1421480
Disabling the 10NES chip doesn't solve the underlying issues

>> No.1421487
File: 11 KB, 250x130, 1393014256566.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1421487

>> No.1421489

>>1421472
With a standard phillips screwdriver you can have an NES open in less than five minutes.

There's like maybe fifteen screws, including internal ones

>> No.1421492

>>1421487
>Hey, you have a sprain? Let me put a bandaid on that and you'll be all better!

>> No.1421497

>>1421485
>>1421492
it'll eliminate at least half his problems, cleaning a pin bending will kill the other half. Ye of little faith.

>> No.1421506

>>1421497
It will only get rid of the resetting which isn't necessarily a good thing since the games will still likely be fucked up in some way and eventually freeze while you're playing.

>> No.1421509

>>1421497
The sole issues are bad pin connections. If those are cleaned up and repositioned, he'll have no real issues with the lockout chip.

>> No.1421592

Here we go:
>open it up
>remove the 72 pin connector
>check if pins need to be reset to factory specs
>throw connector in pot of boiling water for 10 minutes (srsly)
>remove and let dry
>while waiting, clean games, contacts of nes pcb, and suck out any dust with a vacuum (do not blow it out, especially using your own breath)
>make sure connector is dry, and free of dirt and dust and that all pins are snug on cartridges
>try to play
>if nothing still, chances are you need new resistors/capacitors

>> No.1421632

Get a Q-tip and clean the connectors of the cartridge with rubbing alcohol, when you put the cartridge in try your best to slide it all the way to the left. If that doesn't work then try your best sliding it all the way to the right. It won't move much but it will move some. If that doesn't work then you gotta take it apart and either bend the pins on the 72 pin connector or order a new connector.

>> No.1421809

>>1421632
After cleaning the cartridges and using the sliding technique I got the red lamp to stop blinking, but all that shows up on the TV is a gray screen.
God I feel retarded

>> No.1421826

Find a hard surface, and drop the unit, flat, from a height of about three inches.

>> No.1421898

>>1421809
sometimes they're a bitch to work with. It's usually just a matter of dirty pins on the NES and the cartridge though.

>> No.1421929

One way that sometimes works is to push the cart in enough so that it just about goes down.
10NES chip disabling works as well

>> No.1421963

you just gotta blow in that shit nigga. and try and blow hot air from the back of your throat, it works better

>> No.1421981

You want something with ammonia in it, like jewelry or contact cleaner, not rubbin' alcohol. That stuff always has water in it.

>> No.1422002

Gently wiggle the cartridge with the slot in its pushed down position until the flashing grey screen starts showing quick flashes of the title screen. Then press reset, and the game should work.

I was having issues with the NES I bought off ebay until I took the connector out and boiled it in water for 10~ minutes. It works every time now.

>> No.1422004

Probably something wrong with the 72 pin connector. Frontloader models all had this problem, they typically wear out after so many years and you gotta replace it.

Toploaders, on the other hand, did not have this problem.

>> No.1422008
File: 50 KB, 600x461, Top_Loader_NES.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1422008

>>1422004
(Pic related, ugly as sin but it worked better)

>> No.1422021

Open it, you won't break it unless you actually take a hammer to it.

I also bought a NES years back and it would blink like yours. So I did open it, cleaned it from the inside, and that seemed to have helped, but I wasn't satisfied as some games would gather artifacts.

The best thing to do is just replace the pin connector inside, and it is so worth it as the games play like new.

Really, Mac, don't be afraid to open it up. These machines were made in a time when the insides were actually quality materials and could last a beating.

>> No.1422025

Also are you using the RF switch or Composite cables?

>> No.1422058

>>1422025
Composite cables, but I did try both

I've tried pretty much everything I can without having to get the toolbox.
I did pass the flashing screen which at least is some progress (I guess?). What happens now is that it shows a solid gray screen.
I'll open the thing up tomorrow and clean it.
Oh and thanks for all the advice so far

>> No.1422073

>>1422004
You don't have to replace the connecter if you don't want to, but it takes a while to bend the pins back, and most of the online tutorials I've looked at are terrible.

>> No.1422078

>>1421457
You'll have to take it apart, take the connector off the main PCB and clean the shit out of it, also clean the pins on all your cartridges.

>> No.1422101

>>1422021
>you won't break it unless you actually take a hammer to it
I used to think this was a joke, it really isn't.

You can bend the motherboard 45º upwards and it won't break. It's insane.

>> No.1422103

>>1422101
>You can bend the motherboard 45º upwards and it won't break
should i ask why you know this?

>> No.1422107

>>1422103
I had a bit of trouble getting the 72-pin connector back on.

>> No.1422109

>have 5 nes systems.

1 is super rusted and looks pretty hopeless since I cant get the screws out to clean it (tried wd-40), the other is my childhood nes (which still needs to be cleaned.), another 1 is uncleaned, 1 I bought from a coworker and it works like brand spanking new (I almost wept), and the last is 1 that I attempted to clean. Spent a good 2 hours with rubbing alcohol inside, cleaning the connectors etc. Even disabled the lockout chip. It still gray screens with no result.

>discouraged to clean the others now but at least I have 1 working.

>> No.1423698

It works!
I didn't have to open it up after all. In fact, I have no idea what I actually did.
Thank you all for the tips. Now I know what to do if.. when it starts acting up in the future

>> No.1423705

>>1423698

Yeah, this is pretty much how NES frontloaders have always been for me.

It's going to act up in the future, but eventually you'll be able to play if you keep fucking with the cart/cycling power.

>> No.1424369

Try blowing into it.