Fixing my SNES, help needed ?

My SNES gone bad for a while now, the power indicator glows with a faint red light when it's on, so i'm almost sure that the ac adapter may be the problem here.

While it's obvious that i need to buy a new adapter, i thought that i could seek more experienced views on this matter.

Like i said, experienced views on this matter are most appreciated

If you've got a multimeter, plug in the power supply and test the current from the jack end - from memory it's 9v AC (can't remember the amps). Then at least you'll know if it is the power supply.......

Didn't work, the power supply works fine afterall

Anyone have this problem before ?

From memory again, open up your snes (discharge it beforehand by switching it on and off a few times disconnected from the power supply or you'll wreck it).
You'll need the ninty security bit to open it up......
Check all the connections around the power socket on the snes - I've seen them where its been lifted from the pcb. Then check for blown components on the board, and if the ribbon cable connecting the controller ports it connected properly.
Check the voltage regulator attached to the left side of the aluminium heatsink (little black component with three legs). At the 'feet' of the volt regulator is what looks like a resistor - I've replaced these before on busted snes's, and they've worked afterwards.....

Even though I hate to say it (and condemn another snes, the greatest console to grace the earth *cough's* I mean the second greatest bar the Neo) you're probably better off getting a new snes (carboot or eBay) for a few quid unless you've already got the security bit to open the snes up.....

If you do end up needing a replacement system, I may have a couple of modded systems soon.

There's not much to the SNES at all. If the power light is dim and the adapter is OK then your problem is one of a few things... Broken connection on the power jack, bad voltage regulator, or a short in the unit - either a bad chip, passive component, or something fell down in the cart slot.

Take the console, open the cart slot, and blow it out good with some compressed air in a can. Look down into the card slot and see if there are any pieces of wires, staples, etc that could short out things before you decide to open it up.

RJ

if it was me i would check flea markets for a replacement..

and if you want it modded snes to play jap games,

just open the flaps over th cartridge insert on the system and you will see two tabs the easiest way to get rid of them is with a hammer and a sharp chisle..it will come off on the first light tap.....or you can grind it down slowly with a utility knife.

hines1515 said:

if it was me i would check flea markets for a replacement..

and if you want it modded snes to play jap games,

just open the flaps over th cartridge insert on the system and you will see two tabs the easiest way to get rid of them is with a hammer and a sharp chisle..it will come off on the first light tap.....or you can grind it down slowly with a utility knife.

Click to expand...

The PAL system is totally different to the US machine and needs the region lockout disabling and for some games, a 60Hz switch.

Personally I'd suggest just picking up a new system and getting it modded, however try and get an ealier model, as modding the 1995-1-CHIP systems is a real pain in the ass.

I opened the SNES and everything seems fine, there was some lose screws but nothing
serious, the power supply plug seems the main problem, it doesn't connect electricity very well
(it flashes when i try to bend the AC adapter cord in different directions), so i decided to buy
an alternative power supply today.

Suggestions ?

Don't sound healthy if the power supply 'flashes'.....would reccomend getting the 50/60Hz switch fitted though, and out of personal choice, getting a lockout switch fitted as well - just disabling the lockout chip stops you being able to play a couple of the games (can't remember which ones....) as they won't operate when the chip has been disabled.

DemiAngel said:

I opened the SNES and everything seems fine, there was some lose screws but nothing
serious, the power supply plug seems the main problem, it doesn't connect electricity very well
(it flashes when i try to bend the AC adapter cord in different directions), so i decided to buy
an alternative power supply today.

Suggestions ?

Click to expand...

Sure, you open up the psu and then cut the wire about 3" from where it goes into the plug itself.

Strip and prepare the wires for soldering then desolder the old wires from the inside of the adpator and replace with the ones you have just stripped back.

Then take the bits you have just desoldered and using a sharp craft knife(and being very careful) slice the bendy piece that retains the cable and stops it being pulled out and peel it away from the old cable.

Put it over the cable and put the psu case back together.Then a couple of drops of superglue to hold that together and to stop the cabel being pulled through and it's job done.

Much better than spending £10 for one from ebay where it may have the same fault.

Don't you just love it when people wrap the cables tightly around their psu's and pads and then wonder why they don't work.

Although if you don't want to do that then I can set you up with -
50/60hz PAL snes
lockout disabled(but not switched as there's no point)
psu
scart lead
official pad
converter(to allow the use of US carts)

and these games

Super Metroid (PAL, loose cart)
Super Ghouls and Ghosts (PAL, loose cart)
Cybernator(pal loose cart)
Super Double Dragon (US,cart only)
Star Wars (US cart only)
Super Soccer Champ (US loose cart)
Jimmy Connors Tennis (US, loose cart)
Gods (US boxed,complete)
Populous (US,boxed complete)
Clayfighter (US,boxed complete)

I'm after £60 plus £12 postage for all that lot.

I'm also clearing out a couple of JB King joysticks for the snes as well if they want to be negotiated for.

dannywhac said:

Don't sound healthy if the power supply 'flashes'.....would reccomend getting the 50/60Hz switch fitted though, and out of personal choice, getting a lockout switch fitted as well - just disabling the lockout chip stops you being able to play a couple of the games (can't remember which ones....) as they won't operate when the chip has been disabled.

Click to expand...

The only couple of games that don't work with the lockout are SF2 Alpha 2 or whatever it is and the last of the Megaman games.Capcom had some extra security installed but that only came towards the end of the snes' life.

For some reason you can't get Mario RPG to work on any pal machine even if you have both a 50/60hz switch and a seperate lockout switch.

Then there are the games that were optimised to run on PAL machines and when they are put into 60hz they just freak out but that's another story.

Don't forget a lot of the PAL Nintendo in house releases play up if you run a PAL cart in 60Hz.

Sounds like a good deal from Soopa as well, so I guess you'd be best off going for that.

Superfamifreak said:

Don't forget a lot of the PAL Nintendo in house releases play up if you run a PAL cart in 60Hz.

Click to expand...

It's with the games being optimised for the PAL regions.They make the games run at a similar speed to the NTSC versions(but without the fullscreen of the NTSC versions) but when you flip them over to 60hz the clock speed goes haywire.The main effect is that on some of areas of the screen you may get 'flashing' (mainly on background areas)

If you want some real fun put PAL Mario Kart on in 60hz. The speed difference is awesome, it's like they are zipping around in some mad turbocharged 500cc carts.The downside is that when both screens get busy you get the sky flashing but it's worth it in short bursts to play it at hyperspeed.

Just get hold of the US/jap carts and you don't have to worry about any problems like that and you can play in full screen, full speed glory.

oops........double post!:chimp:

soopafamicom said:

For some reason you can't get Mario RPG to work on any pal machine even if you have both a 50/60hz switch and a seperate lockout switch.

Click to expand...

Errr - Mario RPG works fine on my Pal double switched snes

Forgot to add - does sound like a good deal from soopafamicom!

dannywhac said:

Errr - Mario RPG works fine on my Pal double switched snes

Click to expand...

When I had a jap copy of SMRPG I couldn't get it to work on a pal machine at all.I tried with and without lockout switches and just had no success.No matter what I did, lockout disabled, enabled, through a converter and in both 50hz and 60hz all I got was a black screen, not even the nintendo logo or warning as you get with most other games.

The relevant pin on the lockout chip(pin 4- PAL chip is F413 or F411A for the later machines and NTSC is F411 for the one with seperate sound module and F411A for the all later ones) has to be either held in a state of 5v or 0v depending on the region of the machine.The corresponding chip in the game cart needs to be either at 0v or 5v for it to work with the consoles chip and allow the game to boot up.

Usually you just lift pin 4 from the board and you are away.You can just leave it as is but I have found some revisions of the snes board to be a little twitchy and you need to connect the lifted pin to pin 9 of the same chip and hold it at 0v to stabilise it.Usually the fitting of a lockout switch to a PAL machine was done to allow the user to still be able to run PAL region games without any problems.


A couple of sites have suggested there being more than one version of mario rpg, I don't know if this appertains to there being us and jap language versions or if there are actually differences in the carts to stop them working on a console from a different region.

I may have to open up one of my spare machines and have another tinker but if there are different revisions of SMRPG(like there are for some of the Kirby games) then it's just pot luck as to which version you get.

I can always stick a lockout switch on the machine I'm selling if so asked, just to be on the safe side

Aye - I slap the extra switch in just in case. The Mario RPG I've got is the US NTSC version, I'll give it a go on me other snes's just to see if it works on all of 'em......

soopafamicom said:

A couple of sites have suggested there being more than one version of mario rpg, I don't know if this appertains to there being us and jap language versions or if there are actually differences in the carts to stop them working on a console from a different region.

I may have to open up one of my spare machines and have another tinker but if there are different revisions of SMRPG(like there are for some of the Kirby games) then it's just pot luck as to which version you get.

Click to expand...

I'm sure it's 2 revisions, seems the most logical answer.

As for other PAL opttimised games, Super Tennis & FIFA Soccer are 2 more. FIFA especially is just like pinball

Superfamifreak said:

I'm sure it's 2 revisions, seems the most logical answer.

Click to expand...

Yep - must be, it works in the other modded snes's I've got....
@ Superfamifreak - Not wishing to derail the thread, did I read you'd moved to Devon? There's an arcade in Tiverton (lived there a couple of years ago) with a US Snes cab (two big old us snes contollers fixed to thefront of the cab), they used to sell cabs and pcb's off as well.....

dannywhac said:

Yep - must be, it works in the other modded snes's I've got....
@ Superfamifreak - Not wishing to derail the thread, did I read you'd moved to Devon? There's an arcade in Tiverton (lived there a couple of years ago) with a US Snes cab (two big old us snes contollers fixed to thefront of the cab), they used to sell cabs and pcb's off as well.....

Click to expand...

Let me guess, 20p for 5 minutes?

Jive Consoles in Loughborough used to have one. Pretty neat back then, but rather pointless today.