Who installs Language Switches on the NGCD System?

Hi:

I am looking to get a Language Switch installed on my Japanese Neo Geo CD Top Loader System. Who does that around here? I cannot understand anything on it

Thanks!

That mod is very easy, you just need anybody who knows how to solder 2 points and can follow the instructions here:

<a href="http://nickthfury.cjb.net/" target="_blank">http://nickthfury.cjb.net/</a>

I'm sure you know somebody with minimal solder/electronic skills.

I wish I knew someone with "minimal solder/electronic skills"! All my friends are into networking and computers like me Help me someone! Thanks!

It looks like nowadays everybody is an expert in software and knows how to plug wires, but the hardware part is as unknown as a black hole... shame

Computer hardware is easy. No soldering involved though! That is Entry Level Position. I am a Network Manager and do more Cisco Stuff and Microsoft/Novell/Linux Server stuff. Video Game Boards are not the same.

Anyone want to earn some money and install a Language Switch for me in the US?

Thanks!

I wasn't referring to computer hardware, at least not at the level which is just plugging and unplugging things.
Sorry, but anyway a videogame board is mainly the same as a computer board.

Amano Jacu:
I wasn't referring to computer hardware, at least not at the level which is just plugging and unplugging things.
Sorry, but anyway a videogame board is mainly the same as a computer board.

Click to expand...

I know, but no soldering is involved on them. I wish this was easy! I just do not want to screw up and mess up my system Thanks!

soldering is easy!
get a piece of metal & play around with your solder tool.

Well, I have a soldering tool. Just afraid to screw up anything.

Also, that link is not working.

Well, I have to disagree, as a computer has some gazillions of soldered spots.

In any case you are right, appearently Nick's front page isn't working, try this instead:

<a href="http://home1.gte.net/res002b4/neogeo/neogeo.htm" target="_blank">http://home1.gte.net/res002b4/neogeo/neogeo.htm</a>

You need to solder a switch that allows you to open or close jumper JN1 at your will. Easy as that.

neogeofl:
Well, I have a soldering tool. Just afraid to screw up anything.

Click to expand...

better start practising now.

& good luck!

Okay, what kind of jumper/wire do I solder on it?

God I'm gonna show my age here....

There was a day when computer hardware and soldering went hand in hand. I remember the days of soldering 25pin printer cables, rs232 and such. God, network engineers got it easy today, well unless you the poor dood joining optical fibre links

Raz

Razoola:
God I'm gonna show my age here....

There was a day when computer hardware and soldering went hand in hand. I remember the days of soldering 25pin printer cables, rs232 and such. God, network engineers got it easy today, well unless you the poor dood joining optical fibre links

Raz

Click to expand...

This EXACTLY what I was meaning... wink Kiddos nowadays have it way toooooo easy and lazy.

OK, in that link I gave there's all the needed info you need in

NeoGeo Cd-rom System Mod Jobs:
NeoGeo CD Language Switch-

On the right part of the controller board, there are four pairs of 2 points each (see the third picture for a close up). The bottom one (JN1) is the one that matters. In your JAP system there shouldn't be anything there. In a USA system there's a jumper (a piece of metal) connecting both points on JN1 (think of the red line drawn there). So if you want to play in JAP (no censorship, so blood and bounce, but JAP text in some games, in other you can change it in the options anyway) those 2 points need to be disconnected. If you want US mode (so all in English but censored), those two points need to be connected. So what you do is solder two pieces of wire, one on each point of JN1. Now you have two ends of that pieces of wire. You attach a small lever switch on them, so that when it is in ON position those two ends make contact, thus connecting both points of JN1 and allowing US mode. If it is in OFF position those two ends don't make contact, thus the JN1 points are not connected, then it is JAP mode. Now you drill a hole somewhere in order to fix the switch there and that's all.

As Wolferaizer suggests, you can take any piece of wasted computer hardware and practice soldering/desoldering all the stuff in there.

I hope that helped. If you have concrete questions just ask.

We have it easy, hey?!?! Go get your CCNE Certification like me and say it is easy! I would love to see that! I am just saying there is no soldering needed anymore and I have been in the computer field for about 14 yrs. Showing my age, too! Anyway, thanks for the info though and do not under-estimate Network Engineers.

Amano Jacu
On the right part of the controller board, there are four pairs of 2 points each (see the third picture for a close up). The bottom one (JN1) is the one that matters. In your JAP system there shouldn't be anything there. In a USA system there's a jumper (a piece of metal) connecting both points on JN1 (think of the red line drawn there). So if you want to play in JAP (no censorship, so blood and bounce, but JAP text in some games, in other you can change it in the options anyway) those 2 points need to be disconnected. If you want US mode (so all in English but censored), those two points need to be connected. So what you do is solder two pieces of wire, one on each point of JN1. Now you have two ends of that pieces of wire. You attach a small lever switch on them, so that when it is in ON position those two ends make contact, thus connecting both points of JN1 and allowing US mode. If it is in OFF position those two ends don't make contact, thus the JN1 points are not connected, then it is JAP mode. Now you drill a hole somewhere in order to fix the switch there and that's all.

As Wolferaizer suggests, you can take any piece of wasted computer hardware and practice soldering/desoldering all the stuff in there.

I hope that helped. If you have concrete questions just ask. [/QB]

Click to expand...

God I am glad I found this thread. I have been wanting to do this mod for my CD as well! I have a question though. Do you just need 1 wire connecting JN1 (left side of board) to the right side, or do you need 2 wires?

Also, how do you make the switch to connect to the wires? Can you just go to a Radio Shack or a hardware store and buy a toggle switch?

Sorry if these questions are stupid, but I have never done this before annoyed

OK, soldering isn't needed anymore... So imagine for some reason your PC falls and one small resistor or anything else dettaches, and because of that the PC malfunctions. What do you do? Phone the technical service so they can repair it? Replace the entire piece of hardware? Or directly throw away the PC and buy a new one?

OK, I have no idea about networking, but at least I know how to solder 2 points in a PCB, and nobody has taught me that nor I needed to have a certification before I had the guts to do this myself to my console.

qube, this is hard to explain for me in a foreign language, but what I meant is that if you want to always have US mode, you need to connect both points with only one piece of wire. But if you want to have a switch that lets you toggle between the 2 modes, you need to cut that wire in the middle and attach a switch there, thus there are "2 wires", one for each point of JN1, that are connected or not via the switch.

OK, images are worth more than 1000 words in a foreign language, so just have a look:

<a href="http://www.hardmvs.com/html/pause.htm" target="_blank">http://www.hardmvs.com/html/pause.htm</a>

This is a pause switch for a MVS board. The mechanics is EXACTLY the same as this mod, just replace the MVS board for that board in the NGCD and the 2 points in hard dip 8 for the 2 points in JN1, like this:

<img src="http://www.hardmvs.com/images/projects/pauseButton/solderBoardSM.jpg" alt=" - " />

Hope that helps.

Amano Jacu:
OK, soldering isn't needed anymore... So imagine for some reason your PC falls and one small resistor or anything else dettaches, and because of that the PC malfunctions. What do you do? Phone the technical service so they can repair it? Replace the entire piece of hardware? Or directly throw away the PC and buy a new one?

OK, I have no idea about networking, but at least I know how to solder 2 points in a PCB, and nobody has taught me that nor I needed to have a certification before I had the guts to do this myself to my console.

Click to expand...

We can go thru this all day, but Hardware in "ENTRY LEVEL" Position and I have a soldering tool, but do not want to mess up my Neo. My PC I would try it on, but not my Neo. I have been in the field for 14 yrs and never had a "small resistor or anything else detach". And I am Technical Support, why would I call it?!?! And, if you are so smart and do not need training, then I guess you are just the Greatest Person on this Forum then! Then, why do you not know networking if you are sooo smart and need "NO" Training in anything, huh? Just curious!

Yup. Easy mod.

Two pieces of wire, a small SPST toggle switch, a soldering iron and some solder and you are set. You can place the hole for it in the back and run the wire and switch back there so its out of site.

I modded one of my Neo CD's with this and it takes all of maybe 10 minutes.

neogeofl:
We can go thru this all day, but Hardware in "ENTRY LEVEL" Position and I have a soldering tool, but do not want to mess up my Neo. My PC I would try it on, but not my Neo. I have been in the field for 14 yrs and never had a "small resistor or anything else detach". And I am Technical Support, why would I call it?!?! And, if you are so smart and do not need training, then I guess you are just the Greatest Person on this Forum then! Then, why do you not know networking if you are sooo smart and need "NO" Training in anything, huh? Just curious!

Click to expand...

Yeah, OK, whatever. In any case notice I took the time to actually write a detailed description of the mod and even gave a link with pics of a similar one, and I still haven't heard a simple "Thank you". If you still don't have the guts to do this soldering yourself, then just send your NGCD here and I will gladly do it for you. Notice that if I ever had the need of doing a network, be sure that I would learn how to do it instead of sending all the needed parts to you.
A year ago I had absolutely no idea on soldering or any electronics stuff and I made that mod myself, I just was confident in myself and had the determination to do it.

OK, I'm not going to write anything else on this thread not related to this actual mod. Feel free to do the same (write some final words if you want) and let's end this here.

<small>[ May 31, 2003, 03:44 PM: Message edited by: Amano Jacu ]</small>

Well, thank you! I am just saying that without networking you would not even be on this forum. Do not say it is easy or under-estimate it. That is all and I will try to do it on my own. But, I did ask "Who" not "How", but thank you though and peace!

Hey, don't go talking about jumpers - he'll be looking for a bank of little pins that he can stick a little plastic thing on!

LOL, j/k d00d wink

Actually, I DO do networking. Sure, I may not be as proficient as you (my unix leaves a lot to be desired), but I know enough to do what I want, and I have sorted out several small networks (up to 20 pcs). I also know soldering, and these guys are right.

Hey, this forum wouldn't be here without you guys and networking? True. But this forum wouldn't be here without Microsoft, pioneers of home computing. Who started off with machines such as Altairs - machines which arrived in kit form (until the two Steves came along) - get that soldering iron out! Actually, assembling a computer like that would probably require some complex test equipment - nothing like this which is actually quite a simple soldering job.

I am not saying I'm not sympathetic. Noone would want to damage their Neo with a slight mistake - and it could happen to the best of us. However, I would say that any sort of computer engineer really should be at least a little proficient in wielding a soldering iron.

Anyway, grab an 18W CS (or smaller) iron, some nice small (22swg probably) solder, 60/40, and that's about all you'll need. Oh, and the connectors which are:

1. To hard wire, use a nice piece of wire, something like a bit of a component lead is great.

2. To have a switch, get the switch you want, and enough connecting wire to reach from the switch location to the points on the board. Single core wire should be enough, or light stranded.

Can't think offhand what those points look like, but they should just be flat points on the board. These are easy enough to solder to - keep the iron away from any other components, observe good soldering technique and you should be fine

Well, I am going to print this all out and bring it to the Electronics Store I go to get connectors from and try it out. My Soldering Tool came in my Computer Kit with wire, but it is at work. I will see Monday what wire and what kind of soldering tool it is. It almost looks like a Engraver type of tool to engrave names on your TV in case it is stolen or something. The wire is in this little circular plastic holder. Thanks!

Good luck!

All should go fine

Yeah, you could have a look at the components used in that MVS pause mod, I think the same ones would do the trick for the NGCD.
In any case, I think it is more dangerous to send your console by mail back and forth to a perfect unknown person which you won't see how he treats your console, than trying to do this yourself. Also if you do this the next time you need to do something similar you'll already have some experience, and hopefully realised it is that easy.

Good luck, and if you have any problem just let us know! wink