Some troubleshooting help please...

[dasfool]

I received an MV-1B board yesterday in the mail (I didn't know it was a IM only board). I'm pretty sure it is a UK board (I live in the US). Anyway, I attempted to test it with a regular game and it gave me a Calendar Error. So I did a little homework and found that the problem was the battery which was only testing at about 2 volts (supposed to be around 3 volts). So I replaced the battery today and tried it again. No more Calendar Error, but now I'm only getting the green screen of eternal doom! I tried turning dip 1 on and it won't even go to the test screen, nor will the test button work.

I also tried turning all of the dips on and it went to the Work Ram Test. Is something supposed to happen during the Work Ram Test? I let it sit for about 15 minutes and it was still just displaying Work Ram Test.

Does anyone have any suggestions about what could be causing this and how I can fix it?

frown

 

[ttooddddyy]

If the 5 volts is on the low side it could cause this.
Make sure you have just over 5 volts at the jamma/mvs edge connect. 5.2 volts is a good start.

 

[dasfool]

Just tested it. It was at around 5.6-5.7V. I'm getting the same problem on my Supergun also which test at 5.14V.

Is there a way to manually clear the backup, since I can't get access to the test screen to access this feature?

<small>[ February 25, 2003, 07:14 PM: Message edited by: dasfool ]</small>

 

[dasfool]

bump

I'm kind of desperate

 

[ttooddddyy]

dasfool:
Just tested it. It was at around 5.6-5.7V. I'm getting the same problem on my Supergun also which test at 5.14V.

Is there a way to manually clear the backup, since I can't get access to the test screen to access this feature?

To reset, you could always monentarily disconnect or short out the Ni-Cad. Infact seen some board sets that have a limit switch mounted to do just that.

<small>[ February 26, 2003, 06:01 AM: Message edited by: ttooddddyy ]</small>

 

[dasfool]

Hmmm, I just replaced the battery, so that probably isn't it. Has anyone heard of a bios getting corrupted?

 

[ttooddddyy]

dasfool:
Hmmm, I just replaced the battery, so that probably isn't it. Has anyone heard of a bios getting corrupted?

It maybe worth trying, something may have gone crook in the process.

 

[Arakon]

the bios can't really be corrupted, it's a maskrom, not flash. a bad bios will also not display the green screen, but usually purple or blue and make a ticking sound (repeated resets)

 

[dasfool]

I removed the battery and replaced it again, sadly the problem is still there. These are the only screens i can get:
1. work ram test (all dips switched to on),
2. no battery inserted (calendar error),
3. normal boot gives the green screen.

What exactly does the work ram test do? All I've seen it do so far is display "work ram test"

I appreciate your comments!

 

[dasfool]

Any other suggestions?

 

[RabbitTroop]

dasfool:
I removed the battery and replaced it again, sadly the problem is still there. These are the only screens i can get:
1. work ram test (all dips switched to on),
2. no battery inserted (calendar error),
3. normal boot gives the green screen.

What exactly does the work ram test do? All I've seen it do so far is display "work ram test"

I appreciate your comments!

I'm not 100% sure, but I think Work RAM will zap all memory and set it back to defaults... I believe that is what Nightmare Tony said it would do. And speaking of Nightmare Tony, he probably can tell you exactly what is happening here, he is an arcade tech and use to work for SNK, so he is probably the best for questions like this.

-Nick

 

[Nightmare Tony]

thanks, Nick.

If it stays on the green screen of death, that to me was usually the calendar circuit still locked up tighter than a bull's *** at fly time. Seriously, the crystal or the calendar chip may have failed, and that would cause it. If I remember correctly, the crystal is 32.768 khz, and the clock chip is the NEC4990. Replace both, basically.

And yes, the work ram test merely clears out all the battery backed RAM memory. It only takes about 2-3 seconds to do.

 

[dasfool]

Thanks Tony! Well, if you are fairly sure that is the problem, then I will attempt the fix. Are those parts readily available at a local electronics store?

Maybe I'll just PM you for more info.