and for broken soldier joints and (MORE LIKELY) bridged pins.... He did see a WHOLE BUNCH of soldier blobs and bits all over the board... so maybe there is one between the tiny pins on the main chips....
You might have known about this already, but you can quickly test if only the power circuit is where you need to focus. But if you supply +5v directly to the C41 which, was the cap you noted as being of a different brand. Doing that with a game inserted will make the lynx power on immediately since you are bypassing the power regulation and that way you are able to verify that the main logics are good and that the Lynx should be able to be resurrected. It is a different capacitor on the Lynx 1 to do the same trick.
C39 on Lynx 1 :) I would try that as well. Short pins 31 and 33 on cart slot to get it to boot to INSERT GAME regardless of if a cart is in or not, then feed this Lynx 2 5V 1A directly to the legs of the C41 cap. If that lynx is in operational state, she will boot then!
I didn't try supplying 5V directly to C41 during testing but I was getting ~4.7V across the zener diode with the system turned on after replacing the power components. Not sure if that rules out further issues with the 5V rail but I'll add your suggestion to my list and definitely try this when I take the system apart again.
@@BorderlineOCD Don't give up! You have me eager to see the next move you have planned. It seems like a very frustrating project but I'm cheering you on. Lets go Atari Lynx! come back from the grave!!!! 😭😭
Indeed. I should have captioned this in case others are not aware but it needs a cart inserted to turn on. You can also short pins 31 and 33 on the cart connector which bypasses the cart check.
Loved the capacitor pop-in sequence :D An exhaustingly thorough job, was great to see it in detail. I learned a lot even without seeing it work as of yet. Rooting for you.
Every now and again when I get the free time I love binge-watching your channel and getting caught up with the latest content. It's like pure entertainment and tutorials all wrapped up in one succinct package.
under the shield you will find the cpu , which might have corrosion , i almost guarantee you this is it, also you can test the voltages on the cpu pins ,
I’ve fixed many of these systems before. If the zener diode died, it passed 9V into Mikey or Suzy (cpu/gpu) resulting in them dying. If you’re comfortable with replacing ICs with over 100 pins, you can purchase brand new replacements from Best electronics in California. In rare cases I also had to replace the RAM chips.
@@BorderlineOCD i was thinking the same taking courage from watching you, not nostalgia but rather a warranty of professionnalism you are sharing, thank you for that
Glad to see new videos getting uploaded. Sad to see that the handheld did not work but i am sure a Part 2 is soon to follow with your fix. Keep up the great work
May be a long shot, but I repaired a Lynx 2 recently. The games would partially load but would be frozen at a splash screen. I replaced the button ribbon membrane and it fixed it. It was almost as if a button was registering as held down, which caused it to remain stuck. It wasn’t obvious at first, until I tried several games and one would finally load - but one of the buttons did not work. That lead me to the solution. Good luck
I have one of these, i just did the switching regulator mod. There was so much wrong with the diodes, those 3 big diodes are abused in how they handle power. So i swapped out most of the power circuitry and plopped in a LDO switching regulator. The only catch... The way they originally designed the lynx, the way it abuses the diodes, allows the batteries to drain really low, so you get to really take full advantage out of the batteries. But even with an LDO regulator, you'll be leaving a bit of juice on the table. You can either use a joule thief setup to milk every last drop of power, or use rechargeable batteries. My lynx has been collecting dust in my basement, so i'm actually thinking of getting an LCD mod for it, and a lipo mod and then selling it on. I even have the California Games for it.
It was very exciting to see how you tackle this repair :) Fixed a few Lynx II myself but never seen this issue before. There are two pins on the cartridge connector, which when connected can be used to turn on the Lynx without putting a game in it. (You still have to press the power button though to power it on) In this case, a message should be displayed on the screen. Worth a check. Even though you said you have showered the cartridge connector pins with contact cleaner, I would still inspects those with a lamp to check whether there is any corrosion. You could also take off the shielding and inspect those two main chips under it. (Maybe reflow the solder on their legs)
Thanks buddy. I did short pins 31 and 33 on the cart connector. The Lynx powers on with the same symptoms. I plan to remove the shield the next time I'm in there and take a look at the RAM, crystal, CPU etc.
These machines are notorious for bad power circuitry and can be easily bypassed by hooking up +5V directly to each side of C41. (Find an old +5V Power supply) You should also be shopping around for a new LCD as that one is suffering from LCD rot. Found a video that explains the power bypass mod for you th-cam.com/video/MAmPIBkXmPM/w-d-xo.html
The output on the zener was 4.7V with the system turned on so I believe the 5V rail is good. A few folks have suggested this bypass though so I'll give it a shot when I revisit this repair.
@@BorderlineOCD seems to me it's not the power circuitry .... I could be wrong of course.... OH make sure to TRY THE BATTERIES AGAIN now that the screen comes on... if it doesn't then you KNOW there is still an issue with the power circuits.....
@@Nobe_Oddy I'd love to be wrong, but it appears it's got a damaged mikey chip from the behavior. No sounds when trying crystal mines, so it's not "playing blind" (meaning not just an issue with the screen). Those chips often get damaged when the fet / zenner fail and allow 9V to slam parts that should only get 5V
Infortunatly I have same issue with an lynx 2. After some research, I found on internet that this behavior is cause by an dead cpu (lynx have two cpu which I forget names). Only way to fix it is to replace them. Thanks for your videos, I like to watch them. Best regards, Nicolas Lacoste
When the screen lit up I was rooting for you that you had this one sorted out, but alas, hopes dashed. Maybe in a future video you can take another crack at it, great job on what you did replace though, if you get this thing working you'll have an almost entirely electronically refurbished unit!
Thanks for keeping it honest. It's not realistic if every pony is a winner - I have been disappointed often enough, despite time and much expense on a project. Cheers from 🇨🇦!
I follow a few different repair/restoration TH-camrs and it’s interesting to see the subtle differences in the way you guys solder! For instance, this guy is very frugal with his flux and solder wick compared to others! Anyway, great video. Subscribed :)
I had a very similar problem. The Screen turns on but there is no change in brightness when the knob is turned. I changed both main chips, no change. It turned out that U11 (HC74A) was fried (probably when the Power circuit was not working and put 9v through) and was not putting out a clock signal. I replaced the chip (10 chips €10 on Ebay) and hey presto! It worked. Hope this helps. Keep up the great content!
Thanks for this information. It looks like this chip controls the backlight on/off only though, but I'm not certain. Did you replace anything else which may have been faulty? Was your crystal fine? I'd love to revisit this console again soon.
@@BorderlineOCD I checked the crystal, and it was running fine on pin 58 of the HJayato Chip Measuring RP7 Ihad solid 5v on each connector (can be measured on the Screen connector pins as well)- until I replaced U11. Before changing it, I had solid 5v and 0v readings on all U11 pins. After changing it I had a clock on pin11 - I think. Just check if you have a clock at all on the chip, if you do, then that is not the problem sorry, but it looked exactly the same as mine.
Man have you checked how the unit behaves wwithout the cartridge? This can help you differenxiate between a bad reading/damaged cartridge or even a damaged track on the board. Ive just recently started watching your videos and i think they're great. Stay cool man.
I loved this machine when I had it as a kit. It would draw crowds of people standing around watching at school break mainly because it was the first handheld gaming device to have a colour screen. Californian games was my fav game on this device. Someone probably tried to jam a cartridge into the slot the wrong way around. I would take a look at the female cartridge connector contacts and get a greater number of cartridges to try.
Enjoyed watching the video despite the outcome! It was still helpful to see your troubleshooting process! I hope it can be repaired in a future video/project.
I can’t speak per se for the model 2 Lynx, as own two model one Atari Lynx systems, but the model one was notorious for having a bad voltage regulator. I replaced the voltage regulator on both of mine with a more modern voltage regulator. Supposedly if that voltage regulator fails, it can kill other components on the board.
Apparently when the zener diode goes bad, the system sends 9V to the board instead of the "regulated" 5V. Very odd design but this could have damaged the other power components or done some irreversible damage to the main chips which are expecting 5V.
When powered on, check the temps of the chips. The wrong power cord may have been used and fried something. If they all feel ok, then you could replace the screen with an updated one (BenVenn sells them among others). Have you reached out to the AtariAge forums yet?
Lol one of the best parts of your videos that always gets me is when you place the caps and at the end you use the birthday horn versus a oven timer bell lol I always wait for it and then crack up
I'm very inexperienced in soldering, but like to try every once in a while. Somehow i was able to recap AND Mcwill screen mod my atari lynx model one. Super proud moment. makes up for a failed recapping of a game gear (pads came up) and failed composite mod on a 2600. definitely still learning.
A few years ago I one of these that was not working at all. It had a protective carrying bag, it also had a few games stashed inside the front cover of the bag in proper little pockets. It was absolutely mint! I just did not have the time to find out why it was dead. I often wonder what happened to it after I sold it.
Ive had a Lynx 1, and still have my Lynx 2..havent played it in like 4 years..but Im about to try..try this too:..make sure internal game CARD connection points are nice and clean, as well as the cards themselves..alcohol clean those contacts. BTW, that power button is recessed OEM, its supposed to be that way, so you dont accidentally press it MID game, Good design MO. I would re-insert several carts in and out a good dozen times, slowly, might still be a CART contact issue. MAke sure none of the GOLD has chipped away from any of the internal CART acceptor contacts.
I think the Wonder Swan also tried the whole dual-orientation thing for a few games. Sliiightly less unwieldy to play vertical than the Lynx, but still a bit awkward. Neat idea, anyway.
You can get a decent bench power supply for $50. Not only can it provide more voltage and current than that module you have you can limit the current and detect shorts before causing more damage. It would probably pay for itself the first time it prevents you from frying a console.
And also put a multimeter in series to measure the current it’s drawing , and use a better and more accurate multimeter ( because the low voltages ) and buy a cheap component tester to measure the caps , mosfets etc . But you do a fine job and good filming !
The recessed power button is normal and is so you don't accidently press it while playing. I wonder if the CPU chip went bad. That can sometimes cause a black screen of death because it's braindead. You're right, not everything can be fixed and you have to know when to throw in the towel.
So it's designed like that lol. Well I wouldn't be surprised because there was nothing wrong with it from the inside and the reason it wasn't working was the worn out material on the end of the ribbon cable.
Not sure how you stored the sticky grips after you removed them, but I always keep badges and stick-on feet for things I'm working on stuck to wax paper so they don't get dust or other contaminants on the adhesive. The wax paper peels off just like a decal backing when ready to reapply.
Great suggestion, love it! You can also gently rinse them with water if they fall and collect dust/debris. Once dry, a little hot air before reapplying and they are tacky again.
I’ve had the honor of playing one of these. My uncle had one along side an original gameboy. It was fun my favorite was the Batman game I could never get past the second Level lol. Good times
Could try cutting just a bit of the end of the ribbon cable off if the contacts are not making the best connection. Had to do that on my own that was restored.
Bonjour, borderline ocd intéressant j'ai un petit souci sur une des 3 diode cms en haut du pcb à cote de la molette pothionmettre est un bobine inductance il s'agit bien d'une 100 micron Henri à remplacer merci excellente vidéo de réparation est très chouette console pour son âge bravo
Hey my friend, really enjoy your content, just an fyi, i know you use Mouser Electronics for Capacitors and such, in fact I also ordered from them, but i found another company, I paid 30 dollars for 10 of the capacitors i got from them, the other day i got on to get more, but they were out and said it would be like 2 months before they got more so i searched online and found Arrow electronics and i got 100 of the capacitors for 38.00 including tax and shipping, exact same capacitors from panasonic, just an fyi, again really enjoy your content.
Back in the day I seen this and thought holy Moly it's like a portable Sega 🤦♂️I was young didn't know better I still remember the price $400 I wish I had money back then.
It was interesting to find some old ads for this console in the Sears catalog. Definitely ahead of its time - first console with a color backlit display.
@@BorderlineOCD honestly wish I'd kept my older console's I managed to get like the portable Turbo Graphics 16 I still remember Keith Courage 🤣 I do miss the original Atari at the time having built in games blew me away plus the light gun on the Atari was the coolest thing I'd seen until the SNES bazooka 😱
Could it be a bad cartridge connector? I mean it turns on now, but just doesn't load a game, at least that's how it appears. I could be wrong, perhaps the Lynx has some sort of loading screen prior to the game booting.
I agree, although I have not repaired a lynx (broken ones are going for crazy money in the UK and I'm in Ireland, additional tax) I have done about 20 game gears and the cartridge pins cause huge issues and display a similar blank screen result. I wouldn't give up, I think you are very close to fixing it. Thanks for the very informative video as always
Hi, sadly the power circuit of the lynx has a deadly problem, if the zener diode gets broken, like in this case, the 9V goes to main cpu who gets fried . for this reason I bought a 6v power supply and two dummy AA batteries, so the maximum voltage remains under 5.5V in case of zener failure. The only deal is a less brightness of the screen but a safer Lynx.
You're exactly right, and this is what I believe may have contributed to the initial failure on this unit. I learned a few new things while working on this project, and one of those is that a zener diode is a pseudo voltage regulator, although not a particularly good one. And as you stated, when it fails rather than becoming an open circuit, it just delivers its input voltage down the rail (in this case, 9V all the way through). Absolutely garbage design.
the screan has two marks . top left and mid bottom left. although its just te display, its full of defective lines, there is definity a pre load pause happening, have you gotten anywhere to date?
Great video, I always watch your stuff - thanks! One suggestion: If you make the sound mono it will probably be a little better for watching with headphones. In stereo your voices moves from left to right and vice versa a lot which can be a little bit confusing.
I noticed the unbalanced levels on the audio meters in Final Cut and it was a bit over my head to correct. I'll look into balancing them out rather than duplicating the L or R channel. I'm enjoying getting more seasoned with editing but the more I uncover the more I realize how little I know 🤣
I'm digging that shirt. Hell, I'm digging most of your shirts. Gotta go to your shop and see what's in there. Leclerc may be one hit wonder in Zandvoort or the Silver Arrows will strike back again? RBR seems like nowhere at this point. May be interesting. 😉
@@BorderlineOCD No, sir. I'm still digging your shirts. 😁 But back to F1... The game is on, it was only 0.21 sec, so anything can happen, but still... It's Ferrari. They can screw up easy win. I'm trying to get the best out of this season, but I guess we won't see anything like 2021 anytime soon.
If you need help you may want to visit the atari age forums. There are a lot of very knowledgeable users, some even engineers that will help. At this stage, and if there are no shorts found and caps are correct and ok, the more common fails are the cpus(mikey and suzy).
The real question with a Lynx would be not can it be fixed but can anyone be bothered to, yes obviously or this video wouldn't exist but it's still a fair point, not planning it too much as I have one
You can't fix'em all my friend however i notice you use the J tip alot must be pretty neat I do not have one for my solder station. I used to watch Voultar use the J tip it does a pretty good job.
It's nice for tight areas and I find myself using it on most projects these days, unless I need a larger tip to deliver more heat to the board. If memory serves me right I think the one Voultar uses is a fatter J than my J tip but it's probably just what's available for different solder stations. I'm sure you can a similar bent tip for your iron.
Hey man! It really bugged me that I couldn't get it working and it's currently sitting on the back-burner until I can be bothered to give it another shot. But I'm happy for you to take a crack at it if you like that would be awesome!
@@BorderlineOCD Sure thing. Just DM me or email/discord etc... and I can give you the address. Leave notes inside of issue and return address and it should make a nice video
I think you should have removed the shield to inspect for corrosion, or battery leak. I hope you dont give up though
and for broken soldier joints and (MORE LIKELY) bridged pins.... He did see a WHOLE BUNCH of soldier blobs and bits all over the board... so maybe there is one between the tiny pins on the main chips....
You might have known about this already, but you can quickly test if only the power circuit is where you need to focus. But if you supply +5v directly to the C41 which, was the cap you noted as being of a different brand. Doing that with a game inserted will make the lynx power on immediately since you are bypassing the power regulation and that way you are able to verify that the main logics are good and that the Lynx should be able to be resurrected. It is a different capacitor on the Lynx 1 to do the same trick.
C39 on Lynx 1 :)
I would try that as well. Short pins 31 and 33 on cart slot to get it to boot to INSERT GAME regardless of if a cart is in or not, then feed this Lynx 2 5V 1A directly to the legs of the C41 cap. If that lynx is in operational state, she will boot then!
I didn't try supplying 5V directly to C41 during testing but I was getting ~4.7V across the zener diode with the system turned on after replacing the power components. Not sure if that rules out further issues with the 5V rail but I'll add your suggestion to my list and definitely try this when I take the system apart again.
@@BorderlineOCD Don't give up! You have me eager to see the next move you have planned. It seems like a very frustrating project but I'm cheering you on. Lets go Atari Lynx! come back from the grave!!!! 😭😭
@@pugthugdabaccino1462 i know i want part two of this repair don’t give up yet i will be waiting for PT2
Me three!!! I want to see part II!! Of that LYNX II!! I want to see it resurrected into it’s second (II) life and get back in the game!! 🙂
Thanks for not blasting bad music at me during this. Subbed.
Kinda over the whole music with amateur videos thing.
The Lynx has an interesting quirk in that it does not turn on unless you have a game inserted so always remember to put one in when testing.
The Jaguar has a similar quirk so you really have to check the cart port on these systems.
Indeed. I should have captioned this in case others are not aware but it needs a cart inserted to turn on. You can also short pins 31 and 33 on the cart connector which bypasses the cart check.
Loved the capacitor pop-in sequence :D An exhaustingly thorough job, was great to see it in detail. I learned a lot even without seeing it work as of yet. Rooting for you.
I always like replacing true hole caps, never had problem replacing them, have done it many times now.
Every now and again when I get the free time I love binge-watching your channel and getting caught up with the latest content. It's like pure entertainment and tutorials all wrapped up in one succinct package.
under the shield you will find the cpu , which might have corrosion , i almost guarantee you this is it, also you can test the voltages on the cpu pins ,
I watched this video while I fixed and restored a n64, thanks for your videos.
I’ve fixed many of these systems before. If the zener diode died, it passed 9V into Mikey or Suzy (cpu/gpu) resulting in them dying.
If you’re comfortable with replacing ICs with over 100 pins, you can purchase brand new replacements from Best electronics in California.
In rare cases I also had to replace the RAM chips.
Your videos give me inner peace and a feeling of security. Keep up the good work!
Ha, glad to hear it. I think it's the nostalgia talking 🙃
@@BorderlineOCD i was thinking the same taking courage from watching you, not nostalgia but rather a warranty of professionnalism you are sharing, thank you for that
Glad to see new videos getting uploaded. Sad to see that the handheld did not work but i am sure a Part 2 is soon to follow with your fix. Keep up the great work
Is there backlight bulb???? Ck that
@@wallyf7020 yes. And it was working
May be a long shot, but I repaired a Lynx 2 recently. The games would partially load but would be frozen at a splash screen. I replaced the button ribbon membrane and it fixed it. It was almost as if a button was registering as held down, which caused it to remain stuck. It wasn’t obvious at first, until I tried several games and one would finally load - but one of the buttons did not work. That lead me to the solution. Good luck
I have one of these, i just did the switching regulator mod. There was so much wrong with the diodes, those 3 big diodes are abused in how they handle power.
So i swapped out most of the power circuitry and plopped in a LDO switching regulator.
The only catch... The way they originally designed the lynx, the way it abuses the diodes, allows the batteries to drain really low, so you get to really take full advantage out of the batteries. But even with an LDO regulator, you'll be leaving a bit of juice on the table.
You can either use a joule thief setup to milk every last drop of power, or use rechargeable batteries.
My lynx has been collecting dust in my basement, so i'm actually thinking of getting an LCD mod for it, and a lipo mod and then selling it on. I even have the California Games for it.
Ran into the same issue before with one and found pins in the cart slot that were bent and touching straightened em out and it worked
It was very exciting to see how you tackle this repair :)
Fixed a few Lynx II myself but never seen this issue before.
There are two pins on the cartridge connector, which when connected can be used to turn on the Lynx without putting a game in it. (You still have to press the power button though to power it on) In this case, a message should be displayed on the screen. Worth a check.
Even though you said you have showered the cartridge connector pins with contact cleaner, I would still inspects those with a lamp to check whether there is any corrosion.
You could also take off the shielding and inspect those two main chips under it. (Maybe reflow the solder on their legs)
Thanks buddy. I did short pins 31 and 33 on the cart connector. The Lynx powers on with the same symptoms. I plan to remove the shield the next time I'm in there and take a look at the RAM, crystal, CPU etc.
These machines are notorious for bad power circuitry and can be easily bypassed by hooking up +5V directly to each side of C41. (Find an old +5V Power supply) You should also be shopping around for a new LCD as that one is suffering from LCD rot. Found a video that explains the power bypass mod for you
th-cam.com/video/MAmPIBkXmPM/w-d-xo.html
The output on the zener was 4.7V with the system turned on so I believe the 5V rail is good. A few folks have suggested this bypass though so I'll give it a shot when I revisit this repair.
@@BorderlineOCD seems to me it's not the power circuitry .... I could be wrong of course.... OH make sure to TRY THE BATTERIES AGAIN now that the screen comes on... if it doesn't then you KNOW there is still an issue with the power circuits.....
@@Nobe_Oddy I'd love to be wrong, but it appears it's got a damaged mikey chip from the behavior. No sounds when trying crystal mines, so it's not "playing blind" (meaning not just an issue with the screen).
Those chips often get damaged when the fet / zenner fail and allow 9V to slam parts that should only get 5V
these kinds of videos always inspire me to try this myself. would probably feel great to build a game collection of stuff i personally repaired.
I enjoyed the capacitor pop pop pop pop 🎉
Infortunatly I have same issue with an lynx 2. After some research, I found on internet that this behavior is cause by an dead cpu (lynx have two cpu which I forget names). Only way to fix it is to replace them.
Thanks for your videos, I like to watch them.
Best regards, Nicolas Lacoste
Good to know I had the exact same issue with the Lynx I couldn't repair.
Hopefully Part 2 will shed some light if I can figure out what's causing it.
When the screen lit up I was rooting for you that you had this one sorted out, but alas, hopes dashed. Maybe in a future video you can take another crack at it, great job on what you did replace though, if you get this thing working you'll have an almost entirely electronically refurbished unit!
I used to wake up early before school & play California games under the duvet.. Fond memories of it.
Thanks for keeping it honest. It's not realistic if every pony is a winner - I have been disappointed often enough, despite time and much expense on a project. Cheers from 🇨🇦!
Great to see you are back with a somewhat regular upload schedule!
I follow a few different repair/restoration TH-camrs and it’s interesting to see the subtle differences in the way you guys solder! For instance, this guy is very frugal with his flux and solder wick compared to others! Anyway, great video. Subscribed :)
LOL and I thought he was using too much flux! I agree, great video despite the outcome. I have no suggestions for him unfortunately.
I had a very similar problem. The Screen turns on but there is no change in brightness when the knob is turned. I changed both main chips, no change. It turned out that U11 (HC74A) was fried (probably when the Power circuit was not working and put 9v through) and was not putting out a clock signal. I replaced the chip (10 chips €10 on Ebay) and hey presto! It worked. Hope this helps. Keep up the great content!
Thanks for this information. It looks like this chip controls the backlight on/off only though, but I'm not certain. Did you replace anything else which may have been faulty? Was your crystal fine? I'd love to revisit this console again soon.
@@BorderlineOCD I checked the crystal, and it was running fine on pin 58 of the HJayato Chip Measuring RP7 Ihad solid 5v on each connector (can be measured on the Screen connector pins as well)- until I replaced U11. Before changing it, I had solid 5v and 0v readings on all U11 pins. After changing it I had a clock on pin11 - I think. Just check if you have a clock at all on the chip, if you do, then that is not the problem sorry, but it looked exactly the same as mine.
I love the problem solving. And the truth. Excellent job.
Ok lynx need to have all caps replaced and the power jack for the ac adapter replaced as well
Man have you checked how the unit behaves wwithout the cartridge? This can help you differenxiate between a bad reading/damaged cartridge or even a damaged track on the board.
Ive just recently started watching your videos and i think they're great. Stay cool man.
I had one of these. I loved it.
It is kind of like the Atari 800 (extra cartridge slot), in that its full potential was never explored.
Too bad.
I loved this machine when I had it as a kit. It would draw crowds of people standing around watching at school break mainly because it was the first handheld gaming device to have a colour screen. Californian games was my fav game on this device. Someone probably tried to jam a cartridge into the slot the wrong way around. I would take a look at the female cartridge connector contacts and get a greater number of cartridges to try.
Never give up hope, lad. It will work this way. You must learn to Believe in Yourself!
I would recommend picking up the first Lynx Model. They seem to be better made.
My cousin had an Atari Lynx. Lot of great memories playing with it.
Sounds like one lucky kid. My first handheld was a Gameboy DMG, about a decade after it was released.
Loved my lynx , I had 25 or so boxed games for it and the official case
I praise you for you skill and perseverance! Hope you get to the root of the issue.
anyway, nice job, well done, stay on it and "wait" for new ideas :-). thanks for having us!
Enjoyed watching the video despite the outcome! It was still helpful to see your troubleshooting process! I hope it can be repaired in a future video/project.
Really nice to see it happens to the best of us 👍🏻
I can’t speak per se for the model 2 Lynx, as own two model one Atari Lynx systems, but the model one was notorious for having a bad voltage regulator. I replaced the voltage regulator on both of mine with a more modern voltage regulator. Supposedly if that voltage regulator fails, it can kill other components on the board.
The Lynx commonly got fried when somebody would connect to a power supply in a different country. Could that be the problem?
True, also quite a few people used to confuse audio jack with PSU and fried their Lynxes that way as well....
Apparently when the zener diode goes bad, the system sends 9V to the board instead of the "regulated" 5V. Very odd design but this could have damaged the other power components or done some irreversible damage to the main chips which are expecting 5V.
It is also possible to connect the power cable by accident in the mini-jack. It actually does power the Lynx, but weirdly (screen is super bright).
I have one of these that works. Just missing the battery cover. I know that doesn't help but I like the little (bulky) thing.
When powered on, check the temps of the chips. The wrong power cord may have been used and fried something. If they all feel ok, then you could replace the screen with an updated one (BenVenn sells them among others). Have you reached out to the AtariAge forums yet?
I might transplant a donor screen from a working unit first to confirm if the board is working. I love the BenVenn screens but they are expensive.
@@BorderlineOCD I get it. I installed a McWill on mine, it's def night and day!
Lol one of the best parts of your videos that always gets me is when you place the caps and at the end you use the birthday horn versus a oven timer bell lol I always wait for it and then crack up
I'm very inexperienced in soldering, but like to try every once in a while. Somehow i was able to recap AND Mcwill screen mod my atari lynx model one. Super proud moment. makes up for a failed recapping of a game gear (pads came up) and failed composite mod on a 2600. definitely still learning.
Good for you man. You get better with each soldering project so don't be deterred to keep at it and fix/mod your own stuff.
A thermal cam or cold spray to check for shorts would be interesting.
A few years ago I one of these that was not working at all. It had a protective carrying bag, it also had a few games stashed inside the front cover of the bag in proper little pockets. It was absolutely mint! I just did not have the time to find out why it was dead. I often wonder what happened to it after I sold it.
I bought it...its still broken :P
Fully re cap and voltage kit change usually works, if it's been repaired before, anything could be wrong with it now.
Your the Bob Ross of electronics.
Great video as always, really nice production values. Fine to have something to go back and have a look at with a fresh set of eyes at a later stage.
Gauntlet and Klax are both great vertical orientation games for the Lynx
Ive had a Lynx 1, and still have my Lynx 2..havent played it in like 4 years..but Im about to try..try this too:..make sure internal game CARD connection points are nice and clean, as well as the cards themselves..alcohol clean those contacts.
BTW, that power button is recessed OEM, its supposed to be that way, so you dont accidentally press it MID game, Good design MO.
I would re-insert several carts in and out a good dozen times, slowly, might still be a CART contact issue. MAke sure none of the GOLD has chipped away from any of the internal CART acceptor contacts.
Great attempt. At least you tried everything you could. Gotta say I LOVE YOU SHIRT 😎 👍.
I think the Wonder Swan also tried the whole dual-orientation thing for a few games. Sliiightly less unwieldy to play vertical than the Lynx, but still a bit awkward. Neat idea, anyway.
You can get a decent bench power supply for $50. Not only can it provide more voltage and current than that module you have you can limit the current and detect shorts before causing more damage. It would probably pay for itself the first time it prevents you from frying a console.
If you don't recapp and replace the power jack you create a electrical short in the lynx
And also put a multimeter in series to measure the current it’s drawing , and use a better and more accurate multimeter ( because the low voltages ) and buy a cheap component tester to measure the caps , mosfets etc . But you do a fine job and good filming !
I fixed mine recently, double check you have the game cartridge in the correct way, not back to front
Nice work, the screen looks bad, may need a replacement, or a working system for taking right values.
Are you sure the barrel Jack center positive? Seems like the voltage at the mosfet should be positive, not negative.
The recessed power button is normal and is so you don't accidently press it while playing. I wonder if the CPU chip went bad. That can sometimes cause a black screen of death because it's braindead. You're right, not everything can be fixed and you have to know when to throw in the towel.
So it's designed like that lol. Well I wouldn't be surprised because there was nothing wrong with it from the inside and the reason it wasn't working was the worn out material on the end of the ribbon cable.
In case nobody else has told you, the power on button on the Lynx II is supposed to be recessed like that.
Not sure how you stored the sticky grips after you removed them, but I always keep badges and stick-on feet for things I'm working on stuck to wax paper so they don't get dust or other contaminants on the adhesive. The wax paper peels off just like a decal backing when ready to reapply.
Great suggestion, love it! You can also gently rinse them with water if they fall and collect dust/debris. Once dry, a little hot air before reapplying and they are tacky again.
Subscribed because of your effort and Devotion to old tech
I’ve had the honor of playing one of these. My uncle had one along side an original gameboy.
It was fun my favorite was the Batman game I could never get past the second Level lol. Good times
Could try cutting just a bit of the end of the ribbon cable off if the contacts are not making the best connection. Had to do that on my own that was restored.
I think doing this carefully would be a good idea. Those pins are worn down to the plastic, probably from being removed a hundred times.
Nice video .Are you sure that your game cartridge is working ? Looking forward for your next video .
I loved my lynx, it was awesome!
Until my brother inserted the power adaptor into the headphone jack an from that point on, no sound 😢
I remember the PSP had a pinball game you could flip it vertically to play as well
Bonjour, borderline ocd intéressant j'ai un petit souci sur une des 3 diode cms en haut du pcb à cote de la molette pothionmettre est un bobine inductance il s'agit bien d'une 100 micron Henri à remplacer merci excellente vidéo de réparation est très chouette console pour son âge bravo
Hey my friend, really enjoy your content, just an fyi, i know you use Mouser Electronics for Capacitors and such, in fact I also ordered from them, but i found another company, I paid 30 dollars for 10 of the capacitors i got from them, the other day i got on to get more, but they were out and said it would be like 2 months before they got more so i searched online and found Arrow electronics and i got 100 of the capacitors for 38.00 including tax and shipping, exact same capacitors from panasonic, just an fyi, again really enjoy your content.
Right next to that last thing you replaced I saw the little resistor was not connected did you see that closest to the metal
I use to have one as a kid, kinda want one again
I had a lynx back in the day that my uncle gave me, it chewed through batteries in about half an hour.
There’s a person selling two of these on FB marketplace near me in NorCal.
Poor little guy. I just want to see him pull through
this was interesting, hope you go back to it
I intend to.
At least you have a nice condition shell -- so if you ever find a working one that's beat up you can use this one for spare parts
Back in the day I seen this and thought holy Moly it's like a portable Sega 🤦♂️I was young didn't know better I still remember the price $400 I wish I had money back then.
It was interesting to find some old ads for this console in the Sears catalog. Definitely ahead of its time - first console with a color backlit display.
@@BorderlineOCD honestly wish I'd kept my older console's I managed to get like the portable Turbo Graphics 16 I still remember Keith Courage 🤣 I do miss the original Atari at the time having built in games blew me away plus the light gun on the Atari was the coolest thing I'd seen until the SNES bazooka 😱
You needed to adjust the brightness control wheel on the top.
Could it be a bad cartridge connector? I mean it turns on now, but just doesn't load a game, at least that's how it appears. I could be wrong, perhaps the Lynx has some sort of loading screen prior to the game booting.
I agree, although I have not repaired a lynx (broken ones are going for crazy money in the UK and I'm in Ireland, additional tax) I have done about 20 game gears and the cartridge pins cause huge issues and display a similar blank screen result. I wouldn't give up, I think you are very close to fixing it. Thanks for the very informative video as always
The Lynx, like with the Jaguar, won’t boot unless a game is inserted. The cart slot could need a reflow or be replaced.
check the crystal for the microprocessor to see if it;s oscillating.
Viking child is a brilliant game
I wanna see you return to this console when you’ve figured out what it could be and try again
I plan to. I'd like to have bought an oscilloscope by then so I can probe the chips under the shield along with the crystal.
Hi, sadly the power circuit of the lynx has a deadly problem, if the zener diode gets broken, like in this case, the 9V goes to main cpu who gets fried . for this reason I bought a 6v power supply and two dummy AA batteries, so the maximum voltage remains under 5.5V in case of zener failure. The only deal is a less brightness of the screen but a safer Lynx.
Sheesh, absolutely terrible design. Surprised nobody has designed a bypass board or something to completely replace the circuit with a safer one.
You're exactly right, and this is what I believe may have contributed to the initial failure on this unit. I learned a few new things while working on this project, and one of those is that a zener diode is a pseudo voltage regulator, although not a particularly good one. And as you stated, when it fails rather than becoming an open circuit, it just delivers its input voltage down the rail (in this case, 9V all the way through). Absolutely garbage design.
Did you try adjusting the brightness as if it is right down you cant see anything.
the screan has two marks . top left and mid bottom left. although its just te display, its full of defective lines, there is definity a pre load pause happening, have you gotten anywhere to date?
Just find you,re Channel. Awsome stuff!
Great video, I always watch your stuff - thanks! One suggestion: If you make the sound mono it will probably be a little better for watching with headphones. In stereo your voices moves from left to right and vice versa a lot which can be a little bit confusing.
I noticed the unbalanced levels on the audio meters in Final Cut and it was a bit over my head to correct. I'll look into balancing them out rather than duplicating the L or R channel. I'm enjoying getting more seasoned with editing but the more I uncover the more I realize how little I know 🤣
I'm digging that shirt. Hell, I'm digging most of your shirts. Gotta go to your shop and see what's in there. Leclerc may be one hit wonder in Zandvoort or the Silver Arrows will strike back again? RBR seems like nowhere at this point. May be interesting. 😉
Hmm, has your opinion shifted after watching qualifying? :)
@@BorderlineOCD No, sir. I'm still digging your shirts. 😁 But back to F1... The game is on, it was only 0.21 sec, so anything can happen, but still... It's Ferrari. They can screw up easy win. I'm trying to get the best out of this season, but I guess we won't see anything like 2021 anytime soon.
Oh also..is it not possible both those games are shot? I know not likely but still could be worth a shot to try another game if you have access
There is no guarantee that the 2 cartridge you bought are in working order ... it is improbable both won't work but shit can happen
Try plug 415v into it I hear it gives it special powers
If you need help you may want to visit the atari age forums. There are a lot of very knowledgeable users, some even engineers that will help. At this stage, and if there are no shorts found and caps are correct and ok, the more common fails are the cpus(mikey and suzy).
Thanks for the suggestion, a few folks have recommended that forum. Good to know there's still an active community for it out there.
The real question with a Lynx would be not can it be fixed but can anyone be bothered to, yes obviously or this video wouldn't exist but it's still a fair point, not planning it too much as I have one
You can't fix'em all my friend however i notice you use the J tip alot must be pretty neat I do not have one for my solder station. I used to watch Voultar use the J tip it does a pretty good job.
It's nice for tight areas and I find myself using it on most projects these days, unless I need a larger tip to deliver more heat to the board. If memory serves me right I think the one Voultar uses is a fatter J than my J tip but it's probably just what's available for different solder stations. I'm sure you can a similar bent tip for your iron.
When will part 2 come?
If you still have it and want to ship it me I'll happily TH-cam video it and get it working then ship it back. Hate to see it go to waste
Hey man! It really bugged me that I couldn't get it working and it's currently sitting on the back-burner until I can be bothered to give it another shot. But I'm happy for you to take a crack at it if you like that would be awesome!
@@BorderlineOCD Sure thing. Just DM me or email/discord etc... and I can give you the address. Leave notes inside of issue and return address and it should make a nice video
Did you use contact cleaner in the game port? Are the games verified working?
I also have two Lynxes I could not repair. Similar issues as you.