Dead N64 (No picture)

[fasman]

Just over a month ago I purchased a Ntsc N64 from ebay (it was fairly cheap), when I received the unit I gave it a quick test and it worked flawlessly on two of my games(Doom64 and Quake64) , I put the unit aside,went on vacation and forgot about it.

Till today, after switching the unit on red LED lights up it will ether start with a slight grey screen or a completely black one, with no audio,Ive about 20+ games on it including the ones I tested it with originally.

Ive tested both the Power supply and the AV cable on my pal system, they work fine :)

Initially I thought it was a broken or dirty Edge connector , so I opened it up, gave it a good clean and inspected the pins with a magnifying glass, and they seem fine to the naked eye :/

Any ideas?

[Cyantist]

One of my tellies had this issue, I bought a N64 tested it and it worked fine on one TV, months later came to set it up on another No picture :/ if I left it on for 5-15 seconds the picture would come through, no controller input lag or anything, it just seemed to take the piss showing the picture on that telly.

[fasman]

I ran it for a minute just now and it seems to be doing the same...

It was worth a shot , thanks Cyantist :)

[fasman]

I thought I would bump this up one last time ,before binning the console:

What I have tried in the mean time:

1 Cleaned entire motherboard with PCB clean
2 Inspected all the processors and components under a microscope for debree that might be causing a short
3 checked continuity on switches, edge connector
4 U13 is supplying 5v correctly
5 Board is getting +12V and +3.3v

What I want to try:
1 Reflow Board (might be a dry joint)
2 Test U12(dont have a datasheet or a scope to do so)

Ps if I don't get it right, does any one want a spare PIF-NUS I know a few members was experimenting piggybacking it with a Pal PIF...

[Oldgamingfart]

Might be a capacitor issue. These machines are getting on a bit now, and anything +10 years old with a whole heap of SMD type capacitors is now prone to failure. Things like storage, usage (lack of/ overuse) etc will have an affect on the reliability also.

Sony 'ICF' portable multi-band radio's, old Camcorder's, Sega Gamegear, PC Engine GT etc are all prime examples.
You'll often find that faults that usually 'clear-up' with use or temperature fluctuations can be attributed to bad capacitors. If you have access to (and know how to use) an ESR meter, that might be worth trying, or maybe even the old hair-dryer trick.

[H360]

Dont bin it. It was working, so it sounds like a cold solder joint and or capacitor.

Just heat the AV pins up with a soldering iron.

Check the video output also.

[ThetaSigma]

Try turning it on with a cartridge and jumper/mempack in. while it is turned on, take both of them out and turn off the system. once it is off put them both back in again and try it out.

I got a free jungle green PAL 64 a while ago because it was broken and this did the trick for me. Cant remember where I got the method from.

[APE]

Try turning it on with a cartridge and jumper/mempack in. while it is turned on, take both of them out and turn off the system. once it is off put them both back in again and try it out.

I got a free jungle green PAL 64 a while ago because it was broken and this did the trick for me. Cant remember where I got the method from.

Not sure how that is supposed to work but I'd only use it as a last resort with a game that doesn't have built in save support.

The Jumper Pak is a single point of failure, I'd verify that yours works with a second N64 and that the pins it plugs into are good.

[rosewood]

I'd also say that sounds like a missing or broken jumper pack - without it the N64 will turn on but don't display anything on the screen but solid black or dark grey.

[fasman]

@Oldgamingfart That could be, but it looks like they used good quality ones , maybe solid state, and I can see no leaking caps, but will look over them again :)

@Haunted360 Continuity is fine on the AV ports should have mentioned I did that aswell...

@ThetaSigma I dont know how that will work, but I tried it any way the console is still doing the sane :(

@Ape, rosewood, tested the jumper pack and swapped it with my other console it seems to work fine :(

Will be reflowing the board tonight, and if still doesnt work,I will just junk it...

Ive got a replacement N64 coming anyway and I purchased a Everdrive 64(will DL the Pal games that Ive got on original Ntsc) just incase that fails aswell...

[ThetaSigma]

I don't know how it would work either, but it did for me XD

maybe just readjusting the jumper pack would have had the same result. but at the time I was willing to try anything.

[fasman]

News:No luck with the reflow, I have given up on it its pretty much dead now.

[l_oliveira]

An common cause of death for N64 consoles is the RCP bus being blown by misaligned insertion of cartridges.

Remember, there's an pin on the cartridge slot with 12V in it ... :-(

[H360]

I got an N64 from a friend. It was working fine and then I switched it off and left it for about a week.

I tried to play it then, and it is now not giving me a picture or audio.

I will open it up (I got the game bit) and check the RCP as well as the cartridge header.


*EDIT*
Nope. Not working.
I cleaned the contacts and re-seated the header. RCP must be fried :shrug:
What a hunk of junk.

[HEX1GON]

N64 is pretty bullet proof, check the video connector and also the power pak.

[Evotistical]

www.assemblergames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35989
If this n64 can last from out in the elements(looks like the arizona desert). It shows that they are hardy. BTW, I'll give it to you for free if you pay the shipping:thumbsup:. I would clean every contact though, like twice.

[H360]

I did notice that all of the contacts were lower then say, 8 of them. I dont know if the voltage pins are higher to ensure a good connection or what... But at the other end, all the pins were even. So it looked ok to me.

[Fireball haven]

You'll often find that faults that usually 'clear-up' with use or temperature fluctuations can be attributed to bad capacitors. If you have access to (and know how to use) an ESR meter, that might be worth trying, or maybe even the old hair-dryer trick.

[ThetaSigma]

Try a different power supply. Worked on a 64 belonging to one of my friends.

[l_oliveira]

I did notice that all of the contacts were lower then say, 8 of them. I dont know if the voltage pins are higher to ensure a good connection or what... But at the other end, all the pins were even. So it looked ok to me.

It's made that way. The higher pins are power pins. And it's meant to protect the bus in case the user has the "bright" idea of inserting a cartridge with it on. It will cause the cartridge to receive power before the other pins make contact with the BUS, reducing the chance of damage.