sega mega drive 2 repair
- Thread starter raylyd
- Start date
What is the recognition issue? All cartridge based systems need to be regularly cleaned to recognize games. I usually have to swab my games with isopropyl alcohol (Eliminator fluid) almost every time I play a game just to make it work. And then clean the cartridge slot with a slot cleaner maybe once every dozen times.
I've had 4x atari 2600s, 8x genesis 1, 12x genesis 2, 1x nomad, 1x 32x, 5x NES, 6x SNES, 4x SMS, 5x game gear, 1x lynx, 1x game boy, 1x gba, 1x VB
That's 50 catridge based systems I've had in possession at some point or another. Every single one of them has the same issue. Cartidge-based games simply won't play unless they're cleaned regularly.
Either I'm doing something horribly wrong, or it seems that this is the norm. And if someone actually has a cartridge-based system that doesn't need regular cleaning, it's a miracle.
This includes systems and games I've purchased brand new in the box. Brand new, never used, and they still won't work until cleaned. I remember one time I opened a brand new sealed NES game, and the contacts were covered in oxidation already. I swabbed it with eliminator and the pad turned dark black on the first clean of an unused game.
I thought the oxidation layer built as you were playing it. The electrical contact would attract charged air particles and oxidize the contacts and collect dust. So any time you play a game, you'll probably have to clean it the next time.
Wouldn't sanding/filing increase the chance it would start rusting? And just increase the surface area to oxidize?
I live in Minnesota, I don't think it's that humid up here on a daily basis.
I've wondered about this for my whole gaming life. If someone has a magical answer to why I can never play games without cleaning them, I'd love to know.
That's 50 catridge based systems I've had in possession at some point or another. Every single one of them has the same issue. Cartidge-based games simply won't play unless they're cleaned regularly.
Either I'm doing something horribly wrong, or it seems that this is the norm. And if someone actually has a cartridge-based system that doesn't need regular cleaning, it's a miracle.
This includes systems and games I've purchased brand new in the box. Brand new, never used, and they still won't work until cleaned. I remember one time I opened a brand new sealed NES game, and the contacts were covered in oxidation already. I swabbed it with eliminator and the pad turned dark black on the first clean of an unused game.
I thought the oxidation layer built as you were playing it. The electrical contact would attract charged air particles and oxidize the contacts and collect dust. So any time you play a game, you'll probably have to clean it the next time.
Wouldn't sanding/filing increase the chance it would start rusting? And just increase the surface area to oxidize?
I live in Minnesota, I don't think it's that humid up here on a daily basis.
I've wondered about this for my whole gaming life. If someone has a magical answer to why I can never play games without cleaning them, I'd love to know.
The only system I've consistently heard of people needing to clean games for is NES. Rumor has it that this has something to do with a lacquer or conformal coating or similar that was used in NES carts. I've never cleaned the carts or the cart slot for any other system I've owned (nor expansion slots, ATA connectors, memory sockets etc. in PCs for that matter, beyond blowing out dust with compressed air).
The whole point of contacts is that they are in contact; air shouldn't be able to flow freely over any significant portion while they are in use. They'll oxidize in air, but AFAIK the oxide layer is generally thin enough that just the action of inserting/removing the cart should scrape it off unless the connector is in really bad shape (this might also be part of NES's problem, since it uses a ZIF cart slot).Jedi Master Thrash said:
