cleaning cartridge slot contacts

[DarkChambersFan]

I would like to clean the contacts inside the 7800 console. The slot is too narrow to clean it with a q-tip. Any suggestions? Would canned air be ok and how well would it work?

[A.J. Franzman]

Search the forums for topics with instructions to clean the 2600 cart port contacts. I've posted to several.

[Rik]

IF alcohol and air dont do the job, use those emery board nail files,the ones that look like popsicle sticks,that you can get a a pharmacy or anywhere cosmetics are sold.Take the file and pass it through the slot up and down until you get to the other end of slot.Then you can spray the slot with come contact cleaner.That how "I" clean my console slots.

Edited November 26, 2007 by Rik

[A.J. Franzman]

That'll remove the corrosion-resistant gold plating on the contact fingers quite nicely!

Edited November 26, 2007 by A.J. Franzman

[Rik]

That'll remove the corrosion-resistant gold plating on the contact fingers quite nicely!

No more damage than the normal wear done by inserting carts over the years.This is something that is done once or twice in the life of a console,depending on where its been.Im not worried since my 30+ year old consoles have no gold plating left on any of the contacts,anyway.Probably not something you'd want to do to a NEW CONSOLE,cus a new console simply doesnt need agressive cleaning like that.This method takes oxidation off worn contacts BEAUTIFULLY though!Sometimes just spraying alcohol is not enough,ive fixed quite a few consoles doing this.And if one is worried about the contacts,use something less abrasive,or dont do at all,all for ones choice.More of a last resort if air or alcohol doesnt work,in which i failed to post in the original post,sorry

Edited November 26, 2007 by Rik

[DarkChambersFan]

I cleaned most of my cartridges w/50% isopropyl alcohol and then put them in the console a couple of time to clean the contacts. When I turn on the power I get the atari logo screen and then it turns to a fuzzy picture. Even had this problem when using 2600 carts that have a dust cover. (this was already a problem before I cleaned any of the carts) Do I need to use a stronger solution of alcohol or do I just need to clean them some more?

[ninermaniac]

That'll remove the corrosion-resistant gold plating on the contact fingers quite nicely!

No more damage than the normal wear done by inserting carts over the years.This is something that is done once or twice in the life of a console,depending on where its been.Im not worried since my 30+ year old consoles have no gold plating left on any of the contacts,anyway.Probably not something you'd want to do to a NEW CONSOLE,cus a new console simply doesnt need agressive cleaning like that.This method takes oxidation off worn contacts BEAUTIFULLY though!Sometimes just spraying alcohol is not enough,ive fixed quite a few consoles doing this.And if one is worried about the contacts,use something less abrasive,or dont do at all,all for ones choice.More of a last resort if air or alcohol doesnt work,in which i failed to post in the original post,sorry

 

Lol....I can't quit laughing. The dunce emoticon did it for me. Personally I use an emory board stick and an old t-shirt and alcohol. On the edge of the shirt put a little alcohol on it, place it over the slot then press the edge of the shirt through the slot with the stick. Not letting the stick be openly exposed to the contacts. Has always worked for me. <Ilovethisone. No offense to you.

[Rik]

That'll remove the corrosion-resistant gold plating on the contact fingers quite nicely!

No more damage than the normal wear done by inserting carts over the years.This is something that is done once or twice in the life of a console,depending on where its been.Im not worried since my 30+ year old consoles have no gold plating left on any of the contacts,anyway.Probably not something you'd want to do to a NEW CONSOLE,cus a new console simply doesnt need agressive cleaning like that.This method takes oxidation off worn contacts BEAUTIFULLY though!Sometimes just spraying alcohol is not enough,ive fixed quite a few consoles doing this.And if one is worried about the contacts,use something less abrasive,or dont do at all,all for ones choice.More of a last resort if air or alcohol doesnt work,in which i failed to post in the original post,sorry

 

Lol....I can't quit laughing. The dunce emoticon did it for me. Personally I use an emory board stick and an old t-shirt and alcohol. On the edge of the shirt put a little alcohol on it, place it over the slot then press the edge of the shirt through the slot with the stick. Not letting the stick be openly exposed to the contacts. Has always worked for me. <Ilovethisone. No offense to you.

Yeah,that dunce icon is pretty funny!.Your idea on cleaning the contacts is even better.

Edited November 28, 2007 by Rik

[Rik]

I cleaned most of my cartridges w/50% isopropyl alcohol and then put them in the console a couple of time to clean the contacts. When I turn on the power I get the atari logo screen and then it turns to a fuzzy picture. Even had this problem when using 2600 carts that have a dust cover. (this was already a problem before I cleaned any of the carts) Do I need to use a stronger solution of alcohol or do I just need to clean them some more?

Its better to use a more pure alcohol.Most use %70 ISOPROPLYL,there is also %99 ISOPROPYL available in drugs stores.The higher the alcohol content,the better.In %50 alcohol,thats %50 alcohol,and the rest is water,no good,too much water,IMO.Contact cleaner is the best to use,really expensive stuff,but theres no water in it,which is better for electronics.As far as the fuzzy picture,id look into the connections,especially if you're using one of those tv/game switch boxes,when they start going bad they do havoc on the screen.

[DarkChambersFan]

Its better to use a more pure alcohol.Most use %70 ISOPROPLYL,there is also %99 ISOPROPYL available in drugs stores.The higher the alcohol content,the better.In %50 alcohol,thats %50 alcohol,and the rest is water,no good,too much water,IMO.Contact cleaner is the best to use,really expensive stuff,but theres no water in it,which is better for electronics.As far as the fuzzy picture,id look into the connections,especially if you're using one of those tv/game switch boxes,when they start going bad they do havoc on the screen.

 

I've got 2 switchboxes and I've got the same problem w/both. I even tried it on a tv that you can screw the connections onto the VHF on the back of the tv w/o using a switchbox or adapter, that won't work either. I kept the console and carts in my basement for over 10 years so they had accumulated some dust. I actually played it very often, it didn't just sit there. Then 1 day it just stopped working. I brougt it upstairs a few years ago and that's where I'm keeping it. I even dropped it once when I was a kid, but it worked fine for a few years after that. It's just got a crack in the casing. I am very sure that I've got everything connected properly. If there was something wrong w/the connections would I still get the atari logo screen? that picture comes in pretty clear-after that point some carts get veritcal bands of color and others get fuzzy. For a while I thought the problem was w/the power supply. The system was "reconditioned" when my parents bought it for me back in about 89.(possibly an underlying problem w/the console?)

 

Anyway, I'll try using a higher alcohol content and hopefully that will work. I would love to get my atari working again and I would prefer not resort to buying a new console. Thank-you for the tips everyone and I'll let you know how things work out.

Edited November 29, 2007 by DarkChambersFan

[ninermaniac]

Also some carts, if you're just trying one or two carts, can get what has been referred to as bit rot. Try a series of carts. Moisture on the carts contacts are the same as the console. Other than that I'm sure it has to be your cart. It shouldn't show the Atari logo at all if the console is not working correctly. Sounds like a cart prob to me. Just check Try channel 3 on the switch. See if that helps. I hope you get back to playin soon!

Edited November 29, 2007 by ninermaniac

[DarkChambersFan]

I hope you get back to playin soon!

Thanks, I hope so too. Would I be able to buy contact cleaner at stores like game crazy and game stop? What's the average price for the cleaner?

[A.J. Franzman]

"Fuzzy picture" with no effect on game play characteristics is not a symptom of bad cartridge contacts. There is something wrong in that console that someone should be able to fix -- but not me; I've always been a strictly 2600 guy and had never even seen the inside of, nor played, a 7800 until recently at a local retro gamers gathering. If this were the only symptom and I had to guess, I would say a transistor in the RF modulator is failing, but that's really just a shot in the dark.

 

When you wrote "vertical bands of color", did you mean those bands appear on top of the game screen, or instead of it? If the screen goes black with vertical colored stripes, this could be a symptom of a bad voltage regulator (which could also cause the "fuzzy picture" symptom if its output voltage level is right on the borderline of good vs. bad). Do you have and know how to use a voltmeter or multimeter?

Edited November 30, 2007 by A.J. Franzman

[ninermaniac]

When you wrote "vertical bands of color", did you mean those bands appear on top of the game screen, or instead of it?

 

I have had this problem. He mentioned the Atari logo comes up first then the vertical lines up and down the entire screen. It can be the slot but I have seen carts that get "bit rot" that keeps them from playing. I was hoping he would try more than one or two carts. It also can depend where his system and games are located and the room temperature and dampness of the air. If it's in a a basement then dampness after a period of time can affect the carts and/or system. I'm not an expert but have had many experiences and problems I've had to solve myself. Most of the time for me. It's been the cart. Again, I hope you get up and running again.

[DarkChambersFan]

When you wrote "vertical bands of color", did you mean those bands appear on top of the game screen, or instead of it?

 

I have had this problem. He mentioned the Atari logo comes up first then the vertical lines up and down the entire screen. It can be the slot but I have seen carts that get "bit rot" that keeps them from playing. I was hoping he would try more than one or two carts. It also can depend where his system and games are located and the room temperature and dampness of the air. If it's in a a basement then dampness after a period of time can affect the carts and/or system. I'm not an expert but have had many experiences and problems I've had to solve myself. Most of the time for me. It's been the cart. Again, I hope you get up and running again.

 

 

(It's 'she' not 'he') The vetical bands of color are showing up on black screen

the screen goes black with vertical colored stripes, .

I've tried maybe about 10 carts and I have about 24. I now keep the console on my bookshelf and the carts in a shoebox to keep them dust-free. The temp in my room is generally on average 70 degrees. But the problem started when I still had the system in my basement. I really don't know if the dampness in the air could have affected it because the system showed no signs of having anything wrong with it before the carts wouldn't work. It just happened completly out of the blue.

 

 

Fuzzy picture" with no effect on game play characteristics is not a symptom of bad cartridge contacts. There is something wrong in that console that someone should be able to fix -- but not me; I've always been a strictly 2600 guy and had never even seen the inside of, nor played, a 7800 until recently at a local retro gamers gathering. If this were the only symptom and I had to guess, I would say a transistor in the RF modulator is failing, but that's really just a shot in the dark.

 

When you wrote "vertical bands of color", did you mean those bands appear on top of the game screen, or instead of it? If the screen goes black with vertical colored stripes, this could be a symptom of a bad voltage regulator (which could also cause the "fuzzy picture" symptom if its output voltage level is right on the borderline of good vs. bad). Do you have and know how to use a voltmeter or multimeter?

 

 

It's not that it's just a fuzzy picture, I can't play the games at all, the screen is completly fuzzy/snowy, you can't see the game picture at all, kind of like when the cable on your TV goes out. Could you clarify exactly what a transistor and voltage regulator is? I have someone who could help me use a voltmeter. I'm not very knowledgable about electronic components. The power supply is putting out a few less volts than it's supposed to. I don't know if that could be a problem. Do you think it might make a difference if I hooked it up through a RCA cable? I even had someone check the capacitor and that's working fine.

 

Also, as I noted in a previous post, it was a reconditioned system. Maybe this was a problem with it before it was reconditioned and the problem has resurfaced? I think the games stopped working on the console about 10 years ago. I was really hoping that the problem was that the carts needed a good cleaning, but now I'm kind of doubtful. Thank you everyone so much for your help and hopefully we can solve the problem.

Edited November 30, 2007 by DarkChambersFan

[ninermaniac]

I aplogize for referring to you as HE instead of SHE. Last time I had my systems in the basement it basically corroded the board. I really didn't work on it. I just went ahead and got myself another one for about $20 bucks. I wish I could help further but at this point I really don't have an answer that would be of any help. Sorry

[DarkChambersFan]

I aplogize for referring to you as HE instead of SHE. Last time I had my systems in the basement it basically corroded the board. I really didn't work on it. I just went ahead and got myself another one for about $20 bucks. I wish I could help further but at this point I really don't have an answer that would be of any help. Sorry

 

If the board were corroded how would I be able to tell? I've looked inside through the cart slot w/a flashlight and nothing appears to be wrong.

 

Thank you for all your help. If I don't figure it out soon I might end up having to buy a new one. either online or at a thrift store/flea market

Edited November 30, 2007 by DarkChambersFan

[gdement]

The vertical bands of color are generated by the TIA (2600 mode graphics chip). It shouldn't be running when you boot a 7800 game, so that indicates that the boot ROM is dropping you into 2600 mode for some reason. That can happen if the cartridge fails the license authentication check.

 

I've heard of lots of people having that staticy/rolling picture mess after seeing the Atari logo. I also have had this same problem before, I think it must be the 7800's most common problem. I think when this happens, the system is actually booting the game in 7800 mode but something is glitching out the Maria (7800 graphics chip). The Maria is capable of doing this - I remember Bruce Tomlin mentioned having this happen when a game he was working on wasn't programmed to initialize itself properly.

 

My original console actually did this new out of the box, as a determined kid I would retry Pole Position about 50 times until it booted. Once it loaded, it would work fine until I turned it off. I *think* that 2600 games worked fine on it though. We had to send it back to Sears to get replaced.

 

I had this problem (Atari logo, then crash with rolling static) more recently when I was building a flash cartridge. Turned out it was caused by a broken trace leading to one of the pins on the cartridge connector. So definitely a bad connection on one pin could cause this problem.

 

If you do have a problem with the power supply, I'd expect that could cause any number of problems like this as well. Inadequate power will make the system unstable and prone to glitch/crash.

[Rik]

I hope you get back to playin soon!

Thanks, I hope so too. Would I be able to buy contact cleaner at stores like game crazy and game stop? What's the average price for the cleaner?

I dont think you can get contact cleaner at gaming stores.Its sold mainly at electronics supply stores like THE SOURCE,which used to be RADIO SHACK here in CANADA.Contact cleaner comes in a SPRAY can.It costs about $7-9 a BOTTLE,it will cost less in the U.S obviously.Theres 0 water in it,and is designed for electronics,THE BEST STUFF,for cleaning any electronics.Getting Contact cleaner,wont guarantee solving all your electronic woes.If you have bad connections,bad switchbox,rf cable,etc,the best cleaner wont solve those problems obviously.Bad fuzzy screens can be the TV itself,which was my case once,its really a matter of examining the components,method of elimination really.Having extra parts ,cables,helps also ,so you can compare.Whenever i get a used game,that doesnt work,which is VERY RARE,i just clean the cart contacts real good,and presto,the game works,this happens %99 of time for me.Ive only had 2 BAD carts in my life,out of like 200 game carts.

Edited December 1, 2007 by Rik

[A.J. Franzman]

It's not that it's just a fuzzy picture, I can't play the games at all, the screen is completly fuzzy/snowy, you can't see the game picture at all, kind of like when the cable on your TV goes out.

Ah, I think I understand now -- we have a communication issue as well. When someone describes a picture to me as "fuzzy", I think "out of focus" a.k.a. "blurry". The kind of image one typically sees when a TV has no working antenna or cable connected, I would call "snow" or "static", but never "fuzzy".

 

Gdement seems to know what you mean, so maybe he or someone else can help you better than I.