Ikrananka Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 Hey, all! I'm catching up on my hobby of vintage systems and looking to finally get my Coleco(s) working. An upgrade would be nice in the process! I have 3 Colecos in various states of functionality. I'll need to inventory them and see what's what this weekend. In the meantime, is there anyone who would fix these? I see talk of custom boards you can solder yourself here, but that's a bit beyond my reach. Is there a repair service of some sort? I'd be willing to send in all 3 of my systems in return for a discount on fixing 1 and upgrading the video out. Check out www.oldschoolgamer.ca. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ikrananka Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 Mod ordered - will go in my spare CV which currently has an 8bitDomain mod in it but has a very poor picture on my HD TV. I'll post some comparison pics when it's up an running. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
channelmaniac Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 Hey, all! I'm catching up on my hobby of vintage systems and looking to finally get my Coleco(s) working. An upgrade would be nice in the process! I have 3 Colecos in various states of functionality. I'll need to inventory them and see what's what this weekend. In the meantime, is there anyone who would fix these? I see talk of custom boards you can solder yourself here, but that's a bit beyond my reach. Is there a repair service of some sort? I'd be willing to send in all 3 of my systems in return for a discount on fixing 1 and upgrading the video out. Hi, I saw your email and have replied to it. I"m sure we can work something out. RJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
channelmaniac Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 Mod ordered - will go in my spare CV which currently has an 8bitDomain mod in it but has a very poor picture on my HD TV. I'll post some comparison pics when it's up an running. Cool - I need to look at their mod and see how it was done. RJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyJones1023 Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 (edited) Hey, all! I'm catching up on my hobby of vintage systems and looking to finally get my Coleco(s) working. An upgrade would be nice in the process! I have 3 Colecos in various states of functionality. I'll need to inventory them and see what's what this weekend. In the meantime, is there anyone who would fix these? I see talk of custom boards you can solder yourself here, but that's a bit beyond my reach. Is there a repair service of some sort? I'd be willing to send in all 3 of my systems in return for a discount on fixing 1 and upgrading the video out. Hi, I saw your email and have replied to it. I"m sure we can work something out. RJ I've sent a couple of replies but haven't heard back. Are you getting my emails? Edited February 27, 2009 by IndyJones1023 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
channelmaniac Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 I just replied. The day job has been crazy this week - there was a reorg and I ended up on a new team. It's a good thing to still have the day job. Arcadecomponents.com isn't big enough yet for me to quit the day job. Raymond Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyJones1023 Posted March 23, 2009 Share Posted March 23, 2009 Is anyone else interested in the Coleco trade? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph74 Posted May 28, 2009 Share Posted May 28, 2009 Mod ordered - will go in my spare CV which currently has an 8bitDomain mod in it but has a very poor picture on my HD TV. I'll post some comparison pics when it's up an running. Any luck on this? Still waiting to Vid Mod my CV, and looking to only have to do it once. lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ikrananka Posted May 28, 2009 Share Posted May 28, 2009 Mod ordered - will go in my spare CV which currently has an 8bitDomain mod in it but has a very poor picture on my HD TV. I'll post some comparison pics when it's up an running. Any luck on this? Still waiting to Vid Mod my CV, and looking to only have to do it once. lol Will post some pics early next week - wasn't as good as I was hoping. I'm working on developing a component video mod - schematic is nearly complete and will be ordering parts for a prototype next week. Bear with me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph74 Posted May 28, 2009 Share Posted May 28, 2009 Mod ordered - will go in my spare CV which currently has an 8bitDomain mod in it but has a very poor picture on my HD TV. I'll post some comparison pics when it's up an running. Any luck on this? Still waiting to Vid Mod my CV, and looking to only have to do it once. lol Will post some pics early next week - wasn't as good as I was hoping. I'm working on developing a component video mod - schematic is nearly complete and will be ordering parts for a prototype next week. Bear with me. No rush, it's only been 27 years and I haven't modded a CV yet. Was contemplating just getting an "Adam Game System" together for the video out. But would still rather have the classic Black CV running on my home theater. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StarshipUK Posted August 11, 2009 Share Posted August 11, 2009 It works, and it works very well! I have 15 kits almost assembled. I need to get the wires cut to size and put in the bags with everything else and they'll be done. I also put together a beta draft of installation instructions. (attached to this post) Once it's finalized I'll convert it to .pdf. Basically, everything needed is in the kit except for tools (of course) and a small piece of double stick tape to hold it in place. Now I just have to add up all the parts and pieces and figure out a price. RJ PS: I already see a grammar error and a glaring omission in the doc. I forgot to put the step in about putting the heat shrink tubing over the board and using a heat gun or lighter to shrink it. I have two UK (PAL) Colecovisions, and am thinking of getting someone in the UK to Mod one of my Colecovision's for me. Does this MOD work OK with British UK PAL Colecovisions, and does anyone know anywhere which still has kits like this available for sale? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mimo Posted August 11, 2009 Share Posted August 11, 2009 As far as I know no one has successfully modded a PAL coleco, best option is to buy one from France as they have beautiful RGB Scart outout Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unhuman Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 I (finally) got around to attempting to install the ColecoVision AV mod. I think I built the board properly. Of course, it's not working. Not only that, but my CV itself isn't giving signal to the old RF out (this mod looks like it didn't disable that). There were a few things I had to do that seemed slightly different than the directions. Here's hoping I didn't ruin my CV. Anyhow, there were a few things I had to do to get it to go in. My 15W soldering iron was inadequate to melt the old solder in the CV, so I used my 25W. That worked. Now, compared to the instructions found here: http://www.arcadecomponents.com/f/Colecovision_Composite_AV_Mod_Installation.pdf 1. I used the WJ2 for my +12V, as I did not have a memory Mod 2. My board differs slightly (different rev) than the board in the images. 3. The ground pad on the images for the little board (down to the right of L3) was buried under a weird fat capacitor that was not on the pics in the directions. It was hard to get at and did not want to take solder... It took a while to get this to hold and I figure this is my culprit? 4. The directions did not talk about, when using the coax, where to use the center wire and where to use the braid. When I did mine, i attached center to left and the braid to the right on the little board attachments. It's more obvious when wiring the jacks and the RF adapter. 5. Although it's irrelevant, when doing the sound attachments, my board did not have the grounding pad that is in the installation documentation. So, my sound is disconnected, but that should not affect it working (or not). This also sent as a message to ArcadeComponents.com Any ideas? Thanks - Howie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unhuman Posted December 28, 2009 Share Posted December 28, 2009 Ok - spent some time with my multimeter, but it's not like I know what I'm doing. Testing the power, I'm definitely getting 12V. Testing the Video out, I'm seeing 4.5V, and testing the RF in, I see it cycle from 0-400mv and then start over 0-400mv. Regarding my prior post, the ground pad for audio is created by scraping off some green on the board. That worked, it seems. I get 0V across audio, but that makes sense since it doesn't work. I didn't look at the docs close enough - they detail where the grounds are set on the board, but that info would be more helpful if the docs included that info when it actually talked about making the connections. Also, the little capacitor - I didn't know how to mount it, but the images implied that the labelling should be on the front, so I did it as such. Still not working, though... -Howie I (finally) got around to attempting to install the ColecoVision AV mod. I think I built the board properly. Of course, it's not working. Not only that, but my CV itself isn't giving signal to the old RF out (this mod looks like it didn't disable that). There were a few things I had to do that seemed slightly different than the directions. Here's hoping I didn't ruin my CV. Anyhow, there were a few things I had to do to get it to go in. My 15W soldering iron was inadequate to melt the old solder in the CV, so I used my 25W. That worked. Now, compared to the instructions found here: http://www.arcadecom...nstallation.pdf 1. I used the WJ2 for my +12V, as I did not have a memory Mod 2. My board differs slightly (different rev) than the board in the images. 3. The ground pad on the images for the little board (down to the right of L3) was buried under a weird fat capacitor that was not on the pics in the directions. It was hard to get at and did not want to take solder... It took a while to get this to hold and I figure this is my culprit? 4. The directions did not talk about, when using the coax, where to use the center wire and where to use the braid. When I did mine, i attached center to left and the braid to the right on the little board attachments. It's more obvious when wiring the jacks and the RF adapter. 5. Although it's irrelevant, when doing the sound attachments, my board did not have the grounding pad that is in the installation documentation. So, my sound is disconnected, but that should not affect it working (or not). This also sent as a message to ArcadeComponents.com Any ideas? Thanks - Howie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
channelmaniac Posted December 29, 2009 Share Posted December 29, 2009 (edited) Sorry, was out hunting for the past couple of days. Can you post clear, high-res pics of the completed kit board and where you soldered everything to the CV board and RF modulator? Also, page 6 of the instructions tells (and shows with a picture) where the wires get soldered to the RF modulator and the picture on page 3 shows where the grounds are for the coax braid on the mod board itself. Please ensure that A) The 2 electrolytic caps are installed properly - they are polarized. B) The ground shields and center wires on the coax are not reversed on one end. That would ground out the signals. C) The IC chip is installed correctly. It can be plugged in backwards which would kill it. The small 47pf capacitor is not polarized and can be installed in either direction. Thanks! RJ Edited December 29, 2009 by channelmaniac Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unhuman Posted January 9, 2010 Share Posted January 9, 2010 Finally got all my pics taken and uploaded. Here they are: It lets you view everything in various sizes. Thanks - Howie Sorry, was out hunting for the past couple of days. Can you post clear, high-res pics of the completed kit board and where you soldered everything to the CV board and RF modulator? Also, page 6 of the instructions tells (and shows with a picture) where the wires get soldered to the RF modulator and the picture on page 3 shows where the grounds are for the coax braid on the mod board itself. Please ensure that A) The 2 electrolytic caps are installed properly - they are polarized. B) The ground shields and center wires on the coax are not reversed on one end. That would ground out the signals. C) The IC chip is installed correctly. It can be plugged in backwards which would kill it. The small 47pf capacitor is not polarized and can be installed in either direction. Thanks! RJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
channelmaniac Posted January 10, 2010 Share Posted January 10, 2010 Looks like it has been assembled correctly, with maybe a possible exception for the resistors. I can't read the color codes on them in the pictures you posted so I can't tell for sure if you put them in the right locations. Take your multimeter and measure resistance between the center wire and the shield. It's possible you have a short between the two. It doesn't take a lot of heat to melt through the insulation on the center conductor and short the braid to it. Technically, the ground wire isn't 100% needed as all three grounds (both shield braids and the ground wire) are all connected together on the mod board, so a poor connection where the ground wire solders to the board shouldn't have a negative effect. RJ Finally got all my pics taken and uploaded. Here they are: http://www.flickr.co...57623174446460/ It lets you view everything in various sizes. Thanks - Howie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unhuman Posted January 11, 2010 Share Posted January 11, 2010 I'll try what you suggest. Unfortunately, the CV is otherwise dead, so I'll check out the resistors - yet be careful to ensure they are fine. Is there a way to test the Caps? Anything I can test... Before I go get another CV... Thanks - Howie Looks like it has been assembled correctly, with maybe a possible exception for the resistors. I can't read the color codes on them in the pictures you posted so I can't tell for sure if you put them in the right locations. Take your multimeter and measure resistance between the center wire and the shield. It's possible you have a short between the two. It doesn't take a lot of heat to melt through the insulation on the center conductor and short the braid to it. Technically, the ground wire isn't 100% needed as all three grounds (both shield braids and the ground wire) are all connected together on the mod board, so a poor connection where the ground wire solders to the board shouldn't have a negative effect. RJ Finally got all my pics taken and uploaded. Here they are: http://www.flickr.co...57623174446460/ It lets you view everything in various sizes. Thanks - Howie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
channelmaniac Posted January 11, 2010 Share Posted January 11, 2010 You want to ship it to me? I'll see what I can figure out on it. It'll run you parts + shipping both ways. No labor charge as I'm curious as to what went wrong. There's a chip on that board that is all rusted. That one has me curious, as does the assembly / installation of the kit. RJ I'll try what you suggest. Unfortunately, the CV is otherwise dead, so I'll check out the resistors - yet be careful to ensure they are fine. Is there a way to test the Caps? Anything I can test... Before I go get another CV... Thanks - Howie Looks like it has been assembled correctly, with maybe a possible exception for the resistors. I can't read the color codes on them in the pictures you posted so I can't tell for sure if you put them in the right locations. Take your multimeter and measure resistance between the center wire and the shield. It's possible you have a short between the two. It doesn't take a lot of heat to melt through the insulation on the center conductor and short the braid to it. Technically, the ground wire isn't 100% needed as all three grounds (both shield braids and the ground wire) are all connected together on the mod board, so a poor connection where the ground wire solders to the board shouldn't have a negative effect. RJ Finally got all my pics taken and uploaded. Here they are: http://www.flickr.co...57623174446460/ It lets you view everything in various sizes. Thanks - Howie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unhuman Posted January 11, 2010 Share Posted January 11, 2010 I might do that. I still need to check the resistors. My board worked before installation (but was snowy) so I wanted to get better output. I didn't know what to blame. But yeah, let me do a few more tests tonite and then I'll get back to you. Thanks... You want to ship it to me? I'll see what I can figure out on it. It'll run you parts + shipping both ways. No labor charge as I'm curious as to what went wrong. There's a chip on that board that is all rusted. That one has me curious, as does the assembly / installation of the kit. RJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unhuman Posted January 14, 2010 Share Posted January 14, 2010 Well, I checked the resistors... They are fine. I checked the rusted chip... I cleaned out between it and guess what?!!! It works. Not only that, but the RF output is now way cleaner than it was before (it was snowy) and the RCA out works. I guess the rust must've gotten moved just enough to ruin everything. Unfortunately, however, I'm not getting any audio. Now, that seems like a pretty simple attachment - any ideas why I'm getting nothing there? -H You want to ship it to me? I'll see what I can figure out on it. It'll run you parts + shipping both ways. No labor charge as I'm curious as to what went wrong. There's a chip on that board that is all rusted. That one has me curious, as does the assembly / installation of the kit. RJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
channelmaniac Posted January 14, 2010 Share Posted January 14, 2010 Well, I checked the resistors... They are fine. I checked the rusted chip... I cleaned out between it and guess what?!!! It works. Not only that, but the RF output is now way cleaner than it was before (it was snowy) and the RCA out works. I guess the rust must've gotten moved just enough to ruin everything. Unfortunately, however, I'm not getting any audio. Now, that seems like a pretty simple attachment - any ideas why I'm getting nothing there? -H You want to ship it to me? I'll see what I can figure out on it. It'll run you parts + shipping both ways. No labor charge as I'm curious as to what went wrong. There's a chip on that board that is all rusted. That one has me curious, as does the assembly / installation of the kit. RJ Make sure the coax braid isn't melting into and touching the center conductor. Also, check the solder point on the capacitor to make sure it's not touching the ground plane next to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unhuman Posted January 15, 2010 Share Posted January 15, 2010 It was the coax - multimeter showed me there was connectivity, but now, there's not and the audio is working. So I've got a fully working (and beautiful) solution. Thanks for the help! Now, I worry that the rust on that one chip will eventually kill my board. I do have one other (dead) CV board. It's a shame the CV case is almost big enough to hold a spare board.... Alas, it is not. Thanks for the great solution and the help getting it to work! -Howie Make sure the coax braid isn't melting into and touching the center conductor. Also, check the solder point on the capacitor to make sure it's not touching the ground plane next to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
channelmaniac Posted January 16, 2010 Share Posted January 16, 2010 It was the coax - multimeter showed me there was connectivity, but now, there's not and the audio is working. So I've got a fully working (and beautiful) solution. Thanks for the help! Now, I worry that the rust on that one chip will eventually kill my board. I do have one other (dead) CV board. It's a shame the CV case is almost big enough to hold a spare board.... Alas, it is not. Thanks for the great solution and the help getting it to work! -Howie Thanks Howie! I try to do the right things. Sometimes it's hard to balance a day job with an old school arcade/gaming/computer repair and parts business, but I give it my best. As for the chip with the rust on it, it's a simple chip to obtain and replace. When that one finally gives up the ghost, just give me the info off the top of it and I should have it. Until then I wouldn't bother with replacing it. It could last a day, it could last another 20 years, but it's not worth replacing yet. Raymond Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
channelmaniac Posted February 4, 2010 Share Posted February 4, 2010 Just got a note from my supplier... the parts I had on backorder have shipped and I should have another batch of kits done this weekend. RJ It was the coax - multimeter showed me there was connectivity, but now, there's not and the audio is working. So I've got a fully working (and beautiful) solution. Thanks for the help! Now, I worry that the rust on that one chip will eventually kill my board. I do have one other (dead) CV board. It's a shame the CV case is almost big enough to hold a spare board.... Alas, it is not. Thanks for the great solution and the help getting it to work! -Howie Thanks Howie! I try to do the right things. Sometimes it's hard to balance a day job with an old school arcade/gaming/computer repair and parts business, but I give it my best. As for the chip with the rust on it, it's a simple chip to obtain and replace. When that one finally gives up the ghost, just give me the info off the top of it and I should have it. Until then I wouldn't bother with replacing it. It could last a day, it could last another 20 years, but it's not worth replacing yet. Raymond Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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