Wizzard Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 (edited) What kind of bug is this? It must be some console thing, not Pluscart, cause It happens on both my pluscarts but just on my NTSC console. PAL console works fine. It started today. Can it be caused by that greenish pin in the middle? Edited March 17, 2021 by Wizzard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Al_Nafuur Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 This pin for sure does not look good. Do your other cartridges work on this machine ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wizzard Posted March 17, 2021 Author Share Posted March 17, 2021 I sold the last common cartridge a few weeks ago, so I have just 2 Pluscarts and they both have the same problem. Yesterday it was yet good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Andrew Davie Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 When you say "it started today", I infer that things worked OK on this machine until now. Given the obvious issue with the pin, Occam's razor applies - that is the most likely cause of any issues you are seeing. I'm not going to be concerned about a fault in the PlusCart display code just yet! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wizzard Posted March 17, 2021 Author Share Posted March 17, 2021 I wonder how to fix that and also how it even could happen. I never thought there were 2 layers of some metalic contact in that cartridge slot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Al_Nafuur Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 there are some good explanations here on AA how to clean these contacts: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+batari Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 For that job I might try going a step further as the contact appears to be corroded. I actually just learned about these recently which supposedly will work for the most serious cases of corrosion but I haven’t tried one yet. https://www.amazon.com/Extra-Fiberglass-Scratch-Brush-BRS-290-00/dp/B002RMCFZM this is just an example, as there are many hits for “extra thin fiberglass scratch brush” I’m planning to get one myself. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Al_Nafuur Posted March 17, 2021 Share Posted March 17, 2021 1 hour ago, batari said: For that job I might try going a step further as the contact appears to be corroded. I actually just learned about these recently which supposedly will work for the most serious cases of corrosion but I haven’t tried one yet. https://www.amazon.com/Extra-Fiberglass-Scratch-Brush-BRS-290-00/dp/B002RMCFZM this is just an example, as there are many hits for “extra thin fiberglass scratch brush” I’m planning to get one myself. There are also some "Cleaning Cartridges": https://www.1upcard.com/products/console-cleaner-compatible-with-atari-2600-by-1upcard or https://www.ebay.com/itm/Atari-2600-Cartridge-Cart-Game-Slot-Connector-Cleaning-Card-Fix-it-Yourself-/402275649835 but I haven't tested them myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wizzard Posted March 18, 2021 Author Share Posted March 18, 2021 I think it is clean enough. Can it be some gamaged component on PCB? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Al_Nafuur Posted March 18, 2021 Share Posted March 18, 2021 Looks much better, but looks a bit like the contact is too far in, can you try to push it a bit more to the middle, so it has better contact when the cartridge is inserted. You might try and clean the PlusCart contacts too, maybe they are dirty from the pin? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wizzard Posted March 18, 2021 Author Share Posted March 18, 2021 Well, I tried to move that contact using micro screwdriver and it seems like the pin distances are the same. Pluscart should not be a problem cause it works fine on another Atari. I am afraid that some internal component on this Atari was damaged. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Andrew Davie Posted March 19, 2021 Share Posted March 19, 2021 12 hours ago, Wizzard said: Well, I tried to move that contact using micro screwdriver and it seems like the pin distances are the same. Pluscart should not be a problem cause it works fine on another Atari. I am afraid that some internal component on this Atari was damaged. try folding some paper a few times and pushing it down behind that bad pin, so it pushes toward the center. My rationale: get the pin pressing hard against the edge connector. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Al_Nafuur Posted March 19, 2021 Share Posted March 19, 2021 13 hours ago, Wizzard said: I am afraid that some internal component on this Atari was damaged. This is possible, but I think it is unlikely. A second "normal" cartridge would be good to test, but this kind of error we see here is typical for bad contact (or contact with a higher resistant than normal). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wizzard Posted March 19, 2021 Author Share Posted March 19, 2021 I am afraid it is some TIA problem. I tried everything with that contact and it seems that it should be fine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts