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SEGA Game Gear
The main reason why Game Gears fail is because of capacitor plague. Poorly made capacitors were used and they unfortunately leak all over the internals. Before any real work can be done, you first need to recap the main board, power board, and audio board. Places like Console5 sell capacitor kits for each model. If there is capacitor leakage on your board, it is crucial you clean all of it up, otherwise it will just continue to corrode the internals. Best way I found to remove it is to use IPA and a brush to scrub, then followed by IPA and a q-tip. After a full recap you may still have problems. First double check to make sure you soldered everything together correctly before continuing
Retrosix Wiki has schematics, board scans, and great guides to help fix issues with your game gear
Schematics https://www.retrosix.wiki/schematics-game-gear https://console5.com/wiki/File:Game_Gear_VA0_Schematic_-_Sound.png
Board Scans https://www.retrosix.wiki/board-scans-game-gear
Other helpful info https://console5.com/wiki/Game_Gear https://8bithardware.wixsite.com/website/post/repairing-sega-game-gear
| Problem | Solution |
|---|---|
| No Power | https://www.retrosix.wiki/getting-to-red-light-boot-game-gear |
| Won't read games | https://www.retrosix.wiki/pre-game-asic-operation-game-gear |
| No Contrast | https://www.retrosix.wiki/lcd-circuit-game-gear |
| No Audio | Most likely has a problem with the audio board. Capacitor leakage can often destroy traces requiring you to have to run a jumper wire to fix them. You can use an oscilloscope to help diagnose the problem
|
| Screen has a lines/Third of the screen is black | The screen is failing, heat may temporarily fix it. Your best option is to replace it with a new ips screen mod |