Hobbyist or repairer
How to Test & Rejuvenate a Sony Trinitron CRT
Poor colour and white balance persist on a rebuilt Sony PVM 20M2MDU Trinitron, so the channel tests the tube with a B&K Precision 467 analyser and then rejuvenates it.
Topic
diagnostics
101 videos.
A machine that will not start rarely says why. Fault finding means narrowing it down: is there power, and is there a picture? Many repairers look closely for leaked battery or capacitor damage first, then check the power rails before they touch a chip.
Test gear sets the pace here. Fixing a Commodore 1541 Disk Drive needs an oscilloscope. A long board-level job is the IBM PC 5150 troubleshooting video, part one of a series. A set with weak colour after new parts is the case in the Trinitron tube test where the tube itself is tested.
Power supplies and tube sets carry mains voltage, and supply capacitors can stay charged after unplugging. Tubes keep a high voltage charge too, and a knocked or cracked one can implode, so shield your eyes and do not lift one by the neck. A hot iron burns, the fumes need ventilation, and lead sits in older solder.
Hobbyist or repairer
Let's fix this ๐๐๐๐ ATX power supply!
Is an old, dead ATX power supply worth the time to repair? Tony359 puts one on the bench to find out what has failed and whether it can be saved.
Hobbyist or repairer
Troubleshooting An IBM PC 5150 - Down The Rabbit Hole We Go!
About a week of fault finding goes into an IBM PC 5150 motherboard pulled from e-waste, and the maker admits to almost giving up along the way.
Hobbyist or repairer
Fixing a Commodore 1541 Disk Drive
Out comes the oscilloscope for a dead Commodore 1541 disk drive, a short board model with an Alps mechanism, which the maker sets out to fix.
Hobbyist or repairer
Sony PlayStation Faulty Laser Repair (And voltage adjustment)
A PlayStation with a dead laser gets its pickup repaired in a short GadgetUK video that also covers a voltage adjustment.
Hobbyist or repairer
I Bought a BOXED Atari 2600. The Picture Was a Disaster.
A boxed early UK Atari 2600 Light Sixer, distributed by Ingersoll, arrives with a picture the maker calls a disaster, and the work sets out to put it right.
Hobbyist or repairer
The world's LOUDEST CRT - Vectrex 3000
The channel puts a Vectrex on the bench, updating its capacitors and chasing down a short, with other repairs along the way.
Hobbyist or repairer
A NewJoisey Amiga 1200 and FNIRSI LCR ESD Tweezers
A leaking Amiga 1200 gets new capacitors, and the maker also tries out a pair of FNIRSI LCR meter tweezers for measuring components.
Hobbyist or repairer
1976 Sony Trinitron KV1215 No Power No High Voltage Diagnosis Resurrection Using Fnirsi 2C53T Scope
Several bad parts turn up in a 1976 Sony Trinitron KV1215 that has no power and no high voltage. The maker uses a Fnirsi 2C53T oscilloscope and traces what caused the failure.
Hobbyist or repairer
Commodore Amiga 500+ - Corrosion & More
Corrosion and odd behaviour once it boots are the problems on this Amiga 500+, a donated machine the channel works through after getting it running.
Hobbyist or repairer
This G.O.A.T. arcade game literally burned me. Let's fix Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!
A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles arcade board is on the bench at 74XX Arcade Repair, and the maker says the job ended with a real burn.
Hobbyist or repairer
Scam or Steal? Paid $119 for 2 "Untested" Sega Game Gears
What is wrong with two untested Game Gears bought as a job lot? The maker strips both down, finding earlier repairs, corrosion and flux residue on one and a much cleaner second console.
Hobbyist or repairer
Using the Greaseweazle as a powerful disk drive diagnostic tool
Failing floppy drives are routine on retro computers, and the Greaseweazle running GW-DIAG is used to test them, including a Panasonic JU-475 and a Shugart SA-400.
Hobbyist or repairer
I Tested 7 Unknown Commodore 64s. How Many Still Work?
Seven Commodore 64s of unknown condition are put to the test, after the maker builds and calibrates an OpenC64Saver to guard them against a failed 5V supply.
Hobbyist or repairer
C64 ASSY 250407 shows random Colors on Startup
A C64 ASSY 250407 showing random colours at startup is worked through by Jan Beta, who checks the voltages, a suspect power switch and the VIC-II in turn.
Hobbyist or repairer
Restoring a Junk Game Boy with $3 AliExpress Chips. Power, LCD screen and Audio Fix.
Multimeter checks, treatment of battery leakage and a full recap are followed by chip swaps, including the IR3R40 audio amplifier, on a Game Boy DMG that began with no power, sound or picture.
Hobbyist or repairer
Atari Video Music - power supply and simple composite mods
Atari Video Music is checked outward from its power supply. Timestamps run through voltage checks, signs of life, finding composite video and then adding a composite output.
Hobbyist or repairer
Amiga 3000T Restoration Part 7: Repairing the Audio Issues
Part seven of an Amiga 3000T restoration goes after the audio filter fault. Earlier parts cover teardown, battery corrosion removal, board repairs, and recapping.
Hobbyist or repairer
Scrap Sega Game Gear Recap: Why Is It Still Dead? (Part 1)
Still dead after someone else recapped it, this scrap Game Gear (dual ASIC VA0 board) is stripped, cleaned of leftover electrolyte and recapped again, though part 1 ends unresolved.
Publication or museum
The CRT from Hell - Commodore Amiga 3000 (Pt 3)
Fault finding on both an Amiga 3000 and its CRT monitor grows into a tangle of checks in part three of the series.
Hobbyist or repairer
Sony BVM 1311: The 90s Trinitron Studio Monitor - Troubleshooting & fixing lots of problems
Why does a Sony BVM 1311 monitor flash? The channel suspects a bad tube at first, but notes something smells fishy, and goes on to check the tube and other components.
Hobbyist or repairer
Arcade PCB Repair - I'm totally blanking on this mystery Nintendo Vs Board
A mystery Nintendo Vs arcade board leaves 74XX Arcade Repair blanking, a pun the maker promises will make sense after watching.
Hobbyist or repairer
PS2 Disk Drive Repair & Tuning with PMAP โ Doing It Right!
Calibrating a PlayStation 2 laser with PMAP over a USB to TTL cable is the centrepiece here, after the maker diagnoses a drive that no longer reads discs and cleans parts.
Hobbyist or repairer
A1200 Repairs / Upgrade / Timing Fix & More - Part 1
Why does an Amiga 1200 board misbehave on its floppy interface? Part 1 of a series looks at one strange fault, with capacitors, an FPU socket and a timing fix left for the next part.
Hobbyist or repairer
Aztech Sound Galaxy NX Pro 16 with SoftMPU and Roland MT-32 emulation.
Several Aztech Sound Galaxy NX Pro 16 ISA sound cards get repair attempts and are then tested with MPU-401 and Roland MT-32 emulation through SoftMPU.
Hobbyist or repairer
Super Nintendo/Famicom faulty CPU or PPU repair
Black screens, corrupt graphics and games that refuse to load on a Super Nintendo can point to a faulty CPU or PPU, and the maker sets out tips for diagnosing it.
Hobbyist or repairer
Arcade PCB Repair - I Tried to Fix Punch-Outโฆ It Tried to KO Me!
A Punch-Out arcade board puts up a fight as 74XX Arcade Repair works on it, and the maker links the tools used as affiliate links.
Hobbyist or repairer
Restoration of the Revolutionary UnMouse
Getting an UnMouse working has to come before judging it. Branchus Creations links a plus and minus power supply module, and the Pico ATX unit that failed along the way.
Hobbyist or repairer
Paperboy Arcade PCB Repair - Lines Through the Sprites!
Why do lines run through the sprites on a Paperboy arcade board? 74XX Arcade Repair tracks down the fault behind the streaks in the graphics.
Hobbyist or repairer
EXTREME Dumpster-Dive Xbox Find - Restored(ish)
An Xbox bought online with a story of a dumpster rescue will not power up, so the maker sets out to see if a thorough clean is all it needs.
Hobbyist or repairer
This is so COOL! Using DiagROM to fix a dead Amiga 500. What an Amazing Tool!
DiagROM is used to find the fault in an Amiga 500 so badly broken that Amiga Test Kit will not run, with serial output and cable notes linked.
Hobbyist or repairer
Megadrive Controller Blob Chip Fix?!?
A third-party Mega Drive controller worked perfectly for around four years, then went completely dead, and GadgetUK looks into why.
Hobbyist or repairer
Nintendo Vs. System Part 1 The MDS Board
Nintendo Vs. boards are toured area by area in the opening of a repair series, from RAM and ROM to CPU, PPU, video, audio and control circuits, to help narrow down faults.
Hobbyist or repairer
Pole Position II Arcade PCB Repair - Won't Boot!
A Pole Position II arcade board refuses to boot, and the maker works through the fault hunt as a follow-along repair.
Hobbyist or repairer
Repairing a motherboard with a subtle intermittent fault
An intermittent fault on a CompuAdd SCAT386SX motherboard takes a long diagnosis, one of the hardest the maker has dealt with. The C&T chipset datasheet is linked.
Hobbyist or repairer
Amiga tank mouse repair and calibration
An Amiga tank mouse goes from faulty to calibrated, with the Amiga test kit, new RM-065 trimpots and fresh dome switches, all linked by the maker.
Hobbyist or repairer
SNK MVS MV4F No Boot Fix
Neo Geo MV4 no boot repair begins here, with board cleaning, soldering a surface mount RAM chip and fault finding, plus talk of the custom chips, boot process and test methods.
Hobbyist or repairer
Restoring Vintage Macintosh Treasure!
What is inside two bags of mystery Macintosh hardware, and can any of it be restored? Branchus Creations opens Bag A and Bag B in turn to find out.
Hobbyist or repairer
Repairing a Very Slow FIC 486-VC-HD Motherboard
Why does a FIC 486-VC-HD motherboard refuse to boot? A dead RTC module is the cause, and vswitchzero replaces it before examining a caching problem that hurts memory latency on many 486 boards.
Hobbyist or repairer
Composite Signal Waveform Introduction
A composite video signal is read on an oscilloscope, with the maker explaining blanking periods, colour burst phase and scope triggering, then tracking a bad signal on a Mega Drive 2 video adapter.
Hobbyist or repairer
Unique Slot 1 motherboard: Creative Blaster Board M003
This Slot 1 board from EMPAC and Creative, with SoundBlaster Live audio built in, will not POST. Severed traces are suspected after it came out of a scrapyard.
Hobbyist or repairer
Midway Galaga Arcade PCB Repair
Replacing sockets, reset and enable circuit chips and removing a shorted trace brings a Midway Galaga board back, using a Fluke 1090A to chase reset, ROM and RAM faults.
Hobbyist or repairer
Fix common issue of 3dfx Voodoo 3 (black screen)
A Voodoo 3 2000 PCI card with a black screen is revived by Bits und Bolts, who says it may be a very common fault on old video cards.
Hobbyist or repairer
Panasonic FS-A1F MSX2 Home Computer Game Console Repair
A dead Panasonic FS-A1F MSX2 comes back to life as the maker checks V9938 outputs, clock signals and RGB and sync, then replaces the main board capacitors and the hybrid audio and video chip.
Hobbyist or repairer
Williams Joust Controller PCB Repair Pat1 of 2
Williams Joust controller interface board has faulty player 2 controls, and the video goes through fault-finding steps plus the soldering and desoldering used for the repair, as part 1 of 2.
Hobbyist or repairer
When a battery leaks, does the motherboard make a sound?
Four old boards from a junk box, a 286, two 386DX and a 486DX with an overdrive CPU, are powered up to see which still work, with battery leaks in mind.
Hobbyist or repairer
Troubleshooting and Repairing a 3Dfx Voodoo 2!
Diamond Monster 3D II, an 8MB Voodoo 2 card, is diagnosed with debugging tools including 3dfx environment variables before the soldering iron comes out for a repair attempt.
Hobbyist or repairer
This C64 Mod Makes a Fantastic Tool for Testing Chips
A ZIF 64 diagnostic tool is built from spare Commodore 64 parts, then used to test some old Commodore chips for faults.
Hobbyist or repairer
VBIOS Bit Rot? Saving a Pair of Matrox AGP Cards
Two dead Matrox G100 and G200 AGP cards are troubleshot for vBIOS degradation, which the maker links to high failure rates in these series.
Hobbyist or repairer
Socket 7 motherboard repair - endless faults!
Endless faults, in the maker's words, turn up on an uncommon ASK ATX55C Socket 7 board that Tony359 sets out to revive, starting with jumper setup and a first power up.
Hobbyist or repairer
Repairathon 2022: Trying to repair a Super Socket 7 mainboard.
Necroware continues a repairathon with an MSI MS-5169 Super Socket 7 board made for AMD K6-2 and K6-3 CPUs, aiming to bring it back to life.
Hobbyist or repairer
AMPTRON PM-9600 Socket 7 motherboard repair
An Amptron PM-9600 Socket 7 board with the TX Two chipset is worked through from jumper setup and first power up to troubleshooting its voltage supply.
Hobbyist or repairer
Repairathon 2022: A resurrection of the legendary Asus P2B
Asus P2B, a Slot 1 mainboard for Pentium II and Pentium III processors, gets a repair attempt as one episode of Necroware's 2022 repairathon series.
Hobbyist or repairer
Repairing the Legendary 3dfx Voodoo 5 5500!
A 3dfx Voodoo 5 5500, bought untested and as-is, has a long list of problems, and the maker sets out to restore it.
Hobbyist or repairer
The Biggest CRTs still in use: The Sony XBR Trinitron Tube TV
Sony KV-32XBR45 Trinitron servicing starts with a look inside the set, then moves to cleaning, discharging the tube and testing, using a 240p test suite for the display.
Hobbyist or repairer
Repairing the Number Nine Imagine 128 Series II video card
Number Nine's Imagine 128 Series II video card arrived defective, so the maker looks at its unusual hardware layout and attempts to get it working again.
Hobbyist or repairer
Repairing The Legendary Gravis Ultrasound
A Gravis Ultrasound sound card bought broken gets a repair attempt from vswitchzero, who chose a faulty card over paying for a working one.
Hobbyist or repairer
Part 1 of 3 - CinemaTronics Vector Monitor Repair
A CinemaTronics vector monitor comes in for repair in the first of three parts, with a high voltage probe and an oscilloscope among the kit listed.
Hobbyist or repairer
Sharp MZ-80K museum-quality restoration, PART 1
Previous owner modifications turn up as the maker investigates and strips down a 1978 Sharp MZ-80K, noting each change before restoring the motherboard in part 1.
Hobbyist or repairer
Oric Repair: The "Impossible" RAM Failure
Why would an Oric Atmos show an "impossible" RAM failure? Noel's Retro Lab expects a fairly routine repair and ends up hunting for where the fault really lies.
Hobbyist or repairer
COMMODORE 64 repair video - Part 1
A Commodore 64 bought locally in an unknown state is the subject of part one, with the maker asking whether it will work at all.
Hobbyist or repairer
Let's revive a 486 Soyo SY-025R mainboard with a sneaky secret
Someone else's earlier repair attempt complicates this Soyo SY-025R 486 mainboard, and Necroware explains why they dislike taking on boards that have already been worked on.
Publication or museum
Apple IIe (1983) Trash to Treasure | 'The Most Personal Computer' | Part 1
An Apple IIe that needs repair gets its first look in part one of a restoration, with background on the machine ahead of the repair.
Hobbyist or repairer
Restoring a 1976 Wang 2200F mini-computer, Part 1
Without a microprocessor, this 1976 Wang 2200F mini-computer runs on 113 discrete TTL chips. Episode 1 gives an overview, then takes the machine apart to look at its digital and analogue cards.
Hobbyist or repairer
Let's repair an old 286 mainboard Jaton JAM-2301-V1
Necroware takes on a donated 286 mainboard, the Jaton JAM-2301-V1, which the channel calls rare and more than three decades old, and tries to repair it.
Hobbyist or repairer
Let's repair one of the best 486 mainboard - Octek Hippo 15
Octek Hippo 15, a 486 mainboard built on the UMC8881 and UMC8886 chipset, gets a repair attempt, with documentation for the board linked.
Hobbyist or repairer
Black Screen VIC-20 Repair (And Start Sequence Exploration)
A VIC-20 with a black screen is the starting point, and Noel's Retro Lab works through wrong assumptions before rechecking them and exploring the machine's start sequence.
Hobbyist or repairer
Shuttle HOT-591P Super Socket 7 Motherboard - Test/Repair/Upgrade
Will a Shuttle HOT-591P Super Socket 7 board bought as spares or repairs work? The maker tests it, then tries a Pentium 90 in it.
Hobbyist or repairer
Let's repair a mystical issue with an old 386 mainboard
A strange fault appears on a 386SX board once used in an overclocking video, and Necroware investigates to find the cause.
Hobbyist or repairer
Sony Trinitron KV1541 Remote Set Super Hard Fix 1977 Vintage Color TV
A 1977 Sony Trinitron KV1541 colour set, a remote control model, goes through diagnosis and repair on the shango066 bench.
Hobbyist or repairer
Tandy 102 Turmoil Pt.1 - Battery corrosion repair, hidden damage, LCD corruption fix
Why did a Tandy 102 stop working after storage? Hidden battery corrosion damage is tracked down until it boots, and an LCD corruption problem comes next.
Hobbyist or repairer
Attempting to Fix a Black Screen Model 1 Sega Mega Drive
Black screen at switch on is all this Model 1 Mega Drive offers, so the maker takes the console apart to look for the reason and attempt a repair.
Hobbyist or repairer
PCChips M921 486 motherboard repair
A faulty 486 motherboard, later identified by the maker as a PCChips M921, is troubleshot by Tony359 with advice from the Vogons forum, and a reference page is linked.
Hobbyist or repairer
Can This Broken Amstrad CPC464 Be Saved? Let's Find Out
An Amstrad CPC464 and its MP1 module go on the bench with a buzz, no power, a broken keyboard and a faulty cassette, to find out whether they can be saved.
Hobbyist or repairer
Garbled Screen! Amstrad CPC 464 Video Failure
Why does an Amstrad CPC 464 show a garbled screen? Noel's first suspect, the CRT controller, turns out to be wrong, and the hunt moves through power, the gate array, ROM, Z80 and RAM.
Hobbyist or repairer
Commodore 64 troubleshooting part 1 the basics - multimeters and alcohol
Armed with a multimeter, a toothbrush and alcohol, TheRetroChannel compares a healthy Commodore 64 board with a sick one and applies the same checks. It is part one of three.
Sells parts or repairs
Retro Game Consoles Found in The DUMP! Let's Try to Fix Them.
A PlayStation and a Sega Genesis found at a city dump reach TronicsFix, one refusing to play a game and the other not starting at all.
Hobbyist or repairer
Can I Fix This Untested Acorn Electron? - Retro Repair
An untested Acorn Electron bought as spares or repair turns up keyboard problems and instability as it warms, and Retro Tech Repair works through them by trial and error.
Hobbyist or repairer
Commodore 64 Repair - Psychedelic Colors
Why does a bread-bin Commodore 64 flash psychedelic characters? The repair goes through a colour RAM swap, a PLA replacement and a sticking shift lock key, then a round of tests.
Hobbyist or repairer
Diagnosing and Repairing a Non-Booting Gameboy Color
Diagnosing a non-booting Game Boy Color comes down to one damaged via here, repaired with a length of wire while the maker talks through the steps.
Hobbyist or repairer
Recapping a Faulty Sega Game Gear
Sega Game Gear with no screen and no sound is recapped in a livestream, where an ESR meter tests the original capacitors before the whole set is replaced for a customer.
Hobbyist or repairer
Colecovision Console Lot - Tear-down and Repair Part 1
A lot of Colecovision consoles is torn down and repaired over a series, and this first part opens them up and makes a start on their faults.
Hobbyist or repairer
Overvoltage Repair and Prevention on an Amstrad CPC 6128
Noel diagnoses an Amstrad CPC 6128 that had 12V fed into its 5V connector, finds mostly RAM chips failed, then fits a P6KE 6.8A diode to guard against a repeat.
Hobbyist or repairer
Commodore 1351 Mouse Repair
The Commodore 1351 mouse for the C64 and C128 is worked through in stages: taking it apart, checking the mechanics, cleaning the LEDs and sensors, then testing the cable.
Hobbyist or repairer
ZX-81 architecture overview and repair, mod and upgrade plan
The Sinclair ZX-81 gets an architecture overview and a tour of its board, then a repair, and the maker talks through plans for extensive modifications and upgrades.
Hobbyist or repairer
1980 Midway Pac-Man AC Power Supply Testing
Classic Arcade Repairs tests the AC power supply of a 1980 Midway Pac-Man, the part of the cabinet that powers the game board.
Hobbyist or repairer
C128 Crystal Power - How to test crystals in circuit.
Crystals can be tested in circuit with an oscilloscope, and this C128 repair traces a missing clock to a dead one. The maker says the go/no-go test is done with the machine powered off.
Hobbyist or repairer
Troubleshooting Vintage Computers #1 - Evaluation
Troubleshooting vintage computers starts with an evaluation of the basic subsystems a machine needs to work. The findings then point to a direction for further tests in this first part of a series.
Hobbyist or repairer
Build a Dummy Load to test vintage power supplies
A resistive dummy load built from power resistors or car light bulbs lets a vintage computer power supply be tested. The video also works through choosing values and a reference sheet.
Hobbyist or repairer
Getting my non-working IBM PS2 P70 back into shape.
An IBM PS/2 P70 386 luggable that does nothing at all gets a teardown and some fixes from the maker, who says more work is still to come.
Hobbyist or repairer
Colecovision (PAL, EU version) - Retro Gaming Console Repair
Retro Tech Repair sets out to repair the monochrome fault on a PAL Colecovision, the EU version of the console, which gives only black and white output.
Hobbyist or repairer
Surprise C64 Donation & Repair
Jan Beta opens up a Commodore 64 donated unseen, finds a SwinSID nano fitted inside and carries out repair work. A pictorial guide to C64 faults is linked.
Hobbyist or repairer
What's Wrong With This Dead Vectrex?
What is wrong with a totally dead Vectrex bought as junk on eBay? The maker diagnoses the fault, after warning that the CRT can hold a deadly charge even when switched off.
Hobbyist or repairer
1981 Nintendo Donkey Kong Arcade PCB Repair
A 1981 Nintendo Donkey Kong arcade board is repaired by Classic Arcade Repairs, and the maker links the oscilloscope and high voltage probe the channel uses.
Hobbyist or repairer
Troubleshooting a "black screen" C64
A Commodore 64 mainboard (assembly 250407) powers up to a black screen, and the maker troubleshoots it, with links on PLA chips and on how the maker removes chips.
Hobbyist or repairer
SNK Neo Geo - 10 x Neo Geo MVS Board Repairs Part 1 (Z80, Watchdog, SFIX) - MV1A MV1AX Neo-Buf
Ten Neo Geo MVS boards from a friend are being repaired, and the first three come up here with Z80, watchdog and SFIX faults on MV1A boards.
Hobbyist or repairer
0x0010.2 - Resurrecting The 98 Machine
A Windows 98 machine has stopped working, and the maker links it to a capacitor missing from a card, weighing a weak solder joint against damage from earlier handling.
Hobbyist or repairer
Tuning up a Dell M992 CRT monitor
A free 19 inch Dell M992 CRT monitor, built by Samsung in 2002, arrives filthy and beaten up, and Adrian's Digital Basement sets about tuning it up.
Hobbyist or repairer
Sega Dreamcast Teardown + VGA Mod + Battery Replacement + LED Mod + Common Faults
Dreamcast common faults come up as the maker takes one apart and rebuilds it, with a VGA socket, a blue LED, a battery replacement and a fix for it powering off.
Sells parts or repairs
Dirty and Dead PC Engine!! - Repair & Restoration
A PC Engine that does not work is probed with a meter until the break in the board turns up, and the video then restores the plastic housing.
Hobbyist or repairer
Amiga HD floppy drive repair - Chinon FB-357A
Intermittent disk-in-drive detection on a Chinon FB-357A floppy drive from an Amiga 4000 is repaired in this video, while head cleaning with alcohol was done off camera.
