NEO Team's Project for the PC-Engine > NEO Power PC-E Flash Cart

WARNING - BEWARE SOME 128M + SAVE HAVE PROBLEM WITH CD-ROM ATTACHMENT

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ChillyWilly:
Low power can cause any number of different "strange" problems. Generally for cart connectors, it's usually the pitch of the PCB traces that is the issue - a thin trace has a higher resistance than a thick trace; if the cart pulls more current for some reason (it's a BIG 128Mb flash rom + save ram), that higher resistance means the trace drops more voltage, lowering the voltage that appears at the connector pin. The simplest "fix" for an issue like that is to solder a THICK wire (18 or 20 gauge should be enough) from a 5V power plane on the mother board directly to the connector pin. It's easy for someone with decent skills in electronics. The only other "fix" would be for the manufacturer to switch to even lower power devices on the flash cart.

Morden:
I still think that would cause inconsistent errors and crashes. I've seen voltage problems with NES cartridge slots before and these led to erratic rather than constant errors. Turning the console on and off would produce a different kind of crash, like sprites glitched out in a different way, etc. One time there would be a frozen sound buzzing indefinitely, another there wouldn't.

My problems with the new menu and the new manager were always spot on the same. As if the images themselves were flashed incorrectly and would then produce the very same error no matter how many times you'd run them. Anyway, the fact that everything works fine with the old menu and manager, at least for me, confirms that there problem was not the voltage [which is not to say it doesn't exist, just that I don't have one].

Supremo Lagarto:

--- Quote from: ChillyWilly on December 13, 2011, 03:31:09 AM ---Low power can cause any number of different "strange" problems. Generally for cart connectors, it's usually the pitch of the PCB traces that is the issue - a thin trace has a higher resistance than a thick trace; if the cart pulls more current for some reason (it's a BIG 128Mb flash rom + save ram), that higher resistance means the trace drops more voltage, lowering the voltage that appears at the connector pin. The simplest "fix" for an issue like that is to solder a THICK wire (18 or 20 gauge should be enough) from a 5V power plane on the mother board directly to the connector pin. It's easy for someone with decent skills in electronics. The only other "fix" would be for the manufacturer to switch to even lower power devices on the flash cart.

--- End quote ---

Could you show us where this 5 V power plane is on the motherboard and where the connector pin would be located at? If it is under the plate just draw an approximate line. Thanks.

ChillyWilly:
Sorry, I have no idea where that would be in the picture. As an EE, I'd just poke around with my meter to find the 5V plane, and according to the HardwareBook, Vcc is pin 38 of the HuCard.

http://www.hardwarebook.info/HuCard

I'd look for a power regulator near where the power comes into the unit - it should output to two planes: the power plane and the ground plane. Of course, check that it's 5V first... there may be more than one power plane for different voltages. However, the largest power plane should be 5V since that will be the predominant power source for the console. The power regulators usually have whopping big caps on the output to minimize ripple and current surges - find one that has 5V on one side and solder the wire there.

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