Game Gear recap gone wrong?

I just finished replacing the capacitors in my Game Gear. Before the replacement, it would stay on but only display colored lines. Now, it turns on for a couple seconds and then turns back off. I already checked the polarity of all the caps, so that can't be an issue. I've included a picture of the work so you guys can check whatever I lack the abilities to.

 

Should the wires connecting the power board to the main board be twisted like that? Could be causing power issue?

 

yep, that's how it comes from the factory.

 

Make sure you cleaned up any corrosion from the leaky caps really well. Also check out any vias that look shady - scrubbing off the corrosion can be the last straw that ruins them. I like to drill them out and run the jumper through the hole so there are no fitment or layout issues.

I've run in to this more than a few times when everything else looks good, and I've found that those wires actually can be a problem. You can test it out: take it apart and leave the two halves separate (but plugged in to each other of course) and turn it on. If you try it in a few different angles and positions, you'll probably find one that works every time.

If you find that to be the problem - I have replacements with the little harnesses, but it's really hard to test for intermittent connections like that, so I'd recommend just soldering in some new wires and ditch the plastic altogether.

 

One thing that I noticed was the gunk on the 2 chips at the bottom corners of the console. Does it come from the factory like that (some kind of underfill maybe) or is it from a capacitor? If it's not supposed to be there, how would I remove it?

Anyway, if that's the issue I'd be surprised. As I said in the initial post, the Game Gear stayed on before I replaced the caps, and now it won't.

 

Is there any way you can post better close up pics? perhaps there is a short somewhere.

 

Got a few -

1: Are you testing with an AC adapter or batteries?
2: Is that a drop of solder on top of the transformer? Sometimes epoxy is used on transformers to reduce noise, but I haven't seen it on GG units...and that looks like solder.
3: Do you have a multimeter?

 

1: Are you testing with an AC adapter or batteries?
AC adapter- the same one as the Genesis 2 uses. Batteries don't work either.
2: Is that a drop of solder on top of the transformer? Sometimes epoxy is used on transformers to reduce noise, but I haven't seen it on GG units...and that looks like solder.
Yeah, it's solder. I figured it wouldn't affect anything since it was on top of the insulation. Can I remove it the "normal way" (heating it up and taking it off with desoldering braid) or do I have to use a razor blade or something?
3: Do you have a multimeter?
No, but I'll have access to one in a couple days.

 

The solder on the transformer might just scrape of with a fingernail? If you put the soldering iron near the insulation you will melt it.

 

...if it didn't already melt when a drop of liquid metal landed on it. In any case, best not to put any more heat to it.

From what I can tell from the slightly out-of-focus photo, some of your solder joints don't look too hot, i.e. they might be "cold". You might want to start reworking the worst ones, see if that improves things.
Have you tested the unit without moving it? Put it on a table, turned on, AC cable connected, then finally plug the AC into the wall? That should at least rule out problems with connections lost due to shaking.

 

I took off the solder blob (the transformer doesn't seem melted or anything) and it still doesn't work.

 

I see at least half a dozen corroded vias. I hate to belabor the point, but you're going to have to test all of those.

 

Epilogue: I ended up buying another Game Gear to use as parts (This one was in really rough shape, to the point where when I took it apart a couple of the screw posts fell off inside the casing). I moved the caps over to the new motherboard and reused the power and sound boards and the casing from the original Game Gear. Everything worked but after I tried listening to the sound from the headphone jack, the audio wouldn't come out of the speaker any more. Unwilling to let a broken headphone jack foil my efforts to have a functional game gear, I moved the sound board caps over to the new sound board, and now everything works perfectly. All I have to do now is get a screen protector that isn't shit and a game that isn't G-Loc.

 

If you're going to pick up a soldering iron, get a multimeter. It's a must. Even a cheap, crappy one is a start.