Hi everyone Ive just put illuminated rocker switches in a md2 and they look very cool but are a little dim, would i cause any damage tapping another 5v line and piggybacking it across the switches? The switches themselves are rated at 12v. Oh yeah and replaced the power led :smile-new: Thanks in advance Mike
You won't cause any damage, the only thing that'll happen by tapping 5V for the switch lights is that the system will draw a tiny bit more current than it usually would.
The 7805 isn't exactly taxed to its limits either, so no big deal. I've made it policy to put some thermal paste between the regulator and the heatsinks on all consoles that have a set just because. Doesn't hurt and it will likely extend the life of the part.
Default was to not bother and while the 7805 likely doesn't get that hot under most conditions they put a decent sized chunk of metal in the Genesis/MD as a heatsink for a reason. Guessing the lack of thermal paste was probably a cost cutting measure combined with "eh it transfers enough heat simply being in physical contact with the metal".
Thanks Guys fantastic, thanks guys...ive got some stuff to list on ebay then ill get to it...pics to follow
Are you saying the switch contacts are rated at 12v (& something amps) or are you saying the switch "light" is 12v (ie these switches somone would use in their car)? Does the switch have seperate connecting points for the light? If not you maybe able to pop the switch open and either put your own 5v rated led setup in there or if there is one already in there and has some sort of resistance, reduce that resistor down in size to suit the 5v supply (100ohm should be fine).
hi guys ended up selling the megadrive before i got a chance to mod it any further....thanks for all the quick replies and great advice tho!
