NTSC Snes + Pro Fighter Q - Not Working !

Yes, how to prepare it for the purpose of installing it into the SPFQ device. Do you get the ribbon cables with the USB floppy drive or do you use the original cables inside the pro fighter ?. The other thing is where do I get the games from to load onto the virtual floppy disks ?.

 

All you have to do is install the flopply emulator as if you were replacing it with another mechanical drive with the cables already found inside the SPFQ.

From your own cart collection and the SPFQ menu, you can back up your games onto the virtual floppies from there as well.

 

Ok, so cable wise it's a easy swap over ?.

Ah ok. I've sold a lot of the games that I have on floppy discs now !. So if I put a cart in, would it save it the same way as with a mechanical drive ?, or do you have to set it up on a computer first ?. I have a MAC you see.

If I were to replace the drive with another mechanical drive, would any work ?. I've found another Mitsumi drive that is brand new and only £10. I'm pretty sure the one inside the SPFQ is a Mitsumi drive.

 

Yep

You have to format the USB drive first as shown in the video (to access all of the virtual floppies and to copy to them).

There might be another way to get your game files but I think it is against the site rules to talk about, so I can't help you there.

Assuming the SPFQ works, yes they should work.

 

I might look at getting one of these USB drives but for now I just want to fix this issue. I've ordered a new old stock Mitsumi floppy drive for £10 shipped, and hope it'll arrive tomorrow.

I understand about the game downloads. I seem to recall that you could save an emulator to a floppy and run it ??, though it's been 10 years since I really used the SPFQ device.

I've checked the new power lead and the output current is 1000mA. This should be good enough shouldn't it ?

 

That's a a good way to start I'd say.

That should do the job. Is that a 9V 1000mA + --(o-- - negative center adapter?

 

Yes it's a variable output, so it's set at 9v, and it's connected at the tip for it to be negative centre polarity. That's one thing I didn't even know about before, so maybe I cooked my old power lead ??, with having it set to positive centre polarity ?.

I just wish I still had my old Dell PC so I could swap the floppy drives and check them !.

 

I've tried the new floppy drive and it's exactly the same. When you connect power, it makes a noise and then nothing. Unplug it and then plug it back in and it makes the same noise again, almost like it's not got enough power to boot up

Are you sure that all these machines are 9v ?. It's just the lead I used before was Definetly a UK plug without stepdown.

The other thing I noticed, is the light on the front of the floppy drive doesn't light up. Does it only light up when a disk is in there and loading ??.

Have you any other suggestions on what to try as this is getting on my nerves now, especially as the drive was actually whirring the other day !.

 

EDITED:
Ok let me get this straight, Where are you located?, Is the SFPQ unit itself NTSC or PAL?

According to your answers, some of the following may apply:

Ok, so this further lets you know that the problem is either the power supply or the SPFQ.

I have about a dozen of different back up units and they all work perfectly with the 9V 1A adapter with the same specs.
Are you using a UK ac adapter with a stepdown power converter?. If so, this is a problem
if you are located in the UK.

By loading you mean while reading it, if so the answer is yes

Don't follow the steps below until you answer the questions above.

Take a closer look at the edited pic below. The white arrows are showing towards where I think the battery leaked to (black blemished on the board) I bet that if you gently scrape them, you'll see the problem. Also, you're going to need a multimeter to do continuity checks between some of those traces making sure none of them are damaged. If you see a mess, clean it with a little bit of alcohol (91% preferably= less water) and q-tips. Let it dry.

Now, you see the part pointed with the red arrow?, this is the voltage regulator that gives power to the floppy drive. Again with the multimeter, test it to make sure that leg closest to the right (leg with the white line) gives you 5V. Google, "how to test a 7805 voltage regulator". If it doesn't then that's most likely your problem. You'll need to replace it.

The capacitor with the yellow line could be bad too(220UF)

 

I live in the UK. I have a NTSC American Snes, which I use with a original American power lead with a stepdown adaptor.

The SPFQ is an unknown ?. I thought they were all the same ?. Is there any way to tell ?. I can't remember buying it, and think I got it with another Super NES I bought from eBay UK, but it was back in about 2005.

As I've said before, I had a power lead that had a UK plug socket and went directly into the SPFQ. Since I couldn't find that power lead and didn't know what to do, I decided to use the same kind of power lead I'd use for a Super Famicom. The power lead I had, could of been a adaptor that did stepdown the power, but because I can't find it, I can't say for sure. I'm sure a UK Sega Megadrive lead would work as they work in Super Famicoms without a stepdown.

I will get a multimeter and check whether power is coming through ?. Are the parts that could be faulty easily available ?.

I'll have a look at the area you think could be battery acid, but as I said before, the only black I've seen is on the solder of the battery housing on the left hand side- and as there's no other sign on leakage, I can't see how it can be acid from that battery.

 

This is correct.

Look for the chip labeled U16 on the board, this is a copy of the CIC lock-out chip needed to interface with the SNES in order to work and boot properly. It will be PAL or NTSC accordingly. Does yours has some sort of markings on top of the chip?

This is by far the best choice, and you should use a similar substitute.

Yes they are common, replacements or substitutes can easily be found.

I don't know, it seems to me that there was another battery there before (that probably leaked). Right now you have a Nihm 3 legged battery? that's sort of unusual.

The area in the white circle and white arrow seems a bit shady to my, like a previous battery leaked around there or something. The makers of these things are also known to soak these boards with flux, maybe that did it I don't know.

Make sure to clean around there, and that the traces pointed by the white arrows are all ok (continuity checks)

 

I'm quite sure I used the SPFQ on a PAL machine too, which is why I thought that it was region free.

I've checked the U16 chip, and it is totally blank, does that say anything ?

Thanks. Yes, since the last email I sent, I found sellers on eBay for both the voltage regulator and the resistor- so that's good that they're cheap to replace, and the same manufacturers too.

I've just checked round the area you've highlighted in white, and I think I know what you mean now. You can see part green of the PCB board, but it's mainly black round that area. The thing is, the White line is unaffected by this, so surely if they're had of been a leak, it would cover the white line too ?. I've given it a rub down with a cotton bud and there's nothing coming off. There are certain areas where there are bits of residue- it is Chinese isn't it, so the quality control would of probably been quite minimal.

What kind of battery should there be there ?- is it totally different ?.

Excuse my ignorance, but using a multimeter for the continuity checks I need to do, is as simple as touching each part of the circuit in the correct direction and noting if power is getting there, or not. Is this correct ?. I ask as I was going to use a car electronic tester, that has a crocodile clip to go on the car body (Earth) and then a tip is used to find power, which is lit up with a bulb in the body of the tool. The reason I didn't use it, is I didn't want to take the SPFQ outside in pieces where there is something I could use for the earth. I'll just get a multi meter tomorrow.

Many thanks for all your help. It really is appreciated, and you're knowledge on these devices is astounding !.

 

This chip is important because if it's PAL, then it won't work on your NTSC system or vice versa. Basically what happens is this chips tells the Super Nintendo system that there is an official same region SNES cart on top and should boot and work no problem. This chip is a copy of actual CIC chips found in official carts, see pic (smaller chip on the left)


If you suspect your SPFQ has a PAL U16 IC and you have a NTSC SNES cart in hand, you can test it by temporarily removing this chip and plugging the NTSC SNES cart on your SPFQ top edge connector. Without the chip and no cart, the SPFQ will not boot, but if you add the cart then it should work.

Yep, unfortunately until you test them you'll know for sure if they are working or not. I've come across systems with bad voltage regulators that by the looks appear to be good, just to find that they are actually dead.

Strange things happen in life.

With alcohol?. The resistors, capacitor and diode in the white circle are part of the battery CMOS saving feature, make sure they are clean and free of rust,acid, and grime.

That's the correct type in terms of volts and rating. Most if not all I've seen are Nicd, and are two legged (hence the two solder spots on the board for it). In reality, your current battery free leg (positive side) shouldn't be touching the board or should be floating because that side of the board is Ground, but since the board is masked right now it isn't a problem, yet. This is an example of the battery in case you are wondering.

Unfortunately I'm not entirely familiar with the auto tester and clips, but here's a quick tutorial link and video on continuity, most multimeters have this feature:

http://www.ladyada.net/library/metertut/continuity.html



Last but not least, I don't mean to discourage you or anything, but you do know that there are better ways to play SNES games these days right? Like flash carts: http://www.stoneagegamer.com/flash-carts/super-everdrive-snes-sfc/

The SPFQ is obsolete and a hit & miss type of thing. You may spend a lot of time and money in order to make it work again, and might not be worth in the end. Your unit is only 16Megs, meaning you can only play certain games.
But it is up to you, I like to fix old things myself and I still play and party like is 1999.

 

Right, well because the SPFQ loads up with NTSC games it must surely be NTSC then ?. The last time it was used it was on this very machine, the US Super NES.

So I guess the voltage regulator is the first thing to blow when a problem with current occurs ?. I did change the input on the power lead to 12v, as nothing was happening, so I suspect that if the VR does need replacing- due to my stupidity

Saying that, I don't think it's the only thing wrong- as the machine wasn't booting before, as I definetly put it as 9v at first.

What are the differences between NIMH and NICD batteries ?. I see what you mean about the legs on the battery, but can confirm it is NOT touching the board, though admittedly there isn't a great deal of room. Do you have any idea why someone would put a flat plate on that side, but put a plate that goes to a single connector on the other ?. It's also not been put in level, which now I see is odd, don't you think ?.

Yes, I'm aware of those devices, but I'm not that bothered enough to pay $250 for one of those !. I don't like things that break, and enjoy fixing things, if I can. I used to fix and modify Super NES's with the switches for 50/60hz and the lockout chip years ago, and just want to fix this bastard pro fighter- as I'm determined that it doesn't beat me !.

I'm hoping that it's a simple change of the VR, which I'm confident I can do myself- I've done them on the Snes and also changed fuses on the Snes, so I can do basic soldering. If the other issue is the floppy drive, do you know what the best thing to do is regarding the power connector for it ?. The original one is quite short and the new drive has the power input on the opposite side, so it's impossible to put it together with everything connected. The same goes for the ribbon cable as the new floppy drive has the 2 rows of 17 pins the other way round, so the very small original ribbon cable can't be attached. It's either do something about the connection or have the drive upside down I guess ??

 

I've got a multi meter now and I'm confused as to how you explained to do the tests on the voltage regulator and capacitor. Am I right in thinking that I don't do a continuity test to check the voltage regulator and capacitor ?. So do I connect the power lead into the SPFQ, then put the black lead on the ground and the red lead on the right hand leg of the voltage regulator, to see if it's giving me 5v ?