Hello all, I just picked up a pretty good condition SMS1 yesterday and hooked it up to my PVM without a cartridge installed, only to find that it freezes with a distorted screen on the preloaded game screen! Unfortunately I don't have any carts to try out as they had no SMS games in stock. I've included a picture of the issue and a video. I'd appreciate any help! Thanks! View My Video
***CORRECTION: System does not freeze. All that's present is the tearing on the top of the screen. I can play both games with no issues. Also included pics of the caps if needed. I don't see any goop on the motherboard, no water damage or signs of corrosion either. Board is relatively clean. Trying to locate my Genesis 1 composite cables to see if the issue still exists. To my knowledge, the Genesis 1 and SMS1 use the same RGB cables, right?
I'm using retro cable accessories' GEN1 - BNC cable. Works like a dream on my Genesis1. If I hit the External Sync button, the image starts rolling. All the cables and wires are hooked up as they should be. My Gen1, NES, and SNES all work awesome with my setup. The SMS is the only one throwing me for a loop with this issue.
Thing is, the MD1 and master system arent the same system. If memory serves, theres an issue with sync on the MD1 and you need to mod the console or add parts into the cable. If these parts are added into the cable you have but arent required on the Master System... you could have sync issues.
UPDATE: So I hooked the SMS up through the Crosspoint and output the video signal to the XRGB Mini and the BVM, XRGB has no issue with the video signal and works perfect. The BVM is still having an issue. Any insight?
You are ignoring the most likely advice. Looks like a sync issue. Some devices accept non standard signals with more grace than others, so just because it works on 1 device and doesnt on another doesnt mean you have ruled it out.
No I'm hearing you. I was just trying to add more info to the discussion. G1 and SMS1 both output Csync, so outside of any additional hardware that needs to be in the console/cable, they should operate the same, right? I will contact RCA and see if she has anything for SMS1.
Csync isn't just csync. Amplitude of the signal, impedance etc can all vary between consoles. Like I said earlier, the Mega drive requires modding or components added to the cable to get csync usable. If the master system doesn't require this, you would have issues.
In fact, using CSync from retro consoles is the most likely reason for sync issues between different devices. The problem is that this signal is non-standard. Each console manufacturer implements it a little different and often they change it between PCB revisions. Going with sync on luma is a much safer choice. It still has the benefit of a "clean" signal, as it's simple for devices to strip the sync from that without interference, and it is always AC coupled / buffered and always uses correct video signal level.
