retrostuff.org Open in urlscan Pro
185.112.145.172  Public Scan

Form analysis
1 forms found in the DOM

GET https://retrostuff.org/

<form role="search" method="get" class="search-form" action="https://retrostuff.org/">
  <label>
    <span class="screen-reader-text">Search for:</span>
    <input type="search" class="search-field" placeholder="Search …" value="" name="s">
  </label>
  <input type="submit" class="search-submit" value="Search">
</form>

Text Content

RETROSTUFF

Search
Primary Menu Skip to content
 * Atari
   * Jaguar
   * Lynx
   * Portfolio
 * Bandai
   * Datach
   * Pippin Atmark
   * Playdia
   * WonderSwan
 * NEC
   * PC Engine
   * PC-9821
   * PC-FX
 * Nintendo
   * DSi
   * Famicom
   * GameCube
   * e-Reader
   * Super Famicom
   * Wii
   * Sharp
 * Philips
   * CD-i
 * Sega
   * Dreamcast
   * Master System
   * Mega Drive
   * Mega-CD
   * Pico
   * Saturn
 * SNK
   * Neo Geo
   * Neo Geo Pocket Color
   * Neo Geo X
 * More
   * Amiga CD³²
   * CPS2
   * Macintosh
   * PlayStation
   * ThinkPad
   * Xbox 360
   * Miscellaneous
 * Card Games
   * Barcode Battler
   * Datach
   * e-Reader
   * HyperScan
 * Modification&Repair
   * 3D Printing
   * Disassembly
   * Modification
   * Repair
 * Contact / Follow
   * Contact Form
   * RSS Feed
   * Twitter
   * Facebook
   * Reddit
   * Bluesky
   * Mastodon
   * Instagram
   * Disclaimer

Search for:
CD-i, Modification, Philips, Repair


NVRAM+RTC SOLUTIONS FOR PHILIPS CD-I PLAYERS

CD-i, Modification, Philips, Repair, Sony


COMPONENT LISTS

CD-i, Modification, Philips


MODIFICATIONS FOR PHILIPS CD-I PLAYERS

CD-i, Disassembly, Modification, Philips, Repair


PHILIPS CD-I POWER SUPPLY UNITS

2024-09-29 rosewood 2 Comments

The aim of this article is to compile a comprehensive documentation of all known
power supply units for Philips CD-i players. It is a work in progress and will
be updated with new information at regular intervals. I welcome feedback,
especially if you discover an error or can contribute additional information.

Frequently asked questions concern the operational safety of a model in
different countries and the location of fuses. To answer these questions
accurately, you need to know the specific built-in or external power supply
associated with the model, version and revision of the player. The grouping by
mainboard/hardware generation provides a clear overview, as already shown in the
article Modifications for Philips CD-i players.

The documentation of the fuses in the Mono III and IV generations began years
ago with the article Philips CD-i Mono III / IV Fuses, and it was always the
plan to summarise it in a more comprehensive article covering all generations.

This article now follows that approach and presents specifications, information
on fuses, compatibility and possible modifications. It summarises all relevant
data from the previously mentioned articles.

Continue reading Philips CD-i Power Supply Units →
 *  
 * 
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  

CD-iCDI210CDI220CDI350CDI360CDI450CDI470CDI490CDI550CDI601CDI602CDI605TCDI660DisassemblyFW380imodsPhilipsRepair
CD-i, Disassembly, Modification, Philips, Repair


PHILIPS FW380I MINI SYSTEM REPAIR PART 1

2024-05-31 rosewood 1 Comment

The Philips FW380i Mini System landed unexpectedly on my repair table last
August. I never intended to get one of these models because the CD-i part is at
the lowest end of CD-i hardware (very similar to the Roboco mainboard of CDI450
etc.) and also the build quality of FW mini system is not something I would have
bought or used in the 90s. However, this particular CD-i mainboard was only used
for this model and has some very unique features such as a separated servo
board, a connector for communication with the FW part and even some unused
connectors for a disc changer – which unfortunately never saw the light of day.
Long story short: this model was never properly analysed, which is why it piqued
my interest.

In this article I will show you how I carried out the disassembly and basic
cleaning last year. I will follow up about diagnosis, repair and possibly
modifications at a later point. The exact model/version I’m taking apart here is
an FW380i/20 – which means that a 22ER9956/20 DVC mini cartridge was installed
at the factory.

Continue reading Philips FW380i Mini System Repair Part 1 →
 *  
 * 
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  

CD-iDisassemblyFW380imodsPhilipsRepair
Apple, Bandai, Disassembly, Pippin Atmark, Repair


PIPPIN ATMARK TROUBLESHOOTING AND REPAIR INFORMATION

2024-04-28 rosewood 2 Comments

A collection of technical information to assist in troubleshooting and the
repair of Pippin Atmark consoles. You can use it side by side with the
disassembly guide in my Pippin Atmark PA-82001-S Monitoring Unit article from
2019.

You will find details about the FFC of the control buttons, the Matsushita
CR-504-L optical disc drive and the VOLTEK SPEC7188B power supply unit. The
information applies to both “monitoring” and retail units.


CONTROL BUTTONS FFC

These are the control buttons on the top of the Pippin and what they look like
on the back. When you open the case of a Pippin, pay special attention to the
FFC (flexible flat cable). Otherwise you could damage the control buttons, the
FFC or even the ZIF connector on the mainboard.

Pippin Atmark control buttons Continue reading Pippin Atmark Troubleshooting and
Repair Information →
 *  
 * 
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  

AppleBandaiDisassemblyPippinRepair
3D Printing, Disassembly, Mega Drive, Mega-CD, Sega, Sega 32X


MSDEXP AND CLAMSHELL CASE FOR TERRAONION MEGASD

2024-01-22 rosewood 3 Comments

This is a follow-up on the Terraonion MegaSD Cartridge article from 2019. In the
past two years, I managed to find an MSDEXP adapter and a clamshell case for my
MegaSD cartridge.


MSDEXP

Thanks to Mobius Strip Tech, I was able to source an MSDEXP. I can now finally
play Mega-CD 32X games with the MegaSD.

The housing from Retro Frog is a high-quality print with a matte look. Inside
there are two connectors, some passive components and a lot of tracks:

MSDEXP outside and inside Continue reading MSDEXP and Clamshell Case for
Terraonion MegaSD →
 *  
 * 
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  

32X3D PrintingDisassemblyMega DriveMega-CDSega
Disassembly, NEC, PC-9821, PC-FX


NEC PC-FXGA, PC-FXGA DOS/V, AND ITS BREAKOUT BOX

2023-12-31 rosewood Leave a comment

A spontaneous article about the NEC PC-FXGA: The PC-FX Game Accelerator Board
for PC-98 and DOS/V. It emerged from the search for a replacement breakout box
for the PC-FXGA DOS/V card in the PC-FX Fan Club Discord server. The details of
the breakout box are in the second half of the article, and before that some
information and photos.

There are already many resources about PC-FX(GA) (see list at the end of this
article), so I won’t go into too much detail here. Basically, it’s a PC-FX on a
card for your PC, with a special feature. Game Accelerator means that it also
contains the 3D chip Huc6273 (Aurora) that is not present in the normal PC-FX.
There are two versions of these cards: PC-FXGA, a C-Bus card for use with NEC
PC-9800 series computers and PC-FXGA DOS/V, an ISA card for use with IBM
PC-compatible computers running DOS/V.

Continue reading NEC PC-FXGA, PC-FXGA DOS/V, and its Breakout Box →
 *  
 * 
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  

DisassemblyNECPC-9821PC-FX
3D Printing, Disassembly, Famicom, Modification, Nintendo, Repair


NINTENDO AV FAMICOM WITH SWITCHLESS NESRGB MAINTENANCE

2023-11-24 rosewood Leave a comment

My Nintendo AV Famicom that I equipped with a switchless NESRGB solution in 2016
is spending most of its days on a shelf as a backup console. It still needs some
maintenance, which I will cover in this article: cleaning, securing the NESRGB,
placing the LED and repairing the expansion port cover.

Last week, I just wanted to quickly test some Famicom carts and realised that
the console wasn’t outputting any picture or sound. There was still a reaction
on the TV though: black picture and a crackling sound when I switched it off.
Fearing the worst, I opened it up and saw my favourite insulation tape. However,
as I’ve learned in the past, this stuff disintegrates over the years and sticks
to everything, so now I was apparently in for not only a repair but also a
clean. I opened the console and plugged it in again. When I removed some of the
insulating tape, graphics rubbish suddenly appeared on the TV. On closer
inspection, I realised that the NESRGB board was tilted slightly backwards. It
must have come loose at some point.

Continue reading Nintendo AV Famicom With Switchless NESRGB Maintenance →
 *  
 * 
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  

3D PrintingDisassemblyFamicommodsNintendoRepair
CD-i, Disassembly, Philips


DVS VE-200 NVRAM BACKUP AND BATTERY REPLACEMENT

2023-03-21 rosewood 1 Comment

The DVS VE-200 CD-Interactive Player is a CD-i player manufactured by LG. Like
other CD-i players, it contains a battery-backed NVRAM and real-time clock.
In this article, I will take a look inside and show how the battery can be
replaced while making sure that the NVRAM data won’t get lost in the process.

DVS VE-200 CD-Interactive Player

The player is one of four known very similar models that make use of the
GoldStar / LG mainboard (midi-size). The other three models are: GoldStar / LG
GDI-700M, GDI-S710 and Knowlogy K2000-MSS. What makes them special in terms of
NVRAM and RTC is that they don’t have a Timekeeper or SmartWatch socket, but a
different solution:

Continue reading DVS VE-200 NVRAM Backup and Battery Replacement →
 *  
 * 
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  

CD-iDisassemblyPhilips
Miscellaneous


10 YEARS OF RETROSTUFF.ORG

2022-12-21 rosewood Leave a comment

10 years ago, I started this blog retrostuff.org to record what I was tinkering
with in my spare time. It was initially meant to be some sort of diary and also
include everything that I bought related to retro- and game consoles (see
category New Arrival), but that turned out to be way too much work, so I focused
on technical articles. Over the years, I had so many projects that not
everything could be properly documented and put in an article. The backlog is
huge and I’m always trying to review and improve old articles as well.

For the 10th anniversary, I took a trip down memory lane and selected one or
more articles that were important to me. Be it because they are about a
favourite device or an important discovery or milestone in research.

Continue reading 10 Years of retrostuff.org →
 *  
 * 
 * 3 
 * 
 * 
 *  
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  

Miscellaneous
CD-i, Disassembly, Philips


PHILIPS 22ER9021 AND TECNOPLUS TP520 CD-I GAMEPADS

2022-11-23 rosewood 1 Comment

Last year, I asked myself whether or not all Philips 22ER9021 CD-i Gamepads are
the same and answered with probably. Since then, I have had a look at some more
gamepads of different production dates, including an unbranded 22ER9021 and a
TecnoPlus TP520 CD-i Control Pad. Let’s revisit and elaborate on what has been
discovered last year:

 * The production number on the label contains the year and calendar week
   (example: 1A 00 9447). This applies to almost all Philips CD-i players and
   accessories. So far, only the white mice for the professional players didn’t
   follow the year code.
   A full production number has 8 or 9 digits and an additional 5-6-digit serial
   number at the end. But most accessories are only labelled with simple 8-digit
   production numbers and that’s why you find so many accessories with the very
   same data on the labels.
 * Inside, all 22ER9021 gamepads have the same PCB with these markings:
   CDI JOYPAD REV 1.2
   P/N:12290210001-03
   This is still the case after checking some more, even uncommon variants.
   Also, they all have the same Philips PCA84C122AT/071 8-bit microcontroller
   for remote control transmitters.

Continue reading Philips 22ER9021 and TecnoPlus TP520 CD-i Gamepads →
 *  
 * 
 * 3 
 * 
 * 
 *  
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  

CD-iDisassemblyPhilips
Atari, Disassembly, Portfolio


ATARI PORTFOLIO PC CARD DRIVE HPC-301

2022-10-9 rosewood 1 Comment

The PC Card Drive HPC-301 is still the only way to read and write Atari
Portfolio memory (Bee) cards on a PC. Make that an old PC with an ISA slot for
the interface card and DOS. The driver can be found here and here. In the
PofoWiki (German), there’s more information about its usage and what needs to be
considered when you have Windows 9x. For me, the DOS mode worked fine and I had
less trouble accessing the card reader after loading the driver without
parameters, e.g. DEVICE=C:\CD.SYS.

There seems to be another way to access the card drive: A software called
Portfolio RAM-Card Reader by Digital Data Deicke (now Pentagon GmbH) is
mentioned in the Atari-Home.DE forums here and here. It is reported to work even
under Windows XP via Direct I/O.

Today, we’re only going to have a look at the hardware. Just look at this
massive cable with 37-pin D-sub connectors that connects the card drive with the
interface card:

Atari Portfolio PC Card Drive HPC-301 Continue reading Atari Portfolio PC Card
Drive HPC-301 →
 *  
 * 
 * 3 
 * 
 * 
 *  
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  

AtariDisassemblyPortfolio


POSTS NAVIGATION

1 2 … 15 Next →


RECENT POSTS

 * Philips CD-i Power Supply Units
 * Philips FW380i Mini System Repair Part 1
 * Pippin Atmark Troubleshooting and Repair Information
 * MSDEXP and Clamshell Case for Terraonion MegaSD
 * NEC PC-FXGA, PC-FXGA DOS/V, and its Breakout Box


RANDOM POSTS


 * ULTRAMAN CLUB: SPOKON FIGHT!! FOR DATACH
   
   Today the second game for the Datach Joint ROM System was waiting for me at
   the post office. I’m glad …


 * SEGA CD ULTRA BACKUP RAM
   
   Two carts from Canada: Sega CD Ultra Backup RAM and Power Base FM The cart on
   the right-hand side is …


 * BANDAI DATACH FLASH CART
   
   This has just arrived: A flash cart (multi-cart) by TeamEurope. I’ve been
   involved in the development in the very beginning …


 * PHILIPS CDI470 PAL/NTSC MODIFICATION
   
   50/60 Hz modifications are quite simple hacks that have been figured out for
   almost all Philips CD-i player types with …


 * CAPCOM CPS2 DIGITAL AV AND I/O INTERFACES
   
   Capcom CPS2 Digital AV and I/O Interfaces


TAGS

 * 3D Printing
 * Apple
 * Arcade
 * Atari
 * Bandai
 * Capcom
 * Card Games
 * CD-i
 * CDI210
 * CDI220
 * CDI350
 * CDI360
 * CDI450
 * CDI470
 * CDI490
 * CDI550
 * CDI601
 * CDI602
 * CDI605T
 * CDI660
 * CPS2
 * Datach
 * Disassembly
 * Dreamcast
 * Famicom
 * FW380i
 * Mega-CD
 * Mega Drive
 * Miscellaneous
 * mods
 * NEC
 * Neo Geo
 * Neo Geo X
 * New Arrival
 * Nintendo
 * PC-FX
 * PC Engine
 * Philips
 * Pico
 * Pippin
 * Repair
 * Saturn
 * Sega
 * SNK
 * Super Famicom


RECENT COMMENTS

 * rosewood on Sega Saturn Modifications: “Hi, it’s explained in the grey text
   box (copy /B to combine the files). You could add a switch to…” Sep 9, 07:32
 * Rhys on Sega Saturn Modifications: “Heya, How did you combind multiple bios
   into one Chip? Is it possible to switch between bios with a switch?” Sep 9,
   02:50
 * rosewood on Sony DD-1EX Data Discman Repair: “Sorry, I don’t offer a repair
   service.” May 25, 13:36
 * Ryan on Sony DD-1EX Data Discman Repair: “I own one of this model and one
   DD-20 Data Discman, and both are dead. Would you consider repairing both…”
   May 25, 09:37
 * rosewood on MSDEXP and Clamshell Case for Terraonion MegaSD: “Your best bet
   is to ask Mobius Strip Tech, also to show that there is still a demand for
   this…” Feb 19, 10:43


EXPLORING RETRO GAME CONSOLES AND OTHER TECHNOLOGY


CATEGORIES

 * 3D Printing (7)
 * 3DO (1)
 * Apple (10)
   * Macintosh (3)
 * Arcade (9)
 * Atari (6)
   * Jaguar (3)
   * Lynx (1)
   * Portfolio (2)
 * Bandai (19)
   * Datach (7)
   * Pippin Atmark (9)
   * Playdia (1)
   * WonderSwan (2)
 * Capcom (4)
   * CPS2 (4)
 * Card Games (9)
 * Commodore (2)
   * Amiga CD³² (2)
 * Disassembly (77)
 * Epoch (1)
   * Barcode Battler (1)
 * Fujitsu (1)
   * FM TOWNS (1)
 * IBM (1)
   * ThinkPad (1)
 * LaserDisc (2)
 * Mattel (1)
   * HyperScan (1)
 * Microsoft (4)
   * Xbox 360 (3)
 * MIDI (2)
 * Miscellaneous (5)
 * Modification (66)
 * NEC (14)
   * PC Engine (5)
   * PC-9821 (3)
   * PC-FX (6)
 * New Arrival (29)
 * Nintendo (19)
   * DSi (1)
   * e-Reader (1)
   * Famicom (9)
   * GameCube (3)
   * Super Famicom (5)
   * Wii (1)
 * NUON (1)
 * Phantasy Star Online (4)
 * Philips (39)
   * CD-i (39)
 * Psion (1)
 * Repair (42)
 * Sega (26)
   * Dreamcast (5)
   * Game Gear (1)
   * Master System (2)
   * Mega Drive (5)
   * Mega-CD (4)
   * Pico (6)
   * Saturn (8)
   * Sega 32X (2)
 * Sharp (2)
 * SNK (11)
   * Neo Geo (6)
   * Neo Geo CD (1)
   * Neo Geo Pocket Color (1)
   * Neo Geo X (4)
 * Sony (3)
   * PlayStation (1)
 * Texas Instruments (1)
   * TI-82 (1)


ARCHIVES

 * September 2024 (1)
 * May 2024 (1)
 * April 2024 (1)
 * January 2024 (1)
 * December 2023 (1)
 * November 2023 (1)
 * March 2023 (1)
 * December 2022 (1)
 * November 2022 (1)
 * October 2022 (1)
 * September 2022 (1)
 * August 2022 (1)
 * February 2022 (1)
 * January 2022 (1)
 * December 2021 (1)
 * November 2021 (1)
 * October 2021 (1)
 * September 2021 (1)
 * August 2021 (1)
 * July 2021 (1)
 * June 2021 (1)
 * May 2021 (1)
 * April 2021 (1)
 * March 2021 (1)
 * February 2021 (1)
 * January 2021 (2)
 * December 2020 (1)
 * November 2020 (1)
 * October 2020 (2)
 * September 2020 (1)
 * August 2020 (2)
 * July 2020 (1)
 * June 2020 (1)
 * May 2020 (2)
 * April 2020 (2)
 * March 2020 (2)
 * February 2020 (1)
 * January 2020 (3)
 * December 2019 (4)
 * November 2019 (2)
 * October 2019 (3)
 * September 2019 (3)
 * August 2019 (2)
 * July 2019 (2)
 * June 2019 (2)
 * May 2019 (2)
 * April 2019 (2)
 * March 2019 (5)
 * February 2019 (3)
 * December 2018 (2)
 * September 2018 (1)
 * July 2018 (2)
 * June 2018 (2)
 * May 2018 (1)
 * April 2018 (1)
 * January 2018 (1)
 * December 2017 (1)
 * June 2017 (1)
 * April 2017 (1)
 * February 2017 (1)
 * January 2017 (2)
 * December 2016 (2)
 * October 2016 (1)
 * August 2016 (2)
 * July 2016 (1)
 * June 2016 (1)
 * May 2016 (4)
 * April 2016 (1)
 * March 2016 (2)
 * February 2016 (1)
 * September 2015 (1)
 * March 2015 (2)
 * February 2015 (1)
 * August 2014 (1)
 * July 2014 (2)
 * June 2014 (1)
 * April 2014 (2)
 * March 2014 (1)
 * February 2014 (1)
 * January 2014 (2)
 * December 2013 (3)
 * September 2013 (1)
 * August 2013 (2)
 * July 2013 (1)
 * June 2013 (2)
 * May 2013 (2)
 * April 2013 (2)
 * March 2013 (3)
 * February 2013 (2)
 * January 2013 (4)
 * December 2012 (5)

Disclaimer Proudly powered by WordPress
Scroll Up