Saturn mod chip problems.

Post by **Termina** » Mon Oct 25, 2010 12:48 pm

I was wondering how long these mod chip usually last? Is it common that they stop working for no apparent reason?

The reason Im asking is I got one from here like 3 years ago, installed it and it worked like a charm for a few years till this weekend... tried to play some games nothing worked the discs would not spin when I close the tray (cdr or original games). So I opened the saturn and removed the chip and voila! It now works again with original games at least.

So I went ahead and ordered another mod chip, but now Im kinda unshure if I should have bought a few just incase this happens again...

Post by **Hatta** » Mon Oct 25, 2010 1:01 pm

Sounds like it could just be a flaky connection. I would have recommended reflowing the solder points before removing the chip entirely. The chip might still work if you try it again.

Post by **Termina** » Mon Oct 25, 2010 1:16 pm

Yeah that is what I thought at first, but the connections are still looking as good as when I first installed it, so I dont think that's the case. I didint remove the chip entirely yet, I just removed the chip and put back that ribbon thingy from where the chip was plugged. So I didnt remove wires or solder point...yet.

btw thanks for the quick reply!

Post by **flamepanther** » Mon Oct 25, 2010 2:40 pm

Mine has come unsoldered two or three since I first installed it (almost ten years ago!

), and at least one of those times it was still tightly connected to the board--but the solder point to the laser assembly must have gone bad, because redoing it was what fixed it. Yes, I'm really bad at soldering.

Part of it is also due to borrowing substandard soldering equipment to do the job.

This last time, I found that the FFD ribbon cable was ruined by disconnecting and reconnecting it too many times to fix my poor mod chip installations, so watch out for that too. I'm currently waiting on a replacement cable, then I get to see if my most recent soldering attempt is any good. Just because it's stuck firmly to the board doesn't mean it's doing any good.

Post by **Genesis Knight** » Mon Nov 01, 2010 9:40 am

This happened to my saturn once and it ended up being a deteriorated power wire.

Post by **Termina** » Mon Nov 08, 2010 4:23 pm

So got another chip in the mail last week, installed it this weekend and everything is working fine now. All my old games & backup are ready to go.

Post by **EllertMichael** » Mon Nov 08, 2010 4:44 pm

Glad it all worked out for you!

If the chip is installed and the disc won't spin, it's more than likely that the chip is not getting power from the power wire. Re-soldier the red power wire to the 5VA Pin

Saturn mod chip problems.

Saturn mod chip problems.

Re: Saturn mod chip problems.

Re: Saturn mod chip problems.

Re: Saturn mod chip problems.

Re: Saturn mod chip problems.

Re: Saturn mod chip problems.

Re: Saturn mod chip problems.