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Neo Geo MVS MV-4F 4-Slot PCB Restoration

SmokeMonster

SmokeMonster

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I picked up a cheap untested MVS 4-slot and have started to fix it up. It was one of the dirtier boards that I've dealt with and was full of graphical glitches caused by the material build up in the cart slots. This is an ongoing project, so I’ll post photos as I go.


Before


After
First I rinsed the PCBs with hot water and scrubbed them with Simple Green, followed by dish detergent. It took about 5 minutes to get them clean enough to eat off of. A final rinse with distilled water and then I blew the PCBs dry with compressed air and set them in front of a fan overnight.
 
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I fully recapped the board (except 4.7uF and 1000uFs that are on order) with long-life 105C rated caps by Nichicon, Rubycon, and Panasonic. I also replaced the PCB's NiCad battery with a coin-cell socket and rechargeable LR2032. No circuit changes are necessary if you use a rechargeable battery--it's as simple as desoldering the old battery and soldering a socket in its place. You can't use a standard CR2032 however without first disabling the charging circuit or it will explode. I also put in a new 7805 voltage regulator.



At this point the PCB and all four slots fully working.
 
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I removed the steel case's stickers with Goo-Gone and then scrubbed it down with a paste of Barkeepers Friend to get rid of the bulk of the surface rust. I then hand sanded it with a 1200-grit micro mesh pad under running water to prep it for painting.


After drying, I gave the underside several coats of enamel to stop it from rusting.


While that the paint dries, I added a couple of volt-meters and two LED strips to my Neo Geo-to-Jamma converter. I know that test harness looks like hell. It's much prettier when I use my HAS.

End of day one. My plans going forward are:
1. Add back all stand-offs to give better support between the PCBs (on order).
2. Replace all screws since they're all rusted (on order).
3. Paint the steel case in hammered black
4. Finish recapping it
5. Install a Universe Bios (on order)
 
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What appear to be headphone jacks on the 4-slot MVS are actually audio inputs. The only place to tap stereo audio is from a 4-pin terminal on the side. It's wired +--+, which matches exactly how 4-pin headphone panel jacks are wired. I tried desoldering the MVS's 4-pin terminal to replace it, but the headphone jack's pins are too wide to fit in to the holes, so that is a no-go. I mounted it underneath and also added a JST connectorto match my other PCB setups.
 
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I sprayed the third and fourth coats of hammered black on the shell. Now to wait a week for it to cure.

 
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SmokeMonster said:
First I rinsed the PCBs with hot water and scrubbed them with Simple Green, followed by dish detergent. It took about 5 minutes to get them clean enough to eat off of. A final rinse with distilled water and then I blew the PCBs dry with compressed air and set them in front of a fan overnight.
Click to expand...
Now thats how you wash them boards :D

Cant wait to see the finished product :thumbup:
 
Hey, did you treat the volume slide switches with anything after washing the boards?
 
That shell looks beautiful.
Just an fyi in case you have one of those multi carts that fit really tight. I ruined my jet black with multi clear coats shell trying to pull the cart out. It chipped up the edges on the shell slot.
Ended up taking a razor and shaving off the edges of the cart so it won't fit so tightly.
 
Nice work.

Did you clean de PCB just with hot water?! Never thought that was possible without damaging it...
 
Omni11 said:
That shell looks beautiful.
Just an fyi in case you have one of those multi carts that fit really tight. I ruined my jet black with multi clear coats shell trying to pull the cart out. It chipped up the edges on the shell slot.
Ended up taking a razor and shaving off the edges of the cart so it won't fit so tightly.
Click to expand...
Thanks, I will definitely look out for that!
Ciudale said:
Nice work.

Did you clean de PCB just with hot water?! Never thought that was possible without damaging it...
Click to expand...
Yes, I go all in and just wash boards. It's safe as long as:
- Batteries are removed
- Socketed chips are removed
- You give it a final rinse it with distilled water to hopefully keep any salts from building up when it dries
- And most importantly, you let it totally dry before powering back on. Blowing out all of the chips and tight places with compressed air is also good practice.

That said, I've read that some people drop them in dishwashers.
 
nam9 said:
Nice work! I've cleaned 1 slots in the dishwasher and dried them in the oven before.. Some tips over on AO.

Meanwhile you should check out the plexi bases that lions3 over on neo-geo.com has put together.

Complete with custom 3D printed standoffs...
Click to expand...
Whoa, those look incredible. Thanks for the link! If those are still being made, I'll definitely order a set of plates and stands for my MV2F, and I offered to verify the 4-slot.
 
I guess I'm not even allowed to view ng.com as a guest anymore either. :P

They're such assholes... :saint:
 
Not only guests. I'm a member since 2007 with 100% positive marketplace feedback and I'm also not allowed to view the thread. They block members who don't contribute enough from the market place.
 
SmokeMonster said:
Yes, I go all in and just wash boards. It's safe as long as:
- Batteries are removed
- Socketed chips are removed
- You give it a final rinse it with distilled water to hopefully keep any salts from building up when it dries
- And most importantly, you let it totally dry before powering back on. Blowing out all of the chips and tight places with compressed air is also good practice.

That said, I've read that some people drop them in dishwashers.
Click to expand...
Okay, good to know. Thanks for the tips!
 
Just an update that I'm sending my 4-slot to lions3 so he can get the measurements needed for his plexi work. I may also send include my MV-1C if he still needs one to measure.
 
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