Gameboy Advance Audio Repair

[@oldiegoodman]

7:36 you approach the motherboard exactly like a dentist or surgeon. That's a compliment, by the way.

[@henrituboso]

This video saved a lot. I replaced this single audio capacitor and it was enough to improve the volume and sound quality by 300%

[@CBitsTech]

Fascinating seeing the solder wick close up. Great repair, great video, thanks.

[@sjm4306]

That was my favorite bit as well, it really does live up to its wicking name!

[@steven51612]

I gasped when I saw the lithium battery hooked up like that … Thanks for the explanation and warning to the viewers. Great fix by the way, I am trouble shooting for my gba with low volume. Will try swapping out the cap.

[@pega_ns]

I've been trying to fix my GBA with the same issue for days and I just found your video. I fixed the gameboy in a matter of minutes :D. Thank you so much for the video and new found knowledge!!!!

[@ChewyChicken589]

The best way to remove capacitors from a Gameboy Advance is with a heat gun and kapton tape to mask the surrounding areas. The pads on the Gameboy Advance like to lift if you look at them wrong. The soldering iron gets the pads too hot in many cases

[@sjm4306]

At minimum I definitely recommend a temp controlled iron for repair work like this (wouldn't even attempt with a fixed temp iron), and like you said a small hot air gun is even easier.

[@Marlenaanne]

This was SUPER informative. Thanks man!

[@LetsPlayKeldeo]

OH MY GOD YES I have been sitting at this darn GBA for the last 4 hours trying to figur out why the replacment pedometer doesnt wanna work and then I see that I have to connect those 2 pads

[@ErKtheErK]

Thanks. I wish my hands were as steady as yours.

[@sjm4306]

I really had to try and concentrate, filming under a microscope was a lot more difficult than I thought it would be. Hopefully with some practice I can get used to it as filming is a lot clearer doing it this way than manually trying to zoom and focus with my camera.

[@JeffriRanger]

YOU SAVE MY GAMEBOY ADVANCE SP!!! thank you !!!!

[@Utoobyourself]

Nice repair sjm4306

[@ele_cuba]

Really thanks 🙏

[@ianlorayes2787]

Hi sir! Just subscribed to your channel. May i ask how do you usually fix if the game color screen is faint? I have tride the contrast adjustment at the back but still the same. Thanks!

[@steven51612]

I had luck using additional linear polarizer on one of my fixes. I put one in between the screen and the lens and It fixed the screen color and saturation I suspect the original front polarizer is damaged by UV but not sure.

[@caster008]

Excellent repair you are great.. I wanted some advice I have a problem with the sound that rips both with the speaker and with the headphones and I can't understand the problem can you help me?

[@sjm4306]

What do you mean that it rips both the speaker and headphones? Do you mean there are loud clicks and pops when audio is playing?

[@caster008]

@@sjm4306 yes exactly there are strange noises both in the headphones and with the speaker, obviously I have already tried to change the speaker but nothing, traces of oxide I don't see any I don't know what it could be

[@sjm4306]

It's probably either the speaker (needs a good clean or the membrane is damaged), the capacitor in the audio amp circuitry has gone bad, or the potentiometer volume control is dirty and needs contact cleaning.

[@caster008]

@@sjm4306 I've already changed the speaker but it gives the same problem, I see a little rust in the jack socket but I cleaned it with isopropyl alcohol, is the capacitor you say is the one you replaced in the video?

[@sjm4306]

Yep

[@linkmasters535]

Yeah I repaired about 15 GBA not to long ago they all came from J4U on eBay he is no longer on there and every one I bought didn’t have power sound and image and he didn’t know what was wrong with them but I bought them each one separately so I cleaned each motherboard with high proof rubbing alcohol and they all worked like brand new one of them the screen was rusted out bad so I bought a new screen and it works great now but I traded it in for a used Nintendo switch but kept one GBA for my self great video

[@sjm4306]

Wait J4U is no longer on eBay, damn I used to buy a bunch of easy fix gameboys from him back a few years ago!

[@linkmasters535]

Yeah I know that’s what I said but not only GBA color pocket and original and micro I was looking for another micro

[@sjm4306]

Looks like their sales site is still up, they probably got sick of ebay fees and went fully to operating through their own site.

[@linkmasters535]

Okay thanks I didn’t know

[@linkmasters535]

Yeah do you have the website for that company

[@ChewyChicken589]

In your experience, what usually causes low volume? The volume wheel works and the headphone jack is fine. Is it capacitors?

[@sjm4306]

Usually the capacitor right next to the amp chip that's above the volume pot.

[@ChewyChicken589]

​@@sjm4306so cp4? Thank you. I was going to recap it anyway. I just wanted to ask beforehand

[@pietronetutube]

Hey awesome ! I have a challenge on my GBA too at the moment! I have random reboots if the batteries are not very fresh ! Once it gets a bit discharged after like 15min it has random reboots. If you have any tips or where to loop ! I cleaned the board with IPA and the power switch too, even if the power switch has to be managed gently still. Thx

[@sjm4306]

It's a very common problem on the gba. The power switch design is pretty crap, and sometimes even cleaning wont fix the contact issue. They sell aftermarket replacement power switches you can solder in place of the original ones that are supposedly much better for a few bucks.

[@pietronetutube]

@@sjm4306 hey that is a fast reply! I think I will replace it eventually. But even when I bypass it I still have this issue. If it try "discharged" batteries that are working into another GBA on mine, I have not even display, just the green LED... This is why I think there is something else. Thx for your help

[@sjm4306]

I wonder if the electrolytic capacitors have gone bad and need replacement.

[@pietronetutube]

@@sjm4306 Well just replaced the capacitors same issue... do not know where to look now

[@sjm4306]

The only other culprits would be the battery contacts or power switch. I suspect the switch, the contacts inside are probably worn and not making good electrical contact.

[@808v1]

the tester you used to measure ESR was it cheaper than a typical decent ESR tester on Amazon? i.e. 150+ CDN...I'd like an ESR tester but not have to spend a lot. Do you have a link to a kit or similar? thx

[@sjm4306]

It's a cheap (

[@techwolf1900]

Hey there, i found ur video cause i really need advice and im wondering if u could help me. I tried to install a HDMI Mod that uses the SO1 and SO2 solder pads for grabbing audio i guess. Unfortunately the SO2 pad got off when i tried to solder it and im not able to make that connection. I saw ur linked schematic .. is there a way to solder the hdmi board to another location where the SO2-leads to? would help me a lot

[@sjm4306]

You will have to visually follow the trace that SO2 connects to until it leads to another solder pad that you can solder to. I unfortunately don't have a gba at hand rn to take pics of to show you exactly where to solder to.

[@techwolf1900]

@@sjm4306 thanks for ur reply. Unfortunately the board is painted white and im not really able to see where so2 leads to🥺 i read in another thread its connected to R30 thats a resistor i think. U think i can solder it there? And which site of resistor

[@sjm4306]

Use a multimeter set to continuity/beep and touch the tiny bit of exposed metal where SO2 used to connect and the other end each side of R30, if it beeps continuously they are connected and you can solder there. If not then you cant.

[@techwolf1900]

@@sjm4306 thats a good idea, im gonna try this. Thanks so far :)

[@skylermcnabb3264]

Hey there, I have a GBA that had pads 2 and 4 torn off of the board. For the life of me, I can not figure out where they pinout to. Easiest response is just which point I can reroute with magnet wire to restore the connections. Any help would be greatly appreciated and thank you in advance.

[@sjm4306]

The last post of this thread with pics of where all the traces/pads go should help: gbatemp.net/threads/thinking-about-putting-together-a-gba-hardware-fixes-compilation-thread.485501/

[@skylermcnabb3264]

@@sjm4306 Thanks for the reply. It appears those pins lead to nowhere. Yet the wheel still won't increase or decrease the volume. It's very strange.

[@sjm4306]

Check for breaks in the connection between the pot and the nearby chip. Then check soldering around that area. Also the cap near the chip may be bad.

[@voice_0f_reason]

Can we still send you things for you to repair? Can you share the details?

[@sjm4306]

I accept repair requests via email ([e-mail]) on a case by case basis. It basically comes down to if I have the free time and how much I'd have to charge the customer to do the repair. If it's something simple I sometimes do it for free (though customer will have to pay shipping of course), but for more complicated jobs I'd have to give an estimate on total cost first before accepting.