Restoration and repair of a DEAD Game Boy Color

he's gonna take you back to the past
to fix a s̶h̶i̶t̶t̶y̶ pretty good game console that happens to not work
▶SUBSCRIBE: / @mattkc
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▶MUSIC USED
Lamb - setting sun
Graff - rain eater
BRD RinjaniSoft Products Universal
xyce - sea side blues (xyce.bandcamp.com/)
4-Mat - eternity
DualTrax - orion crackmusic
Maktone - class cracktro#15
CORE - mr spock's cryo-bed
Pink - sonic sucks!
BetaMaster - QuickTime Pro 7.0kg
Ghidorah - GhidaPop

[@lauralicata2548]

Omg my gameboy is back!! Thank you dude. It’s so great to see it functional again!! And for everyone in the comments wondering, it was pancake syrup. That’s what I get for eating eggo waffles while playing. In my defense, I was 9. Thanks again dude!!

[@DavidSanguineti]

Man, when I go out, I hope it involves pancake syrup too.

[@Coffeeology]

"it was pancake syrup"I thought it was that or soda. I'm glad you have your GBC back

[@GuyfromtheWAN]

Ngl i thought it was vegemite

[@piercelyq]

thought it was bbq sauce lol

[@noskillpureandy]

How in the world did it get so covered???

[@DrThermostat]

“Sex is good and all but have you ever brought a Game Boy Color back from the dead?”

[@connorconnor2421]

8:39

[@Bokuface]

@@connorconnor2421 take game out of that sentence

[@elpapaito9141]

@@Bokuface pǝsɹnɔ

[@TTTKyouma]

@@Bokuface woooow

[@ericmoeller3634]

I didn't expect him to say that I lost my shit when I heard him say that 🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@silverneon4675]

3:39 The censor sound effect just made this moment way funnier than it had any right being

[@jamestech4849]

Ikr

[@VideoGameSmash12]

i love how you censor yourself using the windows 98 error sound effect instead of using earrape bleeps my ears cannot thank you enough

[@jokeletsplay]

VideoGameSmash12 or the roblox oof, i like the win98 sound way more ^^

[@sharkpetro2288]

Just apologize after saying a bad word, youtube will understand, it's way better than wasting time on editing a video.

[@thiccllama53]

@@sharkpetro2288 youtube isnt like that. they just demonitse people for nothing

[@genericname3685]

That entirely makes it better for the video and the viewer too To be honest it sounds kinda nice

[@TAOEXPRESS]

@@sharkpetro2288 KZbin will *_NOT_* understand, you clearly do not know how google runs youtube. Even if you apologize, the bot won't pick that up so still, all of your ads, *_GONE_*

[@MagicalPhi]

3:32 I was expecting a brown bricks joke there and I'm not disappointed with what I got instead. Reminded me of an old ChipCheezum RP.

[@MattKC]

Dammit now I wish I made a brown bricks joke, where were you when I was writing this video??

[@baragonkunfan94thesecondar60]

qwop! tf?

[@chico20m]

Well, I can tell what happened with that continuity. The pressure from buttons bent the pbc and the track communicating battery got cracked. Same happens to some nes joysticks.

[@LMMFranco]

I kept looking in the comment section to see if anyone had figured it out. Now I can rest in peace

[@ErimlRGG]

I'm thinking the trace just to the side of the pad got corroded and if he just scratched the PCB a little and put some solder on there it would be fixed

[@mikem.9197]

@@ErimlRGG 100% correct. The mask looks a little funny to the left of the battery terminal pad. I would have scraped it off.

[@SforzandoCF]

Why does NES joystick sound like an oxymoron?

[@pablo5425]

so the owner pressed the buttons so hard that they cracked the traces?

[@RisingRevengeance]

I used a power cord half the time for my gbc. Mostly because my mom didn't want to buy 50 batteries a week.

[@carloforniacation]

yea we always used rechargable batteries but it comes down to the same I guess

[@AUTHOR804]

Rechargeable assholes

[@frostreaper1607]

We had a ton of rechargeable batteries, but at home it was common sense to use the cord. The batteries where for everywhere else.

[@RisingRevengeance]

@UCB1hl3WnyHmf0VasRNfUFTQ You had to buy it from a third party, I don't think nintendo actually sold them. There's a little jack next to the headphone jack for it.

[@OttuR_]

that goop could likely be soda syrup. I've had a kid spill soda on my controller before. also had to wait awhile for a screwdriver to come, and lo and behold, the soda turned into the goop similar to the one you saw

[@fionameehan894]

It's pancake syrup! (as confirmed by the owner of the gameboy)

[@zombibit4485]

So he DIDN’T shit in the game boy!

[@dominics.4474]

@@zombibit4485 it actually a woman lol

[@Oh_the_humanity]

@@dominics.4474 so a gamegirl

[@tl1882]

@@Oh_the_humanity thank you dad, very cool

[@mauromerconchini]

The analogy to nursing a puppy is so accurate. I love seeing old electronics be salvaged and repaired. Great work Matt!

[@Droub_]

8:39 Same thing cannot be said with the s*x analogy

[@Swier3D]

"Sex is good and all, but have you ever brought a gameboy back from the dead?" Now he's speaking my love language.

[@magicdippyegg]

Ayo what 🤨

[@Swier3D]

@@magicdippyegg why are you bringing to 3 year old post?

[@DavidSanguineti]

I like the part where he was fixing the gameboy.

[@MattKC]

where was that? timecode pls?

[@fionameehan894]

@@MattKC 0:00 - 14:06

[@keiraschmal8717]

Omg same!

[@boopsnoot2807]

I like you.

[@williambennett4283]

I liked the ads

[@markusTegelane]

When you become a teenager and you can't really wake up early anymore...

[@IndigoGollum]

This is too relatable, especially because I'm watching this at noon right after waking up.

[@omgnoi]

Being an adult sucks too lol

[@KOSMOS1701A]

woah, a gameboy with all the original stickers on the back, that's a rare sight.

[@AetherRunsYT]

I found one for a buck at a yard sale with box and everything, as I ran to my house to get my dollar they gave it to me

[@dragon1130]

8:38 "Dude, sex is good and all but have you ever brought a Gameboy Color back to life?" Well that explains why I can't get a girlfriend....I've never brought an old console back to life.

[@PerturbedButtercup]

Ive repaired a Xbox, GBC, N64, and a PS2 but I have no girlfriend! Shocking

[@acclipse9262]

Repair Gameboy not other consoles

[@PerturbedButtercup]

@Samuel Chertoff In short, I was making a Google account and they allow me to put any name, so my immature self did the rest of the work. ;)

[@YoshiLikesFate]

Ive repaired those phone toys from china

[@elementaljeszi1567]

@@YoshiLikesFate lol

[@balls5370]

1:02 I felt very uncomfortable

[@lumppio6025]

öwö

[@kickin_ass]

your pfp makes me feel very uncomfortable

[@S0meb0dy728]

isn't that what fnf fans feel 24/7? they have to try so hard to not get groomed lmao

[@balls5370]

@@S0meb0dy728 ion even play that bum ass game nm😭🙏 bro js yappin tf up

[@teddy3k3]

Imma be honest, this actually taught me quite a bit more about reading schematics than most other vids. They either teach you super simple schematics or they expect you to be able to follow along with a hyper complex one. Through watching this video, I learned a lot about how this particular schematic worked, and how everything is brought back to the negative terminal through the grounding plate. Thank you!

[@arlia101]

Try an old (sanitized) toothbrush instead a q-tip when you've got lots of cleaning to do. Leaves less residue, and not as harsh as a metal brush. Love all the videos so far! I've been repairing electronics, too, this summer, and failed solder joints have so far been 4/7 of them! (The rest are still mysteriously dead... )

[@LegoBob4123]

7:13 Maybe the DC input is for when your batteries are low and you are in the middle of a fight, or otherwise can't turn it off and replace the batteries.

[@nathanmead140]

I used it on my gameboy pocket connected to a USB cable from my tablet to keep my Oracle of seasons cartridge powered for a couple weeks until i could get my save files pulled off the cartridge onto a PC and the battery replaced with a new cr2025 by someone who knew how to do it right and after the battery was replaced i put my save from the PC back on and it has been working fine since then on my GBA SP and the new battery should last for years before needing replacement again So that's something else it can be used for

[@niko5008]

"MOM, MOM GIVE ME THE CABLE I'M ABOUT TO BEAT GARY, THE BATTERIES ARE DYING HOLY SHI"

[@mikem.9197]

@@HaxAras You had a power adapter that fit but provided the wrong voltage. If the LED was brighter than normal, then it was probably over 3Vdc output. Lucky you didn't burn it up.

[@pikgears]

looks like your friend spilled some coke in their gameboy in just the wrong spot

[@illegalmobster4847]

it was syrup lol, theres a pinned comment

[@pikgears]

wasn't there when I wrote the comment

[@Theironminer-ky2pg]

it was baked beans

[@zerrocool809]

From now on when I have beef with my friend I can make the thread that I will shit in their Gameboy so it will get corrosion

[@Worm_Productions666]

idk, could be "ketchup"

[@Ook-Ook]

I love it when you repair and open up tech! You should do more of this kind of stuff! Great vid!

[@FlintG]

Same I enjoy watching these videos.

[@Thickamus_Jones]

Opening up and replacing parts on gameboy colors is like one of my favorite things to do since everything for the most part is easy to clean and not too hard to work with, especially being that parts are still being made and they're stupid cheap.

[@diegooespinozaa]

I wish your channel grows and you get the recognition you deserve. I love your content and humor. Please keep doing what you do! Cheers from Mexico.

[@dreadfulgravy189]

Matt I found your channel ab two weeks ago and it has made me so happy, your channel is an excellent blend of restoration knowledge, humor and personality. I restored a wii last year and now I am hoping to find an og Xbox to restore based on your videos. Thank you for getting me through a stressful period and keep up the great work!

[@rickjames3034]

Nice Sunday upload to watch while having lunch. Thanks MattKC!

[@AUTHOR804]

Rick....rick....rick..... I’m Rick James bitch!!!!

[@SteCheetah]

For some reason I legit almost cried watching the Game Boy being totally functional again 😭🙏✨ Great work!!! As a Game Boy Color owner myself, I’ve really enjoyed watching the video :DD

[@callme_jake1871]

Yeah, Game Boys are great. I own an Advance SP handheld, the one from my childhood with a cart of Sonic Advance 3 stuck inside it.

[@HannahCharlesworth98]

"Sex is good and all but have you ever brought a Game Boy colour back from the dead?" New hobby right there

[@der_jonny]

It's good to see that you do not give up fixing this broken gameboy. i had a similar problem with a lcd screen with a broken backlight and i could not figure it out what the problem was but i kept on track to solve this problem and finally i discovered a broken solderbridge connecting two stripes for the backlight. and after fixing this issue it worked again. great feeling ;)

[@xxCrimsonSpiritxx]

This content relaxes me so much and I have no idea why It's just so chill

[@Kalmageddon666]

Geart vid Matt! You should definately continue with backlit, battery and replacement housing mods. 👌

[@itsTyrion]

1:35 that clip will never fail to at least make me forcefully exhale

[@MattsTech]

While I wasn’t around when the Game Boy was in it’s prime, I still do enjoy getting mine out and playing it, even if it’s only for a little while. Also, it’s great to see you back at it again with KZbin, I was in great anticipation for your next video!

[@GankerJr]

Following your video and the iFixit guide I was able to get the dpad working again. Just needed a bit of clean up. Thank you :)

[@moosetwin9023]

1:05 oh boy, me and the other carykh veterans know what is coming next

[@timothy10583]

knee hurt

[@derekcullen3965]

I don’t know anything about electronics but I find stuff like this so interesting and I love how your style is really starting to shine!

[@Edlandish]

KZbin kept recommending this video to me for a while. Little did I know how full of cool stuff this channel was going to be. Amazing to see old stuff fixed up nicely. I can’t even fix the shoulder buttons on my broken PlayStation controllers 🤨

[@speziramen2599]

i don’t know anything abt console repair or just technology in general. none of these words have meaning to me. still your videos are like laced with crack for me. i love it. cant get enough of these silly electronic things getting fixed

[@no-no-noku]

You beautiful magnificent bastard, being able to logically deduce the root cause of the issue and making an inexpensive workaround is truly something worth admiring.

[@1973Washu]

That gloop looks like the residue of some kind of cola soft drink.

[@ButterWort]

Look at the first comment.

[@whatever56567]

I just found your channel and I love the way you do your videos. Your voice is very soothing and I enjoy the humor, and vicariously letting me learn a new skill by watching someone who knows how to do these things lol. I rarely do, but you got an instansub from me. Look forward to being here as we watch your channel grow mate! P.S. I love the creative censorship and your fun little “Ciao” at the end. You’re doing great!

[@micksam7]

All the demoscene music you use in your videos takes me back to the 2000s and I dig it.

[@ShakeItLittleTina]

Every time I see a video from this channel I end up watching almost all of your videos

[@senorroybien887]

Me: reads thumbnail Oh, just charge it

[@BlueSharkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk]

Battery: No, I don’t think I will

[@ButtProsecutor]

Keep doing what you do dude i'm always pumped to see new uploads from you

[@chadflores2749]

I’ve always wanted to do this, and I’ve tried to search for how to do something like this but now I have some leads. Great Video 👍

[@Porygonal64]

i mean I left my GBA SP outside for days on end, sometimes out in the sun, left it in a plastic bin for a long while... It's still alive and kicking. Though the battery wasn't as strong as it used to be. I ended up replacing it after 15 years.

[@vitusholm5227]

How to resurrect a Game Boy Colour: S O L D E R

[@racer927]

8:44 I had completely forgotten about that effect of the screen slowly clearing itself but that brought some heavy nostalgia for me oddly enough, and it reminded me of the sort of line-wipe effect when powering off a vanilla GBA.

[@pigabyte1]

Its always a good day when Matt uploads a video.

[@AnimeGameKid-mt4ls]

3 months international shipping? Man, I wish I already got my tri-wing screwdriver. Anyways, nice job on the repair.

[@goukigod]

I went through a faze of cleaning some of my old retro controllers which came from eBay, Facebook and assorted flea markets recently. Some of the stuff inside was truly horrid! From gloop, to what I’m pretty sure was cockroach poop, to (and I shit you not) a fingernail, which was both repulsive and intriguing. Still don’t know how it got in there.

[@ThatChevy]

I feel the same way about cleaning the case, those stickers looked great for whatever 'gloop' was in it hahaha

[@drewcipher896]

13:18 I have the same teal gameboy color, and the amount of nostalgia from the music and sight of Pokemon almost made me cry.

[@_imy0urj0y_56]

crude, i wanna fix my GBC!! its been dead 19years in my shoe box 😭😭😭

[@Kj16V]

The goop is probably Coke residue.

[@kstanni87]

Amazing repair job mate.

[@ThickpropheT]

Something I’ve done to fix trace continuity problems in the past is to scrape away solder mask until you get to some bare copper on the trace and then just make a solder bridge from the pad to the bare copper nearby

[@QmanR]

8:39 well, you tell me!

[@xcloudx01alt]

Ahhh ahhhh i'm getting close i..i.gonna..AHHH IT WORKS! IT WORKS!. aaahhhhh...

[@unfa00]

I love these tech videos. Though I couldn't help but ponder how did you animate the schematic analysis :D

[@DarkAbyssSoul]

Finally back! We need MORE videos! I'd do patron or something if I could get more videos from you!

[@BALDFURY69]

Nice use of the messenger soundtrack. Love it 😍

[@jamesread11]

Nice fix, love your vids and presentation... more please

[@anthonypamias8586]

I find it funny how I cleaned one of my bad gbcs today to get it working again and when I'm resting I see this video recommended to me by KZbin 😂 awesome restoration job.

[@-.-smile]

Matt you got to make more videos. Your content is very unique with very good commentary.

[@Wenlocktvdx]

Nice repair. I had to fix my NES by adding a wire after someone cut a line on the board and damaged another without noticing. They did repair their work, but likely had no idea about the the other. I have several Gameboys but none have needed more than a little cleaning. Some of the games needed some deeper cleaning though.

[@merseyless]

Nice fix. Usually the easiest way to fix a corroded trace like that is to scrape the solder mask with a scalpel where the break is (hold the blade vertical and move it side to side), then just a quick solder jump or a bit of stripped wire-wrap wire to fix it. A fibreglass brush or sand eraser will also work, but are less controlled. I'd also recommend grabbing a tube of thick flux, dab a bit on anything you put a soldering iron on and watch it work its magic. If you're ever in Brisbane after lockdown, swing by the local hackerspace to say g'day.

[@fukami143]

Hearing 13:21 again after a long time made me tear up a bit. Its been so long since I last heard it. Reminded me when I was still a kid.

[@Scrogan]

My boi got that jaycar analog temp-controlled mains iron and the legit goot wick. The circuit behind that iron is pretty strange, if you’d found intrigue in opening it up to take a look earlier then you’d already have a tri wing screwdriver, because that’s what the iron uses! Anyhow, nice job repairing, a badge wire is exactly what I’d have done too. I somewhat recently upgraded to a more standardised soldering station (STM32 T12 OLED) and find the different tips a huge help for soldering small stuff. I’m never using a conical tip again if I can afford it, those things only make good thermal contact on their edges which means the iron has to be on a steep angle. I use a K tip (45 degree knife edge) for THT work (less of an angle required, good thermal contact) and a D12 (1.2mm flathead) for SMT work, as it’s nice and small and the small flat at the tip makes good thermal contact along the edge of an SMT pad. Bevel tips are apparently quite good for drag soldering, if you do that a lot. That strange analog temperature control circuit only uses like 2 op-amps total for reading the thermocouple/thermistor and PWMing/TRIACing the element, and I don’t understand how.

[@bub8298]

Great video how helpfull and the screw driver was so much help aswell would not go with out one my gameboys color was totally dead followed this video took apart cleaned contact with white vinegar and the board with surgical spirit and left to dry turned on and all working back from dead thanks great video

[@quentinsylwester635]

Nice vid! I used to use qtips but now i just squirt isopropyl all over the board and go to town with a toothbrush. So much faster

[@bingusdungus4951]

That q-tip montage was nice,I’m still watching so much ill see what else I like.

[@Zespac]

Loved it! What kinds of background music are you using there btw?

[@darkletrs4286]

This is awesome . How long does it take you to finish a project like this start to finish ? It would take me a long time to figure it out

[@igi-chan]

Hi! Great video! Ive watched it like 30 times so far xD What do you use to whipe the goop off the motherboard? Is it vinegar?

[@slykhajiit2]

Rad respect for this guy. This video alone made me subscribe.

[@vin_sirr8838]

how did I not see this channel before because all the other ones were just silent but this actually has personality

[@evanortiz4879]

I just want you to know that the TLC joke is what got me to subscribe lol (that and your Lego Island saga lol)

[@Etzric]

Hey mate. Du you maybe have a link to the scheme you showed? I can't seem to find a decent circuit diagram for the GBC and I really neet one to fix mine. Thanks in advance! You video was great!

[@DootNootem]

Now that powerbanks and USB cables for the Game Boy line are a thing, that DC port is actually a great way to power it without having to worry about buying new batteries.

[@myalachance3615]

i have no idea what’s going on here but man is it entertaining

[@joemck85]

One look at the gloop on the metal plate on the back and I have a pretty good idea what it is: syrupy dried cola.

[@johnrodrigues2018]

There's a electronic repair kit you can get at Walmart for like 8$. It comes with most security screws like the triwing. Sadly didn't come with the right size for the gameboy cart screw

[@evilmarc]

Would've loved to see a closeup of the wire between the terminal to EM7!

[@gabethecool]

this is my new favorite channel

[@Colasubra]

You should consider getting an Ifixit Mako driver kit, it comes with essentially all the bits you'll ever need for electronics repair.

[@SoulcatcherLucario]

That "Ciao" was so wholesome sgjsjsjstjjsgj

[@homestar92]

If I may make a recommendation if you want to regularly fix old game consoles and such. Pick up an iFixit kit. They are built really well and have all the bits for the old game consoles. Really nice thing to have around, even if it is a little pricey.

[@xLogicless]

missed ur vids! ty :3 hope all is well

[@jasonbrown467]

of all my years of dealing with AA batteries i have only seen corrosion a few times. in my mind electricity should be passing through the metal even if there is corrosion, well i am right and but wrong too. the corrosion can get between the spring and the metal plate that is often soldered to a pcb and if there is corrosion there, apparently electricity will not pass from the spring to the metal plate that connects to the pcb. anyways your video helped me diag a gameboy color i bought recently for $1.00. thanks

[@asiandude918]

Does the added wire to EM7 replace the busted up part in the PCB? Is it like closing up an open circuit?

[@KentRoads]

Your vids are great, dont stop :D you should make put snake... onto a cartridge for gameboy :O

[@mechabubba]

badass. at college rn and i miss my gameboy color. the only game i had for it was tetris dx, but i was a god.

[@SamoRad1987]

Aproveed by Mexs! Thanks for using my music!

[@jpowell6418]

I have zero knowledge about electronics and yet I find this pretty entertaining.

[@commenter4799]

If the corrosion went into the board a bit, you may use Flux to try to clean it, or scrape off areas of the pcb and solder Bridge broken traces.

[@friskdotjpeg]

What did you use for that TLC bit? I’ve been interested in using modern hardware on my CRT for a while

[@MattKC]

PS3 with composite cable. It even has a KZbin app you can use, but I wanted to crop it to 4:3 beforehand so it's playing an MP4 from a flash drive.

[@ShotIntoOblivion]

well if the pad broke the next step would be to scrap the paint away from the trace that it goes to and run a solder trace to it. its a dirty fix but it should solve the problem. as a side note you want a good fine soldering tip to do this depending on how big the trace is.

[@sledger2066]

Gameboy: I WAS IN HEAVEN WHY DID YOU BRING ME BACK TO THIS SUFFRAGE?!

[@SpazzyJester]

I subscribed love the video love the reaction please keep it up you're awesome

[@bartjuhhh6416]

i bought an green gameboy on a garage sale 3 years ago for 50 cents and i expected it to be broken but i installed some fresh batteries and it worked straight away!

[@Rolonok]

what did you use to clean up the gloop? isopropol alcohol, water or just dry q-tips