Mario Bros. No characters on screen?!???? Please help!

sk8ersublime

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Mario Bros. No characters on screen?!???? Please help!

Hey guys, I just bought a "working" Mario bros kit from a KLOV member. I just hooked everything up in my widebody and there are no characters on the screen and no pipes! Wtf is going on? I reseated all of the chips except for the CPU because it was being a pain when I tried to remove it so I left it alone. Any ideas why this is happening and what I should check?

Also, the screen is flipped, so I just need to break the connector in half and flip each pair right?

Thanks for any help!
Chad
 
Pics of issue.
 

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Played around with the service menu and then rebooted the machine and the screen is all scrambled! FML.

I turned off the game for a bit then back on an it's fine now. I guess the monitor is still messed up.
 

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I just tested all voltages at the edge connector on the filter board and pcb and they are all perfect.

Reseated all chips as well.

Anything else I can try? Cold solder? Caps?
 
I just googled and found the problem related to the DMA. Is the DMA removable? Do I need to desolder? Can I replace with any z80 DMA or does it need to be for Mario? How do I test the pin to see if it's pulsing?

"Repair log: Lack of sprites, where problem is on the CPU board and not the video board. Test to make sure pin 15 /BUSREQ of the Z80 DMA controller is pulsing. If not, the DMA controller is not running (ie. not requesting the bus). Replaced Z80 DMA controller, sprites now working."

Thanks!
Chad
 
Any Z80 DMA as long as it's the right type.

There are Z80, Z80A and Z80B versions and the letter denotes speed... You can go up (replace Z80 with Z80A or Z80B) in speed but you can't go down in speed (replace faster Z80B with a slower Z80 part)

I just picked up some NOS ones but haven't added them to my site yet.

RJ
 
Cool! I just checked out the thread with my computer and I saw your sig. I checked out your site and repair logs. Your fix is exactly what symptoms my board is having.

Do all Mario's use the same CPU and DMA? Unfortunately I have left the location of my game and will not be back there until Wednesday or Thursday. I am hoping to be able to purchase the part i need before then if possible.

I have an Ikari warriors board laying around, could I swap the Z80 and Z80 DMA from that board to replace both Z80 and Z80 DMA on the Mario board?

What Z80 does Mario use, and does it matter if it is replaced with a faster one? I am not going to replace anything until I hear from you...lol

Your repair logs are great tho! keep up the documentation!

Thanks!
Chad
 
just found schematics online, looks like it is a Z80A DMA i will need. pictures look like this is soldered to the board....is this right? I will have to desolder the Z80A DMA to replace it?
 
I do... I just picked up 3 of them in a big NOS chip buy yesterday.

RJ
 
Can I ruin a DMA chip when soldering? How much heat should I give it? I have a 15-30w switching soldering iron. Or should I just get a socket and install that instead?
 
Just do one leg at a time and let the chip cool before doing the next leg.
 
come on by when you get the chip

bring it by and you can install it here so it doesent get screwed up.

Peace
Buffett
 
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