Nintendo PCBs not booting correctly on Windy II (Jammafier v1/v2)

jbrochu1985

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Hi everyone, I'm looking for some help diagnosing a compatibility issue with Nintendo arcade boards on my cabinet setup.


I have two Nintendo PCBs — Donkey Kong (2-board stack) and Mario Bros — both using the PCB Junkie Nintendo-to-JAMMA adapter.
I own both a Jammafier v1 and a Jammafier v2 (the one with the integrated tri-sync support).


Symptoms

  • Donkey Kong: no boot at all on the Windy II (no video, no startup signs).
  • Mario Bros: boots but shows severe graphical glitches (see picture).
  • Both boards work perfectly on a HAS Supergun → Retrotink 5X → consumer TV.
My cabinet is a Konami Windy II with the Toshiba chassis.
All my other JAMMA and JVS PCBs work flawlessly, including ones using PCB Junkie adapters (Galaga, System 16, Nibbler).
I also have a Nintendo Vs. System PCB, and that one has never given me any issues on the same setup.


Power Measurements

Measured at the JAMMA edge with nothing connected (pre-load values):


  • +5V = 5.5V
  • +12V = 12.2V
I know these are high without a load, so I usually dial down once a PCB is connected — but mentioning it here in case Nintendo boards are more sensitive to the initial surge or the Jammafier handles power differently compared to the HAS.


Questions / Possible Causes

  • Could Donkey Kong / Mario Bros be sensitive to overvoltage at boot, especially through the Jammafier?
  • Sync level mismatch? Nintendo's early hardware uses oddball composite sync, and the HAS might be more forgiving than the Jammafier.
  • RGB inversion / attenuation differences between the HAS and the Jammafier?
  • Could the Windy II's Toshiba chassis be less tolerant to early Nintendo sync levels or polarity?
  • Grounding or edge connector alignment issue specific to the 2-board stack design?
I'm trying to figure out whether this is:


  1. a Jammafier quirk,
  2. a Windy II compatibility issue,
  3. or something inherent to early Nintendo PCBs.
Any insight would be greatly appreciated.


Here are the voltage measurements I took. I checked the Jammafier with no load, then with Mario Bros connected, and I also compared it to my HAS Supergun with the same board.


Jammafier (no load):
  • +5V: 5.499V
  • –5V: –5.441V
  • +12V: 12.31V

Jammafier (with Mario Bros connected):
  • +5V: 5.2V
  • +5V (2nd test point): 5.2V
  • +12V: 12.20V
  • –5V: –3.3V

HAS Supergun (with Mario Bros):
  • +5V: 5.034V
  • +5V (2nd test point): 5.0V
  • +12V: 14.52V
  • –5V: –4.62V
 

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Nintendo boards need a very strong -5V rail due to their use of ECL logic for video and clocks. Many modern switchers struggle with games like DK. I would verify that your device can output at least 1A on the -5V rail. -3.something volts is not good enough.
 
Whatever power supply you are using is not outputting enough amps on the -5v rail hence the drop. Donkey kong/nintendo pcbs in general run best on their original power supply, their original power supplies almost always output the right amount of amps for each rail without even needing a cap kit or rework. There's far more people who have problems with nintendo games on switchers than any other games. People hate taking apart the pp7b but it's a great power supply. Your pcbs will likely run fine if you use the original power supply or get a significantly better switcher. I've heard of people using computer power supplies to get the extra amps but tread with caution.
Nintendo boards need a very strong -5V rail due to their use of ECL logic for video and clocks. Many modern switchers struggle with games like DK. I would verify that your device can output at least 1A on the -5V rail. -3.something volts is not good enough.
Great info here from snesnescube64, you're going to need a different power supply. Just because unloaded it's putting out almost 5.5v it doesn't mean anything about how it will preform under load. Nintendo pcbs are the only old arcade pcbs that are espcially -5v hungry, most other old games will get by on any cheapass switcher.
 
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