NES blinking light - What did you do?

[AxelStone]

I knew it was too good to be true. I recently acquired a NES for free with some sweet cartridges unfortunately I am getting the blinking red light.
So has anyone else suffered this and if so what did you do to overcome it?

[Joe Redifer]

I think you might be the first person to experience this, or at least close. The NES is an extremely reliable machine and it is amazingly rare that you'll get a blinking light due to the skilled workmanship of the unit not to mention the top-of-the-line components used within which simply are not very prone to wear.

Here are some things you can try, however: Turn the NES off. Adjust the cartridge while it is still inside the unit, pull it out a little bit and retry. This may help the pins make better contact. You can also try cleaning the games with alcohol or cocaine. Lastly you can remove/bypass the lockout chip from the NES itself. This chip is very demanding about exactly when it sees the chip on the cart and won't let the NES operate if it does not see it.

[Iron Lizard]

This helped mine

http://classicgaming.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Articles.Detail&id=256

[Rusty Venture]

So has anyone else suffered this and if so what did you do to overcome it?

Yes.

What did I do to overcome it? I prayed to Jesus.

[evildragon]

Replace the 72-pin connector. Sounds like it's fucked, if the above don't work.

[XMARLTONX]

Sounds like it's fucked

Is that the technical term? =)

[AD2101]

Yea I just adjust the cart while its in the NES, except I leave it on while I adjust it. I dunno if that hurts the cart or the console but once the cart makes contact the game instantly pops on screen so you know its good.

[Mr Smith]

I used to get a blinking light with my NES. As Joe suggested, adjusting the cart and then switching it on again would often work.

[AxelStone]

Thanks a lot guys I'll give all those ideas a try!

[evildragon]

Is that the technical term? =)
In my book it is. XD

[KnightWarrior]

Cut pin 4

[evildragon]

Cut pin 4
Ok, this is seriously the most screwed up advice you've given.

Cutting pin 4 won't solve the fact that the game CAN'T EVEN BOOT. Cutting pin 4 is only good for playing bootlegs, etc.

[Joe Redifer]

What is pin 4?

[evildragon]

What is pin 4?
It's a pin on the 10NES chip that causes the "blinking". It's only activated either when the cartridge isn't in properly, or when the cartridge is "illegal" (like a bootleg).

It's purpose, is if the matching chip in the cartridge (the key), isn't found, it resets the CPU every 1 second.

Pin 4 decides weather the chip is the a key, or the host (the one in the console). when the pin is cut, it becomes a key, and "technically" disabled, because non of them are going to reset the CPU.

[Joe Redifer]

OK correct me if I'm wrong, but if you cut pin 4, are you effectively disabling to 10NES chip completely? From what understand (and this could be wrong), the 10NES chip looks for the key chip in the cartridge and if it doesn't get it at a certain exact time after the POWER button is pressed, it goes in to blinking mode. I have heard that removing/disabling the chip gets rid of that and allows a few more nanoseconds for the cartridge to be detected and therefore more likely to work.

[evildragon]

Yes, that's what I said in the last paragraph, you do indeed disable it. However, it doesn't speed up the power on, it's function is to only continuesly reset the console.

But in this thread, he doesn't even flash the "game", just a blank screen. If it was indeed the 10NES as a failure, you'd atleast see the game title screen flash every second, but this isn't the case, and is merely a worn out connector.

[KnightWarrior]

The reason I said that it would be easier..I didn't know it can't boot up..

Try Cleaning your NES Games thoughly..

[Vehemont]

Yea I just adjust the cart while its in the NES, except I leave it on while I adjust it. I dunno if that hurts the cart or the console but once the cart makes contact the game instantly pops on screen so you know its good.

That is what I do, and so far nothing bad has happened.

[Rusty Venture]

I had a co-worker who could never get a used NES to work, I told him he was born without "The Touch".

The touch means cleaning, blowing, cleaning, praying, cleaning, blowing, cleaning, cleaning and hitting reset 85 times.

[Iron Lizard]

You forgot smashing the sides of it with the palms of your hands. That was the only thing that made mine go when it was on its death bead

[TmEE]

I'd take the chip out of the cart, put it in the NES, and would never have to worry about it... but I have whole bunch of FC clones, and there isn't that chip and I don't care...

[Rusty Venture]

You forgot smashing the sides of it with the palms of your hands. That was the only thing that made mine go when it was on its death bead

Excessive force never worked, it required a gentle touch, a skillful hand, and lots o' finesse.

[VinnyT]

"Master, we need your idle hands!"

"The masters idle hands are busy!"

[evildragon]

I'd take the chip out of the cart, put it in the NES, and would never have to worry about it... but I have whole bunch of FC clones, and there isn't that chip and I don't care...
Um, the chip used in the cart is the SAME EXACT chip that's in the console.

Literally, it's pin 4 that decides weather it's the lock or the key, but the chip is exactly the same.

[TmEE]

In any case, it'll make any cart running... the system doesn't know if its in the cart or not... but I said, I don't care, my FC clones run anything...

[evildragon]

No, your not understanding me.

If you take the chip out of the cart and put it in the NES, that chip becomes a lock then, not a cart.

They literally grab the SAME chips for the NES and the cartridge. Check those numbers, they match up. 10NES.....

Each 10NES chip is a lock/key in one package, pin 4 just decides weather it's high or low, lock or key.

[Iron Lizard]

Excessive force never worked, it required a gentle touch, a skillful hand, and lots o' finesse.

No way my Nes loved it. I did it a lot because Smb3 was new at the time. It always worked on mine. In fact it was the only thing that made it work.

[Rusty Venture]

NES S+M?

Bizarre.

[Iron Lizard]

NES S+M?

Bizarre.

Hehe Nes&M

[TmEE]

No, your not understanding me.

If you take the chip out of the cart and put it in the NES, that chip becomes a lock then, not a cart.

They literally grab the SAME chips for the NES and the cartridge. Check those numbers, they match up. 10NES.....

Each 10NES chip is a lock/key in one package, pin 4 just decides weather it's high or low, lock or key.

You don't understand me... I don't feel like arguing, or explaining what I meant in detail so you could understand it...

[evildragon]

Except you made absolutely zero sense, because replacing it with the chip from a cartridge would do absolutely nothing, except STILL make it blink.

[TmEE]

Who said anything about replacing !?!?! I said, I'd take the chip OUT from the cart, wire it in the NES and bang (and cut the chip lines on cartslot) !!!

[Rusty Venture]

Can't we all agree that the NES has the shittiest method to contact cartridge to connector ever made?

[TmEE]

YES IT HAS !!!

[evildragon]

Who said anything about replacing !?!?! I said, I'd take the chip OUT from the cart, wire it in the NES and bang (and cut the chip lines on cartslot) !!!
You shoulda just said that from the beginning.

Though, pin 4 is easier and smarter.

[TmEE]

I said that in the first place :
I'd take the chip out of the cart, put it in the NES, and would never have to worry about it... Read more carefully in the future...

[alexis524]

well,
allow me to introduce myself. i just joined and from what i've been seeing here, this looks like a fine site to join. After all, some of my fondest gaming memories have been from playing Master System and Genesis.
I did, for nostalgic reasons pick up a NES at my local gaming shop the other day. The guy behind the counter tried to sell me an FC console. Nice, but it's not the grey toaster i grew up with. After telling me that he can't garauntee it'll work, and i have 30 days to bring it back, i already knew my plan of attack. When i took it home and plugged it up, blinking light the whole way.
First, i thouroughly cleaned an NES game i had bought, and i mean thouroughly. Took it all apart, alcohol, q-tips, pink eraser, the whole 9 yards.
Still get a blinking light. So i took apart the NES itself and gave it a thourough cleaning too. First i started with the 72 pin connector. Took my daughters Elmo toothbrush (closest thing around) and scrubbed the connectors with rubbing alcohol. Then i took a precision flat head screwdriver and pried up the pins them selves in order to make a tighter fit from pin to connector. When i was done, i slapped the 72 pin connector back onto the motherboard, placed the black cart tray back in its place, put my game in, now it fires up on the VERY FIRST TRY!!!! i don't even have to push the game down!! sweetness. Now onto cleaning a master system i bought with it too. It works great, just needs a bath.

[raf]

there is one more thing for the blinking problem if you put a ntsc game in to a europe console and vice versa ta da, BLINKING, you simply need to put a pice of whire so that there is no more area protection(look it on the net how is done) and if cleaning and all the rest don't work by a new damn nes and save yourself the hassle :ok:

[hydroMorphoneMat]

Bump...

Easier to find for a few days I need that link

[lilmul123]

Welcome back from the dead, thread.

[Honey the Cat]

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Kxi-CO02pww/RuLy6-lKeZI/AAAAAAAAAAM/4d9QOFsjfI0/s320/ab-rise.gif
WISE FWOM YO GWAVE!

[hydroMorphoneMat]

I can 'wesowect' a lot of threads that are still good. Their threads. Add a +1 if you ain't got shit to say. 'Your favortie 10 genesis games' is another one I haven't done yet. Post whores.

[Deo]

Bump for bad contacts.
My NES is running off of Rubbing Alcohol.