Controller board port A issue.

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AuthorAwful
noob
Posts: 3

Controller board port A issue.

Post#1 » Wed Jul 17, 2019 7:06 am

Hi guys,
i could use your help. I just bought a Dreamcast (pal) 2 months ago and I‘m loving it. After a night of playing PSO (planning on playing it online with you guys) the controller port A stopped working, all other ports are still working. Last weekend, I opened it up to see if i could spot any issues with the board (I‘m a noob), could not see anything abnormal. I cleaned the contacts with a q-tip and alcohol, searched google and was able to find a lot of info on the fuse-fix problem, but not really anything on a single broken port issue. I would be ok with my DC only having 3 working ports, but older games like Shenmue or Virtua Tennis seem to need to have a VMU in port A to be played(?). Has anyone of you ever had/fixed this problem or do I have to swap out the board? If so, how many different types of controller boards are there? I found there are some with 2 pin connectors and others with 3 pin connectors, is this the only difference i have to keep an eye on? Thank you in advance.

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Ian Micheal
Developer
Posts: 5993
Contact:

Re: Controller board port A issue.

Post#2 » Thu Jul 18, 2019 7:08 am

I have had this problem. when i just pull it up, put something under the controler plug let it rest on it it would work again.. it was a pal one to. try pulling up on it when in the vmu menu see it starts working.. just a thought because it happen to me.

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poopidoop
MegaDeath
Posts: 233

Re: Controller board port A issue.

Post#3 » Thu Jul 18, 2019 11:08 am

same as ian only i have north american dreamcasts, sometimes the controller plug sags just a little bit in the port and you gotta lift on it a little. it always works for me, and i have the same issue with 2 of my dreamcasts. i think its just normal wear but i couldnt tell you for certain. but i would try just pulling up on it slightly to see if that works before you rest it on somthing.

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Anthony817
Shark Patrol
Posts: 4009

Re: Controller board port A issue.

Post#4 » Thu Jul 18, 2019 8:16 pm

Probably broken solder points. I would check and see if it is loose when a controller is plugged into it. If so, perhaps soldering the connector back to the board could fix it?
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AuthorAwful
noob
Posts: 3

Re: Controller board port A issue.

Post#5 » Thu Jul 18, 2019 8:23 pm

Thanks for the input. Well that‘s a bummer, i was hoping for a permanent fix. I‘m gonna look for a cheap back-up for parts or maybe open it up again.


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AuthorAwful
noob
Posts: 3

Re: Controller board port A issue.

Post#6 » Fri Jul 19, 2019 5:46 am

Anthony817 wrote:Probably broken solder points. I would check and see if it is loose when a controller is plugged into it. If so, perhaps soldering the connector back to the board could fix it?


That‘s a good suggestion, i will try that. I checked underneath the board in hope to find a bad solder point, but as the previous user pointed out it could be a mechanical (?) problem where the controller doesnt connects with the contacts of the controller board unless it is lifted up. I can‘t see where i could re-solder the connection but I will look again and gonna report back. Thank you.


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