can you swap a snes/n64 game battery and still retain the save?

[jb143]

But does the save really vanish instantly? Doesn't the save persist for the short amount of time it takes to change the battery? That's how it works with CPS2 boards, at least:
http://archive.is/JgoF

It's possible that capacitors in the circuit could keep the RAM powered for a short time. Not sure if that's the case for carts or not but in theory it could happen.

Can't he just put another battery in parallel at the same contact points as original battery? Then with that in place swap out the bad battery?

I was going to post exactly this.

Heh...me too.

Either way, this is all a moot point if the game does indeed use flash.

[Crystalian]

1. A Dex Drive costs wayyyyyy less than $100 and will hook you up if you need to back up 64 saves on the cheap.

2. My copy of Dragon Quest Monsters Joker probably has over 10,000 saves on it, ...

[Jorpho]

1. A Dex Drive costs wayyyyyy less than $100 and will hook you up if you need to back up 64 saves on the cheap.

But that only works with memory cards and not with carts that have internal saving, right?

[Jack_Burton_BYOAC]

But does the save really vanish instantly? Doesn't the save persist for the short amount of time it takes to change the battery? That's how it works with CPS2 boards, at least:
http://archive.is/JgoF

From what I've read, SNES games don't have the capacitors that give you the amount of leeway the CPS2 allows. When you remove the battery, *poof*. That's it. I don't know about N64 games, but it is likely the same story.

Using two batteries might be possible, but I would be worried that the extra current would corrupt the save file.

[Gameguy]

Can't he just put another battery in parallel at the same contact points as original battery? Then with that in place swap out the bad battery?

Usually when you replace batteries you have to desolder the old metal tabs from the board and solder in a battery holder for a new battery, where would you hook up another battery while desoldering the old one? You're removing the part holding in the battery, not just the battery itself.

[Rickstilwell1]

At least Sonic 3 and Sonic 3 & Knuckles are both games that are able to be beaten in one sitting. Just takes a few hours for the long version with both games attached.

[jb143]

Using two batteries might be possible, but I would be worried that the extra current would corrupt the save file.

The maximum possible current would increase but the actual current flow through the circuit is determined by the circuit itself...which isn't going to change in this case. As long as you're not using something like a car battery you should be fine.

[Rickstilwell1]

Yes.





And in time, you can have this experience with eighty different N64 games, over half of all GBA games, and every DS game.

This is why a nifty piece of hardware called the Everdrive 64 was invented. With the saving now going to an SD card instead or cartridge flash, you never have to worry about losing your saves again. I also believe if you use flash carts for GBA and DS all of the data is stored on the micro SD cards as well. These devices are worth the investment as they do a far better job than any emulator ever could and they will preserve the lifespan of your real games.

[jb143]

Usually when you replace batteries you have to desolder the old metal tabs from the board and solder in a battery holder for a new battery, where would you hook up another battery while desoldering the old one? You're removing the part holding in the battery, not just the battery itself.

A battery holder and alligator clips...or if you're worried about the alligator clips slipping off while desoldering/soldering then simply tack solder the wires to an appropriate place on the board. Pretty typical way to approach something like this. I wouldn't even think twice about it if I were trying to retain a save through a battery swap.

[thegamezmaster]

Usually when you replace batteries you have to desolder the old metal tabs from the board and solder in a battery holder for a new battery, where would you hook up another battery while desoldering the old one? You're removing the part holding in the battery, not just the battery itself.

Two points along the same lines, just find a point on the traces closest to the battery tabs.

[Gameguy]

So you'd basically have to solder some points directly to the traces while soldering a battery holder to the proper spots? I guess it could be done, personally I wouldn't want to mess around with the cartridge too much while changing the battery. Just change the battery and start fresh rather than solder a bunch of new connections over the traces.

Most people would only change the battery when the old one dies anyway, this isn't really all that practical to do.

[jb143]

So you'd basically have to solder some points directly to the traces while soldering a battery holder to the proper spots?

I wouldn't solder to the traces, they are usually coated. If you did want to solder to the traces, you would have to sand down to the bare metal first. Instead, you would want to solder to a pin, via, component lead, or some other already soldered point. Really, it wouldn't be that hard or even time consuming and you quickly hit the spots with your iron when you're done to remove the wires with no noticeable difference to the board.