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Thread: Blinking Light Win: Fixing your toaster NES for good (72-pin replacement)

  1. #41
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    I wanted to necro this thread that was the original discussion for the BLW to say that this thing is legit. Don't waste your money with stupid aftermarket 72 pin connectors that have a death grip on your carts and will wear down your cartridge contacts. The BLW removes a step in the process. there's no pushing downward on the cart either which just makes the process a lot more streamlined.

    these days I imagine most people are playing a flash cart and seldom remove it but for boomers like me who still play on legitimate cartridges, this thing is a life saver!!

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    Update: So what I have found is that if you rub the contacts with alcohol and q tips and insert, you'll get a nice insertion that goes in smooth. But if you go in bone dry, it doesn't seem to make very good contact. And if you leave a cartridge in for any length of time, it's going to be really hard to pull it out. So basically, go in wet, and pull out when you're done.

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    Quote Originally Posted by gbpxl View Post
    Update: So what I have found is that if you rub the contacts with alcohol and q tips and insert, you'll get a nice insertion that goes in smooth. But if you go in bone dry, it doesn't seem to make very good contact. And if you leave a cartridge in for any length of time, it's going to be really hard to pull it out. So basically, go in wet, and pull out when you're done.
    Ahem...snicker.....snort...dang reading this I'm fourteen again.
    So you gotta lube up the cart, is that what yer sayin' ?

    I recently got a BLW too to have a NES over at the Air BnB (I'm trying to convince my wife she should go with a "retro" motif due to comments on how old styled things are). That BLW is a PITA trying to get cartridges out! I either have to rock the cart out side to side or use a pliers! Function wise, it works great.

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    yeah I had to use a pliers on a cartridge before. dumbass from the game store told me "that's how tight it was back when the system first came out" and he wasnt born for another 3 years after that. um ok

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    So it has a death grip on the carts like other crap connectors from 15 years ago? Just more garbage then. With a death grip it's wearing away the contacts from the game carts, it's going to ruin your games in the long run. Plus marking up the cases by using pliers isn't something I'll ever want to do.

    I'm going to hate buying used NES games 5-10 years from now when everything will be beat up from crappy replacement connectors and poor quality "aftermarket" consoles. It's like finding used PS1 games now that look like they were used as drink coasters. So much for the hobby.

    Also, if you're just wanting an NES for an Air BnB, just get something aftermarket with built in games like those fake famiclones or use some type of emulation setup. People into retro stuff today are mostly hipsters who don't really want to deal with old finicky things. They want a modern HD widescreen display, so you'll need something that can easily hook up to it. They'll probably want to stretch out the games to widescreen too. If you have a real NES I'm sure it'll be broken pretty quickly, and people would step on the games or something. Some type of cheap arcade cabinet would also work instead of an NES. You're attracting hipsters rather than real collectors.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Gameguy View Post
    So it has a death grip on the carts like other crap connectors from 15 years ago? Just more garbage then. With a death grip it's wearing away the contacts from the game carts, it's going to ruin your games in the long run. Plus marking up the cases by using pliers isn't something I'll ever want to do.

    I'm going to hate buying used NES games 5-10 years from now when everything will be beat up from crappy replacement connectors and poor quality "aftermarket" consoles. It's like finding used PS1 games now that look like they were used as drink coasters. So much for the hobby.

    Also, if you're just wanting an NES for an Air BnB, just get something aftermarket with built in games like those fake famiclones or use some type of emulation setup. People into retro stuff today are mostly hipsters who don't really want to deal with old finicky things. They want a modern HD widescreen display, so you'll need something that can easily hook up to it. They'll probably want to stretch out the games to widescreen too. If you have a real NES I'm sure it'll be broken pretty quickly, and people would step on the games or something. Some type of cheap arcade cabinet would also work instead of an NES. You're attracting hipsters rather than real collectors.
    We got some reviews from folks that were tickled pink over the experience using a VCR. So I thought it'd be fun to bring another retro experience. We had people complain about lack of things like a smart TV and other like "modern conveniences" which honestly you see at places way more upscaled than ours. We charge $55 a night for a two bedroom apartment with a stove, fridge and wifi. I joked to my wife who would get disgruntled over the comments that we should yank the 50" plasma (she rented the apartment monthly but our last tenants jumped ship and left everything, including that TV) and put in a 27" CRT and a Beta VCR. After the above mention of a "retro" experience, the idea started to gain traction.

    So an emulation box really doesn't hit that true retro experience. If the tenant damages it, they pay for it. I'm not worried

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    With the NES, you're choosing between a really loose connection that barely works or a death grip. there isn't a happy medium. the best thing to do is lube it up and remove the cart as soon as you're done.

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    Quote Originally Posted by gbpxl View Post
    With the NES, you're choosing between a really loose connection that barely works or a death grip. there isn't a happy medium. the best thing to do is lube it up and remove the cart as soon as you're done.
    Sometimes you get lucky and get an original Nintendo made one online. I got one for my original NES, I think from this very board.

    I wonder how hard it is to manufacture a connector that doesn't grip so hard. Nintendo did it...why can't others?

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    Quote Originally Posted by YoshiM View Post
    We got some reviews from folks that were tickled pink over the experience using a VCR. So I thought it'd be fun to bring another retro experience. We had people complain about lack of things like a smart TV and other like "modern conveniences" which honestly you see at places way more upscaled than ours. We charge $55 a night for a two bedroom apartment with a stove, fridge and wifi. I joked to my wife who would get disgruntled over the comments that we should yank the 50" plasma (she rented the apartment monthly but our last tenants jumped ship and left everything, including that TV) and put in a 27" CRT and a Beta VCR. After the above mention of a "retro" experience, the idea started to gain traction.

    So an emulation box really doesn't hit that true retro experience. If the tenant damages it, they pay for it. I'm not worried
    If people are really into it then go ahead, I'm apparently wrong. I was going to suggest a VHS VCR but figured you probably already did that too. Though if people are really happy with it when hooked up to an HD display then I'm pretty sure they'd be happy with a famiclone. Otherwise CRTs are still easy to find for free if you're looking, though working Beta VCRs are difficult as they all need servicing. It might be funny to get CEDs instead, though funnier if you just got the CED discs and paired them with a laserdisc player.

    Quote Originally Posted by YoshiM View Post
    Sometimes you get lucky and get an original Nintendo made one online. I got one for my original NES, I think from this very board.
    How can you tell if one is an original one when buying it as a replacement? And did Nintendo actually sell replacement new connectors? Or are you talking about used ones someone took out of an existing console?

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    Can't say how you can tell other than what the seller says. At one time I think Nintendo did sell the connectors. The person I bought it from purchased a few and was sellibg them off years later.

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    Quote Originally Posted by YoshiM View Post
    Can't say how you can tell other than what the seller says. At one time I think Nintendo did sell the connectors. The person I bought it from purchased a few and was sellibg them off years later.
    I didn't know that Nintendo used to sell them. Maybe they were available to authorized service centers? I wish I could see pictures of these just to see how they were packaged when new.

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    I guess just get a BLW if you're going to just have a system where you only use an Everdrive and leave the thing in there permanently. You can still eject the micro sd card while it's plugged in on these newer models - the Everdrive N8 Pro.
    [quote name='Shidou Mariya' date='Nov 17 2010, 10:05 PM' post='4889940']
    I'm a collector, but only to a certain extent.
    Not as extreme as Rickstilwell though.[/quote]


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    If you're going to leave the cart in permanently, why not get a cheaper aftermarket connector with a death grip? It's basically the same thing at that point.

    I assume these all have a death grip because the edge connectors are manufactured like motherboard expansion slots which aren't designed to have cards often removed. With the NES you can barely grip the cartridge either with how it's designed to encase the cartridges, it's not like a top loading console. A proper replacement would need to be designed with the right tension, not just adapting computer components.

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    you should be designing them then since you know better

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    Quote Originally Posted by gbpxl View Post
    you should be designing them then since you know better
    I never felt a need to replace them.

    If you really were going to replace a connector, ideally a replacement would also be a ZIF connector like the original as that's what the console is physically designed to use, but gold plated so it wouldn't oxidize or corrode. Maybe have some very slightly increased tension compared to the original so the pins won't get bent as easily, but still a ZIF connector so carts won't get stuck.

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    I need to get a BLW after modding one of my spares with the USB CopyNES. The current, original adapter works, but it's very finicky. This could affect how the cart is read when dumped.

    Maybe one day.
    Proud owner of a Neo 25 Neo Geo Candy Cab!

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    Quote Originally Posted by megasdkirby View Post
    I need to get a BLW after modding one of my spares with the USB CopyNES. The current, original adapter works, but it's very finicky. This could affect how the cart is read when dumped.

    Maybe one day.
    If you decide to go with one, I highly recommend doing what I suggested earlier in this topic... rub the contacts of the cartridge with alcohol so it's nice and lubed, and remove the cart as soon as you're done playing. as long as the cartridge is in good condition, you should be able to get to the startup screen like 99 times out of 100 and you won't have to deal with the dreaded death grip

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    Awesome, thanks! The console will only be used to dump carts, and I will always use the 1up card before dumping. But your suggestion is gold as I noticed that even on clone consoles like the Retron HD, it doesn't grip it as bad when cleaned with alcohol prior to insertion. Good call.
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    If you were close enough near me I would offer to clean your system, but sadly you're not.

    I would be personally nervous about inserting any cartridge with wet contacts as that could potentially cause shorts when powered on. Clean contacts yes, but they need to dry first before being powered on.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Gameguy View Post
    If you were close enough near me I would offer to clean your system, but sadly you're not.

    I would be personally nervous about inserting any cartridge with wet contacts as that could potentially cause shorts when powered on. Clean contacts yes, but they need to dry first before being powered on.
    Well I hear you on that one. I always rub a dry q tip in the contacts after I rub the alcohol q tip on it

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