I wanna play Super Mario Bros.!

July 7, 2006 4:33 PM

Help me make my old-school Nintendo (NES) work.

As my parents were cleaning out the basement in my childhood home, they ran across my old Nintendo. This is the original NES - not a Super Nintendo or N64.

I thought I'd take it and try to make it work. I got the proper cords to hook it up to my television, a ton of fun games, and the controllers (plus a gun for Duck Hunt!).

I plugged everything in properly (and checked it half a dozen times). When I put the game cartridge in, the little light next to the "Power" button blinks red repeatedly. The television screen is blue and blinks in unison with the red light.

I have tried all the troubleshooting I remember from being a kid - pushing the reset button repeatedly, moving the cartridge up and down in the bay, taking the cartridge out and blowing on it, blowing in the bay with and without the cartridge - all to no avail. The troubleshooting board at NES Player suggests an NES Cleaning Kit available at Funcoland but I can't find a Funcoland (at all - let alone one in my area).

Do you have any other suggestions?

posted by MeetMegan to computers & internet (12 comments total)

Open 'er up and see if you can see any shorts on the board...
posted by tdreyer1 at 4:50 PM on July 7, 2006

have you tried cleaning the cartridges themselves? if they've just been sitting around for years outside of a sleeve, then they've probably accumulated an impressive layer of dust. from the NES cleaning FAQ:

What you'll need
1.Q-Tips
2.Windex or a solution of 50% isopropyl alcohol, 50% water
3.Phillips-head screwdriver

What to do
To clean a cartridge:
1. Dip a Q-Tip in the cleaning solution and rub firmly across the metal contacts on the dirty cartridge. Repeat until the Q-Tip comes out clean.
2. Use a dry Q-Tip to wipe off the excess solution.
3. Once the game is dry, plug it in to test it. You may want to remove and reinsert the game a couple times more to make sure the contacts are completely clean.
4. If the cartridge is completely clean and it still won't work, your system may need cleaning.

hydrogen peroxide will also work. if that doesn't work, you can return your NES to like condition by replacing the 72 pin connector inside of the NES that the cartridge slides into. you can get them for less than $10 on ebay, and after that it's just a matter of taking the old one out and sliding the new one on. all you need to perform the switch is a phillips head screwdriver. you can find more instructions at classicgaming.com.
posted by mcsweetie at 5:22 PM on July 7, 2006 [1 favorite has favorites]

I am a little surprised that an owner of an NES system has not yet learned how to properly turn on her own machine. EVERY NES system that I have ever encountered needs to be caressed, nudged, and maybe even kissed before it turns on. You can't just stick the game in and expect it to be ready to go. If you haven't caught on by now, turning on your old NES is as much of a hassle as trying to turn on a frigid woman. Before you really get to know your system, your little "tricks" might not be very effective in turning on your NES. After some experimenting you and your system should develop a relationship where it should only take a series of nudges and blows to successfully turn on your NES. You must be asking yourself what are these "tricks" to turn on my NES? Well, MeetMegan I'm going to let you in on a few secrets that help me quickly turn on my system as well as some tips from my friends on how they turn theirs on.

For my NES
1. Take cartridge and place it under shirt (you must be wearing the shirt)
2. Blow into cartridge using shirt as a filter
3. Blow into NES system (no saliva)
4. Insert game
5. Jiggle game up and down quickly and with a fair amount force (I haven't hurt my system or games yet)
6. Turn on system

This works about 75% of the time. If it does not work I repeat and try again.

Tricks my friends use (I swear I am not making this up)
1. Tapping on the top of the NES while you turn it on (again with force)
2. Propping the front of the system up at about 20 degrees
3. Good solid smack on top after it is turned on and not yet correctly functioning
4. Forcefully pushing the game into the system (hand on back for added stability and force)
5. Inserting a wedge into the open system to hold the game down
6. And of course, a veriety of stratigically placed taps and nudges all over the system

I will be the first to admit that some of this might be a little voodoo, but it definitely works. Anyone who has ever owned an NES and still plays it will probably tell you a little ritual they do in order to get the system fired up.

(comatose claims no responsibility for damages to broken NES systems)
posted by comatose at 5:38 PM on July 7, 2006 [1 favorite has favorites]

I didn't know that those Nintendos had the blinking light technology. I think it needs to be cleaned, after all those years in the basement.
posted by lain at 5:48 PM on July 7, 2006

If you just wanna play the games, and can stand using nonstandard controllers, there are a wealth of emulators.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 6:07 PM on July 7, 2006

A blinking light means that the contacts in the NES are not properly contacting the contacts in the cartridge. This can mean things are dirty, but usually means that they have been bent by use (the NES pins), which happens to every NES eventually. This is why jamming crap into the cartridge slot sometimes does the trick by pushing the cartridge contacts against the NES contacts.

You can buy a new 72-pin connector cheap off of ebay or other places, and it's fairly easy to install. However, you may find you get good results from simply jamming stuff in there, or inserting the cartridge, powering the set on, , adjusting the caridge while it's in there and pressing the reset button until it works. This is really part of the true NES experience.

You could also go the route of buying a new NES-like device which accepts NES cartridges. There are a couple of options, but their names escape me at the moment. Frankly, the old NES's were super-fun, and super flimsy, those pin connecters ALWAYS fail after not terribly long.
posted by Durhey at 6:10 PM on July 7, 2006

Don't blow on the game. That really doesn't do anything. Your problem isn't massive debris and dust that will be removed by blowing. Similarly, you can't do your dishes, clean a window, or polish brass by blowing on it.

Replace the 72-pin connector.
Clean the games.
If you still have trouble, try nudging the game around (left and right, in and out) while it's in the system, powering on and off after each little nudge. A fraction of a millimeter of motion can make the connection.
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim at 6:10 PM on July 7, 2006

This may prove helpful.
posted by Durhey at 6:14 PM on July 7, 2006

FWIW, I have an old NES that had the same problem, and I got one of those 72-pin Connectors from eBay. They're really very easy to install -- it's not like taking apart modern electronics, the NES is a sturdy piece of kit -- and fixed the problem immediately.

Though MegaMan 2 still gives me grief.
posted by CrayDrygu at 6:35 PM on July 7, 2006

Oh, sorry to post twice in a row, but...

After installing the 72-pin connector, and before putting any games in it, clean all of your games' connectors with a Q-tip and rubbing alcohol. You'll be amazed at how much dirt comes off, and you don't want it on your shiny new connector.

(Incidentally, the reason the new connectors work so well -- or so the rumor goes, anyway -- is because Nintendo used a metal in the original connectors that corroded slightly over time, resulting in poor connections.)
posted by CrayDrygu at 6:38 PM on July 7, 2006

Buy the 72 pin connector. A few years ago for Christmas, I bought them for all my friends... it was a NES Renaissance. The installation is not tough, and worth the 10 minutes it takes... Super Spike Volleyball anyone?
posted by sdrawkcab at 9:40 PM on July 7, 2006

If you just wanna play the games, and can stand using nonstandard controllers

You don't have to use nonstandard controllers.
posted by dmd at 9:54 PM on July 7, 2006