In the surgery room…
Shiro team member Natalie Marie is quite handy when it comes to operating on the innards of your favourite console. In the first of a series of modification posts, she takes us through a FRAM upgrade – replacing the original on-board volatile RAM (ie, internal memory) with a non-volatile solution. The result? Internal saves will no longer be dependent on a power source, meaning that saves will never get lost due to a dead battery, and will last forever!
Natalie can perform a variety of repair, tune-up, and modification services – just reach out to her for full details. She can be reached at natalie@segasaturshiro.com.
Without further ado, let us have Natalie take us on a very visual journey right into her surgery room. Scared? Don’t be! Natalie is a pro.
Take it away, Natalie!
The patient: Junkyard Moderator Morgan’s Sega Saturn
Model – MK80000a
Symptoms – 2032 battery not holding charge for average time.
Save games constantly getting deleted due to battery being fully discharged.
Figure 1
Upon opening the console, I started by cleaning the console off all dust and grime (figure 1, above). Whatever rust spots were apparent I sanded down to prevent it spreading and damaging the console further. Here you see the innards of her beautiful Sega Saturn console. Power board (left) and disc drive assembly (center).
Figure 2
Here is just a close up of the disc drive assembly. In good condition; reads games well. No need for adjustments or replacements. Look at the condition!
Figure 3
Figure 3 is a close up look of the screw below the disc drive assembly with the data cable and ribbon already removed. Now we are getting to the endoskeletal structure of the Saturn.
Figure 4
Figure 4 shows the power supply unit (PSU) inside her Sega Saturn. The PSU provides the power to the console so that you can have fun! First screw bottom right and second screw on the outside of the connector – at the power terminal – followed by the white power connector and it’s out! Don’t forget to remove the plastic below the power supply that provides a shield from the pins below touching the metal shielding.
Figure 5
Here are the 2 screws mentioned above (figure 5).
Figure 6
Here is the Saturn with its power supply and disc drive assembly removed. Time to unscrew the shielding – this operation is getting serious! Two screws on the power button, and 8 screws for the shielding itself.
Figure 7
Here (figure 7) is what it looks like with the shielding completely removed. At this point, there is complete silence in the operating room – the focus is epic.
Figure 8
Another snapshot of the now-exposed motherboard. Time to wipe a little bit of sweat off the brow. Deep breath. OK. We proceed.
Figure 9
Morgan mentioned the battery was not functioning properly. If you look closely here, there is a broken solder joint: the ground pin of the battery holder.
Figure 10
Here is the broken solder joint up close (figure 10). Let us fill it with some fresh solder and get that battery holder in tip top shape!
Figure 11
The chip I will install is a IC8-SRAM for the console, and it will replace the existing on-board chip. The ‘stock chip’ is identified by the silkscreen IC8 and UM62257M-70LL. This will get a nice upgrade.
Figure 12
A bit far away to see, but the stock SRAM chip was replace with a new non-volatile ram chip as pictured. This new ram chip does not require updates from the battery to store information; no voltage is needed to maintain its function. So with that said, once the battery dies, game saves will remain in memory indefinitely. The internal clock is all that would need to be reset.
Figure 13
Up close shot of the beautiful new RAM chip installation.
Figure 14
And finally (figure 14), the console is buttoned up and ready for testing. Post-operation vitals show the console’s new RAM performs as it should, holding those saves without battery power. They will now last for an eternity as they will never die off. Morgan is now confident that her saves will forever stay on board unless she chooses to delete them. Battery is no longer required and her first Saturn will live on for many more memories!
Unfortunately we have no pictures of Morgan being reunited with her new and improved Saturn, but we are told that there were flowers for the occasion 🙂
And that, folks, is just one of the many ways in which Natalie can service your Sega Saturn. Another happy console and owner reunion is behind us!
Until next time, readers, this is Natalie signing off.
Sega Saturn, Shiro!
A Saturn fan since the beginning, Peter plays Saturn almost exclusively. For Peter, Saturn represents a moment in time where 2D games were at their best, 3D was just rising, and fascinating gaming ‘firsts’ were commonplace. There are very few Saturn games that Peter cannot find some enjoyment in!
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