Re: Tech: C-board problems with Magic Sword (Capcom CPS1)

I have this same problem.

I recently got a supposedly working boardset for cheap enough on ebay (tested for video only), and it has corrupt jailbar graphics all over the place. Some of the text is scrambled also.

I had a spare top board laying around and tried swapping all the chips and mounting to the bottom board, but the graphics were slightly worse.

I figure that narrows it down to the bottom board or the chips on the top board. I tried reading the EPROMS but my old Data I/O 2B w/ Unipak 2 (not 2B!) couldn't handle it.

I'm no killer fan, but I always wanted to play around with the game again.

  Kerry

Arttu Ylärakkola wrote: 
Hi!

Couple of weeks ago I pulled out my Magic Sword (Capcom CPS1) game from the storage and found out that the gameplay, sounds and controls work perfectly but the colors are incorrect. It used to work just fine and was stored carefully.

First, I swapped the A-board from Carrier Airwing that worked perfectly. No change, so the problem must be with the B-board. Then I replaced all the socketed chips and C-board, and again - no change. So the problem was not with the B-board itself, but the chips or the C-board.

At first I thought it was one of the big eproms (40 pins, so I could not read or program them).

What I did was that I acquired another Magic Sword PCB that had a similar problem (but with a bit less color "distortion"). I changed all the eproms, but that didn't help.

Finally I found out that the problem was with the C-board. I can "move the problems" between Magic Sword PCBs by swapping the C-board.

So finally we get to the point:

Unlike some CPS1 games like Three Wonders, Magic Sword C-board does not have a suicide battery. The C-board contains one CPU with the text:

CAPCOM
C.P.S.-B-13
DL-0411-10008
5C58 OED 40
JAPAN

Lately there's been more than one Magic Sword pcb auctioned on ebay that has the exact same problems (=incorrect colors, otherwise just fine) and my guess is that they have broken C-boards, just like my PCBs.

There is no visible damage on either of my Magic Sword C-board so my questions are:

1. Anyone else had problems with "suicide-batteryless" CPS1 C-board dying?
2. What could be done to remedy the situation?
3. I've owned around 400 pcbs and never had a problem with static eletricity - could the C-board CPUs be super-extra sensitive?


If anyone has Magic Sword for sale, I'm open for offers :) 

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