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[Console Repair/Mod Center / Re: Doujindance = CRAP RGB Mods. DONT BUY FROM THIS SELLER (but post pics)]

Thanks for the replies. Figured as much, as I've never heard about the AC voltage from a socket causing malfunction in a component in such a way, as long as it's regulated by converters and the DC output of the adaptor itself is within the safe range of the voltage regulators, as you say.

My US power brick for a US TurboDuo puts out the exact same voltage or very close to the Japanese power bricks just for a comparison. They are both within that 12-15v range. Even though they say 10v etc they output higher than what they say I have found.

So even if the rated DC 9V 1.3A output of the boxed in power supply is not what is exactly output the difference is nothing that should cause malfunction in the CD-reading capabilties of the laser itself and nothing else, and only in some games. It powers on and off fine, hucards play flawlessly, and at least one of my Super CD Rom2 games plays flawlessly. I don't understand why he would even bother with mentioning socket AC voltage differences as a cause for this when there are so many more apparent causes that could be addressed first.

[Console Repair/Mod Center / Re: Doujindance = CRAP RGB Mods. DONT BUY FROM THIS SELLER (but post pics)]

A little update: I contacted doujindance asking about the CD playback trouble, and if he actually checked the if the laser was functioning properly. He replied saying that he indeed did proof-test that the laser was operating, "using a 9V stabilized power supply and a oscilloscope  supplied with the standard voltage and current of a Japanese house". He also admits that he does receive a small number of mails from customers complaining about the CD reading capabilities every year.

He goes on to remind me that the console is used outside Japan, and that my AC current is higher than the 100V there. No shit Sherlock. The fact that he himself packs in a universal power adaptor with 100-240V  50/60hz input rating, and that the output of that to the console would be DC 9V 1.3A anyway doesn't seem to concern him too much. I even use a 230-110V 45 Watt AC converter because I didn't have any plug converter at hand. He furthermore asks me to adjust the potentiometer as shown in his youtube video.

Is he just bullshitting, or could the difference in AC current coming from the socket have anything to do with in when you're using a universal power adaptor with the right output and even a step-down converter? I've never had any problems with lasers on any of the other imported consoles I use.

[Console Repair/Mod Center / Re: Doujindance = CRAP RGB Mods. DONT BUY FROM THIS SELLER (but post pics)]

Better than the stock RGB from a Saturn? That's...honestly kind of hard to believe. It would be the best PCE mod I ever saw if that was the case.

I didn't do a side by side comparison, but the picture quality I get from games like Princess Crown (the only 2d-game I've played extensively on the Saturn) seemed not quite as bright and colorful as the intro video in Dragon Slayer - The Legend of Heroes 2, though the overall graphic detail is much better in Princess Crown of course. Compared to the TurboEngine emulator running on my IPS monitor it's miles more vibrant, the colors on the IPS look noticably washed out in comparison. RGB on PVM all the way, no questions there. Needless to say there are many variables here beside the RGB output itself, including cables, my eyesight, sense of judgement and memory, and at the end of the day it's all subjective. Take it with a huge grain of salt.

[Console Repair/Mod Center / Re: Doujindance = CRAP RGB Mods. DONT BUY FROM THIS SELLER (but post pics)]

yeah.  see here:
http://assemblergames.com/l/threads/yellow-tint-with-rgb-mod-duo-r.43378/

Doesn't look promising. I guess I should play the games I want fast before things start going downhill. Luckily I do have an original PC Engine with AV Booster, and an RGB via EXT connector by fidde_se cable coming in the mail (please don't tell me that's crap too),so I have a reliable backup for my hucards anyway, but what has me the most exited is the CD Rom games so it does suck anyway considering what I paid already.

To his credit though, from all I've heard about jailbars being a huge problem in PC engine RGB output I can't say I've noticed any at all in the hucard and CD rom games I've tested.

[Console Repair/Mod Center / Re: Doujindance = CRAP RGB Mods. DONT BUY FROM THIS SELLER (but post pics)]

I had a duojindance duo-r a while back.  Then i modded another console with a better amp so i got rid of it.  The RGB circuit he uses (or at least did, not sure if he changed) develops a yellow tint after a while.

Do you mean a yellow tint in the RGB output? That sounds horrible, the last thing I want is an RGB output looking like cat piss. Thank you for the heads up, though.

I kind of felt bad about selling that duojindance console and recently contacted the buyer and said i would redo it with better mods for free, but he said he was happy with anyways.

I guess if it seems to be working fine you don't want to think about what problems might arise later and just enjoy it for the time being. After all gaming is supposed to be a fun hobby, not a chore or an endless nightmare of problems.

your console is serviceable, but you just have to find someone will be willing to work on it.  some wont touch it, others might just remove all the mods and redo it.

Well that's good to know. At least I could be able to warn the person doing the servicing or remodding in advance so they know what bubble-wrapped hunk of junk to expect.

just sounds like he did not tune the drive after replacing the lens.  those "new" lens are also pretty crap.  have heard of some dying after not too much use.  they should only be used as a last resort if the original lens is burned out.  they should not be replaced just as preventative maintenance.

Right, so he even replaces potentially well-functioning lenses with el cheapo ones just as an gimmick and doesn't even care that they might crap out just as soon anyways. What a guy.

[Console Repair/Mod Center / Re: Doujindance = CRAP RGB Mods. DONT BUY FROM THIS SELLER (but post pics)]

kind of sounds to me like the CD lens might just need a little bit of potentiometer adjustment. typically the v-102 potentiometer is the one that needs to be adjusted to fix read errors.

Thanks for the tip! That's funny though, doujindance did a video on that on his youtube channel himself, adjusting the potentiometer you mentioned with a screwdriver. Someone in the comments noted you should never use a mechanical screwdriver when adjusting it though, I don't know nearly enough about this stuff to have a valid opinion. If links are allowed I could link it here if you haven't seen it.

[Console Repair/Mod Center / Re: Doujindance = CRAP RGB Mods. DONT BUY FROM THIS SELLER (but post pics)]

Ok, I feel like an idiot now  . I got a RGB-modded PC Engine Duo-r from doujindance literally just a few days ago. His 100% rating on e-bay and what I at least thought to be fair prices must have fooled me hard. Non-modded PC Engine Duo-rs are sold on e-bay for not much less, so I figured with an RGB-mod, SCART cable and region modded it couldn't be such a bad deal.

I must say though, the quality of the RGB-video output itself is, as of now at least, very good in my opinion. It looks extremely colorful and crisp on the PVM I use. I don't have any other consoles custom-modded for RGB, but the output of the PC Engine seems to be better than the stock RGB output of Saturn, PS1 and Super Nintendo. Seeing that bubble-wrapped mess on those pictures I'm seriously worried what I've gotten myself into, though, especially if modders like you guys go so far as to say it's unservicable, which sucks to think about as something is bound to go wrong down the line.

The problem I have had, and which I wanted to register on this forum to ask around for, is that on a couple of the CD Rom2's I have there are sometimes freezes, sometimes the audio skips, and one particular Super CD Rom (Babel) doesn't get past the first logo. Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes 2 plays flawlessly though, or at least I haven't noticed any artifacts as of yet playing it for a couple of hours. All my discs are originals, and from the looks of them doesn't appear to be noticably scratched or dirty. Attempting to clean them with a microfiber cloth for glasses seemed to make things worse too. Since doujindance says he swaps the lense, a new lense shouldn't have trouble reading discs, and Duo-rs shouldn't have failing capacitors, so unless the CDs actually are badly damaged I don't know what to make of it.

are the games freezing up in the middle of game play or do they freeze up when loading up another portion of the game?

I think it's during loading, but to be honest in Jantei Monogatari for example I can't really tell the difference, as the game seems to be loading constantly between the cutscenes with audio portions and when you choose actions on the menu. In Princess Maker 1 it seemed to be during loading of a new portion as well. As for the audio dropping out, that happened during the intro in Jantei Monogatari also.

[Console Repair/Mod Center / Re: Doujindance = CRAP RGB Mods. DONT BUY FROM THIS SELLER (but post pics)]

Ok, I feel like an idiot now  . I got a RGB-modded PC Engine Duo-r from doujindance literally just a few days ago. His 100% rating on e-bay and what I at least thought to be fair prices must have fooled me hard. Non-modded PC Engine Duo-rs are sold on e-bay for not much less, so I figured with an RGB-mod, SCART cable and region modded it couldn't be such a bad deal.

I must say though, the quality of the RGB-video output itself is, as of now at least, very good in my opinion. It looks extremely colorful and crisp on the PVM I use. I don't have any other consoles custom-modded for RGB, but the output of the PC Engine seems to be better than the stock RGB output of Saturn, PS1 and Super Nintendo. Seeing that bubble-wrapped mess on those pictures I'm seriously worried what I've gotten myself into, though, especially if modders like you guys go so far as to say it's unservicable, which sucks to think about as something is bound to go wrong down the line.

The problem I have had, and which I wanted to register on this forum to ask around for, is that on a couple of the CD Rom2's I have there are sometimes freezes, sometimes the audio skips, and one particular Super CD Rom (Babel) doesn't get past the first logo. Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes 2 plays flawlessly though, or at least I haven't noticed any artifacts as of yet playing it for a couple of hours. All my discs are originals, and from the looks of them doesn't appear to be noticably scratched or dirty. Attempting to clean them with a microfiber cloth for glasses seemed to make things worse too. Since doujindance says he swaps the lense, a new lense shouldn't have trouble reading discs, and Duo-rs shouldn't have failing capacitors, so unless the CDs actually are badly damaged I don't know what to make of it.