AMIGA A1200 Joystick Port Problem, Please Help ?

[Rich M]

I have an Amiga A1200 with Blizzard 030 and 32MB RAM and modified with an internal Scan doubler and flicker fixer, fitted next to the mouse port.

Recently, each time I connect a joystick or game pad on the joystick port, and tries to play a game, everytime the game loads up, the player or the character in the game keeps going to the right by itself, as if the joystick is telling them to move right when in fact, I aint touching the joystick or even playing with it.

Is this is a chip problem ? perhaps the chip that controls the joystick got faulty ?

Now Im left with playing "mouse controlled" games only, since the mouse is okay.

Does this happen because I sometimes, attach & pull the joystick when the machine is powered on ?

Cheers for any replies

[adgloride]

Have you tried using a different joystick? The fault might be with the joystick if your lucky. If its with the port you'll have to get it repaired. Also to avoid swapping joysticks I brought a joystick splitter which goes into the mouse port and you can attach both the joystick and the mouse. It saves getting the ports repaired when you keep swapping the joystick for the mouse.

[Rich M]

I think its not the joystick nor my gamepad, since both works with my old A500 and only when the 2 being used on the A1200, its acting like that.

The option of having it repaired might not be easy for my case given my location, I might be better of get one of those "port splitters" thus can run both joystick and mouse using the only working port i have which is the mouse port

Now I have to find out where can I get such port splitter

It's probably the port. Pins 4 and 8 appear to touch somewhere. Maybe your scandoubler installation has caused this. A 9 pin joystick port is pretty standard anyone that can fix a sega console gamepad port can fix an amiga port. Is it still that difficult in your location

[Rich M]

Originally Posted by Burseg

It's probably the port. Pins 4 and 8 appear to touch somewhere. Maybe your scandoubler installation has caused this. A 9 pin joystick port is pretty standard anyone that can fix a sega console gamepad port can fix an amiga port. Is it still that difficult in your location

But with the current scandoubler positioned like that, this machine has worked flawlessly since about 12 months or so ago.. could it be the fact that I too oftenly plug and unplug joystick when the miggy is powered on ?

But anyway, I think youre right, it is the port only that needs attention, I was thinking the problem lies beyond that and perhaps some chip inside that relates to control port needs changing, and not easy to find amiga knowledgeable person nearest to me and surely hate to send overseas

I think I will bring this amiga to that big sega dome service centre near my office.

Thanks for the feedback !

[Amiga1992]

Originally Posted by Rich M

I too oftenly plug and unplug joystick when the miggy is powered on ?

This is very bad for your Amiga

But anyway, I think youre right, it is the port only that needs attention, I was thinking the problem lies beyond that and perhaps some chip inside that relates to control port needs changing

You could be right about the chip. Since yo usay you plug and unplug joysticks often while the meega is on, it could be that you have caused some fault in the CIA chips or something. It's strange that the thing keeps going right, it's not easy to shortcut two pins in the port.

Things to do: open up the Amiga and see if the two pins Burseg mentions are shorted. If so, you should be OK. If not it's the CIAs being flaky.

I wouldn't take the amiga to any Sega repairing monkey, though.

[Rich M]

Originally Posted by Akira

This is very bad for your Amiga
You could be right about the chip. Since yo usay you plug and unplug joysticks often while the meega is on, it could be that you have caused some fault in the CIA chips or something. It's strange that the thing keeps going right, it's not easy to shortcut two pins in the port.

Things to do: open up the Amiga and see if the two pins Burseg mentions are shorted. If so, you should be OK. If not it's the CIAs being flaky.

I wouldn't take the amiga to any Sega repairing monkey, though.

Well, I checked the game port and it looks okay compared to the mouse port, Im pretty sure is the chips. But I think I need to test each and every pins on the game port to confirm, seeing with naked eye it looks the same to the 'still working' mouse port (I aint have much tech exp), hmm I have to get one of those multi tester device ?

Actually its still okay to have the A1200 with mouse port working only as I can always use the A500 to play games, I think most or about 80% of the whole Amiga games library works for A500/A600 rather than the A1200, except AGA games of course.

Yes I think I can forget about bringing the miggy to that sega repair centre, is there any here within EAB that might be able to help me repair this chip problem ? I bet I have to send either to germany or UK for repairs, germany is closer to me though.

Thanks for your help!

ps: anyone who can help me repair please PM or email to RICHIROMORIYAMA@JAPAN.CO.JP

[Amiga1992]

It's very difficult since the A1200 has this bloody surface-mount technology in it so repairing is hard.

[Jope]

Originally Posted by Akira

This is very bad for your Amiga

No?

The joystick is basically invisible until you activate a button / direction.. It's like connecting a dead-end cable to the machine. Unless the D connector has a metal shield and you miss the port, thus shorting something out, there's nothing to worry about.. Usually joysticks have el cheapo moulded plastic connectors, however.

Also, it's only connected to the computer, nowhere else, so there's not likely to be any differences in potential that could zap your computer.

If the device you're plugging to your computer has it's own power supply or is another computer, then you should remove power from your machine (perhaps even unplug it from the outlet) before connecting the cable.

[Jope]

Originally Posted by Rich M

Well, I checked the game port and it looks okay compared to the mouse port, Im pretty sure is the chips.

Did you look at it inside the machine, or did you look "into the port" behind the machine, where the pins are.

It could be just a bent pin in the port if you plugged in a joystick without checking the orientation. Did you check that?

Sorry for the redundancy, if you did.

[Rich M]

Originally Posted by Jope

Did you look at it inside the machine, or did you look "into the port" behind the machine, where the pins are.

It could be just a bent pin in the port if you plugged in a joystick without checking the orientation. Did you check that?

Sorry for the redundancy, if you did.

Hello Jope,

I looked at both from the behind and also opened up the amiga and removing part of the metal shield that covers it, there werent any pins that are bent or have any awkward position though. I compared with the mouse port next to it and it seemed just the same no abnormality

I have only 2 sticks, one being the two buttoned joystick and the other one is a gamepad "console style", both are for amiga based on the box says.

I have been using these 2 sticks with this A1200 for about 1,5 years and didnt have any problem, then at one time after the a1200 not being used for about 6 months, I powered it up and tried to play a game. That day when I booted up a game I forgot to insert a joystick so I plugged in the joystick when the amiga is powered on. It works for a while but then after a few days, each time a game being loaded up, the controls were kept going rightwards and thus cant play.

Thats why my one tracked mind kept sticking to the possibility that a chip was at fault somewhere inside the miggy 1200

Only damage I can think of that can be done by too oftenly plugging and unplugging joysticks is a broken port, a tiny crack on the motherboard near the soldering and other things like that. Now plugging a tv modulator too oftenly may cause a short circuit and this happened to me but I've always done it with sticks.

[Rich M]

Burseg,
I think I will change the port anyhow, maybe it looks (physically) ok but actually it is faulty. I got nothing to lose, its pretty cheap I think to replace 9 pin port.

If that fails then I stand quiet and play with the A500

Originally Posted by Rich M

Burseg,
If that fails then I stand quiet and play with the A500

Isn't that going to hurt your legs after a while?

On a more serious note (not that I'm a electrical engineer or anything) have you tried blowing/cleaning with alcohol the pins & port ? I dunno, maybe you could have a piece of bumfluff, a flea or a bitten fingernail (OK, maybe these might not conduct electricity, but something small that does) inside the port touching the pins. I would do that before replacing and spending money.

[Rich M]

Originally Posted by Jim

Isn't that going to hurt your legs after a while?

Hmm yes, youre right, I would end up with cramped legs

On a more serious note (not that I'm a electrical engineer or anything) have you tried blowing/cleaning with alcohol the pins & port ? I dunno, maybe you could have a piece of bumfluff, a flea or a bitten fingernail (OK, maybe these might not conduct electricity, but something small that does) inside the port touching the pins. I would do that before replacing and spending money.

I was going to use alcohol as you said, but refrained from doing it thinking it might damage the pins and maybe somehow cause more damage than just the joystick port, perhaps plain water will do fine. but anyway, I never get to actually did anything to the pins till now, I'LL have a go tonight, see if it works.

sometimes electronics are funny, that day I found my xbox console got harddisc problem, at first I thought the HDD was a goner, and I had to fork out cash for a new HDD, but after some gentle taps and leave it alone for few weeks it works again with no prob till now hehe

Hi,
I've got the same problem with my Amiga 500.
Even with no joystick plugged into Port 2, it's always steering down.
Has anybody found a solution yet?
Greets,
Andi

[Overdoc]

Don't have access to any schematics right now ( after all I am on holidays ), but as far as I remember the grafix-chip Denise ( 8362 ) is responsible for joystick operation on the A-500.

I had almost exactly the same problem with my Amiga500 , only the sprite was moving in
a different direction . It turned out that a pin in the mechanical part of the joystick port
broke partly and was touching another one . The man at the Amiga repair centre said it
was quite a common damage caused by using cross-forces instead of gently pushing in
or pulling out the joystick plug . This touching may not be seen from outside because it
may occur only when the joystick plug is in , besides you really cannot see much there .
So I think I have a good news : any person with basic soldering skills may easily replace
this 9-pin connector that itself should cost no more than few tens of euro cents . And
any "monkey" at any computer repair centre that even has not heard about Amiga should
do the job .
But nevertheless you are of course not allowed to connect or disconnect any device to
or from Amiga when she is powered on - doing this even with such a simple device as a
joystick may cause a damage to an electronic circuit .

modern hermit

[Daedalus]

Originally Posted by modern_hermit

But nevertheless you are of course not allowed to connect or disconnect any device to
or from Amiga when she is powered on - doing this even with such a simple device as a
joystick may cause a damage to an electronic circuit .

Welcome along, and Hold Ancient Thread Batman! Anyway, while this may be true from an electrical point of view for some peripherals, it is not true of joysticks for a number of reasons. First, they don't do *anything* unless a button or direction is pressed. Electrically it makes no difference whether a joystick is even there or not. It's a different story for CD32 controllers and mice, and so it's recommended for everything, but standard joysticks pose no electrical risk.

Second is that it's very rare to get a joystick with anything other than a cheap, moulded plastic connector with no metal shell. If you connect a D-connector carelessly at an angle, it is possible to short the pins out with the metal shell used on some D-connectors, and the joystick connectors have unprotected power available on pins 7 and 8. But I've never seen a joystick with a metal shelled connector except one which has had its connector replaced, so it's extremely unlikely to be an issue.