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Recap guide

Recap the Atari 5200

The external power brick is the usual casualty (diodes, fuse, aging filter caps), while the console itself is mostly a chip and solder problem.

Open the interactive checklist Tick off each capacitor as you replace it. It saves in your browser.

Check first. A recap is not always the answer here, so look at the guides before you order parts.

Which board do I have?

Boards changed during production. These notes come from the linked sources, and many are only partly documented, so check the board in front of you.

  • CA018087 (early 4-port) (Medium confidence). How to tell: Early four-port console, which uses one cable for AV and power and needs the auto switchbox. Capacitors: No board-level cap list found; capacitor reports are about the external power brick only. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: not known. Source
  • CA020108 (later 4-port, universal) (Medium confidence). How to tell: Later four-port board that works with the CX55 controller out of the box. Capacitors: No board-level cap list found. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: not known. Source
  • CA021374 (2-port) (Medium confidence). How to tell: Cost-reduced two-port board with a dedicated power jack, similar to CA020108 but without the middle port parts. Capacitors: No board-level cap list found. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: not known. Source

Where to start

Clues from write-ups and forum threads, not a diagnosis. Low confidence means one thread or one repair; high means several write-ups agree.

  • Power brick (Low confidence). One owner replaced two 3300uF/25V filter caps along with 1N5401 bridge diodes and the pigtail fuse, and advises 105C parts. Source
  • No picture or sound (Low confidence). One thread on a modded 5200 ended at a faulty motherboard, not caps, a reminder that caps are not always the cause. Source

Tips, tales and maybes

Found in write-ups and forum threads. These are other people's reports, not tested by us. Check part references and values against your own board.

  • Tip: Glitches in Pac-Man and Missile Command (Medium confidence). A 2021 article revisits Atari's 1983 Tech Tip #7 for 5200s with certain Rockwell 6502 CPUs (marked RC with date codes above 8250): add a 470 ohm resistor and 100pF capacitor. It cured the graphics glitches on the author's unit but needed a colour recalibration afterwards, and the video mod was not the culprit. Source
  • Story: Decoupling caps C43 and C44 (Low confidence). An AtariAge newcomer thread on a 5200 says C43 and C44 are 0.22uF 100V polyester decoupling caps for the voltage regulators, easy to source from Digi-Key or Mouser. The poster first mistook the green parts for electrolytics, and noted Console5 had no 5200 kit at the time. Source
  • Watch out: Shorted regulator takes out the chips (Low confidence). A thread on Atari computer power supplies says a shorted regulator can put over 8V on every IC without blowing a fuse, and suggests replacing a filter cap with no more than about a 50% increase in uF and a higher voltage rating. It is about Atari computers, so for the 5200 brick it is advice by analogy. Source
  • Tip: Brick output stuck at 3 to 5V (Low confidence). A power-brick repair thread says if output rises slowly and sticks at 3 to 5V, check the fuse first, then look at AC ripple on the output: more than a few hundred millivolts points to failing bridge diodes. The poster replaced the 1N5401 diodes, two 3300uF 25V 105C caps and a pigtail fuse, and notes the old rubber feet tear off when opening it. Source
  • Story: Hot R57 and R58, fixed by another board (Low confidence). On a modded 5200 with LED on but no video or sound, replacing the 7805s with switching regulators and several ICs did not help, and the R57 and R58 1W resistors ran very hot. Swapping in a different main board made it come up, so a donor board is a valid last test. Source

Before you start

  • Boards changed during production. Check your board number against the guides before you order parts.
  • A mains power supply can hold a dangerous charge. If you are not trained to work on one, have a professional do it.

Manuals and technical documents

Service manuals, schematics and datasheets for this machine, kept in our own library. Check your own board and part numbers against them.

All 2 documents for Atari 5200 in the library

Guides we used

This page and the interactive bench are built from these. They have the photos and the full detail, so please read them and support their authors.

  • Atari 5200 power adapter repair (Forum) by AtariAge forum (thread). Has a capacitor list. Low-voltage brick fix: diodes, fuse and two 3300uF/25V caps, with advice to use 105C parts. Specific, but one person's repair
  • 5200 issues (technical orientated) (Forum) by AtariAge forum (thread). No-video/no-audio troubleshooting on a modded 5200; ended at a faulty motherboard, not caps. Useful as a reminder that caps are not always the cause

Atari 5200 four-port CA018087

Just one electrolytic on the original four-port board. Console5 also points to two small styrene audio capacitors (820 pF 25 V at C13 and C14) that occasionally fail, which are a different, non-electrolytic part.

PartValueVoltsType
C454700 µF25 Vcheck your board

Atari 5200 four-port CA020108 and two-port CA021374

Just one electrolytic, and it is a much smaller value than on the original board. The two 820 pF styrene audio capacitors at C13 and C14 are a separate, non-electrolytic part.

PartValueVoltsType
C4547 µF25 Vcheck your board

Shopping list

2 capacitors in all, grouped by value. Buy a few spares.

  • 1 x 47 µF, 25 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
  • 1 x 4700 µF, 25 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay

Console5 capacitor kits for this machine

Console5 sells ready-made capacitor kits. Kits come in different versions, so match the board number in the kit name to yours and check the listing before you buy.

Skip the sourcing

While you are in there

Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. These links only search by name. Disclosure

Step by step

  1. Photograph both sides of the board before you touch anything. Zoom in on every capacitor. The photo is your map when you are three hours in.
  2. Unplug it, take out the batteries and let it sit. Old power supplies and CRT parts can hold a charge. If your machine has a tube, leave the tube and its board to a professional.
  3. Open it up and keep the screws sorted. A muffin tin or an egg carton works. Different screws go in different holes, and the holes never forgive you.
  4. Look for leaks. Clean any sticky residue off with isopropyl alcohol and a soft brush. A leaked capacitor leaves brown crust and can eat copper traces. Look at the traces under it, not only the part itself.
  5. Mark the polarity of every capacitor on the photo before it comes off. On an electrolytic, the stripe marks the negative leg. The board usually shows a half-shaded circle or a bar for the same spot.
  6. Remove the old capacitors one at a time. Surface mount: add fresh solder to both ends and rock the part off, or use flux and a low-melt alloy. Through-hole: heat one leg at a time and clear the hole with wick or a pump.
  7. Clean the pads and check for lifted pads or damaged traces. Clean flux off with isopropyl. A bad pad needs a jumper wire, not hope.
  8. Fit and solder the new capacitor, matching polarity. Same capacity, same or higher voltage, and it has to physically fit. Work from the smallest parts up.
  9. Clean the flux off and look at every joint. A good joint is shiny and shaped like a tiny volcano. A dull blob or a ball is a cold joint: reflow it.
  10. With a multimeter, check for shorts across the power rails before you power it on. Use the continuity or resistance setting. A reading near zero means stop and look for a solder bridge.
  11. Power it up and test everything: video, sound, controls, the lot. If something is wrong, check polarity first. It is the most common mistake and the easiest fix.

Tools

Safety

  • Good airflow, or a fume fan. Solder smoke is not for breathing.
  • Safety glasses on. Solder spits and clipped legs fly.
  • Iron in its stand when you are not holding it. Know where the cord is.
  • Touch bare metal first, or use a wrist strap. Static kills old chips.
  • No tube, no mains power supply. Leave those to a professional.
  • Wash your hands after, especially if you used leaded solder.

Values are shown as published in the guides above, and boards changed during production. Check the board in front of you. A recap involves hot tools and, on some machines, dangerous voltages. You do it at your own risk.

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