Recap guide

Recap the Amiga CD32 and CDTV

CD32 SMD electrolytics are known to leak, and the factory polarity marking on a few through-hole parts is wrong.

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

Worth a recap. Reports say it is a common and useful fix on this machine.

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.

• CD32 mainboard (Medium confidence). How to tell: One restoration article says there is only one known production variant. Capacitors: Many SMD caps plus three large through-hole caps C281, C408 and C811; 47uF 16V parts leak most; two 1000uF 10V through-hole audio caps were fitted backwards at the factory. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: no. 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.

• 47uF SMD caps (High confidence). One restoration names failing 47uF 16V SMD caps, and another recap found leaking caps while replacing all 31. Source
• Polarity pitfalls (High confidence). Several write-ups warn about polarity. One names C408 and C811, and another notes earlier bad repairs with wrong polarity. Source
• Finding values (Low confidence). One restoration shows how values were worked out from a board photo and the Amiga PCB Explorer. Two others point to a cap list and map on the Console5 wiki. 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: Solid-electrolyte option (Medium confidence). One CD32 write-up replaced SMD caps with tantalums and through-hole ones with polymer aluminium parts so nothing can leak, after finding the 47uF 16V SMD caps leaking and two 1000uF 10V audio caps fitted backwards from the factory. Source
• Watch out: Yellow tantalum and the missing red channel (Low confidence). A restoration notes a yellow tantalum degraded by nearby leakage and that tantalums fail short. A missing red video channel was suspected on the 4066 chip, which a recap would not fix. The author says through-hole caps were often fitted the wrong way round at the factory. Source
• Tip: Gentle desoldering on leaked boards (Low confidence). A video summary for two CD32s recommends low-temperature solder, ChipQuik and tweezer lifts, and warns against snip-and-rip because it can take pads with it. One of the two units was fully dead until recapped. Source
• Tip: C281, C408, C811 and the wiggle method (Medium confidence). A CD32 recap names three large through-hole caps, C281, C408 and C811, with C408 and C811 possibly assembled with wrong polarity at the factory. The author separated SMD can caps by wiggling with pliers, used lots of flux, and still had composite shadowing afterwards, which a composite to S-video converter improved. Source
• Story: CDTV cleanup note (news item pointing to a blog) (Low confidence). A Commodore News item says three CDTVs were cleaned, had corrosion removed from the motherboard and their electrolytics replaced, with 3D-printed parts and metal reshaping. It only links to the full write-up, so details are thin. Source

Before you start

• Boards changed during production. Check your board number against the guides before you order parts.

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.

• 1994 Commodore Amiga CD32 Repair & Restoration (Write-up) by Adam's Vintage Computer Restorations. Names failing 47 uF parts and the polarity quirk; points to an external cap list
• AMIGA CD32 recap (Write-up) by dreamcast.nu. Methodology plus polarity warnings; links a cap list and map hosted on the Console5 wiki
• Amiga CD32 Restoration Part 1 (Write-up) by LinuxJedi. Shows how values were derived from a board photo and Amiga PCB Explorer
• Amiga CD32 Recap Exposes Leaking Caps and an Audio Mystery (Video) by Chris Edwards Restoration (YouTube), listed on The Oasis BBS. Recaps all 31 caps; useful on previous bad repairs with wrong polarity
• Amiga CD32 recap (Write-up) by Dreamcast.nu. Repair log; points to Console5 wiki for the list and map. Copyright reserved, link only

Amiga CD32 main board

Thirty-one capacitors (C306 is empty). Console5 warns the original caps at C408 and C811 may have been fitted backwards, so check their orientation against the board map before you remove them.

Shopping list

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

• 9 x 100 µF, 6 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 6 x 22 µF, 35 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 5 x 47 µF, 16 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 4 x 4.7 µF, 35 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 4 x 10 µF, 35 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 2 x 1000 µF, 10 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 1 x 470 µF, 10 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.

• Commodore Amiga CD32 SMD Cap Kit

Skip the sourcing

• Ready-made kit: Amazon · eBay
• Already recapped: Amazon · eBay

While you are in there

• Need the machine itself?: Amazon · eBay
• A box of spare capacitors: Amazon · eBay

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

• Temperature-controlled soldering station. Steady heat so you do not cook pads. Most recaps are done between 320 and 350 C. Top: Hakko FX-951 · Mid: Hakko FX-888D · Budget: Pinecil
• Good solder. Rosin-core 63/37 flows and looks right. It is cheap and it matters. Kester 44 63/37
• Flux. Flux is what makes old joints let go and new joints flow. MG Chemicals flux pen · Chip Quik flux syringe
• Low-melt alloy (for surface mount). Melts old solder on both ends of a surface mount part at once, so it lifts off cleanly. Chip Quik SMD1
• Desoldering tool. Clears the old solder out of through-hole pads. Top: Hakko FR-301 · Mid: Engineer SS-02 pump · Budget: Solder wick
• Fine tweezers. For holding small surface mount parts exactly where you want them. ESD-safe tweezers
• Board holder. A third hand for the board, so both of yours are free. PanaVise circuit board holder
• Magnification. You cannot fix what you cannot see. Surface mount parts are tiny. Top: Stereo microscope · Mid: Head visor · Budget: Lighted magnifier
• Multimeter. Continuity, shorts and rail voltages. The one test that saves boards. Top: Fluke 117 · Mid: Fluke 101 · Budget: AstroAI
• ESR and capacitor tester. Checks old capacitors and your new ones before they go in. Top: Peak Atlas ESR70 · Budget: LCR-T7
• Isopropyl alcohol (99%) and a brush. For cleaning leaked goo and flux. Use the high-percentage kind. MG Chemicals 99.9% isopropyl
• Brass tip cleaner. A clean tip transfers heat. A dirty one does not. Hakko 599B
• Fume extractor. Pulls the smoke away from your face. Hakko FA-400 · Budget: Small bench fan
• Precision screwdrivers. Most old gear uses a mix of Phillips, Torx and security bits. iFixit Pro Tech Toolkit
• Kapton tape. Heat-proof tape to protect parts that sit close to the one you are changing. Kapton tape

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.

More

• All recap guides
• The interactive Recap Bench
• Fix a dead vintage computer
• Amiga CD32 on the timeline