Recap guide

Recap the Sega Nomad

A Genesis handheld from the same cap-failure family as the Game Gear. Leaked caps appear in repair logs, and kits exist.

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.

• Single known Nomad board (Low confidence). How to tell: A ChipMusic poster says only one Nomad motherboard revision exists to their knowledge. Capacitors: ConsoleMods' Replacing Capacitors page has a Nomad header with no list filled in, and a hitmanmcc log tags a Nomad repair with leaking capacitors. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: not known. Source

Where to start

We did not find a clear list of what fails first on this machine, so we are not guessing. Read the guides below, check the board for leaks, and replace what you can see.

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: Check the power brick first (Low confidence). On RacketBoy a Nomad with a black screen and only white noise was told that generic adapters often give about 350 mA while a proper Nomad supply gives 850 mA, so a real brick is needed before blaming parts. The owner then smelled toasty electronics near the power port, which pointed at a cap there. Source
• Watch out: Odd factory disc cap (Low confidence). The same thread says a disc capacitor stuck down with white adhesive was a factory modification seen on other units, so do not remove it as an error. Source
• Story: Blue screen and garbled sound after recap (Low confidence). One iFixit asker recapped a Nomad, added display and RGB parts, swapped CPU and RAM, and verified 5V, yet still had a blue screen and garbled sound. There were no replies in the feed, so the cause is unknown. 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.

• Genesis: Replacing Capacitors (Nomad section) (List) by ConsoleMods Wiki, CC BY. Has a Nomad section but I could not confirm it is filled in
• Leaking capacitors (Hitman's Museum symptom index) (Write-up) by hitmanmcc (Hitman's Museum). Index of photo repair logs for consoles with leaked caps (Wondermega, PC Engine variants, Neo Geo CD, Nomad, 3DO, Game Gear). Logs show work, not value lists

Nomad main board 837-11864 (IC BD VENUS MAIN USA)

Four capacitors, all low-voltage 47 to 100 uF. Console5 lists the sub board separately.

Nomad sub board 837-11865 (IC BD VENUS SUB USA)

Twenty-nine numbered capacitors plus one unnumbered OS-CON on the LCD side. This board carries the power and video circuits, and a high-voltage warning is printed on it, so discharge before you work.

Shopping list

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

• 14 x 47 µF, 6 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 5 x 100 µF, 6 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 4 x 4.7 µF, 35 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 4 x 10 µF, 16 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 2 x 22 µF, 6 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 1 x 10 µF, 35 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 1 x 100 µF, 25 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 1 x 100 µF, 10 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 1 x 220 µF, 4 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay
• 1 x 820 µF, 6.3 V (check your board): Amazon · eBay

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
• Sega Nomad on the timeline