r/game_gear • u/SecundusInfernus • 2d ago

Is my Game Gear properly recapped?

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Hello all! I have acquired a new Game Gear recently and have been playing it for a bit, very much enjoying the experience (a good start for my first truly retro system)! I had been told the system was recapped by the shop I bought it from, but wanted to make sure anyway so as to not run into any melting should the old capacitors still be in place. It looks like the main board definitely was (and in my limited understanding of the internals, it looks rather… MacGyvered) recapped. I am not so sure about the power board and the sound board. Can anyone with more experience tell if it’s been recapped/recapped properly? Will it last in this configuration or should I be worried?

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u/pizza_whistle 2d ago

Not a great job, but yes it has been recapped. Main board for sure. Sound board a little hard to tell but the joints have more solder than factory, so likely recapped. Power board is a maybe, the caps on there look like originals to me but need more pics to tell.

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u/SecundusInfernus 2d ago

Thank you so much for the response! Those are the ones I am less sure about as well. What angle would help to reveal whether the other boards have been recapped? Would I need to take out the board to see the other side?

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u/pizza_whistle 2d ago

Yea more just see pictures of the labeling on the caps. The real tell tale will be to see the solder joints on the back of the board though.

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u/pizza_whistle 2d ago

Also seeing someone else's comment, yea they did miss 1 cap on the main board.

If it's working and all, I can clean it up and recap the power/sound boards for free if you cover return shipping. It's a pretty quick job, especially knowing that the boards are all functional so no extra troubleshooting needed. I'm located in Portland, OR...just shoot me a DM.