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Atari Lynx II

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Atari Lynx II
Atari Lynx II
Specifications
ManufacturerAtari Corporation
TypeHandheld game console
ReleasedJuly 1991[1]
Discontinued1995[2]
Intro priceUS$99 (base set), US$120 (deluxe set), 1991[2]
CPU65C02 core in the Mikey chip, up to 4 MHz; 16 MHz system clock[2][3]
Memory64 KB DRAM (two 64K × 4); 512-byte boot ROM[2][4]
StorageROM cartridge
Display3.5-inch backlit colour LCD, 160 × 102, 4,096-colour palette, backlight switchable[2]
SoundFour channels, stereo on headphones; 16 Ω speaker[2][4]
PowerSix AA cells or a 9 V DC adaptor[2][3]
Dimensions235 × 108 × 51 mm[2]
Weight441 g without batteries[2]
OS / Firmware—
PredecessorAtari Lynx

The Atari Lynx II is the second, smaller model of the Atari Lynx handheld game console, introduced by Atari Corporation in July 1991.[1] The changes from the original are mostly physical and electrical: rubber hand grips, a button to switch the backlight off and save battery power, a power indicator light, and a stereo headphone socket in place of the original's mono one.[1][3] It was sold until the Lynx was discontinued in 1995.[2]

History

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Atari relaunched the Lynx in July 1991 with new packaging and marketing and the redesigned console. The base set, with no accessories, cost US$99, and a deluxe set US$120.[1][2] A slip packed with the 1991 owner's manual told buyers that Atari had removed the automatic switch-off described in the manual, because it ended the game in progress, and that battery life had been extended from about four hours to about five.[3]

Hardware

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The Lynx II keeps the Epyx design of the original: the Mikey chip with its 65C02 core, video, sound and timers; the Suzy sprite engine; and two 64K × 4 DRAMs.[2][4] Atari's schematic for the board, drawing C104247 Rev. 1, is dated 29 June 1990 and titled "Lynx II (Hayato)"; it shows a chip named Hayato at U1 in place of Mikey.[4] Evan-Amos's photograph of a production C104471-001 Rev. A board, stamped 21 November 1991, shows the custom chips marked C301719-001 and C302284-001, which he identifies as Mikey and Suzy, and Hyundai HY53C464LS-10 DRAMs.[5]

Board revisions

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The Atari Lynx Vault has recorded five Lynx II main boards:[6]

Lynx II boards (Atari Lynx Vault)
Board Notes
C104129-001 Rev. 2 Early board, described by the Vault as essentially a Lynx I in the Lynx II form factor
C104342-001 Rev. 1 Recorded by Alex Thissen (LX.net)
C104342-001 Rev. 2 Little information recorded
C104424-001 Rev. 1 Recorded by Alex Thissen (LX.net)
C104471-001 Rev. A Manufactured around November 1991; Evan-Amos's photographs

The board revision matters when fitting a replacement LCD kit: the BennVenn kits need extra soldering on the C104129-001.[7]

Controls and buttons

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The joypad and buttons sit on a membrane that connects to the main board through a 14-pin ribbon cable. Osman Celimli's pinout, traced from a C104126-001 Rev. A membrane, lists the four directions, A, B, OPTION 1, OPTION 2, PAUSE, the backlight toggle, the soft power controls and the power LED. All the buttons except the soft power switch connect to pin 14 when pressed.[8] The original Lynx has its buttons on the main board instead.[8]

Sound

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Sound from Mikey passes through a 74HC04 output stage and the dual volume control VR2. An LM386 (U5) drives the 16 Ω speaker, and a dual NJM2073 (U12) drives the stereo headphone socket.[4] The original Lynx uses an 8 Ω speaker.[2]

Power and backlight

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The power circuit is a switching regulator controlled by a 4069 hex inverter (U6), which also holds the soft on/off state. The MOSFET Q12 (MTD3055E) switches the 100 µH inductor L15, with the Schottky diode D12, the zener D13 (1N5991B, 4.3 V) and the 2N3906 transistors Q7 and Q8.[4] The backlight is a cold-cathode tube driven from the high-voltage transformer T1 by the 2SD965 transistors Q13 and Q14; the backlight-off circuit uses a 74HC74 (U11).[4][9]

Common faults

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Repairs on the Lynx II centre on the power circuit, the capacitors, the speaker and the button membrane:

  • The MOSFET Q12 and the zener D13 fail and can let 9 V reach the chips. The Atari Lynx Vault advises replacing both before a newly acquired Lynx is switched on.[10]
  • The electrolytic capacitors age. Igor Kromin's Lynx II had black lines across the screen and crackling sound, both cured by a recap.[11]
  • Speakers are damaged by the 9 V adaptor being plugged into the headphone socket, according to Retro Isle.[12]
  • The printed contacts at the end of the button membrane's ribbon cable wear and rub off.[13][14]
  • The DC jack's internal pin breaks.[12]

The guides below cover each of these.

Documentation

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References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Wikipedia, "Atari Lynx", revision of 29 June 2026, section "Lynx II". Used for the date and the summary of changes.
  2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 Atari Lynx Vault, "Atari Lynx Specifications" (written 26 August 2018, changed 3 October 2023): prices, availability, processors, memory, display, speakers, power, dimensions and weight. Community source.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Atari Corporation, Lynx Portable Color Entertainment System Owner's Manual, 1991, with the "We've made your Atari Lynx even better" slip: controls (pp. 2-6), power (pp. 7-9), introduction (p. 1). Hosted here as File:Atari Lynx II Owner's Manual (1991).pdf.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 Atari Corporation, Schematic Diagram, Lynx II (Hayato), drawing C104247 Rev. 1 (engineering issue), 29 June 1990, sheet 1. Hosted here as File:Atari Lynx II schematic C104247 Rev 1.png.
  5. ↑ Evan-Amos, photograph and description of a Lynx II main board C104471-001 Rev. A, 10 April 2014. Hosted here as File:Atari Lynx II motherboard (C104471-001 Rev A).jpg.
  6. ↑ Atari Lynx Vault, "Atari Lynx Motherboard Revisions" (changed 24 September 2023). Community source.
  7. ↑ Atari Lynx Vault, "LCD Replacement Mod Kits for Atari Lynx" (changed 1 November 2023). Community source.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Atari Lynx Vault, "Atari Lynx Hardware Notes" (changed 3 October 2023), "Buttons", reproduced with permission from Osman Celimli. Community source.
  9. ↑ Evan-Amos, photograph and description of the Lynx II backlight, Wikimedia Commons, 2014. Hosted here as File:Atari Lynx II backlight assembly.jpg.
  10. ↑ Atari Lynx Vault, "Replacing the MOSFET and zener diodes in an Atari Lynx" (changed 4 October 2023). Community source.
  11. ↑ Igor Kromin, "Atari Lynx repair - Part 2 - re-capping the motherboard", 12 September 2017. Personal repair log.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Retro Isle, "Lynx Repair Info". Community source.
  13. ↑ Atari Lynx Vault, "Troubleshooting Lynx Model 2 buttons and D-pad" (changed 5 October 2023). Community source.
  14. ↑ Retro Console Mods, "Atari Lynx repair", service description listing the Lynx's design flaws. Repair-shop source.


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