Atari Lynx LCD & Backlight Mod
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The original Atari Lynx has a 3.5-inch backlit colour LCD of 160 × 102 pixels, lit by a cold-cathode fluorescent tube.[1][2] Two modifications are fitted to it today: an LED backlight that keeps the original panel, and a complete replacement LCD kit. The kits are compared below. Fitting details for the Lynx II, whose installation is better documented, are on Atari Lynx II LCD & Backlight Mod.
The original screen and backlight
[edit | edit source]On Atari's schematic the tube (PHL1) is driven by a separate inverter module, and TP13 and TP14 are the two ends of the tube. Two fuses marked "100 DEG", F1 and F2, sit in series with the tube, and a note on the drawing says the fuses and the tube are hand soldered. The same inverter output, through C28, D4 and D5, produces the +20 V supply at TP12 for the LCD bias circuit.[3] The screen assembly comes out after six screws, and the tube's reflector is held by two more.[4]
Atari's owner's manual notes that the picture looks dim from any angle other than the one the brightness wheel was set for.[5] Before blaming the panel, check the capacitors in the LCD bias and drive circuits (see Atari Lynx Capacitor Replacement Guide); the Atari Lynx Vault lists display faults among the reasons for a recap.[6]
LED backlight
[edit | edit source]The Atari Lynx Vault describes an LED backlight kit made for the Sega Game Gear that also fits the Lynx and keeps the original screen. It reports that replacing the tube with the LED doubles battery life and lowers the operating temperature. Hand Held Legend sells the kit.[6] The Game Gear and the Lynx both use cold-cathode tubes of a similar kind.[7]
Replacement LCD kits
[edit | edit source]Two designs are in production. McWill's kit, from Germany, was the first; BennVenn's kits, from Australia, came later in a TFT version (now out of production) and an IPS version. All of them fit both the original Lynx and the Lynx II.[2]
| Feature | McWill | BennVenn TFT | BennVenn IPS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Soldering on the original Lynx | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Parts of the Lynx power circuit removed | Yes, the instructions remove the whole circuit | A small part | A small part |
| Built-in protection against a power-circuit failure | No | Yes | Optional zener |
| Battery life improved | No | Yes | Yes |
| VGA output | Yes | No | Yes |
| Brightness control | No, but can be added | Yes, reversed | Yes, reversed |
| Screen at power-on | Colour static | White bloom, then black (later revisions colour static) | Checkerboard, then white (later revisions colour static) |
| Fitting time on the original Lynx | 1 hour or more | About 1 hour | About 1 hour |
The table is condensed from the Atari Lynx Vault's comparison.[2] On the original Lynx every kit is soldered in; the solderless ribbon installation of the BennVenn kits applies only to the Lynx II, and not to its early C104129-001 board.[2]
Points to check before choosing
[edit | edit source]- Some Lynx games change the colour palette part-way down the screen to show more colours. The original LCD refreshes slowly enough to hide the flicker this causes; the Vault reports that the McWill and BennVenn IPS panels show it as flicker and tearing, while the BennVenn TFT panel does not.[2]
- Orange-Phantom measured a McWill-modified Lynx II, also fitted with a 5 V regulator mod, drawing 8.9 mA with the console switched off, against 0.001 mA for an unmodified Lynx II at the same 7.9 V. A set of Eneloop cells ran flat in about four days in his modified Lynx while it was switched off. He put this down to the mod's Recom switching regulator being permanently powered.[8]
- The Vault notes that a failed Lynx MOSFET can destroy the main chips, and that the BennVenn kits include protection against this (an optional zener on the IPS kit). Replacing the MOSFET and zener on the Lynx board is still the better fix; see Atari Lynx Troubleshooting Guide.[2][9]
Related pages
[edit | edit source]- Atari Lynx
- Atari Lynx General Maintenance
- Atari Lynx Troubleshooting Guide
- Atari Lynx II LCD & Backlight Mod
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ Atari Lynx Vault, "Atari Lynx Specifications" (changed 3 October 2023): display. Community source.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Atari Lynx Vault, "LCD Replacement Mod Kits for Atari Lynx" (changed 1 November 2023): kit descriptions, comparison table and notes, and the photograph captioned "Original Lynx 1 CF Tube LCD". Community source; the Vault sells the BennVenn kits through K-Retro.
- ↑ Atari Corporation, Schematic Diagram, Handy Game (FCC), drawing C104019 Rev. C: LCD, backlight and +20 V circuits. Hosted here as File:Atari Lynx schematic C104019 Rev C.png.
- ↑ Atari Lynx Vault, "Lynx 1 disassembly steps and Screw size chart" (changed 5 October 2023). Community source.
- ↑ Atari Corporation, Lynx Portable Color Entertainment System Owner's Manual, C301139-001 Rev. B, 1989, note under BRIGHTNESS. Hosted here as File:Atari Lynx Owner's Manual (C301139-001 Rev B).pdf.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Atari Lynx Vault, "Atari Lynx Hardware Mods" (changed 9 October 2023): "LED Backlight" and "Capacitor Replacements / Recapping". Community source.
- ↑ Evan-Amos, description of the photograph File:Atari-Lynx-II-Backlight.jpg, Wikimedia Commons, 2014. Hosted here as File:Atari Lynx II backlight assembly.jpg.
- ↑ Atari Lynx Vault, "Power draw inefficiencies measured for the Atari Lynx McWill mod" (changed 8 November 2023), republishing Orange-Phantom's 2015 measurements. Community source.
- ↑ K-Retro, "BennVenn IPS LCD Mod Kit - Lynx 2", product page note on the optional protection zener. Vendor source.
