Hardware GBA Backlight! (AGB-001)

[MercilessDeth]

Alright so I got my mod done. The R button is a little squeaky on this second hand GBA I used, so I may have to grease it a little.

My other issue is that it was a very tight fit. I filed away the plastic inside (I'm far from a dremel master) and I thought I did pretty well but when I press the start button I get some distortion around the part of the screen where the cable is located on the back. Additionally the front must be slightly warped because my glass lens (which is not flexible like the plastic one) is not completely flush at the bottom. Anybody have any tips or is that pretty much how it goes?

 

[BazookaBen]

I get the distortion when I press the start button hard. And when I look at the bottom of my system, it is slightly warped, once side of the shell doesn't come together completely. I reduced the distortion a little bit by removing most the tape I had holding down the ribbon cable. You really don't need tape at all once you put the system together.

 

[SaurusX]

I'm glad so many people were able to get things working. There may be further differences in the motherboard revisions beyond a simple 32pin and 40pin variation. Why else have different printing after the 1 or 0 on the mobo? Just a thought, but it may be the ribbon type as well. But hey, as long as it works!

Too bad that with the supply of screens drying up that there will be fewer people able to do the mod.

Also, I cracked the back of both of my glacier cases. I think it was combo of squeezing too hard and then the 101 screen being thicker than the 100. Shrug.

 

[pelago]

I've found someone on ebay selling the gbaguan Aurora Deluxe cable (the famous http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=39228683802 one), which has five levels of brightness to choose from, using Select+L. Seller is lee_chan1985. Link to 32-pin cable is http://www.ebay.com/itm/GameBoy-Adv...-with-5-level-Brightness-32-pin-/400952569121 and 40-pin cable is http://www.ebay.com/itm/GameBoy-Adv...ith-5-level-Brightness-40-pin-B-/181797004647

This is on ebay.com (the US site) but I've successfully bought from him in the UK and he has shipped it to me. I bought the 40-pin cable from him before he had them listed. I came across him as I noticed he was selling other games from the gbaguan taobao seller, and he managed to get the deluxe cable to send to me as a test (at a higher cost then he's selling them for now!), which worked fine.

One thing to note about this cable, which I hadn't considered before - every time you power off and on the GBA, it will default to the lowest brightness level, so you will need to press Select+L sufficient number of times to reach your desired brightness. I had thought that it would remember the previous brightness level, but I guess it has no non-volatile memory.

Installation (soldering) was straightforward and worked first time. I had a AGS-101 screen, AB-type, from a dead GBA SP. I don't have a working GBA SP (AGS-101) to compare it with, but as the higher brightness levels it is very bright, and I've read other people say that it can go brighter than the original AGS-101. No problems with ghosting that I've seen so far, but I haven't played with it much yet, as I haven't yet modified the GBA case to make the screen fit.

 

[AnotherMuggle]

Hello everyone,

I've spent a lot of time reading the information in this thread so thanks to everyone for the valuable information which has been collected here.

I bought a genuine AGS-101 screen which I am waiting to receive. I believe it has uneven wiring inside the ribbon and a brown connector. I've been trying to figure out exactly what I need in terms of the ribbon cable and there is so much information I'm not sure what I'm after. If anyone can answer my questions I'd be very grateful.

1) Since my AGS-101 screen has a brown connector this means it is a type AB, 32 pin version, is this correct?

2) I am seeing posts in this thread where people say the AB screen works better with a 40 pin AGB-001, is this correct?

3) It seems you need to buy a connector ribbon to fit the pin count of the gameboy system the screen will be installed into (determined by the model number inside the battery clip), is this correct?

4) What about the pin count of the AGS-101 screen? Do I need to choose an adapter which is the correct pin count for the screen AND the AGB-001 or just match the pin count to the AGB-001?

5) I see so many different cables from sellers on eBay and I wonder if there are differences other than the 32 pin / 40 pin connections. Some specifically say "not compatible with the white connector" etc and some sellers have listings for 3 or more different 40 pin connectors called things like "E backlight adapter" "C backlight adapter" "A backlight adapter"... are they all the same?

Thanks for any help and sorry for so many questions... I'm excited about this mod and want to avoid making mistakes

Cheers,
AnotherMuggle

 

[BazookaBen]

5) Some sellers put letters beside their items just for inventory purposes. so there is no difference between an F or G cable, for example. This isn't something every seller does but I ran into one Chinese seller with listings like this.

And as far as I know there are 4 possible combinations, 32 pin + AB screen, 32 + B, 40 + AB, and 40 + B (which is the combo I have).

 

[AnotherMuggle]

5) Some sellers put letters beside their items just for inventory purposes. so there is no difference between an F or G cable, for example. This isn't something every seller does but I ran into one Chinese seller with listings like this.

And as far as I know there are 4 possible combinations, 32 pin + AB screen, 32 + B, 40 + AB, and 40 + B (which is the combo I have).

Thanks for the quick response dude.

Most listings highlight whether a cable is 32 pin or 40 pin but only some mention LCD type. How can I tell which are which?

I am in the UK and once my new LCD arrives I know I'll be keen to get the adapter. Can someone direct link me to a type AB cable for both 32 and 40 pin Gameboy... because I'm quite sure it's a type AB screen buy I don't know which Gameboy I have yet...

 

[pelago]

All AGS-101 screens are 32-pin, but AGB-001 motherboards are either 32-pin or 40-pin, which you can tell by looking at the AGB-001 motherboard. There are "A" and "AB" type AGS-101 screens (I don't know why they are called that and I don't know if those are official Nintendo names or just something someone thought up). Sometimes I see the "AB" screen called a "B" screen, which makes more sense to me.

Not all the cables are the same. Some (most) have extra wires to solder to improve brightness, some have extra electronics in them which I think also improves brightness and possibly system stability and maybe even reduces ghosting. For example, compare http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=24351408753 and http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=24351728191 where the more expensive version has extra components.

See my post just before your first one for the cable that I recommend.

 

[AnotherMuggle]

All AGS-101 screens are 32-pin, but AGB-001 motherboards are either 32-pin or 40-pin, which you can tell by looking at the AGB-001 motherboard. There are "A" and "AB" type AGS-101 screens (I don't know why they are called that and I don't know if those are official Nintendo names or just something someone thought up). Sometimes I see the "AB" screen called a "B" screen, which makes more sense to me.

Not all the cables are the same. Some (most) have extra wires to solder to improve brightness, some have extra electronics in them which I think also improves brightness and possibly system stability and maybe even reduces ghosting. For example, compare http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=24351408753 and http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=24351728191 where the more expensive version has extra components.

See my post just before your first one for the cable that I recommend.

Thanks for the information and the links.

I saw your post about the SELECT+L brightness boosting... how is it looking in terms of space inside the system with those extra components? I've read some people saying it's a tight fit even with the smaller cables.

 

[pelago]

Thanks for the information and the links.

I saw your post about the SELECT+L brightness boosting... how is it looking in terms of space inside the system with those extra components? I've read some people saying it's a tight fit even with the smaller cables.

Although I've tested the cable and AGS-101 screen with the AGB-001 system disassembled, I'm afraid I haven't yet modified the front of the AGB-001 case or tried reassembling. Will do soon and will report back.

 

[AnotherMuggle]

Although I've tested the cable and AGS-101 screen with the AGB-001 system disassembled, I'm afraid I haven't yet modified the front of the AGB-001 case or tried reassembling. Will do soon and will report back.

Awesome.

I've clicked the "Watch Thread" button so will keep an eye for any updates.

Good luck!

 

[MoeBiikolo]

All AGS-101 screens are 32-pin, but AGB-001 motherboards are either 32-pin or 40-pin, which you can tell by looking at the AGB-001 motherboard. There are "A" and "AB" type AGS-101 screens (I don't know why they are called that and I don't know if those are official Nintendo names or just something someone thought up). Sometimes I see the "AB" screen called a "B" screen, which makes more sense to me.

Not all the cables are the same. Some (most) have extra wires to solder to improve brightness, some have extra electronics in them which I think also improves brightness and possibly system stability and maybe even reduces ghosting. For example, compare http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=24351408753 and http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=24351728191 where the more expensive version has extra components.

See my post just before your first one for the cable that I recommend.

What exactly are the differences between the two you've just posted? From what I can see, it might just be brightness.

 

[AnotherMuggle]

I've found someone on ebay selling the gbaguan Aurora Deluxe cable (the famous http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=39228683802 one), which has five levels of brightness to choose from, using Select+L. Seller is lee_chan1985. Link to 32-pin cable is http://www.ebay.com/itm/GameBoy-Adv...-with-5-level-Brightness-32-pin-/400952569121 and 40-pin cable is http://www.ebay.com/itm/GameBoy-Adv...ith-5-level-Brightness-40-pin-B-/181797004647

This is on ebay.com (the US site) but I've successfully bought from him in the UK and he has shipped it to me. I bought the 40-pin cable from him before he had them listed. I came across him as I noticed he was selling other games from the gbaguan taobao seller, and he managed to get the deluxe cable to send to me as a test (at a higher cost then he's selling them for now!), which worked fine.

One thing to note about this cable, which I hadn't considered before - every time you power off and on the GBA, it will default to the lowest brightness level, so you will need to press Select+L sufficient number of times to reach your desired brightness. I had thought that it would remember the previous brightness level, but I guess it has no non-volatile memory.

Installation (soldering) was straightforward and worked first time. I had a AGS-101 screen, AB-type, from a dead GBA SP. I don't have a working GBA SP (AGS-101) to compare it with, but as the higher brightness levels it is very bright, and I've read other people say that it can go brighter than the original AGS-101. No problems with ghosting that I've seen so far, but I haven't played with it much yet, as I haven't yet modified the GBA case to make the screen fit.

pelago - I have an AGS-101 screen with uneven wires in the ribbon and a brown connector. My GBA is 40 pin. Is this the same combination you used? The listing seems to suggest the 40 pin cable is only compatible with the AGS-101 screen with the white connector. Cheers.

 

[pelago]

pelago - I have an AGS-101 screen with uneven wires in the ribbon and a brown connector. My GBA is 40 pin. Is this the same combination you used? The listing seems to suggest the 40 pin cable is only compatible with the AGS-101 screen with the white connector. Cheers.

My AGS-101 screen also has uneven wires in the ribbon and a brown connector, and I also have a 40-pin AGB-001, so same as you.

I don't read Chinese, but looking at the original seller at http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=39228683802 it seems there are three versions of the cable, one for 32-pin AGB-001, and two for 40-pin AGB-001. I think the two different 40-pin versions are for the two different AGS-101 screens (I'm guessing the 32-pin version of the cable works with both types of screen for some reason).

When I bought the cable from lee_chan1985, this was before he had a proper listing on ebay, but I told him via ebay messaging what type of AGB-001 motherboard and AGS-101 screen I had and he managed to get me a cable that worked. So maybe try that - message him before purchase, I would recommend.

 

[Weighted Cube]

Expensive kit on eBay: http://www.ebay.fr/sch/gamersworld213/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ipg=&_from=
10 units on Alibaba: http://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/backlight-LCD-Screen-Replacement-For-Gameboy_1886914880.html

These are not good deals, if I find a good one, I'll post it here.

Sadly, the 10 kit has ran out. I was hoping to get a 3rd party screen to install into my GBA without buying a SP. Got any other deals?

If only there was suppliers which have alternatives to the GBA SP screen, those would sell like hot cakes.

-Weighted Cube

 

[BazookaBen]

My advice would be to watch your local craigslist until you see a beat-up SP get posted. I found a pink one that was covered in scratches but still worked. The AGS-101 only came out in a few colors so once you know what to look for, it's not too hard to find.

I would feel bad pulling a screen from a 101 that was actually in decent shape.

 

[MikeAwkward]

Sadly, the 10 kit has ran out. I was hoping to get a 3rd party screen to install into my GBA without buying a SP. Got any other deals?

If only there was suppliers which have alternatives to the GBA SP screen, those would sell like hot cakes.

-Weighted Cube

I've got an AB screen and 32 pin adapter cable on eBay for sale if you're interested.

I decided to stick with my PSP for emulation purposes after I broke my 32 pin GBAs motherboard whilst soldering (my own stupid mistake haha). The screen appears to still be working fine though.

I think it'll work better with a 40 pin GBA however.

 

[Cartmanuk]

I've got an AB screen and 32 pin adapter cable on eBay for sale if you're interested.

I decided to stick with my PSP for emulation purposes after I broke my 32 pin GBAs motherboard whilst soldering (my own stupid mistake haha). The screen appears to still be working fine though.

I think it'll work better with a 40 pin GBA however.

I can fix you GBA board for you if you want.

 

[MikeAwkward]

I can fix you GBA board for you if you want.

Thanks but I've already sold it on as spares. Much prefer using my PSP tbh, even if the battery life sucks in comparison.

 

[Cheekee]

I'm really curious what the brightness difference is between the soldered cable, and the solderless cable. Does anyone have a picture of this? Is it really that much of a difference?