Gaming AGS-001 Screen/Light Assembly into OG GBA MOD

[adimifus]

The SP screen was designed to be frontlit, so it keeps it's color saturation when lit by leds. The original GBA Screen was not. Attached is a picture of a gba with a handheld legends frontlight. Although they minimized the issues with some clever engineering, the colors still get washed out somewhat and there are little white dots everywhere giving a textured appearance. This mod is free of these issues. What you get is a clear, bright screen.

I think the issue is less with the LCD and more with the light panel. I had similar issues attempting to front light my GBC. The online kits, with LOCA or not, just look pretty awful. Granted, the LOCA did help somewhat, but it was still very washed out, and not worth the trouble in my opinion. However, I did front light one GBC by using a AGS-001 front light, and it looks close to as good as a front lit SP. Also, the Afterburner produced MUCH better results using the original AGB LCD, looking just about as good as the AGS-001.
The problem, as far as I can tell, is the kits out there for both GBC and GBA use weird light panels with tiny raised area in a hex or honeycomb like pattern. The Afterburner light panel has long, parallel raised areas that look like vvvvvvvvvvvv when looked at from the edge. This design does a much better job distributing the light without washing everything out, and doesn't distort the image nearly as much. The AGS-001 light panel is nearly identical to the Afterburner.
I've also messed around with AR film to improve the image quality with those hex pattern panels, but it didn't do much of anything.
I've looked around online quite a bit to see if there's any place where you can get "vvvvvvvv" type panels but I've never been able to find anything. I do remember once many many years ago, some guy was offering GBC front light kits that used an Afterburner-style front panel (with the parallel "vvvvvv" pattern) but I've never seen anything since then.

Here's an old picture comparing the hex-pattern light panel kit in a GBC (with LOCA) vs my Afterburner modded GBA:

In the end, all I'm trying to say is the LCD itself isn't the fault. You could get it to look just as good as transplanting the entire light panel assembly + LCD, it just requires more work. And since front lights are a huge pain to work with, since any dust/debris that gets caught under or on the light panel make annoying bright spots, it's just easier to use something that's already assembled for you. The fewer opportunities for dust to get involved the better.

 

[Stephen Cooper]

Hi all

Just signed up to say thanks for all this info and to ask a question.

I had already done this mod before finding this forum and about the AGS001 adaptor cable. The mod i did involved taking the frontlight out directly and mounting that in the GBA.
Using a 47ohm resistor and find a 5v power source.

Which all went well, soldered to the point in the below image (Green line, thanks to the person who posted it originally).

After a couple of weeks the power LED started blinking red when i still had good batteries and seemed to tie in with when i was flexing the case. Then it went to fully red and started blinking, then the console started restarting. So i took it apart and found out i had trapped the cable right next to that solder point and slightly removed the insulation from the PCB. So that solder point is a no go, knowing my luck ill create a short the moment the solder flows.

So i went on the hunt for a new solder point, leading me here. First i tried the point in the below picture (from another how to), but that caused the console to shut off as soon as i turned it on.

Finally i tried the C56 point (mentioned in this thread) and it seems better, the light flickers red on the odd occasion but that could genuinely be dying batteries, however after whats happened im not convinced. On all other occasions when i remove the frontlight power the console functions fine, its the 40pin model.

So i guess im asking people with greater electronics knowledge than me what could cause the LED to flicker like that and the console restart? I've checked all my soldering on the front light itself and the wiring and its sound. Could running it from the C56 point with a 47ohm resistor on the light cause adverse damage to the GBA?

What actually is it that i soldered my wire onto and what is the function of the circuit ive tapped into?

Id appreciate any insights, thanks for reading my essay!

PS: not too sure how active this thread is, hope i haven't just necro'd an old thread.

 

[retrogamer78]

Hi

I've found this on ebay: http://www.ebay.it/itm/192043407672?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

is it really good for the AGS-001 screen? It's different from the Lee_chan1985 one isn't it?
But a little bit more cheaper...so I would like to understand...

 

[Nusdogg]

Hi

I've found this on ebay: http://www.ebay.it/itm/192043407672?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

is it really good for the AGS-001 screen? It's different from the Lee_chan1985 one isn't it?
But a little bit more cheaper...so I would like to understand...

Yes, looks like it's for the front lit mod.

 

[spkuja]

Hey all. I've modded one GBA with a frontlight using the frontlight cable (32 pin), though I've now ordered a backlight cable (40 pin for another gameboy). Has anyone confirmed if the backlight cable will work wth a frontlight?

Also, I soldered my wire to another point on the board, not C56 as everyone on here seems to have done. I soldered it to the same spot as this video, which seems to be just fine:

 

[j2k15]

Hi,

I've a AGS-001 NES edition frontlit and plan to mod it as an AGS-101.

I see that I can get a screen like this for about 35 bucks :

After some search and reading, I still have questions:

1) I often see talking about 32 or 40 pins. However On the screens I see, there are always 34 connectors on the cable. I thus don't get where the 32 or 40 pins come from.

2) It seems that the screen is delivered as blank, without GBA logo, ... I guess that when reassembled, the screen protection part with the logo is reused from my AGS-001, correct ?

3) Would the frontlit button still be useful ? I mean instead of turning frontlit on/off would it be used for the settings of the backlit (as I read, there are 2 levels of backlit).

 

[ltsheppard]

Today, I too frontlight modded my spare 40-Pin GBA. I have to say, the lighting turned out surprisingly well (the pictures don't really do it any justice, they make it look pretty washed out):





It certainly looks just as good as in an original GBA SP (in my opinion, depending on the angle, it even seemed a bit better):



I've chosen the standard C56 solder point. With S1, I felt as if the frontlight didn't get enough voltage/current and wasn't as bright.

 

[JimCarrey]

Hi,

Would anyone be able to tell me if this ribbon cable would work for an AGS-001 frontlight lcd? The listing says AGS-101 but it seems to have the extra wire that the other frontlight ribbons have. Thanks!

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/40-Pin-Ri...412266?hash=item3aeb0a1f2a:g:2KsAAOSwN2VZSXzt

 

[rq-cachito]

I can confirm that adding a polarized film (those that are used to adhere to mobile's screen) on the internal side of the (glass, if you can) gba lens improves dramatically the visibility of the mod reducing the glare projected on the LCD.

You just need to check the proper angulation of the polarized film (rotate it 90 degrees if it's too dark), cut a piece of the film (6,5 x 4,5 cm) and apply it on the internal side of the lens taking care of not generate air bubbles in the process.



--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

Hi,

Would anyone be able to tell me if this ribbon cable would work for an AGS-001 frontlight lcd? The listing says AGS-101 but it seems to have the extra wire that the other frontlight ribbons have. Thanks!

That one is for ags 101 screen.

 

[Creedeth]

Yet another modded GBA.

https://aijaa.com/xYBuLY

Edit. Cant get image show. Added link to it.

 

[Nusdogg]

Yet another modded GBA.

https://aijaa.com/xYBuLY

Edit. Cant get image show. Added link to it.

That's a backlit GBA.

 

[Tytea2e]

Do you have to solder that red wire to the c56 or can I leave it unsoldered? What I mean is can it be plug in play at a lower dimness or is that red wire the resistor?

 

[MetoMeto]

What's AR film? What ribbon adapter should i use exactly?? and what resistor will burn the leds here...

Sorry but i was all confused reading the posts.

 

[swutch]

is there still a supplier for a 40 pin 001 ribbon cable?

 

[2Flow2]

is there still a supplier for a 40 pin 001 ribbon cable?

Yes, the lee_chan eBay user still seems to upload them for sale on eBay ocassionally, even all these years later (I just bought one from him a few weeks ago). It looks like between November 2020 and January 2021 he sold 10 of them.

I can't post links as a new user, but here are the sales with the symbols removed: offer [DOT] ebay [DOT] com [SLASH] ws [SLASH] eBayISAPI.dll [QUESTION MARK] ViewBidsLogin&item=184523333495&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2564