#Gba sp brighter screen mod how to#
#Gba sp brighter screen mod install#
#Gba sp brighter screen mod upgrade#
#Gba sp brighter screen mod software#

This is a delicate soldering project I found that “pre-tinning” the end of the wire by dipping it in a bit of hot solder first made it much easier to get the wire soldered to the motherboard properly.

I’ve also included some pictures so you can see what things look like when they’re done properly.

#Gba sp brighter screen mod how to#

These instructions from Rose Colored Gaming (PDF) are the most comprehensive overview of what you need to do, including how to take things apart, what plastic inside the GBA’s case will need to be cut, and where things need to be soldered. If you have the equipment and you’re comfortable doing all of this yourself, great! If not, there are plenty of sellers on eBay and Etsy who will sell you an already-backlit Game Boy Advance in just about every possible combination of colors for a modest markup (usually less than $120, unless you use a build-to-order service).

An Xacto knife or-for the more confident-a rotary tool can do the job. When done properly, you won’t be able to tell when the GBA is closed back up, but the translucent GBA shells are less forgiving than the opaque ones.

You will need to cut some of the plastic inside the GBA’s case to make room for the larger screen assembly.

You’ll need a soldering iron during installation so you can solder this cable to a part of the GBA’s motherboard, boosting the backlight’s brightness.

When you buy these little ribbon cables, get the version with a small red pre-soldered cable.

If it starts with a 0, you need a 40-pin adapter. Pop off your GBA’s battery cover and look at the tiny sliver of exposed motherboard-if the number starts with a 1, you need a 32-pin adapter.

Installing a backlit screen requires an adapter cable, often sold in a bundle with the screen and some screwdrivers.

There are a few things you need to know first. Buying compatible backlit screens from eBay costs around $40, but don’t go buying things willy-nilly.

#Gba sp brighter screen mod upgrade#

Luckily for us, modding old Game Boy Advances is popular enough that you don’t need to buy a perfectly fine GBA SP and destroy it just to upgrade your old version. Getting a backlit screen in the original GBA But we all have our own favorite hardware, and there’s nothing stopping you from doing it if you have money, time, and directions.

#Gba sp brighter screen mod software#

Adding a backlight to a Game Boy Advance is cheaper and easier, and the GBA plays Game Boy and Game Boy Color games just fine with no software emulation or screen scaling, so I’d recommend doing that rather than putting a backlight in a Game Boy Color. The process involves buying a backlit screen from a Game Boy Advance SP (or a Chinese clone more on that later), an expensive custom-built ribbon cable, and cutting a bunch of plastic inside the case so that everything will fit.

Installing a backlight in a Game Boy Color (“CGB”) is, unfortunately, much more difficult, expensive, and potentially damaging. The end result looks about as good as one of those backlit clone Game Boys that Hyperkin intends to release later this year.

#Gba sp brighter screen mod install#

If you do this, though, you’ll also want to install something called a “ bivert module.” These chips invert the colors on your Game Boy’s screen and then inverts them again (hence, “bivert”), improving contrast and visibility. You can buy backlight kits compatible with the original Game Boy (or “DMG”) and the Game Boy Pocket (“MGB”) for around $10, and they’re relatively easy to install with a few basic tools.

Further Reading Hyperkin plans to release a new (old) Game Boy in 2018