Welcome to Game Boy Help & troubleshooting. If your Game Boy, Color, Advance, SP or Micro is misbehaving, or a cartridge won't work, ask here and the community will help you work out what's wrong.
What belongs here
• Consoles that won't power on, have no sound, or show a white or blank screen.
• Screen problems: dead lines, flicker, dim backlights, kits that won't display.
• Cartridges that won't boot, won't save, or might be fake.
• Mods that haven't gone to plan: screen kits, batteries, USB-C boards.
• Flashcart problems with homebrew or your own dumped games.
What doesn't belong here
• Showing off a finished build goes in Mods & shell swaps.
• Game development questions go in Homebrew & GB Studio.
• Collecting and game chat goes in General discussion.
How to ask so people can help
Please include:
• Exact model, and whether it's stock or modded (and with which kit).
• What you were doing when the problem started.
• What happens: blank screen, scrambled logo, no sound, and so on.
• What you've tried already.
• Clear photos of the screen, the board, and both sides of the cartridge if relevant.
Common problems and first steps
1. Cartridge won't boot or shows a scrambled logo: clean the contacts with isopropyl alcohol on a cotton bud, and gently clean the console's slot. Dirty contacts cause most of these issues.
2. Game won't save: carts that save using a coin battery stop saving when it runs flat. It can be replaced, but you'll lose the old save unless you back it up first.
3. No power: check the battery contacts for corrosion, which old AA batteries often leave behind. Clean it off carefully.
4. Original Game Boy screen has vertical lines: a known fault with the stock screen's ribbon connection. It can sometimes be repaired with careful heat, but it's tricky.
5. New screen kit shows nothing: recheck the ribbon cable orientation and seating before anything else.
6. Possible fake cart: post photos of the label and the board. Fakes often have glob-top chips and odd printing.
Safety
• Remove batteries before working on the console.
• Old alkaline batteries can leak. Wear gloves when cleaning corrosion.
• Rechargeable lithium packs that are swollen, hot or damaged must not be used or charged.
What we can't help with
No ROMs, BIOS files or sources for them. If you're testing a flashcart, test with homebrew or your own dumps.
When it's sorted
Please reply with the fix and start your title with "Solved".
House rules
The usual KZE rules apply: be kind, English only (posts in other languages are translated automatically), no spam, no keyboard mashing and no self-promotion spam. Report anything that breaks the rules. This thread is locked, so start your own thread with the details above.
Dexter
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