GBA Screen Mod
Giulia Boggiali
23/03/2018
ScamPOuLata
Game Boy Advance
- Great form factor
- Headphone jack
- Plays GB/GBC games
- Cartridge slot on top
- Crappy screen
- Less crappy sound
Game Boy Advance SP
- Frontlit screen*
- Rechargeable battery
- Clam shell design
- Rose gold version
- Need adapter for jack
What you need
Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Advance SP
Adapter Ribbon Cable
(either 32 or 40-pin motherboard compatible)
- Plastic Pry Tool or Small Flat Screwdriver
- Tri-Wing Screwdriver
- Philips Screwdriver
- Soldering Iron
- Solder
- Hobby Knife or Rotary Tool
... or you can buy a kit
The Mod
Remove screws with the Tri-Wing Screwdriver
Remove screw with the Philips head screwdriver
Take off the back of the GBA, and remove all the buttons
Remove the ribbon cable from the bail, by lifting up on the two brown tabs
Unscrew the two Philips head screws
Remove the motherboard, the rubber membranes, and the old screen (You may want to clean the case and buttons with hot water and soap)
Shave off the excess plastic where the screen fits
Connect the ribbon cable to the screen and the motherboard
Solder the wire which leads to the adapter to the left leg of “DA1” to provide power to the screen
Reassemble and enjoy ;)
What could possibly go wrong?
Your picture might look washed out like this
Desolder components
- C54
- Q3
- R16
- R17
- C33
Jump REVC to the P2-VEE with a cable
Any questions?
Thank You!
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.