My VB was having the glitchy display issue on both eyes. The oven method fixed the right one but the left one only looks glitchy when you look through the left lens slightly away from the VB, but whenever I stick my head on the visor the display goes back to normal. Can anybody please explain to me what is going on with my VBs display exactly? There are times when it looks fine, even if you’re away from the VB.

Hmm that’s odd, though I feel like I’ve read elsewhere about someone else having the same issue. I kept having trouble where there were either flecks of dust on the oscillating mirrors inside, or perhaps smudges from accidentally touching the clear case over the LEDs. Either way, I get these really fine black lines where the red light is probably not shining in certain areas. These lines look like tiny slash marks, and sometimes are in groups of maybe 3 or 4; as opposed to glitch lines, which tend to be more obvious and symmetrical, at least for me. The fine black lines come and go depending on my angle/proximity to the Virtual Boy.

I’ve heard a couple other people have that problem… I’ve never personally seen it myself, but any time an IC is exposed to light, it has the possibility of its p-n junctions acting as photodiodes. Poor cable contact, plus small induced currents from that could be what causes it.

Most chips don’t have this problem because they’re housed in opaque packages, but since this one emits light, it’s in a transparent package. A similar effect can be seen with EPROMs’ exposed windows. I’ve heard of data glitches caused by bright flashes near the EPROM window (temporary, not the same as the erasing effect from UV). Try turning on/off the lights in your room, and shining a flashlight in there, and see if it has the same effect as moving your head in/out of the visor.

Either way, the real fix is to just fix the cable… but it’s an interesting problem.

DogP

Do the lines move when you move your head? If so, they are probably specks of dust on the mirrors or the magnifying glass. I had that issue and fixed it by cleaning the mirrors and the magnifying glass with a Q-tip. But the issue I have is different and kinda strange.

DogP wrote:
I’ve heard a couple other people have that problem… I’ve never personally seen it myself, but any time an IC is exposed to light, it has the possibility of its p-n junctions acting as photodiodes. Poor cable contact, plus small induced currents from that could be what causes it.

Most chips don’t have this problem because they’re housed in opaque packages, but since this one emits light, it’s in a transparent package. A similar effect can be seen with EPROMs’ exposed windows. I’ve heard of data glitches caused by bright flashes near the EPROM window (temporary, not the same as the erasing effect from UV). Try turning on/off the lights in your room, and shining a flashlight in there, and see if it has the same effect as moving your head in/out of the visor.

Either way, the real fix is to just fix the cable… but it’s an interesting problem.

DogP

I shone my cellphone’s LED light through the lens and the glitching seems to have gotten a bit worse, nothing major since it only lasts for less than a second and then goes back to being slightly glitchy, but it’s only when I’m away from the Virtual Boy. When I get close to the visor it goes back to normal, like it’s working normally. The glue on the left display is not stuck to the cable like it’s supposed to. I tried softening it with the oven and a hair dryer, but it’s so old that it’s practically useless. I can’t solder, since I don’t have the tools, knowledge, workspace or the courage to do that to my Virtual Boy. Should I rip out the glue it has and buy another one like it? Or should I use it as it is for the time being till the scan line issue comes back? Does this issue affect the 3D effect? Here are some before and after pictures.

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I just had this same issue – or something that looked very similar while inspecting newly acquired VBs.

I had it opened up/upsidedown right near a light to see what I was doing. It turns out that the smeary lines were just ambient light bouncing around inside and reflecting off of something in there. As soon as I covered up the back, and put the visor on, it went away.

Hopefully your circumstance is the same and will have an easy fix! 🙂

Good luck!

Today I got a VB from craigslist for $50. It was the VB with visor and a controller. Pretty good for $50. It’s working flawlessly so, I’ll play on that one for a while.

My newer VB was having issues with the right eye. Got tired of the oven method and used my wife’s nail glue and some tape. Worked like a charm.

PS: Bought this security bit set

Fits like a glove.