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Garbled Pac-Man, Ghost and Fruit Sprites
Repair Case Summary
This page documents a firsthand Garbled Pac-Man, Ghost and Fruit Sprites repair case.
It is intended for technicians and collectors troubleshooting original Pac-Man or Ms. Pac-Man arcade PCB hardware.
- Date: 2017-05-21
- Board: Original Pac-Man PCB
- Category: Sprite graphics
- Symptoms:
- Pac-Man and ghost sprites were garbled while the board otherwise functioned.
- Pac-Man appeared divided into small quadrants with a small yellow dot/circle in each section.
- Ghosts appeared as quadrant/block-like shapes containing numbers and colored items.
- The on-screen fruit displayed a number instead of the proper graphic.
- Diagnostic observations / tests:
- After troubleshooting, the fault was narrowed to 74LS174 at 1H.
- Components / locations investigated: 1H, 74LS174
- Root cause: Bad 74LS174 at 1H.
- Repair: Installed a socket and replacement 74LS174 at 1H.
- Result: Sprites displayed properly.
- Search terms: Pac-Man garbled sprites; ghosts garbled; fruit shows number; quadrant sprites; 1H; 74LS174; sprite graphics
- Evidence: Physically verified repair / firsthand repair log
How to Use This Repair Record
This is a firsthand physical repair case. The same symptom on another Pac-Man or Ms. Pac-Man PCB can have a different electrical cause. Use the documented diagnostic observations and tests to guide troubleshooting rather than replacing a component solely because it repaired this board.
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