Repair and maintenance tips
Practical guides to looking after an Amiga or a Spectrum: what to check before switching on, the typical faults of each model and how to avoid them.
These guides are for information. Working on old electronics carries risks: do it at your own risk, with the machine unplugged, and never open power supplies or CRT monitors. If in doubt, bring the machine to us.
- Before switching on a machine that has sat unused for yearsFound an Amiga or a Spectrum in the loft? Don't switch it on just yet. Half an hour of checks stops a leaking battery, a power supply or a tired capacitor from turning a small fault into a big one.Difficulty: Easy⏱ 30 min
- What the Amiga's start-up screen colours meanWhen you switch it on, the Amiga tests its own hardware and shows the result as a colour. Knowing how to read those colours helps you work out where the problem is before you open the case.Difficulty: Easy⏱ 15 min
- When the Spectrum 48K won't startA black screen, lines, or random squares instead of the copyright message: the Spectrum 48K has a set of typical faults that can be diagnosed with a multimeter and a bit of patience.Difficulty: Workbench⏱ 1 h