Recap guide

Recap the Sega CD and Mega-CD

Model 1 SMD caps should be replaced even with no visible leak, and the Model 2 is sturdier. The Model 1 JVC drive controller boards suffer too.

Open the interactive checklist Tick off each capacitor as you replace it. It saves in your browser.

Worth a recap. Reports say it is a common and useful fix on this machine.

Which board do I have?

Boards changed during production. These notes come from the linked sources, and many are only partly documented, so check the board in front of you.

Model 1 (front-loading, 1991-1993) (High confidence). How to tell: Front-loading tray under the Genesis; drive by Sony (most Japan and North America) or JVC (most PAL). Capacitors: ConsoleMods says its main board has SMD caps that must be replaced even without leaks, the sub board near the regulator is also affected, and JVC units can have extra bad caps on the drive controller board. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: yes. Source
Model 2 BE2200G02A01 and A02 (Funai, earliest) (Medium confidence). How to tell: Funai boards with a bodge PCB on the 315-5476A chip; A02 is an early North American variant. Capacitors: ConsoleMods says the Model 2 does not have leaky cap problems in general; no board-specific list found. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: not known. Source
Model 2 BE2200G02B02, C02 (Funai) (Medium confidence). How to tell: B02 is the first PAL revision and C02 folds the bodge contents into the board. Capacitors: No board-specific cap list found; an AtariAge thread covers a recap of a Funai C02 board and names audio caps C232 to C235 and a broken trace near C222. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: not known. Source
Model 2 171-6528C (Sega) (Medium confidence). How to tell: Smaller Sega-made board with the drive controller on a separate PCB. Capacitors: No cap list found. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: not known. Source
Model 2 BE2200G02C22 (Funai, final) (Medium confidence). How to tell: Final revision with audio components consolidated. Capacitors: No cap list found. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: not known. Source
Genesis CDX and Multi-Mega (Low confidence). How to tell: Combined Genesis and Sega CD portable listed on ConsoleMods' cap page. Capacitors: ConsoleMods' Replacing Capacitors page has a CDX / Multi-Mega header with no list filled in. Capacitor list differs from other revisions: not known. Source

Where to start

Clues from write-ups and forum threads, not a diagnosis. Low confidence means one thread or one repair; high means several write-ups agree.

Model 1 SMD caps (Medium confidence). ConsoleMods states that Model 1 SMD caps must be replaced regardless of leaks, and lists the Model 2 board variants. It gives no values. Source
Cautionary tale (Low confidence). One Model 2 recap went wrong when a broken trace near C222 killed the PCM effects. The thread also mentions audio mixing caps C232-C235. Source
General how-to (Medium confidence). ConsoleMods has a general guide to replacing through-hole, SMD electrolytic and SMD ceramic caps, but no per-board values. Source

Tips, tales and maybes

Found in write-ups and forum threads. These are other people's reports, not tested by us. Check part references and values against your own board.

Story: Graphics corruption in FMV and BIOS screens (Low confidence). Three Model 1 Sega CD owners in one thread cured corrupted graphics in the BIOS and FMV (game graphics and border looked fine) by swapping the Genesis voltage regulators for higher-output variants. The explanation given was that the CD unit stresses the Genesis supply. Source
Story: Burned discs freeze after boot (Low confidence). In an r/SegaCD thread (seen on the reddit.sudovanilla.org mirror) a Model 1 that struggled with burned discs played them after the main-board SMD caps were replaced and an original laser was fitted with the pot set to 760mV. The commenter called SMD caps notorious for leaking and suggested recapping the power board too. Source
Watch out: Dead Mega-CD 2 was a fuse (Medium confidence). A Hitman's Museum Mega-CD 2 log with no signs of life turned out to be a blown fuse (F301), not caps, though a full recap was done too. The fuse snapped easily on removal, and the board had factory bodge cap placements held with glue or resin and bodge wires, so note them before rework. Source
Tip: Technique for SMD caps (Medium confidence). The ConsoleMods general guide advises heating both leads together and not pulling a through-hole leg out until the solder is fully liquid. For ceramic SMD caps it says polarity does not matter, and for a ripped pad it suggests glue or a solder wire to a nearby trace. Source
Tip: Model 1 versus Model 2 risk (Medium confidence). ConsoleMods says the Model 1 has SMD caps that must be replaced even without visible leaks, with more trouble on the sub-board near the regulator and on the drive controller board of JVC-drive units. It describes leaks on Japanese Model 1 Mega-CDs as common, and says the top-loading Model 2 is far more robust. Source
Watch out: Stubborn caps cost pads (Low confidence). In the Model 2 no-sound-effects thread, the poster says four caps would not budge and needed extra heat and force, and the pad and trace damage was only found by looking under the board with a schematic. The caps checked were C232 to C235 and C239/C240 in the audio mixing area. Source
Story: Mega-CD 1 will not read after ribbon, belt and caps (Low confidence). An iFixit asker changed the ribbon cable, drive belt and the drive's caps on a Mega-CD 1 and it still would not read discs, so a cap swap is not guaranteed to fix reading. Another asker had destroyed the pad area under C47 on the main board during a failed replacement and asked about mounting it on the underside. Source
Tip: Ceramic instead of electrolytic (Low confidence). An EEVblog thread asks about swapping ten leaking 10uF 16V SMD electrolytics on a Sega CD main board for ceramics, and replies said to use X7R and that bias derating depends mostly on package size, with a 1206 10uF losing little at about 5V while 0402 and 0603 do worse. The asker chose an AVX 1206 X7R, and the thread does not discuss ESR. Source

Before you start

Boards changed during production. Check your board number against the guides before you order parts.

Guides we used

This page and the interactive bench are built from these. They have the photos and the full detail, so please read them and support their authors.

Genesis: Sega CD Model Differences (Write-up) by ConsoleMods Wiki, CC BY. Clear statement that Model 1 SMD caps must be replaced regardless of leaks; lists Model 2 board variants. No values
Replacing Capacitors (general guide) (Step-by-step) by ConsoleMods Wiki, CC BY. Generic how-to (through-hole, SMD electrolytic, SMD ceramic) and a list of consoles that need it; no per-board values
Sega CD model 2 recapped, no sound effects (Forum) by AtariAge forum (thread). Good cautionary tale: broken trace near C222 after a recap killed PCM effects. Mentions audio mixing caps C232-C235
Mega-CD 2 restoration and modding (Write-up) by hitmanmcc. Full recap on Model 2 with fuse and BIOS work; no values
Console5 wiki: Sega CD (Wiki) by Console5. A community wiki page for this machine, often with board photos and capacitor lists.
Console5 wiki: Sega CDX (Wiki) by Console5. A community wiki page for this machine, often with board photos and capacitor lists.

The capacitor list

We have not checked a capacitor list for this machine yet, so none is shown. Follow the guide above for your board, then add the capacitors in the interactive checklist and it builds a shopping list for you.

Skip the sourcing

Ready-made kit: Amazon · eBay
Already recapped: Amazon · eBay

While you are in there

Need the machine itself?: Amazon · eBay
A box of spare capacitors: Amazon · eBay

Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. These links only search by name. Disclosure

Steps, tools and safety

The steps, the tools in top, middle and budget picks, and the safety list are the same for every machine, so they live on one page: How to recap, step by step.

Values are shown as published in the guides above, and boards changed during production. Check the board in front of you. A recap involves hot tools and, on some machines, dangerous voltages. You do it at your own risk.