Help! Dreamcast Pads Stopped Working!

[Asura]

Went out and bought a 2nd hand Dreamcast machine from Cash Generators today. It looks almost new; came in a box with all the extraneous manuals and cable ties, and it's still the original colour (no yellowing).

It was fine when I played on it for half an hour at 7ish, but this evening I played on VOOT for about 10 minutes with a mate, and when I went into the option screen I THINK I saw the screen flicker slightly, then after that, all pad control has just stopped working. Neither of my pads work in any of the ports, even on the Dreamcast menus.

Is this a common fault with the machine?

The only other thing is that for a lack of places to put it I had to stand it on top of my skybox, and the bottom of the machine felt a little warm (but not overly so).

[mr_sockochris]

Of the 4 DC's I've owned over the years, 2 of them had a dodgy P1 port, but I've never had it where none of the ports work, sounds like it's busted

[Salsa Party Animal]

Look in the bright side, it will be very very cheap to get a 2nd hand replacement.

[gIzzE]

Have you opened it up and checked the ribbon cable connecting the gamepad pcb is still connected to the main board??

[trickytree]

It's a common problem, has happened to me. Apparently the resistor on the controller board is underpowered. You need to replace it.

There's a FAQ here:

http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/dreamcast/game/916412.html

(look for 'Controller Port Repair FAQ')