Saturn model 2 50/60hz switch - page 1
The European (Pal) Saturn (model 1 and 2) has two disadvantages over it's ntsc US and Japanese counterparts:
1) it runs and displays most pal Saturn games at a 17% slower speed than Ntsc US or JAP machines
2) a lot of Pal Saturn games have big black borders at the bottom and the top of the screen
Basically this means that if you own a basic, unmodified pal Sega Saturn, you simply own a crippled machine and what's worse, you've not been playing your games at the comfort that you paid for. And no, this isn't just a 'Sega thing', all brands crippled their Pal systems for the European market. It's just that... hardly anybody does anything about it :0
Anyway, you can fix this 'Saturn problem' by adding a 50/60 hz switch and soldering just 2 wires from the Saturn motherboard to a switch, enabling you to switch between a 50 and a 60hz signal, making your Saturn and the game run at it's original (!) full-speed and full-screen settings. This involves some basic soldering and some basic soldering skills. Nothing more, nothing less...
About 80-90% of Pal games are crippled versions, running 17% slower than their Ntsc counterparts. That means that only about 10-20% of Pal games do run at full speed. Be mindful also that a handful of games are so called 'pal-optimised' so they already run at full speed, full screen. Switching to 60hz mode will 'cut' off a section of the screen and makes the game run faster than it was originally programmed. If that bothers you then keep your Saturn on the 50hz setting, simple!
Anyway, just relax, have some nice coffee or tea and let's do this thing together shall we?
Step by step 50/60hz switch guide:
What you need:
- a single pole, double throw switch (= a simple on/off switch, just look at the photo's to see one)
- a small screwdriver to unscrew the screws of the Saturn
- a drill to make a small diameter hole
- a soldering iron
- wire solder
- 2 lengths of electrical wire, preferably with different colors
You can easily find all this stuff at your local do-it-yourself shop or any electronics shop.
STEP 1: opening up your Sega Saturn model 2
This one's real simple, just unscrew the five screws on the back of your Saturn to open up your machine. To avoid scratching the surface of the console, just put it on a piece of cloth or a towel. Don't loose any of the screws, just put them in a little box or somewhere safe ;)
 
STEP 2: removing the Saturn power board
In order to get to the Saturn motherboard (or pcb) we need to remove a few parts. Let's start with the removal of the power board. Nothing to it, we'll just remove a few screws and lift it gently out of it's socket.
  
When you remove the last screw, the power board is still attached to a pin socket. You need to lift the power board out of this pin socket, do this gently, no pulling or using too much force, there's really no need. Just lift it out gently bit by bit.
STEP 3: removing the Saturn CD unit
To remove the Saturn CD unit we only need to remove one (tiny) screw and two cables. Removing the screw is easy but take it easy with the cables, remove them GENTLY, don't bend or use too much force. Keep this in mind and you'll have no worries at all.
 
When you've removed the screw and the cables you can easily lift out the CD unit.
STEP 4: removing the heat shield
One more step and you can almost access the Saturn motherboard. Again, nothing to it, just remove the 7 screws that keep the heat shield screwed on the motherboard. 
PAGE 2: SOLDERING AND ADDING THE SWITCH
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