After my Timekeeper failed and I hacked it apart to repair it, I realized that there had to be a better way. I went into my shop, and I developed a template and process to place an external button battery on top of the chip, wired to the internals, and 100% serviceable by YOU. These chips typically lack any way to test, let alone service the battery inside them, if yours has failed, you'll have to hope that a NOS Timekeeper will work, and keep working for you. How long will yours last, before you're pulling it back out and reprogramming another one?
With my chip, you'll have a fully-functional Timkeeper SRAM with an off-the-shelf CR2032 LiOn battery attached to it. The battery holder will be permanently affixed to the chip via epoxy, and it will be wired to the internal circuit of the chip. Never again will you have to worry if your game code is intact and operational. With a multimeter, you'll be able to verify the chip's voltage right on the surface. This is one clean package to make your game, or router, or old SPARC UNIX box keep rolling.
If the battery is dying or seems old enough to replace, via the same test points, users can apply 3.3 volts and keep the chip alive while they replace the battery! Remember, even a temporary loss of that voltage and the code will be lost - these chips do not receive power to service the internal part of their clock circuit from your CPU or game power supplies! The battery is a MUST.
My initial run will include:
* ST's M48t59Y chips and their sub-varieties
* Dallas 1225Y and other similar Dallas chips in this class
* Custom ICs on a limited basis (PM me for details)
The background around how I got here is in a thread about a Konami Silent Scope, if you're interested, found here -
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,130544.msg1486270.html#msg1486270I plan to market these chips for $50 each. I can offer to program them as well, on a case by case basis, provided we don't violate anyone's intellectual property.
Please PM me if you're interested!