How to set up the Circuit Gem - kiteretro/Circuit-Gem GitHub Wiki

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  1. Turn the power switch "OFF" then plug a Micro USB cable into the Circuit Gem and check that the "PG" LED comes on

  2. Turn the power switch "ON" and check that the status LEDs come on then turn the power switch "OFF"

  3. Unplug the Micro USB cable then plug in the battery (450mAh 403035) (850mAh 482953) (WARNING: USING A CONNECTOR WITH THE WRONG PIN-OUT WILL BREAK THE CIRCUIT GEM)

  4. Turn the power switch "ON" and check that the status LEDs come on

  5. Plug in the Micro USB cable and check that the "CHRG" and "PG" LEDs come on

6. Cover the exposed metal of the Raspberry Pi Zero’s Micro USB port using 2 pieces of Kapton tape then tin the solder pads

7. Lightly tin the Circuit Gem’s solder pads using a tiny amount of solder

8. Place the Raspberry Pi Zero onto the lightly tinned solder pads so that the holes line up then solder the Micro USB port’s solder pads

9. Solder the Raspberry Pi Zero’s GPIO holes ensuring that the solder melts into the holes and connects to the tinned solder pads. This is achieved by using a healthy amount of solder and holding the soldering iron on the hole for at least 10 seconds. (WARNING: ONCE SOLDERED DO NOT TRY AND UNSOLDER OR REMOVE THE RASPBERRY PI ZERO)

10. Using a multimeter check that the resistance of the speaker reads between 7-10 Ohms
Note that if the speaker does not measure anything, it is faulty. Replacements can be found by searching for 'N73 speaker' (e.g. https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32801065227.html)

11. Solder the speaker to the Circuit Gem then stick it to the Raspberry Pi Zero using double-sided tape

Note: Replacement speaker example: Aliexpress

  1. Plug in the LCD then the Micro USB cable. Turn the power switch "ON" and wait for the backlight to come on

  2. Download the Circuit Gem Software then use Win32 Disk Imager to write it to an SD card. Open the config-cs.txt file using "Notepad++" then change #MODE=TESTER to MODE=TESTER

  3. Insert the SD card then turn the power switch "ON". The first boot will take around 60 seconds. Once fully booted check that all of the tests have passed: "GPIO SHDN" should read "OFF" and when the power switch is "OFF" the Circuit Gem will immediately turn off.

  4. Turn the power switch "OFF" and wait for the configuration menu to appear

  5. Press the "sleep" button and wait for the Circuit Gem to shut down

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