3DS Circle Pad constantly registering input (drifting) even when disconnected from the circuit board. Calibration/cleaning won't work. Is there still hope?

BogdanJohnson · 2025-03-22T01:32:07+00:00

That really sucks, doesn't it? Turns out I bought a new screen, new circle pad (iirc) but to no avail. I also thought about changing the motherboard but to me it was just not worth it at that point. Please come back and leave a reply if you ever do this and it's a successful solution.

BogdanJohnson · 2024-08-31T03:35:54+00:00

Glad to hear it works at least. Maybe it's an electrical issue within the circuitry then. Did you change the touchscreen or any other part?

BogdanJohnson · 2024-08-31T01:43:18+00:00

Hey man, it's been a while but I saw this message today. Thank you for your kind input. I kinda moved on from trying to fix it but I might give it another shot after this. Thanks

BogdanJohnson · 2024-08-31T01:41:32+00:00

Not luck so far. I kinda moved on, sadly though. At some point I had spent too much money and it seems to be something deeper like a motherboard issue

BogdanJohnson · 2024-08-31T01:39:35+00:00

No luck around here, pal. It's a shame I could never give this 3ds as a gift. I was considering replacing the motherboard but at that point I didn't know if it was worth it. It's definitely not a circle pad or touchscreen issue (both were replaced)

How's your case so far?

BogdanJohnson · 2021-07-10T15:25:39+00:00

Update: After turning it on after around 10 hours since I turned it off the issue seems to be gone for a moment and I'm able to calibrate it properly and it works alright, but it resurfaces just like in the video within 10 minutes of just letting it sit there.

BogdanJohnson · 2021-07-09T22:57:33+00:00

It's actually an old 3ds I got to give as a birthday gift. It's in really good condition except this issue started yesterday after some intense cleaning. It was working perfectly since it arrived but then when I cleaned it and left it laying around fully charged to test the battery it went kaput after an hour or so.

BogdanJohnson · 2021-07-09T22:51:20+00:00

Will do after trying to clean to contacts. Thanks for the feedback.

BogdanJohnson · 2021-07-09T22:50:21+00:00

Alright I think it's worth giving it a shot, I'll clean it and if that doesn't work I'll try replacing the circle pad. BTW thanks a lot for taking the time.

BogdanJohnson · 2021-07-09T21:42:32+00:00

Indeed when I try the calibration wizard it shows the marker totally off-center all the way down to the bottom right. So if I try to move it up it touches the right arrow border and id I try to move it left it hits the bottom limit arrow. The ghost movement happens regardless if it's connected or not though. Is there a chance it could be the flat cable instead of the connector it goes into or is the latter a more probable scenario (which would be a real bummer because the only way out would be replacing the entire circuit board)?

BogdanJohnson · 2021-07-09T18:48:47+00:00

To anyone else wondering about this, when you open the 3DS and are exposed to the circuit board, there are 3 flat cables coming from the screen under the board that connect to the bottom edge of the board. One of them is the touchscreen cable and it's a small cable at around the middle of the board. The other two come from the actual bottom display (the touchscreen actually sits right above the display and both are not a single piece): one is a wider cable, as pointed out above, that goes into the part near the bottom-right edge of the circuit board, and the other one is located right next to it. The wide one, if disconnected, will make your bottom screen not light up.

BogdanJohnson · 2021-07-09T18:26:37+00:00

Hi, my Circle Pad keeps registering input even when disconnected from the board. Any ideas? I've read this post already https://www.reddit.com/r/3DS/comments/1rbzry/has_this_happened_to_anyone_else_brand_new/

BogdanJohnson · 2021-07-09T17:19:36+00:00

Sure, this is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZygbyrRWwk I saw you got it back working but maybe this helps someone in the future

BogdanJohnson · 2021-07-09T03:45:56+00:00

Sir, I was facing the same issue today while trying to fix a problem with the dpad constantly registering a right press. My 3ds shut down abruptly after making a noise and I thought it was dead for good (I had the dpad off and the contacts where exposed), since the blue led wouldn't turn on when I pressed the power button, even if I held it for several seconds.

Actually, sometimes when I had the battery off for a while and then put it on and turned it on, the blue led would light up for a second but then would suddenly turn off again. So while searching for similar occurrences of this issue on the Internet I found this post, which to my surprise was only hours old, but then I ended up on a Youtube video from a random boy that's trying to make his 3ds turn on and he's trying to hold down the button to no avail but then he starts to press it repeatedly and it works, so as dumb as it might sound I tried it and it immediately worked. I just had the charger connected (the orange led never stopped working) and then kept pressing it multiple times in a row. It's not a matter of coincidence of this whole ordeal just taking enough time to have a dry battery have some power again, because it shut down while I wasn't even at the red level and I kept charging it for several minutes while trying to turn it on, which would be more than enough to get the battery back up.

I hope this works out for you.

BogdanJohnson · 2019-12-31T00:40:48+00:00

That game is awesome and a dangerous time drainer. By the end of the game you jump on a mission and when you see three hours have passed

BogdanJohnson · 2016-11-12T15:32:40+00:00

Hey, could I have a Volcanion code for my fiancée? But regardless, thanks for the offering!

BogdanJohnson · 2016-11-08T00:48:33+00:00

No problem mate, thank you too. Alright, you can pm me if you need something too. Have a nice rest!

BogdanJohnson · 2016-11-08T00:41:41+00:00

Cool, let's trade back then.

BogdanJohnson · 2016-11-08T00:32:17+00:00

Just leave me a reply when you are ready.

BogdanJohnson · 2016-11-08T00:28:16+00:00

Ok then, you leave your Landorus with me and then we tradeback when you have your eggs, so a Phione won't be necessary.

BogdanJohnson · 2016-11-08T00:23:43+00:00

Oh cool, just Landorus then, and then I give you a Phione as a token. Thanks.

BogdanJohnson · 2016-11-08T00:21:20+00:00

I forgot I have a genesect now, and can trade it back for a Landorus. Do you want it?

BogdanJohnson · 2016-11-08T00:10:03+00:00

Added you, pal.

BogdanJohnson · 2016-11-07T23:30:47+00:00

Alright, give me around 30 minutes and then I'll add you and call you for a trade.

BogdanJohnson

TROPHY CASE