Retropie on a Pi 0 keeps freezing

Guto Du

Hello everyone. I am new here. I am running Retropie on a Pie 0 only loaded with NES, MD, SNES, and FDS roms.

My Retropie keeps freezing in different moments: in the middle of games (especially MD and SNES, but it has also happened with NES), console menu, Retropie menu, and games menu. Unfortunately I have to unplug it every time this happens, but it seems like my SD is has not been corrupted up to this point.

I just tested the Pi for a while on another TV and to my surprise it did not freeze (so far). I am wondering if it is because of this TV's lower resolution and size. Anyone else has other ideas? Before anybody says anything, my power adaptor is fine (5V, 2A).

If you think the TV reason might be a good guess, is there anyway I could reconfigure my Retropie so it runs without freezing on the better TV?

Thanks in advance!

BillyH

With the information you've given, my first guess would be that the Pi is overheating. Did you install heat sinks, what's your Pi case like? It'd also help if you shared which build of RetroPie you're using and if you made any adjustments.

I don't think the television should be an issue as the Pi is just sending stuff through the output cable regardless of what type of television is listening on the other end. Maybe you happen to put it in a better spot with the other television where it overheats less, if overheating actually is the issue?

What I can also say is that the Pi 0 has much less power than regular Pies, if you're going for SNES emulation and you're not making a handheld (in which case the small size of the 0 helps) you might want to go for a Pi 3. This is information I've heard in different threads on here, I'm in the process of setting up my own first 0 for a handheld so I can't confirm or deny how bad the 0 should be with SNES games.

quicksilver

@Guto-Du are you using the default retropie image or a third party image? Are you overclocked?

Thorr69

It could be that the OP's first TV is a 4K and the second one is a 1080. You have to cap the Pi's output resolution to 1080 if you want stability.

hobbyhands

What does it mean I need at least 1 tag to post?

dankcushions

@Thorr69 pi 0 is not capable of 4k (as in, it doesn't have it as an option).

also, default retropie does use a reduced 640x480 retroarch framebuffer for pi 0/1.

Guto Du

@quicksilver I am using the default image and have not overclocked the pi

Guto Du

I installed a heatsink. The pi case is just one of those clear plastic simple ones.

BillyH

@Guto-Du some cases don't have enough ventilation. If the Pi freezes again, feel how warm the case is.

Even though your power supply is 5V 2A, it could still be the power supply. Is its cable long or short, is it flexible or stiff?

BuZz

@BillyH said in Retropie on a Pi 0 keeps freezing:

is it flexible or stiff?

Depends on age I think...

Of the cables.

BillyH

@BuZz said in Retropie on a Pi 0 keeps freezing:

@BillyH said in Retropie on a Pi 0 keeps freezing:

is it flexible or stiff?

Depends on age I think...

Of the cables.

Raspberry Pi For Dummies (also known as Raspberry's pitfalls for beginners) taught me recently what's the difference. Sure, there can be an age thing, but new cables can be flexible or stiff too and apparently it's not because of the type of plastic on the outside but because of what they put inside.

Frequently, the power supply cable is not substantial enough. Some cables are too cheaply made, especially when they are long and thin: some microUSB cables contain just "tinsel" (small strips of plastic with tiny films of aluminum on them). This makes them flexible, but it also makes them unsuitable for devices that can't accept the kind of voltage drops they are producing. If your microUSB cable is thin and flexible, replace it by one that is thick, stiff, and short.

My guess is this is in part to micro USB cables mainly being used for charging stuff instead of continuously powering something.

quicksilver

@BillyH even overclocked the pi zero doesn't get hot. My pi zero in my gpi case is completely enclosed without ventilation and no heatsink. Even overclocked it never really goes above 55c.

BillyH

@quicksilver said in Retropie on a Pi 0 keeps freezing:

@BillyH even overclocked the pi zero doesn't get hot. My pi zero in my gpi case is completely enclosed without ventilation and no heatsink. Even overclocked it never really goes above 55c.

That's good to know, since yesterday I built my own GPi and I was wondering about temperature while I was screwing everything on top of each other. I also thought the case felt a bit warm where the Pi was after playing a few minutes of a SNES game.

quicksilver

@Guto-Du it's a possibility it's defective. Try over volting the pi (without over clocking) to see if it's more stable. If it is then your pi isn't stable at factory settings and should be sent back for replacement. I have seen multiple reports of pi zero's not stable at factory clock speeds. I think the quality control on the pi zero might be slightly less than other models. Probably because it's a $5 computer.