I recently purchased (through eBay) a fairly new Dreamcast manufactured in November 2000 and it came with one standard controller. Since then, I have purchased 2 brand new Blue Sega VMUs and one Sega controller.

Problem: Anytime I plug in either VMU into either controller, it causes the controller to become non-functional. It will give me a screener saying that the "controller is not plugged in or is trying to recognize the VMU." I have tried every single combination (VMU/VMU slot/controller/controller port) and still the same result.

I suspect that it's either the VMUs (would be my luck to buy to brand new defective ones) or the 4 controller port component.

Has anyone ever heard or seen of this particular problem? Are there certain types of VMUs that have problems with certain Dreamcasts? I plan on swapping VMUs with a friend and have him test out mine while I test out his older Grey model VMU.

I would appreciate any feedback or help.

Wait, I'm confused, do you mean you're plugging the VMU into the pad when the game is already loaded? Because this can upset some games and also can wipe your save file.

If you mean you've plugged the VMU in before you turn on the Dreamcast then... I'm not sure, perhaps the slots are dusty or something...

I plugged them before starting up the system.

they must be faulty, none of my vmu's or 4x cards have ever done this. either your vmu's are bad or its the controller, now you say that it has the same effect on both controllers?

Have you tried putting a friend's VMU in the pad? Or your VMU in their pad? This way you might be able to see if which is faulty.

Thanks for all your help. I have confirmed the problem to be with the system board/controller component. I took my VMU to a friend's house and it worked just fine. It's refund time now.

as long as its under warranty that shouldn't be a problem

if all else fails you should be able to order the part from various online stores like

http://www.ncsx.com

http://www.gamestech.com

just make sure that you've tried to clear off the contacts and everything else.

Good luck with it.

if its just when you plug the vmu in, and then the game carries on, then thats normal, i.e.

1. you plug in the vmu
2. the game says "controller is not plugged in"
3. then the game continues,

this is normal, but if it freezes, you could try, removing the conroller and plugging it back in, with the vmu already in there,

sorry, but i havent come across a game freezing under these circumstances before.

i hope this is of some help.