Welcome to my Retro Gaming & Repair Shop
Hi I’m Tim, aka BeepFixer
On this site, I share my passion for retro gaming through write-up posts and pictures on the machines I repair and modify for customers or the shop section: it features microcomputers, gaming consoles, games, and related accessories, along with modern hardware mods for those looking to bring their own consoles back to life.
How It All Started
At age 5, I started gaming on a Philips Videopac G7000 in 1981. Back then, gaming was evolving rapidly, and like many kids of the time, I went from home to home exploring the different machines everyone had. That early exposure sparked a fascination in my young mind with all things gaming that go beep.
Collecting over the last three decades became a way to relive the memories of friends, through the consoles we used to play as kids – from Pong boxes through 8-, 16- or 32-bit systems, and beyond. I like emulators – they’re great – but the tangible console and actual joystick or controller trigger the smallest, most nostalgic memories.
How Magic Smoke Sparked My Hobby
Over the years, I experimented a lot with electronics – not always highly successfully, but always learning something new. I distinctly remember almost setting the house on fire while attempting to turn a Walkman into an electronic doorbell. It worked – well, for about a day, with speakers hidden in the bushes playing my recorded messages to friends – until my room caught fire from the shorted batteries. My dad hammered “don’t be sorry, be careful” into me from that point on.
1996 – The Year It Got Real
It wasn’t until modchips arrived for the PlayStation 1 that I got seriously into modding and repairs. At age 20, with a bit of early internet know-how, I scraped together my savings and armed myself with an expensive 50W Weller iron.
I began modifying PS1 consoles, sold them, and repeated the process while connecting with people through local ads and early websites. That marked the start of many crazy stories, meeting amazing people, and a lifelong hobby of collecting, tinkering, repairing, and modding gaming hardware – a passion that has lasted three decades.
2025 – Preparing A Fresh Start
Fast forward to modern times: January 2026 marks my 50th birthday, and my retro collection – like that of many collectors – has grown a bit out of hand. After decades of collecting, I own multiple duplicates of many consoles for no reason other than hoarding, and yet somehow I still don’t own a few machines I really always wanted.
Turning 50 makes you think, and I noticed that – like many friends in the repair community – I get more joy from repairing consoles than playing modern ones. After all, upgrading and adding new tools is fun too, and I still get to enjoy the older games I love for an hour or two while testing each console to make sure it works as intended.
So, In the run-up to 2026, I started the long process of moving the bulk of my collection. Thousands of items, long stored in northern Germany during the COVID pandemic, were finally coming home across multiple roundtrips.
2026 – Level Up From Hoarding
The hours I spend working on machines don’t translate into a goldmine, and neither does starting this website make me rich – Both are part of a passionate hobby that brings the satisfaction of finding well-inspected consoles new homes among fellow collectors or new generations, all for a fair price.
Slowly slimming down my collection also just feels like the right thing to do, and at the same time, selling duplicate consoles and games allows me to occasionally pick up a rare title or special edition machine that I can enjoy myself.
Thank you for visiting!
Enjoy browsing – maybe you’ll discover a console or game to play, or find that upgrade or repair you need for a machine you already own. In any case, I hope you find something here that sparks a bit of nostalgia.
Contact – Questions and More Photos
You can reach out anytime, as I always enjoy chatting with fellow retro fans. Since I upload items in batches, I totally get that people have questions or want to see more photos. Feel free to ask about specific consoles, repairs, or parts – I’m always happy to dig through the collection or share details. You can use the contact form or find me on my socials.