Asaki Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Don't know for how long I'll have it, but I'm currently borrowing a 600XL, and I'm just wondering what kind of fun stuff I can do with it. I'm new to 8-bits, so you'll have to forgive me here. I already found an "upgrade to 64k" mod, I'm assuming there are probably all sorts of storage device alternatives for it, but I'm still looking for them...plus the fact that I wouldn't know what games to check out anyway. For now it looks like I'm stuck with BASIC and Centipede ¬_¬ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClausB Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 STAR RAIDERS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwhyte Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 What kind of fun stuff can you do with a 600XL? My answer: program it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thorsten Günther Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Don't know for how long I'll have it, but I'm currently borrowing a 600XL, and I'm just wondering what kind of fun stuff I can do with it. I'm new to 8-bits, so you'll have to forgive me here. I already found an "upgrade to 64k" mod, I'm assuming there are probably all sorts of storage device alternatives for it, but I'm still looking for them... On ebay.co.uk SIO2SD devices are quite regularly offered, and these are great storage/PC data transfer devices. atarimania.com is a great place to look for games, as there are many games already rated by several other users. Other than that, if you have an NTSC 600XL (without the monitor jack), you might consider to add composite or even s-video to it. Or you could turn a 600XL into something like this: . Thorsten Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mimo Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 64k internal ram upgrade, s-video, sio2xxx Every bit as good as an 800xl then Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asaki Posted June 8, 2009 Author Share Posted June 8, 2009 Hmm, those SIO things are a bit more expensive than I thought they would be =/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+orpheuswaking Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 (edited) Hmm, those SIO things are a bit more expensive than I thought they would be =/ You can build your own SIO2PC for less than $10.00 especially as you can get the MAX233 chip free as a sample from MAXIM, all you need is the chip, a resistor, a capacitor, and a serial connector Edited June 8, 2009 by orpheuswaking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Philsan Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 Hmm, those SIO things are a bit more expensive than I thought they would be =/ AtariAge user Pigula sells SIO2SD for $50. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IceCold Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 Or you could turn a 600XL into something like this: . Thorsten That's pretty cool! You could make a 600xl laptop a lot more compact than the "1500xl laptop" too. I don't think I had ever seen that before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carmel_andrews Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 (edited) just make sure you have a working joystick (cx-40 will be sufficient) or you won't be playing much (apart from looking at pretty moving screens on your xl) Edited June 8, 2009 by carmel_andrews Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+wood_jl Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 (edited) If you're just borrowing it, then of course you don't want to put any money into it. You should just get a couple cartridges, say "Star Raiders" and "Donkey Kong" and an Atari joystick, and play with it. If you like it, then when you give it back, get yourself an 800XL, or any other Atari computer with 64K. If you don't like it (can't imagine you would not), no big expense. Unless you are handy with electronics and comfortable doing a memory upgrade yourself, you'll spend FAR more money upgrading a 600XL (postage to and from, pay for supplies and labor) to 64K than it is worth, while just getting a used 800XL (or 65XE) from Ebay is cheap, and easy. For storage, I would recommend the SIO2PC - the USB version - from Atarimax.com. This storage requires a USB cable to a PC to function, but what better use for an old PC? Plus, the "APE (Atari Peripheral Emulator)" software is extremely intuitive; you can download a disc image to the PC and mount it with the Atari, without having to copy it to SD card. You can use windows menus to browse through collections of hundreds (or more) Atari disc images. I find this easier to use than the SD card stuff. The SD card stuff is really cool, but navigating TONS of disc images is easiest on the PC. I was going to say that SIO2PC is much cheaper than SD card solutions, but if someone said previously they are available for $50. I am surprised; perhaps there may be one in my future at that price. If being away from the PC is a big deal, then SD card will be mandatory. Also: I did not notice where you are from, but if you are talking Yankee 600XL, there is no monitor port! BAH! 800XL, boy! Edited June 8, 2009 by wood_jl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+orpheuswaking Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 If it is a NTSC 600XL adding a monitor port is fairly easy as long as you have the right motherboard type... If any of the upgrade options (memory, monitor port, SIO2PC one chip version) sound interesting send me a PM and I'll try and help you out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asaki Posted June 8, 2009 Author Share Posted June 8, 2009 You can build your own SIO2PC for less than $10.00 especially as you can get the MAX233 chip free as a sample from MAXIM... "Free" sounds nice, tell me more. just make sure you have a working joystick (cx-40 will be sufficient) or you won't be playing much (apart from looking at pretty moving screens on your xl) Got plenty of those, I must've played more Centipede yesterday than I've played in my entire life @_@ Do 8-bits use the second button on the Pro-Line at all? I mean, officially. I know technically, even the 2600 supports the second button, or at least the Flashback 2 does. ...you'll spend FAR more money upgrading a 600XL (postage to and from, pay for supplies and labor) to 64K than it is worth... The mod looks simple enough, but yeah, I figure tracking down the chips is going to be quite a hassle. Also, I have no idea how much of a requirement 64K even is...all I know is we have this old tape my mom accidentally bought us (didn't notice it wasn't for 2600), and it says "REQUIRES 32K". Speaking of which, is there an easy way to rig up a cassette player or something? Or is that a lot of work, as well? Also: I did not notice where you are from, but if you are talking Yankee 600XL, there is no monitor port! That's okay. I've got it hooked up to my TV through RF and it looks fine. BTW, are there any good 8-bit websites to check out? My first instinct was to head straight to Atari Age, but unless it's hidden somewhere, it looks like they have every Atari console EXCEPT the computers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mimo Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 (edited) you realy need 64k if you are going to use and sio2xxx device, well you need minimum 48k to run any sort of disc based software anyway. 600xl memory upgrade IS really easy, and you should be able to pick up the two chips you need for less than the price of an 800xl, although an 800xl does have monitor port and 64k (but you will have to mod it to use s-video) you need a dedicated cassette player, 410-avoid,1010 good if you get one with a good belt, xc12 looks like crap but IMO the most reliable there are loads of Atari 8bit sites, start with atarimania.com http://atari.fandal.cz/ http://www.mushca.com/f/atari/index.php http://www.atarionline.pl/v01/index.phtml?...action=showfull http://gury.atari8.info/ http://freenet-homepage.de/mrbacardi/ http://vjetnam.hopto.org/ Edited June 8, 2009 by mimo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asaki Posted January 11, 2011 Author Share Posted January 11, 2011 Well I don't think my brother wants it back (he's never really been into retro stuff anyway, so I'm not surprised). It's been gathering dust for the past whenever, but the other day I went to a local game shop and they actually had some games for it...so now I have Star Raiders, Pac-Man, Missile Command, and River Raid =D I should've grabbed Q*Bert too, but oh well. Now I just need to remember how the heck to play Star Raiders... Are there any websites that have 8-bit manuals? I found one for Star Raiders at an SR fan site, but nobody else seems to have any...not even ReplacementDocs.com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tin_Lunchbox Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Well I don't think my brother wants it back (he's never really been into retro stuff anyway, so I'm not surprised). [some text clipped] The 600XL is tailor-made for the 320XL PBI port upgrade. Those are about $40 plus shipping from Czech Republic IIRC. You can keyword search here for "320XL" to find out more. You're in great shape right now to enjoy the older cartridge games (but not the XE ones) and maybe that is enough to get your classic gaming fix. But if you want to go further, that stock 16K memory will hold you back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mimo Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Are there any websites that have 8-bit manuals? I found one for Star Raiders at an SR fan site, but nobody else seems to have any...not even ReplacementDocs.com. try Atarimania http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-400-800-xl-xe-star-raiders_s4993.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asaki Posted January 11, 2011 Author Share Posted January 11, 2011 Oops, I forgot to check that site. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spookt Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Well I don't think my brother wants it back (he's never really been into retro stuff anyway, so I'm not surprised). [some text clipped] The 600XL is tailor-made for the 320XL PBI port upgrade. Those are about $40 plus shipping from Czech Republic IIRC. You can keyword search here for "320XL" to find out more. Yes indeed, I was using exactly that setup as my main machine (plus a Mega-Hz stereo board) until my MIO arrived. Now I need the PBI for more important stuff so I've moved back to a 800XL with 256Kb. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend ctirad's RAM 320XL upgrades. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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