Requirements to make your own cart?

[bjbest60]

Hello everyone,

 

I'm looking for a complete list of components needed to make my own cartridge, as well as the procedure to make that happen. I feel like I've got a lot of snippets of understanding from searching through various things, but not a single, complete answer to create a final product. (Apologies if this has been answered elsewhere; if so, I'd appreciate the redirect.)

 

I know I can have other people make a cart for me. Part of this is a "because it's there" challenge. But I'm also making a few experimental games where I'd like to create a few copies and give them away or sell them, and I kind of like the idea of being an indie game publisher of a very, very limited sort.

 

Anyway, below is my (probably incomplete) understanding of the parts required and the process. Please correct / add / clarify! What are the common pitfalls here? Also, if you have preferred brands / suppliers for any of this stuff, I'd appreciate that info, too. Thanks!

 

Required:

.bin

Premade PCB

EPROM that matches the PCB and .bin requirements

EPROM programmer

Soldering supplies

Cart shell

Label

 

Steps:

1.) Make final .bin.

2.) Program EPROM with .bin.

3.) Solder EPROM to board.

4.) Put board in shell.

5.) Assemble shell and add label.

 

[vidak]

I found this video to be really helpful in explaining exactly how to make cartridges for the 2600:

 

It goes a bit beyond just the normal 4KB cartridge as well, it shows you how to change a 32 x 2KB multi-bank cartridge into a 16 x 4KB multi-bank cartridge.

I am not sure what EEPROMs are compatible with the 2600 and the 2600 binaries. I'm pretty sure there is some information floating around here somewhere.

 

I feel like your answer could be reached by doing some forum searching and some googling.

[bjbest60]

Thanks for the video; I hadn't seen that one before. He's using an existing board (I'd like to use a new board made for homebrew purposes) and not dealing with 4k; I imagine the process is similar. But I know from these types of projects that similar isn't always the same.

 

There are several posts on the forum about this topic (searching for "EPROM" is very helpful), but nothing seems to verify the exact steps or requirements, and some of the info is outdated in terms of suppliers. I figured a complete list would benefit others interested as well. (Maybe this seems more obvious to people who know programming / engineering / hardware well, but that isn't me, alas.)

 

I don't own any of the hardware beyond soldering stuff, so I want to make sure I'm getting everything right the first time.

 

So, I'd appreciate it if someone could verify my equipment list and general steps. I'd also appreciate any advice for overall success. Thanks!

[SIO2]

If you are working with UV erasable Eproms, you will probably also want to have a UV Eprom Eraser. I always check to make sure they are blank even if the seller states they are new. Erasers are pretty cheap on Amazon or Ebay. Do not over erase your eproms. Different ones may take different times to erase. Start with a couple minutes and if not blank yet, do a couple more until you get the hang of it.

 

You need some foil stickers or foil tape to cover the UV window on the Eprom after you burned it. I cover mine after I blank check and before I program them.

 

PCB available here: https://www.8bitclassics.com/Atari-2600-Blank-2k-4k-PCB-Homebrew.html

 

Also, you may want to get an extra PCB and a socket and IC extractor tool. Then you can set yourself up an eprom cart to test. Sucks to solder down an IC to find out that something didn't work.

Edited December 10, 2017 by SIO2

[vidak]

I second the suggestion for the use of sockets - easy extraction of ICs can pay off big time in the long run.