Starstormer

I'll occasionally have that issue with a 5200 game, usually reinserting the game fixes it.

Thanks for all the suggestions, the internals were fine, and predictably the issue was the jack. Funny enough I got a working 4 switch model from a friend in a box of atari supplies. At this point I might be tempted to replace a few internals as preventative maintenance and sell one of the two atari's at this point. As far as I know, there isn't any real difference between the 4 and 6 switch versions, beyond the fact that the difficulty switches are on the back of the 4 switch version.

Thanks and thanks! I don't have a trakball controller, but might try for it down the line. Conveniently the local retro place does buy two get one on atari games, and pretty sure I saw Defender, Qix and Berzerk.

I will use a 9V from here on out to avoid any damage to the system. The adapter did fit the jack just fine and powered on the console, hence why I thought the 12v was fine, though now I know better. The jack itself noticeably wiggles as if it's loose from the motherboard. I was able to confirm this when opening the console, the jack itself was cracked on the plastic part, and is loose on the motherboard. I'll try resoddering it and using the correct 9 volt adapter to see if that makes a difference. Thanks for the help and the link to the right adapter.

Hi, I have a 6 switch Atari 2600, NTSC model that's mostly been sitting on the shelf. I'd use it periodically though had some trouble as the power jack was loose, and it wouldn't power on unless the AC adapter was plugged in at a specific angle (have had a similar problem with my genesis model 2). Eventually however, I got to a point where it wouldn't power on at all. I did clean the contacts to the RF cable to eliminate the possibility that it was a video connection problem. I suspect the issue is that the jack is loose, and either needs to be replaced or resoddered. I had been using a 12 volt AC adapter not realizing the system was meant to have a 9 volt adapter. Not sure if a 3 volt difference would have caused a problem. Google hasn't been particularly helpful and I'm almost always redirected to the forums whenever I search an Atari problem. Not sure if this is a common problem, or if there's any recommendations beyond just replacing the power jack.

I'm not particularly active here but recently got into collecting again. I came across a refurbished 5200 with refurbished controllers. So far been playing it and getting some good use of the games I have (missile command, Pac-Man, Galaxian, Pole Position, Breakout), though I'm fairly new to atari, if anyone has any tips or game recommendations I'd love to hear them!

Been a while but I figure I'd update. I suspect I'll need to adjust the rf box. For the most part this became a forgotten project but at this point I'm thinking of getting the capacitors replaced. I suspect now that the capacitors are dead and that's why I've been unable to get a signal. I might attempt this myself or if I can have the help of someone who has more circuitry skills to help as well. Glad to know what type of capacitor it is and if I can get this up and running I'll be sure to make a post it.

Yes I am trying to hook it up the rf/coax port, I've tried a non digital crt tv as well with similar results. I do have a voltage meter that may be able to measure capacitance. I' somewhat handy with a soldering iron and I found a tutorial on how to replace a capacitors in a vintage game console. Again I'll do my best to get it up and running. it would be a shame to lose a piece of hardware this old due to a minor technical problem.

I don't know a whole lot about circuitry but I am inclined to listen, The extent of what I've done is trying to adjust the internal rf box Thanks for the help with the yellow wire, good to know its not the cause of the video. I'll attempt to mod it once I know more and get the video and sound to display properly. Is there any kind of tutorial on how to fix the sync signal? Since the telstar has few components I imagine it isn't a very difficult fix to replace a cap. Thanks again.

Hello I'm new to the forum and I was hoping that someone would be able to help out with pong consoles. I had never owned a pong console so needless to say I was very excited to get it up and running. It only seems to make a continuous beeping sound when I power it on and I only see horizontal lines. I have the tv set to cable channel 3 and that's the channel I get the best picture from, all other channels give me static. Once I opened it up I noticed that there is a single yellow wire missing around where the switches to adjust difficulty and game type are. I've included a few pictures as well. I also tried adjusting the rf box with an alan wrench as I heard adjusting that on pong consoles can get them to work on digital tv's. If it is repairable and anyone has any suggestions that would be very much appreciated.