SlowCoder
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Posts posted by SlowCoder
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Thank you, tetrode ... That's the type of info I was looking for! Perhaps feasible, but I'll need to research more on your inverters.
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Second, I recently purchased a Hong Kong 6 switch Atari 2600. Unfortunately the power socket wiggles and I lose power while playing my games. Can someone tell me how to fix this problem. My soddering abilities are very limited but I may be able to fix the problem myself with the right instruction.
By "power socket", you mean where the wall wart plugs into the unit with the headphone style jack? Or do you mean the power switch?
I had to replace one of those power sockets myself. You don't have to be a soldering pro to replace it, you just need a nonworking Atari retrieve a socket from. If you have an adjustable soldering iron, don't make it too hot. Just hot enough to melt the solder on the contact. You can get solder wicks from Radio Shack for pretty cheap, that will assist you in removing the solder as it melts. Once you've unsoldered the 3 prongs from the socket, replace it with the good socket, and solder to the board with new solder. Not too difficult a job. Just a little patience and care.
If you mean the power switch, you can pretty easily repair it. Atari switches do have a little springy wiggle in them, which is normal.
The easy way I've found to clean them if they're just sticky, is to place a drop of 90% alcohol into the side of the switch, then flip the switch on and off (unplugged of course) quite a few times. That should clean up the contacts pretty well and remove most of the sticky feel.
If you want to really get down into it, you can pull the top cover of the switch off, carefully, with a pair of pliers. Notice the small prongs that hold the cover in place, as you'll need to refit them properly during reassemble. Once the cover is removed, pay attention to the position of the small metal slides under the switch handle. Now, take the alcohol and clean Q-Tips and rub it all down until the gunk is gone. Put it back together and it should work like a top.
If you decide to take the game select or reset switches apart, note that there are springs that are just waiting to pop out, never to be found again, if you're not careful.
Also, I've seen references to using WD40 to clean the switches. I would NOT recommend that at all. It might "clean" your switches temporarily, but will eventually collect particles, and negatively affect your Atari's functionality.
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Not sure about the "visual interaction" part, though. I'd be too busy watching the screen to admire all the blinkenlights on the stick...
Not on the controllers. On the console. I thought the best place would be the front of the console.
*** I'm surprised no one has responded to the electrical questions I posed. I'm sure there are some here who could provide some insight? ***
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The problem with q-tips is that they often fall apart to easily. I would recommend using tightly rolled up garbage pail kids cards.
Then you might by rubbing too hard. I've found Q-tips (the actual Q-tip brand) work great most of the time.
My thoughts exactly. You can expect to go through a dozen Q-Tips before the mainboard has been properly cleaned, though.
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well these things are cheap as in... cheap
What a definition ...
In your mind, does "cheap" mean a small amount of money, or lack of quality? Back when these things were made they were high quality. But you are correct in that they can be had for ... "cheap", as in low amounts of money, if you know where to look.
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What's more important to you, the experience and enjoyment of learning a new skill, or the money?
If you, like me, enjoy learning, and you think it would be fun to mod your Atari, then go ahead and mod it. You might not get much more for it, but you had the chance to learn something.
If you're only interested in the ROI (return on investment), then consider how much your time is worth, compared to how much you think you could get for the modded Atari. If it's potentially worth your time, do the mod and sell it. Otherwise consider mowing a couple of lawns or working day labor for a few hours.
If it's money you want, probably pursuing temp jobs will get more than a modded Arari, based on the prices I see on eBay.
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Cool idea, although you could just plug the thing into a power strip with a lighted switch (not as elegant, but much easier).
Nah, too easy, and I'm sure that mod has already been done too much to call it interesting.
I'm looking to create interest and draw attention to the console. Make it more fun.
I just need to know if there are any electrical issues I need to think about. Potentially there could be the electrical draw of up to 7 LEDs at any time; 1 for power, 1 for each controller's fire btn, up to 2 directional (UL,UR,DL,DR) for each controller.
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Also, what do you guys think about repainting the bezel edges to restore the color? I know in some antique circles, it's considered passe to repaint something because it loses it's antiqueness and individuality. Thoughts?
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Hey guys,
The Heavy Sixer I have has S# 86491L, Sunnyvale, CA. I recently got it from a friend who is also a member of this site. I don't know his username. He said he thought it might have already been registered here. But I don't see it listed in the first post of this thread.
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Lendorian,
This design concept is something I've had in mind for a little while. Like you, my Atari lives 6 feet to the right of my TV, and accessing the controls directly on the console is currently a lot of work. As someone said earlier in this thread, playing with the switches in this situation is not what I consider a fun part of the experience.
I'm sure there is a simple electronic component (transistor, maybe?) that would allow toggling based on your joystick movement. Though, I'll admit, I'm not very skilled in electronic design.
I'm sure one of these other guys could come up with something. -
Are my eyes deceiving me?
I recently got a Heavy Sixer. I noticed that the switch bezel's border is yellow, instead of the orange color I see on light sixers and 4 switchers. Is that correct, or are they all normally orange, and somehow mine is faded?
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Are the PCB and case size/shape the same between the 4 button woodgrain and the the vader model that says "2600"? I have the opportunity to buy a vader as well that's in poor cosmetic shape but its PCB is in excellent condition. I was thinking of transferring the PCB from the vader to the woodgrain model. Can this be done?
Hi Matrix! I'm also relatively new here, and have found this forum an EXCELLENT source for information.
You can get great deals on equipment because it's in "bad cosmetic shape", but with all the purchases where the machine was in "bad cosmetic shape", a good cleaning inside and out, has done great deals to bring out the real shine in the consoles! Other than very minor surface scrapes and some missing paint around the console switches, they have all been cosmetically beautiful! I have all the woody models now, all beautiful and functioning.
Also, I'm learning that you can find really good deals in nonworking models. The seller hasn't done anything to fix them. And all I've had to do it open 'em up, swap a couple chips, and they're working again! I've procured 5 consoles already, 4 of which were "nonworking" and filthy. All but one are working now.
I would gander that the 4-switch woody and the Vader models are the same internally. I don't have a Vader yet, but the chassis looks the same to me.
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Maybe not feasible, but I'm interested in your opinion.
My son (8 years old) forgets to turn off the game systems periodically. There are no lights, so without physically checking the power switch there's no way to determine if the Atari is off.
I'm sure it's easy enough to connect a LED to the power switch and ground, therefore having a power light.
I'd like to take this a step further though ... My idea is this:
A series of 6 lights in a cross pattern like
F U L P R D
F=fire button
P=power (mapped to power switch)
U,L,R,D = joystick directionality
Would it be easy enough to simply solder these LEDs to their respective joystick pins and ground?
What considerations would I need to make for electrical requirement?
If it is feasible, I think it would be a really neat mod, with visual interraction between the console and the player.
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What shall we do with you, AJ? So often coming out with the answers! Thank you!
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...If the console is hooked up properly and you've tried all of the above channel combinations, the next likely suspects are the RF modulator and the TIA IC...
But if it were only a bad TIA, wouldn't the RF modulator still generate a carrier? At least produce some change on the screen between power-off and power-on?
That was my thought too. I had already tried a different series of chips on it without success. For the time being, however, I have pulled the chips from this board and placed them in another Atari that was down. That atari now works, so it definitely wasn't the chips. One day I might attempt revival of this board and replace the RF modulator.
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Here's an image of what I see ...
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Ok, I bought a voltage regulator, but I don't think I needed it. I tested the current one, and it does get warm when on for a while. Also, using a voltmeter, I determined it is properly dropping voltage from the 12v supplied to 5v.
Next step?
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As stated before, I'm not an electronics expert, but I have a light-sixer with that appears to be some sort of fix or mod. I'm guessing it's a mod because I see the same thing on both controller connections.
It looks like someone applied a diode to pin 5 (or it might be pin 9). Anyone know what this might be?
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now test the power switch then the voltage regulator.
I already verified the power switch is working properly, as power is flowing through it. Where is the voltage regulator?
Never mind ... I found the voltage regulator. I'll check that out tonight. I've got another board I can swap with if that's the case. I'm assuming the white paste under it is heat sink paste? If so, I've got more I can apply.
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Pure static. No change in picture on TV when console is turned on. This is not a power supply issue, as I'm using known good supplies. Power is getting at least through the power switch.
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When powered on, shows static.
Have checked ...
channel switch
swapped coax cable
Verified good power supply
Checked power switch using voltmeter.
Adjusted color POT.
I'm not sure what I should look for as far as corrosion on the silver box on lower right. I don't see anything outstanding such as leakage or discoloration other then a little rust.
I see what appears to be a POT in the silver box, but I don't know what it does. Can someone explain?
What else can I check?
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You can clean it with water, soap, and an anti static brush, then rinse with the hose.
You mention something about corrosion, so according to this you need to clean the board with a 50/50 water/white vinegar solution (don't know if instead of water/soap or in addition to) to clean the corrosion.
Also make sure to dry down to the last drop of water with say, a hair drier before you apply power to the unit.
* Coughs on his own saliva while reading ... *
I suppose you can use the vinegar/water solution, but a hose or a hair drier??? I don't see what possible benefit exposing your board to a hose would be. You could potentially introduce water in places you don't want to introduce water. And a hair drier is a prime source of static that could fry the electronics on your Atari.
My method is to use alcohol and Q-tips. Gently rub the board on the dirty spots with the alcohol dipped Q-tips, not applying much pressure at all. Work around the components, disturbing them as little as possible. Alcohol is great at removing the dirt, liquid residue, and the extra solder resin that I found on my board.
Do all of this on some sort of antistatic mat/surface. The Atari board is pretty resilient, but one of the things any electronics are prone to is static.
Applying any cleaning chemicals, including alcohol or the vinegar solution, containing water, is cause to wait a while before plugging the Atari in. If using alcohol, I'd wait at least an hour before turning it on. If using the vinegar solution, I'd advise waiting even longer (at least a day?), as the water will take time to evaporate.
Since you don't specify what type of corrosion you're looking at, I'm going to also add that some of the metal surfaces may appear somewhat rusted. Not to worry. Just wash them off best as you can. They won't affect the Atari's functionality. If you wanted, I guess you could apply some sort of anti-rust stuff to keep them from rusting any further.
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my friend and i tried them once, but the wireless 802.11 network interfered with the signal. our tanks in combat just went in circles
Yes, my experience also confirms this. I have models by a couple of companies, and both are prone to interference. There's just a whole lot more wireless signals being sprayed about now than back in 1980. I've read where other people don't have any problems, so I guess it would depend on where you are actually playing (i.e., in a main living room as opposed to a somewhat shielded basement).
What a way to dampen my day! I am unhappy with the probability of interference, as I depend on wireless networking throughout my home. This pretty much brings me back to extension cables. Bummer!
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If you're close enough to hit the reset switch on the console, you're close enough to use wired controllers. So I don't see the point.
Then you must hit your reset all too often
My console is about 6 feet to the right of my TV, and this is where it must remain ... the wife ... it is not conducive to play from that location.
Extension cables would work, but my PS2 has ended up on the floor a number of times as my children trip over the wires.
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To the floor it crashed ...
in Atari 2600
Posted
I have a Polaroid DVD player, model PDV-0821T. It took a trip to the floor, breaking the power receptacle.
I would like to know what I need to know to see if the display could be used for an Atari retrofit? Perhaps much in the same way as Ben Heck's PS1 mod? I have another DVD player, so it's not important to resurrect this one as a player also.