5-11under

Don't take the front panel off. Just remove the bottom screws, then bend forward the front piece to take the unit apart. See the first page or two of this document: http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/153635-component-video-mod-for-colecovision/page__view__findpost__p__2017724 5-11under

AA is the place to be! Plus we get exposure to fans of Atari, Intellivision, etc. My 2 cents, 5-11under

Nice. The third picture makes it look like it's about 5 feet tall.

Do the math. Assume 100 carts, CIB. If your material costs are $12 each, and you sell for $32 each, for instance, you'll get $20 per cart income to pay yourself. That's $2000 per game. Adjust the numbers as you see fit. Maybe you can squeeze a few dollars more by reducing material costs and/or increasing the price... or by selling more or creating collector's editions. Personally, if the goal was to make money, I'd stay away from the ColecoVision, Intellivision, Vectrex, 7800, and 5200, and go with more popular consoles such as NES and maybe Genesis and 2600, where you could potentially sell more copies, possibly at a higher price. My 2 cents, 5-11under

What I meant was that if you want a total solution, it can in principle be possible to connect several of your boards together. For example, player 1. You can add Roller, Steering, SA, Champ, extra Joystick and so on. The bottom line is that you would need just one board per player. Options are available... You can plug any one of those controllers in the back of the board, right beside the connector that goes to the CV. This is ideal for temporary usage, because the connector would normally be accessible from the outside of the arcade controller. If you have a "Plus" board, there's also an internal DB9 connector (otherwise they're solder locations). Typically this would be used if you want to permanently (but without soldering) install any controller inside the arcade controller. For instance, you could mount a champ keypad onto the top of the arcade controller (and wire it internally), or somehow install the steering wheel into the unit. There's another internal connector location, which can be soldered to (or you can add another DB9 connector). Maybe I need to offer a "Double-plus" version, with the second connector installed. So really there's 4 connection areas on the PCB: the main bank of button wires/pads (directions, fires, numbers, and reed switches for spinner), the external DB9 connection, and two internal DB9 connections. All of the DB9 connection points are wired together directly (like a large "Y" connection). If for some reason you need more access than is provided, you could add an additional "Y" cable or equivalent. Hopefully that helps, 5-11under

I was thinking about using the S.A Controller buttons... I never tried a SA Controller on Genesis... maybe it works for the standart 3 buttons layout? Well, for simply making an arcade panel, its more than useless... but to build a whole arcade cab, it could be helpfull I don't think you'll get any of the CV keypad buttons to activate the 2nd and 3rd Genesis buttons. Don't ask me about getting all these consoles to work together with one controller until approximately 2012. 5-11under

I think Genesis is a different animal, especially if there's six buttons. The second button in SMS (and Genesis) is also incompatible, I think. Just like any CV joystick, it should work with the 2600. It's overkill, however, if that's all you want to connect to. 5-11under

Sorry, I'm not sure what you mean here, so if this doesn't answer your question, feel free to ask again... If you want to have access to buttons for each of player 1 and player 2, you'll need two of these units. If you have the minimal version, you can still add wires yourself (or I'll do it for you) for one or more keypad buttons. All of the diodes are in place, so no matter what version you have (DIY, minimal, for instance), you can always add more wires to access the other functions. Thanks, 5-11under

Okay, I've assembled one unit. Here's the pictures of the options that will be available: DIY - This is a bare-bones version - you solder on the wires as you see fit: DIY plus - same as DIY, but with connector for internally connecting a controller, steering wheel, etc.: Minimal - wires included for 4 directions and 4 fire buttons: Minimal plus - same as minimal, but with connector for internally connecting a controller, champ keypad, etc.: Classic - wires included for 4 directions, 4 fire buttons, and 12 keypad buttons: Classic plus - same as classic, but with connector for internally connecting a controller, steering wheel, etc.: All versions have the capability of adding an external controller, such as a super action controller, steering wheel, etc. All versions will also likely include a six foot extension cable to connect the unit. Pricing details to follow. I also need to double-check that the "plus" port(s) work properly, as well as the reed switch connections (for the spinner). I'm also in the midst of making my own arcade controller, based on the "classic" option: I'm pretty happy with it. If I made it wider, I would have liked to have the keypad out in right field. The four fire buttons are on the left, sort of in one row. The two buttons above the fire buttons are left and right direction buttons, for Track and Field type games (I had to wire these separately, beyond what the "classic" option provides). I like the amount of room in front of the controls, with plenty of room for wrists. I also like the colour scheme, or lack thereof. The fact that nothing is labeled is fine with me. I easily beat my Mario Bros. high score! 5-11under

I've got one PCB partially assembled. I just need to attach the wires that will lead to the switches. I relied on Dan B.'s controller schematic (http://www.atarihq.com/danb/files/ColecoController.pdf), but I think all of the diodes in the keypad block are backwards in the schematic. Once I fixed that on my PCB, all of the switches worked perfectly. Hopefully after the weekend I'll post some pictures, with the available options. Have fun, 5-11under

Project update... I've received a handful of prototype PCBs. I'll be assembling one over the next couple of days, and testing it out. If all goes well, then hopefully on the weekend I'll be able to build a simple arcade controller, to show how everything works. 5-11under

It's only on paper. I'll try to remember to scan it one of these days. 5-11under

These look great... but now you need a blue ColecoVision!

I'm sure there are people interested in this. I'd just make an AA thread.

If you want to tackle this yourself... http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/163446-diy-modifications-for-colecovision/page__view__findpost__p__2019087

I think that's been explained already.

If the Adam has a TMS9928A (sorry, I'm not 100% sure which chip it uses), you could get one of these: http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/153635-component-video-mod-for-colecovision/page__fromsearch__1

Hey, Squares! is available from the AA store again, this time with a box. Thanks Albert! Better late than never. The first post in this thread also has the ROM, for your USB or SD cart, or for emulation. Download the "Full" version of course. Have fun, 5-11under

Project update: I've got a few prototype PCBs on order, which I should have back in a week or two. I also have some arcade buttons and a joystick on order, so I'll be able to show a completed example of what can be done... and finally have my own arcade controller for the ColecoVision. Thanks, 5-11under

Often Mb is Megabit, and MB is Megabyte. Not always, though.

It sounds like it's the controller chip. However, it could be something else... normally I've found that if one of the chips is bad, it acts like one or more of the buttons are permanently pressed. Anyone have the same symptoms as fiddlepadle? Also, if you have an SD or USB flash cart, you could try the included controller test. Good luck, 5-11under

I think they were sold loose, too.

Hit both reset buttons... I can't remember the order. There's another thread about the use of all 32 columns instead of the middle 30.

You got yourself confused. The CV has female jacks for the controller ports. The 2600, Genesis and ColecoVision controllers all have male plugs on the end of the cords. If a person wants to connect a Genesis or 2600 controller along with a CV controller so that they can use the keypad they need a Y Adapter cable that has a 1 male and 2 females. I am guessing you where thinking since the CV console jack has pins inside it that it was male, that is not the case. I know the difference between male and female. pins=male sockets=female The Birds and the Bees (Wikipedia)

I haven't had a good look at the products in question (although the picture for the $3.95 one looks good to me), but some of the posts have conflicting information. Just to be clear... The ColecoVision console has male connectors. The joysticks have female connectors. Presumably, therefore, you'll want a Y connector that has one female connector (to plug into the CV) and has two male connectors (to plug two joysticks into).