7800

Any RCA cable should fit, I suppose if the plastic boot around the plug is too big, it could be a less than perfect fit. http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2102945

Try replacing the RF wire. Use a thicker, shielded RCA wire, most modern RCA wires are shielded and have the gold connections. And I heard this is the guy to send your 7800 to when your ready for an AV mod. http://electronicsentimentalities.com/InstallationServices.html

I do that all the time.

I just bought one a few weeks ago. They were relatively quick about sending it out. The tracking info was sent directly to paypal so, keep an eye out that way. Also, there are quite a few here who have not embraced the art of responding to PMs. It is what it is.

...and the decision to forgo POKEY sound in favor of TIA.

This! As I said in another post... if Atari did some recon and got a feel for what Japanese video game manufacturers were doing, things would have been so much better for Atari and the 7800... assuming they took cues from systems like the Famicom.

This is exactly what I was thinking too. Whether it was Atari inc. or Atari Corp., the decisions made... is why the 7800 didn't come out on top. The 7800 was ready to go in 1984, but was put on the back burner until 1986 for debatable reasons. Within that time period, Nintendo was making strategic decisions that put them in the pole position (pun intended), Regardless of how long it took the NES to get up to speed. I think If Atari made better choices earlier, the 7800 would have dominated the market... at least for a little while.

"Joypads didn't test well initially in the States [that's why the 7800 commercials touted that the console came with REAL joysticks]". Maybe so, but gamepads clearly became the US standard once Nintendo (and Sega) arrived in the states. "Like just about every other decision Nintendo made, joypads were an economical one. It was cheaper to build them than joysticks which meant more profit for the Big N." That might be true, but I also believe that Nintendo thought the gamepad was a better choice over the aging joystick. And let's not forget why the 7800 was late to the game to begin with... Tramiel + cost cutting = Nintendo's foothold on the home video game market. "The standard NES - without the various MMC chips bundled in cartridges and passed on as an added cost to the consumer - is NOT more powerful than the 7800. Not in color palette, RAM, the number of sprites displayed, flickering, clock speed, etc. FACT." Sounds good to me, I wasn't debating this at all.

Hi, I'm looking for someone who can print me up some professional, high quality labels for some of my 2600 carts. I have the designs... I just need your services. If you have the capability of die cutting them too that would be a plus. I can send you the files at your request, just PM me. They are 360 dpi. Thanks!

Aluminum tape + hole puncher = buttons that work.

Sorry guys, I didn't think anyone was going to go apesh*t after reading my post. Post #1 of this thread just kinda rubbed me the wrong way.

I'm just finding this thread now, and all I can say is WOW! ...just WOW! So basically... if your not among the elite 2600 game programmers but have some really neat game ideas that you want to share with the community, go f*** yourself. Amazing.

Regarding the VAII controller, Best still sells them... they are NOS I believe, but they are terrible. They work, but the amount of effort required to use the stick and fire button is ridiculous. This goes for used or new VAII controllers. The VAII sticks are definitely unmodifiable. The fire button works on the same "sliding" instead of "pushing" principle too. However, if one absolutely requires a combo stick with built in paddle for the VAII, a Coleco Gemini controller works very well with the unit... AND it's 100% a better controller.

Just got one with original "Prosystem" box and original 2 Proline controllers with "Mexico" stamp on back. Serial# 009706 EP 274. Paid $75 cash.

marked.

The bottom line, Atari shot themselves in the foot and by the time they realized they needed to play "catch up"... it was already too late. They really weren't in touch with how the home video game market was evolving. The only way the 7800 could have been better is if Atari literally spied on Nintendo to see what they were doing, then not only copy it... but improve upon it. 1986 and Atari is still hell bent on joysticks, meanwhile Nintendo embraced the gamepad for a few years already... just as one example.

It's like that on all forums. Classic case of what I like to call "CATC" (complaining about the complainers).

Really, people hate this game? WTF? It's one of the best for Atari 2600 In my opinion.

Marked.

I had a Pole Position cart that used to freeze up and get all glitchy, but the board showed signs of what looked like moisture damage. Maybe the Activision carts are EVEN MORE susceptible to long term moisture and humidity. Just an idea.

To each their own, but be prepared to put some money into it anyway. It's only a matter of time until the controllers start getting flaky. The 5200 is a high maintenance system to own.

Agreed, If you bend down the contacts just a bit... it might get rid of the jitters. I did that when servicing a pair of Gemini controllers and the paddle doesn't jitter like it did before I cleaned it... and those aren't true pots, nice design though. As far as it only occurring on certain games, that's strange.

The SD Cart is a little expensive, but it's worth it. You can get every game rom on line and load them onto it... and play EVERY game. You can also play homebrews and 64K games that members on here make available.

Sorry, I never heard of these guys. Since Al Alcorn needs no introduction, I'll have to look him up on Wikapedia.

I know I've been a bit of a pest on this subject... being all pessimistic and stuff, so my apologies.