RamrodHare

My 2600 Jr came with the RF cable (as I'm sure they all did when they were new), but I see what you're saying. Most people are probably going to have the cable, in which case, the adapter he linked to won't be the one they want. Also, he never specified it was for a Jr, which might confuse someone who had a regular 2600.

What you linked to isn't the correct adapter. This is- http://www.ebay.com/itm/10x-Atari-2600-7800-TV-RF-adapter-adaptor-COLECO-INTELLIVISION-NES-Coaxial-/162525476351?hash=item25d745f5ff:g:q6AAAOSwImRYLfQk That still doesn't mean that "smart" TVs will work with every game. Some games just don't work on my Vizio Smart TV. It doesn't matter how the system is connected. My 2600 and my 7800 are modded with composite and my Junior is still RF. The games that don't work, don't work on all 3 systems when connected to my "smart" TV, but work fine on every other TV I own, LED, LCD, and CRT.

I modded my 2600 and my 7800 to use composite. The 7800 looks fine with a cheap mod board, but I used the same mod on my 2600 and it doesn't look good at all. I have an unmodded 2600 Jr. and the RF on it works perfect with all my TVs, except my Vizio Smart TV. It has issues with a few 2600 games on modded and unmodded systems. I tried using a VCR as a go between with the smart TV and it still has issues with the same few games. A member here is helping me out by sending me a different mod to try in my 2600, so hopefully it will improve the picture quality. There are tons of threads on here about the different mods and how to do them. There are also people who will do them for a fee and of course google and youtube have plenty of information. As far as TVs go, most old school games do have CRTs. Not all, but most. I find that new TVs generally work just fine, with the exception of my Stupid Smart TV.

You can play them all on a Harmony encore. The roms are readily availible online.. The only reason to buy a supercharger would be as a collectable. I'm not saying you shouldn't get it, since it is something VERY cool to have, but if you just want to play the games and aren't interested in collecting stuff like that, get the Harmony. Heck, get both if you can afford it. If I found a good deal on anything Atari related and I had the money, I'd buy it.

The gun is already gone. I had to part with it to pay for my car insurance the other day. The guy who bought it can't shoot straight anyway, so the sights won't be an issue.

Oh, I'd like to have a PS4! But my bank account only has $8.37 in it and the electric and water bill both have to be paid!

I got one coupon myself today. I read the terms and conditions and it's non transferable, which does suck.

This is only an issue, if you follow the rules. I hacked my PSP years ago and have every game for it downloaded on an external hard drive. I sold all my physical copies right after hacking it. By the time they drop support for the PS3, I'll be ready for it too. I have all the roms for every system I've ever owned or wanted to own, from the 2600 to PS2.. Any system with the option to download games, should eventually be hackable, to play roms. There's also the option of Flash Carts, like the Harmony for the 2600 or the EZ-Flash for GBA. Is this 100% legal? No, but it's a way to keep the games after support for them has been dropped.

I had been thinking about getting some extension cables, but I've found it much easier to just keep the 2600 within reach, at least for player 1. I mean, you have to hit select, reset and power anyway. The second player might find an extension to be useful though, if they don't want to sit near you for some reason.. If cable quality is an issue, which it seems to be, it might be easier to make your own cables, if you can solder and don't mind them looking a little odd. Of course, I'd rather have nice looking cables, but function beats looks, most of the time. Random thought of the night- I spend WAY too much time on the forums.

Exactly! Without that length, I'd be using an extension cord all the time! If the length really bothers you, why not use a cable tie to control the excess wire?

I can't really comment as to the future of carts. Especially on recent systems, but on the older ones, I prefer downloads. Almost every system I own has some type of flashcart, so I don't have a bunch of games to keep track of. The only 3 consoles that break that rule are the Gamecube, Atari 7800 and the PS3. I rarely play the PS3 or the Gamecube now. At some point in the near future, I'll probably hack the PS3, but I've been considering parting with the Gamecube. The library of games for it dosen't really have that many titles that I like. The only time it really gets any use is when I use the Gameboy Player. I do have around 60 carts for the Atari 2600, but it's just because I haven't sold them all yet. I do like having original hardware, mainly for the controllers, but emulation is starting to interest me more than it did in the past.

I wouldn't use one of these adapters. Either get an original or one from Best Electronics. I've read too many posts where someone used a different adapter and the 2600 didn't work correctly with it. All my original adapters put out around 14.5 volts, when connected to a multimeter, even though they are rated at 9v. As Alex said, 500mA is correct for the 2600. These cheap power supplies aren't very good, that's why they are cheap. I'm all for saving money, but when it comes to something like this, you want to get the right thing the first time or it ends up costing you more in the long run. There may be members here who have a working original adapter that they will sell you for a very reasonable price, if you post in the wanted section of the marketplace.. You can also check eBay or send Brad an email at Best Electronics.

I know there's some ancient magic woven into the code of Draconian. I mean, what else could it be? I'm smart enough to know a 2600 game can't look this awesome.

OK, I see some BIG issues here. First post and he's trying to sell something. He's asking for an absurd amount of money, I mean really absurd. I viewed his profile and there's a link to his "store" on eBay. Guess what, eBay says the page doesn't exist. Even if the price were $30, I wouldn't take a chance on it.

I'm still happy with my rebuilt CX-40s. I've also been tinkering with some of my other joysticks. I've tightened the stick on my Kraft ACE joystick and it has a very short throw now, but I'm still not completely happy with it. I don't know what it is about it. I haven't got around to messing with my Epyx 500XJs . I know they are good joysticks, if I can ever find the time to play with them. My Wico Command Control (Bat handle) is still sitting in it's box on a shelf in my bedroom. I want to like it, but I just can't do it. I've been buying up every CX-40 I run into and I have a nice collection of them now. I'll probably end up modding a couple of them with microswitches, just to see how well that works. I do wish I still had the Atari Trackball that I let go. I hadn't joined the forums yet, so I had no idea that there were games I could use it with. Maybe I'll run into another one sometime. I'd still like to have a nice set of Competition Pros, but it's going to be a while before I'll have any spending money again. It is nice to see this thread is staying alive. I enjoy reading what controls other people like using.

Not to rain on the parade, but Food Fight is for the 7800. I do agree that it's a great game, but there's not a 2600 version of it.

I have a feeling you'll do fine, once inspiration hits you. I keep telling myself that one day I'll make a game, but it won't ever happen. I got stuck trying to do some minor color and graphic hacks. I just don't have what it takes anymore. Ten or 15 years ago, maybe, but not now. I can't say I have much imagination left and the few game ideas I've came up with, had already been made. There's such a vast library of games for the 2600 and as you mentioned, some game types already have more than a few variations already out there. The one thing I'd still like to see, is a 1 player version of Combat. The game is already there, it just needs a decent AI. That wouldn't really count as a homebrew, but if you were interested, it would give you something to tinker with. The trick to a good game, is making it fun. Everyone has their opinion on fun, so no one game can be everyone's favorite. The best advice I can think of....Make something you think is fun. Don't worry about everyone else, make a game YOU want to play. Chances are, other people will enjoy it too. If just a handful of people love it, that's a win. Draw your inspiration from things you enjoy, movies, TV shows, comic books, or even other games. Some of my favorite homebrews have been copies of games from other systems. Just remember to have fun making the game. I'll be looking forward to seeing what you come up with!

I'm always careful with my cables, but I have a feeling the previous owner of this joystick didn't care much about it. It had those really classy looking chew marks on the end of the boot. Since the cable was bad, I just parted it out. I'm always needing spare parts for the joysticks I keep "adopting". I have more than I could ever need already, but every time I run into some I can afford, I grab them. I need to stop buying and sell some. I'm running out of room.

Ok, I don't need any help or anything. I just wanted to post about a weird issue I ran into today. I had a Joystick that wasn't working, so I decided to do some troubleshooting. The first thing I noticed when I took it apart, was that the wires were a different color than I expected. I wrote down the colors and where they went, then disconnected them so I could do some testing. I first checked the PCB with my multimeter. It checked out fine. So, I started checking the cable. I was able to determine that pins 2,3,4 and 6 were fine. I couldn't get anything on pins 1 and 8. I looked the cable over and could see no issues at all. There were no crimps, kinks, cuts or other visible damage. I did everything I could think of to try and get a reading on the non-working pins. After about 20 minutes I gave up and decided to cut the cable and test the wires and the cable (plug) end. I cut it about 5 inches from the connector and tested it. Everything worked. I then tested the rest of the cable and still no readings on 1 and 8. I threw away the cable, but kept the end, just in case I could find a use for it later on. I know the wires are thin, but I never expected to find two that were broken, without some type of damage on the outside of the cable. It just seemed odd to me. Anyway, that's all I wanted to say.

It looks like, based on the photo, your chips are socketed, correct? If so, you won't have to do any soldering or unsoldering. That's a big plus. I'm usually broke, so I understand not wanting to buy both chips. However, once you figure in shipping, it might be better to buy both at one time. There are probably some people here on the forums that have extras they might let you have cheap. You can post a thread in the "WANTED" section and see if anyone can help you out. I'd agree with DrVenkman about it probably being the TIA, but there's always a chance it isn't. If you're a gambler, the odds are in your favor that it's the TIA. Oh, Welcome to the forums!

I'll tell you what I just came to realize.. When I got my Atari, I grabbed up about 60 games at the same time. Other than testing them, most have never been back in the system. I spent most of my time playing Seaquest, Fishing Derby, Boxing, Combat, Berserk, Q-Bert, Frogger, BurgerTime, and Ms. Pac Man. Then I got the Harmony Encore. I now had access to more games than I could ever have imagined. The funny thing is, I only play about 10 of the 800 or so I have on the Harmony. Most of the ones I play are homebrews, but a few are still the same ones I had on carts. I find the games I keep going back to are the ones I always liked or the Homebrews that use the savekey. I really love being able to save my highscores, then go back later to beat them. I've also noticed that I rarely play paddle games, because I'm apparently too lazy to unplug the joystick and plug in the paddles.... Ok, It's not that I'm THAT lazy, It's because of how tight the plugs are. I feel like I'm going to break the ports every time I mess with them. I'm rambling, so I'll stop now before I get completely off topic.

I think eye magic sounds better, but that's just my opinion. I find it hard to say M magic, I feel like I'm stuttering or something. As far as the low volume thing goes, I think it varies from one device to another, as you mentioned. EDIT: (I got off topic and rambled on for a couple of paragraphs and came up with an idea, not related to the topic, so I deleted all of it to keep from derailing the thread..)

Go Fish! It's been my favorite homebrew game for a while now. If you haven't played it, you need to. Also, Wall Jump Ninja. As far as overrated games, I don't really have an opinion there.

I'm diggin' that TV. I subscribed. I can always use some reviews to help me pick out a game I will enjoy playing. You did a good job on the video, but the sound seemed low. It could just be my laptop, for some reason Youtube doesn't agree with it anymore..

I'm not sure about the aspect ratio being off, since it could just be the camera angle, but I do see how it looks that way. I'd say the purple one looks like it may be the one that's faded. All the colors and details look better on the blue version, while the colors on the purple one look washed out.... OK, I did some digging online and it looks like the blue is correct and the purple is the result of fading or sun bleaching. Different inks and pigments react differently to UV exposure, over time. I've seen red inks completely disappear when exposed to sunlight for a couple of months. Even Black sharpie gets bleached out by the sun. There's some science talk relating to wavelengths, absorption, and stuff, but it's boring and I didn't want to read about it.