Greg I

Thank you for your responses! I have tried all the settings on the TV without success. I believe the Luma may be over-driven for this TV and will try option #2 above.

I am trying to connect my Atari 800 to modern flat screen TV. I have an S-Video connector for the 800 and an S-Video to HDMI converter. When I connect my 800, the picture is washed out (like the brightness is set too high - see attached). I tried this with a different 800 with the same result. I then connected my 130XE and the picture was fine. Is there a significant difference in the video circuits between these two machines? Is there anything I can do to correct the "wash out" from my 800? I would appreciate any advice. Thanks!

Brings back memories... I purchased an early copy of this before it was boxed. It came in a zip lock plastic bag with instructions. I believe I got it from Computerland.

The first thing to check is the DIP connector between the main board and the RAMBO board. In my experience, that's where most of the problems originate.

I purchased a Super Archiver Chip from B & C ComputerVisions a few years back. I believe it was based on the original Achiver Chip. They still sell them at www.myatari.com

Based on the manufacturer (Eastern House), I'd say it was a promotional item (demo) for Monkey Wrench. (Just a guess...)

I have to say I am thrilled to learn about the capabilities of this card! (Thank you again!) It came inside an A800 as part of an eBay purchase with no documentation. I knew it was a 256K RAM card, but did not know the purpose of the jumpers or how to wire them. At the risk of being a pest, one last question... On page 3 of the document, there is a reference to a diagram associated with the CDY patch. However, I didn't see a diagram for that modification. Would you have anything else that references the mod? Again, I appreciate you taking the time to post the instructions for me.

This is perfect! Thank you very much!

I believe I have the Crystal Computer Products RAM card referenced by the first document in your post. See this thread for more info: http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/177885-atari-800-ram-selection/page__st__50 I have no documentation on the card. I would appreciate it if you could post a full scan of the document.

ClausB, Thank you for your excellent assessment! I appreciate your effort. I was concerned about Axlon compatibility as my Happy v7 software would not recognize the extra memory (it says in the instructions that it will only recognize Axlon compatible memory). It may be beause this is an 800 rather than an XL/XE.

Fiberwire, Thank you for checking. Unfortunately, no software or instructions came with it. That is why I was trying to find info about it. If you notice on the picture, there is a jumper block and I would love to know its function. As I mentioned, PaperClip, AtariWriter and some other programs do recognize the extra memory.

Never, but it would be interesting to see it. Could you post sharp photos of both sides of the board? ClausB - Per your request.

Has anyone ever heard of an 800 256K RAM upgrade card made by Crystal Computer Products? I'm a long time Atarian (got my first 800 in 1981) and I picked up an 800 on ebay that has this card in the following configuration: a standard 16K card in memory slot 1, the 256K card in slot 2 and a 32K RAMCRAM in slot 3. I do not think the 256K card is Axlon compatible (my Happy Drive software doesn't recognize it), however, word processing and other software does recognize the additional memory. The 256K card is dated 1986. In all my experience, I can't recall this manufacturer and web searches yield nothing.

On a less scientific note.... I have been an Atari user/collector since I bought my first A800 in 1982. Out of curiosity, I recently began acquiring some Commodore hardware and software via eBay. I have an SX-64 "portable", C128, associated disk drives (including the 1581 3 1/2" drive) and a bunch of software. After using the Commodore stuff for a while, here are my impressions: - Commodore put a lot more money into their 8-bit hardware and maintained their committment longer. Not everything was successful (i.e. the "Plus 4"), but a lot of what they did is noteworthy = The SX-64 portable is slick and was available in 1983 - the Atari 8-bit portable never got beyond a prototype; the C128 was a neat achievement, combining C64, C128 and CP/M operating modes (I realize it had its issues as well - little C128 software because it was more cost-effective to code for the C64, you couldn't use the extra RAM in C64 mode, etc.) The C128 had built-in 80 column support, a modern keyboard and its versatility and potential make it worth a look; the 1581 3 1/2" drive was another neat addition to their 8-bit line; Commodore's monitors were superb - I know many Atari owners used Commodore monitors. The sad fact is that after the initial XE line was introduced, Atari (Tramiel) turned most of their attention away from the 8-bit line to focus on their ST line. In Atari's defense, much of their 8-bit hardware development was done years earlier than Commodore's and some aspects remained superior i.e. their hard drives were generally faster (access) than Commodore's. - I believe the Atari 800/XL/XEs are easier to use and I much prefer Atari DOS to the Commodore command-line structure. (Not to mention the variety of DOS programs available). - I have not noticed much difference in the quality/gameplay of games between the two systems (other than there are generally more games available for the Commodore. Note: I didn't say better, just more ). In addition, Atari has many, many more cartridge-based games. - I haven't yet done much programming with the Commodore, but my impression is that there are more programming languages/options available for the Atari (Action!, several Assember and BASIC language options, PILOT, etc.) In the end, I have no plans to abandon my Atari collection, still prefer it to Commodore and would highly recommend Atari to anyone intersted in 8-bit computing. That said, I must also give credit to Commodore as a worthy competitor.

Have you tried usining the Atari Translator disk? This will allow you to load the earlier 400/800 OS in memory and should allow these carts to run.