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Showing results for tags 'trackball'.
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I borrowed an Atari/Sega adapter for my Intellivision 2 and Telegames Super Video Arcade consoles from a friend last month, and got some interestimg results. This particular adapter was made by Grips03 back about 3 1/2 years ago, and it really is opening opening up new possibilities for controlling games on the Intellivision- with even some very cool mice and trackballs. Check it out:
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I was just wondering if anyone around here knew what to look for to determine whether or not a CX-80 Trak-Ball had CX-22 internals? Is there any way to tell from the outside of the box if you were to buy one brand new and still sealed? If not, what should you look for when opening up the Trak-Ball housing to determine whether you have CX-80 or CX-22 internals inside it? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
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Found an article within a PDF of the Status Newsletter on archive.org. It explained how to rewire a CX-22 Trackball for use as an ST-mouse for an A8-Diamond GOS based system or the ST. I have been using a mouse from Best Electronics (model CBM1) for quite some time and should have a backup. I made the modifications to my CX-22 as explained in the article and it worked the first time. Diamond has been configured to use STMOUSE2.DRV for the mouse driver and worked just as well with the modified trackball. Arnold, Blake, "Trackball to Mouse", Status Newsletter v7i4, 1988, Page 13-14. https://archive.org/details/Status_Atari_newsletter_1988-v7i4 The article is well written and contains all the information you'll need. I took pictures as I made the modifications in case I wanted to revert back to the trackball and to explain how I made them. The next six photos are of the track ball before modifications. Remove 4 screws. Notice the posts to the north and south of ball. The top has pins that are inserted in these and they are friction fit. Care should be taken so that these pins are not broken while pulling the top off. Wiring on Left side of unit Wiring Right side trigger. Ball removed. Separated parts. The wiring could be unplugged without damage and was put aside for safe keeping. Making the Mods. Since the case was apart, it was placed in the dishwasher for cleaning. The chips are all socketed , so they were removed and the pins were cleaned, then reinserted. The LM339 was set aside until after the soldering on the board was completed. When you look at the photos don't use the wire colors for reference. I happen to have a couple of old cords out of a Sega(?) or was it a Genesis( ?) joystick. (been a long time). I know the cords had 9 pin plugs and 9 wires. Both Blake and I recommend mapping the wire colors to the pins before you start soldering. I made the connections on the bottom of the board. I also reminded myself several times were the #1 pin of the chip was as the board was flipped over. This allowed the wires to be run safely under the board. The board was put back into place and the LM 339 chip reinserted. Holes were drilled through the button boards for the wires. Wires were then soldered directly to the boards. I've never had much luck with those push on connector thingies. Right button. The 5volt and ground wires were connected using the female ends of a couple of jumper wires. This way I didn't have to solder the wires directly to the power pins. Its an option I had sitting in my Arduino kit. The ball is in place and the wiring doesn't look like it will interfere with the rotational sensors. Time to put the top back and tighten the last 4 screws. The TEST The 130XE was booted up with Diamond and the Best Electronic's ST Mouse as usual. The mouse was unplugged and the trackball plugged in. The pointer moved as would be expected and the system responded to the left button presses, although sometimes rather sluggish. I can't remember ever having to use the right mouse button for Diamond GOS so it wasn't tested. (I'm not getting out the ST, so am assuming the right button will work.) While I had the trackball apart I considered replacing the spring caps with micro switches. I didn't want to take the time to figure out if there was enough room for a micro switch and put it off for another time. In use not every button click was registered and if I were going to make the trackball my mouse of choice this would have to be fixed.
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After experimenting for weeks I have found a way to get lag-free control on the 5200 digital games as well as a few of the Trakball titles with the X-arcade Tankstick and my custom Tron 80's Arcade Multicontroller (which includes a spinner). This is done with daisy-chained adapters/cables and all the components are currently in production, so it's possible for anyone to get this set up. In the presentation I show a number of 5200 games being played in ways you've not seen them played before on the 5200 including Pac-Man, Beamrider, Choplifter, Dreadnaught Factor, Meteorites, Star Trek, and Zone Ranger. Hope some of you can benefit from this:
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There's now a way to use the X-Arcade Tankstick trackball on your 7800 to play some specific games that really can be extra fun with that kind of controller. The games I have in mind are Alien Brigade, Centipede, Crossbow, Crack'd, Commando, Dark Chambers, and Xevious. I've spent some time figuring out what adapters are necessary to accomplish this, and even included info on using other PC compatible controllers like my custom Tron 80's Arcade multicontroller with the 7800. Check it out:
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Today I've got something interesting to share in the 2600 controller department. There is now an Ebay adapter that you can obtain pretty cheaply (made by Atariage member, Ikonsgr) that gets a PC USB mouse/trackball working on the 2600. The catch is that: #1) only USB mice and trackballs that have PS/2 compatibility will work (and those that have PS/2 plugs need to be adapted to USB with a cheap little green PS/2 to USB adapter). #2) This only works with the digital games (not the paddle games). The really great news is that #1 can be remedied by buying an Aten KVM switch that converts USB (non-PS/2) mice and trackballs into PS/2 compatible devices. These are not cheap (over $50), but can open up possibilities of playing your 5200 with some quite interesting controllers, including the X-Arcade Tankstick which has a trackball (shown in the picture below) and this as well: https://www.ign.com/articles/2006/02/03/x-arcade-trackball-review The video below starts with using the 2600 to play Mines of Minos, Cosmic Swarm, Centipede, and Off the Wall, and then goes on to the 7800. I start the explanation about the X-Arcade Tankstick trackball around 16 and a half minutes in (showing it work with 7800 Centipede) so you'll probably want to not miss that part. Also there's 5200 compatibility with an additional adapter so that might interest you as well. Hope this is beneficial to some of you The products: Here's the link to the PC USB mouse/trackball to 9 pin Atari adapter (sometimes the Ebay product goes out of stock, and then gets restocked, so definitely keep checking back if it's not available): https://www.ebay.com/itm/USB-Mouse-Adapter-For-Atari-ST-Amiga-Amstrad-Commodore-9pin-DB9-Joystick-Port/274204936054 Here are two links for the PS/2 to USB mini green adapter (1st one may not be based in the U.S. & is cheaper): https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00UMX89XA#Ask https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009GUV4UK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_MOoDEb7Y5HZVV The Aten KVM Switch (Model CS82U) is necessary to get non-PS/2 mice and trackballs working on your Atari systems and is found here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004QOBZXM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_ZgpDEbQPRJ199
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I've got a few Atari controller secrets to reveal which some of you may have never come upon. Here's the lowdown: 1) the Atari CX-22 Trakball has a desirable feature that the later-released black CX-80 Trakball doesn't have. In fact, there are other 2600-compatible trackballs that have this feature as well... 2) The combo paddle/joystick 2600 controllers made by Sears and Coleco are not as effective to play paddle games on a light sixer or heavy sixer unless you have a particular item to use with the controller. There are some people here who may have never known about this. 3) Omega Race is a two-button game requiring a special "Booster Grip" to properly play it. Some may not have that Booster Grip, but there is another way to play the game... and a controller from another gaming console is the key. 4) There's a particular mouse that can be used to play 2600 games, but there's a trick that you have to know in order to make it "active". I've got all this explained in today's presentation on my Wired-up Retro Ytube channel. Enjoy:
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I just tried Tempest 4000 for the Xbox One, and I think the controls are awful, but only on "round" levels. Sometimes I press left to go right when stopped. Also I thought a more appropriate control is to use the analog stick as a radial control. Just roll the left stick to indicate the position along the orbit where you are, not left to go anticlockwise, right to go clockwise. You got analog controls. Why not use them? For the modern systems, why isn’t there a 2600-> PS4 and a 2600->X1. They obviously make them for PC. You need them for Paddles, Trackballs, Spinners, Indy 500 controller, and Keypad (maybe, but a USB numeric would work too). Since Nintendo makes Labo kits, why not Atari make a plastic Labo-like Joycon attachment. First Paddle games already work with Switch Wheel. If you keep both hands on the wheel, there is a natural limit to how far clockwise and anticlockwise you can rotate it. Second for Trackball games, a Joycon could be placed in a hamster ball for trackball games, and have radio controller manaul button pressers for the up to 6 buttons on the Single Joycon. Third, a similar setup, except with a cylinder for Major Havok. Fourth, a joycon could be put in a similar device with a wheel that you spin. Finally, for the light gun games, a visible light "camera gun" could be used to literally shoot the targets, instead of using a cursor that centers automatically. Do other people agree with me, that Atari controls on modern systems are not well thought out with the default controllers? The analog stick does like to center, and I think that hurts most Atari analog games, especially paddle games.
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Hi, apologies for this question. I am not an expert in electronics. I have been searching for a replacement of a photo sensor used on COLECOVISION roller ball controller. Attached a partial schematic of the rollerball controller, one of the sensors has failed. I have confirmed everything else works perfectly by reposition the working sensor in place of the bad one. I get no movement, no reading from the bad one. Also I added few pictures of the sensor. I could not find anything on this part number, or the manufacturer. I then opened it, and would like to see if someone can help me confirming what kind it is. What would its internal schematics look like? Is this a photo transistor and a IR diode? There are a few sensors out there with similar dimensions, however I am not sure on the correct positioning of the pins vs. the original. The original has a #1 on the pin that connects to as shown (please consider this is a mirrored image because they are opposite when turning them around to face each other.) I tried to show it better in the other picture, where I wrote the correct pin # orientation. Hopefully someone can confirm with a diagram to be able to find a replacement. I need to know where the cathode/anode should be and the Collector/emitter should be. (if indeed this is a transistor) Thanks in advance for your input. Al
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These are both sides of the roller sensor. Can someone confirm what kind is it? Is it ir diode and phototransistor? What would the diagram be for this circuit/switch? thanks a lot! Al
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Hey all, I recently got a Wico Trackball for the my TI and I was wondering what games are good for it. After doing a quick google search it doesn't seem like many people use it or at least write posts about it. I've only got to games at my house (I'm on vacation right now): TI Invaders and Parsec. I thought TI Invaders would be awful with the ball, but it actually makes the game shockingly more accurate (at least compared to the default controllers) I figured that Parsec would be amazing with the trackball given the full 2 dimensional movement (x direction and y direction) but it really isn't good. I can't move up and down fast enough in that game to dodge enemy fire. Any suggestions? I know centipede would be really fun, but apparently its pretty rare.
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Just like the title says, I'm looking for a new in box CX-80 trackball for the misses. I picked up one new in box from a fellow AtariAger about this time last year for $45 shipped and have really enjoyed it, so I'd like to get a second one for the spousal unit so we can get in on some two player Centipede TB action on the 7800. I'm looking to pay about the same as last time, $45 shipped to the zip code 55102, and I don't care about the condition of the box as long as it's still sealed. The box can be dented in, torn, or in any other sort of cruddy condition as long as the trackball inside is still new. Thanks much and feel free to shoot me PM if you have one that you'd like to sell.
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Stella is looking to improve realistic trackball behavior on their 2600 emulator for the growing number of trackball hacks and I said I would look into getting them a CX80 in good working condition.
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Hey Team. Earlier last week i scored a CX-22 Trakball from ebay for a fairly low price (10.50 shipped) I wasn't expecting much, however it did say tested and working..so i took a shot. Once i got it home, i could feel the ball was noisy and sticking horribly. Again, expected. I plugged it into my 7800 straight away, and of course, nothing worked but the left fire button, using Centipede7800 (official release) to test it. Zero movement. I opened it up, Gave the ball a serious soak, Cleaned all the rollers, and Bearings, cleaned the housing and board as best i could. first thing i noticed (beside the filthy gunky rollers and ball) was the wiring felt "off" like perhaps it was worked on, as there was a good amount of electrical tape just holding stuff together. At this time i should point out i know zero about electronics/circuitry/soldering etc. i noticed the center post of the right fire button was broken, so i left that be for now. I plugged it back in, while open, and fired up centipede. Both buttons worked when pressing directly on the board it'self, and there was some movement when spinning the wheels. after a good 3 hours of cleaning i put it back together, hit the 'Pede again, and now i had some movement, however seriously eradic. the "ship/player/character/w.e." automatically moved to the upper left or lower right. With some heavy pressure rolling, i was at least able to move the character around somewhat, although nowhere near playable, at least it was moving.... This is where i am kinda stuck. I know it's a shot in the dark but i assumed since there was "some" movement after cleaning, that it's just a physical thing. But it's probably electrical huh? i checked some much older threads, and a few people mentioned testing via a meter. Again, i have zero knowledge let alone the equipment. Would there be any other troubleshooting someone could walk me through? or perhaps if i posted photos of specific areas? PS i tested with it in joystick and TB mode, and it's basically the same. Any help would be appreciated, i would just love to see my little girl blasting bugs with a trakball, she fell inlove with an arcade cabinet of Centipede at her summer camp, and it would be magical to surprise her!
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Play Atari 2600/VCS Trak-Ball enabled games with your 5200 Trak-Ball controller. One-Trak adds functionality Switching between platforms is as simple as unplugging or plugging in a cable, outside of the controller. Plug into the configuration cable to play 2600 games, unplug the configuration cable and connect the original cable to the 5200. One-Trak is easy to install One-Trak requires no cutting, no soldering, no wiring, no drilling: your CX53 remains as Atari produced it. The installation is completely reversible. The most permanent change is a 1" square adhesive pad affixed inside the controller. Pick your protocol The configuration cable is currently available in two styles · Quadrature encoded: Gray code, compatible with ST mouse signals · Direction+Clock: same as CX22 trackball signals (Personally, I prefer the quadrature encoding as it lets you navigate the Harmony cartridge menu) $25.00 + shipping. (Currently shipping to U.S. addresses only) Available while supplies last. PM me if you're interested.
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Play Atari 2600/VCS Trak-Ball enabled games with your 5200 Trak-Ball controller. One-Trak adds functionality Switching between platforms is as simple as unplugging or plugging in a cable, outside of the controller. Plug into the configuration cable to play 2600 games, unplug the configuration cable and connect the original cable to the 5200. One-Trak is easy to install One-Trak requires no cutting, no soldering, no wiring, no drilling: your CX53 remains as Atari produced it. The installation is completely reversible. The most permanent change is a 1" square adhesive pad affixed inside the controller. Pick your protocol The configuration cable is currently available in two styles · Quadrature encoded: Gray code, compatible with ST mouse signals · Direction+Clock: same as CX22 trackball signals (Personally, I prefer the quadrature encoding as it lets you navigate the Harmony cartridge menu) $25.00 + shipping. (Currently shipping to U.S. addresses only) Available while supplies last. PM me if you're interested.
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Did Albert just silently release this in the AA store? I just found this lying around in the AA Shop and bought one: https://atariage.com/store/index.php?l=product_detail&p=1067
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I have developed an "upgrade" kit to allow playing 2600 trackball games with a 5200 Trak-Ball. The process just adds another cable to the controller and uses another "configuration cable" to link the original 15 pin cable with the new cable. Terminates in a 9 pin that plugs into a 2600 controller port. No permanent modifications are made to the trackball. Everything is 100% reversible. Works with the slate of 2600 games recently hacked to support actual trackball controllers. Following the success of one kit being installed by an end user, I'm just wondering if it's worth the effort to order in parts to make a few of these. PM me with inquiries.
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I was planning on picking up a CX80 Trak-Ball from Best Electronics earlier this week, but found that they were sadly out of stock. If anyone here happens to have a CX80 that's still new or in like new cosmetic condition that they'd be willing to sell then please do let me know. I can pay via PayPal. Edit: Trackball acquired courtesy of a very generous AtariAge member! That's all folks!
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I've been doing some research on Atari 2600 controllers recently, because of a project I'm starting in 2 months or so. And I have a few questions for you guys, that no doubt know a lot more than I do on the subject matter. 1) Let's start easy: the CX-50 Keyboard Controllers, the Star Raiders video touch pad and the Kid's Controller are practically the same thing, there's only external differences right? 2) The trackballs. I've seen 2 different ones, the CX-22 and the Pro-Line. And correct me if I'm wrong but, not counting hacks, there are no original 2600 games that support the trackballs in "trackball mode", right? They only work when the trackballs behave like joysticks, is that right? 3) This one's about Wico joysticks, the Command Control ones. They are high-quality controllers, I've heard, with metal base and stick, and internally they use leaf switches. I've seen how leaf switches work, and they seem very easy to repair, if they ever malfunction. So I'm asking Wico owners here: how good are these Joysticks? I think they look cool, and maybe I'll buy one (or two) in the future, but give me some feedback first. 4) I own a pair of Atari Flashback 3 Joysticks. They should work just like regular CX-40 Joysticks, right? 5) I've seen sites selling new reproductions of Atari joysticks. Is anyone making repro paddles out there? 6) This one is less important, but I'm curious: can you use joysticks to play Indy 500? Or does it only work with racing controllers? Well, that's all for now. Also, tell me if there's some other controller that I should check out, I like controllers
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I have just made an interface for the Atari trackball to the TI-99/4a. The Atari trackball works like a joystick that needs a +5 to power the sensors. it's essentially an upside down ball mouse. So what I did was create a standard Atari to Ti-99 joystick interface cable then on PIN 7 I attached a +5 from a battery for the Atari trackball sensors. believe it or not it works. Except, and this is the odd part I can't figure out, when the trackball is attached the keyboard display automatically goes into lower case. clicking the alpha lock does nothing and pressing shift will make the upper case letters appear but it will default back to lower case. also, you still have to turn off the alpha lock to enable 'up' on the trackball. this effect happens rather the +5 is attached or not. doesn't seem to effect the TI-99 adversely except throwing it into lower case. ideas?
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Hey there everyone! I've been contemplating getting a bartop size vertical arcade cabinet for a long time now, and I've finally decided that it's something I want to start saving up for. It might take me a few months to get the cash together, but in the meantime I'm hoping to get some recommendations for reputable custom arcade cabinet makers that could build me just what I'm looking for. I live in a fairly small apartment and don't have the tools, skills, or space to build something myself; so I'm looking to pay someone to build my machine for me. The specific details of what I'd like to have built are as follows: - Bartop size arcade cabinet - Modern vertical LED/LCD monitor behind a clear bezel - Joystick (red bat top) on the left side of the control panel, three buttons (LED lit) in the middle, trackball on the right side, and Atari cone style 1 & 2 player buttons on the far right. - Reproduction Centipede graphics for the backlit marquee, screen bezel, control panel, and side art - Cabinet fully painted to match the color scheme of an original full size Centipede arcade cabinet - Coin slot on the right side of the machine (with free play option available) - 60-in-1 JAMMA board installed Interestingly enough I already found almost exactly what I'm looking for on eBay, but the seller had placed the trackball in the middle of the control panel for left handed use; and they didn't seem to be interested in building another cabinet with the trackball positioned for right handed use. Everything else was exactly what I wanted though, so in lieu of that person not being interested in building another one I was wondering if anyone here could recommend me a reputable company or individual who could build me just what I'm looking for?
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From the album: AusM's Atari
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I have a Slikstik Arcade Cabinet (new materials, put it together yourself like a bookshelf) with a fairly large control panel. I've had it for a long time, but never managed to get the controls to work properly. I was wondering if anybody had good suggestions on how to get the controls to work. Such things as trackballs, spinners, even joysticks. The problem with the trackball is that it seems to make a huge, squarish shape when you try to use it. The spinner seems too fast, like you can't increment one move at a time in Tempest, or seem to "fine tune" your movement. The joysticks seem very stiff, and you feel like you can't play like you would on a "normal" arcade machine. It seems hard to map the keyboard, and some buttons won't map so far. I have side pinball buttons that don't show up or change. Some solutions were to mess with settings. MacMame settings such as analog controls, general settings, and settings for the individual game. The OS mouse speed settings, (trackball), keyboard settings, etc. Another was to get a powered USB hub instead of one that just powers from USB, in case the cheap hub can't handle all those devices. I bought a powered USB hub, and messed with OS and MacMAME settings. The trackball moves the cursor a little faster now, and that is good, but you still can't make small circles, and the spinners seem worse. Does anybody know the default MAME analog control settings? I am using an old Intel MacMini with MacMame and I believe OSX 10.4. I tried updating to latest OS and couldn't get panel to work with new arcade emulators, so I actually switched back down to 10.4. I have a mac keyboard plugged in on one USB port, and a USB hub plugged into another port. All 4 ports in the hub are taken up by the arcade controls. I believe it is 1 wire for the trackball, 2 for 2 spinners, and the last one for an I-PAC. The OS says it doesn't recognize the mouse, and none is installed. However, the trackball still moves the cursor and the ball still lights up. ( I only use the trackball for a mouse, no actual mouse is connected ) Maybe there is some kind of keyboard mapping/mouse/cursor/controller conflict going on here. Maybe the computer is confused with what is doing what.