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Showing results for tags 'trakball'.
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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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Today I have some relatively new information on a $17 controller adapter that you can obtain on Ebay that, when combined with a PC 15 pin gameport to Atari 5200 controller adapter (like the one currently being made by bohoki) will get your Atari 2600, Sega Master System, and Sega Genesis controllers working on your 5200. What's extra awesome about this is that the Sega controllers have compatibility with the two button games, and this is what the Masterplay Clone enables. (Unfortunately, no one is currently producing the Masterplay Clone for purchasing, though.) Here is the Ebay link to the product: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Amiga-Atari-Amstrad-Commodore-DB9-9Pin-Joystick-to-15Pin-Port-support-Usb-Adpt/272348471848?hash=item3f693be228:g:Df4AAOSwUd9aaMnL I've ordered adapters from this Ebay seller, Ikonsgr74, since 2015 and can vouch for his top-notch workmanship. He will not disappoint you. I have some additional good news: The Atari 2600 Trakball works with it to play the digital games that may be worth a try on the 5200. I have tried it with Gyruss, Ballblazer, and Galaxian with nice control results- especially Gyruss. The trakball unfortunately doesn't work with the analog-only games like Missile Command, Tempest, Star Wars Arcade, and Super Breakout. For two button digital games like Defender and Dreadnaught Factor, the Sega Sportspad (which is a trackball) also works great. If you have a couple of Camerica NES products (The receiver for the "Freedom Stick" with Genesis cables and the "Freedom Connection" transmitter device) you can add those adapters and get your NES controllers working on the 5200. I have enjoyed playing with my NES Starmaster joystick and NES Max gamepad on games like Dig Dug and Defender. In fact, on Defender, the Star Master joystick helped me to get my best ever score of around 89,000. That joystick has a very satisfying 'click' for each direction it is tilted- though it's not actually a microswitch-laden joystick like the Quickshot II Plus. Hard to describe, but it's just a perfect joystick and I'm very grateful to be able to use it to play my favorite 5200 games. I've detected no lag by the way, so that's good... Also there's a way to connect the 8bitdo NES Retro Receiver to the 5200 via the two adapters (and Camerica NES products and NES Fourscore) and play your 5200 digital games wirelessly with the controllers it's compatible with: The Dual Shock 4, Dual Shock 3, Wii Remote, and Wii U Pro Controller. I've tested it and had great success just last evening. Hope you enjoy the info. Special thanks to Swami for being the 1st guinea pig to try out Ikonsgr74's newly revised controller adapter on the 5200 (via being added to the bohoki adapter). I'm definitely grateful for learning about this from you.
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I picked up an old CX-80 Trakball, which I've heard was intended for the 8-bit computer line, a while back but had no good use for it. I then bought a 2600-daptor D9 so I can use some vintage controllers on my PC when playing emulators. I have found the trackball to be excellent for games that used a trackball originally, especially in MAME. Being limited to only one button is kind of a pain though. Is it possible to modify one of the buttons, which are duplicates for ambidextrous control, to be a separate button and still work through the 2600-daptor D9?
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Greetings. Old forum lurker here in need of some part-specific information regarding the physical switch on the switched CX22 trak-ball. The following text is mostly a copy paste of an old post (edited to become shorter) I did in a FB group for trak-ball enthusiasts. I recently (Dec 2020) came into possession of a Pro-line CX22 Trak-ball in a mostly decomposed box. New as I am in the wonderful world of sphere-based XY position devices, I had no idea that I should have asked about the switch... Turns out it's one of those first units without the trackball/joystick option switch. That was a bummer for me to discover as I wanted to use it mainly as a trackball on my Vectrex. Edit: Then I was asking if there was a way to put that functionality back in. Someone pointed me in the direction of the CX22 schematic where the circuit with the switch is also showing. Link below. http://www.atarimuseum.com/ahs_archives/archives/files/videogames/consoles/7800/7800trakball/7800trakball-cx22-patch.gif Such a modification seems doable but is going to take some surgery to the PCB, but I'm not afraid of that. I ordered the missing components (that I didn't already had on hand in my parts box) from ebay. Mainly the inductor and the IC responsible for the switching of signals when the physical switch is flipped. Right now I am hung up on the actual switch. What kind and type of switch is it? Is it a four pole double throw switch? If anyone can shed some light on this trivial matter that somehow is holding me back from going ahead with the modification, I would appreciate it greatly.
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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've got a new discovery of a special joystick that can get digital control games on the Atari 2600 and 5200 like Asteroids (2600), Gravitar (2600), Meteorites(5200), and Star Trek (2600 & 5200) to be more analog for fine-tuning the placement of your shots. This can also be helpful on The Earth Dies Screaming and Wizard of War. On the flip side this variance in movement of your onscreen character may not be such a good idea in certain digital games because it may slow you down when you need to always be full-steam-ahead (ie. PacMan, Dig Dug, Frogger, Q-bert, etc...). But on the certain digital-control games which require specific shot placement or character placement, it's going to enhance your control. I am really excited to tell you that Gravitar is especially awesome with this new method of control. I have yet to try Pitfall or Pitfall II with this method, but I can imagine there'd be a benefit with them as well. So I'd like to go over the details of how to set this up on the 2600. First you will need an original Playstation flightstick made by Madcatz. This controller has a switch to enable digital or 'pulse' digital control. The latter mode is similar to what is offered by the Atari Trakball for the 2600 and Atari 8 bit computers when it's in joystick mode. It delivers pulses when making smaller movements to slow things down a bit. In other words, it gives a pseudo-analog movement of your character/ship. To get it to work on the 2600, you'll need the following adapters between the 2600 and the flightstick: 1) Best Electronics Sega Genesis controllers to Atari Systems Adapter cable (Source: Best Electronics- call their 800 number to order) 2) A Tototek Joypad Converter (Version MD). This allows Playstation controllers to work on a 9 pin port of a Sega Genesis. (Source: Tototek website) Alternate method: 1) Buy a hard to find adapter made by Innovation that converts Playstation controllers to 15 pin PC gameports called the Smartjoy Emulator Adapter. (Source: Ebay (as of right now these are quite expensive)) 2) Obtain an inexpensive 15 pin PC gameport to 9 pin Atari/Amiga/Amstrad controller adapter (Source: Ebay seller Ikonsgr74) Methods for getting the Madcatz Flightstick connected to your 5200 are found here: http://atariage.com/forums/topic/284238-new-discovery-for-going-beyond-digital-control-on-your-5200-games/?do=findComment&comment=4140266 If you want to see a presentation/tutorial on this, here you go: https://youtu.be/igynk3Tfy6E
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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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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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Here's my presentation on the Masterplay Interface Clone for the 5200 complete with newly gleaned info on using a trakball on almost any and every 5200 title in the library. I got unexpectedly great results on games like Defender, Ballblazer, and Gyruss. I also show how to use everything from Master System joysticks to NES gamepads to Playstation 2 flight sticks on your 5200. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=x7qcW_8Fb4Y
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Just picked this up last night. I've been meaning to get a TrakBall for the 2600, even though not many games support it. I know it's a digital controller, like the SMS Sports Pad here. I tested the Sports Pad on CONTROL setting, and 2600 Centipede played really well! Given that this can work on multiple systems, and it's humongous, I had to get it. Question: This should be compatible on the C64 I think? Not sure if that means digital or analog though.
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I found this pretty cool looking mouse driver on an old L.A.C.E. disk today and decided to pull the documentation together and format it a little. I fixed a lot of errors, but maybe introduced a few new ones, since I didn't really go over it with a fine-toothed comb yet. I've included the L.A.C.E. disk as well as the all the original files pulled off the disk, including the Docs ARC and Programs ARC. I've only tried out the little BASIC test program that was included, but it looked pretty good, and the documentation and utilities seem to be pretty thorough. I also liked that he set it up to use CIO. Supposedly it will work with TBXL with a little configuring. Many thanks to Simon Trew, the author. Multi-Mouse.zip
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I haven't been able to tell from the pictures in the promotional material, but was the cue ball in the Trakball controller originally white? All of the ones I've seen on ebay have yellowed cue balls. I'm wondering if that's just a sign of age.
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Hi, I am an A8 user since 1987 but using emulators as my real Atari is packed far away. Have been playing Star Raiders under Atari 800win which does a good job of this classic. Years ago, I attempted a project to convert a CX-80 trackball I got of ebay to convert to USB. After butchering three different mice to make the optical sensors work, I put the bits away and haven't tried since. I still want to play Star Raiders with a better controller, as wanting to improve my game with some acurate controls. One the CX-80 there was a switch to make it mimic a joystick if I remember correctly. Now, I know Star Raiders doesn't support a trackball officially, is there way of using a mouse, trackpad or touch pad with any A8 emuator? I know a thread a while back people wanted to patch or change Star Raiders, the game is perfect apart from supporting some better controls.
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request withdrawn -- TY Nimtene
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Looking for an atari 2600 Trakball complete in box.... with the box in good shape -- new in box even better -- shoot me a PM with your price, pictures would be great Thanks Dave