Atari 2600 modification for Composite Signal

[anny84]

Hi guys,

My uncle has modified my Atari 2600 for use with a Videocomposite cable (a PAL variation of detail loaded in the AtariAge faq, according to www.retrogames.cl site). Everything works, but sometimes the Atari shows picture in black and white after turning on. I should turn my Atari sometimes (not always the same number of times, but randomly) for having colors.

 

Some component we use is fault? Some different resistor value can cause this problem?

 

Thanks in advance!

Annarella Carano

[A.J. Franzman]

I suggest that you begin by checking whether the problem is, or is not, with the Color/B&W switch. Find an older game that has a black and white mode (when the console is displaying colors, the colors turn to black and white when setting the Color/B&W switch to the B&W position). Then if you turn the console on a different time with this game, and the console is only displaying in black and white, does the contrast change when you change the Color/B&W switch to the B&W position? If the contrast changes, then the Color/B&W switch is eliminated as being the cause of the problem.

 

If you find that the problem is not with the Color/B&W switch, then the next likely source of the problem is a loose cable/plug or bad soldered connection somewhere, most likely involving one of the connections of the modification that your uncle made.

[anny84]

The Color/BW switch works as it should work, anyway, the effect is odder than I describe. If the 2600 starts with missing colors, they will often appear after some time.

 

Of course, I'm always talking when I use the composite modifications. Colors are always good when I use the RF cable even if the image is really garbled due to the bad RF technology used by Atari (I suppose).

 

Anny