how can i fix 2600 color "bleeding"?

[flammingcowz]

I've been getting better at soldering and fixing things so I figured I would try to fix my 2600's horrible color "bleeding" problem, but I don't know where to start. Messing around with the pot only changed the colors and didn't help it at all. Is there a chip I can reflow, or an easy RCA video mod? any advice for fixing this? thanks

 

Oh almost forgot, it's a light 6er if that matters.

Edited February 26, 2010 by flammingcowz

[+Roydea6]

Try these two links:

 

http://www.longhornengineer.com/Videomods/Videomods

 

 

http://www.cheeptech.com/2600mods/2600mods.html#index

 

 

I have the first mod I ordered before christmas and looks pretty good.... I had a small amount of trouble getting it installed.

[flammingcowz]

I think I broke my atari :woozy:

 

i lifted the 3 chips out of their sockets under the metal shielding and put them back...and now when i turn it on with a game in it just shows a black screen..

 

All the chips face the same way right? with the text facing torwards the cartridge?

[zylon]

Nope, one faces the other way. I believe it's the bottom one. Top 2 with notch to the right, bottom one with notch to the left. If I'm wrong someone will say so.

Edited February 26, 2010 by zylon

[GloryDayGamer]

I think I broke my atari :woozy:

 

i lifted the 3 chips out of their sockets under the metal shielding and put them back...and now when i turn it on with a game in it just shows a black screen..

 

All the chips face the same way right? with the text facing torwards the cartridge?

 

 

I had the same issue after taking a chip out and bending a pin I lost track of how it came out. I used this manual:

 

http://www.atariguide.com/pdfs/Atari_2600_VCS_Domestic_Field_Service_Manual.pdf

 

Under section 2 motherboard silkscreen. just make sure the notches in the diagram match your board.

[A.J. Franzman]

I think I broke my atari :woozy:

 

i lifted the 3 chips out of their sockets under the metal shielding and put them back...and now when i turn it on with a game in it just shows a black screen..

 

All the chips face the same way right? with the text facing torwards the cartridge?

I had the same issue after taking a chip out and bending a pin I lost track of how it came out. I used this manual:

 

http://www.atariguide.com/pdfs/Atari_2600_VCS_Domestic_Field_Service_Manual.pdf

 

Under section 2 motherboard silkscreen. just make sure the notches in the diagram match your board.

Flammingcowz, since it sounds like you might be getting into electronics, one of the most basic things you need to know is how to orient an IC. They all have a "U"-shaped indentation at the center of one end, or sometimes a small indented dot near a corner. The sockets and the white printing on the circuit board also have the "U" shape molded/marked; all you have to do is match them up.

Edited February 27, 2010 by A.J. Franzman

[Benzman66]

Some boards or chips seems to be different. Almost always the top chip will have the writing upside down when you put it in. The middle and bottom chip can be upside down or normal. You will have to play around with those two as to directions.

 

I think the mfg sometimes didn't put the print on them correctly.

 

BTW, the chip that has 750 on it goes in the top, and the 444 goes in the bottom.

Edited February 27, 2010 by Benzman66

[A.J. Franzman]

Some boards or chips seems to be different. Almost always the top chip will have the writing upside down when you put it in. The middle and bottom chip can be upside down or normal. You will have to play around with those two as to directions.

 

I think the mfg sometimes didn't put the print on them correctly.

"Playing around" by putting ICs in the wrong way is a good way to ruin them, and sometimes other parts of the circuit too. Luckily, the chips and circuits in the 2600 are fairly robust and generally having power on for a few seconds with a chip in backwards may not break anything.

 

What I wrote in post #6 above is the correct way to orient an IC. The printed writing can go in any direction, even sideways!

 

 

Note also that both of these ICs have a "U" shaped indent, and a dot beside pin #1. The chip on the right also happens to have a notch right through the "U" indent, but that doesn't mean anything.

Edited February 28, 2010 by A.J. Franzman

[A.J. Franzman]

oops, double post

Edited February 28, 2010 by A.J. Franzman

[ovalbugmann]

Well, it's usually much easier to take/rip things apart than to put them back together in working condition, isn't it! (provided you have all the correct tools)

 

Things not working right when you take them apart and put them back together and the reason for this, is a lesson I learned as a kid. I would tear into things and forget how it all was arranged before I took it apart, so I couldn't put it back together again. I ruined a lot of electronics this way.

 

Now, when I take things apart - anything from cars to electronics to fix/mod them, I pay very careful attention to how everything is put together before I remove the parts. For large complicated items I keep written dissassembly notes and I am always thinking about how hard it will be to put the assembly back together. Sometimes you have to juggle several parts all at once while feeling blindly for several parts that have to fit together at once.

 

Take your time with repairs, DO NOT force anything - it will break, write yourself a picture/diagram or note if necessary, pay attention to what your doing, observe how things are built/operate and don't be distracted.

 

A.J. is right about the IC chips, you should not insert them wrong and then play with orientations and power cycling to see if it works - always just go by the indentation on the IC chip matching it up with the printing on the PCB. That's why they put the U shaped indentation/corner dot on the chip and printing on the board.

 

BTW, the VCS color pot has nothing to do with: dot crawl/color bleeding. To fix this you just need a better connection from the VCS to the TV. You could even put in a modern, quality made, double-shielded RCA cable for the RF connection, this will provide a sharper, clearer picture.

Dump the TV/Game switchbox, get a RCA-to-Coaxle adaptor to keep the RF.

 

But you could do a composite or SuperVideo(s-video) mod also.

Edited February 28, 2010 by ovalbugmann