Best Electronics 2600 Consoles

[trent]

One of my nephews likes me to get out the Atari when he comes and visits. I'm going to get him one for Christmas, along with a Harmony cart. I don't really want to hassle with buying a unit in unknown condition, and I'd also like to make sure it works on whatever television they have at his house, which leads me to my question. I'm looking at the light 6'er with composite mod from Best Electronics. Anyone have any experience with those? Do they tend to be in good shape, both electronically and cosmetically? I'm not looking for a "deal", I just want to buy something that will look nice and I can be reasonably sure will work.

 

Also, anyone know where I can buy an original box?

[disjaukifa]

I've never dealt with Best Electronics, but I will say this, you can find excellent condition consoles here in the Marketplace thread, just be sure to ask for plenty of pictures!

 

-Disjaukifa

[ls650]

What a great uncle!!

[yell0w_lantern]

The replacement parts I've purchased from them have all been in good shape so I think a unit would be fine. I think they key here is the quality of the AV mod. You may want to check if there are some reviews comparing it to the other AV mods like Longhorn Engineer's.

 

Maybe you could wait until Legacy Engineering is able to produce that new 7800 clone?

[trent]

I've searched the forums and haven't found comments one way or the other about the AV mod Best does. It doesn't need to be perfect, my nephew isn't going to care about moderate ghosting or whatnot. Mostly I'm concerned about whether it is compatible with modern televisions.

[Schizophretard]

Are you going to test it on your nephew's TV before you gift it? If not you might end up buying an Atari that is compatible with modern TVs but his modern TV may be incompatible with Atari. There could be lag and the picture could be worse than RF on a CRT TV. I own a modern TV but my Atari isn't on it.

[trent]

Not really an option, they are in another state. I can at least have his dad confirm there are composite inputs. I understand the potential issues with lag, but shouldn't the AV mod help with the crummy picture? That was my hope anyway.

[+bennybingo]

You could just go the route of a Flashback 2 system to get him started. It is at least a start...if he wants to branch out from there, you can then hunt down a system with the correct mods, specd-out to whatever suits his TV best.

[+wongojack]

This guy sells pre-modded consoles on his website:

 

http://electronicsen...%20Systems.html

 

He has an ebay store and I believe posts on the boards as "LittleJoe"

 

Here is a thread where he comments on the mods he's selling. He recently switched from the LHE mod to BAtari's mod, so its good stuff. Someone in the thread also comments on the Best Elec mod:

 

http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/181120-current-video-mods-2600/

Edited October 31, 2011 by wongojack

[Schizophretard]

Not really an option, they are in another state. I can at least have his dad confirm there are composite inputs. I understand the potential issues with lag, but shouldn't the AV mod help with the crummy picture? That was my hope anyway.

 

Could you get the model number? Find out if it has a game mode? Find out if other people on here have the TV?... If you find out it has s-video then that would be the best bet.

[tremoloman2006]

This guy sells pre-modded consoles on his website:

 

http://electronicsen...%20Systems.html

 

He has an ebay store and I believe posts on the boards as "LittleJoe"

 

Here is a thread where he comments on the mods he's selling. He recently switched from the LHE mod to BAtari's mod, so its good stuff. Someone in the thread also comments on the Best Elec mod:

 

http://www.atariage....ideo-mods-2600/

 

I can vouch for LittleJoe... he does AWESOME work and spares no expense to make sure he does a top notch job!

 

I've also done business with Best Electronics... they are great and go out of their way to make sure you get what you need. I purcased a couple of NOS motherboards and it basically gives you a brand new system.

[+20ohm20]

I've never bought a 2600 from Best, but I did buy an Atari 800 from him three years ago. It was immaculate in every way and looked like it was brand new.

[Syntaxerror999]

One of my nephews likes me to get out the Atari when he comes and visits. I'm going to get him one for Christmas, along with a Harmony cart. I don't really want to hassle with buying a unit in unknown condition, and I'd also like to make sure it works on whatever television they have at his house, which leads me to my question. I'm looking at the light 6'er with composite mod from Best Electronics. Anyone have any experience with those? Do they tend to be in good shape, both electronically and cosmetically? I'm not looking for a "deal", I just want to buy something that will look nice and I can be reasonably sure will work.

 

Also, anyone know where I can buy an original box?

 

My personal expirience with Best Electronics is that while they may seem questionable due to their primitave web site, they are very reliable. You will pay quite a bit for a console though them, but it will be in excellent condition.

[Syntaxerror999]

I've never bought a 2600 from Best, but I did buy an Atari 800 from him three years ago. It was immaculate in every way and looked like it was brand new.

 

Probably was.

[mimo]

Bradley at Best is a really nice guy to deal with, I have bought lots of great stuff from him over the years, even though I live in the UK, shipping is 7 - 10 days, which is better than most UK ebay sellers

 

The video mod is ok, it looks brilliant on my CRT sets, but like all video mods that I have tried it is hit and miss on LCD/LED/Plasma sets.

 

I highly recomend him though.

[keilbaca]

Awesome gift

 

Your best bet, due to the unknown TV that they have, might be a flashback 2 with a cartridge slot modded into it. That produces an amazing picture, but the Flashback 2 isn't compatible with 25% of the library. Anything 2k and 4k works, and most 8k games. For a starter set that would work perfect with the TV, a Flashback 2 modified might be the best bet.

 

I have tried several a/v mods, but not the Best Electronics mod. The one that I have currently installed is the Batari a/v mod, and that works like an absolute champ. It works on every LCD TV that I threw at it, as well as my projector.

[UberArcade]

I recently bought a a/v modded 7800 from Best. Maybe the 2600 mod is better, but the 7800 was junk. I returned it for a refund. The guy tried to tell me 7800's always look bad and I just don't remember it. I had a stock 7800 to compare it to and the picture was way better with my old rf one than the modded one. I hate it when people try to convince you something is not messed up. Based on my experience I would avoid buying the 2600.

 

I have bought games from there with no problem though.

[trent]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'm going to order one from Best. When it arrives I'll post a couple pics of it running on my TV for posterity.

[UKRetrogamer]

Bradley at Best is a really nice guy to deal with, I have bought lots of great stuff from him over the years, even though I live in the UK, shipping is 7 - 10 days, which is better than most UK ebay sellers

 

The video mod is ok, it looks brilliant on my CRT sets, but like all video mods that I have tried it is hit and miss on LCD/LED/Plasma sets.

 

I highly recomend him though.

I agree and would also recommend Best for customer service. I'm also in the UK and have bought from Bradley a number of times now. Shipping is usually very fast even across the Atlantic. (Customs tend to hold up the postal process, but that's hardly Bradley's fault.)

 

Only yesterday, my composite-modded Heavy-Sixer arrived on my doorstep and it looks completely brand-new. There's not a mark on it and all the Orange trim is unscratched and bright.

 

On my Sony Bravia LCD the output is vibrant with just a little colour-bleed. If this bothers you, maybe you should compare the output with other composite-mods but bear in mind other options are D.I.Y. or require sending a working console away by post for modification.

 

For me though, the minor colour bleed just adds a true retro-feel and doesn't bother me in the slightest!

 

I'm more than happy with my Best Electronics Heavy Sixer - at least I get a picture on my LCD TV now instead of the rolling Grey fuzz I normally see from my PAL Heavy Sixer when used through the Antenna input!

[chuckwalla]

Go for it.

Any chance to get composite output is well worth it on any classic console.

And you're going to get a clean, reliable system with good support from any of the big Atari dealers (Best, B&C, Video 61, Atari2600.com).

[jalidi]

I ordered a 7800 Prosystem from Best Electronics about two months ago. I've been playing it ever since.

 

I was initially thrown off by the appearance of their website but I can 100% assure you that the place is totally legit. Totally professional in the way Bradley Koda (the owner) handled my email requests, and I was very impressed by the packaging and time of delivery, only eight days from California to Canada.

 

As far as I can tell, judging from the serial and its mint condition, the unit which I received had been pretty much sitting on a pallet in one of the warehouses acquired from Atari for the past 23 years. I requested the video upgrade for my unit, which is well worth the premium considering how easily it can be plugged into a fairly modern tv.

 

I tried it out on my Samsung LN55C630 LCDTV and was fairly disappointed with the color and crawling lines, especially in Yar's Revenge, the edges of the pixels crawl like crazy. Initially it was about a 4/10, just bordering on unplayable, but with some adjustments (setting it to Game Mode, adjusting contrast and brightness, etc.) I was able to raise it to about a 6/10. So, if you're planning to plug it into a LCDTV or a plasma screen, beware. Fortunately I hung onto a couple of CRT TVs from the 90's and it's about a 9/10 on the JVC 32" I bought in 1999, almost perfect, really.

 

I just ordered and received some Atari controllers from them, and I was shocked to find that they're brand-new. The Atari Trakball came in the original box from 1983. They also do an additional service refurbishing their CX40 controllers with improved contacts and the paddles with super pots that last forever; it's only a few more bucks, but I strongly recommend going for the upgrade.

 

Very impressed at what I received from Best Electronics, I'll definitely be ordering from them again!

[moving2]

I bought a Heavy Sixer from Best Electronics about 1.5yrs ago. At least at that time, the prices for their systems were quite a bit less than what you'd pay for a heavy sixer on Ebay, and the thing that sealed the deal for me is that these systems have been reconditioned and are in excellent condition. I specifically asked for an older version without the channel switch on the back, and they complied. The unit I got was in mint condition- looks like it just came out of the box. Great experience with Bradley on this, joysticks, paddles, etc. Beats what I've found on eBay any day of the week.

Edited November 7, 2011 by moving2

[kamakazi]

Hmm...I've only dealt with Video 61 and Atari Sales and Collector's Cards and Games. None of them have modded 2600's that I know of. However, I have tried my Junior on our 40" HDTV using only the included RF Switch and it works great. But I prefer to use one of the 19" CRT TVs we have lying around.

[trent]

I ended up ordering a heavy sixer with the AV mod and some cx78's to go with it. The 2600 looks brand new! The switches work flawlessly. Carts slide in perfectly! It works with my LCD TV. I'll post a couple pics before I pack it up for my nephew. Thanks for everyones input!