HEAVY vs. LIGHT SIXER - DIFFERENCES REVISITED - more than a thick base!

[atariluvr77]

I Hope I'm posting this in the right forum -- I know this topic has been beaten to death, but try as I may, I cannot find reference to most of what I'm going to discuss here... This is a list of ways to tell apart the Light Sixer and Heavy Sixer besides just looking at the base... there are internal and external differences as well.

 

When looking for design differences of the Heavy vs. Light sixers everyone looks for the same obvious differences... the thicker side trim, and rounded front curvature of the bottom half of the shell where it meets up with the wood grain. Many times that's all you have to go on if your bidding in an auction, but once it's in your hands you might want to verify the rest of the console.

 

There are some differences in the top half of the heavy sixer housing, and there are several differences to the guts of these units as well... a lot of the Heavy Sixers have been bastardized over the years and I fear that more than just a few people only have part of a heavy sixer without knowing it, or in some cases just the base. To me a TRUE Heavy sixer has to have all original early run top/bottom case and internal components.

 

I personally own 6 H6ers and 3 L6ers with many others bought and sold over time (with all being opened for cleaning or repair)... I hope this is of some help to AA members.

 

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I'm going to deal briefly with the bottom half of the case... the differences are obvious visually, but it's clear that in the beginning there were NO channel switch openings and they appeared later in the run cycle... NO original heavy sixer switch boards have an actual channel select switch... see below after the top shell section.

 

Early Run = "C010306 1 L&W" - no opening

Early run = "C010306 7 E" - no opening

Early run = "C010306 7 E" - HAS OPENING (added after reply from flammingkows)

Early run = "C010306 7 F" - no opening

Later run = "C010306 7 F" - HAS OPENING

 

 

 

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The top half of the shell has the following differences:

 

#1 - Heavy sixer switch slots have smaller openings vertically, but the easiest way to tell them apart from a light switch bezel is the trim around the openings which is raised and beveled. Light sixer slots have a larger vertical opening and flat trim around them.

 

 

But, the switch bezels can be removed and placed in a nice new light 6 lid, so we need a way to tell the top lid as well, see #2...

 

#2 - There are a couple differences... the Atari logo is narrower at the base of the Fuji symbol on heavies --- 16 to 16.5 mm wide on the heavy sixer, while it is a bit larger on the light sixer at just over 17mm --- in addition to that, the "R" symbol is set HIGH on heavies while it is level with letters of "ATARI" on light sixers... the texture of the wood grain design is quite a bit courser and duller in color on the earliest heavies while there are fewer thick dark striations and a richer brown color on the light lids -- woodgrain is not conclusive however because the grain texture was transitioned during the heavy six manufacturing -- the easiest way is to simply look for the high R!

 

 

 

The top shell and switch bezels are interchangeable on the 2 version of the consoles, so I though it somewhat important to point out the differences in detail so collectors could be made aware.

 

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So, now that we have the entire housing of the heavy sixer described in detail and discernable from the light, I think it's just as important that the guts be original to the heavy sixer as well... would you buy a Porsche, and pay Porsche money, if it had a Hyundai engine, I think not...

 

Here are some of the differences between the original heavy six vs. light six switchboard designs...

 

The switchboards in all of my heavy units are C010462 with various various revision numbers/letters -- the light sixers all have switchboard C012173...

 

#1 - The heavy sixer originally came out with a FINNED heat sink below and left of the ON/OFF switch on the switchboard, the light sixer switchboards have a flat integrated heat sink that is integrated with the circuit board, done as a cost cutting measure I'm sure. In addition, the heavy switchboard has a capacitor and a resistor above the on/off switch while the light has niether...

 

 

 

 

#2 - On the heavy, the RF connector is on a small circuit board mounted perpendicular to the RF box, while light six RF connector is on the main circuit board. Often you'll see the date code sticker on top of the RF housing, I believe this sticker is related only to the RF modulator assembly and has little to do with the manufacture date of the overall console...

 

 

 

 

#3 - On the underside of the switchboard, you'll find an Atari logo (some people call this a "Fuji" symbol) with "Innovative Liesure" - Light sixer boards DO NOT have the Atari logo.

 

 

 

 

#4 - Heavy six boards DO NOT have a channel select switch whether there's an opening on the bottom case or not, if your heavy has a channel select switch it's probably board C012173 which is a light sixer switchboard exclusively... here's a picture of a LIGHT SIXER switchboard with the channel selct switch and some of the other features discussed above:

 

 

 

 

The actual PCB switch board has differences as well, further research is needed but tan boards with the letter "J" stamped repeatedly on it are the last heavy board used based on many light sixer boards using the same pcb stamp (as seen above)... earlier boards have the letter "A" stamped repeatedly or have no stamp and are green overall (actually translucent with underside overprints visible through the top of the board).

 

The ribbon cable that connect the switch board and mother board has it's differences as well, it's been established that the first ribbons used were the green/white striped ribbons (mentioned in the Atari service manual as "green"), next used was the red ribbons, and finally the grey ribbons which were also used on some light sixers.

 

 

 

 

Most light sixers have individual colored wires connecting the 2 boards, but many were replaced during servicing because they were deemed unreliable (see light sixer board above).

 

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Motherboards stayed consistent, all being C010433 with varying revision letters or numbers. I believe that numbered revisions came before letter revision since light sixer boards all use revision B, while I have seen several heavy motherboards with revision 7 and 8...

 

 

 

 

There are different bottom plates on the motherboard housing for early heavy sixers as well (the flat piece that is removed via screws to access the motherboard). First used was a thick plate with part number C010315 that was slightly over 2mm thick, then came a thinner plate with part number C012715 at 1mm thick. All light sixers use the thinner plate, some heavies do as well, but could have been swapped over time.

 

 

 

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I have made several assumptions as to which board revisions and other components came earliest, but more research is needed to make any concrete conclusions because there are contradictions that are frequently encountered due to Atari repairs, collector part swaps, etc...

 

Atleast you now know for sure whether or not you have an entire heavy sixer guts and all!

 

- Thick plastic base

- beveled switch opening on bezel

- High "R" copyright logo on woodgrain

- Finned heatsink on switchboard

 

Just about everyone that has entered information in "THE OFFICIAL ATARI 2600 HEAVY 6-SWITCH LIST" just looks at the bottom sticker and possibly looks for the switch opening and switch... that's not really helping to decipher the atari 1977 model timeline much, I encourage people to open up their units and help get to the bottom of this by filling out the form completely and adding as many notes as possible.

 

LUVR77

Edited May 22, 2012 by atariluvr77

[flammingcowz]

Thanks for this! Will give it a read later. Hopefully it will stop me from thinking my heavy sixer is really a light sixer in disguise.

 

Alright I ended up going through it immediately. Mine is an original heavy .

 

One thing you said was "Early run = "C010306 7 E" - no opening" But I have the C010306 7 E with a channel hole. Other than that, mine looks like it's made up of both older and newer parts. My ribbon cable is the green/white, and my board is tan with J's going across it(rev 5).

 

The top cover, the Atari symbol I can't see the raised R, but compared to my light sixer the lettering is different. One looks like shiny silver and the other looks like normal white paint.

 

I'm going to do a complete tear-down of it when my mod comes in, and see of the bottom of the shield is the thicker or thinner also. Thanks again for posting

Edited May 22, 2012 by flammingcowz

[atari2atari]

Thanks, atariluvr77!

 

That was incredibly informative, and I don't think it's a overdone topic at all, especially when it's neatly compiled in this manner!

 

Great read, I'll be printing this to PDF and filing it!

 

-a2a

[atariluvr77]

Thanks for this! Will give it a read later. Hopefully it will stop me from thinking my heavy sixer is really a light sixer in disguise.

 

Alright I ended up going through it immediately. Mine is an original heavy .

 

One thing you said was "Early run = "C010306 7 E" - no opening" But I have the C010306 7 E with a channel hole. Other than that, mine looks like it's made up of both older and newer parts. My ribbon cable is the green/white, and my board is tan with J's going across it(rev 5).

 

The top cover, the Atari symbol I can't see the raised R, but compared to my light sixer the lettering is different. One looks like shiny silver and the other looks like normal white paint.

 

I'm going to do a complete tear-down of it when my mod comes in, and see of the bottom of the shield is the thicker or thinner also. Thanks again for posting

 

Well, like I said, theres been alot of swapping over time by both Atari and collectors, not only that, it's apparent that Atari had stockpiles of parts that were used sporadically both before and after newer shipments or after switching parts suppliers. It's highly unlikely you'll find a unit that has all of the assumed earliest parts all together in 1 console...

 

I've never seen the E base with opening, so that's why this was needed, I'd like to gather all information/contradictions to my conclusions so that we can try and gather a true timeline once and for all. It's assumed that stickers ending with suffix "E" are the earliest heavy models but I don't think that's actually been proven, it's just what seems logical.

 

Luvr

Edited May 22, 2012 by atariluvr77

[atariluvr77]

I will edit the original post with new information as it comes... ultimately I'd like to see this get pinned so it can be easily accessed by all.

[mmaginnis]

Wow, great post. I'm sort of new to collection 2600s so forgive me if my question is stupid, but how much of this applies to differentiating between the Sears-branded H6/L6's?

[flammingcowz]

Modded my Atari yesterday, and it's all original. The only thing was the 1mm shield.

[atariluvr77]

COWZ - I think that some h6ers were shipped with the 1mm plate, I have one too, sort of a transitional thing, looks like you have a true blue H6er

 

Wow, great post. I'm sort of new to collection 2600s so forgive me if my question is stupid, but how much of this applies to differentiating between the Sears-branded H6/L6's?

 

mmaginnis, the base and internal components are the same as for Atari... only the lid is different, they are a bit less popular than Atari, I'll have to look into whether or not there are differences in H vs L lids for Sears...

[zylon]

Another interesting production variation is that some of the white/green flat-wire assemblies were soldered right to the motherboards instead of using a socket. Earliest sockets were white with later and replacements being black.

Some of the earlier boards also had a colored paper dot over a trace just under cart guide.

(internals of my Sears h6er shown)

Edited May 26, 2012 by zylon

[Miss 2600]

Thanks for the info. I never really thought about parts being swapped out to make a console not entirely a H6er. I checked out the casing on mine (I don't want to open it up), and the outside is all H6er

[flammingcowz]

Another interesting production variation is that some of the white/green flat-wire assemblies were soldered right to the motherboards instead of using a socket. Earliest sockets were white with later and replacements being black.

Some of the earlier boards also had a colored paper dot over a trace just under cart guide.

(internals of my Sears h6er shown)

 

Mine is soldered on also, just figured that it was normal

[Jinks]

These h6ers are relatively cheap to buy as of now. What is the big deal on decoding a h6er to all numbers match. You'all figure these will be worth the megabucks someday? Was there not tons of these made? Just wondering? I prefer to use my jr(smaller less room) or 7800(front ports) due to you can use a good cable not the hard wired in one from factory and get better picture, but I like all my ataris vader h6 l6 for the more retro look. But if your going thru all this trouble there must be a sense of real $$$down the road..? But if not dont get me all wrong its maybe the collector side of things of being in the know.. Which I can appreciate..Keep on drillin dude!

[flammingcowz]

These h6ers are relatively cheap to buy as of now. What is the big deal on decoding a h6er to all numbers match. You'all figure these will be worth the megabucks someday? Was there not tons of these made? Just wondering? I prefer to use my jr(smaller less room) or 7800(front ports) due to you can use a good cable not the hard wired in one from factory and get better picture, but I like all my ataris vader h6 l6 for the more retro look. But if your going thru all this trouble there must be a sense of real $$$down the road..? But if not dont get me all wrong its maybe the collector side of things of being in the know.. Which I can appreciate..Keep on drillin dude!

 

The picture quality and that it's original

[fiddlepaddle]

These h6ers are relatively cheap to buy as of now. What is the big deal on decoding a h6er to all numbers match. You'all figure these will be worth the megabucks someday? Was there not tons of these made? Just wondering? I prefer to use my jr(smaller less room) or 7800(front ports) due to you can use a good cable not the hard wired in one from factory and get better picture, but I like all my ataris vader h6 l6 for the more  retro look. But if your going thru all this trouble there must be a sense of real $$$down the road..? But if not dont get me all wrong its maybe the collector side of things of being in the know.. Which I can appreciate..Keep on drillin dude!

 

I think sometimes, for a collector, the value is not measured in dollars, but in the process of learning and fixing and restoring. The closer one can get to owning the very first one off the assembly line, the better (unless you get into models that were not fully functional because all the bugs weren't yet worked out... but even then, prototypes are interesting). Personally, I've put a lot more time into repairing and cleaning than could ever be justified by selling what I worked on. Sort of like working on an old car, I guess.

[atariluvr77]

Fiddlepaddle, I like you answer

 

And although H6ers aren't expensive for the consoles alone, there is a premium for the lower E series serial numbers -- Alot of the real value is in the original retail packaging ("chess piece" box with inserts, etc...) -- if you have a matched low serial number and box then you have something special.

[Jinks]

Most of my atari boxes threw out got flooded,even games i buy today i dont keep boxes, I guess I should for their value. I guess I just like the carts and playing the games. Had they been in a plastic case like todays games I think many more would exist but its like keeping the box for a 30 year old coffee maker like who does that??

I remember all the games I got as a kid the boxes went in the garbage after opening. kept the instructions for tips on the game and for the high score record sections always filled out.

Edited May 30, 2012 by Jinks

[atariluvr77]

Well I don't have editing priviledges so I can no longer add to the original post, but I picked up a couple more H6ers and have come across a BASE with model "C010306 7 G" - no opening

 

Also model numbers for the top half of the aluminum shield (that the switch board screws to) should be added when I have time to open things up again...

 

And I'd like to add the power supply information covered in another thread too (there are 4 different grey power supplies), along with the complete list of everything originally included in the retail box (manuals, combat, other documentation)

[atariluvr77]

There's a bit of debate about what the original inserts looked like too... I'm leaning towards the clamshell type but I only have 2 CIB H6ers and it's one of each style.

 

I'm also wondering about the retail boxes... Obviously the Chess Piece box is most desireable, but is it known whether or not any H6ers shipped in the 2nd style box? I would have to assume that atleast some did, but have yet to hear anything conclusive... I have seen more than a couple sales on ebay for a "1978" H6er that comes with the 2nd style box. The third style box (with Superman) is most definately a L6er variant and was also used for the 4 switch model...

[Fred Garvin]

Cool post, atariluvr77. Very interesting. It kinda shows you the road the atari 2600 was taking towards the light sixer, as in revision changes and parts through the years. I never knew anything about the heavy sixer until I visited this site last year, and I knew that I had to get one. Actually last spring, I didn't have one piece of atari hardware whatsoever, no cartridges, no system, no joysticks, nada! I come here, and now I'm an addict.

 

Take that you damn cloud!

[atariluvr77]

LOL, yeah I had some fun with this and have found a couple oddities since then, like thick and thin felt rings on the switches, and I have one console that has switches unlike any other... made of extremely thick steel and the 2 momentary switches (game select and reset) have "wings" for lack of a better term... found another revision number on a thick bottom plate too.

 

Yes, it does sort of show the evolution of the 6 switch from earliest to latest, I'm just not 100% sure on the order with some of it. As one member pointed out, just because your heavy has Light Sixer guts doesn't mean it wasn't issued by Atari that way. During the transition to the light sixer I'm sure they didn't throw parts away -- because of repairs and whatnot apparently they had the thick bases left over when they started using L6er internals...

 

For me, unless it has all the earliest features it's not a true H6er... I don't want hybrids...

 

Luvr

[atariluvr77]

Oh, and while I'm here I did want to go back to the inserts for a moment... I'm pretty certain now that the original Heavy sixers shipped with CLAMSHELL box inserts, I now have several CIB H6ers... actually, common sense would tell you it was clamshell because the other "tubular" type was used in every Light sixer CIB package I've ever seen and continued to be used for the 4 switch retail display boxes as well.

Edited April 30, 2013 by atariluvr77

[ilovethevectrex]

I Hope I'm posting this in the right forum -- I know this topic has been beaten to death, but try as I may, I cannot find reference to most of what I'm going to discuss here... This is a list of ways to tell apart the Light Sixer and Heavy Sixer besides just looking at the base... there are internal and external differences as well.

 

When looking for design differences of the Heavy vs. Light sixers everyone looks for the same obvious differences... the thicker side trim, and rounded front curvature of the bottom half of the shell where it meets up with the wood grain. Many times that's all you have to go on if your bidding in an auction, but once it's in your hands you might want to verify the rest of the console.

 

There are some differences in the top half of the heavy sixer housing, and there are several differences to the guts of these units as well... a lot of the Heavy Sixers have been bastardized over the years and I fear that more than just a few people only have part of a heavy sixer without knowing it, or in some cases just the base. To me a TRUE Heavy sixer has to have all original early run top/bottom case and internal components.

 

I personally own 6 H6ers and 3 L6ers with many others bought and sold over time (with all being opened for cleaning or repair)... I hope this is of some help to AA members.

 

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I'm going to deal briefly with the bottom half of the case... the differences are obvious visually, but it's clear that in the beginning there were NO channel switch openings and they appeared later in the run cycle... NO original heavy sixer switch boards have an actual channel select switch... see below after the top shell section.

 

Early Run = "C010306 1 L&W" - no opening

Early run = "C010306 7 E" - no opening

Early run = "C010306 7 E" - HAS OPENING (added after reply from flammingkows)

Early run = "C010306 7 F" - no opening

Later run = "C010306 7 F" - HAS OPENING

 

 

 

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The top half of the shell has the following differences:

 

#1 - Heavy sixer switch slots have smaller openings vertically, but the easiest way to tell them apart from a light switch bezel is the trim around the openings which is raised and beveled. Light sixer slots have a larger vertical opening and flat trim around them.

 

 

But, the switch bezels can be removed and placed in a nice new light 6 lid, so we need a way to tell the top lid as well, see #2...

 

#2 - There are a couple differences... the Atari logo is narrower at the base of the Fuji symbol on heavies --- 16 to 16.5 mm wide on the heavy sixer, while it is a bit larger on the light sixer at just over 17mm --- in addition to that, the "R" symbol is set HIGH on heavies while it is level with letters of "ATARI" on light sixers... the texture of the wood grain design is quite a bit courser and duller in color on the earliest heavies while there are fewer thick dark striations and a richer brown color on the light lids -- woodgrain is not conclusive however because the grain texture was transitioned during the heavy six manufacturing -- the easiest way is to simply look for the high R!

 

 

 

The top shell and switch bezels are interchangeable on the 2 version of the consoles, so I though it somewhat important to point out the differences in detail so collectors could be made aware.

 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

So, now that we have the entire housing of the heavy sixer described in detail and discernable from the light, I think it's just as important that the guts be original to the heavy sixer as well... would you buy a Porsche, and pay Porsche money, if it had a Hyundai engine, I think not...

 

Here are some of the differences between the original heavy six vs. light six switchboard designs...

 

The switchboards in all of my heavy units are C010462 with various various revision numbers/letters -- the light sixers all have switchboard C012173...

 

#1 - The heavy sixer originally came out with a FINNED heat sink below and left of the ON/OFF switch on the switchboard, the light sixer switchboards have a flat integrated heat sink that is integrated with the circuit board, done as a cost cutting measure I'm sure. In addition, the heavy switchboard has a capacitor and a resistor above the on/off switch while the light has niether...

 

 

 

 

#2 - On the heavy, the RF connector is on a small circuit board mounted perpendicular to the RF box, while light six RF connector is on the main circuit board. Often you'll see the date code sticker on top of the RF housing, I believe this sticker is related only to the RF modulator assembly and has little to do with the manufacture date of the overall console...

 

 

 

 

#3 - On the underside of the switchboard, you'll find an Atari logo (some people call this a "Fuji" symbol) with "Innovative Liesure" - Light sixer boards DO NOT have the Atari logo.

 

 

 

 

#4 - Heavy six boards DO NOT have a channel select switch whether there's an opening on the bottom case or not, if your heavy has a channel select switch it's probably board C012173 which is a light sixer switchboard exclusively... here's a picture of a LIGHT SIXER switchboard with the channel selct switch and some of the other features discussed above:

 

 

 

 

The actual PCB switch board has differences as well, further research is needed but tan boards with the letter "J" stamped repeatedly on it are the last heavy board used based on many light sixer boards using the same pcb stamp (as seen above)... earlier boards have the letter "A" stamped repeatedly or have no stamp and are green overall (actually translucent with underside overprints visible through the top of the board).

 

The ribbon cable that connect the switch board and mother board has it's differences as well, it's been established that the first ribbons used were the green/white striped ribbons (mentioned in the Atari service manual as "green"), next used was the red ribbons, and finally the grey ribbons which were also used on some light sixers.

 

 

 

 

Most light sixers have individual colored wires connecting the 2 boards, but many were replaced during servicing because they were deemed unreliable (see light sixer board above).

 

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Motherboards stayed consistent, all being C010433 with varying revision letters or numbers. I believe that numbered revisions came before letter revision since light sixer boards all use revision B, while I have seen several heavy motherboards with revision 7 and 8...

 

 

 

 

There are different bottom plates on the motherboard housing for early heavy sixers as well (the flat piece that is removed via screws to access the motherboard). First used was a thick plate with part number C010315 that was slightly over 2mm thick, then came a thinner plate with part number C012715 at 1mm thick. All light sixers use the thinner plate, some heavies do as well, but could have been swapped over time.

 

 

 

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I have made several assumptions as to which board revisions and other components came earliest, but more research is needed to make any concrete conclusions because there are contradictions that are frequently encountered due to Atari repairs, collector part swaps, etc...

 

Atleast you now know for sure whether or not you have an entire heavy sixer guts and all!

 

- Thick plastic base

- beveled switch opening on bezel

- High "R" copyright logo on woodgrain

- Finned heatsink on switchboard

 

Just about everyone that has entered information in "THE OFFICIAL ATARI 2600 HEAVY 6-SWITCH LIST" just looks at the bottom sticker and possibly looks for the switch opening and switch... that's not really helping to decipher the atari 1977 model timeline much, I encourage people to open up their units and help get to the bottom of this by filling out the form completely and adding as many notes as possible.

 

LUVR77

that was really informative, thanks for the post! and i like your avatar ive seen you on atariage before

[shadow460]

I usually ask a few questions about a console to find out if it's a heavy or light sixer if I can't see the thing in person. I'll ask if the words "left controller" and "right controller" are on a sticker or embossed into the plastic. I'll ask, obviously, how many silver switches are on the unit, and I'll ask if it has a channel select switch on the bottom. Six switches with embossed lettering usually means they've got a heavy sixer.

 

Some heavies also have a green cartridge connector which can be seen if you open the dust shield. Even if the connector isn't green, it could still be a heavy since those green connectors were recalled by Atari.

 

I've been into my Sears model for repairs enough to know it's all from 1977. It has the green connector and finned heatsink. I'm not sure what else it has, but perhaps the next time I have to open it, I'll take a peek.

[Dripfree]

This dude I knew In high school gave me a 2600 he thought was garbage. About a year ago I was watching a youtube video explaining the differences of the elusive heavy sixer. I ran into my game room pulled it out of storage and sure enough it was a heavy sixer. Haven't took her apart yet but I know his dad bought it and I think since they thought it was garbage they would have tossed it rather then fix it. Any way funny thing is is the dude who gave it to me is in jail now for secretly video taping his roomates in the shower!! Dude was a looser a weirdo and now I got his heavy sixer!

[Robot2600]

Thanks for this topic, confirmed my new Atari is a light sixer. Have to pull out my broken one tomorrow and see if it's heavy or light.