new atari user - output issue, video inside

[rvounik]

Hi. I grew up with Commodore's but I've always had a soft spot for the 2600. Especially the very early ones, its amazing to see what people can still get it to do these days.

 

So I bought my first ever Atari system, a light sixer with 9 games. Well, unfortunately Im having major problems getting it to work. I keep testing the system with the game Tennis (although Im having similar issues with other games) and very, very rarely do I get the game to work without glitches. More often it outputs a completely broken image, with artifacts in the playing area, rolling video, and all sorts of things like that. I made a short video to show you how that looks, please click here (it's a 1.4Mb mp4, should open and play in any video player).

 

Does this look familiar to anyone? What chip is likely to be causing this? Ive thoroughly cleaned the system using contact spray, resoldered a lose solder point, checked the board for troubles.. Im lost now. Please help!

[rvounik]

anyone?

[gorfcadet]

Well.. can't see the video; I'm on an ipad, but what type of tv are you using? What connector solution are you using to hook it up to your tv?

[OldSchoolRetroGamer]

Not seeing the video in Firefox / Chrome / IE either....................

Edited November 4, 2012 by OldSchoolRetroGamer

[NIKON]

if you would convert the video to another format and not use java.. we could probably see it

[rvounik]

Had no idea you guys werent able to see my video, sorry for that. For some reason my perfectly valid URL to my private site got redirected to some spammy JAVA website (enlightenedspace.org.uk). I converted the video to animgif and was able to host it at Tinypic. You should see it here:

 

 

 

Tinypic hosts videos too, so for those brave enough: click here

 

It basically starts off well, with the 'Tennis' logo dropping from the top of the screen (I assume thats what its supposed to do) but then the tennis court shows up already garbled, with some lines not in the right place, players not positioned properly etc. the game works though, it sounds and plays well. Then all of a sudden the image starts rolling really bad, becomes black and white and comes back to the garbled playing view again. Other games have similar glitches, for example Pole Position.

Edited November 5, 2012 by rvounik

[NIKON]

First thing I would try would be to see if the same thing happens on another monitor

 

If same thing try moving the cart up down left right (but only slightly) to see if any cart slot pins are loose..

 

Then if the same thing happens I would try another RF cvonverter

 

Then of the same thing happens I would take the console apart and start looking for signs of overheating and/of loose connections..check to see if the cartridge slot is clean and none of the pins are loose on the board.

 

I remember that my 7800 would do this and I always had to replace the voltage regulator. But this may not be the problem in your case.

[yllawwally]

Do you have a multi-meter? Checking the voltage on the Regulator, is quick and easy. Since the game gets worse the longer it's on, it's probably heating up the 7805, and reducing it's output. The minimum the 7805 should be giving out is 4.95v.

[rvounik]

Ive tried a different tv, same result.

 

Ive tried a different tv cable too (using RF here), same result.

 

I opened up the console, cleaned every contact/chip and resoldered a lose solder point near the power connector

 

I have a multimeter but frankly I have no idea how it works.. (dont laugh)

 

Will try wiggling the cart around a bit, to see if that helps.

 

Dont think its going to do much, though..

 

What atari 2600 models use the same chips as mine? Can I buy a much newer one (they are cheaper!) and exchange chips?

 

Is the 7800 100% compatible with the 2600? If so I might just get one of those instead.. although they are hard to find in my country. (nl)

[yllawwally]

Set the multi-meter to Volts,or v. Inside the atari in the upper left hand corner there is a square piece of plastic that sticks up with three legs, it's close to the power connector. Place one of the two leads from the meter to the middle leg, and put the other lead on one of the other legs, one leg will show 9-12 volts, and the other will show around 5. The black lead should be the one you put in the middle. I suspect you'll find that one to be 4.5v. Most likely this is the part that is broken. It's inexpensive and easy to replace. You can get a 7805 at any store that sells electronics components, such as radio shack or frys. They are 1 to 2 dollars. They can be found on ebay very easily as well. The 7800 is compatible with the 2600, there are only a couple games that don't work, and some of those can work if you modify the hosing so the cartridge will fit.

[rvounik]

Im sorry, I cannot find the bit you want me to measure. Im quite a beginner when it comes to electronics, but I sure want to learn.

[yllawwally]

Here is a youtube video that describes replacing the 7805.

[rvounik]

thanks for the vid, it is very clear. Unfortunately my light sixer looks quite a bit different under the hood and I have no idea how to check anything there. I guess I will sit back and wait for another light sixer to come by.

[Rex Dart]

That 7805 IC is going to look the same, no matter where on the board it's located. Just look around, or heck, post a photo for us to point it out for ya.

[rvounik]

Me again. Havent got round to take pictures. I did notice something very important though. The first 3 minutes of turning the Atari on, it always works fine. After that, the image starts going crazy as described before. It stays like this, even after turning off and on again. I must wait a few hours before I can try again, and the picture will then always be normal again for a few minutes. Now, Ive read in another thread that there are no parts on the Atari that heat up. But for sure this has something to do with heat. Could it be the power adapter then?

[NIKON]

Me again. Havent got round to take pictures. I did notice something very important though. The first 3 minutes of turning the Atari on, it always works fine. After that, the image starts going crazy as described before. It stays like this, even after turning off and on again. I must wait a few hours before I can try again, and the picture will then always be normal again for a few minutes. Now, Ive read in another thread that there are no parts on the Atari that heat up. But for sure this has something to do with heat. Could it be the power adapter then?

 

That is exactly what my 7800 used to do...I always had to replace the voltage regulator...its that 7805 chip ...for some reason they kept burning out on my 7800..after replacing it 6 times I could no longer make a connection to the trace on the board.

 

I dont know about what electronics stores sell in your country but here in the USA just about every Radio Shack sells those chips..well back then they were plentiful..cheap too. But if you are not comfortable with using a soldering iron..seek out someone who is.

 

It is unfortunate that you purchased a unit that was defective...that happens sometimes...and to answer one of your other questions.. yes the 7800 plays 2600 games.

Edited December 5, 2012 by NIKON

[rvounik]

hmm the 7805 voltage regulator. Now I have very little knowledge of electronics, but for sure I can replace a simple part like that. The problem is where I can get such a thing from. Our country's biggest electronics website gives me 13 results when I search for '7805' of which at least 4 look legit. if possible can you click the below link and see if you can make anything of it?

 

http://www.conrad.nl/ce/nl/FastSearch.html?search=7805&initial=true

 

there is an english version of the site (conrad.com) but it has different products so I cant order those.

 

spanningsregelaar = voltage regulator

 

would be very kind if you could help me out getting the right part!

[Rex Dart]

 

Those four you're seeing should all work. They're all the same thing basically, just made by different companies.

Edited December 5, 2012 by Rex Dart

[rvounik]

wonderful. this will be interesting. reporting back later.

[+Yurkie]

It would be a good idea to clean the old heat sink compound off the metal plate and apply new when you replace the voltage regulator. You might want to replace the .22uf green capacitor that is right by it too.

 

Good Luck.

Edited December 5, 2012 by Yurkie

[rvounik]

hi all, remember me? I finally got round to replacing the voltage regulator. I did this to the best of my abilities but as I said, Im quite inexperienced. However, I think I did okay. When I now turn on the console, I get vertical coloured bands across the screen. They are not moving and change only when I turn off and on again. I get this result with every game I have. Any clue whats wrong this time?