Help me vanquish these NTSC ghosts! (Move this post to general 2600 please)

[Csonicgo]

EDIT: SIGH. Opera messed me up, I thought I posted in the main forum. Can a mod move this thread to 2600 General? THANKS.

 

My parents surprised me with a new LED TV (replacing my 20 year old CRT monster, thanks!) and an AC adaptor for my Atari 2600! Finally, I can dust it off and start playing again! Then I realized how poorly I treated my stuff when I was a teenager, and I'm starting to clean everything up (cleaning paddle pots, joysticks, console, etc)

 

This might turn into a "help me fix it" thread, but I don't care. I have two 2600s, both from Pizitz department store. one was a unit behind glass (so it wasn't touched), the other was an open unit that has "DEMO UNIT" red sticker. It also has red paint instead of orange, although I think that's typical from the Taiwan factory units.

 

Anyway, the first 2600 I have (the open one) has a very finicky power switch. it was switched on and off every day for months in a store full of grubby-handed kids, so I'm amazed it's held up this much. It's also the one I ripped all the shielding off to replace it once (and cut myself BADLY doing so).

 

The second 2600 is the dream unit, not a scratch, or a problem... EXCEPT some weird ghosting. I expect it's always been this way, but certain colors (like blue) will ghost really bad. Yars revenge title screen on boot is really mushy looking, but everything else is fine. Is this just NTSC being an abomination to the planet, or is this something I can fix? I think it might be a number of things, from my old Computer/Antenna switchbox to the fact that this thing is 5 years older than I am. I want to be sure that I'm not missing anything.

 

Note that this is the ONLY problem with the unit. there is no static in the signal whatsoever, not even an occasional stray white dot.

Edited December 30, 2012 by Csonicgo

[yllawwally]

Are you using the same rf adapter for both units. If the first machine shows no ghosting, but the second does, then it must be internal. You probably need to replace the voltage regulator and few caps. You can test the regulator easily. Just use a multi-meter to test the voltage. One leg to the middle will have 7+ volts, while the other leg will have 4.9 to 5.1 v. If it's less than this the regulator is bad.

You replaced the power switch recently on the first one, and the switch is still bad?

[Csonicgo]

You replaced the power switch recently on the first one, and the switch is still bad?

 

Yeah. So I gave up on it. I'm using my "non-used" one now.

 

 

I found out what the ghosting was. It was the signal being a little weak and my TV trying to correct it. Simply put, this TV was putting a lot of post-processing on the signal. it's amazing I was seeing anything in the first place. Thank you, Samsung.

 

I simply need a new RF connector. I tested this theory by plugging my NES into the switch and it was just as ghosty as the Atari. I should still clean it up though, just in case. I do like that the NES and the Atari use the same connector!

Edited January 1, 2013 by Csonicgo

[Csonicgo]

Okay, There are still some white sparkles that pop up when I activate switches. I only do this in Starmaster. Is that something to worry about? I don't remember this behavior before.

Edited January 1, 2013 by Csonicgo

[Csonicgo]

Okay, so I did notice that the colors are shifting a little bit to their right colors. sometimes Jr. Pac Man starts on a GREEN playfield and not the olive colored one. after a minute though, it all looks fine. I'm not sure where to test and what to test. Is there a step-by-step guide to this? mobo screenshots with labels would be great.

Edited January 13, 2013 by Csonicgo