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What is a good joystick for the Atari 2600?


guitarmas

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* Zircon Video Command (basically repurposed design from the Fairchild Channel F, a vertical stick design with an unusual triangular head, EXCELLENT for space shooters!)

I like these as well. Or, I would, if I could ever get my hands on any that actually work. :P The wires and solder points are so thin and fragile that they crimp and break easily and they're a major hassle to fix.

 

I have a few Channel F systems and I like the controllers. A dedicated "trigger" button like the Video Commands have would really help, though.

 

(Fun fact: Zircon also released the Video Command for the Channel F System II as the "Jet-Stick." :) )

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  • 2 weeks later...

Bump. Four hours left. Good luck Jin. ;-)

 

I see Jin has relisted it. And honestly, it is Very worth that price! (starting @ $150).

 

I would have made one very similar if I didn't already have a HORI Real Arcade Pro...I prefer a ball top joystick like old arcade games and I like arcade buttons...But what you guys have done more closely mimics an Atari joystick, but with arcade parts,...Respect!

 

And he has a bid!

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Bump. Four hours left. Good luck Jin. ;-)

I see Jin has relisted it. And honestly, it is Very worth that price! (starting @ $150).

 

I would have made one very similar if I didn't already have a HORI Real Arcade Pro...I prefer a ball top joystick like old arcade games and I like arcade buttons...But what you guys have done more closely mimics an Atari joystick, but with arcade parts,...Respect!

 

And he has a bid!

Current auction link: http://www.ebay.com/itm/112212346288

 

Thanks again for the positive press guys! It really did come out beautifully and I'll be very happy if it sells to an AtariAge member. It does have a bid so I know it will sell this time around, but whether it'll stay in the AtariAge community or find a new home elsewhere is yet to be seen. I still love how it came out, and honestly if it hadn't ended up being too big and heavy for my wife to use comfortably I don't think I'd be selling it. But alas, it is what it is and I just wouldn't feel right about keeping something that fancy and expensive that she couldn't use too. The things we do for love.

 

On the upside, it was a learning experience that saved her a ton of money on the Hori Real Arcade Pro 1 for the original PlayStation that she was planning on buying for her PS1 collection. Since this Atari 2600 stick's housing is the same case design used by the Hori Real Arcade Pro 1 & 2 it was a much less expensive way to discover that a Real Arcade Pro stick would be too big and heavy for liking, before she dropped $300 or $400 on one.

 

Anyway, it'll all work out alright in the end. We'll be putting the money from the sale of this Atari 2600 arcade stick towards the purchase of an Atari 7800 ProSystem and some games for it, and we have already pooled our money together and ordered a customized Edladdin Super Twin 78 to go with the new system. So the Atari 2600 stick will find a new home with someone who can put it to good use and we'll be using the money to buy some new Atari stuff that we can both enjoy. :)

Edited by Jin
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Current auction link: http://www.ebay.com/itm/112212346288

 

Thanks again for the positive press guys! It really did come out beautifully and I'll be very happy if it sells to an AtariAge member. It does have a bid so I know it will sell this time around, but whether it'll stay in the AtariAge community or find a new home elsewhere is yet to be seen. I still love how it came out, and honestly if it hadn't ended up being too big and heavy for my wife to use comfortably I don't think I'd be selling it. But alas, it is what it is and I just wouldn't feel right about keeping something that fancy and expensive that she couldn't use too. The things we do for love.

 

On the upside, it was a learning experience that saved her a ton of money on the Hori Real Arcade Pro 1 for the original PlayStation that she was planning on buying for her PS1 collection. Since this Atari 2600 stick's housing is the same case design used by the Hori Real Arcade Pro 1 & 2 it was a much less expensive way to discover that a Real Arcade Pro stick would be too big and heavy for liking, before she dropped $300 or $400 on one.

 

Anyway, it'll all work out alright in the end. We'll be putting the money from the sale of this Atari 2600 arcade stick towards the purchase of an Atari 7800 ProSystem and some games for it, and we have already pooled our money together and ordered a customized Edladdin Super Twin 78 to go with the new system. So the Atari 2600 stick will find a new home with someone who can put it to good use and we'll be using the money to buy some new Atari stuff that we can both enjoy. :)

 

No prob!

 

What I sometimes do is put a "laptop" joystick like the HORI or an X-Arcade etc. on a small stack of milk crates right in front of me sitting on the couch and that can work pretty well...

 

I may send ya PM Jin...I have some 7800 games I was planning on ebaying...And lately I've been thinking about selling some games but giving some AtariAge members first crack at them...

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I converted a couple of NES controllers to 2600/7800 controllers, and that's perfect. Sega Genesis controllers work good too, though I prefer Nintendo's D-pad and buttons to Sega's. I think joysticks are the ultimate form of video game control, but only if they are actual arcade joysticks mounted in something that doesn't move (such as the control panel of a 300 lb. arcade machine). I don't like handheld joysticks at all.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I converted a couple of NES controllers to 2600/7800 controllers, and that's perfect. Sega Genesis controllers work good too, though I prefer Nintendo's D-pad and buttons to Sega's. I think joysticks are the ultimate form of video game control, but only if they are actual arcade joysticks mounted in something that doesn't move (such as the control panel of a 300 lb. arcade machine). I don't like handheld joysticks at all.

I haven't weighed it, but I would hardly consider it handheld. A lap held or tabletop joystick is almost as good as an arcade cab. The more weight you add, the more stable the joystick. But I agree, most joysticks you hold in the palm of your hand suck for what they're worth.

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It arrived a few days ago and I finally had a chance to inspect it. I made a couple minor adjustments to the joystick. Firstly, I took off the aluminum sleeve on the joystick because it was scraping the edges of the very narrow hole in the steel control panel. That's not ideal. The restrictor gate is the only place where the shaft should contact anything, and while the stick as it was shipped had decent movement, I could feel a slight scraping, and it would have eventually worn a deep groove into the sleeve.

 

post-33189-0-32306100-1481343062_thumb.jpg

 

Next I upgraded the Paradise Arcade circle gate with a Toodles blue circle gate. This part have the same matte finish like the official Sanwa gates but more importantly is super smooth. The Paradise circle, due to cheaper construction, have mold release defects that can sometimes be felt as four dimples along the otherwise smooth plane. I'm also going to add a stiffer spring to the stick and possibly a black annodized aluminum bat top (while I normally prefer ball-tops, I'm digging the way the bat handle looks on this custom stick).

 

post-33189-0-95636600-1481343078_thumb.jpg

 

The stiffer spring will be necessary with the Sanwa joystick extension I added because it put the center of gravity further up creating a slight rebound effect. I don't mind a hefty feeling stick with my large man hands (and totally understand Jin's reasoning for choosing a lighter weight spring). Finally GroovyGameGear offers acrylic dustwasher upgrades on most of their sticks, or you can buy them individually here. I actually removed the black acrylic dustwasher off my Raspberry Pi MAME cab and installed it on the Atari 2600 Prosystem joystick. The match is absolutely perfect. I captured this without flash to showcase the mirror-like reflection in the acrylic. Notice the Peanuts / Charlie Brown tree visible in the reflection.

 

post-33189-0-20167900-1481343091_thumb.jpg

 

Finally you were right Jin about the Fight stick being a pain to open. There are a total 8 Phillips screws on the bottom, then you flip it over and there are little hex nuts which require a 9/32" socket wrench to access. These hex nuts screw onto the bottom of the six silver colored rivets seen on the top panel. I had some loose sockets laying around from an old socket wrench set that did the trick but lost most of the pieces back in the day, and had to improvise by using a Flathead screwdriver in the square socket hole.

 

Besides some minor tweaks and enhancements, the stick is absolutely amazing. Jin should be proud it went to a good home! :grin: :thumbsup:

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It's hardly handheld.

 

What are you talking about? What does the word "it" refer to in your sentence? I said I don't like handheld joysticks, a typical example being the standard Atari 2600 joystick, and there were plenty of others as well. And regardless of your assertion that "It's (?) hardly handheld", handheld joysticks were in fact handheld.

 

 

 

A lap held or tabletop joystick is almost as good as an arcade cab.

 

They are way better than a handheld joystick, but what does that have to do with anything?

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Right now my 2 favorites are the Zircon Video Command and the Prostick II.

 

Years ago I had multiple Prosticks NIB and like an idiot I sold them. They are very difficult to come by now. I wish I had at least one more in good shape for player 2, but for now player 2 has to settle for a Wico or a TAC-2.

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What are you talking about? What does the word "it" refer to in your sentence?

"It" refers to the custom "Atari 2600 Prosystem" I purchased from Jin, which I showed off in the following post. It's built like a tank.

 

I do agree with you though: the CX-40 and most bitd commercial "handheld" joystick solutions were rubbish. If they weren't rubbish, threads like this would never get started in the first place. A laptop or tabletop with real arcade parts makes a wonderful compromise between arcade and home console setting.

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The custom "Atari 2600 Prosystem" I purchased from Jin, which I showed off in the next post.

 

I was replying with regard to the thread topic, not with regard to your tabletop/laptop joystick. Ones built with real arcade controls are the next best thing to having the controls mounted in an arcade machine, if you don't mind the bulk/weight. They are especially good for games which require rapid button tapping.

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  • 5 weeks later...

I like to have a few different options. For games with 8 directions of motion I tend to use the Genesis controller. For games where you move either left or right, I like a master system controller. Maze games seem to work best with a joystick, and I like the flashback joystick for those. I will use the joystick for any game if I'm in the mood for the classic feel. My approach is to have lots of options and to choose the most comfortable one for the specific game.

 

Has anyone tried the A77 joystick from CirKa? I'd like to check it out at some point. I'd like to have something between the stiffness of the original joysticks and the looseness of the flashback ones, and I'm wondering if this one might deliver that.

post-48340-0-20959500-1483906886_thumb.jpg

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  • 2 weeks later...

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