amstrudy Posted March 11, 2018 Share Posted March 11, 2018 Someone gave me 5-6 boxes full of ataris, intellivisions, colecovisions, and two TI 99/4As (one still in its original box). Ive never played with these before since I didnt grow up with them, but I was eager to try it! One TI works beautifully, and the other has jumbled letters. Ill attach some photos, but does anyone know what may cause this issue? Thanks again! This seems like a cool forum. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mizapf Posted March 11, 2018 Share Posted March 11, 2018 (edited) https://www.ninerpedia.org/wiki/Troubleshooting Edit: Not contained in that list ... but maybe another combination of failed VRAM Hmmm. How do you get from TEXAS INSTRUMENTS HOME COMPUTER to TGXAQ ILQTPWOELTQ HOUE ADMPWTGP Edited March 11, 2018 by mizapf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amstrudy Posted March 11, 2018 Author Share Posted March 11, 2018 Thanks for the link! From my searches on the internet I figured it was a RAM problem. In that wiki article, none of he pictured examples match my symptoms exactly. I think I’ll open up the machine and check for damage or corrosion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+arcadeshopper Posted March 11, 2018 Share Posted March 11, 2018 Thanks for the link! From my searches on the internet I figured it was a RAM problem. In that wiki article, none of he pictured examples match my symptoms exactly. I think I’ll open up the machine and check for damage or corrosion. yeah this the notorious bad 4116 dram problem, they are the most prone to failure if it were me i'd replace them all with 4164's (there's a thread here on how to do that, requires some modifications of the 4164 chips but works great, less power and less heat) and or installing a f18a VDP replacement gets you new ram and vga out they are currently being manufactured for another run not sure what the eta is.. Greg 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rickneff68 Posted March 11, 2018 Share Posted March 11, 2018 I've done the DRAM replacement before and it's pretty straightforward, if you are interested in messing with the hardware. However, I would recommend the F18A instead as it is a very useful upgrade. As mentioned though, they aren't available right now, but I would recommend getting on the waiting list. See: http://codehackcreate.com/store#!/F18A-V1-5-Video-Board/p/14022176/category=0 (I'm waiting on a couple myself.) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+OLD CS1 Posted March 11, 2018 Share Posted March 11, 2018 https://www.ninerpedia.org/wiki/Troubleshooting Edit: Not contained in that list ... but maybe another combination of failed VRAM Hmmm. How do you get from TEXAS INSTRUMENTS HOME COMPUTER to TGXAQ ILQTPWOELTQ HOUE ADMPWTGP Bit 1 flipping. Not an error I have ever seen as usually I deal with stuck bits. Even better, it is inconsistent as "E" does not always change to "G", but look at the bottom line: that bad console is a v2.2 ("T0,0"). 01000101 E 01000111 G 01000011 S 01000001 Q 01001100 L 01001110 N 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digdugnate Posted March 11, 2018 Share Posted March 11, 2018 welcome! we have a TON of information at http://atariage.com/forums/topic/267055-new-to-the-group-ti-994a-faq-hardware-and-software-resources-read-first/if you get bored and would like to read more about the wacky 994A. my wife bought me a 994A about a year ago and boy does she probably regret it now 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ksarul Posted March 11, 2018 Share Posted March 11, 2018 One note on the machine with the garbled text. As that is most likely a V2.2 console, it won't run most 3rd party cartridges (ROM only stuff). It will run cartridges sold by Texas Instruments and Parker Brothers. This is a "feature" introduced by the 2.2 ROMs. Some folks want those consoles, others despise them. There are ways around the problem, but most of those are no longer readily available (GROM Busters from CorComp or Navarone). Welcome to the community! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Opry99er Posted March 11, 2018 Share Posted March 11, 2018 Another note, the MicroPal XB cartridge is somewhat rare... Welcome to the forum!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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