CincYnoTi Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 I put this up on ebay today, not really sure if it is a final production version or what. Then I noticed on the screen shot that I took there is something I didn't recognize that made me start to wonder if it's NOT the final version. The second screen shows Atari Corporation, authorized user Any thoughts on whether this is a final version or some near-finished WIP? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Mitch Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 Some dude sold a bunch of those on ebay about ten years ago. I have one as well. It is just the ROM chip stuck in a ZIF socket. Mitch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 Yep I have one of those still as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CincYnoTi Posted January 6, 2020 Author Share Posted January 6, 2020 So that "authorized user" shows up on the released cartridge too? Sorry, I never really played Ballblazer before and don't have one handy to compare. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trebor Posted January 6, 2020 Share Posted January 6, 2020 8 hours ago, CincYnoTi said: So that "authorized user" shows up on the released cartridge too? Yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CincYnoTi Posted January 9, 2020 Author Share Posted January 9, 2020 On 1/5/2020 at 10:59 PM, Tempest said: Yep I have one of those still as well. Did any of the eproms that were sold with that zif board have any games on them? I've tried them all and... nothing. I don't even know if they are 7800 or 2600 eproms or something else. Only the Ballblazer chip works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted January 9, 2020 Share Posted January 9, 2020 8 minutes ago, CincYnoTi said: Did any of the eproms that were sold with that zif board have any games on them? I've tried them all and... nothing. I don't even know if they are 7800 or 2600 eproms or something else. Only the Ballblazer chip works. No, they were all junk data IIRC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted January 20, 2021 Share Posted January 20, 2021 So is this just a standard Ballblazer board with a ZIF socket stuck on it? Nothing special? I'm thinking about harvesting the Pokey from mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CPUWIZ Posted January 20, 2021 Share Posted January 20, 2021 The board doesn't even work with EPROM's, the way it is. You could take a Ballblazer, remove the ROM, put in a ZIF socket and you'd have the same thing. Back in the day, I thought these were protos too, but they are not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Mitch Posted January 20, 2021 Share Posted January 20, 2021 As far as I have been able to tell, they are just standard Ballblazer carts with the Rom in a zif socket. Not sure why they originally were called protos. Mitch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted January 20, 2021 Share Posted January 20, 2021 That's what I wanted to know. Pokey chip here I come! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted January 20, 2021 Share Posted January 20, 2021 Huh, I just noticed mine says Atari 7800 Pokey Cart Rev at the top of the board where the one in the picture doesn't. I guess there are variations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 And... it's dead. I thought I had all the pins freed when I tried to force it out and ended up snapping several off. Oh well, guess I'm in the market for a pokey now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Mitch Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 As long as there is part of the pin still on there you can solder the clipped off end of a resistor or capacitor on to it and it will work fine. I have done that a few times. A prosthetic Pokey pin. Mitch 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 4 minutes ago, Mitch said: As long as there is part of the pin still on there you can solder the clipped off end of a resistor or capacitor on to it and it will work fine. I have done that a few times. A prosthetic Pokey pin. Mitch I think that's beyond my skill. Maybe I can send it to someone to try and save? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Mitch Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 Got a pic of the damage? Could probably tell if it is salvageable from that. Mitch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 6 hours ago, Mitch said: Got a pic of the damage? Could probably tell if it is salvageable from that. Mitch It's not pretty... The other side is still all intact (at the moment). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Mitch Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 That is definitely repairable. Do you have anyone local that can help you out with it? Mitch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 1 hour ago, Mitch said: That is definitely repairable. Do you have anyone local that can help you out with it? Mitch ClausB is close to me, maybe he can help me save this. Otherwise I can send it out to someone. so your repair idea is to solder small wire bits to the pins? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Mitch Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 Not actual wire. When you install a new resistor or capacitor it always has longer leads than you actually need. After you solder the part in, you clip off the excess lead. Those extra clippings generally work well to fix chip legs. You just have to make sure you use ones that are thick enough not to bend too easily. Mitch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CPUWIZ Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 Best way to do that, is to insert the chip first and slide in the resistor legs from the bottom (solder side) of the board. EDIT: Do this on a perfboard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 On 1/21/2021 at 8:18 AM, Tempest said: It's not pretty... The other side is still all intact (at the moment). Easy save there. Hell it might actually work as is cause of the whippers height on the socket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CPUWIZ Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 Also noteworthy to point out, not all pins are needed for the POKEY, check the pinout. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CPUWIZ Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 Here is a tip for people who do not have a proper de-soldering iron. This is for SMD removal, but the alloy is the key and works just as well on DIP. https://www.adafruit.com/product/2660 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 8 minutes ago, CPUWIZ said: Also noteworthy to point out, not all pins are needed for the POKEY, check the pinout. They all look used to me. I'm not sure which ones the 7800 needs just for sound. http://mixinc.net/atari/pinouts/pokey.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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