Any chance for an Atari 2600/5200/7800 FPGA console?

[WaverBoy]

Has anyone heard any rumblings about a proper FPGA console for the three classic Atari consoles? We’ve got them for all the other beloved classic consoles, but for Atari we’re still dealing with often dodgy clones based on emulation (although the RetroN 77 does appear to be much better than the norm for these things). Oh what I wouldn’t give for a nice Analogue Stella Deluxe which has cores for the 2600, 5200 and 7800, with two cartridge slots (I’m presuming the 2600 and 7800 carts can share a slot), all needed toggle switches for 2600 purposes, and lovely matching 2.4GHz wireless joysticks and paddle controllers from 8BitDo, and wireless 2.4GHz 5200 controllers perhaps along the lines of this awesome design:

 

 

[WaverBoy]

(I dearly hope there’s another run for those 5200 controllers!)

[Jstick]

MiSTer has very good Atari 8-bit/5200 cores, and a serviceable 2600 core (that is lacking in compatibility).  There is a 7800 and (new) 2600 core being worked on by one of the devs.  MiSTer will accept pretty much any wired/wireless controller that exists, with the right adapter.

[+save2600]

Looks nice, but what's up with the fire button spacing?    
 

[WaverBoy]

1 hour ago, Jstick said:

MiSTer has very good Atari 8-bit/5200 cores, and a serviceable 2600 core (that is lacking in compatibility).  There is a 7800 and (new) 2600 core being worked on by one of the devs.  MiSTer will accept pretty much any wired/wireless controller that exists, with the right adapter.

If I could buy one already put together in a box, then we’d have something. But I’d still prefer a dedicated Atari machine along the lines of the AVS and Mega SG, styled as an homage to the original VCS woodgrain console.

[WaverBoy]

1 hour ago, save2600 said:

Looks nice, but what's up with the fire button spacing?    
 

Not sure — it does look a little funky but I’m sure it would play fine

[Jstick]

7 hours ago, WaverBoy said:

If I could buy one already put together in a box, then we’d have something.

You can  

 

https://misteraddons.com/

 

He’s got a nice new custom aluminum case coming soon too.

 

Also, heres another case in development that is probably closer to what you are looking for (prototype is laser printed but final will be metal)

 

 

[WaverBoy]

1 hour ago, Jstick said:

You can  

 

https://misteraddons.com/

 

He’s got a nice new custom aluminum case coming soon too.

 

Also, heres another case in development that is probably closer to what you are looking for (prototype is laser printed but final will be metal)

 

 

That woodgrain one is pretty sexy! Thanks!!!

[xkenx]

There is always CollectorVision, Phoenix fpga console. CollectorVision will soon release an adapter for playing Atari 2600 cartridges.

Hopefully will it be able to play homebrew games with arm chip, like Champ games Galagon.

[hizzy]

19 hours ago, Jstick said:

You can  

 

https://misteraddons.com/

 

He’s got a nice new custom aluminum case coming soon too.

 

Also, heres another case in development that is probably closer to what you are looking for (prototype is laser printed but final will be metal)

 

 

Will it have a cartridge slot? I would like a console like the one MJR has 

 

 

[WaverBoy]

1 hour ago, xkenx said:

There is always CollectorVision, Phoenix fpga console. CollectorVision will soon release an adapter for playing Atari 2600 cartridges.

Hopefully will it be able to play homebrew games with arm chip, like Champ games Galagon.

Hadn’t heard of that — just looked it up and it looks exactly like what I’ve been looking for, once the Atari 2600 expansion module is available. I’m assuming/hoping that all OEM Atari controllers will work with it? And, I really hope 8BitDo blesses us with 2.4GHz wireless Atari 2600 controllers. I love the basic all-in-one design of the Hyperkin Ranger gamepads; if only they were WIRELESS!

[eightbitwhit]

 

On 6/9/2020 at 8:14 PM, Jstick said:

You can  

 

https://misteraddons.com/

 

He’s got a nice new custom aluminum case coming soon too.

 

Also, heres another case in development that is probably closer to what you are looking for (prototype is laser printed but final will be metal)

 

 

 

Do you have any details on that woodgrain case?  I looked at the MisterAddons site and didn't see it, so it must be 3rd-party I suppose.  I'd definitely consider this case once it is finished, and I'd like to at least find a website for it, etc. to track progress.

 

Thank you.

 

 

[+Karl G]

Unfortunately the Atari support for the collectorvision has some issues that were seen when @ZeroPage Homebrew tried it out. At a guess, it is due to not supporting early HMOVEs correctly, which is a problem with a number of emulators and other hardware implementations. 

[Jstick]

2 hours ago, eightbitwhit said:

Do you have any details on that woodgrain case?  I looked at the MisterAddons site and didn't see it, so it must be 3rd-party I suppose.  I'd definitely consider this case once it is finished, and I'd like to at least find a website for it, etc. to track progress.

 

It is being created by "Mickguyver", creator of the open source Daemonbite low-latency game controller to USB adaptors.  I found the info on the Classic Gaming discord, where he posts updates in the MiSTer chat.  Website is here (nothing on the case as of yet): https://www.daemonbite.com/shop/

 

20 hours ago, hizzy said:

Will it have a cartridge slot?

It is unlikely that MiSTer will ever support physical carts, due to the sheer number of systems it replicates

Edited June 11, 2020 by Jstick

[WaverBoy]

2 hours ago, Karl G said:

Unfortunately the Atari support for the collectorvision has some issues that were seen when @ZeroPage Homebrew tried it out. At a guess, it is due to not supporting early HMOVEs correctly, which is a problem with a number of emulators and other hardware implementations. 

Bummer — I hope they can work the bugs out eventually!

[WaverBoy]

I think I’m going to concentrate on upgrading my other old game consoles to HD first, and then by the time I come back ‘round to the Atari VCS perhaps we’ll finally have a near-perfect solution, like the RetroUSB AVS, Analogue Super NT, and Analogue Mega SG.

[orange808]

Ignoring the limited market demand that probably dooms a commercial project from the beginning:

 

A frame buffer is an unacceptable deal breaker for me in a hardware replacement.  That's weak.

 

What if Analogue showed up saying, "Only one full complete frame of lag, because (ya know) fixing that would be really hard to do!"  ??  :)

 

Well... I'll tell you what if...

 

*Crickets chirping* --and a stack of unloved FPGA's piled up in a corner somewhere--waiting to be sold at a deep discount or buried in a desert landfill.

 

I have no idea how it could be done, anyhow.  Digital is much more rigid than analog. 

 

Even if you did solve it, how would you support it?  Customers would complain that "Game X" doesn't work on my TV in "zero lag" mode--because there's no telling what kind of crazy signal the VCS is going to send down the wire.

 

As for MiSTer, it's nice as a bonus feature on an otherwise nice machine.  It's not a hardware replacement.  That frame of lag isn't supposed to be there.  That's not good enough.