VCS's worst feature: Bluetooth 4.0 (but chip supports 5.0... can it be upgraded?)

[PaulXMann]

Last night I fired up my VCS for only the second time since I bought it last week, and attempted to pair my Bluetooth controllers... I couldn't get them to stay connected to save my life. I have three official Atari controllers, and I also tried two, different Bluetooth controllers. They all connected, but then lost the connection about 10-feet from the console. It was beyond frustrating trying to play Centipede (or anything). I have the latest bios, the latest firmware updates, and the latest controller updates. I even turned off WiFi (used Ethernet) to avoid interference. I even placed the VCS about 4-feet off the floor to give it a clear range. Pathetic. I finally settled on playing via USB cable, which didn't work well at all. 

 

All of which to say, I investigated the Bluetooth chip used in the VCS, and it appears to have "Bluetooth 5.0" capability. However, the VCS is rated to have Bluetooth 4.0. That's significant, because Bluetooth 5.0 has a range of up to 800-feet, whereas Bluetooth 4.0 maxes out at a paltry 33-feet (on a good day, apparently). So, my question is... would it be possible for Atari to release an update that enables this chip's Bluetooth 5.0 ability, or is it limited in some other way by the motherboard or other hardware? The chip itself seems ready to go, so I can't figure out why they'd hobble this capability and stick us with this crappy controller range. 

 

Any of your more technically-minded folks have any ideas on whether a 5.0 upgrade could be possible?  

[tripled79]

If your controllers aren't working well when USB wired, I'd say you have bigger problems than the Bluetooth capability. Anyway, I can't offer much help here other than my controllers seem to work fine, so it seems like a weird issue. Have you contacted Atari for support?

[PaulXMann]

LOL, no, the USB wired connection worked fine. My apologies for the confusion... I was just trying to say that using a cord wasn't an ideal scenario for me as an alternative to wireless controllers (I had to sit next to the console, which is well away from my TV because I use a projector, so the console sits closer to the projector toward the back of the room). 

 

So, back on topic, this is more a question about whether the Realtek card can be made to run in Bluetooth 5.0 since it seems physically capable. That is, could Atari issue some kind of update to enable that functionality? Reading through this forum and others, I know I'm not the only one with Bluetooth headaches. 

[justclaws]

On 10/3/2021 at 5:19 AM, PaulXMann said:

LOL, no, the USB wired connection worked fine. My apologies for the confusion... I was just trying to say that using a cord wasn't an ideal scenario for me as an alternative to wireless controllers (I had to sit next to the console, which is well away from my TV because I use a projector, so the console sits closer to the projector toward the back of the room). 

 

So, back on topic, this is more a question about whether the Realtek card can be made to run in Bluetooth 5.0 since it seems physically capable. That is, could Atari issue some kind of update to enable that functionality? Reading through this forum and others, I know I'm not the only one with Bluetooth headaches. 

If there is a driver upgrade which supports Bluetooth 5.0, I don't see any reason why it could not be upgraded.
I see that the chipset supports Bluetooth 4.2, and I'm sceptical of 5.0, as it's not listed on the Realtek website.
https://www.realtek.com/en/
Linux does not at this time widely support Bluetooth 5 adapters, but if a driver comes along, I think it can work.

Realtek does not provide Linux drivers itself, and the Ubuntu WIFI support for the board has also been a problem,
not just on the VCS, but on any system using that driver, because there was a bug; the fix is not on all distros.

[PaulXMann]

Interesting. I hadn't thought about the Linux driver aspect. But honestly, even if it was just 4.2, that would still be a worthwhile upgrade: 

 

Quote

Compared to previous versions, BLE 4.2 enables 250% faster and more reliable over-the-air data transmission and 10x more packet capacity.

 

[Mockduck]

I think I might agree that weak Bluetooth is currently the VCS' worst feature. I'd say it would be poor 4k performance, but the VCS looks and plays great in 1080p even on a 4k TV, and slow connecting of joysticks is a hassle.

[PaulXMann]

Yeah, even with the 3,200MHz, 16GB RAM upgrade I installed, the 4K "capabilities" just aren't there... as soon as I switched to 1080p, everything became noticeably faster and more responsive. And you're right... I can't even say I noticed any difference in how things looked (which is saying something, considering I play on a 105" screen). Hopefully a future driver update or something will address that.

 

In the meantime, Bluetooth is just a bummer. A quick search reveals a lot of complaints about it, so I hope they work on addressing it with a firmware update or something. 

[adamchevy]

I don’t own a New VCS , but why not just switch it out with one of these? I swapped one on a recent Alienware build and it worked great.

[PaulXMann]

13 minutes ago, adamchevy said:

I don’t own a New VCS , but why not just switch it out with one of these? I swapped one on a recent Alienware build and it worked great.

Drivers? I'm not sure the Atari OS (Linux) would have support. It's a fair question, though, and half the reason for my post... I'm not sure what's involved in either getting more out of the current card (i.e., 4.2) or a possible card swap. 

[Atari_JaguarVCS]

I used to have issues with my VCS controllers connecting via Bluetooth back in January this year! A few firmware and bios updates later and I’ve not experienced any real issues with getting the controllers to connect and stay connected via Bluetooth, I can game at more than 10 ft away from the console, I will say I have had a few instances where the controllers will lag when connected wirelessly especially in the new Centipede if I leave the game paused for a while and return the input lag makes the game unplayable and I need to restart, not sure if it’s to do with the Bluetooth in the VCS or a bug in the game. I think it would be great if the Bluetooth could be upgraded in the VCS though I’d probably be interested in upgrading myself to test, it does seem to be a common problem with the console that should be a main priority for Atari to fix, sometimes it’s not always ideal having to play wired depending on your set up etc. 

[PaulXMann]

I'd love to see/hear of anyone testing out other options (i.e., different cards). Bluetooth is the only viable means for me to use the system, at the moment.

[PaulXMann]

Two potential updates on this from the OS update changlelog (from the AtariVCS Discord):

 

• Base OS update and integration of new Linux kernel with various GPU & Wifi bug fixes and Vulkan support
• Integration of firmware for specific Intel Wireless cards 

 

A new linux kernel gives me hope for some of these issues to be sorted out (and/or, perhaps we'll be able to switch to a more well-supported Intel card if the specific models are disclosed).

Change list Aug 30, 2021.docx

Edited October 15, 2021 by PaulXMann
Edited for typo; added change list