Atari 800 Interference?

[conda]

I have an Atari 800 hooked up and after a while some while snow appears on the screen and scrolls upward. I remember way back when my old 800 did this. Does anyone know exactly what it is and what causes it?

[ApolloBoy]

It might be your switchbox. Use an RCA-to-75 ohm connector instead. Also, be sure to check the 800's RF cord for frays.

[conda]

I don't use switchboxes. The cords seem ok. It is really weird. It will show up for a while, then go away, then come back.

[Nukey Shay]

Outside interference.

 

Since you have an 800, it has a monitor output. Hook the 5-pin DIN cord to the TV's A/V plugs or use a VCR. That will eliminate RF interference.

[conda]

Outside interference.

 

Since you have an 800, it has a monitor output.  Hook the 5-pin DIN cord to the TV's A/V plugs or use a VCR.  That will eliminate RF interference.

I'll try that thanks.

 

Will any DIN plug do? I guess Radio Shack would have something like that .

[bjk7382]

I made a "monitor" cable out of a cheap ibm keyboard cable and it gets some "wavy line" interference every once in a while. I am planning on making a better one out of a better quality cable.

[avocado]

Does someone have a pinout for the 800's monitor port?

[mimo]

Monitor Jack (all but 400, N. American 600XL, XE Game System, SECAM
systems):
3	   1
5	 4
2
1. Composite Luminance (Composite Video on 600XL)
2. Ground
3. Audio Output
4. Composite Video
5. Composite Chroma (not on 800XL(most),1200XL; grounded on 600XL)

from the faq

http://www.faqs.org/faqs/atari-8-bit/faq/

[Urchlay]

Does anyone sell nice pre-made, shielded cables that break out all the 5-pin DIN signals to RCA connectors, or maybe RCA for audio/composite and an s-video connector for chroma/luma?

 

I've made quite a few of these, but I don't know a good way to avoid having lumps of tape or heatshrink tubing that look like crap and eventually become loose connections...

 

BTW, the IBM AT style keyboard connector can only be used for a composite video cable, not s-video. I checked 2 or 3 old keyboards, and they were all missing the same pin (can't remember which now, either the chroma or luma). I did find an AT-to-PS/2 keyboard adaptor that had all 5 pins, and made a decent cable from it.

[Bryan]

Does anyone sell nice pre-made, shielded cables that break out all the 5-pin DIN signals to RCA connectors, or maybe RCA for audio/composite and an s-video connector for chroma/luma?

 

I've made quite a few of these, but I don't know a good way to avoid having lumps of tape or heatshrink tubing that look like crap and eventually become loose connections...

 

BTW, the IBM AT style keyboard connector can only be used for a composite video cable, not s-video. I checked 2 or 3 old keyboards, and they were all missing the same pin (can't remember which now, either the chroma or luma). I did find an AT-to-PS/2 keyboard adaptor that had all 5 pins, and made a decent cable from it.

 

I found this company:

 

http://www.vintagecomputercables.com/index.html

 

I've always used the Commodore DIN to 4-RCA monitor cables. The Atari signals are in a different arrangement than the C= ones, however. One reason to use a pre-made cable is that you get proper 75-ohm coax connections. Using a different wire can lead to blurry or ghosted images.

[puppetmark]

Does anyone sell nice pre-made, shielded cables that break out all the 5-pin DIN signals to RCA connectors, or maybe RCA for audio/composite and an s-video connector for chroma/luma?

 

I've made quite a few of these, but I don't know a good way to avoid having lumps of tape or heatshrink tubing that look like crap and eventually become loose connections...

 

BTW, the IBM AT style keyboard connector can only be used for a composite video cable, not s-video. I checked 2 or 3 old keyboards, and they were all missing the same pin (can't remember which now, either the chroma or luma). I did find an AT-to-PS/2 keyboard adaptor that had all 5 pins, and made a decent cable from it.

 

I found this company:

 

http://www.vintagecomputercables.com/index.html

 

I've always used the Commodore DIN to 4-RCA monitor cables. The Atari signals are in a different arrangement than the C= ones, however. One reason to use a pre-made cable is that you get proper 75-ohm coax connections. Using a different wire can lead to blurry or ghosted images.

 

 

you might want to look at the Cable instructions I posted a while back. The cable is made from a radio Shack PLaystation 2 Av cable. I have made a couple of these and I get no interference. All you have to do is cut off the playstation end and solder the wires to a 5 pin DIN.

 

http://www.atariage.com/forums/index.php?s...mp;hl=A/V+Cable

[ethierbach]

Does anyone sell nice pre-made, shielded cables that break out all the 5-pin DIN signals to RCA connectors, or maybe RCA for audio/composite and an s-video connector for chroma/luma?

I recently bought one on eBay from Dean Garraghty:

 

http://www.dgs.clara.net/

 

It was only around $3 US for the mono version, and shipping from the UK to the US was very reasonable. Got here in a week, and it seems well-made and it works well. My 2 Ataris should work so well but I have a good one arriving today. (Thanks, SpicyChronos!)

 

Oh, BTW, hi everyone. Guess I should post an intro...

 

-Ed-

[a8isa1]

Does anyone sell nice pre-made, shielded cables that break out all the 5-pin DIN signals to RCA connectors, or maybe RCA for audio/composite and an s-video connector for chroma/luma?

 

I've made quite a few of these, but I don't know a good way to avoid having lumps of tape or heatshrink tubing that look like crap and eventually become loose connections...

 

BTW, the IBM AT style keyboard connector can only be used for a composite video cable, not s-video. I checked 2 or 3 old keyboards, and they were all missing the same pin (can't remember which now, either the chroma or luma). I did find an AT-to-PS/2 keyboard adaptor that had all 5 pins, and made a decent cable from it.

A8Maestro has a couple DIN to Svideo + Audio cables and a video breakout box or cable called A/V Bob.

 

Link

http://www.a8maestro.com/sites/mtgcat/proda8/a8-t1.htm

 

- Steve

[Urchlay]

A8Maestro has a couple DIN to Svideo + Audio cables and a video breakout box or cable called A/V Bob.

 

Link

http://www.a8maestro.com/sites/mtgcat/proda8/a8-t1.htm

 

Yup, that's pretty much what I was looking for.