The AtariVox is a bulky design that can be tough to get in the second controller slot Atari 7800, but fits in no problem on the 2600 wood grain models and Jr. It does save high score for games that support it. For the voice to work you will have to hook it up on a speaker or a headset. In this case I use the Flips headset which works well testing it with the Time Salvo cartridge I purchased with the AtariVox Accessory. I will try to get future homebrews down the line like Wizard of Wor Arcade, Gorf, Dungeon Stalker and a few others. I don't have the Vectrex to use this accessory since that system with the games are getting more expensive each year passing by.
It does take up the player two slot so if you want to play a game with a friend you will have to remove the AtariVox from the second slot or if you have a game with a Quadtari support with AtariVox like Wizard of Wor Arcade and Galagon you'll get to save highscores with a friend no problem. AtariVox is a good accessory but not a perfect design that can cause some hiccups along the way. Plan accordingly if you want to invest in the Atarivox for the 2600/7800 systems. If you only care about saving highscores for the homebrew games you purchase, just go with the Savekey instead to save you the trouble at a cheaper price.
Speech Synthesis for your Atari 2600 and Vectrex!
The AtariVox+ is a self-contained speech/music synthesizer and memory card for the Atari 2600 and 7800, Vectrex, and other video game consoles with compatible controller ports.
The heart of the unit is the SpeakJet--an amazing chip with phonetic speech, preset sounds and a five channel music synthesizer. All of these are controlled by the console via a serial interface emulated through the driver software.
Similar to chips used in 80s speech synthesizers but with extended capabilities, the speech retains a nice retro quality, making it a perfect partner for classic consoles.
Also onboard the AtariVox+ is 32K of non-volatile memory which can be used as a memory card. The flash memory will retain data without power for 200+ years.
An allocation scheme has been devised so that no file is ever overwritten, allowing many different games to store data on just one unit.
Dip Switch Settings
The AtariVox+ contains a bank of dip switches that allow you to select which mode the AtariVox+ will operate in:
- AtariVox - for the Atari 2600 and 7800 (default setting)
- VecVoice - for compatibility with earlier Vectrex speech synthesis - mainly for the speech-hacked version of Berzerk (Verzerk) and Y.A.S.I.
- VecVox - for the Vectrex.
AtariVox+ Supported Games
Atari 2600:
- Aardvark
- Amoeba Jump
- Anguna
- Assembloids 2600
- AStar
- Avalanche
- Boulder Dash
- Drive!
- Duck Attack
- Elevators Amiss
- Fall Down
- Galagon
- Go Fish!
- Gorf Arcade
- Grizzards
- Juno First
- Lady Bug Arcade
- Lead
- Lode Runner
- Mappy
- Omicron
- QYX
- Robot City
- RobotWar:2684
- rubyQ
- Scramble
- Space Game
- Strat-O-Gems Deluxe
- Stratovox
- Super Cobra Arcade
- Sync
- Three.s
- Thrust+ Platinum
- Tower of Rubble
- Venture Reloaded
- VROOM!
- Wall Jump Ninja
- Wizard of Wor Arcade
- Zoo Keeper
Atari 7800:
- 2048
- b*nQ
- Dragon's Cache
- Dragon's Havoc
- Dungeon Stalker
- Keystone Koppers
- Popeye
- Serpentine
- T:ME Salvo
- Worm!
Vectrex (via VecVox):
- Brecher [2015]
- Color Clash
- Debris Revisited
- Shifted
- Space Frenzy
- Spike's Circus
- VecFahren
- Vectoblox
- V:Hockey
- VecVox X-Mas
Vectrex (via VecVoice):
- B.E.T.H. (Boulder Escape Terror Hazard)
- Deathchase [2015]
- NOX [2015]
- Pythagorean Theorem
- Verzerk
- Y.A.S.I. (Yet Another Space Invaders)
Homebrew Developers
If you're developing a new homebrew game for the Atari 2600, 7800, or Vectrex and you'd like to add AtariVox support, we maintain a memory allocation list for games wishing to use the save feature of the AtariVox. Blocks are allocated in 64 byte chunks, useful for saving high score information, game state information, user settings, and so forth. Games can be allocated more than one block if necessary, but we ask that you be efficient in the storage of any data your game must save to the AtariVox, as a limited number of blocks are available.
AtariVox Memory Allocation List
Please contact us if you'd like us to reserve space for your game. Also, if you've written a game that takes advantage of the AtariVox, please let us know and we'll add your game to the above list, as well as the AtariVox+ manual!
Atari 7800 and Vectrex Users
If you want to use the AtariVox+ with an Atari 7800 or Vectrex console, you will need to purchase an appropriate controller extension cable. Original Sega Genesis extension cables work well, and some third-party cables that match the Sega cable may work as well. However, the commonly available Retro-Bits Sega Extension Cable does not work, as the AtariVox+ cannot be plugged into the cable (the fit is too tight). You can also remove the AtariVox+ from its shell, and it will then fit in the 7800 controller port without issues.
Additional Information
The AtariVox+ includes the AtariVox+ and full-color, four page manual.
Update.it doesn't work on a retron 77. But that's ok because neither do the homebrew games that use it. I think it's probably the 5v supply on the retron 77 ,and of course atari 2600 and 7800 both run 9v to 10v. But of course it runs flawlessly on the atari consoles. (Strange how some homebrew games will work on a retron 77 though).
Super item ,speaking as a long time player and collector of everything from 3do ,to sega saturn, to atari jaguar ,and so on and so forth, I highly recommend this item. I plugged mine into a small standalone speaker which sits atop my atari consoles. The only thing is that I find myself reserving the atarivox purely for speech games only. But that's the whole point. If I wanna save ,then I'll just hit up the raspberry pi. And speaking of emulators ,I intend to see if it works on my retron 77. So I guess I'll do an update at some point. So to summarize I say buy it ,it's loud enough when cranked ,all I ask is more speech based games so that I can utilize my atarivox to the max !!!.
If you enjoy beating your hi-scores then this is superb. The fact that it has that superb retro speech built in, and a 3 channel music synth make it a MUST HAVE! Definitely worth the money, and adds a new dimension to what gaming can be in our old VCS. Wizard Of Wor and Juno First, both games I enjoy, but with the speech added it really does make the experience that much better!
Nice professional build quality, and if you're using a 7800 you'll need an extension cable. (I'm using it on my 7800, 2600jr and 6 switch woody with no issues at all)
Nice professional build quality, and if you're using a 7800 you'll need an extension cable. (I'm using it on my 7800, 2600jr and 6 switch woody with no issues at all)
I had an Issue about the AtariVox not clearing
high score games on the Champ games. Albert
sent me a new one, and although it still dos'nt
clear my high scores, it must be something
else. The volume was low and turning dial with screwdriver worked quit well. Juno first sounds great. It could be because I use a Atari Junior , or I hav'nt beaten all preset scores. I beat two of the five on Mappy, but couldn't clear my high scores. It's a good device, and talks great. Albert backs it up, so I give it a five star.
high score games on the Champ games. Albert
sent me a new one, and although it still dos'nt
clear my high scores, it must be something
else. The volume was low and turning dial with screwdriver worked quit well. Juno first sounds great. It could be because I use a Atari Junior , or I hav'nt beaten all preset scores. I beat two of the five on Mappy, but couldn't clear my high scores. It's a good device, and talks great. Albert backs it up, so I give it a five star.
Must have device, especially for saving high-scores.
I wouldn't call the AtariVox a 'must have', but for a peripheral this thing is hardly just a novelty.
As is stated in the description it doesn't fit a 7800 with its chunky (yet aesthetically pleasing) case intact so I used a cheap extension cable. The cable I used was moulded for the trapezoidal shape of the original controllers whereas the AtariVox is built with a more rounded connector so it was necessary to shave a sliver of plastic out the extension's socket to make it fit, but I was honestly expecting to have to do a lot more so I'm happy with the result.
I'm liking that the volume control is easily accessible with a small screwdriver so that when mixing the audio it doesn't overpower the console or vice versa.
You're not going to be mistaking the speech synthesis for a real person and I love it for that, it fits perfectly. Who would still be quoting Berzerk if the robots sounded exactly like your average supermarket cashier?
There's only going to be more games made that make use of the voice and flash memory so I'd say it's a good investment for the person who wants more from their Atari.
As is stated in the description it doesn't fit a 7800 with its chunky (yet aesthetically pleasing) case intact so I used a cheap extension cable. The cable I used was moulded for the trapezoidal shape of the original controllers whereas the AtariVox is built with a more rounded connector so it was necessary to shave a sliver of plastic out the extension's socket to make it fit, but I was honestly expecting to have to do a lot more so I'm happy with the result.
I'm liking that the volume control is easily accessible with a small screwdriver so that when mixing the audio it doesn't overpower the console or vice versa.
You're not going to be mistaking the speech synthesis for a real person and I love it for that, it fits perfectly. Who would still be quoting Berzerk if the robots sounded exactly like your average supermarket cashier?
There's only going to be more games made that make use of the voice and flash memory so I'd say it's a good investment for the person who wants more from their Atari.
An absolute must buy, simply amazing! I put off buying this item for a longtime as I was more concerned with collecting the newer home-brew games. Boy, was I missing out on games like Juno first, Dungeon Stalker, Time Salvo etc. I just unboxed my recent order from Atariage, plugged in a aux. speaker and inserted many games for a whole new mind blowing experience. I've had my Atari since 1981 and my 7800 since I was one of the few die hards that chose it over the then new Nintendo. Thanks to the hard work of Albert at Atariage and all those in the community that are still pouring in hours of love into such a great console, I can honestly say I have more fun playing my Atari(s) today than possibly when was a kid. Thank you all.
I purchased my Atari Vox from another forum member privately in 2013 before it was available on AtariAge so I can't comment on the AA packaging. There are also a set of DIP switches inside that can be manipulated to work with a Vectrex, but out of the box, it is configured by default for Atari VCS. I don't own a Vectrex so I can't really comment on that side of things.
Basically the AtariVox is two devices in one. It functions as a high score save device for many VCS homebrews as well as a voice synth chip. I wish more games utilized the voice synthesis but I'm glad to see it available in the store since the more people buy it, the more likely programmers will support it and visa-versa. At least for the games I own which support the voice synthesis, the effect is fantastic. It's like your 2600 is talking to you in a very retro-ish robot sounding voice.
I play most games solo so I have no problem leaving the AtariVox plugged into the right player port. Be aware that two-player gameplay is not possible with the Vox connected because it uses the player two port.
One other issue if you wish to use the AtariVox voice chip, you will need to supply an external speaker. One reviewer lamented not having a speaker to hook up but it is quite easy. The amp inside the Vox is dual mono and plenty strongbenough to support an external speaker without amplification. I used an old 4-ohm satalite speaker (2.5") from a defunct surround set. Get a regular male-male stereo headphone link cable and cut it, then separate the wires. Twist the white (L) and red (R) wires together and connect to the plus or red terminal of a speaker, and connect the black or bare wire to the minus or black terminal. Get a small screwdriver and twist the volume pot all the way clockwise (max volume) and it will be plenty loud enough to hear over the TV. The amp inside the Vox is strong enough to drive a single 4-ohm speaker or a pair of 8-ohm speakers, which is impressive.
Basically the AtariVox is two devices in one. It functions as a high score save device for many VCS homebrews as well as a voice synth chip. I wish more games utilized the voice synthesis but I'm glad to see it available in the store since the more people buy it, the more likely programmers will support it and visa-versa. At least for the games I own which support the voice synthesis, the effect is fantastic. It's like your 2600 is talking to you in a very retro-ish robot sounding voice.
I play most games solo so I have no problem leaving the AtariVox plugged into the right player port. Be aware that two-player gameplay is not possible with the Vox connected because it uses the player two port.
One other issue if you wish to use the AtariVox voice chip, you will need to supply an external speaker. One reviewer lamented not having a speaker to hook up but it is quite easy. The amp inside the Vox is dual mono and plenty strongbenough to support an external speaker without amplification. I used an old 4-ohm satalite speaker (2.5") from a defunct surround set. Get a regular male-male stereo headphone link cable and cut it, then separate the wires. Twist the white (L) and red (R) wires together and connect to the plus or red terminal of a speaker, and connect the black or bare wire to the minus or black terminal. Get a small screwdriver and twist the volume pot all the way clockwise (max volume) and it will be plenty loud enough to hear over the TV. The amp inside the Vox is strong enough to drive a single 4-ohm speaker or a pair of 8-ohm speakers, which is impressive.
I just got the AtariVox today. It does keep
score , but be warned, it will not speak or have
sound without hooking up speakers to the earphone jack, which I have no speakers with a headphone jack to hook it too.
Plus, if you put your fingers on earphone jack, I found out it's easy to jiggle it a lot, it's very lose inside., don't know if that's normal.
I read about this device two or three times, no mention that you have to hook up speakers to make sound work. Because of this I would have to give it a rating of 3.
score , but be warned, it will not speak or have
sound without hooking up speakers to the earphone jack, which I have no speakers with a headphone jack to hook it too.
Plus, if you put your fingers on earphone jack, I found out it's easy to jiggle it a lot, it's very lose inside., don't know if that's normal.
I read about this device two or three times, no mention that you have to hook up speakers to make sound work. Because of this I would have to give it a rating of 3.
AtariVox for the Vectrex:
http://youtu.be/4bPXK8nHfos
http://youtu.be/4bPXK8nHfos
Related Products
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
AtariAge on Instagram
Watch us on YouTube
Chat on Discord