CrossBow

Not played the XEGS version but I have played the 2600 version. And we will have to agree to disagree on this one. Again with joystick controls I got to be really good at it back in the day because I could exactly place the cursor where it needed to be and just strafe it left and right in most screens to clear away stuff and each scene I had a particular spot where to place the cursor initially and had a pattern for most of the them along with the timings for the enemies being memorized as well back then. I do find the 2600 version to be very impressive graphically given the hardware and I honestly never even knew the 2600 version existed back then. But at the time I owned my 7800 I didn't pay attention to 2600 game releases anymore either and was strictly all in on the 7800 at that time.

Yes because I wasn't aware of any others to use back then? I don't remember them being an issue with me when I was younger but I really wouldn't want to use them now since I have other controller options available to me.

I disagree on Crossbow. It was on the games I saw in the Sears catalogs back in the day that made me want the 7800 and as soon as I saw it available at my local Service Merchandise, I scrounged up the allowance and mowed lawns to get it. I was NOT disappointed with the game at all and used it as one of the showcase games for how the graphics were impressive on the system to my friends back then. But I never had the light gun because I never knew back then that the XE lightgun was the one to use and always expected to see a 7800 branded lightgun released. As a result, I only played this game with joystick controls and I actually find it to be quite responsive that way. I have tried to play the game with a light gun since, but the lack of accuracy did not sit well with me. However, Alien Brigade is pretty much a light gun required game as that is the only way I've managed to beat that game.

I just picked up the new CD over the weekend. Haven't listened to it a ton but I like a few of the tracks.

I thought the original programmer posted something about this in the AA forums a few years back? Something to do with him programming the game in Forth and that was likely part of the issue but was the only option available to him at the time or what he was familiar with? I'd have to search the AA forums to look for it again but I never play the game. I remember playing it a little on Apple IIe's in the computer lab in 6th grade but never got that far in the game. Kinda like how I could never get past the 2nd screen in Conan back then and now I only get stuck on the 3rd screen these days LOL!

You can still play those games with a 7800 without much issue. Space shuttle is the only real trouble maker as the OMS rockets are activated with the color/bw switch. Since that is the pause button on the 7800 you only have two options to play Space Shuttle. Either keep your finger pressed on the pause for as long as you need your OMS burn to last, or... read up where it states in the manual... That I believe player 1 difficult can be used to turn on emergency OMS rockets. So when I played Space Shuttle on my 7800 in the late 80s (And I played Space Shuttle quite a bit...), I just use the emergency OHMs burn instead of the primary. For Phaser Patrol, just play with the shields on at all times hehe. That is what I do!

Been using 7800s for both 2600 and 7800 since I got my first one in the late 80s. I lucked out with my original 7800 because it turns out it is an '84 made unit so it doesn't suffer from any of the known compatibility issues nor have I ever had issues with inserting games. It won't seat a supercharger properly, but that wasn't something I knew about back then because I didn't own an SC much less know of its existence back then. Same with Tigervision carts that have issues, I didn't own any Tigervision games back then. But, even now I still use a 7800 for all of my 2600 and 7800 gaming needs. With some slight modifications, I'm able to play all the tigervision games and use a supercharger if I wanted.

Thanks for the comment Rick! I should have stated that in many cases, one can usually get away with just spraying a bunch of contact cleaner into a switch and follow that up with some IPA and then the dielectric without having to completely gut a switch apart. But in the case of these va0 Saturn model 1 units like mine. The switch is essentially an enclosed housing. And the way the switch is oriented when installed, means that hitting it with contact cleaner and IPA will just cause it to pool up and not actually drain out properly. That would be an issue all on its own as the gunk doesn't get removed and just ends up drying up over time and still in the way. It also doesn't help that the switches used in these earlier models are near unobtanium to get these days. I've only found on selling on the internet that has replacement switches exactly like what was used, and they want about $55 Aussie bucks for them. Yeah... Australia appears to be the one place the switches can be purchased. I'm sure a modern replacement could be used and installed in a 3D printed bracket or something, but yeah... like the Veccy as you mentioned, the power switches aren't common on these earlier models so if you can clean and repair them, it is best to do so. Here is what it looks like btw. model 1 va0 power switch assembly.

A top 10 on 7800 ehh? This might be tough for me to list. And I wouldn't say I have a particular order for them either. But these are the games that impressed the heck out of me when I had my 7800 in the late 80s and still impress me today. Double Dragon - yes I know the music is ear grating and the graphics could be better. But at the time I preferred it to the NES version as I felt the 7800 version was more like the arcade in the level layouts. Plus some of the levels did have some pretty great detail in their graphics and it was really just the character sprites that were lacking most. Xevious - This was one of the games I got pretty early with my 7800 and I still feel this is the best home port of the arcade game. Joust - Again, this was an early game I got for the 7800 and after my mom and I had played the 2600 version so much, this was QUITE a step up and still great to play. Rampage - Again it doesn't compare as well to other releases such as the SMS version, but at the time, it was one of the games I saw coming out soon that made me want a 7800. I played it all the time in the late 80s. But it doesn't get much if any play time these days. Xenophobe - Again the Lynx version of this just trounces the 7800 version. But between the 7800 and NES versions, I always preferred this one and I still play this game today as I like how quick it plays and find it impressive still. Food Fight - I had never seen the arcade game when I was kid, but I was enticed by the screen shots on the back of the box back in the late 80s when I bought this. I was NOT disappointed and played it much more than I ever though I would. F-18 - Yes it is a sad excuse for being a flight simulator. But at the time I found it very impressive and still fun to play given the graphics and the odd stuff I would try and do when playing this game and had a lot of fun playing it and mastering the challenges. Pole Position II - yes it was the pack-in for the console. But it was also one of the games that made me want the console because I felt at the time that the graphics were amazing! I don't play this one much these days but I sure did when I was kid! Crossbow - well, it shouldn't surprise anyone that this one is on my list. After all it is indeed part of why I have my online handle. The arcade game was always a fascination to me so when I saw this was on the 7800, I had to have it. And I still play this one from time to time even today. I actually prefer the joystick controls with this game because that was how I leaned to play it in the late 80s when I owned it. I still find this game to be pretty graphically amazing on several of the scenes. The volcano and castle scenes for instance were quite something back then. Commando - This was NOT a game I originally owned in the late 80s and would only come to know of its existence on the 7800 years later when I got back into retro gaming and started collecting. Not sure how I didn't know about it back then but I did own the 2600 version and played that a bit. But once I got Commando on the 7800, it is and has been my favorite home port of the arcade game. And I'm quite familiar with the arcade game as I own the actual arcade cab. The 7800 version is very close to the arcade gameplay and ups it a bit with the hidden POW spots to find. However, I've found at least one spot where it is easy to just farm enemies over and over so high scores on this game are stupid easy to amass. Still, I play this quite a bit and it is sure to be played at least once, anytime the 7800 is powered up for any extended session of play. So I guess I lied and I did kinda make this as a top ten with Crossbow and Commando being my two top faves for the system of original releases. The 7800 is easily my favorite Atari console I own and my second favorite console to play and collect for next to my Sega Genesis.

This story starts a few years ago when I powered on my model 1 Sega Saturn and played a game for a bit and then powered the console off and back on to switch to a different game. But to my horror I discovered some strange horizontal white lines scrolling upwards on the screen? I powered the console off/on again and the lines were still there only now there were a lot more of them and they were scrolling much faster. Additional power off/on cycles would only cause the lines to change thickness and motion and scrolling rate. I don't have a picture of my actual console doing this, but here is one on youtube that demonstrates the issue very well. It is best to see it in motion anyway to get an idea of how annoying it really is.. Reading up on the issue you find a few different fixes for the issue or no fixes at all. The most common fix thought to correct it, is to replace the caps in the PSU board. Saturn consoles have their PSUs internal inside them. Luckily they are all throug hole caps to not that big a deal to replace. But you have to make sure when ordering a cap kit, that you order the right one for your Saturn as it seems there over a half dozen different PSUs used on the various Saturn models and they all have different component layouts, different amount of caps needed, and of course different values of caps used. So that was the first thing I did was to recap my PSU. And at first I thought things were good... but nope. The issue would happen after about 10min of playing a game and when powering cycling the console again to change games, the white lines would be back?! Keep in mind the actual console continues to play normally but visually it is less than ideal. The next common fix for this issue that has worked for a few people, is to replace the main PWM switcher that is on the PSU boards. There were two main types used in the Saturns depending on the country it was being used in. For instance in Japan and NA. The PWM could handle between 100 - 120v. In Europe it was for their 220-240v ranges. The exact PWMs used are difficult to find but I did some sleuthing on this over a year ago and found a modern drop in replacement that can be used in all regions as it can handle between 100 - 240v by itself. These can be purchased from console5 if needed here: https://console5.com/store/top224yn-saturn-power-supply-pwm-75w-voltage-regulator-replacement-for-top102yai.html But sadly once again in my case, it was not to be the fix for mine. So I've just kinda lived with the issue now. Until last night when I remembered something and then tested it a bit. Remember when I said that powering off/on would cause the lines to be different each time on my console? Well, I also discovered that if I could quickly turn the console off/on enough to cause the screen to dim for a sec but not enough to cause the saturn or the game to actually shut off, that sometimes those lines would go away?! That got me to thinking... which, in all honesty can be a bad idea for me sometimes. The power switch changes the conditions depending on how quickly I'm actuating it. Or maybe the force used to power it on and off? So... I decided to take the switch apart. This was NOT an easy task. The switches used on these earlier model 1 units I believe are different than later made models. It has an additional power protection component soldered onto the AC input wires on the side of the switch. Wrapped with a bit of yellow electrical tape, and then a blue/green translucent colored rubber cap that was draped over it to protect everything. Once you carefully remove all of this (As you will want to reuse at least the rubber cap). Then you have to pry apart the steel housing that covers the top portion of the switch. Once you have done this, you have to be careful of 2 things. Both of which are springs that will do what springs do best. They will likely shoot out somewhere and you won't find them again if you aren't careful. My wife may or may not have a non functioning ball point pin in her pen holder as I type this... Once I got this figured out and was able to study the switch. I then found old yellowed colored grease inside the switch along with a bit of black carbon residue mixed into the grease. Similar to what we see on colecovision and atari toggle switches. I cleaned all of this gunk out and put it back together with some new dielectric grease. Once I got that switch back together. I crossed my fingers and turned on the Saturn. No white lines! But I couldn't get excited about it just yet because what I didn't mention is that most of the time on the first power on, the Saturn doesn't have those lines. It is only after it has been on for a bit and then I power cycle it that the lines would appear. So I played some Bulk Slash and got through a few missions and powered the console off to switch games. Turned it back on... and still no white lines?! This is a good sign. I continued to play several different games for at least another hour and half power cycling the console well over a dozen times in the process and those pesky white lines have not come back. So it would seem that power switches are another potential source for the white lines issue on Saturn consoles. I'm not sure why the first power on would always be good and it was only successive power on attempts after that would cause this, but for now it seems those issues might finally be corrected. I will have to play a bit more Saturn games to find out. What a chore... 😉 hehe. Here are some pics of the insides of my Saturn for those that might be curious. I recapped the entire thing several years ago and at the time only radial caps were in the kits so I had to install them in a similar manner to how it is done on Gamegears when replacing surface mount like caps with through hole radial type. And, it has a Hi-Saturn region free BIOS installed as well. Even with the Rhea configured to report every game as being NA/US, the Japanese games still wouldn't load right and would require me to use my Acton Replay cart to bypass. But as that cart becomes more and more finicky to use, I opted to just install the region free since in this model Saturn, it is literally a drop in replacement chip.

@Scott Stilphen I wasn't implying that what you said wasn't truth. I was only stating that Matt was present at the 2010 CGE. And yes I'm pretty sure here was there as part of the AA setup and booth. I've had a few dealings with Matt and he has been cool with me but it wasn't related to protos and was more about upgrades and services on his consoles.

Except that Matt was there at the 2010k even I know for a fact as he was assisting Al with the AA booth and somewhere he had his plexi cases up with his protos in it. Might have been loaned to the museum now that I think about it for the show. It was the last year I think AA was part of CGE though? I don't know for sure as I never attended CGE again beyond that. the 2010 event was the last one before I went to PRGE in 2018 and 2019.

These just a few more recent pickups from last month and this month so far. The cable on the lower right is an s-video and audio output cable for the Atari 8-bit computers that I had made from Hercules cables out of Canada. Was hoping it would resolve or help with my vertical bars issue on s-video output from my 130xe, but sadly that was not to be...

Price was double? How much did you pay then if you don't mind my asking? I think when I bought m UNO from TBA it was only about $50 at the time and just a tad more with shipping so I felt that was a pretty good price. The UNO is really nice but I've found a few disk images that it just simply doesn't seem to want to work with. As a result, I've found myself using my FujiNet more these days. But I still pop in the Uno when I need to load up something fast! I also ended up getting a replacement case for mine as the original case from TBA.... didn't last long. The case on the one you received looks pretty nice!

Why didn't you just order one from The Brewing Academy? Are the out of stock there or something? That is where I got my Uno for my 130xe, but found out later it has some issues with some ATRs and XEX and so I find myself using my FujiNet 90% of the time now. My only issue besides the compatibility, is the 3D printed case that TBA provides. I ended up spending more money for a much better quality 3D printed case to house both my Uno and FinalGrom carts in.

Honestly, nothing in that complicated pile is complicated. You put in a game and turn on the system and start playing for the most part. Sure the Xbox had updates etc. but it was part of the start of online stuff back then. And while those controllers in the later gen consoles shown might have quite a few buttons, how does it compare with the original Intellivision controller or with how many possible buttons could be created on that touchscreen that the Amico is using on the controllers? Pretty sure it will still be quicker to power on and be up and gaming even on that Xbox in that complicated systems picture than it will with the Amico or any of the current modern systems today.

This says quite a lot right here: https://www.ign.com/articles/intellivision-ceo-tommy-tallarico-steps-down?fbclid=IwAR08bWduz5K2Gp80pQKhXbdZC4e08sRg74laY4JWwxaysdiPgth7tCV-IgM NM. I see that this was already known but I just found out about it so my apologies.

This one was quite tricky and I'm still not 100% convinced this was the full cause. However, grab a snack and a drink cause here we go... An older 2600 heavy sixer was sent for just a refurbishment and no upgrades. Basically just replacing out the components that come in a standard console5 refurb kit. But I immediately knew someone was off about this console before I even opened it up due the bulging I could see in the front facia switch section near the left side of the cartridge port? Upon opening it up I also found that whomever was inside this previously (and I know someone was), had also applied some very sticky foil tape around the RF modulator housing? I think this was done to improve the picture output as this H6 does have pretty poor RF output compared to most I've worked on. I actually removed this foil tape completely. Took the RF modulator from off the switch board and disassembled it. I then removed and applied new solder to all components on the RF board as much of the solder was looking pretty old and I could see what looked like old joints with some possible hairline cracks starting to form. This along with the refurb kit has improved the RF output a little but not as much as I've seen in the past. I suspect the RF modulator itself has some other issue going on but as it is the 3pin version, they aren't that common for replacements. Also the tuning coil in these appears to be locked in place as this one just didn't want to move and I didn't want to chance cracking the core trying to force it. So it is stuck in the position it was given from the factory around the channel 3 area. Some of my TVs did have issues locking onto this console's signal but of course the CRT downstairs had no problem with it. So what about the power issue that this Blog is titled for? Well, after doing all of this, the console still had a strange issue where sometimes when powered on, I would just get a blinking screen of snow and black...snow....black...snow...black. Something I hadn't seen before. Since you always ASAP electronics issues I first checked the input power which was given me a steady 13.2v on the input side. This would drop to about 12.4v when the console was powered on which, is to be expected for the additional load once the rest of the circuit is active. It was when I checked my voltages on the new voltage regulator that was also installed that I found something very odd! I was getting a 12.3v reading on the input pin of the VR which, again is quite normal, but what wasn't normal was that the output pin of the VR was showing 11v ?! It was then, using my meter that I found that somewhere the input and output pins of the VR were shorted. How this console worked in the past is beyond me because 11v off the output pin of the VR would also be getting sent to the mainboard in the metal housing and that can't be good! In looking at the old schemes for these boards the only spot I could see that might cause this was taken up by this rather large guy here: That is a 2w Allen Bradley style resistor. According to band colors, this is a 68Ω 5% resistor. I took it out of circuit and sure enough the short I was getting between the input and output pins of the VR went away. But the resistor was reading 71 - 72Ω which is within the 5% tolerance spec. But taking a chance I powered on the system without it and it came right up and appeared to be working just fine. I then left the system running moon patrol for about 8 hours yesterday to make sure everything was good. And it was fine. My understanding is that this resistor was added to reduce the current on the input going into the VR so it wouldn't get crazy hot. But the VR was replaced and I drilled a hole into the heatsink so I could use a screw and nut to secure the heatsink to the VR vs the clips that were used on these originally along with new thermal paste. That 8hour session of moon patrol did get the heatsink warm but not enough to burn as I could keep my fingers around it without it getting too hot for me to touch. So perhaps the older VRs couldn't dissipate the heat as well and this is why these large resistors are only present on the very early model H6 units. It might even be the first one I've seen that has one as most of the others I've worked on I don't recall seeing it present. Anyway, I'm going to power on and test this system again today to be sure it is still working properly but hopefully it is good to go, and ready to go back to its owner.

Well, while I don't have enough for a full controller build, I did use some of the older 3 contact domes like those found on CX-40 controllers to replace some missing buttons for my test 5200 controller in the lab and while it took some fiddling to get them to line up and work, they do work and seem to work well. Ideally it would be nice if some slightly smaller domes could be made with the 4 contract points even smaller than the ones that C5 sells to make them easier to install and be usable. Not sure how well they would work on the graphite coated mylars though as I would suspect the metal dome to eventually wear aware the conductive graphite coating.

Isn't Cosmic Carnage kinda in the same genre? But yes I do really like Smash T.V. and I do own Xenocrisis for my Genesis. Wonderful game but I'm awful at it as I can't progress very far. Likely because it really wants and needs a twin stick setup to really get far in the game and I just haven't been able to acclimate to the control schemes for the game.

I don't think I knew that the Williams Collection was available on the PS2? I'm pretty sure I have it for the Wii? The one pinball game I do own for the PS2 and is pretty darn trippy in the fantastical sense is of course Flipnic. I play that one anytime I turn on the PS2 these days.

I understand that, I meant... going through AA to make these up as again the work there has already been done and it likely would have been much cheaper to just procure Al's services to make these up or possibly license whatever from Al to sell them the boards and program them up themselves.

In my case, I found that my game carts read better through the jagCD cart slot than they do on the actual jag itself. So... yeah I keep it on there and even got a dust cover specifically for the jag+jagCD combo since I always have them together.

I've got a working JagCD but rarely use it. Battlemorph is probably the one game that has the most hours of use from the JagCD. When I first got my Jag and JagCD combo back around 2002 or so, the JagCD didn't work at first. But a small tweak on the laser diode trimmer took care of it and it has been working since. Although again, I don't really use it that much although it is always attached to the Jag.

I'm more curious why they didn't reach out AA to get boards for this purpose? AtariAge already has the Melody boards that can pretty much do what their board design claims to do so I'm not sure why they went to reinventing the wheel. Unless the current Atari just has NO idea about the existence of AA? Either way, it looks to be a good design so I'm going to be more curious about how well it works with not just the 2600, but all the various clones, and the finickiness of the 7800 console revisions.