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A buddy of mine was moving and stumbled on a 2600 Jr he had lying around, and told me I could have it! Didn’t have a power supply or anything else with it, so I picked up a Retro-bit 2600 AC adapter and fired it up. The picture had a some jailbars and very staticky sound. I tore it apart, and dusted it out to see if that made any difference, and of course it didn’t. I then took off the shielding and tried it again, and the static in the sound is gone, and the picture still isn’t perfect, but it’s much clearer. Any idea why the shielding would be causing interference? I’m guessing it’s grounding out somewhere?
 
Another question: I’m really interested in doing an AV mod on this since it’s a spare (I have my 7800 as my main system still)... is there a kit anyone would recommend?

This was a really great mail day! I finally received my copies of Jeff Minter's Llamatron 2112 and Revenge of the Mutant Camels (Jaguar) and Super Circus Atari Age (7800). I placed the orders for these back in November but apparently there was an issue with the box printer for the Jaguar games. I can't wait to play them later in the week!
 

Before my funds ran low I got many everdrives, I wish I had gotten a SMSEverdrive but I didn't because I got the MegaEverdriveMD so you can play SMS roms on Genesis and it works good for the most part but...eh just something, I think a dedicated SMSEverdrive and playing on my original SegaMaster System would just be more fun! Anyway, cool video, this game is cool, great to see new SMS Homebrew !
 
Mike checks out a very cool looking Sega Master System Homebrew (you can as well with ROM link in description) 
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WasUpHS7B0s
 
 
 
Check out ROM here http://www.smspower.org/Homebrew/SilverValley-SMS

Check it out guys! 
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyUNW5p8Yno
 
 

Messing around some more and threw together a quick MOD-playing Jaguar Jukebox which includes the classic Axel F. Have some audio issues to work out  (which I've been pointed on how to correct already, just need more time) but once done, will finish and release both the ROM and CD image. Feedback welcome, let me know if there's possibly a specific MOD you would like to see included. I originally wanted 12-songs but it looks like I'll have to settle for 9 or less. I know it's kind of goofy but it's just for fun anyway. Phil Collins is getting the axe.... 
 

I feel like I've got bionic eyes now that I've had to get progressive lenses in my glasses.  I even make the "nuh-nuh-nuh" bionic sound when I use the bottom part of my lenses. 

Superb work! It's great to see old hardware receive so much love.
 
 
Interesting point about fidelity here. Eyes change enormously over the course of adulthood, losing the ability to discern as much detail and colour luminance. By restoring it to your memory (which, being human, I presume, is somewhat less than perfect anyway) it's possible you're actually over-compensating and making the colours brighter than they really were.

Well I’ve had a sick Roadblasters monitor since I acquired this a few years back. It was not great when I got it and little by little I watched it die slowly each time it powered on. I was loosing color and detail so I decided to switch out the old monitor with a 19in VGA monitor.... Well this became a tricky situation because unless you do a very deep information dive you migh run into some problems - as I did. But I figured it out and I’d like to share everything that I came up with.
 
CGA/EGA/YUV TO VGA CONVERTER Is the piece you need to purchase but mine arived with no instructions so right away I needed to go searching online for them.
https://www.mikesarcade.com/estore/datasheets/GBS-8200-booklet.pdf
Mikes Arcade really had some great tips however the cable that came provided did not work... at all. I thought I had a broken board.
The other problem is the video cables coming off the System 1 PCB were 7 in total and I only had 5 options on the new converter.
So RGB makes sense - what about the other 4 cables? Where do these go? Luckily I found this

“The Scamatic Packet Suplement for the Atari System 1”. Now I’m able to see exactly what each color means. So instead of using the cables provided with the converter I soldered them directly to the board right at this point here.

I used RGB Black and Brown. No V sync No H Svnc

And then...

So I seem to be getting continuity with all the pins where the ribbon cable is soldered in place to the various spots on the board each pin leads to and they all seem to check out. I'm getting the beeps. So it's possible the ribbon cable itself is fine and the plastic on both sides is simply separating?
 
As for power to ground rails, I'm not sure what that means. The power jack where the psu plugs into? What are the ground rails. Sorry I'm still fairly new to this and I'm not overly familiar with the terminology. The power jack itself seems to get continuity to those same points on the board to that ribbon cable so I think it's alright.
 
BTW I checked the voltage regulator again with the machine powered on and I'm getting 8.5v in and 6.3 out and the heat shield around it is pretty hot to the touch. That sounds out of spec that should be replaced?

Thanks for the reply. I'll check continuity on these tomorrow. In the event it's toast, is something like this repairable and if not, are there replacements for these without cannibalizing another machine? This is the first one I've seen with a mylar style ribbon, my other heavy/light sixers use a regular wire cable. These mylar ribbons seem problematic at best and a generally poor design.

You can verify the ribbon cable with the continuity check setting on a multimeter and test each line in turn while giving the cable a bit of a wiggle. While you're at it you should then test continuity between power and ground rails, to ensure there are no shorts present, and then power it on and check your voltages on power rails and on pin at various chips.

I was given this heavy sixer which I was told was dead and noticed the ribbon cable is in very poor condition. I get a black screen when it's powered on and am thinking there's a good chance it's this ribbon cable. It seems to be separating which would lead me to believe there's poor or no communication between the two boards. Any advice on this and possible replacements?
 
 

The sources are available. You can see for yourself.
 
http://www.3do.cdinteractive.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=3430

Sad to learn but it seems as though he has lived a very successful and overall long life at 89 years of age.

In an interview i have asked Howard Scott Warshaw about his thoughts of Ray Kassar. He told me, in his own opinion Kassar had done a good job, because the Computer/Console-industry was new and there were no experience how to act or react in the best way. Kassar had used his very own experience, which made him a successful manager. Ok, he came from the soft good sector, but surely had a good reputation. I think, Steve Ross, who hired him, was not an idiot.

I have not used my 1040STE much lately, but it works splendidly. I wish I had a Falcon030 computer, but they cost an arm and a leg nowadays, and they are scarce. I might get a Mega ST soon, but that is up in the air at the moment. Money talks there. Here are more pictures of my collection…
 

Hey, everybody,
 
I noticed that I have been on here since 2014. But, I never said my introduction. I will not go into detail about who I am beyond my avatar, but I will say a few things about myself and have a little show-and-tell. I live in Minnesota, where it is extremely cold at this writing. I enjoy sci-fi, drawing and sketching, graphic design, collecting Atari games (of which I will show part of my collection here in a bit), meeting with my friends, and animation. My dream is to be an animated cartoon producer, and to teach others how to create animation who are of low-income status and/or have a disability. I also want to create a game in the future, but that is still in the planning stages.
 
Here are samples of my Atari game collection. This may take a few posts to put up because there are twenty-one photographs of my collection. Thanks.

The frwmerate drop is largely from a shitload of the 68k being used.
 
A first attempt engine that some who looked at the source have shook their heads at.

Very true...hindsight is 20/20. 

Ray Kassar, president of Atari from Feb 1978 through July 1983 passed away on Dec 10.2017. 
 
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/sfgate/obituary.aspx?pid=187558023
 
I know many Atari fans have mixed feelings about the man, but he did oversee the golden age of Atari.  And sadly, it's demise as well. 
 
It's fair to say he had good and bad leadership qualities.  On the good side, he streamlined Atari and it's manufacturing processes.  He added much-needed discipline and formality to the company culture.  He kicked off the arcade port craze with the licensing of Space Invaders for 2600.  Atari saw astronomical growth under his early leadership.
 
On the negative side, he didn't seem to value the programmers that created Atari's games.  If he'd given in to programmer demands for a little recognition and profit-sharing, it could have prevented the third party software craze that drove the crash of 1983.  He was a prima donna, with long commutes with a driver to Atari HQ.  I dismantled Atari's renowned R&D machine.  He valued milking the 2600 for all it was worth rather than developing a better and more innovative gaming system. 
 
RIP Ray Kassar.

I find it a little ironic that one of the best games is one of the least suited to the system, all those textures and the frame rate drops. But you're right, a CD version with more space for textures and less compression would have allowed for a welcome expansion of the game's scope.

I find it a little ironic that one of the best games is one of the least suited to the system, all those textures and the frame rate drops. But you're right, a CD version with more space for textures and less compression would have allowed for a welcome expansion of the game's scope.

They could have used their SwordQuest IPs and updated them.
 
An updated Temple of Apshai would have rocked.

@NSG - If you like Cybermorph and IS, I recommend their sequels Battlemorph and Iron Soldier 2. Other Jaguar games that are in 3D worlds and fare well include I-War and Hoverstrike: Unconquered Lands. Also, are telling us that you don't consider Fight for Life a good Virtua Fighter style game?
 
I agree that Jaguar lacked in original platformers and action adventure titles. I don't know if licensing IP available on other platforms was the key. They tried that to some extent with games like NBA Jam TE and Primal Rage, and while the Jaguar versions held their own, they weren't system sellers. For me, AAA exclusive content is critical. The biggest challenge for Atari at that time was that it didn't have the internal development teams of Nintendo or Sega for original IP, nor the cash to buy talent like Sony. As a result, most the game contracts were awarded to developers with limited experience. So while we got a lot of exclusive content on the Jaguar, not a lot of it was top tier.

I would've like to have seen more games that take place in a 3D world, similar to Iron Solider and Cybermorph. Maybe even an original Doom style games, perhaps starring Major Havoc. A good Virtua Fighter style game might have helped. Or a beat-em-up, like Die Hard Arcade.
 
However, if I could go back in the past and had some sort of influence, I would've recommended the following to sell more systems:
 
1) License the hot games at the time, such as the latest offerings of Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat, release them when other ports are released and advertise how your version is the best version available.
2) Create a platformer that could compete with Mario & Sonic (Sorry, but Rayman didn't have the same mass appeal)
3) Do whatever you can to either get companies like EA, Konami and Capcom to bring their games to your system, or license their most popular titles like Madden, Castlevania and Mega Man.