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intellicolecovisonary

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Posts posted by intellicolecovisonary

  1. 51 minutes ago, CrossBow said:

    Could do what I did with my TG-16. Wasn't the 'cheap' option no..but it was the easiest and gives me all the outputs I would need.

    I bought a DB grafix booster from Castlemania to stick off the back of my TG-16 to provide me with RGB, s-video, and composite + audio. 

    https://castlemaniagames.com/collections/turbo-grafx-16/products/dbgrafx-booster-ttp

    That looks very similar to what a NEC Turbo Booster is designed to do and $69 is a reasonably price for that technology. The fact that you've tested and approved it gives me confidence. If my TG-16 RF signal didn't look so sweet on the CRT it is hooked up to, I would buy a DB grafix booster in a heartbeat. 

  2. 6 hours ago, RickR said:

    Well thank you for that info.  The good news is that it takes about 30 seconds to undo and put the RF back, which is what I'll do.  That circuit looks easy enough to breadboard, but I'm not sure it's worth the effort. 

    I didn't initially like the RF on TG-16 because it uses a screw-in adapter instead of just an RF cable, which required me to unscrew the adapter on my TV (it was a PITA for a lazy dude like me).  But I have an RF switchbox now, so it should be no issue.

     

    I don't use the OEM screw-in adapter, I use an RCA to F Adapter and a Single Digital S/PDIF RCA Cable plugged into the TG-16. The RF signal I get with this set up is sharp and colorful.

  3. 1 hour ago, RickR said:

    I believe it could have once been owned by P.Diddy and be a collector's item.

    diddy-puff-daddy.gif

  4. The mod you have done here is the exact same thing Hyperkin did with their AV adapter. this type of adapter is sending uncoupled AC voltage through the composite video input of the device.  That is a small safety issue. If you accidentally bridge composite video to ground, you can short out the transistor in the console.  While that’s not a common scenario, it’s something to take note of and is much less of a risk with a properly built circuit. Also, the DC offset without the buffer will make the receiving device burn more energy at the input.  Most devices should be well designed enough to tolerate that, but that’s not a risk I’m willing to take.  Since the damage (if there is any) would be done over a long period of time and shorten the lifespan of the console. People will respond with “I did this mod two years ago and my console is fine”.  That’s the same as saying “I’ve been smoking for 30 years and still alive”. Sound quality and volume level also take a hit and this mod tends to darken the overall image.  The OEM NEC Turbo Booster does composite properly with the proper components and circuitry. Composite video off of the expansion port is not suitable to interface directly to a TV. The “CVBS” you’re getting off of the expansion pin is a “muxxed”, unattenuated version of composite video which interleaves the luma, chroma, and sub-carrier signals into one, codified signal. This muxxing is done outside of the DAC. But that doesn’t make it TV friendly. Everything in the 2nd schematic represents what’s in every PC-E console (minus the portables) – Pins 26, 35, and 40 are chroma, colorburst, and luma outputs. These are weighted, mixed and staged, all the way to R11 where they’re muxed into a single, codified signal & output 2 the exp. 
    The The 1st schematic shows the final staging amplifier that is required to properly drive the muxxed, composite video to a proper amplitude with PROPER impedance control and proper DC rejection. The 2nd schematic is the muxxed, unattenuated version of composite video you acheive with this type of modification. 

    m07343_pkg_product_1.jpg

    VoultarHyperkinTG16Composite3.png

    VoultarHyperkinTG16Composite2.png

  5. 2 hours ago, CrossBow said:

    I did not know that?! And when I reached out to the folks at AtariMax I was told to use a standard controller in port 1 to select the game and then swap out. I only state this because on my Amax cart, the trak-ball causes it to go crazy and that is why I reached out to them. Maybe I have an old one or something that doesn't look for it properly or something? I first encountered it when the Xari Arena completed version was released through AtariAge and couldn't figure out how to get my trak-ball to work through the Amax cart. I even bought the game because of my frustrations with this LOL!

     

    I initially found out about found the keypad on the CX53 menu navigation here where Allan states "Use the keypad on the trackball to move through the menu. I think 2 scrolls up and 8 scrolls down". I  discovered after trying all the buttons that 4 and 6 scrolled the menu left and right respectively and of course the start button starts the game. As to Xari Arena I have problems with that ROM as well on the Atarimax but the AtariAge cart works perfectly. I had the same issue with the Tempest ROM on the Atarimax, it was unplayable, yet the cart of Tempest I have works perfectly with the CX53.  https://atariage.com/forums/topic/251428-atarimax-sd-and-trak-ball-how-to-question/

  6. I have a Sean Kelly Multi-cart myself but a couple of years ago I still managed to collect all the OEM games and overlays some CIB pretty inexpensively. Games were easy to find, overlays a bit harder. I imagine they cost a lot more now. There's nothing better looking than vector graphics to my eyes. There's a lot of great homebrews like Protector, Vector Blade and Vector Pilot and Vector Patrol out there as well. I keep thinking about getting a Vec-Multi flash cart.

    WIN_20211022_14_07_07_Pro.jpg

    WIN_20211024_11_37_28_Pro.jpg

  7. I just discovered that some members of this forum are under the impression that you have to swap out the CX53 Trak-Ball in order to navigate the Atarimax menu. The Atarimax menu can be easily navigated without changing controllers by using the CX53 Trak-Ball keypad. Up is button 2 down is 8, right is 6 and left is 4. Find your game, hit start and voila! you are now playing without swapping controllers which isn't a great idea with the 5200 design. I once bricked a 2 port by swapping controllers.

  8. Update on the $67 Atari 5200 lot from the Salvation Army. The 5200 console works perfectly and I replaced the broken case parts. Both CX52 controllers are in very nice condition and work pretty well after cleaning but need some pot tweeking as they all do. The Wico joystick I found after opening it up has an open in the cable and will most likely work when replaced but I have 2 other working ones right now so that's on the back burner. I was beginning to believe deals like this were not possible anymore. It restores my faith in the free market a tiny bit...

    5200 stuff.jpg

  9. On 11/30/2021 at 8:18 AM, RickR said:

    And the controllers work fine for me.  They fit my hands nicely.  I think they do look a little weird with the old-style keypad.  They are a home run compared to the 5200 controllers. 

    I agree, the Jag controller is like a Volvo, it works well first time every time, the CX52 was exotic with it's analog design and is like an old Ferrari that need constant tuning and maintenance. Impractical by nature, but IMO more fun to own and drive.  

  10. The stock roller ball is an actual 2.25" cue ball. Over years the ball wears gets worn down from use and when measured I've found that most measure ~2.23" /2.22", .020/.030 smaller. I replaced mine with a quailty Phenolic 8-ball and Seimitsu PS-14 buttons replacing those crappy dome switch buttons. It works perfectly and it matches my homemade Sega Master System joystick with a Seimitsu LS-32 stick and Crown SDB-201 buttons.

    8 ball Atari CX53.jpg

    MitchStick 8-Ball Edition.jpg

  11. Weird stuff happens sometimes when I when I switch controller types from analog to digital. When using  my Competition Pro or the IKONGR adapter I sometimes have issues with going left in BBSB and other strange control quirks. It happens with the Wico as well. I some times have to disconnect the problem controller and plug in a known calibrated CX52, then disconnect it and re-insert the Wico, IKONGR or Competition Pro and Viola! they work perfectly, It seems to me that the 5200 does not like switching back and forth from analog to digtal controllers. As one of my friend put it "More weird controller %!#$& from the atari 5200".

  12. No offense RickR, but the Jaguar, try as I might, is one Atari system I just can't muster up love for. IMO most Jaguar games aren't the greatest, excluding Tempest 2000. I owned a Jaguar in the past but when a time came to pare down and sell a few systems, it was the easiest video game system to let go of. That exposed bare metal cartridge connector always bugged me. At least the 2600, 5200 and 7800 have a somewhat protective pocket over it but the Jag just lets it all hang out. The huge horseshoe shaped controller with a gazillion buttons didn't help matters much either. On the positive side the cartridges had cool curved asian looking handles to help pull them out and the Jaguar is the only place you can experience Bubsy in: Fractured Furry Tales...

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