Atari 5200 Guy

Very nice setup! Just be careful with sitting speakers that close to your TV. I'm not trying to burst your bubble but I don't want to see your stuff get ruined from a slight oversight. Some speakers have a magnet in them and can distort the beam in the tube. So many things come with magnets these days that are harmful to old computer, TV, and console gear that it gets overlooked, missed, and then some wonder why those things don't work or are acting weird. And I just don't want you to experience that as it would not be pleasant. 😉 Again, very nice setup. I like seeing these as it can give ideas to those running out of room or just starting.

I have always thought the Japan version of the Super Nintendo looked way better than what us American gamers received. But there's more here than meets the eye. Believe it or not there's also a bit of a difference in quality, too. For whatever reason the SFC is actually more structurally solid than the SNES is. As much I like the SNES, and I hate to say it, it feels cheap compared to the SFC. Insides are identical so if you take the games out of their shells and pop them in the other unit they will in fact play. But the plastic moldings to each console and their games are very different in quality. For me, personally, the SFC is a more pleasurable experience overall. And, yes, I left the fishing duck sticker on the controller. Someone, at one point, loved this thing enough to put a sticker on it. It's survived this long. I'm not going to be a sticker killer. I forgot to mention...this one was bought as JUNK as well. Fixed and working fine. Nothing was wrong with it.

I don't remember if I posted these or not but I got these earlier this year. For a very long time I wanted to import 2 consoles: a Famicom and Super Famicom. The reason? Game differences and games we didn't get. So I set out to find the cheapest consoles and games I could. I found this first. This was being sold as junk, not working or not working correctly. And here it is after I got it. It's been cleaned, inside and out, and I had to replace the carbon pads on both controllers. As you might can tell, I grabbed a few "extras" as well. Disk drive needs a new belt, though, but the one I used temporarily indicated the drive does work. I'm very happy to have this. But, wait! There's more.

Love Rygar on the Lynx! And that's a nice looking Lynx 1 you have there. I've never used the original Lynx in person, I'm more familiar with the Lynx II unit. 😞 And I believe that is the first Xenophobe cart I've seen for the Lynx. I've never seen it anywhere other than ads.

The Hernando de Soto bridge, the I-40 bridge connecting Arkansas to Memphis, was found to have a huge crack in it. Major crack found in Interstate 40 bridge linking Arkansas and Tennessee - CBS News Information on the bridge itself, for those interested, can be found here: Hernando de Soto Bridge - Wikipedia I crossed that bridge a few times in 2009. It's an absolutely beautiful bridge to cross but it just goes to show that things we automatically deem safe just because they are there are not always safe. I feel sorry for those who lost their lives when that Minnesota bridge collapsed.

Not anything game related but History just uploaded this to YouTube today. Sad.

That counts me out. Room is not something I have a lot of. I have an amazing collection that I'm proud of and have a history with (2 consoles are an exception). But I don't have them all hooked up. I have them on a shelf with a TV, yes, and I do have the selector switches to hook up at least 7 consoles to a single TV if done right, 8 if I use 2 TVs. Sadly I rarely go in that room to play games...I merely store them in there, out in the open, where I can "visit" the collection and pull out what I want to play when I want to play it. Unfortunately the single-bedroom apartment we live in comes at a size cost...very little space for collecting anything at all.

I miss the days when store browsing was the only way to know when new games arrived. It generated so much more excitement. At least to me it did.

Wait. This game was made for the 5200? 😮 where have I been?

If the Y-Adapter has a 9-pin you might could get away with the 2600/A8 trackball. But the 5200's is true analog only while the other is analog and digital. I don't know if it would work because both controllers need the +5 volt supplied by controller ports and if your adapter doesn't support that then there is the possibility that no trackball controller will work.

That controller is a rock solid controller. I had one during the system's production run and loved it. More games than Centipede and Missile Command use it and I do remember titles supporting it before it was available. If you can find scans of them, the backs of the 5200 game boxes that support the trackball will have an AT&T like logo on them. And, yes, I've tried them. It opens a whole new challenge with those games. Pole Position was especially interesting. If you can get one I would while you can. Atari stuff is drying up. I'd love to get one again. It's the arcade trackball in a slightly smaller package and its very durable.

WOW that's sad. 😞 That poor 5200 must have been used for a bowling ball.

As excited as I was to see this come out, it sounds like the games are being sold to help finance something more. I may be wrong but, let's face it, last year has not been kind to any company trying to sell anything electronic while there has been a chip shortage. I agree with BTB...something is not sounding right.

I like the fact that people out their are using their talents to create these upgrades to help these old machines. As for myself...I believe in preserving the original integrity of all the hardware I have in my arsenal of gaming hardware. I could not modify any of them. I deal with whatever way they produce their signals. With modern LCD screens, no matter their age and resolution capabilities, it has been a mixed bag of results. Most manufacturer's give those LCD displays just enough RF knowledge to accept the signal while others have maintained a rather impressive RF image quality. Most LCDs I've tried mess up the colors on most games including the 5200. That 17" is the first one I've found that doesn't. Analog is no more thanks to it being "outlawed" these days. So it is rather difficult to find a nice LCD display that can accept the original signals from these old systems without messing up the image. That LCD image is from a 17" Best Buy branded TV that is 10 years old this month (October) and was a cheap Goodwill find. Everything RF I've thrown at it has looked really good and appears to be chocked of most interference.

I spent some time on the 5200 today and then seen this post. I still say the 5200 holds its own in the mix of things...and it survived the famous game crash along with other consoles. I brought out games I had but never spent any quality time on. Playing these games I was able to discover a side of the 5200 I had never seen before. Games I played were Pengo, Zone Ranger, Blue Print, Realsports Baseball (finally found one), RS Tennis, Soccer, and Football, Popeye (although I had this one many moons ago), Zaxxon, and Jungle Hunt. Zone Ranger was a bit difficult for me but I had fun with it and enjoyed the graphics. It looked like an arcade game. Very nice. I liked the voice in RS Baseball. Nicely done game. I enjoy sports games when it's about the sports instead of the team rosters. Soccer was a bit sluggish but playable. Tennis was hard even on the novice setting. you have to use the keypad buttons to direct the ball which became cumbersome. As much as I love the 5200 I have to say that the controllers were easier to use with my 8 year old hands than they are with my 47 year old hands. I can't spend as much time on the system as I would love to these days. Those controllers just cause hand cramps after a while. Not as bad as the 7800 controllers do, though. Still, the 5200 remains my go-to for some classic arcade fun. And while others will suggest controller alternatives I like to keep things original so I will continue to deal with the originals. That image is my 5200 using just RF on a 17" LCD TV. Doesn't look half bad actually. The 5200 does have a lot offer to those willing to take the time to actually learn the system...by its rules...not everyone else's rules. Harness the system's controls, then learn the games it has. If one can sit and give it and themselves quality time to learn the curve one might be impressed with the 5200's offerings. It's what I did when I received one when they came out and that way of approaching a 5200 for the first time still holds true to this day. It's a very misunderstood console. The controllers, as much as I hate to admit to it, are the system's short comings, but as long as they are working then by all means give them a long overdue exercise and play some 5200 games! Yea...but they look pretty good all lined up on a shelf 😉

This looks awesome!! Unfortunately I run an STe in the USA at 60 FPS. 50 is too slow 😥

That switch has RS on it. I wonder if that switch has been replaced before because the last time I saw that logo was on a switch from Radio Shack 🤔 but that was decades ago. And I was wrong. I had a 2600 board here that works on channel 2 without a switch. I forgot I had soldered two solder joints together. So somewhere around that switch a connection is being made for it to be working on channel 2. I would double check around that switch for those metal pieces because if they are there and should decide to move you could risk shorting something else out on you VCS. That switch, however, is a common switch...nothing special or proprietary. If you have a local electronic parts store pay them a visit and take that board with you to show them so they can help you. I already checked my pulled parts stock and I don't have any more or I'd send you a replacement.

Found some info but not exactly concerning SI. https://fineart.ha.com/itm/pulp-pulp-like-digests-and-paperback-art/gary-norman-american-20th-century-boston-don-t-look-back-album-cover-1978acrylic-and-airbrush-on-board25-x/a/8030-71060.s I found an auction site selling Gary's work. If you scroll down you will see more of his work up for sale. Two of these are work for 20th Century games (I assume); Sky Attack and Fast Food. Other works I looked at and the styling is the same as that used on SI. I'm still researching so hopefully I dig up something.

Contact Lance at @Video 61 (www.atarisales.com). He might have what you are looking for. His vendor information should be on these forums somewhere.

Its a single pole, single throw switch. Those listed for the junior should work. Have you tried both channels to see if you get anything (2 or 3)? Posting a picture of what you have would help, though. Those switches are not Atari specific...they are off the shelf components.

I think I finally realize why Justin didn't like Mario 64. That game missed the mark completely. And now that I have a theory why I can back up what I'm about to say. Justin said Mario 64 was boring and I was remembering back what made it different than the Mario games before it. Simply put, previous Mario games were called "Athlete" games. Not adventure, platform, or action games...athlete. And if you look up the name of most in-game Mario music you will see that name used to name one or more scores. The Mario games on the NES were more athletic by running and jumping. That was the main aspect of those Mario games. You ran and jumped. And it didn't matter if you were climbing obstacles, bouncing on enemies, reaching the clouds, and even swimming...each stage was an obstacle course you had to carefully navigate. And you had to beat a clock except in Mario 2. Mario 64, trying to be the N64 for others to follow fell flat and broke away from Mario tradition. It was not the Athletic game play fans came to know and love from Mario...it was too laid back. I had it, I played it, but I would lose interest in it real quick. I never spent too much time on it and would play something in a few minutes. It looked good, sounded great, but it would have benefited the series more if it would have been more like Mario on the Wii and Wii U. That was hardcore Mario at his best in years. Its easy to understand why and how Mario 64 got the applause it received but if it based on a numbers game keep in mind that Mario 64 was pretty much the only N64 game available at the time the N64 hit stateside shores. I'm with Justin, it did get boring easy because it didn't feel like the Mario we came to know and love.

I don't have one but I'd recommend it. Jaguar games are either hard to find or worth a LOT of money now...and those that sell them know this. And it doesn't matter if the game is complete or not most of the time. Still, the Jaguar is an awesome console to have. I always did like how the console looked without the CD add-on. Personally, I think it is the sleekest looking system ever made. And even if the controllers are huge they are comfortable.

You know things are bad when someone uses a game console shell to house "expensive" dental gear. The cartridge shell is even the same! Oh...and don't forget...they took the GameCube's handle, too.

Are you sure you don't want the special edition model?

Welcome to the world of Jaguar! Jaguar stuff is almost up there with the NEO*GEO stuff. I'd recommend a few titles but they probably won't come cheap. Definitely keep an eye out for Tempest 2000. That's easily the Jag's top-dog. I've never played Pinball Fantasies. And I still play Cybermorph to this day. One of my favorites on the console.