gnnash
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Posts posted by gnnash
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Reseated all chips and connectors, and still no display. I've discovered that I have no -13v supply (on either side of the cable). I am going to keep tracing. Any thoughts as to a cause?
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I dont have a dot on the screen, no matter what position the brightness knob is in.
Unfortunately, I just moved back from school, so haven't had a chance to open it up yet. Tomorrow I'll open it, clean it out and reseat any chips and connectors I can see. Will post my results.
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You have tried adjusting the dial on the back of the unit to change the brightness? The later units "fixed" the hum issue so it might be one of them instead.
Yep, the brightness pot has no effect. I am able to see a dim glow at the rear of the tube through the vent holes... should this be brighter?
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The joysticks do in fact self-center. Sorry, no fabled Boston games here. Just common ones (Star Trek, Scramble, Solar Quest, and Cosmic Chasm).
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Those were my thoughts as well. I would really rather have myself a working Vectrex, but if I can't, then I can always make my money back on the controllers (assuming they test out to be functioning correctly).
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I paid $40, came with four games, second controller, and all associated manuals/overlays.
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Hello,
I just purchased a Vectrex at a garage sale (not a very good idea with a final exam tomorrow, but I couldn't pass it up). Fortunately for my studying but unfortunately for me, there is no picture displayed, though sound is played properly.
I have no buzz from the speaker, I'm assuming because the CRT is not functioning, and so isn't inducing any noise in the speaker wire.
Are there any common issues that would cause this? I have general electronics knowledge, so am not shy to poke around inside (I am going to school for Electrical Enginering), but am not familiar with CRT operation.
Any help is greatly appreciated!
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See here: http://picobay.com/dtv_wiki/index.php?title=C64_DTV_Hacking_Wiki
Basically, they can be turned into full-fledged C64 clones, with internal headers for a keyboard, controllers and an IEC port for a floppy drive or whatnot.. The PAL model is a bit more compatible, and has the internal connections for two full-function controllers, keyboard, IEC port, cassette port, and userport. It also has flash memory which can be programmed to internally hold different games other than the original built-in ones.
The NTSC model only has connections for a keyboard, IEC port and a single controller port (and the controller port is missing the connection for the UP function!) It also has no flash memory, just a read-only ROM. But it is still fun to modify if you have a floppy drive and some old games.
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Hello,
I am looking for a C64 DTV (direct to tv) unit. I would prefer the european / PAL model for better compatibility when modded. Located in USA.
Thanks in advance!
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Sorry for the delay, I have documented the mod here for those interested: http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/183250-fb2-cart-port-workaround/
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Aweseome find gnash - before you move on from this completely, do you think you could post a picture? I haven't started my FB2+ mod yet, but I've just acquired the part and was planning on doing it soon.
Sorry for the delay. I have documented the fix here : http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/183250-fb2-cart-port-workaround/
Good luck with your mod!
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It seems that some people who are trying to add a cartridge port are running into an issue where 4K carts will not run. This is due to a bad trace leading to Pad 20, the A11 line. It turns out that Pad 20 is useless on these machines, but there is a pin on the ROM chip which can be easily soldered to instead of Pad 20.
Since my board is now covered with a sprawling mess of cartridge port wires, I have indicated the alternate Pad 20 location below on Emehr's Rev. C board cheat sheet (I hope you don't mind!)
. Emehr, if you could please add this to your visual cheat sheet if you can, for Flashback 2+ modders, that would be great.
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I just completed my mod successfully this evening. My trace for Pad 20 was also damaged, but I found that the fifth pin from the right on the lower side of the ROM chip is directly connected to the A11 line on the Michele chip. I soldered the A11 pin from the cartridge port to this pin on the ROM chip, and all is well, without needing to do delicate work on the trace itself.
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Fixed it! I tried this mod on my old FB2 a couple years ago, and failed when I lifted a trace. Fortunately, I still have the old FB2 around, and found that the A11 pad (pad 20 on the board) is internally connected to the fifth pin from the right on the lower side of the ROM chip.
I soldered the A11 line from the cartridge port to this pin on the ROM chip, and can now play all of my cartridges flawlessly! I greatly prefer this solution to needing to solder directly to a trace.
I'll try to take a picture to help others, it seems that this may very well have been a widespread issue during production of the FB2+ units.
Thanks for your help! I'll try to take pictures tomorrow.
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Okay, I'll have to try the fix. Is there a pin on the on-board ROM that is connected to this trace? I would much rather solder to one of those pins than to the trace itself.
If I do have to go to the trace directly, I'll probably cover the joint and first half inch of wire in clear nail polish - I've heard it to work great on bad trace repairs. I hope my girlfriend has some lying around...
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Since the 2k games work, the problem sounds like your A11 line is not connected correctly. Perhaps it is loose, or A11 and A12 are swapped?
I can check, but having reflowed and checked all joints again, I'm thinking something deeper may be wrong. I heard you had a bad trace on your FB2+, is there a pin on the built-in ROM chip that is connected to the A11 line, which I can jumper my A11 wire to?
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Well, I finally got around to modding the FB2+ I got from Woot!
Fortunately, after setting my switch to use the internal ROM chip, the original menu works flawlessly! Unfortunately, most of my real carts do not work.
Combat, Home Run and Blackjack are the only carts I have that work. Others, such as Ms Pac Man, Asteroids, Space Invaders, and a bunch others which are said to be compatible do not work. I checked all connections with a meter, all pins are connected to their respective solder pads. I reflowed all of my solder joints, tried again, and still have the same situation.
Any thoughts from anyone? I greatly appreciate any help in advance.
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I'm reading the thread on the main page too - looks legit
I ordered 2 after reading about the mods - I know I'm late to the party, but should be fun.
FYI if they charge you tax I used the coupon code TAXSUCKS to get a $5 reduction.
Also, I have a couple 5 1/4 drives and I'm 99% sure I've still got their cables, could be an easy way to handle this.
Has anyone out there tried to sell a 'mod kit' with the necessary parts for this job?
Best-Electronics sells a guide and cartridge slot that they market to FB2 owners here:
http://www.best-electronics-ca.com/2600_Tech_Tips.htm#guide
Only $10, the parts that are shown in the original modding guide.
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Well, shucks. I bought one. I had an original FB2, and ended up lifting a solder pad trying to do the mod (the second to last pad, too!) The FB2 never worked again, though I never had the time to try and repair the trace.
I WILL be modding this one as well. Sad to see Pitfall! gone, but hey, when I do the mod, I will be able to run it off of a real cartridge!
Also, for wongojack:
Yes, this is the same hardware as the FB2 Rev. C, which means that it is compatible with the mod. If you want to use a floppy cable, you need the old AT-style floppy cable, which connected to a sort of cartridge-edge connector on an old (usually 5.25") floppy drive. I bought a genuine cartridge slot and guide online for my mod. However, with the right parts, it really is that simple! It's good to add a couple of switches too, they allow you to switch to the on-board ROM if you want to play those games sometimes.
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Your ideas intrigue me, but someone near and dear is getting me a Flashback 2 for christmas (shh... I don't know it yet.) I'll forget about the FB1, probably even throw it away. Unless, of course, you want the case for your ultra-secret projects
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Hello,
I recently got an original Flashback at a thrift store (come on, for $5, who could resist?) I was big into Atari hardware back in the day, but haven't worked with anything recently after I had to give up my consoles for space. I was horrified to have found out that the Flashback was built of an NOAC design, but alas I can see why they did such in the interest of cost.
I do have quite a few NES games, but not my console. I have gotten all the fun out of the Flashback that I probably will ever get, and would like to tinker with it to play some NES games on, mainly to prove its possible
And yes, I do realize there are issues with compatibility on NOAC designs.Has anyone been able to do this, and what points did they use to soldier in a cart port? I know Curt Vendel did this once, but he is hard to get ahold of (understandibly, as I hear he is working on a FB3.) I have attached a picture of the top (bottom?) of my board. It seems that the secondary rom card soldiered into place would hold many of the soldier points, but I do not know which are which.
Hope to be able to pick up an FB2 at Target on black friday for $17, if my store has one in stock. At least I know I can mod that for a 2600 cart port.
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Vectrex - Sound but No Picture
in Vectrex
Posted
Update - I was able to fix it. With the help of the service manual, I traced things back to the power switch / volume knob. One of the two poles on the switch was working, the other wasn't.
Took apart the switch, cleaned it with some tuner cleaner, reassembled, and all is well! I also shot some tuner cleaner into the volume pot part of the switch, so I have no scratchy sound when adjusting the volume.