Separate Audio Output on Atari 2600 Jr.

[mos6502]

I have read through this forum for quite a while now and can't find anything that really helps me with this specific question...

 

I've attached a wire to my Atari 2600 Jr.'s innards and to the console ground, as per here:

http://highlyliquid.com/kits/midi2600/install-2600jr.html

I believe this method is verified here:

http://www.atariage.com/2600/faq/index.htm...=2600#composite

 

I've tried this on two different 2600 Jr.'s, and swapped my cables and tested the audio system I'm trying to run it through, but always the same problem - the audio comes through, but it's so faint I have to have my audio equipment completely maxed out to barely hear anything. It's up so loud that if it were a normal signal, it would blow my speakers in an instant!

 

According to my best information, I'm doing this correctly. My aim with all of this is to run Synthcart+MIDI2600 and have a fairly clean, separate, unmodulated audio signal, without a huge amount of highly technical modding (I'm not stupid, but I'm also no electronics wizard). I don't care if it's in stereo and I don't expect hi-fi out of anything this old but as it stands, the signal is completely unusable for any purpose, games or music.

 

Thanks for any advice,

Owen

[A.J. Franzman]

Can you post pics of the connections you made, both to the motherboard and to the output jack (if you used one)?

[mos6502]

Can you post pics of the connections you made, both to the motherboard and to the output jack (if you used one)?

 

My camera is pretty bad at close up shots, but here are two attempts:

http://picasaweb.google.com/owen.godwin/Utility

 

There is a typical RCA plug at the other end, and I've made sure there is continuity between the plug tip and plug ring to the two respective wires... and I've also soldered it to the other ends of these resistors/whatever, no luck. This is just soldered back on to where I had it before for the pictures' sake, it was disconnected.

 

Thanks,

Owen

[mos6502]

I'd also like to add that I've "listened" for the audio signal at many different points on the board, and I've found almost 10 different spots I get the same really weak, unusable signal. I've also tested for continuity between the sleeve of my RCA connector and the console ground... as well as my audio gear I'm hooking this into. No problems.

 

The 2600 Jr. I'm working on at the moment is a revision F1, if that helps? Perhaps I'm going to have to trade it in for a bigger, older one. Such a shame, the Jr. would fit very well into a keyboard case alongside the rest of my 8-bit rig

 

Thanks,

Owen

[A.J. Franzman]

It looks like you've connected to the right spots, according to the info you gave above. Have you checked to be sure you didn't accidentally short the two wires at the other end when you put the RCA plug on?

Edited January 3, 2008 by A.J. Franzman

[Math You]

This is the mod I did on my 2600 Jr. I connected two cables to the circuit board for twin mono sound!

http://www.atariage.com/forums/index.php?s...=102778&hl=

Edited January 3, 2008 by Math You

[mos6502]

Well folks, I figured it out. An RCA coupler I was using on my cabling had failed. It's the last thing I could think to check... it's one solid piece of metal on the outside, and it worked fine a few days prior to this project. What a bunch of crap... I probably spent 10 hours trying to figure out what was wrong and worse, I think the Atari I was trying to mod may have bitten the dust from all of that extra handling (ESD damage perhaps).

 

So, lesson learned, I won't be taking ANYTHING for granted no matter how straightforward it appears...

 

Thanks again,

Owen