+DamonicFury Posted May 18, 2009 Share Posted May 18, 2009 (edited) For the first time ever, I found an Atari 5200 at a yard sale. I've been a skeptic about the system, as I'm a long time user of the Atari computer line - still I couldn't resist a dirt cheap classic Atari system. It came with Pacman, Robotron, Dig Dug, Jungle Hunt, Gorf, Keystone Kapers, and Pitfall 2. The controllers didn't work, of course. I went ahead and added the foil contacts as has been recommended numerous times on this board, and that brought them to life. As expected, the games are just like their 400/800 counterparts. The controller, once fixed, wasn't quite as bad as I expected. It's certainly not great, mind you, but not as terrible as I expected. Pacman is controllable, if just a bit trickier than with a standard 2600 stick. Since I already have a pretty extensive 8-bit library, I don't expect to do a lot of collecting for the system, but it's nice to have one to complement my Atari collection. Looking forward to trying Adventure 2 in the near future - the one exclusive the 5200 has that I've wanted to play for the past few years. :-) Edited May 18, 2009 by sdamon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VectorGamer Posted May 18, 2009 Share Posted May 18, 2009 For the first time ever, I found an Atari 5200 at a yard sale. I've been a skeptic about the system, as I'm a long time user of the Atari computer line - still I couldn't resist a dirt cheap classic Atari system. It came with Pacman, Robotron, Dig Dug, Jungle Hunt, Gorf, Keystone Kapers, and Pitfall 2. The controllers didn't work, of course. I went ahead and added the foil contacts as has been recommended numerous times on this board, and that brought them to life. As expected, the games are just like their 400/800 counterparts. The controller, once fixed, wasn't quite as bad as I expected. It's certainly not great, mind you, but not as terrible as I expected. Pacman is controllable, if just a bit trickier than with a standard 2600 stick. Since I already have a pretty extensive 8-bit library, I don't expect to do a lot of collecting for the system, but it's nice to have one to complement my Atari collection. Looking forward to trying Adventure 2 in the near future - the one exclusive the 5200 has that I've wanted to play for the past few years. :-) I have a 5200 and I like it but not as much as the Colecovision. I had a retro gaming party the other night and one girl was playing Pac-Man and complaining that Pac-Man wasn't going where she wanted him to go. 'magine that! I got the gold contact kit and Pac-Man is a lot easier to play but not perfect that's for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian R. Posted May 18, 2009 Share Posted May 18, 2009 (edited) Finding a 5200 is a glorious thing. It was the last Atari system I found back when I was actively collecting, gathering and saving from oblivion. Heck, I found an XE Game System when I was wanting to find a 5200. I didn't even know what the thing was when I found it! The 5200 became my holy grail, so I was very happy when I found one. Pac-Man is probably my favorite 5200 game. You should check out some of the homebrews. If it's still available in the store - just checked, yes it is! - I'd look for Koffi Yellow Kopter. With that you get a new, unique game for the big black beast. Edited May 18, 2009 by Brian R. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ransom Posted May 18, 2009 Share Posted May 18, 2009 Good job on finding that 5200 in the wild! I think you're in for a treat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brojamfootball Posted May 18, 2009 Share Posted May 18, 2009 Finding a 5200 is a glorious thing. It was the last Atari system I found back when I was actively collecting, gathering and saving from oblivion. Heck, I found an XE Game System when I was wanting to find a 5200. I didn't even know what the thing was when I found it! The 5200 became my holy grail, so I was very happy when I found one. Pac-Man is probably my favorite 5200 game. You should check out some of the homebrews. If it's still available in the store - just checked, yes it is! - I'd look for Koffi Yellow Kopter. With that you get a new, unique game for the big black beast. Nice Avatar, Brian! I love that Snoopy and Red Baron game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acelkin Posted May 18, 2009 Share Posted May 18, 2009 The 5200 was the last system I purchased, never had it back in the day...I absolutely love it! I've always been a Colecovision fan, a bias I've had since I was a kid as I couldn't talk my parents into getting me another system...already had 2600 & Intv. Great system, great find! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+jsmith73 Posted May 18, 2009 Share Posted May 18, 2009 The 5200 really is too much fun! I originally got mine to round out my collection, once I started playing it I found that it wasn't nearly as bad as I had heard. The foil trick works pretty well, but rebuilding the controller will give you a much longer lasting repair. Cool that you found it at a yard sale! Have fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BydoEmpire Posted May 19, 2009 Share Posted May 19, 2009 (edited) Congrats, since I finally got a 5200 a few years ago (though I did have a pile of carts sitting in the closet forever) and it's been my most-played classic system ever since. Lots of great games. Edited May 19, 2009 by BydoEmpire Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GameGirl420 Posted May 19, 2009 Share Posted May 19, 2009 Awesome!!! 5200 is my favorite system ever, once you get past the controller problem it totally rules. Someone needs to review that system and the games and give it the credit it deserves. I can't stand AVGN's review of it,even tho I do like him, that's his only episode I'd have to disagree with him. Pengo and Mr.Do's Castle on 5200 are one of the best games EVER made. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Zeptari Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 The 5200 really is too much fun! I originally got mine to round out my collection, once I started playing it I found that it wasn't nearly as bad as I had heard. The foil trick works pretty well, but rebuilding the controller will give you a much longer lasting repair. Cool that you found it at a yard sale! Have fun! Please tell me! What's this foil trick??? Link? both of my controllers are screwed up! -rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+jsmith73 Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 The 5200 really is too much fun! I originally got mine to round out my collection, once I started playing it I found that it wasn't nearly as bad as I had heard. The foil trick works pretty well, but rebuilding the controller will give you a much longer lasting repair. Cool that you found it at a yard sale! Have fun! Please tell me! What's this foil trick??? Link? both of my controllers are screwed up! -rick Disassemble your controllers and clean the carbon dot contacts, and the flex print contacts using alcohol (I prefer 91% or higher) with cotton swabs. At this point you can re-assemble and see if your controllers work. If that doesn't fix it then glue a small piece of foil to the carbon dots(this bypasses the carbon dot as the conductor). Re-assemble and test again. If this doesn't cure your controllers then you are probably stuck rebuilding. There is an article on the best electronics site about rebuilding the 5200 controllers. At best the foil trick is temporary (in my humble opinion), and at some point you will have to rebuild them. Depending on your comfort/skill level rebuilding one should only take about 15 minutes. One point to remember... the contacts on the pots are delicate don't jerk the wires off, pull firmly but gently. Let me know how you fare! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Zeptari Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 (edited) Disassemble your controllers and clean the carbon dot contacts, ........ Let me know how you fare! Is there a web site with pics to guide me thru this? I want to try, but i'd hate to make them worse...I'm not sure what a carbon dot and a flex print is.... i'm new to the 5200.. just got it yesterday. -rick Edited June 7, 2009 by Zeptari1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+jsmith73 Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 (edited) Disassemble your controllers and clean the carbon dot contacts, ........ Let me know how you fare! Is there a web site with pics to guide me thru this? I want to try, but i'd hate to make them worse...I'm not sure what a carbon dot and a flex print is.... i'm new to the 5200.. just got it yesterday. -rick Here's the URL for Best Electronics http://www.best-electronics-ca.com/cx52_j.htm The website is just full of really great stuff for us Atari geeks! -jason PS I really like the guy who runs it, I've spoken with him a couple of times over the phone. He is a bottomless fountain of knowledge!!! Edited June 7, 2009 by jsmith73 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koopa64 Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Awesome!!! 5200 is my favorite system ever, once you get past the controller problem it totally rules. Someone needs to review that system and the games and give it the credit it deserves. I can't stand AVGN's review of it,even tho I do like him, that's his only episode I'd have to disagree with him. Pengo and Mr.Do's Castle on 5200 are one of the best games EVER made. Well, if I ever ended up buying a 5200 (could be a possibility), hell yeah I'd review it. I've already done reviews before in different forms before, it'd be no problem. And I assume you mean video review, not written. But to be perfectly honest, I thought AVGN's 5200 review was hilarious. I know it isn't true but it was enjoyable none-the-less. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Zeptari Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Disassemble your controllers and clean the carbon dot contacts, ........ Let me know how you fare! Is there a web site with pics to guide me thru this? I want to try, but i'd hate to make them worse...I'm not sure what a carbon dot and a flex print is.... i'm new to the 5200.. just got it yesterday. -rick Never mind i found it on the Best site..... looks scary! I might just send in mine and have them fixed or exchanged for the new gold one's... -rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+jsmith73 Posted June 7, 2009 Share Posted June 7, 2009 Disassemble your controllers and clean the carbon dot contacts, ........ Let me know how you fare! Is there a web site with pics to guide me thru this? I want to try, but i'd hate to make them worse...I'm not sure what a carbon dot and a flex print is.... i'm new to the 5200.. just got it yesterday. -rick Never mind i found it on the Best site..... looks scary! I might just send in mine and have them fixed or exchanged for the new gold one's... -rick It looks worse than it really is! If that is how you decide to go you won't have any regrets! -jason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IceCold Posted June 8, 2009 Share Posted June 8, 2009 Congrats! I've always been a huge fan of the 5200, so I'm sure you'll have fun with it. There aren't as many homebrews for it as the 2600, but there are still some good ones to pick up(I've heard Koffi Yellow Kopter was supposed to be quite a bit of fun) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Zeptari Posted June 9, 2009 Share Posted June 9, 2009 Well , I held my breath and opened one of my 3 mostly dead 5200 controllers. testing it hooked up to the 5200 while it's on worked out good... just touch the contacts on the opened controller with a screw driver works great.... all fire buttons work now except for the bottom left. There's no point messing around with the foil trick if the contact on the controllers dead... so i can play some of the 5200 games now that use the 2nd button! Big question... do i want to open the other two..... -rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+jsmith73 Posted June 9, 2009 Share Posted June 9, 2009 Well , I held my breath and opened one of my 3 mostly dead 5200 controllers. testing it hooked up to the 5200 while it's on worked out good... just touch the contacts on the opened controller with a screw driver works great.... all fire buttons work now except for the bottom left. There's no point messing around with the foil trick if the contact on the controllers dead... so i can play some of the 5200 games now that use the 2nd button! Big question... do i want to open the other two..... -rick Glad you took it apart! As for the one non-functional fire button, did you try cleaning the contact surface with an eraser? If the contact (flex-side) looks mottled grey, or black it has a film of corrosion, that can be removed by gently dragging a pencil eraser across it. Again, this is not a permanent fix since it will corrode again, but it should get that button to work. If you have a mulitmeter/continuity tester there is a pinout for the 5200 contoller harness here- http://pinouts.ru/Inputs/JoystickAtari5200_pinout.shtml Might come in handy to check if you have any breaks inside the harness itself. -jason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcjakeqcool Posted June 10, 2009 Share Posted June 10, 2009 Good on ya! Just hope you get you're controler problem sorted out though. The 5200 controlers aint half bad from my perspective, just take a bit of getting used to! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sanman4ever Posted June 11, 2009 Share Posted June 11, 2009 Hi everyone, Just got my first Atari 5200, well not really. My first was back in 1982/1983. Had a blast playing last night. My GF's kid was going nuts using the trackball and playing Centipede. Anyway I just love reading this forum too there's alot of useful info. Take care all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcjakeqcool Posted June 11, 2009 Share Posted June 11, 2009 @sanman4ever Good on ya! 5200 is a class console. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Blair Posted June 11, 2009 Share Posted June 11, 2009 Today I got my first Atari 5200 and I´m very happy with this huge machine. I had to buy still another antenna adapter and I had to search for my Transformer for the US Power Adaptor. Now, the console and the 2 Joysticks are working fine. Now I´m a proud owner of an Atari 5200. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 Yay, new 5200 fans and owners! Keep the pics coming by the way you new owners! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ninermaniac Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 It's a beautiful site to see. Finally. Something NTSC only shows some strength, although small, in numbers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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