HEAVY vs. LIGHT SIXER - DIFFERENCES REVISITED - more than a thick base!

[Tombstone]

What does the original Heavy Sixer switch box look like? Is there one, or were there variations? I currently have one in my CIB that is white with blue print but I've seen one in a complete "original" set that was the normal black with what appeared to be almost italicized white print. Sorry if this has been addressed, but I have not been able to find the answer on the forums.

[FAST RS]

i would like to note that I had a system that was sent into atari for some issue in the past, the outside was that of a light sixer, however upon opening it it had the heavy sixer internals.

[FAST RS]

i would like to note that I had a system that was sent into atari for some issue in the past, the outside was that of a light sixer, however upon opening it it had the heavy sixer internals.

[atariluvr77]

What does the original Heavy Sixer switch box look like? Is there one, or were there variations? I currently have one in my CIB that is white with blue print but I've seen one in a complete "original" set that was the normal black with what appeared to be almost italicized white print. Sorry if this has been addressed, but I have not been able to find the answer on the forums.

 

Hi,

 

The Heavy Sixer retail display box had 2 varieties... the first variety is copyright 1977 in the lower right hand corner of the front and has a CHESS PIECE on the top row, 5th image going right to left -- it is the box that is coveted by collectors as being the "true" H6er display box and was the original issue box.

 

The second box is what I would call the "transitional" box... it is copyright 1980 and has a baseball scene in place of the chess piece, apparently due to litigation because they didn't actually have a chess game at the time... I am not possitive on this, but I believe heavy AND light sixer systems were sold with this box.

 

You'll also find a 3rd box, copyright 1981 and has a picture of Super Man top row all the way right. Several other images were changed as well. This box was used ONLY for light sixers...

 

I will try to get images up eventually.

Edited December 3, 2013 by atariluvr77

[atariluvr77]

i would like to note that I had a system that was sent into atari for some issue in the past, the outside was that of a light sixer, however upon opening it it had the heavy sixer internals.

Not too suprising. If you sent in a system for warranty work and it was "refurbished" they would actually swap out the case for the "newer" style. When they sent it back you received a console that was all fresh and clean with no dust in the nooks and crannys

[Tombstone]

Thanks for the response. I probably should have been a little more clear. I was asking about the game "switch box" that allowed you to switch between the tv and the game. The unit that attached to your tv. I am fortunate to have the console box with the white knight on it but am not sure at this point about whether I have the correct switch box included.

 

Thanks again!

Not too suprising. If you sent in a system for warranty work and it was "refurbished" they would actually swap out the case for the "newer" style. When they sent it back you received a console that was all fresh and clean with no dust in the nooks and crannys

[atariluvr77]

Thanks for the response. I probably should have been a little more clear. I was asking about the game "switch box" that allowed you to switch between the tv and the game. The unit that attached to your tv. I am fortunate to have the console box with the white knight on it but am not sure at this point about whether I have the correct switch box included.

 

Thanks again!

 

OK, I got you. They have been issued by so many different system manufactures and 3rd party vendors that countless varieties exist. The originals from Atari were black with white lettering so yours is an after market switch... To answer your question, I believe that the TV/GAME switch box with SLANTED letters is the original shipped with the H6er, but I am not 100% certain... I do know that they are found with much less frequency than the switch boxes with standard style printing.

[Tombstone]

 

OK, I got you. They have been issued by so many different system manufactures and 3rd party vendors that countless varieties exist. The originals from Atari were black with white lettering so yours is an after market switch... To answer your question, I believe that the TV/GAME switch box with SLANTED letters is the original shipped with the H6er, but I am not 100% certain... I do know that they are found with much less frequency than the switch boxes with standard style printing.

Ok, thank you for the tip. I have a box of switch boxes in my garage and will look through to see if I have that particular model. I believe the slanted version says "Computer" rather than "game" which I guess would make sense since it was marketed as the Video Computer System at that time rather than the 2600. Although I could be completely off-base on that theory.

[JadeETC]

This dude I knew In high school gave me a 2600 he thought was garbage. About a year ago I was watching a youtube video explaining the differences of the elusive heavy sixer. I ran into my game room pulled it out of storage and sure enough it was a heavy sixer. Haven't took her apart yet but I know his dad bought it and I think since they thought it was garbage they would have tossed it rather then fix it. Any way funny thing is is the dude who gave it to me is in jail now for secretly video taping his roomates in the shower!! Dude was a looser a weirdo and now I got his heavy sixer!

That's interesting.

 

Do you ever feel weird when you use his 2600?

[Bodyshots]

thanks

[stefan_sts]

Hi and greetings from Germany ,

 

bought a Heavy Sixer and while restoration i made some pics , obviously Atari made a service of this VCS in 1981 and changed one capacitor near the power connector and

painted the whole PCB in dark green

Swichboard is a Rev 5 and mainboard a Rev 8 , so in this case i think it is a real H6er .

Edited August 27, 2016 by stefan_sts

[dphirschler]

If Atari made the cutout for channel A/B, then why wouldn't you believe any heavies have the channel switch on their boards? I say this because mine has the channel switch. In fact, mine has several things which you flag as NON-heavy. But it also has things that you flag as heavy. For instance:

 

- My two spring switches also have "wings"

- My board has the Atari logo on it (C012173 rev.1), but not the "Innovative Leisure" slogan.

- The Atari logo ® symbol is not high, but my switch bezel has the beveled narrow openings.

- The RF connection is on the main switchboard, not the perpendicular RF daughterboard.

 

Sadly, I do not have the serial sticker nor the one taped to the metal box inside.

 

 

 

Darryl

[+DrVenkman]

If Atari made the cutout for channel A/B, then why wouldn't you believe any heavies have the channel switch on their boards? I say this because mine has the channel switch. In fact, mine has several things which you flag as NON-heavy. But it also has things that you flag as heavy. For instance:

 

- My two spring switches also have "wings"

- My board has the Atari logo on it (C012173 rev.1), but not the "Innovative Leisure" slogan.

- The Atari logo ® symbol is not high, but my switch bezel has the beveled narrow openings.

- The RF connection is on the main switchboard, not the perpendicular RF daughterboard.

 

Sadly, I do not have the serial sticker nor the one taped to the metal box inside.

 

IMG_20171118_184617.jpgIMG_20171118_184830.jpgIMG_20171203_224313.jpgIMG_20171203_224400.jpg

 

 

Darryl

 

I can't tell you why, but the switch board on your system is from a Light Sixer, not a Heavy, regardless of the case bottom piece. The flush-mounted 7805/heatsink is a dead giveaway. Could be your system was repaired by an Atari Service Center along the way, or it was built during the transition to the Light Sixer but used remaining Heavy case plastics.

[+wood_jl]

Just a general question!

 

I like the SIXERS (either "heavy" or "light") better than the ones that placed the difficulty switches up top (the "light foursers").

 

Other than being collectible and weighing more for the thicker plastic, is there really anything that more desirable about the Heavy Sixer than the Light Sixer? Is it easier to repair? Are the components socketed, rather than soldered? I was looking for affordably-priced Heavy Sixers for a while, but decided to settle for the Light Sixer, since it was the "SIX" rather than the "heavy" or "light" that mattered to me the most. But not to lie; I'd still love me a good Heavy Sixer for the collection. The question is, is it more reliable, more serviceable, or just more expensive? (I don't know much about the 2600 (although I love it the most), so just asking. Thanks!

 

JW

[+DrVenkman]

Just a general question!

 

I like the SIXERS (either "heavy" or "light") better than the ones that placed the difficulty switches up top (the "light foursers").

 

Other than being collectible and weighing more for the thicker plastic, is there really anything that more desirable about the Heavy Sixer than the Light Sixer? Is it easier to repair? Are the components socketed, rather than soldered? I was looking for affordably-priced Heavy Sixers for a while, but decided to settle for the Light Sixer, since it was the "SIX" rather than the "heavy" or "light" that mattered to me the most. But not to lie; I'd still love me a good Heavy Sixer for the collection. The question is, is it more reliable, more serviceable, or just more expensive? (I don't know much about the 2600 (although I love it the most), so just asking. Thanks!

 

JW

 

In a nutshell - all VCS/2600 models are socketed until you get to the Vaders; according to those who've repaired a lot more them than I have (and I've worked on half a dozen or so), about half are socketed, the rest - made in 1984 when cost cutting was becoming extreme - gave up sockets and are soldered directly to the board. Mine is soldered. However, all 4-Switch Woodies, Light Sixers and Heavy Sixers are socketed. In my opinion, Woodies are easier to work on than Sixers because they're all one board and that ribbon cable on Sixers can be fragile when assembling and disassembling. That heavy cast aluminum RF shield can be a pain too - often the screws are essentially stuck after ~40 years being closed and then can be tough to remove without damaging the screw heads, or without cross-threading the screws on reassembling. That said, my Sixers (Heavy and Light) have AMAZING RF output - nice, strong signal, with little or no noise. I think this is due to better-quality parts and higher tolerances used during manufacturing compared to the simplified and cost-reduced Woodies, Vaders and Juniors.

​For the rest of the differences between Heavy and Light Sixers, just start at the beginning of this thread and start reading.

[RupanIII]

omg no, not again... if you want to put in a new wire, I can point you to a ready made solution not of my making but seems to work great.

 

Another interesting production variation is that some of the white/green flat-wire assemblies were soldered right to the motherboards instead of using a socket. Earliest sockets were white with later and replacements being black.
Some of the earlier boards also had a colored paper dot over a trace just under cart guide.
(internals of my Sears h6er shown)

[RupanIII]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01KLRLV0E/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1