New Vectrex owner

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Hello, Vectrex community.

 

Long-time owner of several classic consoles here, but did not have a Vectrex until roughly two weeks ago. I was always intrigued by the console, but finally took the leap after playing with one at this year's Louisville arcade expo more than I did any arcade coin-op or pinball machine there.

 

So mine was an eBay purchase where the seller had it in the wrong category ("stamps"), which is probably why I got it for a decent price. Funny how the condition was something like "fair/near-fair" and yet it is in beautiful condition. It also came with a 32-in-1 card, which was a great bonus.

 

Anywho, couple of questions/thoughts:

 

- I now have a VecMulti and love it, but my console seems to be having a hiccup: all of the games have loaded at least once but all of them have also not loaded at least once. When that happens, I get a blank screen and have to reset the system. So my question is, if anybody else has had the same issue, were you able to use the diagnostic tool on the cart to troubleshoot and repair your Vectrex? If so, how do you use the program?

 

- My $0.02 on something (and feel free to convert to euros), and I really don't intend to ruffle any feathers here: the Vectrex has a great community with a startling amount of high-quality homebrew development. Unfortunately for me, I am late to the party and many of those homebrews were limited runs that went out of print long ago. I fully respect developers' wishes to distribute their work however they see fit, but I ask that, since there have been so many new owners after some of those games went out of print, please consider doing another production run of your most desired carts. I also realize some collectors with original copies of those games will not be pleased if that happens, but perhaps these additional runs could be cart-only, thus preserving value of the full release. Just a thought.

 

 

[vtk]

hello, with the vecmulti the games do not always load and sometimes you have to reset the system and then when reattempt to load, they load ok?

if this is the case, i think that is normal, as this happens with my vecmulti also

[madhatter667]

I can't speak specifically to the Vectrex multi... but I have an Ultimate Cart (SD cart) for Atari 8 bit, and if you reset the cart, it crashes (known problem), and a system reset fixes it (ie: to load a different game, reset as if you were putting in a different cart). If the cart works after a system reset, I would call it par for the course.

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Thanks for the prompt replies. Just relieved my newly-acquired Vectrex is not on the fritz. Like I said, games do load eventually--usually just after 1 - 3 resets.

[fmml]

If you look closely you will find that most homebrew games are available for purchase or download.

Check packrat videogames, kristof tuts homepage (Vector Pilot), madtronix (for vectorzoa games), Luchs soft, binary Star soft (bins and upcoming releases), Revival studios and fury unlimited (free bins) for a start. You can find some of furys discontinued games at gooddeal games. You often see homebrew games sell on eBay for insane prices which are available from the developer for cheap. There is tons of stuff to get and unavailability is more the exception than the rule if you look closely and have patience with the publishers.

[Mayhem]

I'd suggest cleaning the Vectrex cart slot for starters, and then check the VecMulti contacts in case the board has picked up dirt too.

 

Next thing, some ROMs require patching to work from flash hardware correctly, so I'd look for the PATCHER.EXE program you can get (should be on the SD card you received with the VecMulti if you bought it direct from Richard) and check that against some of the misfiring games.

[Place Logo Here]

If you look closely you will find that most homebrew games are available for purchase or download.

Check packrat videogames, kristof tuts homepage (Vector Pilot), madtronix (for vectorzoa games), Luchs soft, binary Star soft (bins and upcoming releases), Revival studios and fury unlimited (free bins) for a start. You can find some of furys discontinued games at gooddeal games. You often see homebrew games sell on eBay for insane prices which are available from the developer for cheap. There is tons of stuff to get and unavailability is more the exception than the rule if you look closely and have patience with the publishers.

 

Thank you for the pointers. I will do some digging on these sites. Unfortunately, the one I most want is War of the Worlds, which is no longer available on Good Deal Games' site and which has not appeared on eBay since I started looking.

 

I'd suggest cleaning the Vectrex cart slot for starters, and then check the VecMulti contacts in case the board has picked up dirt too.

 

Next thing, some ROMs require patching to work from flash hardware correctly, so I'd look for the PATCHER.EXE program you can get (should be on the SD card you received with the VecMulti if you bought it direct from Richard) and check that against some of the misfiring games.

 

Thank you for the recommendations. Not sure the card slot is the problem, as my 32-in-1 card works fine and I am not seeing any dirt on the VecMulti after many hours of use this past weekend. Still, it wouldn't hurt to clean the slot and I was wondering what is the best method for doing that. I am also wondering if the VecMulti might utilize components of the console not used by that 32-in-1 card (my best guess is different memory registers). Once again, there is an analysis program on the VecMulti but, for the life of me, I cannot make heads or tails of it.

[funknflow5200]

but where to get i,cyborg? just impossible to find or play. maddening.

Edited May 31, 2016 by funknflow5200

[funknflow5200]

according to the checklist, only 311 people can even play the game?

[Mayhem]

I'm not sure why George hasn't released I,Cyborg for download given it was his second ever game, but there is probably a reason. Hopefully it and WotW will be available in the future.

[Mayhem]

Once again, there is an analysis program on the VecMulti but, for the life of me, I cannot make heads or tails of it.

 

Do you mean PATCHER.EXE? You start the program. You click the relevant button and choose a ROM file, which is loaded in. The Patcher program analyses whether the game needs specific patching to run properly from flash media instead of a chip. If it does, it will tell you, and then allow you to save out a modified version of the ROM to another location/filename. You then use this modified version on your VecMulti instead.

[50TBRD]

There are plenty of copies of I,Cyborg in the wild. The problem is that so many people want thing NOW. They tend to turn up every month or two.

 

As fmml said, there really aren't that many games which cannot be purchased in some form new or available for download.

 

Solar Wars, Omega Chase Deluxe, I, Cyborg, War of the Worlds, Sector X, Sundance, Warrior, Irrelevant, Obsolete, Eineiing, Cube Quest, and Pitcher's Duel are the only ones I think that are neither available for sale or download. Almost all have plans for re-release, future download or be available on Multicart.

[Place Logo Here]

 

Do you mean PATCHER.EXE? You start the program. You click the relevant button and choose a ROM file, which is loaded in. The Patcher program analyses whether the game needs specific patching to run properly from flash media instead of a chip. If it does, it will tell you, and then allow you to save out a modified version of the ROM to another location/filename. You then use this modified version on your VecMulti instead.

 

Actually, I meant a program on the cart named "Engine Analyzer" which runs on the console. After some more research, I learned it is a lightpen-based program that is meant to be an automotive repair training tool. Doh! It would be great if there was a diagnostic program for the Vectrex.

 

Strangely enough, I had a good run last night where every program ran from the VecMulti started without a hitch. Then I played Mine Storm, decided afterwards to play another round of Hexed off the VecMulti and *boom* it took three tries to get it to load. This is definitely not a big deal, but I am curious if there is an issue with my Vectrex I can address sooner than later.

 

As for "Patcher", I assume it only runs on Windows (since the extension is EXE). Does anybody know of a Mac version?

[Mayhem]

As for "Patcher", I assume it only runs on Windows (since the extension is EXE). Does anybody know of a Mac version?

 

Yes, it is Windows only, I don't believe there is a Mac version.

[jdollatari]

i miss mine that little buzz noise the unit makes i will get one again some day if the wife allows id love to see her reaction to it and playing it. how much did it set you back i didn't see you mention. interesting about that vehicle training software i had no idea about it

[Place Logo Here]

i miss mine that little buzz noise the unit makes i will get one again some day if the wife allows id love to see her reaction to it and playing it. how much did it set you back i didn't see you mention. interesting about that vehicle training software i had no idea about it

 

I paid just a little over $200 for mine, including shipping. That was after losing many auctions that usually went roughly $100 more than that for just the console or console and a couple of common carts. And, in the auction I did finally win, one or more persons frantically tried to outbid me in the last 5 seconds but I was prepared for that. So, if you want miss having a Vectrex, I would get one sooner than later as the prices for original hardware continue to rise. And I also cannot recommend a VecMulti cart highly enough.

[iesposta]

 

It would be great if there was a diagnostic program for the Vectrex.

 

...

There is! Well sort of.

The Test Cart is intended to be used with the service manual for adjustments, so it doesn't automatically diagnose.

You can use it to check if the display is not centered, or overscanning too much, and test controller functions.

 

Congrats on getting one. Was it the one that ended $362.23?

It had a boxed controller and a boxed light pen, which just those alone could be $265, then of course the system itself and a few more games with instructions and overlays. That is one of the best deals I've seen in a long time.

(Used to be broken ones were $75, and working with a controller for $150, seems now that has mostly doubled - or at least what sellers are asking.)

 

I don't have every software program for it, but I have enough hardware to last my lifetime. I bought I, Cyborg avout 2 years ago, but still haven't played it. Strangely I have 2 Boxes for I,Cyborg. War of the Worlds I like a lot.

And I can end without saying I think the best are 3d Mine Storm, Protector, Vextrexians, Vector Pilot, and the upcoming Vector Patrol (Moon Patrol) will amaze the whole Vectrex community for decades to come with its options, unbelievable detail, sound, and like Protector and Vextrexians - should not be possible with what the Vectrex system was designed to do.

[jdollatari]

yeah op its crazy how expensive they are i can't recall what i paid for mine but doubt i can have one again any time soon even at 200 its a bit rich id go 150