Krystal Sharky Posted November 2, 2016 Share Posted November 2, 2016 Hello, i bought an atari 2600 model "dark vador" S2 some years ago and i noticed that with some games the colors are very weird compared to the screenshot on the box or on internet.. so i wonder if my atari is for sure a secam version and not a pal one (i bought it in france) Here is some pictures to show you.(sorry for te bad quality but the colors are the same.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alex_79 Posted November 2, 2016 Share Posted November 2, 2016 Yes, it's a Secam VCS. Atari didn't develop a specific TIA chip for French market and instead added external ciruit to generate SECAM signal using just the 3 luma output of the PAL or NTSC chip. The result is a palette with only 8 colors compared to 128 for NTSC and 104 for PAL.A handful of PAL Atari games in the early '80s were programmed to look good on SECAM too, including Pole Position, Mario Bros, Obelix, Asteroids, Battlezone. Activision also released separate version of a few games for PAL and SECAM.In addition to that, the "TV TYPE" switch actually turn on/off color in the video signal, while on PAL and NTSC its behaviour is controlled by software and later games used it for other function. "Secret Quest", for example, needs the switch to access the status screen, and it's unplayable on a SECAM console.Only 4-switch consoles were produced in SECAM, all the "jr" are PAL. There was also a junior with SCART output (PAL composite signal) sold in France, while the RF version seems more common.And all the Atari 7800 for French market were equipped with RGB SCART output and they're based on the PAL version, so they'll play PAL games with correct colors.Interesting to note the score in the "Space invaders" picture, showing extra colors: that's an artifact which only happens on SECAM, due to the way the color information is split into two components and sent over two scanlines.http://atariage.com/forums/topic/212910-early-vcs-secam-version-differences/?do=findComment&comment=2767356 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cambouis de l'Atari Posted November 2, 2016 Share Posted November 2, 2016 Hi, as he's french, I'll answer is his language. Salut, La version secam ne sort que 8 couleurs, c'est lié à l'utilisation des circuits noir et blanc. Donc si ta console est secam et que tu utilises des cartouches pal ou ntsc, le résultat sera toujours "carnaval" Il n'y a qu'avec de rares cartouches secam (reconnaissables à un sticker S) que tu auras un résultat plus ou moins acceptable. A mon humble avis, la version secam est la pire, une hérésie qui n'aurait jamais du exister !! Le principal atout de la vcs est justement sa palette incroyable, et elle est ici réduite à 8 couleurs criardes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krystal Sharky Posted November 2, 2016 Author Share Posted November 2, 2016 Well thx a lot for the answers.. i fallen in the secam trap and i paid it 60€..This version is a real shame I think i should sold it for an atari 7800 instead.. Im really dissapointed about raid river and radar lock wich looks horrible to play.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cambouis de l'Atari Posted November 2, 2016 Share Posted November 2, 2016 I may be wrong but if you install a composite mod into a secam console, is it still limited to 8 colors ? Could be a solution for Sharky... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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