Brazilian system looks like 7800/NES hybrid

[lazzeri]

Sorry, I kind of disappeared. Busy days.

 

So... Brazil uses PAL-M, that is NOT like european PAL-B/G/Whatever. If you use it on a NTSC set you will have a perfectly fine picture (no roll-over or weird channels) but *NO COLOR AT ALL*. That´s all. It´s supposed to work flawlessly.

 

About power brick: Brazil can have BOTH 110V and 220V. Actually it´s a little more complicated, it can be 110v, 120v, 127, 220v or 240v, depending on wich CITY you are (don´t ask).

 

But for most of the country we use 127V. BITD the power bricks were NOT autoswitchable. There should be a small switch were you choose 110v or 220v. That´s the standard.

 

The power pin: This one pictured should work perfectly fine in US power outlet.

[+GoldenWheels]

Well I'm in need of yet more help....because when this thing arrived, it was not with the power plug in the original picture (though they did toss in an extra game). It was with THIS thing:

 

 

SO: Do I just get a Brazil to Us plug converter for like 2$ at this point? I didn't see any switches on this thing (maybe I missed it).

 

OR could I perhaps use a different US power adapter with the same specs?

[lazzeri]

This is the "new" standard power plug here in Brazil.

 

(I´m serious. About ten years ago our president passed a law changing ALL the power plugs on ALL eletronical devices sold in Brasil. Again, i´m serious. It was a nightmare. AND a stupidity)

 

Apparently this is the best possible design in the planet, and accident-proof. But i still hate it.

 

Anyway, one of those "universal travel adapter" can do the trick. I do carry one with me every time I travel to USA.

 

There is also a specific Brazil-to-USA adapter. I´ll be more than glad to grab one for you but shipment alone will be more expensive than an universal adapter over there. It´s like this: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hcJrhA0kw5g/T9346BLQF8I/AAAAAAAAE50/FX0lNr6edeY/s1600/1027735c.jpg

 

This one really don´t have a switch. You can see engraved "input: 100-240v". So it will AUTOMATICALLY accept ANY voltage within this range. Long story short, it´s plug´n´play.

 

You can also easily get a USA adapter with the same specs (9V, 1A, + on center). You might have to check the plug it uses, I really can´t tell for sure.

[lazzeri]

The universal travel adapter is this one: http://my-live-01.slatic.net/p/8/all-in-one-universal-travel-adapter-8908-8308171-c936b7d0747e134094bf9cba7ae298fe.jpg

 

You can get it for like 10 bucks in any luggage shop.

[+GoldLeader]

GoldenWheels, on 02 May 2017 - 09:34 AM, said:

Well I'm in need of yet more help....because when this thing arrived, it was not with the power plug in the original picture (though they did toss in an extra game). It was with THIS thing:

 

 

SO: Do I just get a Brazil to Us plug converter for like 2$ at this point? I didn't see any switches on this thing (maybe I missed it).

 

OR could I perhaps use a different US power adapter with the same specs?

 

Hey GoldenWheels,

 

I've got spare one of these...

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/5x-European-Euro-EU-to-USA-US-Travel-Charger-Plug-Adapter-Outlet-Converter-/231669367187?hash=item35f0920193:g:thgAAOSwTuJYuJYN

 

Just say the word and I'll send it your way!

 

(It looks to me like it would work, but I'm no expert).

 

Lazzeri does this look like it'll do?

 

Let me know

[lazzeri]

Absolutely, it will fit just fine.

 

We use a "modified european" plug. The 2-pin plug is exactly the same as euro standard; the 3-pin (anti-surge) is different.

 

For a 2-pin an Euro adaptor works perfectly.

[lazzeri]

Here you can see the odd, misaligned 3rd pin. That's what makes our Power inlets "unique".

 

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hcJrhA0kw5g/T9346BLQF8I/AAAAAAAAE50/FX0lNr6edeY/s1600/1027735c.jpg

[Zonie]

Here you can see the odd, misaligned 3rd pin. That's what makes our Power inlets "unique".

 

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hcJrhA0kw5g/T9346BLQF8I/AAAAAAAAE50/FX0lNr6edeY/s1600/1027735c.jpg

Yeah, I was wondering about that ground pin. Nearly like the Swiss version, but not so much out of line. Italy has an odd version too, all three are in line. Hate that one. My travel cord will not work in Italy. Pins are too fat. I made a US power strip with a universal Shucko plug on it so it works nearly everywhere in Europe Except Italy, and of course the UK.

 

If I ever get the chance to go down to Porte Alegre and visit Cietec again, I'm gonna try to find one of those 7800-Nes's.

Edited May 4, 2017 by Zonie

[lazzeri]

Yeah, I was wondering about that ground pin. Nearly like the Swiss version, but not so much out of line. Italy has an odd version too, all three are in line. Hate that one. My travel cord will not work in Italy. Pins are too fat. I made a US power strip with a universal Shucko plug on it so it works nearly everywhere in Europe Except Italy, and of course the UK.

 

If I ever get the chance to go down to Porte Alegre and visit Cietec again, I'm gonna try to find one of those 7800-Nes's.

 

Yeah, it was indeed inspired by the swiss plug, with two major changes:

 

- The HUGE 1 cm plastic base that is supposed to avoid accidental touching of the live wire (the depth of the socket + this base is supposed to protect little baby fingers, for instance)

- There is two different pin DIAMETERS. There´s the normal one (like above) and there´s a thicker one for high wattage devices like hairdriers and sandwich makers. I´m serious. If the device required more than X watts it is mandatory to have a thicker pin. So every time you buy a new device you might have the SURPRISE! of it not fitting your existing outlets and you having to run to a electrical store at nigh to buy a new outlet to change the existing one. And adapters for that (to use thicker pins on normal outlets) are forbidden.

 

I mean. Come on. :/

[+GoldenWheels]

 

Hey GoldenWheels,

 

I've got spare one of these...

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/5x-European-Euro-EU-to-USA-US-Travel-Charger-Plug-Adapter-Outlet-Converter-/231669367187?hash=item35f0920193:g:thgAAOSwTuJYuJYN

 

Just say the word and I'll send it your way!

 

(It looks to me like it would work, but I'm no expert).

 

Lazzeri does this look like it'll do?

 

Let me know

Gold I already had one on order the minute lazzeri said it would work but thanks very much!

 

I had a good time (I'm weird) cleaning this thing and the controller out last night. Damn was there a lot of....funk....inside the console. No bugs though! I'll try to take some interior pics and get it all up once I can plug it in and mess with it!

[+GoldLeader]

It seems like owning one of these would be pretty fun...And this is gonna sound weird, but sometimes you're in the mood for a black & white movie instead of a more modern one

[7800fan]

 

Yeah, it was indeed inspired by the swiss plug, with two major changes:

 

- The HUGE 1 cm plastic base that is supposed to avoid accidental touching of the live wire (the depth of the socket + this base is supposed to protect little baby fingers, for instance)

- There is two different pin DIAMETERS. There´s the normal one (like above) and there´s a thicker one for high wattage devices like hairdriers and sandwich makers. I´m serious. If the device required more than X watts it is mandatory to have a thicker pin. So every time you buy a new device you might have the SURPRISE! of it not fitting your existing outlets and you having to run to a electrical store at nigh to buy a new outlet to change the existing one. And adapters for that (to use thicker pins on normal outlets) are forbidden.

 

I mean. Come on. :/

 

USA had something similar but it was rarely used. AC outlet with 2 straight slots are max 15A, outlet with one sideway 'T' is max 20A but is backward compatible with lower watt devices, and outlets with 2 sideway T's are max 25A and also backward compatible with 20A and 15A max devices.

 

One of my older house had 20A outlet everywhere but I have never seen a single plug with a sideway T prong. It seems high power devices went with 220v instead of 110v higher amp. The way power math works, 220v device would need half the amp that 110v devices would need.

[Zonie]

The European Schucko outlet is this way. Larger pins for 16A and smaller pins for 8A plugs will still fit and work. The pointy edges of the two prong plugs actually are functional to fit in some guides in the round recessed Schucko. The German version has grounding tabs on the edged and the French one has a ground pin in the receptacle that mates with a hole in the round plug, but totally misses the edge of the two prong one. Hence they always have that same shape.

Sooo, If you are in Brasil, I guess the thing to do is get the larger hole'd receptacles as I presume the smaller diameter ones will fit?

 

On US plugs:

If you buy actual 20A receptacle in the US, they will have the T slots. Nobody ever does, and NEC allows for 15A outlets to be used on 20A circuits for some stupid reason. They are 39 cents instead of $2.79. A Ronco Rotissarie melted a 15A outlet in my kitchen (!!) so I replaced that one with a SINGLE 20A receptacle.

When I remodeled my kitchen, I put proper T-slotted receptacles in my kitchen. My house, oddly, has all 20A breakers and #12 wire. Strange. Built in 1968. The ground wires are #16.

Edited May 5, 2017 by Zonie

[+GoldenWheels]

Finally got some pictures done!

 

 

 

 

[+GoldenWheels]

Controller & Power Adapter

 

 

 

 

 

[+GoldenWheels]

Trying to find it a good home guys. I've had my fun with it.

 

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/272896-fs-gradiente-phantom-brazil-nes-clone-in-7800-case-w-3-games/

[leods]

I'm from Brazil and this was my first video game system.

 

As far as I understand Nintendo didn't really have a legal patent of the system internationally at the time, so Gradiente got away with releasing a clone. I'm not sure about that though.

 

What I am sure about though is:

The games Crime Busters and Ghost Busters came as pack in for my system. These were, as far as I know, actually licensed from their developers.

 

Namco released some games also, that were manufactured by Gradiente. Those were black cartriges with a round top. I got Pac Man and Rolling Thunder like that.

 

Latter the NES was licensed and these black different cartriges seem to have disappeared. I got some original NES (imported) cartridges latter that worked just fine, and a couple Famicom bootleg cartridges that worked just fine with a passive pin adapter. I am not sure though wether my system was modded in any way. The system came with two controllers and the lightgun, and a couple years after I got my SNES I gave away the Phantom System with all games. It was still working flawlessly. I think I was lucky to get that. to me the console design is nicer than the front loader, and I prefer the genesis controllers to NES originals.

 

To be honest I don't know how good the clone was. I never ran into a game that didn't run, but I didn't really compare graphics with other systems. I am not sure wether maybe colors were off, or glitches happened.

 

I read somewhere that Gradiente was preparing to release the Atari 7200 in Brazil, but then came the crash, the NES was released and releasing a 7200 in that landscape wasn't gonna stick. So they got the tooling they already had and made this NES clone, which explains why they used the Atari 7200 as the shell of the console. Why the sega stuff though? Not sure. Maybe they actually got their hands on moulds for brazilian SEGA products? These could even have come out of factories that were producing actual licensed SEGA products in Manaus, like nowadays we see happen in China. That's pure speculation though.

 

To me the Phantom System is the coolest ever NES. MAybe because it's what I grew up with. But I don't think so. I think it's because that Frankenstein monster is actually pretty damned cool.

 

Now I live in Germany, so I won't even try to get my hands on one of these. But I remember clearly the first time I played that system. And it's funny how in the beginning I didn't even know what an NES was. I got that Phantom System with it's games, and I didn't even realyze it was a clone until a couple years latter.

That's all I remember now, but I'd gladly answer questions if I can.