Atari 7800 pal controller

[segasaturn]

After graduating college and selling half my old collection, I want to start collecting again and Im excited! I havent been on Atariage in a few years and I missed it. One system I never got rid of was my 7800. Its actually one of my favorite game systems. Now, I know Atari released a NES style controller for the pal region, is the controller also compatible with an NTSC 7800? What about NTSC games? Is it a much better controller then the standard controller it came with in America/worth the price to get? I know the thumb stick on the controller(the one that does on the D pad) is kind of hard to find is it worth finding one/does it help gameplay in any way?

[CPUWIZ]

Controllers do not care where they are from. As should humans.

[Swami]

Genesis 3-button + Seagull 78 = awesome dpad

 

SMS Master Controller + SMS Rapid Fire + Seagull 78 + replace joystick top = awesome haldheld stick

[Skippy B. Coyote]

Best Electronics still has some brand new CX-78 joypads left in stock for a good bit cheaper than you'll find them used on eBay. They work just fine with US systems and games they're a much more comfortable controller to use than the normal US style 7800 controller. I like them quite a bit, though the thumb stick is a matter of personal preference (I always leave it off on mine).

[+SmittyB]

I find the joypad to be about equal to the Master System controller. It's overly spongy and very hard to tell which direction you're pressing both with and without the stick. Maybe get one anyway for the collection but for actually playing games there are much better options.

[Swami]

I find the joypad to be about equal to the Master System controller. It's overly spongy and very hard to tell which direction you're pressing both with and without the stick. Maybe get one anyway for the collection but for actually playing games there are much better options.

 

I should add by SMS controller, I meant this (you can also add a ball top or a stick top from the US 7800 controller):

[Andromeda Stardust]

The Dpad is pretty rubbish and the buttons are spaced too far apart to hit both simultaneously. Best option is get an NES controller, remove the 4021 chip, and mod it to 7800 format with a Retrobit or other brand Genesis extension cable for the cord. If the controller buttons are worn, replacement membranes for NES controllers are cheaply available.

[johannesmutlu]

Well i doubt if my pal atari 7800 controller officially works on my ntsc atari 7800 ,that’s because if i play donkeykong,those action buttons don’t respond while with the D-pad i can walk right,go up and down but i cannot walk to the left,

but if i use the clumsy us controller then all buttons do work,

so is it possible that my pal controller is malfunction,are those contacts inside dirty,or is it true that this pal controller is not region free(rewired pin connections)?

As of now i can only speculate.

[+Stephen Moss]

I sounds to me like you probably have a faulty controller.

If you look at the schematics for the PAL and NTSC 7800 available here on AA you will see the controller connections on both are identical as one would expect, therefore the way the controllers operated and would be wired would have to be the same, so as CPUWIZ indicated above, the controllers are universal and should work the same on both PAL and NTSC models.

[johannesmutlu]

12 hours ago, Stephen Moss said:

I sounds to me like you probably have a faulty controller.

If you look at the schematics for the PAL and NTSC 7800 available here on AA you will see the controller connections on both are identical as one would expect, therefore the way the controllers operated and would be wired would have to be the same, so as CPUWIZ indicated above, the controllers are universal and should work the same on both PAL and NTSC models.

Well maybe i have to clean that pal controller with alcohol by opening it up,remove the guts and hope for the best( there might. Be 35 year old dirt inside),but what a coincidance that both action buttons don’t work and pushing left also doesn’t work,but again i may give it a huge clean.

[alex_79]

Most likely the issue is broken wires in the cable, rather than dirty contact pads. As said by others, the controllers are the same for all regions. And the gamepad is electrically identical to a proline joystick, only the shape is different.

[johannesmutlu]

On 4/14/2022 at 9:42 AM, Stephen Moss said:

I sounds to me like you probably have a faulty controller.

If you look at the schematics for the PAL and NTSC 7800 available here on AA you will see the controller connections on both are identical as one would expect, therefore the way the controllers operated and would be wired would have to be the same, so as CPUWIZ indicated above, the controllers are universal and should work the same on both PAL and NTSC models.

Well guess what i cleaned all the parts inside that 7800 pal controller ,i cleaned all rubber pads and all contacts on the motherboard with alcohol,i checked to make sure no wire was loose,after i fiddeled that controller back togeter(putting everything back together was as hard as son of a bitch because)

but once i tested it out,i finally was able to get those action buttons working,BUT walking back does still not work aaarrrggg,walking left right,going up and down does work, that’s sooo frustrating,especially since the seller stated that that controller was tested and working fine,i feel soo bad and sad now,ouch.