stushug Posted October 14, 2022 Share Posted October 14, 2022 (edited) I was reading another thread about existing BBS services. I was looking at purchasing a modem such as an Atari 835(one of which I had back then) to use once in a while for the nostalgic feel of connecting via the phone line. I noticed other modems like the SX212 mentioned that would be faster and possibly connect better. Would an SX212 work with my Atari 800? If not, what other dial up modems should I be looking at? I'm trying to stick with Atari equipment if possible. I've been having lots of fun showing my granddaughter this vintage stuff and wanted her to see how we used this equipment way back when! She's having fun with it too, by the way. Edited October 14, 2022 by stushug 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
invisible kid Posted October 14, 2022 Share Posted October 14, 2022 (edited) So, in today's world with this retro equipment there isn't really that much of a difference between 300 and 1200 and 4800 and 9600 for nostalgia users such as ourselves IMO. No real heavy duty long term usage. Just giggles and kicks. I would recommend getting the same equipment you had if you can. I had an Atari 1030 modem, and the Atari XM301 modems came out a bit after. Those two are "only" 300 baud, but are fun and easy-ish to use. I recently got an AT compatible 9600 baud modem to use with an Atari 850 device that can connect to any standard-ish RS-232 modem. Those are just the ones I have hands-on experience with. There were ones that hooked up via joystick ports, and the Atari SX212 that you mentioned. Edited October 14, 2022 by invisible kid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stushug Posted October 14, 2022 Author Share Posted October 14, 2022 I saw only one 835 listed on ebay and it went for $80 before I could bid. There were plenty of the SX212's and they were as low as only $40 or so but I don't know if it will work with my 800. The price isn't that important, as long as it's reasonable. I'm just trying to find out which modems are compatible with my 800. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonlight_mile Posted October 14, 2022 Share Posted October 14, 2022 If you can get an 85o or a p:r: connection look into a wimodem. They are telnet modems that connect via Wi-Fi. It isn’t the same as dialing in but most bbs’s (including the two I run) are telnet only. There are a couple of the Atari bbs’s that are available via dialup but a telnet modem gives you more flexibility. https://www.cbmstuff.com 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vyvyan B. Posted October 15, 2022 Share Posted October 15, 2022 (edited) I was just looking into those wifi modem emulators as well to get some BBS action, there are several wifi serial modems available, but for the 8 bit, you would also need an interface and the right cables to make it all work. All in all, it would probably be cheaper just to buy a fuji net if only for the modem capability. Edited October 15, 2022 by Vyvyan B. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfollowell Posted October 15, 2022 Share Posted October 15, 2022 Any Atari modem should be compatible with any Atari 8-bit, period. However, if you want them to "look" the part, you may want to buy something that was designed from the same era as the computer that you have. For example, the XM301 and SX212 came out with the XE line and have similar styling. Likewise, the 1030 was from the XL era. As far as direct-connect modems, I believe the only one from the 400/800 area would be the 835. In terms of compatibility though, any Atari branded modem should work with any of the Atari 8-bit computers much like any Atari disk drive or any Atari cassette recorder will work with any of the computers. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
invisible kid Posted October 15, 2022 Share Posted October 15, 2022 I checked ebay for 835s and like you said, they are rarer than some of the others. One boxed telecommunications kit with it went for $500! But I did see a couple of other 835s that went for a more reasonable price over the last couple of months($20 - $50). So maybe some patience will help here. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+slx Posted October 15, 2022 Share Posted October 15, 2022 If you don‘t need the actual thrill of beeping and farting handshake sounds a FujiNet is probably the easier option… 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vyvyan B. Posted October 15, 2022 Share Posted October 15, 2022 (edited) 3 hours ago, slx said: If you don‘t need the actual thrill of beeping and farting handshake sounds a FujiNet is probably the easier option… There are also these rs232 wifi modems available VCC at for just under $40 USD - And from what I have been reading, you could even telnet into a raspberry pi with a rs232 USB cable from the Atari, and then from there, to the BBS of your choice. Would BobTerm work for this? Perhaps someone could elaborate. Edited October 15, 2022 by Vyvyan B. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stushug Posted October 15, 2022 Author Share Posted October 15, 2022 14 hours ago, Vyvyan B. said: I was just looking into those wifi modem emulators as well to get some BBS action, there are several wifi serial modems available, but for the 8 bit, you would also need an interface and the right cables to make it all work. All in all, it would probably be cheaper just to buy a fuji net if only for the modem capability. 3 hours ago, slx said: If you don‘t need the actual thrill of beeping and farting handshake sounds a FujiNet is probably the easier option… I do have a Fujinet, and it works well. It is just some nostalgia to have an actual dialup modem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stushug Posted October 15, 2022 Author Share Posted October 15, 2022 4 hours ago, invisible kid said: I checked ebay for 835s and like you said, they are rarer than some of the others. One boxed telecommunications kit with it went for $500! But I did see a couple of other 835s that went for a more reasonable price over the last couple of months($20 - $50). So maybe some patience will help here. Good luck! It seems the 850 is just as rare, so it's an uphill battle either way. I can wait until something shows up, and go from there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
invisible kid Posted October 15, 2022 Share Posted October 15, 2022 (edited) 23 minutes ago, stushug said: I can wait until something shows up, and go from there. I know the feeling... Edited October 15, 2022 by invisible kid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stushug Posted October 15, 2022 Author Share Posted October 15, 2022 I just purchased an SX212 for about $50 including shipping. I'll see how it works out, and keep an eye out for an 835 since that's what I used to have. I still can't remember what I used to connect to, though! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
invisible kid Posted October 15, 2022 Share Posted October 15, 2022 Nice, I remember wanting one of those pretty badly when it came out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stushug Posted October 17, 2022 Author Share Posted October 17, 2022 On 10/14/2022 at 7:45 PM, moonlight_mile said: If you can get an 85o or a p:r: connection look into a wimodem. They are telnet modems that connect via Wi-Fi. It isn’t the same as dialing in but most bbs’s (including the two I run) are telnet only. There are a couple of the Atari bbs’s that are available via dialup but a telnet modem gives you more flexibility. https://www.cbmstuff.com Which two BBS's do you run? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tillek Posted October 17, 2022 Share Posted October 17, 2022 On 10/15/2022 at 10:37 AM, Vyvyan B. said: There are also these rs232 wifi modems available VCC at for just under $40 USD - And from what I have been reading, you could even telnet into a raspberry pi with a rs232 USB cable from the Atari, and then from there, to the BBS of your choice. Would BobTerm work for this? Perhaps someone could elaborate. I actually just ordered a couple of these... of course, I didn't know VCC made them too... I got some from a guy from Italy. But I can let you know how they compare to the WiModem232 (which I've used for both calling an running a BBS on both the A8 and ST). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tillek Posted October 17, 2022 Share Posted October 17, 2022 50 minutes ago, stushug said: Which two BBS's do you run? http://www.sfhqbbs.org/ataribbslist.php He runs Alcatraz and the ForemXE BBS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tillek Posted October 17, 2022 Share Posted October 17, 2022 On 10/15/2022 at 11:08 AM, stushug said: I do have a Fujinet, and it works well. It is just some nostalgia to have an actual dialup modem. There is a dial up modem pool to reach the Atari (and other BBSs) from dial up modems.... and I found the Ooma service to work well enough (just be sure to not fall for the trap of them thinking your device came from an invalid retailer and try to hit you for a $200 charge or something like that). Generally, that one comes to about $5/mo. Though I found myself feeling odd being telnet capable and then using a dial up modem via VOIP (or MOIP I guess) to call a service that lets me telnet to my telnet BBS. Fun once or twice, but then you go back to the WiModem232. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stushug Posted October 17, 2022 Author Share Posted October 17, 2022 I saw that the SX212 modem I purchased on ebay has an SIO connector on it. Does that mean I can connect it directly to my 800 and just start using it (with the appropriate software of course)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tillek Posted October 17, 2022 Share Posted October 17, 2022 5 minutes ago, stushug said: I saw that the SX212 modem I purchased on ebay has an SIO connector on it. Does that mean I can connect it directly to my 800 and just start using it (with the appropriate software of course)? Yes. There was a version of SX Express for it. Or you can use it as a standard RS232 with the right equipment (850/P:R:C) but the RS232 was probably more often used by the ST crowd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillC Posted October 17, 2022 Share Posted October 17, 2022 2 minutes ago, Tillek said: Yes. There was a version of SX Express for it. Or you can use it as a standard RS232 with the right equipment (850/P:R:C) but the RS232 was probably more often used by the ST crowd. The SX212 includes an R-Verter interface between the SIO and RS232 ports, this should allow use of any communications software that is compatible with the R-Verter driver. Before I purchased an MIO I used a Supra 2400 modem with Bobterm using a Supra R-Verter interface(came with the modem) and driver, this should also work with the SX212 via SIO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stushug Posted October 17, 2022 Author Share Posted October 17, 2022 This is the modem I purchased on ebay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/275492951414 It comes with a copy of Bobterm. I'm assuming I don't need and 850 or anything like it between the SX212 and my 800 to make it work. Sorry if I seem to be asking the same question again, I'm just trying to make sure this will work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
invisible kid Posted October 17, 2022 Share Posted October 17, 2022 I never had a SX212, but from looking at the ad and the pictures, it looks like you can connect directly via Atari SIO. It looks like the included copy of Bobterm is set up to work with that modem, so you don't have to hunt down the correct version/drivers. So you look good to go to me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stushug Posted October 17, 2022 Author Share Posted October 17, 2022 27 minutes ago, invisible kid said: I never had a SX212, but from looking at the ad and the pictures, it looks like you can connect directly via Atari SIO. It looks like the included copy of Bobterm is set up to work with that modem, so you don't have to hunt down the correct version/drivers. So you look good to go to me! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tillek Posted October 17, 2022 Share Posted October 17, 2022 2 hours ago, stushug said: This is the modem I purchased on ebay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/275492951414 It comes with a copy of Bobterm. I'm assuming I don't need and 850 or anything like it between the SX212 and my 800 to make it work. Sorry if I seem to be asking the same question again, I'm just trying to make sure this will work. You're good... Like BillC said, it has the built in R-Verter, so just make sure you use the R-Verter handler... (And I feel dumb forgetting about that because I bought a second SX212 just so I could take it apart and look at it while keeping the other one for use). And don't worry about asking questions... it's how we learn. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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