Peloquin17 Posted January 8 Share Posted January 8 New to the forums but have been collecting on and off since the 80s. my wife got me a 2600+ for Christmas, and have been meticulously cleaning some of the older games to play. I’ve been having trouble with most of the games, except for the one that game with the console. I decided to open up a cart (megamania, if you must know) and REALLY clean it. The contacts were shiny. it still didn’t work. I decide to clean the cartridge slot on the console when I notice that I’m not getting any residue on the top left of the cleaning cart. I look in the slot, and sure enough, one of the pins is broken and pushed all the way back! See pic. I already contacted Atari support, but does anyone know how good they are with replacements? im tempted just to open it up and fix it myself. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben from Plaion Posted January 8 Share Posted January 8 I can get this fixed, either send you a spaare part or look at it myself. DM me. 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peloquin17 Posted January 9 Author Share Posted January 9 Thanks! Appreciate it. Gonna give Atari a few days to respond, but will definitely reach out if they don’t. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tradyblix Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 (edited) 52 minutes ago, Peloquin17 said: Thanks! Appreciate it. Gonna give Atari a few days to respond, but will definitely reach out if they don’t. Just go with Ben. He is Atari when it comes to this. Sucks about your pin. Edited January 9 by tradyblix 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+bent_pin Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 I've done this to an original 2600 when inserting a cart without a case to guide it. Given that it's new, best to let Mr. Ben take care of it for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben from Plaion Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 1 hour ago, Peloquin17 said: Thanks! Appreciate it. Gonna give Atari a few days to respond, but will definitely reach out if they don’t. Itll just go to landfill if you return it. If I deal with it it won't. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dionoid Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 (edited) 1 hour ago, Ben from Plaion said: Itll just go to landfill if you return it. That always makes me sad to read, while I know it's true for most things you return to online shops. In the Netherlands, there's an online retail store named CoolBlue that offers their returned items (which are 100% fine) as "second chance" option for a slightly lower price. Sometimes people return a perfectly fine product, just because they "changed their minds". Makes me mad. Edited January 9 by Dionoid 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben from Plaion Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 16 minutes ago, Dionoid said: That always makes me sad to read, while I know it's true for most things you return to online shops. In the Netherlands, there's an online retail store named CoolBlue that offers their returned items (which are 100% fine) as "second chance" option for a slightly lower price. Sometimes people return a perfectly fine product, just because they "changed their minds". Makes me mad. Amazon sell returned goods through their warehouse deals, but I don't know whether the supplier gets any money from it. Plus this wouldn't be the case here cause of the bent pin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J2600 Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 Ugh... This happened to me on the third cartridge insert. My 2600+ lasted at total of about 40 minutes. 😐 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J2600 Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 5 hours ago, J2600 said: Ugh... This happened to me on the third cartridge insert. My 2600+ lasted at total of about 40 minutes. 😐 Pin 4 along the bottom. I managed to semi repair it, but I'm scared as hell to use it now. Was loving the Atari 2600+ too, but this seems to be a weak point. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Electric-Dreams Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 This reminds me of the issue (but here it's much less severe) with the famous 72-pin NES cartridge slot on the Retron5, where the pins would bend very easily after a few uses, until the port became quickly unusable. Some days ago, I had trouble inserting an M Network cartridge into the 2600+. I had to exert more force than usual to insert and remove it. Upon inspection, I noticed that one of the pins on the 2600+'s cartridge slot had bent a little, and I fixed it with a precision screwdriver. I believe the cartridge slot may be (in case of use of exotic/dirty cartridges) one of the console's long-term weak points. I hope it will be possible to officially find spare parts online to be able to repair it when the warranty has expired and to avoid having to repurchase the console. Wishful thinking, probably 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+bent_pin Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 18 hours ago, Ben from Plaion said: Plus this wouldn't be the case here cause of the bent pin. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben from Plaion Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 1 minute ago, bent_pin said: I set this up. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+bent_pin Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 7 minutes ago, Ben from Plaion said: I set this up. I've been waiting for this since I made this account last April. 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peloquin17 Posted January 10 Author Share Posted January 10 25 minutes ago, bent_pin said: I've been waiting for this since I made this account last April. 🤣 im going to open the system up and try to repair it this weekend. ben - I will def reach out if I need anything. Thanks! kinds sucks that this is happening to the 2600+ systems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetmanUK Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 (edited) I am sorry to tell you this Ben, but I had the very same issue (my posts about it are on here) and did receive a replacement from Amazon. They really need to do things better. But back to my issue, I pre-ordered the console, received it on launch day and it broke very quickly. I noticed that a pin was the issue and although I am fairly handy I didn't want to fiddle with it as I figured I’d invalidate the warranty, it's brand new and shouldn't break so easily, Amazon's customer service is excellent, and I could have a new one the next day. It's shitty if Amazon don't deal with this correctly and responsibly and especially so if it impacts Atari/Plaion so badly, so I apologise for this. What I would say is I have seen (and purchased) lots of Amazon Warehouse returns in the past, so I assumed that it would be repaired and resold at a small discount, the box and everything else was immaculate, all packaging intact, it could easily have been resold. Are you sure that it would just have been binned? Is this Plaion's policy and not Amazon's fault? I think something to note with the next run of manufacture, if possible, is that the cart slot should be tweaked. The resize has been a negative, and the component with the pins should be replaced with a more robust one (although to be fair the slot being adjusted may resolve the issue). I get that this may be pricey (perhaps just a more robust connector then), but I think this is a flaw in the new design. The slot on my ancient Atari is rock solid and still going strong, little kid me never managed to break that one. I do want to be make it clear that I think the console is great and my current favourite toy! It has been wonderful using it, and I look forward to more from you guys, but whilst I had to share my comments, they do not affect my overall thoughts on the product and I have whole heartedly recommended it to friends and will continue to do so. Edited January 10 by JetmanUK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scifidude79 Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 30 minutes ago, bent_pin said: I've been waiting for this since I made this account last April. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J2600 Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 On 1/9/2024 at 6:56 AM, Ben from Plaion said: I can get this fixed, either send you a spaare part or look at it myself. DM me. Hi Ben, Is there somewhere we can get the spares for the port or an alternative spare? I love the concept of the 2600+, but am devastated that it lasted only a few hours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffrey the Legend Posted January 24 Share Posted January 24 Sorry for sort of reviving this thread, but makes sense as this threat is exactly in context with what I've experienced I suppose Got tired playing Centipede, so second half of stream I try to boot something else, cleaning carts and trying them out in the system. Nothing would load. But I have this moment of wobbly cartridges that I could press left and right in the slot. This is where the pin was already bent of course. after pressing some more carts in. at some point the carts would lock in again, but the pin was all the way in the back of the slot. I realised it only much later cause I was blaming first the alcohol solution and later just thinking the cartridge slot was just wobbly and it was me not pressing those carts in straight. But yeah, learned now it is a bent pin. already received my replacement unit from the Dutch Amazon aka bol.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peloquin17 Posted January 27 Author Share Posted January 27 I bought mine direct from Atari and their customer service has been awful. I’ve broken down the unit and messaged Ben to see what my options are. probably should have bought from Amazon. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 I voided my warranty on my 2600+ by retrofitting an actual 7800 cartridge port into mine. Wasn't easy as the leads on the ends of the pins off these newer ports are thinner/smaller than the originals. So the original wouldn't fit into the vias on the board. I ended up trimming the original leads off the 7800 port by about half way up and then used clipped leads from off of components (I've a stash of these as all electronics tech do). And used those to get through the vias on the 2600+ upper main board and then soldered them to the remaining leads from the OEM 7800 port. I've not noticed a difference as far as the games working any better or worse, but at least I know the port itself is an original 7800 port complete with the actual molded dividers for the side contacts vs the 2600+ where they removed the extra pins off the connector to compensate for that. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AgentOrange96 Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 On 1/27/2024 at 11:29 AM, -^CrossBow^- said: I voided my warranty on my 2600+ by retrofitting an actual 7800 cartridge port into mine. Wasn't easy as the leads on the ends of the pins off these newer ports are thinner/smaller than the originals. So the original wouldn't fit into the vias on the board. I ended up trimming the original leads off the 7800 port by about half way up and then used clipped leads from off of components (I've a stash of these as all electronics tech do). And used those to get through the vias on the 2600+ upper main board and then soldered them to the remaining leads from the OEM 7800 port. I've not noticed a difference as far as the games working any better or worse, but at least I know the port itself is an original 7800 port complete with the actual molded dividers for the side contacts vs the 2600+ where they removed the extra pins off the connector to compensate for that. Technically, in the US anyway, this doesn't even void your warranty entirely. Per the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, you may use whatever parts you wish to repair your property without voiding your warranty. However, if Atari can prove that the part you installed is the reason that your system is faulty, the warranty would not cover it. So for example, if there was a faulty chip on your device, that would still legally have to be covered by warranty. However, if your cartridge port ever fails, then yeah, your warranty isn't going to cover that. To be clear, I'm not a lawyer, you may read up on this here (Search for "Tie-In Sales"): https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/businesspersons-guide-federal-warranty-law I mention this because I think it's important knowledge generally speaking, and many companies outright violate this. (So good luck actually applying this) But especially when it comes to other things such as cars, appliances, computers and other important items, this becomes even more important. Obviously, don't abuse this. And of course, laws in other countries will vary. Anyway, your information about using a 7800 cartridge port is super useful information. Obviously, Ben has offered to help get OP's system repaired, rather than have it be sent to the landfill. (He previously fixed my 2600+ for me, which I'm incredibly thankful for!) However, having alternate options to repair these systems as needed is always good. Back in the day, it would have been pretty common to fix things with what you have. For example, my heavy sixer had a RadioShack 3.5mm jack wired onto the board to replace the original Atari 3.5mm power jack, plus it had a few bodge wires, and a few more now that are my own repairs. Making due with an off the shelf, and probably more durable, 7800 cartridge port is really clever! Although I definitely would love to see a revision of the cartridge port for the 2600+ someday. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spanner Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 Need to find out why this is happening to prevent from happening because it will continue to happen, maybe the way the cart is inserted, maybe do not swich one cart for another to quicky, that the only thing I can think of, or are some carts board in the cartridge thinker, are all board where they teeth are the same thickness, if not then they could be catching and bending the teeth ...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peloquin17 Posted January 30 Author Share Posted January 30 6 minutes ago, Spanner said: Need to find out why this is happening to prevent from happening because it will continue to happen, maybe the way the cart is inserted, maybe do not swich one cart for another to quicky, that the only thing I can think of, or are some carts board in the cartridge thinker, are all board where they teeth are the same thickness, if not then they could be catching and bending the teeth ...? There should be no reason this is happening. 40 years of people slamming carts into a 2600, and I’ve never heard of this many consistent issues. I hooked up a 7800 again, just to test carts that I thought weren’t working in the 2600+ only for them to boot right up with no issue. Ben is sending me a new board, and we will see how long it hold up. im not going to be rough with it, but I’m also not going to treat it like glass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spanner Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 (edited) One reason could be worn down cartridges, the same thing happens to SD cards where you slot them in and out all the time they ware down and then stop connecting and then the PC does not see the SD Card no more or you have to wiggle it in it slot for it to see the SD card, it happens a lot to Micro SD Card Adapters, if you use Micro SD cards, they work basically the same as a cartridge does. This is what happens to things with mechanically parts or moving parts, they ware down eventually ... Edited January 30 by Spanner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
AtariAge on Instagram
Watch us on YouTube
Chat on Discord
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.