I cant get it to work

[muell67]

Im still having problems getting my 2600 to work I have a power supply that I believe is working correctly so i bought from radio shack a f plug to coaxial converter and stuck it on the end of the cord on the atari. When I plug it into the back of my tv I see a very fuzzy rolling picture and here a little bit of sound. I thought possibly there was a problem with the cord so I opened the case and bought a new cord from wal-mart. but the problem is the connector on the new cord is to long to go down on the motherboard connector completely. does this matter. What am I doing wrong? any suggestions? I am getting tired of trying to get this to work Im about ready to buy a new one. please help

[Kialan]

..do you have a game in?

 

2600s don't show any picture without a game.

[Mindfield]

Some RCA cables used for RF output do have a long center connector and often it needs to be filed down in order to get it to fit properly.

 

Is it possible that you have a PAL console (if you're in the US, that is)? If so then it may be both a voltage and TV signal problem. If it's a PAL console then for starters the voltage will be wrong. (210/220v in Europe vs. 110/120v in North America) I'm not sure if half the voltage would even be sufficient to power it up though. Then there's the broadcast signal difference. North American TVs display images at 60Hz, while PAL sets display at 50Hz. Trying to play a PAL game on an NTSC system and TV (or any game on a PAL console hooked up to an NTSC TV) will produce the rolling you describe.

[muell67]

how can I tell if it is a pal version?

[Spirantho]

It won't be.

 

The rolling picture is just because the signal is too weak, not because it's the wrong signal, and you'd have to be using PAL games anyway.

 

No, the problem is simply that your TV isn't able to tune into the console because the signal it's receiving is too weak. So:

a) Try retuning the telly. Play with the fine tuning.

b) Check the Atari video cable or try a different cable (though you may need to cut down the tip on the Atari end). A multimeter will tell you if the cable is dodgy, otherwise try it with any other known good source.

c) Try a different telly.

d) Nip down to your local Electronics shop and buy a RF amplifier. Mine cost £10, and makes a massive difference.

 

I doubt it's your Atari at fault, but you could try another one....

[tearex]

Is it possible that you have a PAL console (if you're in the US, that is)?  If so then it may be both a voltage and TV signal problem.  If it's a PAL console then for starters the voltage will be wrong.  (210/220v in Europe vs. 110/120v in North America)   I'm not sure if half the voltage would even be sufficient to power it up though.  Then there's the broadcast signal difference.  North American TVs display images at 60Hz, while PAL sets display at 50Hz.  Trying to play a PAL game on an NTSC system and TV (or any game on a PAL console hooked up to an NTSC TV) will produce the rolling you describe.

 

Just a little correction, A PAL console hooked up to a (non-multinorm) NTSC TV most likely won't show anything at all as the broadcast carrier frequency AND the sound and color subcarrier frequencies AND the color encoding (which are the business of the console itself) are different -- not just the screen refresh rate (which is the business of the individual game module). The voltage matters only for the power adapter, if it fits into your local electrical socket type it is almost certain to be the correct power adapter -- different countries have different electrical sockets. The Atari itself gets only 9V anyway from the adapter, no matter which norm it is.

[tearex]

Im still having problems getting my 2600 to work I have a power supply that I believe is working correctly so i bought from radio shack a f plug to coaxial converter and stuck it on the end of the cord on the atari. When I plug it into the back of my tv I see a very fuzzy rolling picture and here a little bit of sound.

 

Generally if old electronics don't work it's often a good idea to replace all the electrolytical capacitors, as those are among the only components that truly age as the liquid inside them slowly evaporates (EPROMs age too but the Atari doesn't have any). Assuming you have a non-Jr 2600, before that, you could try adjusting the color pot and the sound coil, and also the HF coil inside the HF modulator (the little silver box on the Atari's larger PCB). They are all adjustable through holes in the metal shields after you remove the plastic casing.

 

Before you replace the cable test the old one for conductivity. If it has no problems conducting electricity on either its core or its shielding (even when you bend it back and forth) there's no need to replace it.

 

The Jr has those three adjustable thingies too but of course located in different places.

[Spirantho]

Just a little correction, A PAL console hooked up to a (non-multinorm) NTSC TV most likely won't show anything at all as the broadcast carrier frequency AND the sound and color subcarrier frequencies AND the color encoding (which are the business of the console itself) are different

 

A little correction to the correction ( ) the broadcast carrier frequency of a UK spec Atari will indeed be very different (UHF Channel 36 instead of VHF channel 2/3/4)... however, PAL Ataris such as found in Germany also use VHF channels like the US ones, and indeed have a channel switch on the back like their US counterparts - which is how you can tell a PAL-B console from a PAL-I (UK) one.

 

The picture would, however, be black and white as you say... but I think it's very unlikely to be PAL anyway (and if it was you'd get a picture, just black and white).

[muell67]

Here is a picture of my atari. Is the color pot on the left. the sound coil is in the middle and the hf modulator is in the box on the right. correct? I tried adjusting these with a allen wrench and it did help alot but its still not even close to being playable. I think im going to try replacing the capacitors but I dont know wich ones i should replace?

[muell67]

sorry about the size of the picture. I have never posted a picture before I thought it would shrink down.

[tearex]

Here is a picture of my atari. Is the color pot on the left. the sound coil is in the middle and the hf modulator is in the box on the right. correct? I tried adjusting these with a allen wrench and it did help alot but its still not even close to being playable. I think im going to try replacing the capacitors but I dont know wich ones i should replace?

 

OK I have to admit I never had a 4 switcher and they are in a bit different places than in those I know, but I'm 99% positive that you're correct about what is what. As for quality keep in mind that even a fully functional 2600 doesn't give you *that* great a picture quality so always compare to another 2600, not to the way an Emulator looks. If it's clearly worse than another 2600 then go ahead:

 

My rule with caps is to replace all of them as all of them will eventually fail anyway -- all the electrolytical caps that is, the others age so slowly that they'll probably outlast us. I usually get 105°C heat-resistant caps as a replacement, they last much longer even in normal temperatures and they are only a little bit more expensive than the standard ones.

 

If that doesn't help the semiconductors would be the next thing to try. So if you have another Atari you could try exchanging chips back and forth, maybe a chip is damaged too. The chips are the same in all 2600 models AFAIK. If the program as such works (if the gameplay behaves normally, and it's just looking bad) then the processor and the 6532 are pretty much proved to be working just fine, however; only the TIA might possibly be damaged. But be careful about the chip's orientation, in some Ataris the socket's orientation doesn't match that of the chip so mark pin 1 on the PCB before you remove them.

 

Maybe it's just a rusty contact somewhere and it'll work after removing and reinserting any socketed chips. Or you could check if any solder points are broken.

 

I'm risking being a smartass just in case: Having a schematic helps immensly IMHO by giving you a clue which components *could* actually cause a given problem. Makes the whole thing much more managable. I think there's one for download on the Atariage site. Even if you haven't dealt with schematics before it might help by giving you an idea which things on the PCB belong to which functional units of the console.

 

OK that wasn't too helpful but I can't really say any more by now. Do you maybe have a screenshot of the best picture you get? Or one that shows clearly exactly what kind of distortion there is?

 

Bye,

[Spirantho]

I don't think the capacitors will be at fault... though I agree replacing them may be a good idea, though I wouldn't bother myself.

 

It sounds more likely there's a grounding problem somewhere which means the TV modulator isn't working correctly.... first thing I'd check is the +5V and ground connections to the modulator (assuming the cable is known good).

 

I really doubt the ICs are wrong, though it is possible.... the problem just sounds too.. analogue. If the chips had blown I'd imagine nothing would work right, not just a weak TV signal.

 

What happens when you keep the telly tuned into the channel when the Atari is off? There should just be snow, anything else and it may be overpowering the Atari's signal. Have you tried running it through an aerial amplifier?

[muell67]

my 2600 is much worse than another unit there is clearly a problem. im going to get some screenshots tonight. Also Im going to get a schematic I dont know all that much about electronics and that should definetly help me at least know what people are reffering to.