atari70s Posted June 9, 2002 Share Posted June 9, 2002 How does one tell when they have a 1984 system is there something on the board ? also how do i know which one of the first 5000 do i have ( i heard it was 5000 made ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tizoc Posted June 9, 2002 Share Posted June 9, 2002 quote: Originally posted by atari70s: How does one tell when they have a 1984 system is there something on the board ? also how do i know which one of the first 5000 do i have ( i heard it was 5000 made ) The easiest way to tell is to look for the expansion port on the side. It should also be labeled in white letters. If still in doubt, plug in a 2600 robot tank, decathlon, etc...if it plays those games, it's probably a 1984 model. Some 1984 models don't have the expansion port. Crossbow has one of these. I am sure he can elaborate on his theory about these in much better detail than I ever could. Hope that helps. P.S. I wouldn't stick a supercharger in there until you knnow it is one of the fully compatible models. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Viso Posted June 10, 2002 Share Posted June 10, 2002 On the underside of the PCB, you'll find some text printed in a corner, including the date manufacture. The format is WWYY, where WW is the week number, and YY the year. Mine is 2484. You'll need to remove the RF shielding to see this, but it is no problem to put it back into place. I just happened to notice what appears to be the initials "DJS" used as part of a solder trace on the bottom. How's that for an easter egg? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atari70s Posted June 10, 2002 Author Share Posted June 10, 2002 hmm i figured it would be a wwyy thing . i have a 87 now that has the side port for the keyboard add on. how does the serial number look?? how does the numbering on it go for as the atari 7800 early games where can i get a manual and the catalog for the early 7800?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atari 7800.com Posted June 10, 2002 Share Posted June 10, 2002 Another good way to know if you have one of the first-run 1984 units is just by looking at the rainbow on the face of the 7800. On the early 7800s, the rainbow spectrum is just in different. The later 7800s' rainbow starts with orange on the left, while the early units start with Blue and Purple. The whole thing just has a different look to it. Ive owned over 100 7800 units in my lifetime, and out of those I have only had two with the original ranbow. Justin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tizoc Posted June 10, 2002 Share Posted June 10, 2002 I had almost forgotten about Crossbow's post on this from over a year ago, for more details on the different models check here. Seems that I was still living with the 'myth' in my mind. There are 1984 7800 games also, but not many. The labels are different, except for PPII, which has the same label but a 1984 copyright date. For a sample picture of those games go here to Curt's historical Society site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joey Kay Posted June 10, 2002 Share Posted June 10, 2002 I just realized something... The picture of the 1984 Ms. Pac Man cart on Curt's sight shows indents on the top of the label where there are those stupid holes on the 7800 carts and later 2600 carts. However, it has been my experience that those "holey" carts were released by Atari Corp, not Warner's Atari Inc. (as far as I know, Warner still used the springload mechanism inside the cart to cover the contacts) Perhaps Tramiel's Atari used old 7800 labels on their first run of the 7800 carts in 86... Those holes in the 1984 7800 label cart have me just more confused now... Any clues? Cheers! Joey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atari70s Posted June 10, 2002 Author Share Posted June 10, 2002 Hey Crossbow. heres something im not sure you added. i got a 1987 7800 ( soon to sell ) where it has the external port on cut away so you can use it . you were talking about how the 1988's like you have cover this up. What would the understanding be Since this is a REV A i think . yet dated in xx87 (dont remember teh week) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atari 7800.com Posted June 11, 2002 Share Posted June 11, 2002 The Ms. Pac-Man on Curt's site is a 1984 pre-release Ms. Pac-Man from Atari under Warner Communications. I know this for a fact because I'm the one who gave the cartridge to him. I own a few copies of other early release games including Joust, Centipede and Dig Dug. The ends dont have the covers on them contrary to popular belief. The labels are TOTALLY different than anything I've EVER seen come out of Atari. They are aluminum prints with a 3-D gridfield on it, and scanning them into the computer just doesnt do them justice. If you'd like to see more pictures of all of these games, or get more information on them, I have them up in the Atari 7800 Museum at http://www.atari7800.com/7800/museum.htm Hope this helps. Justin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtariKen64 Posted June 12, 2002 Share Posted June 12, 2002 what about the packaging for these units? ive seen the typical red lettered atari 7800 box alot but what about one closer to the 1984 design of the carts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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