Pitfall II music pitch variance from system to system

[Room 34]

I have owned Pitfall II for a couple months, and so far I had only played it on my 7800. Last night I fired up my 4-switch 2600, the one I've owned since I was 8 in 1982, and I was surprised to notice the music was in a different key!

 

I then brought out my recently-acquired 6-switch Sears Video Arcade, and on it, the music is the same key as on the 7800.

 

I noticed also that the tint on-screen is skewed on my 4-switch 2600. (But that's the case with almost every game played on it.)

 

Has anyone else seen anything like this?

[Chris++]

I posted a thread about a month ago regarding the fact that both of my Pitfall II cartridges (one now traded away) played only the percussion from the theme song, without any melody on top. I was told by a couple of people knowledgeable in the hardware side of things that the Pitfall II cart has a special chip or component that's completely dedicated to the music. So perhaps different consoles react in different ways to the information coming out of this special hardware ingredient.

 

CF

 

[Room 34]

Yeah... it has a special chip. I am just wondering what is going on that would cause my 2600 to play the music in a different key (it is actually playing it slightly FASTER, thus the pitch increase).

 

Actually, I am starting to think now that, since the sound is sped up AND the tint on all of my games is skewed, perhaps I am getting the wrong voltage to the system... not enough to fry it, but enough to overload the circuits a bit. (Sorry... I am not an electronics expert, so I'm not sure this is even possible.)

 

I don't have the original AC adapter for my 2600A (the one in question), so I have been using it with the adapter that came with my 6-switch Sears Video Arcade.

[Paul Slocum]

Sounds like your system clock is off. Have you tried other cartridges with music? I think it should affect the pitch on all cartridges since pitch is determined by dividing the system clock.

 

I don't think it could be too much power since it's regulated down to 5v. It could be too little power or your regulator could be broken.

 

-Paul

[Room 34]

Thanks for the tips. I may just have to semi-retire this system. I want to preserve it, since it's my original Atari system, but I don't really need to USE it, since I have a great 7800 and the Sears 6-switch which I got last month in like-new condition.

[Chris++]

Actually, if your system clock's sped up, you have a very rare VCS that hastens the duller games and makes them harder! You might've discovered something new! "How To Modify Your 2600 To Make the Games More Challenging -- By Scott." Nice ring to it.

 

CF

 

(Okay, "How To Make Theme Music Sound Like It's in Fast-Forward" might be all you have the current wherewithall for, but I'm tellin' ya, there's somethin' here...there's somethin' here...)

[Room 34]

"How To Modify Your 2600 To Make the Games More Challenging -- By Scott."

Hmm... Now if I could just figure out WHAT HAPPENED that made the clock speed up... :wink:

 

Actually, the speed difference is barely noticeable. What IS noticeable is that the treetops in Pitfall are BLUE and the blue labyrinth in Adventure is PURPLE, etc.

[Chris++]

Is there any way to change the tint from inside the VCS? I know there's a POTS inside the C-64 to alter the contrast, but I've never checked the 2600's internals for a knob or anything. (I usually only open the VCS to make sure the RF connection's still tight after moving...)

 

CF

[Thomas Jentzsch]

"How To Modify Your 2600 To Make the Games More Challenging -- By Scott."

Hmm... Now if I could just figure out WHAT HAPPENED that made the clock speed up... :wink:

 

Actually, the speed difference is barely noticeable. What IS noticeable is that the treetops in Pitfall are BLUE and the blue labyrinth in Adventure is PURPLE, etc.

If you want to clock the speed, try running Pitfall!. It's nearly accurate.

 

And there is a pot inside the VCS, that let's you change the colors.

[Chris++]

Cool! Scott -- Try adjusting the pot (color knob) inside the console, and see if that doesn't fix the purple labyrinth problem.

 

CF

[Room 34]

I decided to take the plunge and open up my 2600. 20 years it has been sealed but now I have crossed the final frontier!

 

First discovery nice! A piece of paper with a date stamped on it (with a stamp like libraries used to use for due dates), Scotch taped onto the shielding indicates (presumably) that the unit was manufactured on January 7, 1982. (That sounds about right. It was purchased in May 1982.)

 

MAN was there a lot of dust in there! Fortunately a can of compressed air conveniently transferred the dust bunnies to the surrounding air and surfaces.

 

I managed to locate the tint dial and it did the trick! (I used Pitfall as a test cartridge, comparing it to the screenshot I have on my computer desktop!)

 

Now that I have the case opened, I don't really want to put it back together. The noizSPIKE has inspired me to try a more... creative way to encase the hardware. Any ideas or suggestions?