the VCSp is my destiny

satan165 · Post by **satan165** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 5:17 am

what a 'short' strange trip its been......

2 weeks ago i heard about this atari anthology for the xbox
i ordered it (amazon.com) and it promptly arrived

and it promptly sucked
it has no third party games and has tons of games i am unfarmilliar with and many arent even fun. and yet basic non third party games like space invaders is missing.

i quickly slapped the piss out of myself for trying to get 'the oriignal' thru a fake BS reproduction

so i started searching the web for atari info, quickly found atariage.com
poured over that site for a few days and was blown away by the wealth of info there.

now a little backstory.....i was born the same year as the heavy sixer -- '77. i had various 2600s from 84 to 90 approx. i had a few 'woody's and defiantely later had a JR. currently -- i have nothing.

so i downloaded an emulator and all the games. started playing that. well the keyboard sucked of course. started feeling like i did with that crappy xbox anthology.
so i started looking into copping a joystick and found out about the stelladaptor. ordered it -- it came today. ordered 2 7800 joysticks and 2 sets of paddles off ebay, auction closed today, they are on there way.

well like a lot of things that i get invovled in....i started go overboard. i became obsessed. i just bought a new 2600 JR off ebay and ive been buying up all the activision stardard label games i can find in hopes of buildling that whole colelction.

well with my new console on the way i read on atariage.com about how to make the thing composite (RCAs). that sounded cool and easy enough. then i surfed over to the forums on that site and saw something that was akin to glipsing into the pearly gates of heavens door.

i saw the atari/PS2 hybrid. i showed about 100 people and everyone was blown away.

i then read everything on this site and my jaw dropped more and more until it was detached like that of a boa.

i saw bens request for an email for potential buyers of the VCSp. i immediately emailed him. then i went to work today.

as i walked around, all i coudl think about was that damn thing. its about the most beautiful piece of gear ive seen ever. i couldnt get it out of my head. i thought of offering ben sick amounts of money to build me one.

then i realized -- copulate THAT!
as soon as i got home, i ordered the book.

conclusion: in the span of 2 weeks
1)i started with the wack xbox anthology
2)bought a new 2600 jr
3)got the emulator, all the ROMS, the stelladaptor, and joysticks
4)and today bought bens book

i WILL have the VCSp in my hands soon
this is a short term goal and i am not patient

anyways, this site rules, its about the coolest crap ive seen in a long long time, im totally inspired, i have tons of memories rushing back constantly and its filling my current void for a new project to fill my time and challenge me.

my final question after that rambling BS is this: on atariage.com in their insturctions for converting the JR to composite, they just say to put the leads on the specified resistor (video) and capacitor (audio)

then i saw ben's instructions which involve 4 more leads on the backside of the board, etc...
its obvious that the atariage.com method probably doesnt work as well.....but how big is the difference exactly? id be pretty pissed if i never found this site, followed their directions and got a crap picture.
is there enough room in the case to just leave the pots banging around loosely in there? has anyone drilled holes in the back and mounted em? i assume once you get a good pic set up you probably dont need to make any more adjustments, at least not reguarly...or not?

this is the only 1K pot i could find on radioshack.com http://www.radioshack.com/product.asp?c ... =271%2D280
of course ill explore my local store, maybe their selection is different/better. is this a suitable component?

anyways, youll be hearing from me again soon. the VCSp is my destiny. the events of the last 2 weeks which began with purchasing an innocent (and disappointing) xbox game have brought me now into your forum, and im glad it did.

Post by **SpongeBuell** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 7:45 am

welcome aboard! The 2600 is a great first portable (first one I did) if you are willing to do a little extra wiring. Re: the pot: yeah, that will be best, since it's actually tiny.

jgibson · Post by **jgibson** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 7:56 am

Good to see more new faces, err....well, not really see faces, more like new people. Yeah new people to the forum. Good luck on your 2600. The people in this forum are extremely helpful and will help you through every aspect of your portable building experience.

Post by **Sparkfist** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 8:09 am

Sence your going for the VCSp, I'd suggest getting Ben's book. We do have and online toutorial in the Atari forum but let me put it this way; online toutorial is to a piggy bank as the book is to a bank vault. The info if great and better discribed.

And good luck on your build.

Post by **Gamelver** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 1:22 pm

he did get the book....(well, he just ordered it at least

)

HK-47 · Post by **HK-47** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 2:46 pm

Hey, welcome to the forum! Id register so you can PM people and it usually gets you a bit more creditability among people. And about the VCSp, great choice. Im making one myself, nice system. Though you mentioned AA... Did you get yourself a krok cart? If not, get one. They're gonna be out of stock for another week or two, but after that Id get one. If you got no idea what Im talking about, check it out. http://www.atariage.com/store/product_i ... cts_id=291

satan165 · Post by **satan165** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 3:32 pm

first of all....thank you for the warm welcome. it was unexpected and apprecaited.

If you got no idea what Im talking about,

i didnt
now i do
i have now bumped the stelladaptor down to #2 on the list of awesomest pieces of technology (who needs an MRI!) EVER

alas, it is already OOS. i will continue to check back and order ASAP. i am kicking myself, as i said i just ordered from them and certainly would have ordered this at the same time. DAMN!

but yes indeed, my book will arrive next week sometime....ive got my eye on a beat up 4 switch to gouge apart......the gears are already grinding! i cant wait to get that book, i have so many unanswered questions. youll definatley be hearing from me!

satan165 · Post by **satan165** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 6:25 pm

Greetings from Amazon.com.

We thought you'd like to know that we shipped this portion of your
order separately to give you quicker service. You won't be charged
any extra shipping fees, and the remainder of your order will follow
as soon as those items become available.

You can track the status of this order, and all your orders, online by
visiting Your Account at http://www.amazon.com/your-account/

There you can:
* Track order and shipment status
* Review estimated delivery dates
* Cancel unshipped items
* Return items
* And do much more

The following items were included in this shipment:
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Qty Item Price Shipped Subtotal
---------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Hacking Video Game Consoles : $19.79 1 $19.79

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Item Subtotal: $19.79
Shipping & Handling: $2.49

Total: $22.28

Paid by Visa: $22.28

satan165 · Post by **satan165** » Fri Mar 11, 2005 7:04 pm

alright! just copped a 4-switch w/ a messed up power switch and no cables for only $36 plus shipping
much less then i thought i might have to spend

i have a www.xanga.com site that i never used (i only registered to answer a xanga question for a friend that couldnt figure something out)
and i think ill use it to log my progress
ill put up the link once i get my book and 4 switch and can begin to get materials and get this thing underway!!!