Atari 2600 Portable

Includes Atari 2600, Nintendo 8-bit, Sega Master System, MSX and more!

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retrodelee
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Re: Atari 2600 Portable

Post by retrodelee » Thu Aug 20, 2009 9:55 am

I'm at work right now and can't see the pics.
please make sure to share info on the switching regulator.
I'm having fits over my 2600 portable.
I'm getting about 5 minutes of playtime using 6AA batteries (9v) before my screen starts rolling.

I'd be VERY happy to get 90 minutes of playtime right now. The battery problem is the one I knew I would have issues with.

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bicostp
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Re: Atari 2600 Portable

Post by bicostp » Thu Aug 20, 2009 2:00 pm

Are you using disposable alkaline AAs or rechargeable NiMh AAs?

The rechargeables have slightly less voltage (1.2v per cell) but usually far greater capacity. (>2000 mAh as opposed to 800mAh.)

retrodelee
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Re: Atari 2600 Portable

Post by retrodelee » Thu Aug 20, 2009 3:51 pm

Using disposable AA batteries. Getting 9v to the 7805. Then after about 5 minutes, the volts drop to about 8V and then the screen is not stable (starts to roll) The Atari is still playing, still running fine.

I have the batteries going to the correct spot on the 7805, and I also have unregulated power going to power my screen (9v).
I sit here and look at things like Ben's VCP7... and I can't understand why I can't get mine to run off of 9v.
Right now I have 6 lithium AA batteries in my system. Still not much luck.

retrodelee
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Re: Atari 2600 Portable

Post by retrodelee » Thu Aug 20, 2009 3:54 pm

Tibia wrote:I'm using Rekarp's AV mod kit. I'm not sure if it's the same channel going to different jacks, or if it's true stereo. When I get another kit assembled, I'll have to test it and find out.
His kit is very very nice.
I am using the S-video kit for my countertop project. Thankfully I don't have any issues with that one when it comes to power. lol

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Tibia
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Re: Atari 2600 Portable

Post by Tibia » Fri Aug 21, 2009 1:23 pm

Retrodelee-This is the one I'm getting. Themadhacker found it. The seller does ship worldwide, so you could get one from him. However, as long as it's a 5V 1A, any switching regulator will be more efficient than the 7805. You mentioned that your screen takes 9V right from the batteries? If so, you might even be able to use a 5V 0.5A. It would be enough for the Atari, but not enough to drive a screen as well.



As for my progress, the scren came today. A 6V 2.5" Sharper Image pocket TV. When I find my 9.1k resistors and tantalum caps, I'll finish the AV mod and hook it all up for kicks.

BURNING QUESTION! The pot I pulled out of a paddle controller is a 5k ohm pot. What would the effect be if I was using a 10k ohm pot instead? I have a 10k pot that I'd love to use for aesthetic reasons, but will it work? And a somewhat related question: if I'm using a pot with a stop (a la Super Breakout), can that same pot be used as a driving controller?
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arfink
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Re: Atari 2600 Portable

Post by arfink » Tue Aug 25, 2009 10:21 am

The driving controller, as far as I am aware, doesn't use a pot, but an encoder. And if you use a 10k pot instead of a 5k one, you'll just wind up with a big dead zone at one end where the 2600 will stop responding to the change in resistance.
Emulation isn't accurate. There is no substitute for real hardware!

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Tibia
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Re: Atari 2600 Portable

Post by Tibia » Thu Aug 27, 2009 11:33 am

Thanks, arfink. I will be using a 5k pot after all. I don't actually own a driving controller, but I do have some rotary encoders on order. Could you suggest a game that uses the driving controller so I could experiment with the encoders?
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houseguest
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Re: Atari 2600 Portable

Post by houseguest » Thu Aug 27, 2009 1:47 pm

Pretty sure only Indy 500 used the driving controller.

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Tibia
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Re: Atari 2600 Portable

Post by Tibia » Sun Aug 30, 2009 8:10 pm

Hmm. I don't own Indy 500. Thought I did, but I was wrong. I'll be leaving the driving controller out, then. It's easy enough to add in later, or even add in a port.

As for progress, it's been a mixed bag. I need 9.1k resistors to finish the AV mod, but my order still hasn't come in. Without the AV mod, I can't test anything involving the Atari. I started working on the screen. I needed to see if it'd work off 5V. Well, my switching regulator isn't working. I have no idea what's wrong with it, but when I used a 7805, it all worked fine. The screen does just fine on 5V.

Image

In fact, even without the antenna, it's still picking up Canadian broadcasts.

Image

Some chappie in a suit and tie. Kinda hard to see, but he's there. Well, I took the lightbox off to do an LED mod, and Tai decided to "help" me. He ripped the top half of the mobo off, and the bottom won't work without it, even though there wasn't much on the top. I followed traces, trying to figure it out, but it's a frigging mess. If I can't repair it, I'll probably be putting this on hold. I don't want to use a larger screen, and I don't want to buy another one.
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Tibia
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Re: Atari 2600 Portable

Post by Tibia » Mon Aug 31, 2009 7:28 pm

Well, I have spent more time trying to repair the mess than I ever spent making progress. Nothing. For over eight hours, I've been following ripped traces the size of a hair, and even though it looks like it all checks out, I got nothing. I need to box this up and walk away from it for a while. I've got plenty of other projects I'd started before this one, I'll return to one of them.
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