Small add-on board to get a digital video signal from an Atari 2600 game console.
What is it?
This board is inserted between the TIA chip and its socket in the Atari 2600 game console. The FPGA on the board listens to the digital communication between the TIA and the rest of the s…
This board is inserted between the TIA chip and its socket in the Atari 2600 game console. The FPGA on the board listens to the digital communication between the TIA and the rest of the system and re-generates the video output in a near-digital form. This output signal (we call it 'lumacode') can then be flawlessly upscaled to a pixel-perfect HDMI signal using an RGBtoHDMI device or something with equal capabilities.
Why did you make it?
With the extremely low quality of the original video signal from the Atari 2600 consoles, this is a very impactful and fairly easy upgrade. It will also extend the product family of lumacode boards.
What makes it special?
While there are other existing video upgrades for this machine, the TIAdigitizer is fairly easy to install and can give you a 100% pixel perfect digital image via a compatible upscaler (whis is only the RGBtoHDMI at present).
Compatibility
The board is designed to work will all variants (PAL or NTSC) of the Atari 2600. Maybe there is a space issue with the smaller Jr. version, but I can not tell as long as nobody has tried this yet. The mod board adds about 4mm of height to the TIA chip. And if your TIA is not socketed to begin with, you may want to add one more socket.
One more thing to mention: Because the vertical refresh rate is under software control of the respective game, the output HDMI refresh rate may also vary and could cause your monitor to lose synchronization when the game changes its behaviour.
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Review Breakdown
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4
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Average Ratings
Product:
(5.00)
Documentation:
(4.00)
Shipping:
(5.00)
Communication:
(5.00)
Daniele |
March 30, 2024
Excellent video quality
Never seen such a clear picture from an original VCS.
This product works great with my VCS 2600 "Light Sixer", NTSC version produced in March 1980. Documentation is ok, but could use some more information about configuring the RGBtoHDMI. I used the analog daughterboard v4, and selected the "Atari 2600 Lumacode" profile (YUV mode).
Minor hardware issues: - The provided RCA to 6-pin adapter is lose and may cause intermittent picture glitches if cable is moved. - I had to replace the original TIA weird white cheap socket on the motherboard, as the machined-pins of the TIAdigitizer would not fit. I tried with a huge amount of pressure to no avail. I decided to use a socket for machined-pins, which worked perfectly. Replacing the socket was easy, as tracks and vias are huge on these old boards. More modern VCS systems may have much better sockets already installed.
Feature request: - It would be great if this board provided also an audio output pin (and RCA cable) for solderless audio out.
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