156 replies to this topic

[5-11under]

Yurkie, on Wed Dec 9, 2009 8:58 AM, said:

Very cool looking and useful, if not for Christmas being right around the corner I would want to buy 1 or 2 of these. Hope you have enough extras for me to buy one in the future. Awesome job. I bet you have a lot of R&D hours in this.

Hi Yurkie,

There's others that can't afford one right now, or are waiting for the first batch to be "tested", or who don't really need one right now because RF/composite/S-Video may look fine on their existing TV, so...

I will have extra parts and extra PCBs, and will continue selling these. There'll be some periods of time when I'll have them in stock (or at least ready for me to assemble), and other periods where I'll make a waiting list (if I need to raise funds for additional parts and/or PCBs).

Thanks,
5-11under

[5-11under]

Update: The PCBs arrived this afternoon. I assembled one board, hooked it up, and it works! Those who have been in the same boat know that's a big relief. A couple of potentiometers are backwards, but that just means the controls are reversed.

There's a few more things that need to be done... buying wire, waiting for a few more ICs to come in, figuring out the best locations for the wires, and finishing the test program (which is well underway)... and of course assembling a bunch more.

I'll post some pictures when I get some time.

Thanks,
5-11under

[Ransom]

Glad to hear it's coming along!

[evg2000]

can't wait! hopefully I will have it in time to install during my christmas break, planning on modding several systems.

[5-11under]

Hi everyone,

I've been able to spend some time on the colour testing software. It's main purpose is to test the colours, for adjustment purposes. It accomplishes that, and a bit more. See the attached file below.

The main screen shows all 16 colours in blocks in two ways. The top half shows the colours in order, from 1 to 15, then 0. The bottom half also shows all of the colours (except one of the blacks), but with similar colours beside each other, to better highlight the differences (or similarities) between each, for instance, showing all three "green" colours in a row.

A cursor also flashes on the screen. The joystick can be used to move the cursor around the screen. Pressing the main fire button cycles the colours up, and pressing the secondary fire button cycles the colours down. The colour of the whole screen will change if a number is pressed on the keypad. Only numbers 1 through 9 are accepted, but if you press and hold a key on the second keypad (1 through 8 ), then press a number key on the first keypad, the numbers will be added (to access colours 10 through 15). If you don't want to use the second keypad, you can of course manipulate the blocks individually.

There is a little bonus added. The program uses mode 3, which is a 64 x 48 grid (of 4x4 pixels). Press the 9 key on the second keypad to access it. Now that I think about it, the control scheme is fairly non-user-friendly. Anyway, using the first keypad, the colours of each 4x4 pixel can be changed the same way as described in the previous paragraph (sorry, the wholesale colour change is not available). There you have it - a brute-force pixelated drawing program.

Enjoy,
5-11under

Attached Files

•  CV-Screen-Test.zip   1.62K   94 downloads

Edited by 5-11under, Sun Dec 13, 2009 7:00 PM.

[5-11under]

Here's an update:

The first unit was wired up as per what will be the "official" instructions. I still need to verify the audio and the composite video coming from the Atari expansion module.

Four other units are completely assembled, except for the wires and testing.

The rest of the ICs should arrive very soon, hopefully. In the meantime, I'm assembling the other surface mount parts. Just a couple more and I'll have enough for the pre-orders. After the ICs are soldered in, I'll assemble the through-hole components.

The colour test program is complete. I still need to assemble the associated boards.

Unfortunately, there was an issue with my camera (not having an SD card), so I don't have any lovely pictures to show. The SD card is back, so I'll be able to take some pictures tonight.

I'll likely start accepting payments tomorrow, so I can prepare envelopes and such. If you've pre-ordered, I'll send you a PM. I'll also update this thread, to make sure I haven't missed anyone.

I'm still on track to ship all or most of these on Friday December 18. That was looking ominous a few days ago, but looks do-able at this point.

Thanks,
5-11under

[Ransom]

Thank you for the update. I look forward to getting one of these babies!

[5-11under]

A few pictures...

The assembled product (final product includes the wires soldered on):



Connected to the ColecoVision:



Close-up of the wiring (note that I need to change the wire gauge):



Audio and composite video for the Atari expansion module has been verified. The next step is installation into a ColecoVision case, but that's enough for tonight.

Thanks,
5-11under

[Ransom]

Lookin' good!

Thanks for the update.

[Ikrananka]

That is a thing of beauty - great work.

[Murph74]

Santa Claus is comin' to town... Santa Claus is comin' to town!

[5-11under]

Murph74, on Wed Dec 16, 2009 4:13 PM, said:

Santa Claus is comin' to town... Santa Claus is comin' to town!

The elves should be done their work on time, but I'm not sure if the reindeer will be able to deliver on time.
5-11under

[Ikrananka]

5-11under, on Wed Dec 16, 2009 7:46 PM, said:

Murph74, on Wed Dec 16, 2009 4:13 PM, said:

Santa Claus is comin' to town... Santa Claus is comin' to town!

The elves should be done their work on time, but I'm not sure if the reindeer will be able to deliver on time.
5-11under

Damn that Rudolph - drunk under a tree again

[5-11under]

These are well under way, and should be shipped over the weekend or on Monday. I've PMed everyone who was interested. If I've forgotten you, then please just send me a PM.

ianoid, I think your mailbox is full. Please send me a PM.

Thanks,
5-11under

[bacteria]

Just saw this thread - can't seem to send you a PM so asking here instead: How perfect is the image on a PAL ColecoVision? From the plugs looks like composite and component (correct?); how good is the composite - any bad colours, image issues, etc? S-video?

[5-11under]

bacteria, on Sat Dec 19, 2009 5:41 PM, said:

Just saw this thread - can't seem to send you a PM so asking here instead: How perfect is the image on a PAL ColecoVision? From the plugs looks like composite and component (correct?); how good is the composite - any bad colours, image issues, etc? S-video?

The PM should work... anyway, it hasn't been tested on a PAL unit yet... but should work okay. I'm sending a couple to PAL-land, so hopefully the results are good.

The yellow plug is the composite output from the Atari Expansion Module only.

S-Video is not provided.

Thanks,
5-11under

[bacteria]

For some reason, I don't have a button to send someone a PM on this forum! Could you send me one?

Ok, so this is component only; that is fine, might still be interested... (certainly will be interested if can't get it working on composite/S-video/RGB any other way).

My RF unit didn't work - does your mod need to connect to connections on the RF?

[HARMIK]

Just found this thread looks awesome I am very interested in one, has it been tested on different revisions of coleco boards. I know I have one board where there is a jumper or resistor and on the other it is blank with just the pad marks.

I also have a Dick Smith Wizzard/Creativision that would be great to mod, I will email someone that has a Creativision site about this thread.

And thank you for all your effort Now if only someone would come up with a better mod for the Intellivision.

[evg2000]

Hello,
Received mine today, looks to be in good condition. I was concerned as the envelope was full of tine holes from the wires sticking through the PCB. Quick question, is there an install guide ? Thought about trying to use the picture in post #58, but the wire colours don't seem to match my board.

thanks,
charles

[5-11under]

evg2000, on Mon Jan 4, 2010 4:59 PM, said:

Hello,
Received mine today, looks to be in good condition. I was concerned as the envelope was full of tine holes from the wires sticking through the PCB. Quick question, is there an install guide ? Thought about trying to use the picture in post #58, but the wire colours don't seem to match my board.

thanks,
charles

Hi Charles,

I guess I better get the instructions together... having too much fun over the holidays, I guess... .

I'll post the instruction soon, but in the meantime, the picture in post #58 is good, except there's no purple wire anymore - it's replaced with orange. Also, the components or jumpers where the red, green, and blue wires are connected (L7, L8, L9) need to be removed. Details to follow... .

Thanks,
5-11under

[Ikrananka]

5-11under, on Mon Jan 4, 2010 5:33 PM, said:

evg2000, on Mon Jan 4, 2010 4:59 PM, said:

Hello,
Received mine today, looks to be in good condition. I was concerned as the envelope was full of tine holes from the wires sticking through the PCB. Quick question, is there an install guide ? Thought about trying to use the picture in post #58, but the wire colours don't seem to match my board.

thanks,
charles

Hi Charles,

I guess I better get the instructions together... having too much fun over the holidays, I guess... .

I'll post the instruction soon, but in the meantime, the picture in post #58 is good, except there's no purple wire anymore - it's replaced with orange. Also, the components or jumpers where the red, green, and blue wires are connected (L7, L8, L9) need to be removed. Details to follow... .

Thanks,
5-11under

I've received my two boards and will probably wire one of them up this weekend. Do any of the existing traces need to be cut or new jumpers installed on the CV board?

So should ALL 3 jumpers be removed? I'm assuming you mean the ones located directly above the +/-/R wire connections (I cannot see L7, L8 or L9 marked on the board).

What do each of the potentiometers adjust? Would be good in your upcoming installation guide for some guidance on which pots to adjust (and in which direction) based on what deficiency we see on screen.

Any idea of when the guide will be available? If not till after Friday then I'd much appreciate answers to my questions in the meantime.

[5-11under]

Unfortunately, I've got to go to bed shortly, and get some sleep, to hopefully stay healthy(er)...

Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to provide drilling instructions - if you need to get it done right away, it goes in the top half of the case, almost as high as will fit. The top shield should fit back on, but I'd put a few pieces thick of electrical tape to make sure there's no shorting.

If you look at the picture in post #58 (remember that purple is now orange), the red, green, and blue wires go into holes in the board that were once used by L7,L8, and L9. Those components, whether jumpers or inductors, need to be removed before attaching the red, green, and blue wires. This ensures a clean signal to the Y (green), B-Y (blue) and R-Y (red) lines.

The other lines are... orange=5V, black=ground, white=audio, yellow=video (from Atari expansion module).

Viewed from the back, the controls, left to right are:
blue: reversed (d'oh), so turning CCW increases blue level
red: reversed (d'oh), so turning CCW increases red level
brightness: CW increases brightness
blue feedback: CW increases the blue feedback from the Y (luma) line
red feedback: CW increases the red feedback from the Y (luma) line

Hopefully at start-up, a decent picture is shown. If it's not working at all, turn blue and red CW, and the both feedbacks CCW. Use the brightness control to get a b/w picture. Follow by slowly turning the red and/or blue CCW until it the levels seem decent. The yellows should be quite dull. Turn the blue feedback CW to increase the saturation of the yellow. Increasing too much will mangle the colours. Do the same with the red feedback to suit - the effect of this control should be more subtle.

Get back to me if you have any questions - I should be able to answer them tomorrow.

Thanks,
5-11under

[Ikrananka]

5-11under, on Tue Jan 5, 2010 7:47 PM, said:

Unfortunately, I've got to go to bed shortly, and get some sleep, to hopefully stay healthy(er)...

Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to provide drilling instructions - if you need to get it done right away, it goes in the top half of the case, almost as high as will fit. The top shield should fit back on, but I'd put a few pieces thick of electrical tape to make sure there's no shorting.

If you look at the picture in post #58 (remember that purple is now orange), the red, green, and blue wires go into holes in the board that were once used by L7,L8, and L9. Those components, whether jumpers or inductors, need to be removed before attaching the red, green, and blue wires. This ensures a clean signal to the Y (green), B-Y (blue) and R-Y (red) lines.

The other lines are... orange=5V, black=ground, white=audio, yellow=video (from Atari expansion module).

Viewed from the back, the controls, left to right are:
blue: reversed (d'oh), so turning CCW increases blue level
red: reversed (d'oh), so turning CCW increases red level
brightness: CW increases brightness
blue feedback: CW increases the blue feedback from the Y (luma) line
red feedback: CW increases the red feedback from the Y (luma) line

Hopefully at start-up, a decent picture is shown. If it's not working at all, turn blue and red CW, and the both feedbacks CCW. Use the brightness control to get a b/w picture. Follow by slowly turning the red and/or blue CCW until it the levels seem decent. The yellows should be quite dull. Turn the blue feedback CW to increase the saturation of the yellow. Increasing too much will mangle the colours. Do the same with the red feedback to suit - the effect of this control should be more subtle.

Get back to me if you have any questions - I should be able to answer them tomorrow.

Thanks,
5-11under

Many many thanks - great stuff to get me going.

Regarding the L7, L8 & L9 jumpers I now understand that you mean the ones on the CV motherboard - I'll make sure I remove those. BTW - what are the three jumpers on the video mod board for?

I'll hold off on drilling the case until the template is ready - I really don't want to mess my case up.

Hope you got a good sleep.

Take care

[Ikrananka]

I had a quick look over the mod today and also my CV motherboard. I noticed that my CV motherboard is a later revision (Rev H2) compared to the revision (Rev F) in your photo in post #58. There are a few obvious differences between the CV motherboards regarding the video signal traces and inductors.

Firstly, inductor L7 is not installed and a trace runs between the original L7's two solder points, effectively bypassing where L7 used to be (in fact L7 is no longer marked on the board).

Secondly, the inductor location shown on the Rev F board, between WJ2 and L15, (is this L8 ???) is not present on the Rev H2 board and again a new trace runs between the two solder points.

This raises a few questions - for the Rev H2 board, should the new traces (previously L7 and L8(?)) be cut?

I have attached a couple of photos for your reference (please ignore the wires in the photos, they are from other mods I was working on and will soon be removed). The following is a link to the Rev H2 schematics http://www.atarihq.c...olecovision.pdf

Attached Thumbnails

• 
• 

[5-11under]

I'm pretty sure I've got an "H2" lying around. I'll look into it.
5-11under