coyo5050 Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 I want a multi cart as well....where do i get one? Don't you love it when someone spoils the surprise!!!!! Doh! Sorry! I was excited and was just trying to be helpful Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rev Posted March 25, 2010 Author Share Posted March 25, 2010 (edited) I want a multi cart as well....where do i get one? Don't you love it when someone spoils the surprise!!!!! Doh! Sorry! I was excited and was just trying to be helpful lol, it's all ok.No one was hurt -------------------------------- where do we order/pre order one of these.Is there going to be more made? we want details!!!! Edited March 25, 2010 by revolutionika Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-topdog Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 I want a multi cart as well....where do i get one? Don't you love it when someone spoils the surprise!!!!! Doh! Sorry! I was excited and was just trying to be helpful lol, it's all ok.No one was hurt -------------------------------- where do we order/pre order one of these.Is there going to be more made? we want details!!!! LOL... you will just have to wait for Jay to announce them first... I probably shouldn't have hinted at them here but I was just so damn excited about them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cebus Capucinis Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 Jay is a very smart cookie so I know they will turn out absolutely AMAZING!!! Can't wait to buy one Jay!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaybird3rd Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 Okay, I guess it's time I spilled the beans on a little project I've been working on ... (I wrote a bit about how I created this cartridge, but if you're not interested, you can skip it ...) I acquired my first Aquarius computer from the-topdog about two weeks ago, and being a newcomer to the Aquarius, the first thing I did was to look into the software that was released for the system, starting with the games. I noticed that the library was very small, and that several of the best games were very hard to find on cartridge. I wanted to play these games on the real hardware, so I cracked open some of the cartridges I had and figured out how to retrofit one of them with EPROM copies of the games. Once I did that, it wasn't a great leap to conclude that I could design a very simple multi-cart, containing multiple cartridge images, selectable with a bank of switches. It's a very simple idea that has been done many times over the years for many different computers and consoles, but never (as far as I can tell) for the Aquarius. I did some tests and was able to get up to 128K of ROM in a single 16K Aquarius cartridge (using two 64K chips), so after slicing and dicing the cartridge images, I got eight of them together into one multi-cart. The games I chose for my own cartridge were: AD&D Treasure of Tarmin, Astrosmash, BurgerTime, Chess, Melody Chase, Night Stalker, Snafu, and Utopia. I found TRON Deadly Discs to be the most disappointing of the Mattel-released games, and since I had to omit one of them for lack of space, that was the one I chose. Each game went into a 16K bank in the ROM, and each bank is selectable using the slide switches on the top of the cartridge (see the second picture). To use the cartridge, just consult the little chart on the top label, set the switches to the left or right to correspond to the game you want, and turn on the Aquarius! I originally intended this to be only for my own use, and I didn't really think it was a big deal, but topdog was so enthusiastic about it that I made one for him, too. He convinced me to consider building more for other Aquarius users, so after thinking about it a bit, I decided to write this post in order to gauge the interest of the Aquarius owners here on AtariAge. If you'd like to have your own Aquarius multi-cart, I can either convert a cartridge that you provide, or I can build a cartridge and send it to you (as soon as we collect enough donors, which I'll get to in a minute). I'm offering the cartridge conversion service for $45 per cartridge, and a complete cartridge for $55. Shipping will be extra. (We're still working on acquiring the hardware we will need for a production run, so until then we won't be ready to announce a final price. However, we will try to keep it within the range originally announced here). In both cases, you will have the option of choosing any eight of the original Aquarius game or application cartridges to be included in your multi-cart. You can choose a mix of all games (such as the ones I included in my cartridge), or you can add some applications into the mix (FileForm/FinForm, Extended BASIC, LOGO, the Mattel in-store demo cartridge, etc). I'll burn a set of custom ROMs for you, putting the cartridges in whatever order you want, and I will test each one thoroughly before I ship. (Our new plans for the production of these cartridges should allow us to upgrade the design to a 16-in-1 cartridge, which will eliminate the need to burn custom ROMs since the cartridge will be large enough to hold almost the entire Aquarius cartridge library. Much of the information that follows is now obsolete, so follow the link to the new thread for the most up-to-date information). I'm working on methods of converting the various Aquarius boards other than the one I've already used. Until I've tested these successfully, if you have a cartridge that you would like to send me, first open it up and check the board inside. Several of Mattel's games used glop-top epoxy ROM chips, which can't be removed from the boards. The board I currently need is the two-ROM version; I know it was used in at least some Utopia and FileForm cartridges, and possibly others as well. Here is what the board looks like: (Yours will have chips instead of sockets, of course). The part number of this board is 4178-3209, which you will find on the bottom of the board as soon as you open the cartridge: If you have one of these cartridges, let me know and I'll be happy to convert it into a multi-cart for you. Also contact me if you have a cartridge of this kind that you would be interested in selling. We're also building a collection of suitable donor cartridges to fill the orders of people who would like a complete cartridge. Aquarius cartridges aren't as easy to come by as 2600 cartridges, and only one of the (at least) four types of boards that Mattel made can be reused as a multi-cart. We'll need a little time to build up a collection (or to find a suitable alternative, such as getting new boards made if there is enough interest), but we expect to have it shortly. In the meantime, let me know if you'd like a complete cartridge, and I'll build one for you as soon as enough donors arrive! Thanks to everyone for your interest. There is now another thread dedicated to this project, so let me know what you think! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cebus Capucinis Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 :lust: $55 monkey dollars will be headed your way for sure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaybird3rd Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 Doh! Sorry! I was excited and was just trying to be helpful No harm done! I'm pleased (and frankly a little surprised) so many people are interested. I didn't realize the Aquarius had so many fans! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyromaniac605 Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 So this is to INTV what Adam was to Colecovision? -Darren- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coyo5050 Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 So this is to INTV what Adam was to Colecovision? -Darren- Interesting thought. In some ways perhaps but a key difference is the the Adam played actual CV cartridges. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coyo5050 Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 Doh! Sorry! I was excited and was just trying to be helpful No harm done! I'm pleased (and frankly a little surprised) so many people are interested. I didn't realize the Aquarius had so many fans! Cool, well there is at least 3 of us interested so far. I honestly didnt even know of this system until recently when getting more in to Intellivision. I don't even have my Aquarius in my hands yet, speaking of which hope it actually does work!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyromaniac605 Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 So this is to INTV what Adam was to Colecovision? -Darren- Interesting thought. In some ways perhaps but a key difference is the the Adam played actual CV cartridges. Oh... So the Aquarius isn't based off INTV hardware like i thought? -Darren- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-topdog Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 You can read a bit more about Jay's wonderful multi-cart here http://www.geekvintage.com/mattel-aquarius-cartridge-128k-8-in-1-multi-cart.php I will be adding a more in-depth review as soon as I play with mine a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaybird3rd Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 Oh... So the Aquarius isn't based off INTV hardware like i thought? No, it was a different machine that was (briefly) marketed by Mattel as an affordable home computer. However, it was sold with a Mini-Expander that added the Intellivision sound chip and Intellivision-style hand controllers, and it got its own ports of several popular Intellivision games. You can see the Aquarius in action at the MattelAquarius channel on YouTube. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyromaniac605 Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 that was (briefly) marketed That doesn't make it sound good for me trying to get one oh well. -Darren- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-topdog Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 (edited) That doesn't make it sound good for me trying to get one oh well. -Darren- Psst... I have a few spares... PM me if you are interested. The Aquarius was a Radofin 8-bit computer that was branded for Mattel and was only in the marketplace for 4 months before the plug was pulled by Mattel. Edited March 25, 2010 by the-topdog Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrozoneorg Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 This is great. I really want one. Am going to send you a PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 An Aquarius multicart...now I've seen everything. Very cool! Call me crazy, but I actually think the Aquarius is an interesting little machine. I actually like the look of Night Stalker, for instance; it's much cleaner-looking than the Intellivision version. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+cmart604 Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 I must admit I've passed on the Aquarius over the years while collecting for the INTV, but this sounds like the very thing I need to give me an excuse to get out there and buy one Looking forward to this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaybird3rd Posted March 26, 2010 Share Posted March 26, 2010 Okay, topdog has started a new thread for the multi-cart project, so all further updates about it will be posted there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the-topdog Posted April 2, 2010 Share Posted April 2, 2010 Look at the outrageous price on this Aquarius eBay Auction -- Item Number: 150429799131 Bwa-hahahahahahahahahaha Eeep! I think I just peed a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coyo5050 Posted April 2, 2010 Share Posted April 2, 2010 Interesting, they are in the same city as me. All their stuff is overpriced. I just picked up the exact same thing minus the packing inserts for $50 bucks. Not even sure if that was a good price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IntellivisionDude Posted May 9, 2010 Share Posted May 9, 2010 I don't know anything about the Aquarius, but i was disappointed to see they are currently dissing it over at digitpress. http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?t=144177 I have no idea if it is bad as they are saying but i hate seeing anything related to the Intellivision being dissed so bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cebus Capucinis Posted May 9, 2010 Share Posted May 9, 2010 I'd ignore whatever they have to say at Dill Pickles, in my opinion. If you ask me they tend to be a bit jerkish for the most part anyway. (NOTE: Personal opinion not representative of AtariAge as a whole) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IntellivisionDude Posted May 10, 2010 Share Posted May 10, 2010 I'd ignore whatever they have to say at Dill Pickles, in my opinion. If you ask me they tend to be a bit jerkish for the most part anyway. (NOTE: Personal opinion not representative of AtariAge as a whole) I actually found that site before this site. It is one of the contributing factors to me getting back into retro gaming and getting an Intellivision. But as a whole i sometimes felt i was given the cold shoulder over there. But that happens at a lot at message boards when you're the new guy. New people get the cold shoulder a lot on forums. But not here at AtariAge. I was welcomed with open arms the moment i arrived. But i mainly stick to the Intellivision section. It's more friendly in this section. Intellivision folk stick together. Over in the other section they are always arguing about who is the real Nolan Bushnell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoulBlazer Posted May 10, 2010 Share Posted May 10, 2010 I'd ignore whatever they have to say at Dill Pickles, in my opinion. If you ask me they tend to be a bit jerkish for the most part anyway. (NOTE: Personal opinion not representative of AtariAge as a whole) I actually found that site before this site. It is one of the contributing factors to me getting back into retro gaming and getting an Intellivision. But as a whole i sometimes felt i was given the cold shoulder over there. But that happens at a lot at message boards when you're the new guy. New people get the cold shoulder a lot on forums. But not here at AtariAge. I was welcomed with open arms the moment i arrived. But i mainly stick to the Intellivision section. It's more friendly in this section. Intellivision folk stick together. Over in the other section they are always arguing about who is the real Nolan Bushnell. I used to post on DP quite a lot. Not so much anymore due to lack of time. I think both DP and AA are friendly sites, but some sections are friendler then others. On AA, don't go into the Jaquar section without a full body suit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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