10 replies to this topic

[yuppicide]

What should I know about making an Atari 2600 cart light up?

How do I do it? What are the specs of LED's I should find on Digikey or Mouser's website?

How many LED's do you think can be powered? Just one?

They don't need to be colored. I have something else in mind to go with them.

Edited by yuppicide, Fri Aug 13, 2010 9:49 PM.

[Video]

I'd get the lowest voltage possible, just honestly, unless your trying to light up a room or something, it doesn't need a lot of power.

Other than that, you just need to wire he LED to the 5v in on the card edge, and the other end to the ground, which should light it up when the system is powered up, though I don't knwo if you'll get enough power to still run the rom in the process (assuming you want to)

[5-11under]

Video, on Sat Aug 14, 2010 11:34 AM, said:

I'd get the lowest voltage possible, just honestly, unless your trying to light up a room or something, it doesn't need a lot of power.

Other than that, you just need to wire he LED to the 5v in on the card edge, and the other end to the ground, which should light it up when the system is powered up, though I don't knwo if you'll get enough power to still run the rom in the process (assuming you want to)

Don't forget a series resistor! Time for some Google-ing.
5--1under

[tetrode kink]

5-11under, on Sat Aug 14, 2010 11:45 AM, said:

Video, on Sat Aug 14, 2010 11:34 AM, said:

I'd get the lowest voltage possible, just honestly, unless your trying to light up a room or something, it doesn't need a lot of power.

Other than that, you just need to wire he LED to the 5v in on the card edge, and the other end to the ground, which should light it up when the system is powered up, though I don't knwo if you'll get enough power to still run the rom in the process (assuming you want to)

Don't forget a series resistor! Time for some Google-ing.
5--1under

Yeah, LEDs don't work on voltage, they work on current. If you hook up an LED to a power source, it will try to pass all the current the power source will give it, even if that causes the voltage to zero-out, all the while going nuclear-bright like a tiny sun. That is, until it burns itself out. Unless the circuit already provides current-limiting, you always need a resistor in series with the LED.

yuppicide, just look up the specs of the LED you want on Digi-Key or Mouser. LEDs run the gamut from just a few mA up to 10 or 20mA, depending on type and how bright you want it (how much resistance you pair it with). IIRC, blue and white LEDs generally take more current than the older red, green and yellow LEDs for the same light output.

-tet

Edited by tetrode kink, Wed Aug 18, 2010 1:05 AM.

[Bruce Tomlin]

What will actually happen is that the LED chip will instantly explode, launching a chip of plastic right into your face.

Back in the day I accidentally did this twice by a wire touching the wrong place, putting the full output of a live 7805-based power supply across the LED. The first time, the piece bounced off my glasses, saving me from a possible eye injury.

[Richard H.]

Quote

What will actually happen is that the LED chip will instantly explode

They go bright, they go dim, then they go pop. It's quite fun.

Quote

What should I know about making an Atari 2600 cart light up?

Lighted carts are cool. This is a colour-changing LED (and series resistor) inside a clear Vectrex cart.

[player 0ne]

im soo gonna do this. have you tried yet yuppicide? i can help ya with the numbers. i got resistors. man, i can resist all day!

[bennybingo]

yuppicide, on Fri Aug 13, 2010 9:49 PM, said:

What should I know about making an Atari 2600 cart light up?

....that should do the trick!

[player 0ne]

a UV led, with some of the cart case scroll sawed out into an atari logo, with glow in the dark tape or paint on the inside. so when played it glows an erie green.. rather good idea. first one to beat me to it gets props.. can anyone show a pic of a similar mod? would anyone like a mod like this made for a homebrew cart?

[jferio]

http://mods.xkill.net/WIP/index.3.html

There's a few pics of his mod, albeit using a Mattel cart. There's also a proper Atari cart board picture, with an LED mod applied. (I presume by the copyright date and that one would test with a common that it's just Combat.)

[player 0ne]

thanks man! good inspiration! that mattel cart sure is dainty.