11 replies to this topic

[coleconut]

[Yurkie]

Is it wireless?

[coleconut]

Yurkie, on Wed Dec 7, 2011 9:40 PM, said:

Is it wireless?

Dont think so, Its got a button on the side that appears to just connect the circuit from the 9V battery connection then theres a 3-position toggle switch on the top then that added board at the bottom. I'm afraid to plug it in.....
5-11 Under's guess was some kinda autofire but would that need external power? Guy in UK wanted 20 pounds, I did an offer for 10 and well, here it is...

[Yurkie]

I say connect a 9V and plug the controller in. Put a Cosmic Avnger cart. The worse that will likely happen IMO is a blown controller IC and you can fix that easy enough.

[NIAD]

Would have to agree with 5-11 that it is an auto-fire hack. The three position toggle would be for selecting:

left position = left fire-button autofire
center position = no autofire
right position = right fire-button autofire

The 9V battery is obviously used to power the added PCB and chips since the joystick port probably wouldn't supply enough juice.

If it came from the UK, Keith Marner might have had a hand in it's creation, but I haven't heard from him in close to 20 years... so no way to confirm.

At first I was thinking maybe this was a kind of Mouse hack for use with the ADAM, especially if the 3-position toggle was actual free wheeling. Some of the first ADAMmouse products required an external power source..

[NIAD]

BTW, someone might be able to verify if you listed out the chip numbers that are on the PCB.

[evg2000]

I thought auto fire at first also, but seems kind of complicated for an auto fire. Should be able to build one with a 555 time:
http://www94.pair.co...r/autofire.html

[coleconut]

I plugged it in and played Pitstop and the lights dimmed and I got 3 cars with oversize tyres.

[Mark_Coleco]

I have an article on ADAM Resource some place about inputing instructions via the controller port.

Maybe thats what it might be doing. I'll have to locate that article.

[Mark_Coleco]

http://www.theadamre...l/JeffCVExp.htm
by Jeff Frohwein. Make ColecoVision Cartridges - Technical specifications on the ColecoVision hardware and A system to allow you to upload code to a ColecoVision using the Joystick as a joystick, plus more...


I'm guessing the momentary switch on the left side of the controller is probably a RESET switch, or to cycle through options.

Edited by Mark_Coleco, Thu Dec 8, 2011 7:16 PM.

[coleconut]

So I bit the bullet and plugged in a 9V battery and ran a test and what it appears to be doing is simulating the "missing" roller ball function of the controller. Toggle left, roll left, toggle right roll right.
As we know, earlier versions of the controller, perhaps as only prototypes, had a roller ball that only appeared in production on the super action controllers.

[Retro Rogue]

Would be interesting to see the circuitry mapped out. I have a few of the controller pcb revisions with the roller parts still silk screened on. What's missing are the lines in the controller cable (i.e. there's spots on the cable connector not used). Was thinking of trying to take the roller from super action controller and putting it on one.