I Wish I Hadn't Bought That 2600...

[Metropolisforever]

Man, was I excited! It had controllers, paddles, tons of games, and everything!

Little did I know that hooking up an Atari 2600 to a modern television is a colossal pain in the ass. Right now, I kinda wish I hadn't bought it!

[Starwander]

Man, was I excited! It had controllers, paddles, tons of games, and everything!

Little did I know that hooking up an Atari 2600 to a modern television is a colossal pain in the ass. Right now, I kinda wish I hadn't bought it!

You just need a $1.00 adapter to hook the system into your RF adapter on your TV.

[Metropolisforever]

Huh? Well, it came with a ton of hook-up stuff, but it's all old and I don't know how to use it. How do I hook it up with a modern "adapter", and what will I need?

[swlovinist]

Do yourself a favor and put an ad in craigslist for an old TV


heck check the free section


problem solved

[Metropolisforever]

Do yourself a favor and put an ad in craigslist for an old TV


heck check the free section


problem solved

[Sniderman]

I assume this TV of yours has a cable port? If so, you need an RF to coax adapter:



Screw one end into the cable port, and stick the RF cable fromt he Atari into the other end. It replaces the RF switchbox. If you need more help, go here:

www.atariage.com


and ask the same question. They'll be able to give you more "How do I hook up my Atari" info than you can imagine.

[Gameguy]

I keep old TVs around for my old systems, you can't use light guns on new ones so I need to have old ones. When I hooked up my Atari system(years ago) I used an adapter so I could use the old switchbox to the newer coaxial input. I use the same adapter to hook up rabbit ears to the coaxial input as I don't have cable.

[Metropolisforever]

So... when I go to RadioShack, what do I ask for?

[Astrocade]

So... when I go to RadioShack, what do I ask for?

you need an RF to coax adapter:

There you go.

[Mobius]

Huh? Well, it came with a ton of hook-up stuff, but it's all old and I don't know how to use it. How do I hook it up with a modern "adapter", and what will I need?

Post a picture of the hook-ups. Maybe you have what you need already.

[Metropolisforever]

What part of the Atari do I hook to the "RF-to-coax adapter"?

[dstone]

The RF part.

It's the cable that has the RCA plug on the end. There should only be one wire coming out of the back besides power, that's the one that you want.

Here's what the connection will look like:

[Sabz5150]

Seriously, buy yourself an old boob-tube. The games look better (seeing old-school RF interference on your Gigantor television just looks awful) and as our friend the AVGN says: the only true way to play Atari is on an old piece of shit like that

I nabbed a little TV from a thrift store for 5 bucks. A bit of cleaning and it's the perfect classic game screen.

[Ro-J]

Although it's been a few years since I picked one up, Radio Shack also sells RF switches with a built in coax hook-up.....in case the original rf switch you already have doesn't work.

[Metropolisforever]

Okay, I got an RF-to-coax thingy, and the Atari finally works!

Now, if only I could figure out how to play these inane games.

[Zing]

Mehbleh.

[Flack]

It must be a Vader model because this is like a black comedy ...

[Astrocade]

It must be a Vader model because this is like a black comedy ...

I'm still trying to figure out if this whole thread is a joke, or if someone is really that dense.

[Sonicwolf]

I'm still trying to figure out if this whole thread is a joke, or if someone is really that dense.

and I'm still trying to figure out exactly what the hell this thread is about. Lack of working tv, lack of cords or a broken 2600?

[cyberfluxor]

and I'm still trying to figure out exactly what the hell this thread is about. Lack of working tv, lack of cords or a broken 2600?

I believe it's now at lack of gaming skills.

Remember, older systems had games designed around arcade-likeness such as "beat the highest score." So the more you play generally the better you get, so keeping a pad of paper and pencil or charged camera nearby while playing Atari is a good idea.