Intellivision: 'Austin'

[Snow_Cat]

I've decided to build myself a intellivision portable with a set budget of $50 (because I'm cheap).

I can get

1. a broken Intellivision for $10+($12 shipping) with no games.
2. a questionable Intellivision II for $30+($10 shipping) with
   • Intellivoice Voice Synthesizer ModuleYAY!
   • 2 Controllers (1 missing number pad)dup.
   • Mattel AC Adaptermeh.
   • Coleco TV/Game Switchmeh.
   • Game-TV Cablemeh.
   • EarphoneEEW!
   • Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Cloudy Mountain (with Manual)YAY!
   • Star Strike (with Manual)dup.
   • Sub Hunt (with Manual)dup.
   • Space Battle
   • Frog Bog
   • Astrosmashdup.
   • Lock 'N Chasedup.
   • Skiingdup.
   • Snafudup.
   • Tron: Solar Sailor (for use with Intellivoice module)YAY!
   • B-17 Bomber (for use with Intellivoice module)YAY!
3. protable DVD player $15+($6 shipping)
4. any DS, Nokia, PSP screen $15 (incl shipping)
5. Zilinx 9500 CPLDs (have six but not the time to program a INTVOAC)
6. assorted AA, C, and D cell cradles with batteries (allready have, my calculators are hilarious)

All prices are in CAD dollars, all shipping costs are based on Gov't courrier rates and do not include packaging. Seller may opt to use Canada Post which may double the shipping cost for handling due to size and packaging fees.
I still have my old manuals, boxes (carts destroied) and will therefore dup my missing the carts with impunity.

I believe that I can fix the broken one (since I had to constantly repair my first one when I still had it if the IC's are still okay) but the second one would be easier to modify, and comes with more swag. Also, I can build a pass-thru adaptor that will 'unlock' the Intellivision II for third party carts.

If I were to opt for a smaller screen without a controller I would need to know what the resolution of the Intellivision really is to build my own. While the video generator is programmed with a resolution of 160x96 per sweep, it distinquishes both blanking periods of the interlace and therefore can produce a resolution of 160x192. Complicating this is that the IntelliVision supports (electronic) overlay injection of (undefined?) resolution by sidecar/carts and the IntelliVision II was designed to have the an Atari 2600 clone (hijack it's RF modulator).

NTSC 486x525/60 Hz (interlaced)
PAL 486x625/50 Hz (interlaced)
NTSC 650x525/29.97 Hz 4.2MHz fmax
PAL 720x625/25.00 Hz 5.5MHz fmax
INTV 160x 96/?? Hz (progressive)
INTV 160x192/?? Hz (intererlaced?)

I have a rough idea of how I am going to make this; it will be hillariously awful, the hand cramps and torn nails of old will be nothing; chunky D-cells, cartridges stuck out the side so that you can't hold it with both hands... and a overclock toggle.


What would this forum suggest I do with this (being mindful of the budget).


Also, my calculator takes Alkaline batteries right?

Spoiler:

So AA's will work, they will fit.

1.5V is 1.5V

edit: factual correction

edit: name change

[Snow_Cat]

Impatient with the first seller I scanned craigs list.org and found someone who was selling a 'broken' DVD player w/ no batteries for $20.
You can see in this colour picture that the picture is monochome...the im-* It's complicated and I'll explain later.

This is the head unit from a curtisint.comCurtis DVD8723.

As it happens the seller is a well respected studio engineer who is in the process of disposing of unnecessary kit from his apartment, and wants to know that he isn't dumping waste into the environment but sending it off to good use. This is why in additon to what the ad promised he also put in a pair of new 7.2 3800 NI-MH bateries and a hand build RT-RCA video cable; either of which cost him more than $20 (And he took a 1:20 bus/train ride to meet me, matching my 1:30 bus ride to the meeting point; Yay environmental consience!)

Also, when I explained why I wanted a 'broken' DVD player I explained that I was making a portable IntelliVision; and after a few double takes he explaind that he hasn't seen one since he was a young man living in India, and it was old then.

Conveniently this litle unit has an internal video selector for video/audio in, power out, the batteries and a built in 'smart' charger (is confused by the batteries and goes into an oscillating standy-mode / charge state when the video-in is used, though this could be caused by my source.) And (strangely enough) I had a compatable 'Sony' DVD/CD laser assembly out of another DVD player w/ a dead power supply; though I think that I traded that for 20KV HV caps that I then traded for food, I'll have to check if I still have it.

So; I don't need to build a complex power supervisor/charger, only a power supply for the Intellivison and I'm making progress torward the future of ages past.

I almost have a portable now, with a bit of tape and this:

Spoiler:

The intellivisionlives.comIntelliVision Direct to TV 25 video game system made by TechnoSourcehk.com. Not actually an IntelliVision but a NOAC with an absurdly bright led.

This particular example is one my dad gave me to replace the console and the dozens of carts he took from me and destroied when I moved out years ago. Before this he modified it (with some encouragement) to accept either a wall wart or 4 AA's. I have no idea if The blinding led was his doing or not. It also has some quirky video problems I believe are caused by a lack of a seperate output-amplifier and the epoxy glob not actually covering one of the chips (dunno which is the NOAC and the cart.ROM.)

On every screen I've connected it to it has not produced a stable image, it is always to some degree either wavy and/or gray. With the DVD screen it starts off with the splash screen, with a notable notch half way in the middle, then slips into a completely scrambled grey image. Adding a video amplifier between the NOAC and the screen perfectly stabalised the image, however it is now greyed out with only the brigtest of colours cyans showing as a faint tint.

This amplifier isn't 'portable' but one of the many VCR's I've been given 'for spares'.

While I could try and determine exactly what is wrong with the NOAC video signal and build an amp to correct it; I'd rather wait and see how a real IntelliVision behaves.

But this be until one seller that has acknowledged an invitition to treat but is away returns, or the other who has reposted multiple ads with 'obo' instead of naming his real price aqueases my request, or I raise my budget for this $200.

[Snow_Cat]

( just making a note here so that I don't forget )Version 1&3 : 5,12,16,0,-2.1 volts (beeslife, intvfunhouse)
Version 2 : 5,12,16,0,-3 volts (random/don't trust)
Version WB : 5,0 volts (random)
Got the acctual service manuals from lukesandel.com

• Mattel Version 1
  • Regulated DC Voltages : 12±0.36, 5±0.15, 0 and -2.1±0.25 (-3.3 in early production)
    Unregulated DC Voltages : 16+?, 5.65±0.2 (12+? disconnected) (:wtf: that's helluva lot of float!)
    Unregulated AC Voltages : 16±1.7 centertapped, 16±1.7 railed (clever)
• Mattel Version 2
  • AC Voltages : 16-20
    DC Voltages : -2.25±0.15, 5.7±0.25, 12±0.5, 5±0.15, (21+/5/0)(off/on/reset) (:wtf: that's helluva lot of float!)

Interface
Cartridge (main) 5,0 volts.
Cartridge (ECS) ??
Cartridge (2600) ??
Controller continuity.

Notes.
intellivision

• CPU: General Instruments CP1610
  • datasheet
  • instruction set w/ bytecode
  • CPLD/VHDL model
• Standard Television Interface Chip (STIC): GI AY-3- 8900-1
  • datsheet
  • application notes
  • CPLD/VHDL model
• System RAM: GI RA-3-9600
  • datsheet
  • CPLD/VHDL model
• Sound Chip: GI AY-3-8914
  wikipedia.org lic. ym2149
  • datsheet
  • application notes
  • CPLD/VHDL model
    FPGA Arcade.com library
• Graphics ROM (GROM) and Graphics RAM (GRAM)
  • datsheet
  • contents
  • CPLD/VHDL model
• The Executive ROM (EXEC)
  • datsheet
  • contents
  • CPLD/VHDL model
• Scratchpad RAM
  • datsheet
  • application notes
  • CPLD/VHDL model
• Hand Controllers
  • circuit diagram
  • (original) board art
  • CPLD/VHDL model

Intellivoice

• General Instruments SP-0256 Orator (VLSI speech synthesizer)
  • DSP
  • 16K ROM (RESROM and PROGRAM)
  • MICROCONTROLLER (DSP control and assembling "word strings")
  • 40 KHz PWM output
  General Instruments SPB-640 (LSI buffer/interface chip)
  • 640-bit FIFO array
  • BUS passthrough/switching?
  LM-324C Quad OP Amp (active audio filter)/LM-358C Dual OP Amp (amplifier section)
  • 150 Hz to 5KHz passband
  • 3db/octave bass pre-emphasis.
  • volume control
  POWER SUPPLY BOOSTING/SUPPORT
  • in at pin six of the stacking connector
  • out at cartridge pin 43 via a 8.2 Ohm, 2W resistor
  • unregulated power providing ~ a 270mA boost

One other interesting thought: The Intellivoice has an expansion bus hidden under the Mattel Electronics nameplate on the top. (Unfortunately, the connector is rarely populated on these, but the bus is there and intact.)

This expansion bus is a simple 8-bit data bus and it specifically passes through requests for $1FE and $1FF, the controller ports, to allow you to inject controller inputs there. It did this to support the "wireless controller" project that was in development at the time the Intellivoice was also in development.

This port provides a chip select, a few bits of address and has a bidirectional data bus. I have the details around somewhere, if you think this is an interesting avenue for expansion. It has the plus side of providing +5 and GND and not requiring you to open your Intellivision 1 or find connectors that will reach into an Intellivision 2. It has the downside of a slightly more complex interface, and the fact that most Intellivoice units will need a little bit of soldering to install a connector. It also requires the user to already own an Intellivoice that they'd be willing to mod.

ECS

• SDCC (Super-Duper Custom Chip)
  • oh good... documentation on that
• additional GI AY-3-8914 sound chip
  • as above
• 12K ROM (ECS EXEC/BASIC ROM)
• additional 2K of 8-bit RAM
• A Cassette Recorder/Printer Interface (modem?)
• additional controler ports (keyboard (querty,music) or hand controllers)

[themadhacker]

looking good so far!

[bassmasta]

I think there's a way to get it run off of one voltage. Check Bacteria's Alpha Omega project.

[Snow_Cat]

Thanks for pointing me torwards Bacteria's work; though have planned a different approach.

The original Intellivision used a GI chipset that was at the very limits of 1970's technology; reportedly GI barely achieed a yield of 50%. This low yield probabally meant that there was barely any profit to be made back then (on the ICs) except in mass orders (Mattel, Honeywell, etc). It also would explain the shorter lifespan of some ICs prematurely killing many consoles (where the controllers, RF modulator, powersupply, etc. haven't failed first) keeping the price of a original working console stable.

But today we can rebuild it - we have the technology. The world's first attempt was the Tutourvison (1988), and it ran with a single 5V power source. 20+ years later we can and make it better than before.

This is my plan:

In a couple of weeks I'll have the broken console (w/ original PCB) and then I can study it, make replacement chips and start testing.
In time I can replace the fragile (original) chips with stronger modern versions.
Once multiple chips work they can then be integrated together, eventually becoming one chip, the INTV-OAC!
Then the enhancements can happen place; functions/subroutines from the exec turned into dedicated opcodes; the video-output can filtered, enhanced, reformatted to RBG or DVI; the entire system made faster (turbo sw), and smoother (increase exec framerate from 20/s).

And I think I'll name it Austin, I'll add the Steve if I spend the sombody give me the six million dollars.

edit: experiment-s.de atari custom chips This is what I am talking about doing with the Intellivision.

[Snow_Cat]

I've been thinking about the controllers and it would seem that the feature creep has already started before I have an actual physical unit to take apart.

I will certainly rebuild the controllers since I would like to know the condition of the membranes are 'new'.

But long as the controller is apart I might replace the disc with a $3 modern thumbstick, but then I would need to use a $3 microcontroller to reformat the analog data into the Intellivision's digital 16.

Since there is already going to be a micro I might as well replace the keypad with a $5 touchpanel since that would reduce the cost of the $8 PCB to $2 (single sided, IC only);

And with a touch panel, for $10 more I could add a cellphone LCD and do away with the transparancies entirely, but then that would bump up the cost of the micro to $10.

And with a larger micro I might as well buy one with wireless built in...

Spoiler:

edit: ... and the one's with wireless built in are just powerful enough to run synthesis for a headphone jack;
And with a slightly more bit more powerful $25 SOC I could probably run an emulator for an Atari, but then I'd want a port for the original controller. And I would definitely reuild that controller...

edit:

another oddity with the intellivision is the inability to use both the disc and face buttons at the same time. on games like night stalker and tron deadly discs, this is a huge disadvantage... unless you use two controllers.

so your idea of using a psx controller may work (similar to the 7800>psx controller adapter). map the player 1 disc to the left stick, and player 2 keypad to the second stick.

patents.google.com

• Patent number: 4246452 Switch apparatus
  Filing date: 5 Jan 1979
  Issue date: 20 Jan 1981
  Inventor: David P. Chandler
  Assignees: Mattel, Inc.

[Snow_Cat]

patents.google.com

• Patent number: 4264114 Electrical connector assembly
  Filing date: 5 Jan 1979
  Issue date: 28 Apr 1981
  Inventor: David P. Chandler
  Assignees: Mattel, Inc.

Well that's the mystery of the 'hard to insert/remove Intellivision cartridge' solved.

What happens is this.
Because of deflection in the board, misalignment of the slot, variation in the mold, or an old fashoned hammerfisted user, or normal wear- A cartridge catches the body of the connector and it deflects it. Without a retention mechanism the deflection is not corrected and subsequent insertions of a cartridge applys pressure against the housing rather than just the contacts. Users compensate by applying more force deflecting it further. Eventually the cartridge PCB or shell catches the outside edge and either the connector or the cartridge breaks. (I can post links evident of the later.)

The tolerance for deflection is less than a degree at the board, nevermind the lever arm effect of the board mounting.
And making this truely terrible is the fact that the cartridge is stopped by making contact with the bottom of the connector before the internal cartridge wall does, absolutely insuring that the connector deflects to some extent.

The addition of a single retention staple at the leading edge would avert this condition almost entirely at very little additional cost.

edit: I would like to add that with my first one the cart connector had to be replaced because of this, as did my Astrosmash cart.