Hello, I was wondering if anyone here could help me out. I am trying to get my Color TV Game 15 to work on an American television set. Are there any RF adapters I can buy to make this work?
I have tried plugging it into my Famicom adapter (Using a male-male adapter) but it did not seem to work. Can anyone offer me some help with this?
Thank you for your time! :)
The problem could be that those didn't use an automatic RF switch like the Famicom/NES, instead, they used the classic COMPUTER GAME/TV switch, the one with the slider. The signal coming from the TV Game is not strong enough to activate the switching circuitry inside the NES RF switch and so the TV Game signal never reaches the TV.
You need one of those manual RF switches, but I prefer a 'female RCA - male F connector' adapter for maximum picture quality (obtainable from RF of course). You plug this into the end of the RF cable coming from the TV Game and then into the aerial socket on the back of your TV set. I assume if you play Famicom you already know how to deal with NTSC-J frequencies, so you're good to go ;)
Picture of the connector
(http://atariace.com/images/atariace.com/atari/images/rca-coax-rf-adapter.jpg)
Thank you so much, I was told this place is THE place to find answers for these things. Looks like they were right.
:)
ooo, who said this? :)
The guy who sold me the Color TV Game over on eBay. We were not sure how to solve the problem and he directed me here.
Lucky for me, I had used your resources before when I was researching the Famicom Disk System so I knew it would be worth a try since your other archives are full of really good info.
UPDATE
Alright, I went out and purchased a RCA - F adapter but unfortunately it did not work. Could I have done something wrong or is the signal coming from the Color TV Game not the kind of signal I think it is?
At the moment I'm not quite sure how to progress.
Does the TV Game have a channel switch? Have you tried flipping it and tuning the common Famicom channels?
channel 95-98 is where it should show up, make sure you are viewing those
How much did you get it for? And did you get CTG-15V or CTG-15S? CTG-15S seems to be a bit more rare. I think the difference is one of the versions you can remove the paddles and connect an AC adapter, the other one has built in paddles and runs on batteries only. I finally got my CTG-15S a few months ago.
Okay, I played around with the channel switch on the back of the console. On channel 96 and 97 (Depending on which channel the switch is on) I can barely make out the scores in the top left and right and some other bits of the playing field. So I've got a lock on the channel but the image is still shoddy. I don't know what kind of advice you could give me for the bad image but if you have anything I'll take it.
Also I have the CTG-15S and I got it for a little under one hundred USD.
I don't know if you feel comfortable doing this, but I would turn on the TV Game, tune the TV to the channel it looks the best, then open the TV Game, remove the metal shield from the RF modulator, mark the positions of the tuning coils with a marker so I can return to the original settings if I make things worse, then tweak them a little with a small screwdriver (preferably a plastic one) and watch the TV screen. By altering the tuning coils you are changing the output frequency so if you're lucky (and patient) maybe you can make it work on an American TV.
I would not mind doing that one bit.
It will be a fun little diversion to take my mind off of the real world. ;)
Cool! Just be careful and mark everything so you can return if you make it worse. If you can take high res pictures of the inside (system and RF modulator) I can take a look and help you.
Okay pictures! I got it from three angles.
I poked around a bit but did not see any shield that looked like it could remove without actually tearing something off of the board itself. It actually looks like they made the board with access to the RF frequency tuning screws built into the modulator shields.
At least, that is what I see, take a look and tell me if we are seeing the same thing. I'm no expert with this stuff so I could be way off. :D
They are big so I guess I'll slap down a 56k warning.
Image 1 (http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i177/PatMan33/1.jpg)
Image 2 (http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i177/PatMan33/2.jpg)
Image 3 (http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i177/PatMan33/3.jpg)
try on a different tv.
not all brands will work well
Before messing with anything, try getting your finger near those pieces of wire labeled 1ch and 2ch (depending on which channel are you using) and watch the screen for any changes. Try passing your finger over them at different distances, touching them, etc.
There does not appear to be any change in the on-screen action when I pass my finger by or touch them. This holds true for both channels.
I've also tried adjusting the knobs a bit but no dice. I can't even approach a level of clarity that could be called satisfactory. That's fine though, being able to play it was a bonus, maybe I'll try again some time in the future.
One last question, that third silver shield, it also has a sort of screw in the top like the channel 1 and 2 shields... does that one do anything that could help? The marking near it says '4.5MHZ' and another marking nearby reads '1660'.
I'm not going to touch it unless there is good reason.
Also thank you so much for your help!
again, try a different tv
I tried it on a few televisions; some new, some old, but they all seemed to yield the same results.
$100? did you get it in box with manual?
Nope.
Actually, when I got it there were no other ones available. But about a day after I put my bid in one of the guys I get stuff from regularly had one in a box. So I was a little aggravated but, hey, it happens.
send me a PM before youre gonna buy pre-famicom stuff and I'll let you know if you're getting a good deal, I have quite a bit myself and maybe can help you get some better deals.
Oh okay, thanks. :)
bring it to a tv store and try it on a samsung hdtv. let me know what happens
also, you could probably modify it for composite, ask 133mhz.
Composite is a very good idea. Can you give me the numbers of the ICs? Maybe I can find the datasheets and look if it's possible to take composite out. I have a Pong machine (a clone) but not a Nintendo one. Does the Nintendo ones make sounds through the TV speaker or they have a built-in speaker like most Pong clones?
I believe nintendo is through the TV, so that makes things harder or easier depending upon how you look at it
More than easier or harder it's more like aesthetic reasons :P. If only video delivery to the TV is needed you can use the built-in RCA cable that's used for RF. Just connect it inside to the composite out instead of RF out and the mod is totally invisible from the outside and completely functional on today's TVs. Just connect it to the front video in that most TVs have nowadays and play! No messing on the back of the TV and changing channels. And since many of these run on batteries too it would make for a very portable system ;). Actually I think I'm going to make that mod to my Pong system in a near future. Doesn't ruin aesthetics, completely functional and also very easy to undo if the need comes. And thinking, even if the Nintendo one does broadcast its sound to the TV it's not that big of a deal. You can install a small audio amp and speaker inside the console and use the RF cable for composite.
It would be fun to have a 'portable' Pong system to play around in friend's houses or strange places, plug it in for a quick match ;D
That does sound interesting...
On the one hand I want to keep it in original condition, on the other hand I have no intent to ever sell them for profit or anything... I have it to play it.
Of course, I'm shipping off to college tomorrow but the chaos will only last a few days at most. I think I may try this!