Protector - Vectrex bartop -- PROJECT CLOSED.

[opt2not]

Contemplating a new project -- kinda unorthodox...

The other day I had the chance to play my friend's Vectrex, for the first time (never owned one). Wow, I'm smitten!

After doing a bit of reading, stumbled upon Protector and thought, I would love to have a dedicated Vectrex bartop for something like this. Since I can't get another cabinet  into my apartment, and I've been wanting a vector game for a while, this is the next best thing.

SOoooo, I did some messing around in photoshop. I took a fullsized Defender cabinet image, shrunk it down and thought out a concept for a Protector bartop.

I'd probably only play Protector on it, and possibly Star Fire...oh, and Moon Lander...


I'm wondering how feasible it is to accomplish this project. One of the big stubling blocks is the Vectrex controller. The joystick on it is analog, so it would make it hard to
attach a real arcade joy. Not impossible, I don't think.
The other stubling block is finding a working vectrex for a decent price...

What do you guys think?

**edit: Fixed the image link, for posterity.

[NiN^_^NiN]

First link that popped up on google
http://www.oneswitch.org.uk/4/DIY/vectrex.htm

I think go for it

[Samstag]

It's been a few years since I bought my vectrex but there were a lot of them available on ebay in good condition.  They age well.

[opt2not]

First link that popped up on google
http://www.oneswitch.org.uk/4/DIY/vectrex.htm

I think go for it

Sweet, thanks for the link! Seems like it's pretty straight-forward.

It's been a few years since I bought my vectrex but there were a lot of them available on ebay in good condition.  They age well.

Yeah, they're pretty expensive on ebay right now.
I have a few leads to local sellers that'll hopefully turn out. We'll see what kind of deal I can get.

[danny_galaga]

First link that popped up on google
http://www.oneswitch.org.uk/4/DIY/vectrex.htm

I think go for it

Interesting. But you are missing out on the analog, which the  Vectrex had.

Wow, the dude selling Protector is selling himself short! I think he could ask more than that...

[opt2not]

Interesting. But you are missing out on the analog, which the  Vectrex had.

Ya'see, that's what I'm worried about!

Wow, the dude selling Protector is selling himself short! I think he could ask more than that...

Yeah, but it's "homebrew" and his market is extremely small.

Oh then there's this guy.
He made Vectrexians (Galaxian)


...and is working on a Time Pilot


...and Gyruss!!!


Viva la homebrew!

[danny_galaga]

Wow, the dude selling Protector is selling himself short! I think he could ask more than that...

Yeah, but it's "homebrew" and his market is extremely small.

I mention it because I'm into Atari Lynx and Jaguar. There is homebrew for those too, and it costs an arm and a leg for most titles 

[opt2not]

I mention it because I'm into Atari Lynx and Jaguar. There is homebrew for those too, and it costs an arm and a leg for most titles  :'(

Protector SE for the Jaguar looks rad.
Updated sprite graphics for Defender!


I never had a Jaguar, at the time they were too expensive for me, and not too many games got me excited about buying one. But this, this is awesome...

[patrickl]

That Defender cab looks great.

Also, that Vectrex emulator linked too from the CGE page is pretty good.

http://pagesperso-orange.fr/parabellum/bin/ParaJVE/download.html

[geomartin]

I bought Protector for my Vectrex, and in my opinion is the best Vectrex game I've played by far.  Simply amazing!

[opt2not]

I bought Protector for my Vectrex, and in my opinion is the best Vectrex game I've played by far.  Simply amazing!

Yeah, I agree. It looks to be the best game available.
My game list is going to be short, I only want to play a few games on this thing:
- Protector and YASI
- Gravitar Plus
- Moon Lander
- Cosmic Chasm

Luckily, I was able to find a non-working Vectrex locally for really cheap.
The seller says that it  has the "white-dot problem", which I've read is really easy to fix. Comes with a working controller and an additional game: Hyperchase (not my first game of choice, but I'll take it).  I'm going to see if I can order Moon Lander and Protector from here

Now, for this project I've got to figure out what I want to do with the controller. Either A. attaching a small balltop to the existing analog controller somehow (keeping the analog control intact), and wiring up proper arcade buttons. Or B. Hack the analog stick to be controlled by microswitches (digital) from an arcade joystick. hmmm.

I've done a bit of searching and found this page, which would be a good alternative to hacking up the already rare Vectrex controller; i have no problem destroying a PSX controller mind you...but the guy is no longer supplying them!  :'(

Then there is this guy who did it himself, AND was able to retain the analog ability usable with the PSX controllers dual sticks. But this is much more work than I'd probably like to put in, and I'd still have to figure out how to attach the psx analogs to a proper joystick!
Both of these alternatives means I'd be hacking up a PSX controller, connected to buttons and a joystick, that's connected to the Vectrex. Convoluted I know.

I think I'm going to try to figure out a eloquent way of doing option A without completely destroying the controller, if that fails, option B it is!

**edit**
Also found a nice page on creating overlays from scratch!

[opt2not]

Yay, was able to score a Vectrex with the common "white-dot" issue for $20! 
Came with a single controller (which could probably be resold for $40-50).

Looks like I'm going to follow through with this project. First order of business is to get this thing working. Once that is successful, I can work on the construction plans.

I swear I have project-A.D.D.
Gotta start finishing projects, before I have a stock-pile of half-assed ones!

[jasonbar]

opt2not, you should buy my Vectrex--it works!  No controller, which is probably fine, since you'll be making your own.

This is a craigslist find that I fixed up--it's got some cosmetic quirks, which would be perfect for your cab...

And I goofed & the auction is ending on Sunday July 4th, so it'll probably be cheap.  And then all you have to do is swing by Pasadena in your upcoming SoCal trip & pick it up...and then the only decision is: carry-on or checked bag?

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/GCE-Vectrex-Arcade-System-1982-Works-100-Vector-/160449829069?cmd=ViewItem&pt=US_Vintage_Video_Games&hash=item255b8e18cd#ht_18214wt_1094

-Jason

[opt2not]

Thanks, but I wanna try to bring this one back to life! It just needs a little re-soldering. easy-peasy!

[opt2not]

Quick update:

I tried reflowing the solder of the power connections, to no avail.  I'm still getting the same white-dot result, no audio, no boot-up. It leads me to believe that the caps might be dried out, so I threw a digikey order together for replacements. For anyone who's interested, here's the list of caps and digikey part-numbers for future reference:

(2) 1µF @ 50V - Digi-Key part # P824-ND
(1) 4.7µF @ 50V - Digi-Key part # P827-ND
(1) 4.7µF @ 100V or 160V - Digi-Key part # P5308-ND
(1) 4.7µF @ 250V - Digi-Key part # P5333-ND
(2) 10µF @ 50V - Digi-Key part # P828-ND
(2) 22µF @ 25V - Digi-Key part # P814-ND
(1) 22µF @ 50V - Digi-Key part # P837-ND
(4) 47µF @ 25V - Digi-Key part # P834-ND
(2) 100µF @ 16V - Digi-Key part # P833-ND
(2) 220µF @ 16V - Digi-Key part # P5139-ND
(1) 220µF @ 25V - Digi-Key part # P5153-ND
(1) 470µF @ 16V - Digi-Key part # P5141-ND
(3) 1000µF @ 25V - Digi-Key part # P5156-ND
(2) 4700µF @ 25V - Digi-Key part # P5159-ND
(2) 10000µF @ 25V - Digi-Key part # 493-1071-ND

I also found a good visual tutorial on re-capping this thing, the order of operation with removing parts and such.

Besides that, on the homebrew front I found this guy's site that has a some pictures of a vectrex Joust!



Looks so cool! AND with the overlay he has.
I think joust in vector form would be amazing to see in motion.
I'm not sure if this is available to buy right now since it says Coming Soon (don't know the last time he updated his site), but I'll throw him an email and see if it is.

This is a craigslist find that I fixed up--it's got some cosmetic quirks, which would be perfect for your cab...

Hey Jason, was the vectrex you sold working when you bought it?  If not, what was the problem and solution to fixing it?

[Epyx]

Awesome project!  Can't wait to see this start. That Joust game and overlay is stunning! 

[FritoFredrik]

nice build and im also trying to restore my vectrex it has that white dot on screen so if you get it working im glad to know how you fixt it.

here is the Vectrex troubleshooting guide AND Service manual hopefully these will help:
http://www.playvectrex.com/shoptalk_f.htm

and this is what i did to mine:



did a cap replacement but didnt fix it.

also heard something about this D/A converter chip MC1408p8 for the vector graphics.
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/77220-25-vectrex-repair

[opt2not]

Awesome project!  Can't wait to see this start. That Joust game and overlay is stunning! 

Thanks bud 
I can't wait too!  First thing to do is get this baby working, then I want to play the games I plan on picking up for this thing, just so I can figure out the control layout better.
I was planning on catering to Protector, Moon Lander, Gravitrex, and perhaps Joust if it's available. But if it's too much trouble, I might just have this dedicated to Protector alone. I'm still deciding.

Another thing I need to figure out is an elegant way of swapping out overlays. OR, just get a general looking overlay that would make the black and white display more appealing to look at.

nice build and im also trying to restore my vectrex it has that white dot on screen so if you get it working im glad to know how you fixt it.

here is the Vectrex troubleshooting guide AND Service manual hopefully these will help:
http://www.playvectrex.com/shoptalk_f.htm

and this is what i did to mine:

did a cap replacement but didnt fix it.

also heard something about this D/A converter chip MC1408p8 for the vector graphics.
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/77220-25-vectrex-repair

Thanks for the links, and videos.
Did you replace all the caps? Or just a select few?
Also, have you tried re-flowing the solder on the power connections?

Looks like yours is getting there. At least you can hear the game playing, I can't even get that right now. All I get is silence and a white dot. I'm going to poke around and check voltages, I suspect that the PS is faulty if the system isn't coming on at all.

[FritoFredrik]

Thanks for the links, and videos.
Did you replace all the caps? Or just a select few?
Also, have you tried re-flowing the solder on the power connections?

Looks like yours is getting there. At least you can hear the game playing, I can't even get that right now. All I get is silence and a white dot. I'm going to poke around and check voltages, I suspect that the PS is faulty if the system isn't coming on at all.

No problem just trying to help you and myself.
and i didnt replays all the caps, 2 of them i dident repays wass c409 and c516 on the power board
and on page 15-16 section VIII in the vecman.pdf service manual have some useful info about getting correct power

[opt2not]

Got my super-duper vectrex cap order from Digikey in the mail!



Woot!  Looks like I'll have to find some time to squeeze in some re-capping in-between some art commissions!
Though, I might have to put this on hold till I finish them, the guys seem to be making a lot of progress lately on their cabinets, so I don't want to hold them up.

But if this works out well, I'm going to go full steam ahead on this bartop.

[Roo]

This is really cool, I 'm following with great interest.

I mean, I have to see what's holding you up on my art, right?   

Just kidding, I'm excited to see how this turns out!   

[opt2not]

This is really cool, I 'm following with great interest.

I mean, I have to see what's holding you up on my art, right?   

Just kidding, I'm excited to see how this turns out!   

Hee hee, don't worry Roo, I have no interested in going full-steam ahead on this project till I've finished my art commitments.
I've got yours to finish, as well as another BYOAC members to get done before I get serious on any other project.
Both equally exciting, but yours is a bit smaller in "scope".

[opt2not]

Unfortunately I'm going to put this project to rest. After some deliberation, I've decided to just get my Vectrex working and leave it original.
I've got another idea for a bartop that is more feasible, and closer to my heart than what I was planning with this.

Project Closed.