Vector Rant/Love

[ArcadeMaze]

X

[draginit]

ahh, but you didnt mention another good one by atari, thats the 1982 Black Widow!My favorite!!
now that one blows my mind! fast paced yet simple..im still hooked to that game. been planning on adding an upright to my collection but hard to come by for the right price.

[Tailgunner]

Same here, at least half of my arcade favorites are be vector games.

If I ever win the lottery, one of the things on my list to do would be to get a big enough run of new XY monitors made so that no vector cab gets scrapped for the want of a monitor for it.

[arcadefever]

forgot one of the best :

TEMPEST 

[ArcadeMaze]

X

[ArcadeMaze]

X

[ChadTower]

$300 is a steal for a working Black Widow.  I'd pay it in a heartbeat.

[Buddabing]

Ripoff, Space Duel= cooperative gameplay

I also liked Space Fury back in the day. "A creature for my amusement, prepare for battle".

And don't forget Star Trek.

[draginit]

yea! are you kidding, 300$ easy!  ive been watching ebay regularly for black widow and just watched the last one relist for 500$ out of LA. i was gonna bid but unfortunaltly i was waiting for him to drop to 400$...it started at 1100$!! crazy.. but my frugalness landed me no machine and someone felt it worth 500$,, :'(probaly was...cab was in good shape...oh well i'll find another one im sure

[Havok]

Vector games are my all time favorites. I really wish someone out there would produce contemporary versions to replace the defective ones out there...

[RayB]

There already is a replacement for Black & White monitors.

[ChadTower]

What is it?

[RayB]

What is it?

A new one. 

[RayB]

Here is a source for brand new B&W vector tubes:

"I contacted Joe Fenn of Richardson Electronics in Brampton. They supply an exact replacement CRT. It was in stock. I ordered it over the phone last Tuesday and it arrived at my house Friday (today). Talk about super service! The new CRT cost me $145 after tax. I think it was a good deal considering it was brand new. If anyone is wondering, the part number is M47EAA19WS and it is an exact replacement for the 19" Sylvania 19VARP4."

You guys will have to figure out where "Richardson Electronics". That's all th einfo I have. Brampton is in Ontario, Canada.

The thread this info is from is here:
http://www.cgcc.ca/forum/viewtopic.php?t=10567

[ChadTower]

That's just a tube, though, not a monitor.  There have always been viable replacement tubes for vector monitors.  It's stuff like the HV transformer that until very recently wasn't available except from a parted monitor.

Damn.  I was hoping someone was producing a full monitor.

[Matthew Fisher]

I guess the only problems with vectors are the high prices, no new monitors, and that there weren't more of them!   

As for new monitors, someone keeps threatening to make a complete drop-in replacement for the Amplifone, but nothing so far.  As I've said before, I'll believe it (and probably place an order!) when I see it...

Let's not forget Cosmic Chasm, which is far better than the Vectrex version IMHO, Demon, Zektor, Major Havok, and QB-3, which may be my favorite vector after Tempest.  Great stuff! 

I have thought more than I care to admit about just why it is that I like vectors so much.  A big part of it is the extreme contrast of the superbright vectors against the inky blackness of the screen.  In contrast to a raster screen, "black" really is black on a vector screen; there are simply no electrons hitting those parts of the screen.  If you turn the brightness up to get the vectors anywhere close to looking bright enough on a non-vector screen, the rest of the screen is a pretty bright gray.  (If you have never seen a real vector game and think that they look just fine on your PC monitor, do yourself a favor and make sure you never DO see a real one.  After that, you will be ruined.  Vectormania is a sickness and an expensive one, to boot.) 

Also, the novelty appeals to me.  After all, there were only about 35 of these things made.  Most importantly, though, most of those were really good games.  IMO, only Barrier completely sucks...

Just my two cents.   

[fredster]

I have an asteroids cocktail and an asteroids deluxe upright.

I rebuilt the boards and got the monitors working. They are pretty simple. But the 19" Wells I have in the upright still blooms after rebuild.  Bob Roberts told me the HV was going out.

Yeech. I am thinking about getting rid of them both. I'm tired of fixing them. I love them, but there comes a time when you have to say "enough is enough".

Anybody want an asteroids cocktail for $475 or an upright asteroids deluxe for $325 ?

[ChadTower]

I'd spend that on the upright in a second if you were closer.  And I already have one!

[fredster]

Give me a good way to ship it.  I never have tried to ship one of these uprights.  Ever come down this way?

[ChadTower]

Can't say I've been down that way in the last 20 years except flying over it.  There isn't a reasonable way to ship a single cab anymore, trucking prices are through the roof.

[Level42]

I have an asteroids cocktail and an asteroids deluxe upright.

I rebuilt the boards and got the monitors working. They are pretty simple. But the 19" Wells I have in the upright still blooms after rebuild.  Bob Roberts told me the HV was going out.

Yeech. I am thinking about getting rid of them both. I'm tired of fixing them. I love them, but there comes a time when you have to say "enough is enough".

Anybody want an asteroids cocktail for $475 or an upright asteroids deluxe for $325 ?

I'd buy both if I wasn't here in Europe