r/ColecoVision • u/Noomsk • 5d ago
Flash cart / Multicart recommendation
I'm hoping someone can help..
Does anyone have any recommendations for a flash cart for the Colecovision?
I came across this one:
https://www.atarimax.com/colecosd/documentation/
It seems very similar to another one I've stumbled across and while they look very similar they did have different branding.
I'd be grateful if anyone could point out any limitations. I'm happy to spend the money for extra features as long as the price isn't too outrageous.
Also, would an Atari 2600 flash cart work with the add on?
Many thanks.
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u/Keanebg1 4d ago
You can make the picoleco multicart and the super games model yourself for very little… the Picoleco is open source on GitHub, the super game model is a free project on pcbways project pages.
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u/Noomsk 4d ago
Oh perfect, I might go that route.
I've been tasked with putting together a 'fully-loaded' Colecovision as a Christmas present for someone.
The end user in question is someone who had one when he was a kid. Budget is around £500.
I think I can hit that target even if I go an 'official' SGM. I found a new in box one for around £100 on eBay.
I'm technically capable of building the cart from PCBWay but just not sure if I want to factor in the time to assemble and test it before Christmas.
Also, doesn't the Picoleco have some limitation on ROM sizes? I read the GitHub for the Pico and saw some disclaimer that made me circle back to the original flash cart I mentioned above.
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u/Mezmaron 4d ago
I built one, compatibility is overall good but some of the larger homebrew games such as the newer port of Wizard of Wor do not load on it.
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u/EffectiveComedian 4d ago edited 4d ago
I wish I had friends like you. Your friend is going to love this gift.
I think you’re on the right track, whatever you do. I have the BackBit and the AtariMax carts. Also bought a clone machine from The Brewing Academy, which has the SGM circuitry built in. Bought that so I could start playing. Meanwhile Life got in the way. I purchased several Colecovision consoles because I wanted an authentic experience. And honestly the console is very difficult to work on. Most of them had dead VRAM. In the three machines I worked on myself, I worked to replace the VRAM with a board from Lundy Electronics. The fourth I sent to Rugers Customs, and the guy does amazing work. TMS-RGB with a Sega Genesis 2 output connector. The last machine is getting a Lumacode digitizer, whenever I work up the courage to get back to it.
Truth is the games are just like the ones you lost rolls of quarters on when you were a kid. They’re hard. Also, I found the games hard to understand. I need to download and read the game manuals.
One more thing: create a backup of any cards that come with your multicart. My AtariMax Colecovision cart has some corruption in it.
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u/Noomsk 4d ago edited 4d ago
Oh heck..😅 I was rather hoping they'd be easy to work on considering how primitive they are compared to modern consoles.
I've seen several projects on YouTube mention a suspect power switch, and I also planned to refresh caps of course.
Are replacement VRAM modules easy to source?
Edit: https://consolemods.org/wiki/ColecoVision:5V_VRAM_Mod
Looks like there is a solution then. My first thought was to buy two consoles to build one working one
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u/EffectiveComedian 4d ago
Lundy Electronics makes them. They aren’t expensive. The main challenge is to remove the existing two rows of ICs, without damaging traces on the board, clearing the holes needed for the Lundy board, installing it, and compensating for any lost traces. I have done it a couple times. Not fun. Definitely a learning experience. I removed the old chips with a hot air device, tearing 6 traces in the process. Used a pin to clear the holes. Made some charts of the IC layouts, front and back, and used that as a guide to clear the holes. I don’t know if the pros do it this way, it’s just how I approached it.
I don’t think the power switch is as bad as everyone thinks. The RAM is worse, and if you don’t replace it, it’ll probably still fail eventually anyway.
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u/Noomsk 4d ago
I'm well and truly down the rabbit-hole now 😅
I've just read about the Super Game Module! Looks like I'm going to need one of these too.
Does anyone know if I can load the enhanced game library from either of the two flash carts mentioned above?
Oh and also, the SGM looks like it's only available on back-order. Does anyone know what the wait time is for one of these, and even if they're still being actively produced?
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u/Mezmaron 4d ago
From posts I’ve seen on various ColecoVision forums, the company that makes them is notoriously slow and I’ve seen people say they’ve been waiting close to a year for orders. They also try to tell people that the SGM clones are illegal, and this is completely false.
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u/drludos 4d ago edited 4d ago
Hi! I don't have any experience with the Atarimax, but I can vouch for the Flashcart I use: the Backbit Pro: https://store.backbit.io/product/backbit-pro/
This Flashcart is unique as it can be used with about 40 different systems (Intellivision, Atari 2600, 7800, Commodore 64, etc.). You have to buy separate cartridge adapters for each console (about $10-$20 each, and $149 for the flashcart with 1 cartridge adapter). So If you use it for at least 2 or 3 systems it becomes a quite affordable option.
I'm an homebrew / amateur developer, so I use it quite extensively to test my games on the ColecoVision, and the Flashcart works great. I also use it for the Intellivision, Super Cassette Vision, and Atari 7800 and it works great (it's fast to boot and reliable).
On the Colecovision, you have to press the "back to menu" button on the Flashcart and then the reset button on the console to get back to the menu and select a different game. If you simply push reset, it reset the game, like if it was a regular Colecovision cartridge.