Nicole Branagan's Atari 2600jr Gets a Major Visual Overhaul, Courtesy of an S-Video Mod Board

Vintage gaming enthusiast Nicole Branagan has upgraded an Atari 2600jr to finally offer a video output with higher quality than the stock RF modulator, giving it S-Video capabilities — a step up from the usual composite mod.

"The Atari 2600jr, like all other 2600s, relies on an internal RF modulator," Branagan explains of the issue with the console family, which launched in 1977 as the Atari Video Computer System. "This means that I’d have to rely on my RF demodulator, which is… not good. Since an RF modulator needs a composite signal to modulate, any RF modulator-using system must be possible to composite mod. But what if you want the highest quality video output?"

There are existing projects to adapt the Atari 2600's internal composite video into a quality output, including Tim Worthington 2600RGB. "[But] that bypasses the 2600's color’s circuit and recreates it. Color is the 2600's strong suite, so it'd be nice to keep it original," Branagan notes. "Honestly though, my more realistic objection is that installing a 2600RGB in a 2600jr requires soldering to a flex cable, among other things that I'd be very likely to foul up."

The solution, then, is something else: The Brewing Academy’s Ultimate Atari Video mod board, which intercepts video signals from beneath a non-inverting buffer chip and converts them into S-Video and composite outputs. The difference between the stock RF output, and even a composite output, is staggering — and, Branagan notes, has the advantage of full compatibility with all 2600 games, including some which Atari's recently-announced 2600+ emulator can't play.

Branagan has also detailed planned future upgrades, including flush-mounting the S-Video connector, improving the power port, and replacing the power regulator and heatsinking. "While putting things together and testing I burned my finger slightly on the power regulator, a linear 7805. This thing gets hot," Branagan notes. "I’ve got the parts for this in the mail and will install them as soon as I get them, because this doesn’t feel quite safe."

The full project write-up, including a deep-dive into the console itself, is available on Branagan's website.