@phreakindee Well I just searched for them and I found two free 1024st computers complete with monitor, mouse, os and cubase. I want at leats one of them since only one responded on my e-mail.
my older bro had an STE, and those control ports were a perennial balls-ache! but on our one sega control pads worked fine, baybe beacause we had a european mastersytem and mega-drive perhaps ????
I know you probably already know this, but I just want to say your voice and delivery style are awesome! It's like listening to a real news report or documentary on TV, except with your smarty-pants comments here and there lol. AWESOME.
I got my ST in 199something and after a brief stay in my cousin's house, it now has a proper Atari Mono monitor and one day I'll find an ST hard drive at an affordable price.
The cart port was mostly used for sampling cartridges and clock cartridges.
For a proper monitor, find a Philips CM8833 type monitor. You will then own the most awesome combination of Atari hardware and monitor. The kind of thing every 14 year old would have sold their entire family for :-)
@PSLover9 Why? It works fine. And besides, this is a PAL system, as explained in the video. I don't have a PAL TV/VCR/DVD player or whatever thing I use.
I have a collection of: Amstrad GX4000, Sega Mastersystem, Amiga 500, Amiga 600, Sega Megadrive, Nintendo SNES, Panasonic 3DO, Atari Jaguar, Sony PSone, Nintendo 64, Sony PS2, NIntendo Gamecube, XBOX, XBOX 360 fat and XBOX 360 slim, so all that was missing was an ST! So I got a 520 STFM and I love this machine! Your review is great man! Keep on Atari-ing! ;)
Never tried Genesis, but I used to use Sega Master System control pads with my Atari ST, so there are some controllers that will work. I remember how much that port location sucks though, not so much because it's underneath (which was bad enough), but because they're angled to point right into that slope so there was very little room to get the plug in there.
Your rant about the joystick ports on the Atari ST reminds me of the Angry Video Game Nerd, watching him review these early home computers would be a scream, I know he's briefly touched on the Commodore 64 a few times, but he's not gone in depth about them really. I've never used an Atari ST and I'm not too sure how popular they were here in Australia, but I'd be interested in taking a look at one sometime.
@Lachlant1984 They were popular, particularly with music. I used one in school back in the early 90's with notator. I have currently an Atari 1040 STFM with both monitors (Monochrome and Colour) that I may be willing to sell soon, as I never get the chance to use it. If anyone is interested, send me an offer. I am in Melbourne.
@dentunes I'm pretty sure Icehouse used one, as did the Pointer Sisters I think, quite a few musicians in the 80's used one. I would be somewhat interested in an Atari ST, however I'm dreaming as I simply don't have space here in my apartment for one and all the associated hardware and an adequate workspace to set one up, I'm also in Melbourne.
@Lachlant1984 Pretty much everyone used Atari ST for electronic music in the 80's, including Tangerine Dream, and Jean Michel Jarre, which are basically two biggest electronic music names in the business, at least in Europe. In those days computer was in the studio (usually ST or a Macintosh) and nowadays a studio resides inside of a computer, which to me is a bit of an awkward situation especially for newcomers who seem to have very basic MIDI related questions, it's kind of sad actually...
@rcgldr I have a Sony KV-1311CR display, but the problem is that you need a rare, proprietary cable to hook up an Atari ST, Amiga, or other RGB home computer to it. I don't know how to make one, don't know anyone that does, and I have never once seen one for sale :(
You left out the Mega ST series. These had 2MB or 4MB of ram. I have a Mega ST 4 stored somewhere. (Also have an original 520ST) A friend of mine created his own Atari to SCSI interface board so we could hook up a SCSI hard drive to the system. I modified some old Bally Astrocade controllers to work with the Atari ST.
hi i wonder if you can help me, i have an old atari that i ran cubase on and have many midi (arr) arrangements that i would like to convert to a pc format from floppy, any idea on how i can go about this?..thanks.
Shiraz Shivji had nothing to do with anything of importance on the Commodore 64 like VIC-II or SID design, he just happened to work there at the time.
Firstly, let me say that I've recently become interested in vintage computing and LOVE your videos. Secondly, a question. Most of your computer reviews state that the PAL region is the one to own. Being in the U.S. (and not wanting to deal with converters), are there any interesting 80s computers (that aren't Apple Mac or DOS-based), that have a good amount of support in the NTSC region? I figure the answer may be "no", but it's worth asking.
@KyoshoBallard The Commodore 64, Atari 8-bit, TI-99/4a, Apple II, and VIC-20 all had lots of NTSC software. Now, it all depends on what stuff you're looking for, and in my opinion the PAL stuff is more often than not what I want to play. But there's still quite a lot to choose from with those systems!
@phreakindee I've always been impressed with the stuff European programmers could turn out when they had some decent equipment to work with. Or sometimes even with not-so-decent equipment. They generally had some of the most polished software during this era.
Theoretically you could mod the board with the controller ports, and swapping chips isn't the most painful thing in the world. I'm sure you have soldering skills that are passable to do chips. However the mod, I would say I'd have to look at the guts for a long time and get really creative with a Dremel and buy some stock ports and solder it and just have some really interesting hack job that might work. I don't know it's just a thought. I tend to think of weird ways to improve an old design.
There's another stupid flaw to the ST - do NOT have a joystick with autofire turned on when you try to boot up, as there's half a chance you'll lock up the machine and it will make an unstoppable beeping noise. The same thing would happen if you held down fire as you turned the machine on. I ended up taking my Atari miles into town for repair before I discovered this.
So I got an Amiga instead, what I SHOULD have gotten in the first place.
@Markell1991 I'm not LGR, but it would be pretty hard, seeing as they're only really available in Japan and parts of Europe. But I agree, that would be cool.
I love my Australian 1040 STFM. The cartridge port had a few expansions; coming to mind were hardware clock cartridges (there is no internal battery in the Atari so your clock reset when you turned it off) and video and audio capture cartridges (STOS Maestro would be one). I saw in your menus you had the Blitter chip which came with STE's, it was like a PC Turbo button for video. You could only change background colours on 2.x series TOS, most ST's were 1.02-1.04. Nice overview.
Bypassing the IF strip and inputting the vertical, horizontal sync, the RGB and audio signals into a standard TV set is pretty easy. I used to do it all the time when I used these machines but couldn't afford a proper monitor.
Cool i had a 520 (it did have RF) which i got off a friend my first 16 bit computer it had a dodgy power supply which would just crackle and turn off. As consoles were taking over at the time i brought a 1040 STE and it was cool. The game "Hunter" was the first free world game i ever played had a massive effect on the games i played and still play. I gave it to my nephews they managed to get Buzz lightyear`s wing in the disc drive and ruined it :(
@phreakindee Thanks went and asked on atariage and most of them said There aren't PAL/NTSC games on the ST.There are games that play better on 50Hz but that's about it. With very few exceptions everything will run in both modes. Which I found odd.I have never heard of a computer doing that. Seems like a nice idea seeing as most game seem to be from Europe. When it comes to copying games when you say IBM floppies you mean PC.So if I had a USB floppy drive hooked up to vista laptop it work alright
@phreakindee Thanks went and asked on atariage and most of them said There aren't PAL/NTSC games on the ST.There are games that play better on 50Hz but that's about it. With very few exceptions everything will run in both modes. Which I found odd.I have never heard of a computer doing that. Seems like a nice idea seeing as most game seem to be from europe. When it comes to copying games when you say IBM floppies you mean PC.So if I had a USB floppy drive hooked up to vista laptop it work alright
Where did you get the RF usb capture card ( at 10:30 ). Are they expensive? I have been looking for a device to capture footage from consoles that have only the RF output. Someone please tell me!
I played a lot on my uncles ST in the mid to late 80s. Neither of us wanted to give up the fight for the Llamatron highscore, hehe! He used the cartridge slot for his music software, I believe. The ST is still on his desk, so I can probably check at a later time if yo're interested.
@Shiqna1 hahah i was just talking about how good the filters sounds can be on the c64. its a reference to the type of "wah wah" and "wub wub" sounds that the thing could put out. its soooo good. so gorgeous sounding.
Ah, Hunter! I've been wondering why I haven't seen it on any retro gamer channels. I used to play it quite a bit on the Amiga when I was young. How about doing a review of it someday?
Awesome! The ST is one of my favorite computers aesthetically. It's just nice to look at, great styling! Except as you note, the ports underneath the computer. A curious location, made worse by crazily jamming the ports high up against the case! Fun machines, lots of people will say it's still got some of the most solid and stable MIDI timing around. I remember when the Falcon was released, it sounded awesome but I was like, why go back to the all-in-one case? Oh Atari. lol
Been a computing-enthusiast since the 70's, and your system-reviews are super-enjoyable. Perhaps a bit early for Xmas-wishes, but a future review of the Apple IIgs would hit the spot; that system and it's story is such a weird blend of brilliance and incompetence.
The ST outputs 15.75khz TV-RGB video. Any monitor designed for the Amiga, Tandy Color Computer, or Apple IIgs will work, not just Atari ones. There were quite a few early VGA monitors that will work with 15.75khz video as well like the original NEC Multisync and Multisync II (message me if you need a complete list).
The ST might have had built in MIDI, but the IIgs got a much better sound chip. Nothing from that era beats Cubase for composing music though.
This was a great video as always. I have fond memories of the ST, and this was at a time when I was enough for not even being aware that the Amiga existed. The games felt so much better than on my 286 PC !
How right and wrong I was at the same time...
I feel the same thing about the superior versions : it's even worse when all you can use is emulation. Why emulate the ST instead of the Amiga in many cases, besides historical curiosity?
Good review; I have an original Atari 520ST (no floppy or modulator built-in) which I bought purely to play Oids, only released on the ST. An external modulator was supplied with my (2nd-hand) ST; I believe it was supplied as standard for the early models.
I'm a bit surprised at the Genesis/Megadrive controller not working on the ST; I've used one on the Atari VCS, and button B is the fire button. I'll have to test one.
I've never heard emulation compared to porn or old computers to real live pussy! Got to give you some credit for that one. Seriously, great review. Unfortunately, I think the ST really downgraded the games available for the Amiga. Since they used the same CPU and were fairly similar most software producers wrote to the lesser of the 2 machines and the extra features of the Amiga were often not programmed for. On the positive side, my gp2x can emulate the ST perfectly, but not the Amiga.
I was born in the early nineties and have amassed a sizable collection of systems. I'm fascinated by computers like the Amiga and ST for how they seem to be a hybrid of console and modern PC. These systems are far more contained then the PC standard, yet they have more accessibility to system functions then your typical video game console. One of these days I need to start adding these to my collection.
@ThisIsEDX The Amiga was originally designed to be a console, codenamed the Lorraine. But when the developers (Amiga) saw the market crash, they added keyboard and floppy drive ports. Atari took interest in the custom chips for their own 16-bit computer, but the developers had a tough time 'negotiating' with Jack Tramiel. Eventually, the now Tramiel-less Commodore bought the chipset, and the Commodore Amiga was the result.
Firstly, good videos. Secondly, I have an ST monitor I don't use. I think it's monochrome, if so you could have it it's no use to me. I heard it only works for business applications. Also on the list of downsides, I haven't tested it, and i'm in England. Also maybe it's awesome and if/when I test it I decide to start calling it 'my precious'.
The ST is a nice machine and a must for every vintage IT collection. I have a 1040STFM in my collection, but would like to add an TT to the collection in the future.
The MIDI port was used in one of the earliest multiplayer FPS games ever devised as far as I remember, I am quite sure that this system had MIDI Maze which was capable of supporting 16 players and used the MIDI ports as a simple network.
I am a long time subscriber from your early sim videos. How the heck dont you have a YouTube partnership? People like xjawz who use copyrighted content created in 2011 get paid crazy amounts from monetizing their videos. you review games and systems often much older than that and you have nothing? Lets petition for a partnership!
Awesome review! I grew up with a Speccy and an Amiga myself, but a friend of mine had an ST and they were pretty popular for awhile. These are always my favourite videos of yours, partially because a good chunk of them give me nostalgia for 80s computing and my childhood in the UK computer boom at the time. Also I'm a complete nerd for classic tech in general.
Maybe like me he loves good rock and metal music, particularly from the golden era of those genres which was the 1980s. This also happens to be the golden era of home computing! :-)
Some ST versions of games are decent like Turrican 2 (which manages to emulate the Amigas music in the intro) and other are downright horrible like Shadow of the Beast which doesn't even have music ingame and some very ugly graphics. I'm more of a Amiga person ;)
I've got two SF354 drives and an sc1224 screen, along with all of the power adapters and cables for them, and an ST computer...just don't have the system. (same with a 5150) I had an atariage post going a while ago on it, got more offers from people trying to buy the screen than were helpful to buy the system... kind of looking for an stf or better, as the floppy drives I have now are single sided, but beggars can't be choosers.
My Portable Compaq has a midi card installed, so much fun!
@phreakindee If you're short for time (with so many other systems no wonder!) I'd fully recommend going through the Pompey Pirates disks. There aren't many (not compared to guys like Automation, their main rivals, anyway (114 compared to a whopping 512). You see a history enfold in front of you (in technical skill as well as events).U were talking about graphics, well u haven't seen what the PP guys could do with just 16 colours. There're also great tunes (press M!) and sometimes full manuals(!)
One last comment and I'll leave you alone (first computer, first love!)- you'll do well, really well, to check out the pirate scene on the ST. I would say it is hands down the best of any machine ever including the Amiga which was OK but nothing like the ST. We're talking a shit-ton of groups each with history and of course huge rivalries but more importantly CDs! Compact (floppy) disks! Multiple ST games could be squeezed onto 1 disk! And don't get me started on the menus! Let me know for infos
Such a strange legend how the two companies effectively swapped over isn't it?
I've always been in love with the ST design (apart from those damn ports!) although Atari must have made so many of those cases as the design just goes on and on and...
Thanks for the tip about other controllers not working, I assumed like other machines this wasn't an issue.
Thanks for making (as always) a thoroughly sound and very entertaining video about my first computer.Maybe a video on Falcon? (I'll be in touch)
@MagikGimp Glad you enjoyed! The legendary story of the Commodore/Atari swap is a very strange one indeed, one you wouldn't believe if it weren't backed up by historical facts.
Yeah, I'd love to review the Falcon sometime. It looks like a freaking spectacular machine.
Could there be an adapter for the RGB monitor's output to a VGA port? Might need some active conversion, though.
Also "switching power supply" doesn't refer to the ability to switch different input voltages. It just refers to the way it produces the output voltage by actually switching on and off very fast by some ratio.
Another great system review of a great classic 16-bit Atari computer. I enjoyed this system and the games were great. Ugly green desktop though lol. The in-built MIDI was cool for its time. While for me not in the same league as the Amiga it was better than its 8-bit counterparts.
Great Video review of the Atari ST. I live in the UK so the age old battle of that generation computers raged when i was a teenager :) I had the Amiga my friend the Atari ST. The Amiga games always looked better and played better as far as i can remember...but i may be slightly biased ;)
@Shiqna1 The C64 was the beast of its time. that being said it was not the standard. the sid was way above the standards of the rest of the group of the 8bit era sound chips. it hardly can be considered as the average sound chip of the time. I totally agree wit you that the Atari ST wasn't up to par with even some 8bit systems tho. its soooo sad but true.... man.... you got me thinking of the c64 sexy warbols and pmw.... so good.... nom nom nom....
Great review. I have the same model ST as you. I didn't know you could drop image files onto a disk on your PC and it'll run on an ST. I have a USB floppy drive so will try it. Those joypad ports are awful. Luckily my St came with joypad port extenders :)
@P5ychoFox I've heard mixed reports that USB drives are not compatible with the Atari ST floppy image writing program, so if you do try it let me know how it goes!
@Borin81 Yeah, it eventually went back together quite nicely!
I rebuilt the area where the floppy drive sits inside the chassis. Had to do a little bending of the RF shield and the plastic itself, but after some glue, touching up, and new screws it works fine and it's hard to notice the damage externally.
I fitted my 1040STF with joystick extensions so that I wouldn't have to lift it every time a switch had to be done. Unfortunately I fried the machine when touching the CRT screen while the pins on the joystick extension chord were in contact with my body. Thankfully I still had warranty so I got a new computer from the store.
@phreakindee I mean 1040st :P
keoni29 10 hours ago
@phreakindee Well I just searched for them and I found two free 1024st computers complete with monitor, mouse, os and cubase. I want at leats one of them since only one responded on my e-mail.
keoni29 1 day ago
Cool. In the Netherlands you can get em for free.
keoni29 1 day ago
@keoni29 Calling your bluff. Feel like sending over some Atari STs for cost of shipping?
phreakindee 1 day ago
could you please do a review of the Hunter game?
Lvl22nerd 4 days ago in playlist Uploaded videos
our first computer was an atari 1040 st :-)
i loved the games "egg hunter" and "bad uncle murray" xD
Nympholita 1 week ago
Great review as allways! Please make a Jagged Aliance 2 review, maybe a comparison to the new version.
somorastik 1 week ago
:D
plan7a 1 week ago
my older bro had an STE, and those control ports were a perennial balls-ache! but on our one sega control pads worked fine, baybe beacause we had a european mastersytem and mega-drive perhaps ????
ConanCnutKicker 1 week ago
papperskorg.
rvistaworkbench 2 weeks ago
They took a chance and fail with the jag plain and simple
LoCDoGG1984 2 weeks ago
why did atari stop making computers and worked on the jaguar
Mhd287 2 weeks ago in playlist Uploaded videos
I've used one of these. My guitar teacher has one!
MegaCellProductions 3 weeks ago
Crapola, 15 minutes for all those C cells? Sounds like an Atari Lynx.
mrhunam 3 weeks ago
They also made 520STFM's with 512KB RAM. I know this because I had one as a kid... and another sat on a shelf.
sarahts21 3 weeks ago
Where can I get a 1040STE for under 100 dollars?
TopOnTheAndroid 3 weeks ago
these games i guess are ok i guess
TheDXDan 3 weeks ago
@TheDXDan Oh yeah, I guess I might ponder that perhaps we maybe I dunno, possibly?
phreakindee 3 weeks ago 11
Will you ever change the ICs to an English language OS?
capodastaro 1 month ago
The Sega Master system game pad works very well with the ST
fenixwylde 1 month ago
wait....
Llamatron 2112?
How did I not hear about this?
FHCTech 1 month ago in playlist Uploaded videos
Owned One in the late 80's. For MIDI the machine was excellent. I also really liked
Cyber Paint, Cyber sculpt, CAD 3D a complete graphics and animation package
that worked really well On the ST. The ST had some really good DTP programs
like Wordflair and others. It also had tons of games. I still run some of the MIDI
software on a Modern PC. Most of the programs that run on the ST will run on
Steem.
JohnFrmNC 1 month ago
I know you probably already know this, but I just want to say your voice and delivery style are awesome! It's like listening to a real news report or documentary on TV, except with your smarty-pants comments here and there lol. AWESOME.
yanholing 1 month ago
anyone have any idea were i can find game files for this system i just got a system and it had no games with it
Oneupgamer 1 month ago
I got my ST in 199something and after a brief stay in my cousin's house, it now has a proper Atari Mono monitor and one day I'll find an ST hard drive at an affordable price.
The cart port was mostly used for sampling cartridges and clock cartridges.
For a proper monitor, find a Philips CM8833 type monitor. You will then own the most awesome combination of Atari hardware and monitor. The kind of thing every 14 year old would have sold their entire family for :-)
pikuorguk 1 month ago
Trawling the net and commenting on something you clearly don't like, is a so called fail in its own. Snappy review on the ST, big thanks.
HANGINGWANG 1 month ago
Man, plug it into your tv's aerial port or VCR,DVD or whatever thing you use. NOT YOUR PC.
PSLover9 1 month ago
@PSLover9 Why? It works fine. And besides, this is a PAL system, as explained in the video. I don't have a PAL TV/VCR/DVD player or whatever thing I use.
phreakindee 1 month ago 7
Awesome, spot on review of a classic machine...
DOGSAVAGE666 1 month ago
I have a collection of: Amstrad GX4000, Sega Mastersystem, Amiga 500, Amiga 600, Sega Megadrive, Nintendo SNES, Panasonic 3DO, Atari Jaguar, Sony PSone, Nintendo 64, Sony PS2, NIntendo Gamecube, XBOX, XBOX 360 fat and XBOX 360 slim, so all that was missing was an ST! So I got a 520 STFM and I love this machine! Your review is great man! Keep on Atari-ing! ;)
Blue206CC 1 month ago
Never tried Genesis, but I used to use Sega Master System control pads with my Atari ST, so there are some controllers that will work. I remember how much that port location sucks though, not so much because it's underneath (which was bad enough), but because they're angled to point right into that slope so there was very little room to get the plug in there.
Sakanakao 1 month ago
Is it strange my floppy disc turned into a harddrive while watching this?
ReachRebelsClan 1 month ago
I have a 520FM. I want to use it for chiptune music. can you use any PC to drag and drop, providing you use the 720k floppies?
figaro589 1 month ago
Your rant about the joystick ports on the Atari ST reminds me of the Angry Video Game Nerd, watching him review these early home computers would be a scream, I know he's briefly touched on the Commodore 64 a few times, but he's not gone in depth about them really. I've never used an Atari ST and I'm not too sure how popular they were here in Australia, but I'd be interested in taking a look at one sometime.
Lachlant1984 2 months ago
@Lachlant1984 They were popular, particularly with music. I used one in school back in the early 90's with notator. I have currently an Atari 1040 STFM with both monitors (Monochrome and Colour) that I may be willing to sell soon, as I never get the chance to use it. If anyone is interested, send me an offer. I am in Melbourne.
dentunes 1 month ago in playlist More videos from phreakindee
@dentunes I'm pretty sure Icehouse used one, as did the Pointer Sisters I think, quite a few musicians in the 80's used one. I would be somewhat interested in an Atari ST, however I'm dreaming as I simply don't have space here in my apartment for one and all the associated hardware and an adequate workspace to set one up, I'm also in Melbourne.
Lachlant1984 1 month ago
@Lachlant1984 Pretty much everyone used Atari ST for electronic music in the 80's, including Tangerine Dream, and Jean Michel Jarre, which are basically two biggest electronic music names in the business, at least in Europe. In those days computer was in the studio (usually ST or a Macintosh) and nowadays a studio resides inside of a computer, which to me is a bit of an awkward situation especially for newcomers who seem to have very basic MIDI related questions, it's kind of sad actually...
dvamateur 1 month ago
In addition to the Atari monitors, you could hook up a Sony KV1311CR TV as a color monitor.
rcgldr 2 months ago
@rcgldr I have a Sony KV-1311CR display, but the problem is that you need a rare, proprietary cable to hook up an Atari ST, Amiga, or other RGB home computer to it. I don't know how to make one, don't know anyone that does, and I have never once seen one for sale :(
phreakindee 2 months ago
@phreakindee - I forgot about the special cable. All that stuff is in storage somewhere.
rcgldr 2 months ago
You left out the Mega ST series. These had 2MB or 4MB of ram. I have a Mega ST 4 stored somewhere. (Also have an original 520ST) A friend of mine created his own Atari to SCSI interface board so we could hook up a SCSI hard drive to the system. I modified some old Bally Astrocade controllers to work with the Atari ST.
rcgldr 2 months ago
is it safe to say that even Hunter's graphics are better the Bubsy 3d?
Mrfoodlvr614 2 months ago
@Mrfoodlvr614 Definately. Ballblazer has better graphics, and that was from 1985.
TeamRocketReviews 2 months ago
hi i wonder if you can help me, i have an old atari that i ran cubase on and have many midi (arr) arrangements that i would like to convert to a pc format from floppy, any idea on how i can go about this?..thanks.
100roberthenry 2 months ago
Very informative!
NonstopRam 2 months ago in playlist Uploaded videos
15:20 LOOK AT THAT MANE!
anidude98 2 months ago
Shiraz Shivji had nothing to do with anything of importance on the Commodore 64 like VIC-II or SID design, he just happened to work there at the time.
MadCommodore 2 months ago
Llamatron 2112 !!!
KriegKadaver 3 months ago
Did anyone ever tell you that you sound exactely like Bruce Campbell
meckatz 3 months ago in playlist Uploaded videos
Firstly, let me say that I've recently become interested in vintage computing and LOVE your videos. Secondly, a question. Most of your computer reviews state that the PAL region is the one to own. Being in the U.S. (and not wanting to deal with converters), are there any interesting 80s computers (that aren't Apple Mac or DOS-based), that have a good amount of support in the NTSC region? I figure the answer may be "no", but it's worth asking.
KyoshoBallard 3 months ago
@KyoshoBallard The Commodore 64, Atari 8-bit, TI-99/4a, Apple II, and VIC-20 all had lots of NTSC software. Now, it all depends on what stuff you're looking for, and in my opinion the PAL stuff is more often than not what I want to play. But there's still quite a lot to choose from with those systems!
phreakindee 3 months ago
@phreakindee I've always been impressed with the stuff European programmers could turn out when they had some decent equipment to work with. Or sometimes even with not-so-decent equipment. They generally had some of the most polished software during this era.
OneEyedJack1970 2 months ago
Theoretically you could mod the board with the controller ports, and swapping chips isn't the most painful thing in the world. I'm sure you have soldering skills that are passable to do chips. However the mod, I would say I'd have to look at the guts for a long time and get really creative with a Dremel and buy some stock ports and solder it and just have some really interesting hack job that might work. I don't know it's just a thought. I tend to think of weird ways to improve an old design.
lucianodinino 3 months ago
There's another stupid flaw to the ST - do NOT have a joystick with autofire turned on when you try to boot up, as there's half a chance you'll lock up the machine and it will make an unstoppable beeping noise. The same thing would happen if you held down fire as you turned the machine on. I ended up taking my Atari miles into town for repair before I discovered this.
So I got an Amiga instead, what I SHOULD have gotten in the first place.
Foebane72 3 months ago
I can't believe it took me this long to find and watch this video of yours:) If I could do 5/5, I would;)
Audiomancer 3 months ago
i use to have a 130xe lol, great vid!
TheHiphopgems 3 months ago
Where can i get the logo at 02:06?
SuperWarioCementleg 3 months ago
genesis works in 2, master system works in both and im pretty sure ctrl+shift+cursor keys works as mouse key, thats how I remembered it.
rosemarysandcastle 3 months ago
hmmmm im sure it will explode if it tries to run crysis ......
crazystuffster 3 months ago
IT DOES NOT GRATE CHEESE. Classic.
Kjp230 4 months ago
I had an atari st when I was a kid. I liked it a lot, but it died in a fire. :\ Replaced with a sega mega drive... no good.
TadRaunch 4 months ago
I have Atari ST 520FM. Some games are much more interesting than modern ones.
konfolut 4 months ago
Great cover dude. I love the Atari st's. And yes...i hate the stupid joystick ports!
m34nb34n 4 months ago
Bitchin' shirt. Wonderfully in-depth review, as usual.
GutsOfChrist 4 months ago
A professional, entertaining and educational review of yet another machine.
Really curious that knowing you, you didn't show SimCity though!
G9King 5 months ago
Could you do a review of the MSX Computer please? I've always been interested in those. Good vid btw!
Markell1991 5 months ago
@Markell1991 I'm not LGR, but it would be pretty hard, seeing as they're only really available in Japan and parts of Europe. But I agree, that would be cool.
TeamRocketReviews 5 months ago
I love my Australian 1040 STFM. The cartridge port had a few expansions; coming to mind were hardware clock cartridges (there is no internal battery in the Atari so your clock reset when you turned it off) and video and audio capture cartridges (STOS Maestro would be one). I saw in your menus you had the Blitter chip which came with STE's, it was like a PC Turbo button for video. You could only change background colours on 2.x series TOS, most ST's were 1.02-1.04. Nice overview.
ExplosiveAction 5 months ago
@ExplosiveAction Nice information to be aware of, thanks for sharing!
phreakindee 5 months ago
@phreakindee The cartridge port can also be used for various expansion cards such as ethernet and usb as well as IDE adapters for hard disks.
CFalcon030 5 months ago
Bypassing the IF strip and inputting the vertical, horizontal sync, the RGB and audio signals into a standard TV set is pretty easy. I used to do it all the time when I used these machines but couldn't afford a proper monitor.
SuperQUL 5 months ago
Cool i had a 520 (it did have RF) which i got off a friend my first 16 bit computer it had a dodgy power supply which would just crackle and turn off. As consoles were taking over at the time i brought a 1040 STE and it was cool. The game "Hunter" was the first free world game i ever played had a massive effect on the games i played and still play. I gave it to my nephews they managed to get Buzz lightyear`s wing in the disc drive and ruined it :(
blackcountryme 5 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@phreakindee Thanks went and asked on atariage and most of them said There aren't PAL/NTSC games on the ST.There are games that play better on 50Hz but that's about it. With very few exceptions everything will run in both modes. Which I found odd.I have never heard of a computer doing that. Seems like a nice idea seeing as most game seem to be from Europe. When it comes to copying games when you say IBM floppies you mean PC.So if I had a USB floppy drive hooked up to vista laptop it work alright
ATARI800XLfan 5 months ago
@phreakindee Thanks went and asked on atariage and most of them said There aren't PAL/NTSC games on the ST.There are games that play better on 50Hz but that's about it. With very few exceptions everything will run in both modes. Which I found odd.I have never heard of a computer doing that. Seems like a nice idea seeing as most game seem to be from europe. When it comes to copying games when you say IBM floppies you mean PC.So if I had a USB floppy drive hooked up to vista laptop it work alright
ATARI800XLfan 5 months ago
So pal games will work on a NTSC Atari ST. That seems to be the problem with Amiga seeing as most of the games were released in Europe.
ATARI800XLfan 5 months ago
nice Duke t-shirt! :D
TomeeDee86 6 months ago
LOL why u say the stupid place to the joystics normally??? :D
MickXD2012 6 months ago
Where did you get the RF usb capture card ( at 10:30 ). Are they expensive? I have been looking for a device to capture footage from consoles that have only the RF output. Someone please tell me!
sonicpelaaja 6 months ago
@sonicpelaaja Amazon, it was $29. Made by a company called K-World, and I can vouch for their newer USB products having a nice bang for your buck.
phreakindee 6 months ago 5
This comment has received too many negative votes show
why would someone buy an old computer in 2011
js01716 7 months ago
@js01716 If you even have to ask that question, then feel confident that you are not part of intended audience.
phreakindee 7 months ago 34
@js01716
You sir are FAIL!
Alevamltd 6 months ago 11
1985......i was 1 years old and if i had an Atari back then it'd be buried in the sand pit.
spiderjerusalem100 7 months ago
I played a lot on my uncles ST in the mid to late 80s. Neither of us wanted to give up the fight for the Llamatron highscore, hehe! He used the cartridge slot for his music software, I believe. The ST is still on his desk, so I can probably check at a later time if yo're interested.
Ubersnuber 7 months ago
Clint, looks like you're getting fatter :D
HydeCoolLaruku 7 months ago
Dang, it must have been hard to figure out the Swedish words when you first got the computer.
paxtofettel 7 months ago
Any chance of a review and history of the Jaguar?
Alevamltd 7 months ago
@Shiqna1 hahah i was just talking about how good the filters sounds can be on the c64. its a reference to the type of "wah wah" and "wub wub" sounds that the thing could put out. its soooo good. so gorgeous sounding.
my4trackmachine 7 months ago
Ah, Hunter! I've been wondering why I haven't seen it on any retro gamer channels. I used to play it quite a bit on the Amiga when I was young. How about doing a review of it someday?
moelli 7 months ago
@moelli I hope to sometime, it's a forgotten classic to be sure.
phreakindee 7 months ago
Llamatron xD
suikahakurei 7 months ago
You make really cool videos, please keep the good work up! ;O)
teckyify 7 months ago
Awesome! The ST is one of my favorite computers aesthetically. It's just nice to look at, great styling! Except as you note, the ports underneath the computer. A curious location, made worse by crazily jamming the ports high up against the case! Fun machines, lots of people will say it's still got some of the most solid and stable MIDI timing around. I remember when the Falcon was released, it sounded awesome but I was like, why go back to the all-in-one case? Oh Atari. lol
niceandgames 7 months ago
I really love watching these videos that you do. I really learn a lot. :)
CaitlinEnjoyOnline92 7 months ago
Been a computing-enthusiast since the 70's, and your system-reviews are super-enjoyable. Perhaps a bit early for Xmas-wishes, but a future review of the Apple IIgs would hit the spot; that system and it's story is such a weird blend of brilliance and incompetence.
asgerms 7 months ago
@asgerms I plan on reviewing the BBC Micro next, and actually the Apple IIgs after that!
phreakindee 7 months ago
@phreakindee Looking very much forward to both of them :)
asgerms 7 months ago
I'm not really into classic games like those, but hell, they looked like crap loads of fun!
whiteboyjimmy20 7 months ago
The ST outputs 15.75khz TV-RGB video. Any monitor designed for the Amiga, Tandy Color Computer, or Apple IIgs will work, not just Atari ones. There were quite a few early VGA monitors that will work with 15.75khz video as well like the original NEC Multisync and Multisync II (message me if you need a complete list).
The ST might have had built in MIDI, but the IIgs got a much better sound chip. Nothing from that era beats Cubase for composing music though.
NJRoadfan 7 months ago
This was a great video as always. I have fond memories of the ST, and this was at a time when I was enough for not even being aware that the Amiga existed. The games felt so much better than on my 286 PC !
How right and wrong I was at the same time...
I feel the same thing about the superior versions : it's even worse when all you can use is emulation. Why emulate the ST instead of the Amiga in many cases, besides historical curiosity?
mickmils 7 months ago
The poor mans Amiga :)
BrianPicchi 7 months ago
Where can I get the floppy imaging and file transfer program?
thepirategamerboy12 7 months ago
@thepirategamerboy12 There is a link in the video description.
phreakindee 7 months ago
@phreakindee Atari Jag review? :D
potsy5656 7 months ago
We have an Atari 1040ST up somewhere in the attic.
I have such fond memories of playing on it.
And my mom and dad played ALOT of Bubble Bobble on it too. XD
Karekristensson 7 months ago
Good review; I have an original Atari 520ST (no floppy or modulator built-in) which I bought purely to play Oids, only released on the ST. An external modulator was supplied with my (2nd-hand) ST; I believe it was supplied as standard for the early models.
I'm a bit surprised at the Genesis/Megadrive controller not working on the ST; I've used one on the Atari VCS, and button B is the fire button. I'll have to test one.
MarkTheMorose 7 months ago
Nice review buddy, keep 'em coming!
You make me feel like resuming my retrocomputing collection craze... I think it'll cost me a divorce! :D
16forever 7 months ago
I've never heard emulation compared to porn or old computers to real live pussy! Got to give you some credit for that one. Seriously, great review. Unfortunately, I think the ST really downgraded the games available for the Amiga. Since they used the same CPU and were fairly similar most software producers wrote to the lesser of the 2 machines and the extra features of the Amiga were often not programmed for. On the positive side, my gp2x can emulate the ST perfectly, but not the Amiga.
christo930 7 months ago
Thanks for a great review!
tgaskill 7 months ago
@phreakindee You have some gnarly hair dude, the graphics/games on the Atari ST looks smooth and good!
joman66 7 months ago
I was born in the early nineties and have amassed a sizable collection of systems. I'm fascinated by computers like the Amiga and ST for how they seem to be a hybrid of console and modern PC. These systems are far more contained then the PC standard, yet they have more accessibility to system functions then your typical video game console. One of these days I need to start adding these to my collection.
ThisIsEDX 7 months ago
@ThisIsEDX The Amiga was originally designed to be a console, codenamed the Lorraine. But when the developers (Amiga) saw the market crash, they added keyboard and floppy drive ports. Atari took interest in the custom chips for their own 16-bit computer, but the developers had a tough time 'negotiating' with Jack Tramiel. Eventually, the now Tramiel-less Commodore bought the chipset, and the Commodore Amiga was the result.
MarkTheMorose 7 months ago
Gotta love the DNF t-shitr! ;)
Ajanek 7 months ago
YAY fantastic,i love system reviews and this is a system review so I love this..good work :-)
hewey999 7 months ago
@hewey999 Thank you, I'm happy to bring on some loved-reviews!
phreakindee 7 months ago
Firstly, good videos. Secondly, I have an ST monitor I don't use. I think it's monochrome, if so you could have it it's no use to me. I heard it only works for business applications. Also on the list of downsides, I haven't tested it, and i'm in England. Also maybe it's awesome and if/when I test it I decide to start calling it 'my precious'.
rw0584 7 months ago
The ST is a nice machine and a must for every vintage IT collection. I have a 1040STFM in my collection, but would like to add an TT to the collection in the future.
EFKA526 7 months ago
Another great review, Clint. Keep it up!
indignantatheist 7 months ago
The MIDI port was used in one of the earliest multiplayer FPS games ever devised as far as I remember, I am quite sure that this system had MIDI Maze which was capable of supporting 16 players and used the MIDI ports as a simple network.
HighTreason610 7 months ago
@HighTreason610 The game was also released on snes under the name "faceball 2000"
surfingthechaos 7 months ago
WOOP WOOP, SCART.
Dylanforlife 7 months ago
I am a long time subscriber from your early sim videos. How the heck dont you have a YouTube partnership? People like xjawz who use copyrighted content created in 2011 get paid crazy amounts from monetizing their videos. you review games and systems often much older than that and you have nothing? Lets petition for a partnership!
feltes45 7 months ago
dude i have on of this at my parents. but fuck it, the commodre was anyway better.
didma 7 months ago
Or go and buy some games for windows xp LOL
666DemonThe 7 months ago
5:10 -- I thought you said "Funky-ass thetic"... :P
Fuzy2K 7 months ago
2 dislikes, probably from people who have no genitals at all.
Great review. :)
MrPowertorque 7 months ago
That game library actually looked good and classic! Im intrigued, nice video, id like to see more computer reviews!
wrongfire 7 months ago
You probably already know this, but you're a boss.
NIMHFS 7 months ago
Good review, those games sure bring back some teenage memories.
diowfj 7 months ago
Awesome review! I grew up with a Speccy and an Amiga myself, but a friend of mine had an ST and they were pretty popular for awhile. These are always my favourite videos of yours, partially because a good chunk of them give me nostalgia for 80s computing and my childhood in the UK computer boom at the time. Also I'm a complete nerd for classic tech in general.
ModernDoomer89 7 months ago
Great video you should do one on the evolution of windows
sims3loser 7 months ago
very good video!
SpiritMoonrise 7 months ago
@UKRetroGames
Maybe like me he loves good rock and metal music, particularly from the golden era of those genres which was the 1980s. This also happens to be the golden era of home computing! :-)
EgoShredder 7 months ago
Some ST versions of games are decent like Turrican 2 (which manages to emulate the Amigas music in the intro) and other are downright horrible like Shadow of the Beast which doesn't even have music ingame and some very ugly graphics. I'm more of a Amiga person ;)
Gamewitzer 7 months ago
I've got two SF354 drives and an sc1224 screen, along with all of the power adapters and cables for them, and an ST computer...just don't have the system. (same with a 5150) I had an atariage post going a while ago on it, got more offers from people trying to buy the screen than were helpful to buy the system... kind of looking for an stf or better, as the floppy drives I have now are single sided, but beggars can't be choosers.
My Portable Compaq has a midi card installed, so much fun!
silntdoogood 7 months ago
@phreakindee If you're short for time (with so many other systems no wonder!) I'd fully recommend going through the Pompey Pirates disks. There aren't many (not compared to guys like Automation, their main rivals, anyway (114 compared to a whopping 512). You see a history enfold in front of you (in technical skill as well as events).U were talking about graphics, well u haven't seen what the PP guys could do with just 16 colours. There're also great tunes (press M!) and sometimes full manuals(!)
MagikGimp 7 months ago
Comment removed
Gamewitzer 7 months ago
One last comment and I'll leave you alone (first computer, first love!)- you'll do well, really well, to check out the pirate scene on the ST. I would say it is hands down the best of any machine ever including the Amiga which was OK but nothing like the ST. We're talking a shit-ton of groups each with history and of course huge rivalries but more importantly CDs! Compact (floppy) disks! Multiple ST games could be squeezed onto 1 disk! And don't get me started on the menus! Let me know for infos
MagikGimp 7 months ago
too bad, mine was totaly destructed when i got it... broken keyboard and casing.
hitachi088 7 months ago
Such a strange legend how the two companies effectively swapped over isn't it?
I've always been in love with the ST design (apart from those damn ports!) although Atari must have made so many of those cases as the design just goes on and on and...
Thanks for the tip about other controllers not working, I assumed like other machines this wasn't an issue.
Thanks for making (as always) a thoroughly sound and very entertaining video about my first computer.Maybe a video on Falcon? (I'll be in touch)
MagikGimp 7 months ago
@MagikGimp Also, Farg and Monster! :O
MagikGimp 7 months ago
@MagikGimp Glad you enjoyed! The legendary story of the Commodore/Atari swap is a very strange one indeed, one you wouldn't believe if it weren't backed up by historical facts.
Yeah, I'd love to review the Falcon sometime. It looks like a freaking spectacular machine.
phreakindee 7 months ago
Could there be an adapter for the RGB monitor's output to a VGA port? Might need some active conversion, though.
Also "switching power supply" doesn't refer to the ability to switch different input voltages. It just refers to the way it produces the output voltage by actually switching on and off very fast by some ratio.
Aeduo 7 months ago
@Aeduo There is a scaler that takes the SCART output and provides VGA, which is probably the best option I know of.
And that makes sense, a switch PSU is indeed something else entirely, it seems I got some information mixed up. Thanks for the correction!
phreakindee 7 months ago
My brain kersploded with all the info! Best review of old platform ever mate.
Mueiwark 7 months ago
The Atari ST is responsible for a lot of crappy looking Amiga games. Many were straight conversions of the Atari versions. /bleh
Holammer 7 months ago
Another great system review of a great classic 16-bit Atari computer. I enjoyed this system and the games were great. Ugly green desktop though lol. The in-built MIDI was cool for its time. While for me not in the same league as the Amiga it was better than its 8-bit counterparts.
DLiberator78 7 months ago
good thing im in canada
pacxel 7 months ago
Great Video review of the Atari ST. I live in the UK so the age old battle of that generation computers raged when i was a teenager :) I had the Amiga my friend the Atari ST. The Amiga games always looked better and played better as far as i can remember...but i may be slightly biased ;)
Retr0Rewind 7 months ago
Nice video, thank you =)
muhopetr 7 months ago
Just wanted to say I think you do a real good job with your back-story and history of the reviews. Keep em' coming
ironchef3500 7 months ago
@Shiqna1 The C64 was the beast of its time. that being said it was not the standard. the sid was way above the standards of the rest of the group of the 8bit era sound chips. it hardly can be considered as the average sound chip of the time. I totally agree wit you that the Atari ST wasn't up to par with even some 8bit systems tho. its soooo sad but true.... man.... you got me thinking of the c64 sexy warbols and pmw.... so good.... nom nom nom....
my4trackmachine 7 months ago
I have the 1040f, would have loved to have the fm though, as I've no monitor for the damn thing, so it's just sitting on the shelf and.. sitting.
DusteDdekay 7 months ago
Great review. I have the same model ST as you. I didn't know you could drop image files onto a disk on your PC and it'll run on an ST. I have a USB floppy drive so will try it. Those joypad ports are awful. Luckily my St came with joypad port extenders :)
P5ychoFox 7 months ago
@P5ychoFox I've heard mixed reports that USB drives are not compatible with the Atari ST floppy image writing program, so if you do try it let me know how it goes!
phreakindee 7 months ago
@phreakindee Yeah, I was just searching via Google and found the same thing :(
P5ychoFox 7 months ago
You should try reviewing the amiga version of Hunter.
thepirategamerboy12 7 months ago
so did you fix the damage it got during the shipping? dont see any on it.
Borin81 7 months ago
@Borin81 Yeah, it eventually went back together quite nicely!
I rebuilt the area where the floppy drive sits inside the chassis. Had to do a little bending of the RF shield and the plastic itself, but after some glue, touching up, and new screws it works fine and it's hard to notice the damage externally.
phreakindee 7 months ago
@phreakindee thank god, next tiem remind me to ship in metal framed boxes instead.
or concrete.
Borin81 7 months ago
I fitted my 1040STF with joystick extensions so that I wouldn't have to lift it every time a switch had to be done. Unfortunately I fried the machine when touching the CRT screen while the pins on the joystick extension chord were in contact with my body. Thankfully I still had warranty so I got a new computer from the store.
THOMASSU63 7 months ago
nice to see computer reviews again
homelessninja 7 months ago
Great review, as always.
Febabify 7 months ago
Awesome! Lama shooting at coke cans, must get! Great review, thanks for not being to lazy to not review this awesome machine.
TankT9 7 months ago
Jckingoff
AnimusPipboy 7 months ago
Hej från Sverige!, kul att se GEM på Svenska hos LGR på YouTube :D
P55CxE9 7 months ago
@P55CxE9 det är en svensk Atari också som han visar, som jag skickade till han.
Borin81 7 months ago
The school I went to had an Atari ST with Cubase in the music department.
shaurz 7 months ago
I love your new hairstyle ^_^
MrNickWright 7 months ago
u should do a quick tour of ur room n stuff
hackett152332 7 months ago
is llamatron about a llama shooting lazers at cocacolas o_O
mighty3alloa 7 months ago