Vintage Fairchild Channel F System

[Theamrajr218]

You Hav All of tht game stuff and still hav money? dam lol

[kidd912thomas]

They also make components for the A-10

[SH1THEAD96]

because a ataris is too overrated...

[iwantbeerdamnit]

I'm very shocked this system didn't make IGN's top 25 video game consoles of all time. It was the first inter changeable cartridge based video game system ever made.

[moypie1]

I saw one of these in box on cragislist for $150, is that a good deal? im not going to buy it, dont have that money right now but is that what one in box would cost me?

[PADSCALE]

are you nostalogiaholic????

[moypie1]

@PADSCALE Yes, yes he is

[theawesomegamr]

my favorite part of the intro was the vectrex :D I AM TOTALY IN LOVE WITH THE VECTREX!!!

[lovelorn8888]

is it wrong that this gave me a boner?

[MatthewandMario]

you are sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo­ooooooooooooooooo lucky!!!!!

[DoctorOttoOctavius]

My next door neighbor used to have one of these bad boys.

[joshuavideogames]

High definition graphics!

[RoboticusMusic]

What do you do with the controllers stick the up your ass?

[Petemejia77]

That's a neat-ass controller!

[sitstandnow]

is it me or does the controller look like a dildo?

[LightningSamus]

Old systems put new systems to shame on how long they last.

[CHRISTAYLOR010495]

@LightningSamus I agree, we currently have three PS2s at home, one is dead, the other can't read discs properly but the other one is fine though .... When the first one broke (in like 2007 or something), my Mega Drive which we got in 1995 was still working and still fun. Every retro console I have works fine .... =>

[peterp21]

Very very cool video. I always enjoy watching vintage console reviews. Especially the lesser known systems that came out the same time as Atari 2600 or even preceded it. BTW, that was a particularly nice specimen you picked up. Can't believe it has all the original manuals and advertising. Wow.

[jtc1999]

whenever i see any cool, good, or super rare consoles/games, its always you. damn!! i wish i had all your cool stuff.

[MrEricaholic]

I just got a Fairchild channel F unit at a garage sale in the original box, and I have a couple of questions. 1.) does the wire that comes out of the unit to the tv does that plug into the "Yellow" video IN on my tv? 2.) it didn't come w/ the dust cover any idea were I might find one of those??

Thanks!!

[circletree]

my parents owned a furniture store in the 1970s and they sold these in the store....i would hurry there after school each day to play it on the huge console TV. I loved the drag racing game, the early version of paint, and blackjack.

[NightSprinter]

I've the Channel-F II, and a friend gave it to me for a holiday gift. He got it with five games (including rare titles like Alien Invasion) for only .. ten dollars I think? (He found it at the Goodwill he works at).

[retroHC]

Wow. I have one of those somwhere.

[Ryio5]

you look like my neighbor.

[davceervd]

i saw your oddeysey video and i was very inpressed with it so i reguarly watch your videos

[leliebre]

R.I.P Gerald from Spain

[estlib]

does this console had any kind of sidescrollers? i suspect not. if so, can it be possible to create a sidescroller on this thing?

[Mhendeb]

RIP Gerald Jerry Lawson

[benjaminshinobi]

Jerry Lawson, rest in peace!

[Wolfen443]

Very cool, 2 cavemen disliked the machine that made possible for them to play every game they have to choose from now.

[15Th15f0rR34l]

RIP Gerald A. Lawson :(

[guv859]

I'm reading about this in this month's (UK) Retro Gamer magazine. Great video, John!

[mackenzy123]

r.i.p. jerry lawsen creator of the first video game cartridge :(

[Ded5833]

RIP Jerry Lawson.

[DarkAvatar1313]

looks like a 70's style PS3 to me

[bilcza]

it looks like the Apple 2 Computer

[Bucsfan5tampa]

Does he still do video game reviews

[fjccommish]

What if the controllers break?

[eateroftheflame]

33 years and it still works, Microsoft should learn from these things.

[Chubzdoomer]

This looks like a seriously underrated console, especially considering it's technically the first ever cartridge-based one.

[Carlos2006ful]

i love this system i always wanted to play this console where did you buy it gamester81

[clitmint]

The first game we're going to check is the hockey game,, could be tennis. classic!

[jeffshadow]

CharmeleonFan96 i saw one for 10 bucks at goodwill but i didn't get it because i thought it was a pong console, and that was a year ago so i cant go back...)=

[CharmeleonFan96]

I found one at a thrift store for 20 bucks... I HAD NO CLUE IT WAS RARE! too bad I didn't get it... :(

[SOUTHWESTENZ]

that looks amazingly sleek for a console from the 70s

[SOUTHWESTENZ]

@SOUTHWESTENZ awesome controller

[carnstar]

lol i love how gamester talk nice a relaxed but what made me laugh is how hes saying "which is a piece of shit!... ill make a review on it later lol... just how he was really mad about the rca lol

[illustriouschin]

As far as the Pong centric systems go this one is fairly impressive i think. I don't know what it is fully capable of but i like how the pixels are square rather than rectangular like what the Atari 2600 had.

[sip309]

the price for the games and console are MUCH cheaper then ataris. but also DAMN, the graghics are ten times better that early atari titles!

[mp4podcastDOTcom]

Fairchild Channel F System 33 years old and still works and your XBOX 360 is three years old and Red Ring. LOL

I had two XBOX 360 that RED RING on me.

[51rickjames]

i want this so bad

[Nedspodos]

I started laughing with you at 2:07 :)

[MattTheSaiyan]

This actually looks pretty cool and fun!

[Maus5000]

Now I know this is a question asked to you all the time, but did I make a good deal? I got one in the oribinal box complete with 4 boxed games for $150.

[anassgame]

This system better than a wii !

[AdamZLaJuene]

there is a power switch on the back

[warrengonline]

I had this system, some family in Ocala was having a yard sale and I ALWAYS begged my parents to stop when I was with them. Well, one day my Mom went into town and stopped at a yard sale with out me. 'The Seller' saw my Mom looking at it and pawed it off on her for like $20 buck and gave her a "foot controller" (LIES). Being the curious kid, I learned that my Mom was lied to, but I did not have those controls - I had to use the Star Control pad to play game. AWKWARD, but fun as a kid.

[ChessPieceRook]

@ashenclone

this one hit the market first.

most people don't realize, this is the FIRST real cartrage based game to hit the markets.....

the sears "odessy" or whatever it's called, it's really cartrage based....the games were hardwired into the system.

[LordStormdragon]

I feel like such a dork - I have one of these and couldn't test it because I couldn't find the power button - I thought the switch in the back was a Channel 3/Channel 4 switch! You rock!

[CyclopticPanda666]

My dad got it when it first came out on his 13th birthday, and found it a few months ago at my grandmas I was upset because the audio worked, but the video didn't work it looks far superior to the atari 2600, and u can even play virtual blackjack on it. The second oldest system I have is the n64. I don't have a 360 or a ps3 though.

[littledavevader]

great video! we had one of these when i was little and i think my dad bought it when they 1st came out in the UK, sadly it broke years ago and was thrown away, while looking around a few years ago i found one cart still boxed for the hang man game so ive kept hold of it just for the memories

[mikewillsadventures]

i finally got one after looking for 2 years , as well as an rca studio ii and i can agree the rca studio ii was bad in its day, (january 1977). thats just sad : (

[nexus000111]

That looks like a really good console for its time, love the controllers and you have all the original papers which came with it, fair play.

A great piece of history you have their.

[MasterKOfficial]

nice one. i have the german license version called "Saba Videoplay" with 6 games in Box :)

[KartKing4ever]

This has to have the gayest name ever though unfair faggot channel fuck

[venbrugk]

Nice video - very informative. If I'm not mistaken, there was also a second version of this console called the "Fairchild Channel F System II" that came out a couple years later.

[aaronv1998]

you could push and pull the joystick!,its not one button its two buttons!,WTH!

[JOESONYNERD]

I actually seen one for sale for $40 with 12 games would you say thats a good price

[Gamester81]

@JOESONYNERD

Hey Joe, yes $40 is a great deal. Pick it up if you can still.

[ZavenNes1718]

@Gamester81 I saw one for $150 in box, is that a good deal? Im not going to buy it but just asking

[19bradley88]

@JOESONYNERD

SIlly NOOB, yes!

[19bradley88]

@JOESONYNERD

Silly NOOB, yes!

[medicwheat69]

@JOESONYNERD well it only came out with 12 games I think..so you'd have a complete set right there

[scruffziller]

Wow. One of the guys who designed this system helped started INTEL.

[duvisa]

very nice controllers!

[Gamester81]

@ashenclone

Actually both pretty much hit the market at the same time.

[super00su]

@Gamester81 8:39 Desert Fox is just like Call of Duty, free for all, kill, you get a point, you die you come right back, the one at the end that has the most kills wins...LOL

[mireaux7]

thanks for posting this vid. its good to educate todays youth about gaming's beginnings. most kids today know nothing of any system before playstation 1. any console before atari 2600 is pretty much a rare collector's item today. still got my 2600 with about 35 games..works like a charm. theres just something about simplistic addictive gameplay that today's complex & intuitive games just cant hold a candle to.

[airbornkat]

Very informative, I am in a game programming class and I am writing a paper on the history of home game hardware.

[ATARI800XLfan]

Nice video. I was wondering would you recommend getting the system if I already have a Atari 7800.

[Gamester81]

The games are ok. I recommend this system if you plan on collecting, but replay value isn't that strong.

[Maus5000]

@ATARI800XLfan I'm just gonna add my two cents and say that the pong game on this is one of the most bad ass pong games ever made.

[dogeymon83]

I like how casually you say,  ".....the RCA 2 which is a piece of shit." LMAO!!!!!

[Alexdemoted]

Lmfao @ 9:29

[KJAnsia]

Holy. Fucking. Shit.

I vividly remember my friend and I sitting on the floor of his damp, track-lit, semi-furnished basement, staring like idiots at this wood-paneled monstrosity. It was like pre-man and the Monolith - untold mysteries were at hand, but we were not the monkeys to unravel them. Then we watched Crocodile Dundee, which was new to HBO at the time. Hell, this thing was ancient even then. What a weird feeling.

Thanks for the video, guy!

[pinballcentral]

i bought a studio 2 a couple days ago!!!!!!!!!! it just got here today and i have to say it kind of sucks. the only game that is even kind of fun is tennis. oh well, it will still make a good foot rest!!!!!!!!

[Nubbpiraten]

Hi Gamester 81!

Have you seen my review of the swedish version?

if not, check it out :) /Nubbpiraten

[Gamester81]

Cool I'll check it out. Thanks.

[Nubbpiraten]

No problems :)

[pinballcentral]

hey dude, i have been looking for this thing and the studio 2 for a while!!!! i have found a ton of channel f games, but no system!!!! anyway thank you for such a detailed review!!!!!

[Gamester81]

Thanks for the compliment my friend. Good luck with your search for this system.

[dommiesan]

Great find! The Channel F is fairly uncommon. I've been looking for one for years to no avail. I refuse to pay ebay prices for it.

[VoidKeeper]

oh yeah, fairchild, they still make electronic components xD

[sillysawsage]

holy cow we had this system...lol

[calumknight1984]

Cool system and just a little niggly thing that annoys me is when ppl complain about the 360 red ring yes its damn annoying ive had it once but it isnt really surprising that the fairchild still works as the silicon or whatever it used for cpu was using nowhere near its thermal limit, the 360 is reaching the thermal limit of silicon same as the cell cpu in ps3 (they got round it by bolting on a copper plate onto it upping the cost and weight). Its the same with pc but not restricted with coolers

[BeerBellyDK]

Nice one.. Here in Denmark it's called the SABA Videoplay.. It does not look nearly as cool as your version.. Just black and boring.. Still the same yellow cartridges though..

I really really wan't one, but they are kind of hard to find in our little country.. I will probably end up finding one in Germany..

Anyway, keep the reviews coming, they are great, and i love hearing the history of these old machines.. :)

[TheDevilBurning]

8track + gamers = Vintage Fairchild Channel F System

LOL awesome video never even heard of this system man! i saw another guy comment that you have the rarest game systems and by god he was right!

[Ready03]

Nice video and review.

[graftwins3]

nice review

seem's like a system thats hard to track down.

[CMBRetrospective]

Great video man, looks like a cool super retro console!

[tvandlust]

Great review man. Don't forget -- the knobs on the controllers also pull up! My fiancee compared the controllers to a Bop It, haha.

[vintagevideogamegeek]

Those tanks look like something innappropriate.

[vintagevideogamegeek]

I wonder what ever happenned to Channels A-E?

This beast reminds me of an old answering machine.

[julsyDCst]

Exelent system review

[noscirenamra]

nice! tnx men for the review

[SteveBenway]

They sell the Channel F System II as the Adman Grandstand Video Entertainment Computer in the UK.

[simonsko1]

It was sold in Sweden as the Luxor Video Entertainment System!

[simonsko1]

How much did you pay for the console and the games?

[Smopiiac]

I have a C64 joystick that looks just like one of those controllers!

[e5frog]

It's a "Video Command" it was released by Zircon after they took over the Fairchild System. There are two different types, one with and one without an extra red firebutton on the front upper part of the handle.

[Smopiiac]

Thanks for the info! On mine there's only 1 button besides the joystick, no more.

[e5frog]

I assume you mean it's the type that has a button apart from the model that doesn't have a button (you press knob down for fire).

[Smopiiac]

Yes, just a simple arcade joystick with a button next to it. Not a fighter-style joystick with a trigger button.

[e5frog]

I don't understand how it would look like a Fairchild Channel F controller, do you have a picture? You can write web-adresses if you put random spaces in the address...

[sinistermoon]

Way awesome man. I have always wanted one of those. That tank game looks awesome. Way cool video.