winkg@vice.UUCP (Wink Gross) (09/10/84)
Last weekend my family decided we were sick of timesharing the c64
with our only color TV so I went to Toys*Us, my computer store, to
buy the 1702 monitor. I talked to the manager and explained that my
c64 had a 5-pin connector, whereas 1702s came with 8-pin connectors,
and would he be willing to exchange my c64, bought last December,
for a late-vintage, 8-pin model? He said "sure", which was pretty
decent of him/them/Us. Whereupon, however, the customer service clerk
who was listening broke in to explain that another customer wanted
to do the same thing last week, and that they searched through
the store's inventory and found that all their c64s were 5-pin!
How is that possible? I have seen 8-pin c64s at other stores.
I sensed an impasse and left, disgusted with commodore. $270 is
a lot to pay for a TV without a tuner especially if you have to
shell out still more for a connecting cord. We went straight to
MonkeyWards, bought a 13" TV for $90 less than the 1702 (that's right,
$180, and you can watch "The Love Boat" on it!) , and put the c64
back on the air last night.
Now the only problem is that the famous RF modulator "slow roll"
that was barely detectable on my 19" console, is pretty annoying on
the 13". Has a fix for this problem been found? I are a enginere
and willing to put the computer under the knife to correct the
problem.
Another tack I'm considering is to wait for the TV 90-day warranty
to expire, and then go in and bring out the composite video input to
the video processing IC. Has anybody got any words of wisdom on
this approach?
Wink Gross
tektronix!vice!winkg
Beaverton, ORdunkelbe@ecn-ee.UUCP (09/19/84)
<make my day, eat me...> A 5-pin DIN plug will fit into an 8-pin socket. Either the 5-pin variety was not available when the models were built, or the extra pins will allow for 'expansion.' The pins which are in the same physical locations are the proper signals, and any 5-pin based patch cord should work with both the monitor and the C64. Oooo, I'm hackin' my life away... Kirk Dunkelberger pur-ee!dunkelbe