Atari VCS Teardown and Performance Upgrades, Bios, TDP, Ram Upgrade, M.2 SSD

[@Crackalacking_Z]

I still can't believe it's actually a nicely designed little system. The team who worked on that PCB cared.

[@martinmoller4947]

And now tell that yourself 10 times a day. Some day you will believe it. ;)

[@cubeflinger]

@@martinmoller4947 lol. Seems like a decent board considering the price of the base model.

[@martinmoller4947]

@@cubeflinger its overpriced af. For this price get a series s. Much much better than the scam vcs. Emulates even ps2 games easily in good quality.

[@thickglasses]

And the price is crazy for the amount of power and how upgradeable it is.

[@cubeflinger]

@@thickglasses yep don't deny that. Form factor, power and windows 10 is a draw for me. Underpowered CPU is definitely a turn off.

[@gionieves2646]

That's a fantastic little machine. No other gaming console allows you to actually install Windows or Linux...Insane! The fact that you can raise the CPU TDP and the Memory speed alone is insane. Atari knocked it out of the park and you have the best review on the VCS to date. Great job!!

[@GabeDerico-hj4ke]

Fr!

[@lonestarrider1023]

I'm glad someone figured out how to up the dedicated ram on the gpu.

[@ScottParisi]

I was an original backer but after a two year wait, I was less interested by the time it arrived. It's still in the box but this video makes a compelling case to open.

[@RetroAxis]

I felt the same way. It has been fun to tinker with, at least outside of the VCS Built-In OS.

[@quetzalcueyat]

that's sad. go open it.

[@ScottParisi]

@@quetzalcueyat, I will. While a different platform, I fell in love with Legends Ultimate while waiting for this thing to actually ship.

[@purkie103]

A ram upgrade and some thermal paste improved PCMark 10 benchmark performance by over 50% that's impressive

[@gionieves2646]

he also raised the CPU TDP from 35W to 54W.

[@purkie103]

@@gionieves2646 yeah I forgot to add that but that's made safe to do thanks to the better TP. I was thinking about outlaid upgrade costs to improvement when I made the comment :)

[@gionieves2646]

@@purkie103 for 35W the pad is fine. Going up to 54W would still be fine but that fan would be ramping up ALOT more! Me personally I would have used a high end graphite thermal pad, but to each his own. 👍

[@shadyweaver]

11:12 Hey, a great thing to highlight is that based on your benchmarks, the minimums nearly doubled. Vastly reduced stuttering can be a huge difference between slow and SLOW.

[@nickthaskater]

Yea, that caught my eye as well. A 12 fps jump in minimum to nearly 30fps is the difference between "nope" and playable.

[@rhekman]

I know memory overclocking can be a tinkerer's rabbit hole, but I'd bet tightening the timings would provide some additional benefits. I have a Ryzen 3500U laptop that I was able to upgrade from 2400 to 3200Mhz and even though the G.Skill kit was rated for CAS18, I was able to run it at 15-16-16-36 (cas, rcd, trp, ras).

[@ETAPRIME]

It can and will definitely help out with these Ryzen chips for sure

[@MaxDad7]

I second that. I'm sure the Ryzen DRAM Calculator can help with getting an idea for timings as I'm sure this is a Zen 1 chip. These APUs benefit from faster RAM and tight timings.

[@martinmoller4947]

Not really boosting performance. Just makes it unstable. My tip. Dont buy overpriced weak hw like the Atari vcs. Buy a series s. 10 times more power and a excellent controller for the same price.

[@MaxDad7]

@@martinmoller4947 How would it be unstable to set your memory timings? It appears that the soc is capable of it or there wouldn't be options from AMD to change it. Trust me when I say it makes a difference. I had a 2400G and know from experience how timings help. If the 3200 Mhz modules he put in are run CL22, that's terrible. Even the cheapest of crucial ram can run CL16-18.

[@steelscooter]

@@martinmoller4947 that is just not true, but thanks anyway

[@leonoliveira8652]

This actually taught me a lot about my own ryzen apu and ram!

[@bwgti]

Very interesting! This is a much nicer unit than I expected. It is a little expensive for what you can do with it (not overpriced). But there are always long term advantages of a nicely engineered product. Thanks for knocking out these videos non stop ETA.

[@PaulXMann]

Super-valuable video ETA Prime! For what it's worth, with the latest bios update the password appears to be gone. I also noticed it's running a 45W TDP (instead of 35W), so it seems like the designers felt it was safe to bump it without any other modifications.

[@RetroAxis]

Nice work putting this together, especially the benchmarks. Thanks for demonstrating the adjustments in the BIOS as well.

[@jonyak1221]

Im definitely curious to see what sort of emulation performance you got after the upgrades. A vid comparison of the vcs to other mini pc's would be cool too.

[@jonyak1221]

@@Hester_Productions Im not talking about SBC's like the pi im talking about mini pc's like the NUC or larkbox, two different things. Theres no doubt its going to be more powerfull than a average SBC and less powerfull compaired to an XboxS. And yeah you can built a more powerfull pc foe $400 but at a much larger footprint. The VCS is basically a mini pc and id be interested in how it stacks up compaired performance and price wise to other mini pc's.

[@SuperForearms]

@@Hester_Productions I didn't realize that Pi3 can run Windows 10 or another other X84 / X64 OS. Can you share those links with everybody ?

[@RobDonovanUK]

LOL... love the little space invader graphics on the PCB there at 4:03

[@RobDonovanUK]

And there is Pacman at 2:52 and Asteroids at 3:58!

[@RobDonovanUK]

Infinity symbols at 4:17 on the right, could be a reference to Atari Token crypto-currency, since it originated with a company called 'Infinity Networks'?

[@NewLifestyleMentor]

I’d love to see RetroArch on any compatible Linux distro running on this little mini-beast.

[@angeleocorrodead]

Piano18482? Albert W. Ladd, Kurtzmann - those were the 2 piano manufacturers that opereted in 2 different states over 2 centuries, and they both were established in 1848. So PIANO18482! :D

[@mistergone5156]

I used your video to upgrade my RAM, thank you so much! 32 gigs of RAM, 2666 mhZ, I didn't increase the memory speed, but it still runs amazing.

[@HiroPlaysGames]

I picked up the VCS all-in speakerhat bundle from the Atari store for $189... just happened to be browsing their site and saw that price and jumped on it, then got an email notification about the sale the next morning. Apparently that deal was only good for the first 50 customers, so I lucked out! I didn't realize how well-designed and upgradable this thing was! Will definitely enjoy tinkering with it at a sub-$200 price point for the full bundle. It's too bad the price couldn't have been this low from launch... it'd probably be a radically different ecosystem today if it had sold better. Thanks for the video!

[@justincole3770]

I jumped on this deal yesterday as well. Been eyeing it for a while and couldn't resist at that price. Already have an m.2 hard drive on the way, excited to start playing around with this.

[@sammiches6859]

Looks like they did it again for all VCS systems at 30% off, so I bought the speaker hat, both VCS models, and one of each controller. I hope it helps them keep lowering the price and make a refresh model soon.

[@trevorbraun2574]

I just picked this up for $99 from GameStop recently... followed your exact process upgrading to 16GB of DDR4-3200, 256GB SSD & re-pasted the cooler. The fan runs less often, the system overall is much more responsive... time to try some games!

[@carlosfandango2419]

Nice bump and straightforward tutorial. Thanks.

[@justonemori]

Thanks for the inspiration, I watched this before to see about installing a SSD. I now have new memory, SSD and thermal paste on my desk ready to go as I watch this again. The fan on mine always seemed like it was working hard. I'm installing Linux/Retropie after the upgrade. I think it will do that nicely. Cheers!

[@Arie400]

I like how the pcb got some space invader printed over it

[@HamBown]

Adjusting the primary DRAM timings to whatever the modules are rated for (rather than CL22) and changing the Ryzen FCLK to 1600 MHz might net you some additional gains.

[@guardianali]

This would make a great internal to an arcade cabinet. I have a table top 2 player i made running off a pi4 but this would easily fit inside and be able to run much higher amount of systems. I may get one just for that alone.

[@OtterlyInsane]

You’d be better building an AM4 3400G small form factor machine yourself - $400 would get you a much more powerful machine

[@briano1734]

It’s way too pretty to hide it. Plus it’s overpriced to be used just as hardware.

[@guardianali]

@@briano1734 not for what your getting and more importantly form factor of how small it is. It's Even smaller than a micro itx mobo...and uses a brick instead of a pc power supply. If you were to retry and get a mobo as small even and older gen, plus cpu, ram, ps, etc..your not that much less than this cost and probably still bigger in size

[@guardianali]

@@okene Really now? Cause the vega 11 means its using a Ryzen 5. The model that has a vega 11 ryzen 5 that is a Lenovo Thinkcenter M75q. The micro is model m75q-1. Both of which is averaging 350-450. So either you just got very lucky and its def not the norm..or ur exaggerating to try and make a point. oh and btw..the ryzen 5 has a TDP of 65W so way more heat and power usage than the VCS CPU which is a max of 25watt TDP.

[@AnTran147]

@@guardianali You can simply just get an Asrock A300 STX board and an older APU then for a smaller and more powerful system.

[@tal0ndarktalon637]

Just more proof that Ryzen, and Vega both love some fast ram.

[@EASYUSA]

Like always, awesome video! Did you ever made a video testing some the performance of games after the upgrade?

[@LazyBunnyKiera]

That's a pretty nice boost. It should bring a lot more games into the playable range.. games that were previously just shy of that limit, IE games running at mid to low 20s fps. Since the heatsink appeared to be nickel plated.. If someone used a soft rubber foam pad as a gasket around the die, i could definitely see using liquid metal on this device. Soft foam rubber with the same consistency as a thermal pad. I still need to find an ideal rubber foam material to use as gaskets for LM Something thin that compresses to create a good liquid proof seal.

[@deechvogt1589]

Awesome mod job on this low power platform. Thanks for sharing the knowledge.

[@michaelSlick50]

Thanks man. I got mine done. Next, booting up Windows, then I'll settle into gaming. This is a nice system!

[@TheVirtualTim]

Thanks for the great tutorial! I did add an SSD and upped the RAM on mine. BUT... Atari updated the firmware and it is no longer to modify BIOS settings. It's not that they changed the password and we just don't know it ... they actually locked it out completely. On the Atari VCS Founders Discord channel they did say they plan to open it back up in the future.

[@eltioben3677]

I would like to see the performance improvements in emulation and PC games with the higher TDP and 3200mhz ram.

[@Horos_de_Vega]

I really like this cute little machine.

[@rb3020]

Run cyberpunk at lowest settings, 640x480

[@timmyburden5701]

Yuck. Why would anyone want to play at that resolution?

[@leeboy2k1]

Yeah Cyberpunk is a pretty poorly optimized mostly GPU bound title, that cripples frame rates with it's heavy lighting and post-processing despite many of the 3-D assets actually being fairly low in geometry, it'll be interesting to see how CP runs on this say upto 720P.

[@robertlawrence9000]

@@timmyburden5701 Maybe on a crt it would work well. 😄

[@timmyburden5701]

I don't think the CPU is strong enough to run this game.

[@robertlawrence9000]

@@timmyburden5701 definitely not but it's interesting to see how things perform on different configurations.

[@pedrohenriqueboscofi]

Steam deck OS in this hardware is something we can't see anybody trying on youtube, I think it would be interesting to see what it will run with all the tweaks available.

[@iwonderifthisislegal]

@2:23 and @6:17 we almost get a glimpse of the mysterious, ETA Prime. You're like the Good Guy version of Dr. Claw from Inspector Gadget 🤪! If I find out you have a cat... I'll know for sure!

[@EmulationDojo]

I love the approach they’ve taken, have you tried to boot a Linux distro also and seen a difference in performance to windows?

[@darunealbane]

I can see "upgrading" the wifi antenna

[@sharoyveduchi]

@@darunealbane isn't that just like a mini PCI slot or something? I think there might be some low end GPUs that could fit in there.

[@darunealbane]

@@sharoyveduchi the ssd id not nvme which means THAT is perfect foe an egpu

[@KadiusFTW]

You could probably manage 3000mhz off of the base memory they provide sense its samsug E die, the stuff buildzoid raves about (at least my unit came with it) and dedicating 3gb of the system ram from the base spec severely helps its gaming performance

[@mrzion4711]

Please do a video on blue stacks with launchbox i use my emulation as a home device and i would love to launch netflix youtube etc apps from launchbox

[@ETAPRIME]

Okay I can get something made up, I was also thinking about testing out some pinball.

[@cubeflinger]

@@ETAPRIME will this thing run GameCube or PS with the upgrades?

[@kevinkev1530]

@@ETAPRIME definitely do tht please

[@ThatRandomFastingGuy]

This plus A debian based Linux Distro would be amazing

[@LAG09]

You used some pretty loose memory timings there. Probably could have squeezed a bit more performance setting them to what that RAM is capable of rather than the settings any non-faulty will be able to keep up with.

[@jengelenm]

Curious if they’d change the pasword for the retail version😀

[@chslaw]

I would appreciate hearing if you still recommend the same BIOS settings.

[@johnalcazar4944]

Excellent video thanks! Your settings improved the VCS a lot. In the BIOS - UMA Frame buffer size can I use 8GB if I upgrade to 32GB RAM?

[@Markbot1999]

A buddy cloned the VCS internal operating system drive to a USB flash drive. He can boot his laptop into the VCS OS from the thumb drive.

[@povilasstaniulis9484]

It's just a custom-themed Linux distro, nothing special. From what I can find online, it's based on Debian Linux.

[@anostio]

Tell him upload it bro and to keep it updated, this seems real interesting, would love to play around with it

[@MegaZeeeh]

I would love to see it running Linux and retropie

[@Droogie128]

The improvements really show in minimum FPS.

[@jonniefast]

do you think it helps vlc chug along a bit better? itd be nice for media consumption

[@snowmcsnow4732]

Can we get another video showing what PC games look like on this device after these upgrades, to compare with your previous PC games/emulation video ? I would like to see how much more it improved , like running Skyrim at high rather than low?

[@formerlycringe]

i want an Atari VCS as a Minecraft/Terraria server now tbh

[@Djerique]

Really nice! But is it possible to show how you put the paste on the CPU? I guess most of us haven’t done that before. Would love to how that goes.

[@stevensullivan5797]

Interested in this, and how the last sticky bit of the OEM pad was removed safely as well. Will be doing this as soon as my replacement upgrade RAM comes in (got bad sticks with my first upgrade).

[@jihlnabaat6329]

ETA rocking a go-tee huh!

[@JayzBeerz]

Dude thank you. You’re a beast.

[@dcarpenter85]

Do you think this thing would perform better for emulation with Linux on it rather than Windows? It's been a while since I have messed around with emulation on Linux so I am not sure how performance compares but I know the overhead would be a lot lower.

[@gvanderlee2703]

Can you show emulation performance after this upgrade?

[@thevigilante8523]

He will eventually

[@MINKIN2]

It's laptop guts in a new shell then. Interesting.

[@RadekMarszalek]

Awesome!

[@insultobot]

Are we at the point where we could install Steam OS on the Atari VCS? I feel like that pairing would be perfect

[@gravious]

Face reveal at 06:18 :D Nice vid as always :)

[@acem7749]

I think black Friday sales got this hyped again. Hope there is an update video.

[@mr.a5803]

Definitely why I’m up at 4am watching this😂

[@acem7749]

@@mr.a5803 still waiting for mine... Been weeks and no shipping updates..

[@Bushidounohana]

Would be interested in seeing what kind of improvements this makes for real world usage. Love the design of this device, but reticent to pick it up.

[@VOLTRONDEFENDER4440]

Artics mx4 is the recommended thermal paste!

[@andrebrait]

A word of caution on using NT-H1 for bare-die applications: it pumps out somewhat quickly. You should use a thicker thermal paste like the Xigmatek PTI-G4512, the Prolimatech PK-3 or the Cooler MasterGel Maker. Those thin, "easy-to-apply" pastes (like the NT-H1, NT-H2, MX-4, etc.) will always pump out in a time window ranging from weeks to months and they'll start performing badly.

[@dustinhornbeck9713]

So is this thing actually worth the money? Cause I'm on the edge of buying it or not.

[@shakeyourbunny]

Make a Linux benchmark, perhaps with Mint or SteamOS?

[@RlsIII-uz1kl]

I'd imagine with some longer screws and 3d printing some pieces to make it taller wouldn't be to difficult and if done properly wouldn't take away from it's looks.

[@robertlawrence9000]

Good video! Are you going to do a video or two on emulation and PC game use on the upgrade? Thanks

[@nroc6206]

2:22 oh dang, ETA's hair! Lol

[@NatesRandomVideo]

Beard at 6:19! LOL

[@marksapollo]

I didn’t know it could run Windows! What a cool little system.

[@MrKanumen]

Gora ETA!!!

[@thepuzzlemaster64]

Man...I'm not a big fan of "Atari's" controversies with this thing, but I've got to admit that it's a pretty nice machine for emulation. I'm a bit torn if I actually want to buy one.

[@kaizerkoala]

Nice is pretty a stretch. OK'ish... yes.

[@looselycollected7505]

After you make these changes, could you add an external SSD at say one or two TB. Then add a launch box set up and MAME. Then run it as an multi-cade set up? I know it wouldn't be crazy. But you could run a lot of older arcade games from that sort of set up if it worked.

[@soubhikmukherjee6871]

I love his engineering skills.

[@informedconsent369]

Just because you don't have an engineering degree doesn't mean you can't learn! Learning even basic electrical engineering skills can be incredibly useful and rewarding. Or just keep watching ETA! You'll probably learn a thing or two just through him alone!

[@DenkyManner]

I wouldn't describe what he does in this video as engineering. It's very basic disassembly and replacement.

[@anno5936]

Engineering ? Guys, a computer (ANY computer) is nothing more but a sophisticated version of Lego. You just need to pick up some information and get it going... and one of the best sources is ETA ;)

[@informedconsent369]

@@anno5936 no arguments there brotha. I still think basic electrical engineering skills are worth learning though!

[@informedconsent369]

@@DenkyManner I agree with you, but I still think basic engineering skills are quite useful and rewarding to learn

[@pierregrobbelaar9116]

Man it got a bios i understand.These new bioses ha to much fancy bios bs.I taught myself how to operate it but it's not as good as the old once which was so easy to understand. What i would like to see if with the new ram emulator speeds and maybe so pc games like csgo or dota.Mostly esport titles although i doubt it can run all esport games at 60fps.

[@steelscooter]

You should really manually enter the correct RAM timings. The main setting, CAS, should be at 16 and yours is 22 which is hitting the memory bandwidth. Enter the timing numbers listed on the RAM stick. 👍

[@mgabrysSF]

So for the UMA FBS - if I upgrade to 32gb of ram I should be able to set it to 8gb - correct? Or should I go even higher (to 16gb)? Also is a thermal paste application required for the overclocking or would it be safe without it?

[@photolabguy]

16 GB of RAM for Yar's Revenge. Got it! 🤔

[@__ajos__]

How hard would it be to convert this vcs into a nice handheld windows device for gaming? The PCB is so conveniently small, i'd say a good battery and 11" touchscreen should do the trick, with decent controllers on the side...

[@brettpelaez7161]

Hey ETA. Another amazing video! It's my 5th watch and I finally got a unit since Atari has them on sale right now. Do you know if we can go faster on the RAM than 3200? Atari has removed what little documentation they had and when I ask support about it, all they tell me is that RAM updates void the warranty.

[@frshunter]

I am surprised at the relatively rather beefy Bios for this device. I have laptops with much less option in the bios!

[@Richie016]

a close examination of the system board for Atari VCS tells lots on it's hardware and specs.

[@hidden_vault]

using 54watts in system settings generates way too much heat i've tested especially for such a small computer , i wouldn't recommend anything above 45 watts( the default settings ) i watched the temps jump using a temp sensor app jumping an extra 10c or so just for a very small gain..others settings shown here definitely recommend

[@jordandent2717]

Great video! Think the Overclocking will be safe to do without adding the heat sink?

[@Trusteft]

06:59 Smoke...smoke...are you smoking yet? ETA Prime I see you are fan of subliminal advertisement.

[@OvErMeCh]

Really nice maybe add the power consumption comparison

[@akfreed6949]

Could you do a video for newer VCS owners about a different way to speed up the RAM ? Some videos say the piano pin# does NOT work . There's apparently a different pin#

[@jonny4036]

​ @ETA PRIME As it is on sale for $160 with $5 shipping I purchased one. In the bios can you change the memory timings. So if you buy good ram for instance Mushkin Redlines are CAS 16 at 3200 can you make sure you can run them at CAS 16. Overclocking settings you showed wouldn't necessarily change CAS settings as the RAM modules I believe also use 1.35 volts instead of 1.2. So can you change voltage and CAS on the VCS or would it not benefit from any of that and just run them at standards speeds?

[@craigjanssen371]

Did you keep an eye on temps during benchmarking? Curious based on the increased wattage and change in thermal interface.

[@linuxlover_8436]

please do an updated VCS video ETA....I'd like to see if SF5 performed better after upgrading to 16GB and if you later maxed to 32GB or not

[@GringoHisopo1993]

What about emulation with this upgrade?

[@iroshizuko8044]

Great Vid I want to buy a Atari VCS but i cant find it :(

[@bryanobrien2726]

It's only up for pre-order now if you didn't indiegogo it . You can pre-order one from Gamestop or Walmart .

[@Nixeen]

Its not publicly available to buy until march i think. Only the backers are getting theirs and beta testing them essentially.

[@Zoyx]

I got mine on eBay. The price hike isn't too bad.

[@totophi]

@@Zoyx : Famous last words... 🙃

[@user-hr5di5fg8b]

What about redoing some of the emulations with upgrade see if there much of an improvement

[@povilasstaniulis9484]

Low-end laptop guts inside an Atari 2600 themed box. Usable as an HTPC or an emulation box, but, unless you're feeling nostalgic (or like the small form factor), something like a mini-ITX Ryzen build will be a lot more practical. I wonder, why did they lock-down the UEFI ?

[@h53637]

Helpful many thanks

[@8biters]

oto jest komentarz nr.500 który zmieni OBLICZE tego świata

[@jacobbaranowski]

I don’t not know you can update the console? But this is technically a Computer.

[@nickharris13]

ETA you mention 2 other videos with links in the description, I don't see them. Small oversight?

[@kevink9365]

This system is amazing

[@jamesflores4729]

Muy interesante, muy bien explicado todo, gracias 🫂 Estoy por obtener un atari VCS bro

[@MrDavidBFoster]

I didn't even know Atari was still in business.

[@ugh.idontwanna]

They're not, it's just a brand name that's being kept on life support. Their holding company seems to wake up every three years to announce another stupid business venture. I think the latest one was a gaming themed hotel chain. They was supposed to break ground in mid-2020, but by October they still hadn't found a building site.

[@issabeganovic8822]

They've been running Online Casinos since their Big Bankruptcy in 2013 just to get by. After that, every game they released was a microtransaction nightmare of epic proportions, as a result, either most of their popular franchises were sold off, or irreparably ruined with bugs, unfinished content, a loot-box system that makes EA look like tinyBuild, or all of the above (and then sold off). Consider the Atari VCS their first apology. Although I'm still a bit wary...

[@Siver5300]

Please try out CEMU 👀 I know it won’t run the demanding games at good performance but Mario Kart 8 and Super mario 3d World would run great on this

[@Noobsaibot21]

Where is that fan pulling air from? There is nowhere for it to get cool air anywhere except maybe the vent at the back left (Back right if looking at the unit from behind). And even then, likely not getting much - worth consideration and i'd love to see the temps over prolonged heavy use

[@rael_gc]

SSD, RAM and other changes are a real upgrade. But the UMA change is useless: system will automatically increase RAM up to 2G to share with video.

[@ParanoiaDragon]

I followed the instructions, putting the same amount of RAM etc, did everything shown in the BIOS. My VCS won't boot up, all I get is a black screen. Did some research and tried flashing the OS as is recommended by everybody and still nothing, just a black screen and I can hear the fan running. Any ideas? I'm out of ideas after all the research I've done. I'm thinking of taking my hard drive and RAM out and then turn it on to see if that does anything. I just don't know what to do