Introduction:
Around December of 2025 and January of 2026, I fiddled with the idea of creating a Vector CRT similar to the Vectrex. I had a good starting point with custom amplifiers that I made, but they didn't really go anywhere—so I'm starting again here hopefully to finish for this competition!
I really appreciate that I won 3rd place in the 2025 Summer Competition, that seriously means the world! Thanks so much everyone for your support on my previous projects. Good luck everyone!
FYI:
While I did build initial "concepts" before this project... I'm completely starting over with all of the parts and progress on this project, and I'm only starting with the knowledge I've learned from my trial-and-error from the past research I’ve done. Those initial concepts aren't even comparable to anything that will be done on this project, I just thought that I should share that to be transparent!
6/13/2026:
Over the past few days I've been hard at work designing a Vector Amplifier/Deflection PCB to scale up the signal generated by either an authentic Atari Vector PCB or a Micro-Controller with DACs. In the past, I made an AMP that uses the TDA2050 AB-Class Audio Amplifier, which worked to scale the image up on a tube, but introduced lots of noise and such to my understanding.
This time around for the start of this project, I want to use Transistors to amplify the X and Y signals. An online blogger and electronic hobbyist, Jürgen Müller has an open-source XY Deflection Schematic, so I started with that as a base, and then modified it. I designed the PCB on my own as I do for all of my projects. I just sent off the order and ordered all the parts that I should need, so I'm looking forward to when those arrive! The Transistors used are the TIP41C and the TIP42C High-Power Transistor(s).
Around December of 2025 and January of 2026, I fiddled with the idea of creating a Vector CRT similar to the Vectrex. I had a good starting point with custom amplifiers that I made, but they didn't really go anywhere—so I'm starting again here hopefully to finish for this competition!
I really appreciate that I won 3rd place in the 2025 Summer Competition, that seriously means the world! Thanks so much everyone for your support on my previous projects. Good luck everyone!
FYI:
While I did build initial "concepts" before this project... I'm completely starting over with all of the parts and progress on this project, and I'm only starting with the knowledge I've learned from my trial-and-error from the past research I’ve done. Those initial concepts aren't even comparable to anything that will be done on this project, I just thought that I should share that to be transparent!
6/13/2026:
Over the past few days I've been hard at work designing a Vector Amplifier/Deflection PCB to scale up the signal generated by either an authentic Atari Vector PCB or a Micro-Controller with DACs. In the past, I made an AMP that uses the TDA2050 AB-Class Audio Amplifier, which worked to scale the image up on a tube, but introduced lots of noise and such to my understanding.
This time around for the start of this project, I want to use Transistors to amplify the X and Y signals. An online blogger and electronic hobbyist, Jürgen Müller has an open-source XY Deflection Schematic, so I started with that as a base, and then modified it. I designed the PCB on my own as I do for all of my projects. I just sent off the order and ordered all the parts that I should need, so I'm looking forward to when those arrive! The Transistors used are the TIP41C and the TIP42C High-Power Transistor(s).
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