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Coleco Telstar Colormatic Capacitor Replacement Guide

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Telstar Colormatic (1977) (8)
A Telstar Colormatic. No photograph of its board has been published.

The Coleco Telstar Colormatic (model 6130) dates from 1977, so its electrolytic capacitors are close to 50 years old.[1] No schematic, parts list or board photograph of the Colormatic has been published, and no capacitor values for it are known. Besides the General Instrument AY-3-8500 it carries a Texas Instruments SN76499N colour chip, for which no data sheet has been found, so even the reference values that GI's data gives for the game chip do not cover the colour circuit.[1][2]

What is known

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  • Power is 9 V DC from Coleco's No. 6041 200 mA adaptor, or from six C cells.[3][4]
  • GI specifies the AY-3-8500 for +6 to +7 V. GI's black-and-white reference circuit has one 10 µF electrolytic across the supply and small non-polarised capacitors on the bat inputs, sound driver, reset and oscillator.[5]
  • The colour circuit is undocumented. GI's own colour converter for the AY-3-8500, the AY-3-8515, runs from a 3.57 MHz crystal with a 3-15 pF trimmer and has a hue adjustment potentiometer.[6] Which parts the SN76499N needs is not known, and the Colormatic need not have any of them.

Signs of a failing capacitor

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  • A domed or split top, or brown residue round the base of a capacitor.
  • Corroded tracks next to a capacitor, which can also come from leaking cells in the compartment above.
  • A picture that rolls or buzzes, or a game that resets itself, with fresh cells or a good adaptor and clean switches.

See Capacitor Failure Symptoms and, for cell leakage, Battery Explosion, Capacitor or Corrosion Damage.

Recording your board

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Telstar Colormatic electrolytic capacitors: record your own board
Position (designator, or where it sits) Capacitance Voltage Temperature Lead spacing Notes
1
2
3
  1. Photograph both sides of the board, including any trimmers, before removing anything. Do not turn a trimmer without marking its position first.
  2. Note any printed designators and the polarity mark beside each electrolytic, and which chip each one sits next to.
  3. Read each sleeve, turning the part gently if needed.
  4. Keep the table with the photographs.

Replacement procedure

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  1. Remove the cells, unplug the adaptor and both controllers.
  2. Open the case after finding all its fixings.
  3. Replace one capacitor at a time with the same capacitance, the same or a higher voltage, 105 °C and the same lead spacing, observing polarity.
  4. Check for solder bridges, then test on a colour television before closing the case.
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  • Temperature-controlled soldering iron, desoldering pump or braid, flux, isopropyl alcohol.
  • Multimeter; capacitance or ESR meter.
  • Radial electrolytics from a known maker (Nichicon, Panasonic, Rubycon or similar), 105 °C.

See Recommended Tools.

Checks after recapping

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After recapping a Telstar Colormatic
Check Expected Source
Supply 9 V DC [3]
AY-3-8500 pin 4 to pin 2 +6 to +7 V [5]
AY-3-8500 pin 17 2.012160 MHz ±1% [5]
Picture Each game on its own background colour [2]
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References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 David Winter, Pong-Story, "Coleco Telstar Colormatic" (retrieved 2026-10-18): model 6130, released in 1977; the same as the Telstar Alpha with two differences: separate controllers in place of fixed knobs, and a colour picture produced with Texas Instruments' SN76499N; woodgrain-style finish; photographs of the console, its two controllers and switch box, and a unit missing its battery cover.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Arcade-History, "Telstar Colormatic [Model 6130"] (retrieved 2026-10-19): model 6130, 1977; two detachable paddles with dials; General Instruments AY-3-8500 and Texas Instruments SN76499N; a different background colour for each game; on-board speaker with three sounds; game selection, difficulty and on/off switches and a reset button; "the first Coleco console with detached controllers and color graphics".
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Photograph by Sintegrity, File:Telstar Colormatic (1977) (9).jpg (CC BY-SA 4.0, from Wikimedia Commons), read at full size: rear label "USE ONLY COLECO No. 6041 200 MA 9 VOLT AC ADAPTOR (IN YELLOW BOX)" beside the adapter socket.
  4. ↑ "Telstar Colormatic from Coleco", in "Video Games", Video buyer's guide, Winter 1978, p. 18, Internet Archive scan (retrieved 2026-10-19): Model 6130; a different colour field for each game on a colour set; tennis, hockey, handball and jai-alai, played through remote control units; beeps for scoring, paddle contact and side rebounds; six "C" batteries, not included; automatic serve; beginner, intermediate and professional ball speed and paddle control; weighs 2½ pounds and measures 13 × 6½ × 7½ in (w/h/d); suggested retail price $29.95.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 General Instrument, GIMINI TV Game Circuits, January 1978, pp. 4-6 and 12, File:General Instrument GIMINI TV Game Circuits (January 1978).pdf: AY-3-8500 standard conditions VCC +6 to +7 V; clock 2.012160 MHz ±1%; System Diagram 1 (black and white) with a 10 µF electrolytic across VCC, 0.1 µF on each bat input, 0.2 µF in the sound driver, 0.01 µF on reset and 75 pF in the 2 MHz oscillator; Fig. 10, a VHF modulator "used in the lab for test purposes", with capacitors from 10 pF to 0.02 µF.
  6. ↑ General Instrument, GIMINI TV Game Circuits, January 1978, pp. 5 and 25, File:General Instrument GIMINI TV Game Circuits (January 1978).pdf: the AY-3-8515 colour converter runs from a 3.57 MHz crystal with a 3-15 pF trimmer and 10 pF capacitor, and has a hue adjustment potentiometer.


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