Intellivision II
 | |
| The Intellivision II (model 5872) with its detachable hand controllers (Evan-Amos, CC BY-SA 3.0) | |
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Mattel Electronics |
| Type | Home video game console |
| Released | 1983[1] |
| Intro price | US$150 (1983)[1] |
| CPU | General Instrument CP1610, 16-bit[2] |
| Memory | RA-3-9600 system RAM; four 2114L static RAMs (U7, U8, U12, U13)[3] |
| Storage | ROM cartridge, 44-pin connector[3] |
| Display | Television through the built-in RF modulator, channel 3 or 4[4] |
| Sound | AY-3-8914 programmable sound generator, three channels[2][3] |
| Graphics | AY-3-8900-1 STIC with AY-3-8915 colour chip; 192 × 160 picture elements, 16 colours[2][3] |
| ROM | RO-3-9506 program ROM (U3); RO-3-9503 graphics ROM (U5)[3] |
| Input | Two detachable hand controllers on 9-pin connectors[5] |
| Power | External wall-mounted transformer, 120 V AC to 16 V AC[5] |
| Dimensions | 10 × 6¾ × 3 in (W × D × H)[2] |
| Weight | 2.3 lb (console alone)[2] |
| OS / Firmware | — |
| Predecessor | Intellivision |
| Model no. | 5872 |
The Intellivision II is Mattel Electronics' cost-reduced redesign of the Intellivision Master Component, introduced in the spring of 1983.[1] Mattel's service manual calls it model 5872. It uses the same General Instrument chipset as the original, the CP1610 processor, the AY-3-8900-1 STIC, the AY-3-8915 colour chip and the AY-3-8914 sound generator, on a single logic board with a plug-in power supply board above it. The mains transformer moved out of the case into a wall-mounted unit, and the hand controllers became detachable.[5][3]
Mattel's Service Manual for model 5872 covers testing, disassembly, troubleshooting by test point and symptom, adjustments and the logic board parts list. It treats the power supply board as one replaceable part.[5][3] Care is on Intellivision II General Maintenance, fault-finding on the Intellivision II Troubleshooting Guide, and capacitors on the Intellivision II Capacitor Replacement Guide.
History
[edit | edit source]Mattel designed the Intellivision II to be cheaper to make and to service. It has a smaller case and longer controller cords than the original, and launched at US$150 without a pack-in game; later US units came with BurgerTime and Canadian units with Lock 'n' Chase. After Mattel Electronics stopped new hardware development in August 1983 the price was cut to $69. Digiplay sold an Intellivision II in Brazil from 1984. INTV Corporation, which bought the Intellivision business in 1984, first sold off the remaining stock of Intellivision II consoles.[1]
Compatibility changes
[edit | edit source]The cartridge port gained a video input, added for the System Changer accessory that plays Atari 2600 cartridges through the Intellivision.[1] Larry Anderson's Intellivision FAQ notes that only the Intellivision II works with the System Changer without modification.[6]
Mattel also changed the executive program in the internal ROM. A few early Coleco cartridges, and Mattel's own Electric Company Word Fun, do not run on the Intellivision II, and Super Pro Football shows a minor glitch.[1] Wikipedia says the sound chip was also changed, to an AY-3-8914A or AY-3-8916, with small differences in some sound effects; Mattel's service manual parts list names the AY-3-8914.[1][3] A 2022 restoration found that an Intellivision II "doesn't run all of the games due to a change in the ROM", and that the STIC and CPU taken from one worked in an original console.[7]
How the console is built
[edit | edit source].png)
Mattel lists these parts of the system:[5]
- The console assembly: the ON/OFF/RESET switch, the power supply board, the logic board and the two hand controllers.
- The power supply board, which converts the AC from the wall transformer into the DC supplies. It also senses the ON/OFF/RESET button and switches the console on or off. Mattel describes it as a switching regulator that varies the duty cycle of a square wave to hold its outputs constant. It connects to the logic board through a 10-pin connector and is held on standoffs above it by three screws.[8]
- The logic board, with 12 integrated circuits, the channel select switch, the RF modulator, the 44-pin cartridge connector and two 9-pin connectors for the hand controllers.
- The hand controllers, each with a printed circuit matrix, a numeric keypad, two pairs of side buttons and a 16-position disc. They unplug where the coiled cord meets the console.[4]
- The wall-mounted transformer, which converts 120 V AC to 16 V AC and plugs into the console on a 2-wire cable.
The AC power jack and the 2 A fuse F1 are on the logic board; the logic board schematic routes the AC input through the fuse to the 10-pin power supply connector.[3][9] Steven Orth of INTV Funhouse notes that the Intellivision II has no metal housing around the logic board to refit after a repair, unlike the original.[10]
Integrated circuits
[edit | edit source]| Location | Device | Function | Mattel P/N |
|---|---|---|---|
| U1 | CP1610 | CPU | 0098-0520 |
| U2 | RA-3-9600 | System RAM | 0098-0530 |
| U3 | RO-3-9506 | Program ROM | 5872-0020 |
| U4 | AY-3-8900-1 | STIC | 0098-0640 |
| U5 | RO-3-9503 | Graphics ROM | 0098-0570 |
| U6 | AY-3-8914 | Sound | 0098-0660 |
| U7, U8, U12, U13 | 2114L | Static RAM | 0098-0710 |
| U9 | LAD (custom) | – | 5872-0010 |
| U10 | AY-3-8915 | Colour | 0098-0680 |
From Mattel's parts list, which also lists 40-pin sockets for U1, U2 and U4 only.[3] Compared with the original model's list, it has one program ROM (RO-3-9506) where model 2609 has the RO-3-9502 and RO-3-9504, four 2114L RAMs where model 2609 has three 3539s, and the custom U9 where model 2609 has six TTL packages (U11 and U13 to U17).[3][11]
Power supply
[edit | edit source]| Test point | Expected |
|---|---|
| TP1 to TP2 | 16–20 V AC (transformer input) |
| TP3 | Ground |
| TP4 | −2.10 to −2.40 V DC |
| TP5 | +5.45 to +5.95 V DC |
| TP6 | +11.5 to +12.5 V DC |
| TP7 | +4.85 to +5.15 V DC |
| TP8 | Control: about +21 V DC with the console off, +5 V on, 0 V while reset is pressed |
From Mattel's Figure 6 and troubleshooting flowchart.[12] The logic board schematic labels the supplies arriving on the 10-pin connector as +5 V, +12 V, +5.7 V and −2.25 V.[9]
The transformer is a separate item (Mattel part 5872-9629). Mattel's check is 16–20 V AC between the centre and the outer sleeve of its concentric plug.[3][12] Wikipedia gives the adapter as 16.2 V AC.[1] Many consoles turn up without one: the FAQ's contributor William Moeller found that the Intellivision II units he collected were all missing their power supplies, and the restoration cited above bought one sold without it.[6][7]
Hand controllers
[edit | edit source]The detachable controllers plug into 9-pin connectors P4A and P4B on the logic board.[3] Unlike the original controller, the Intellivision II controller has no screws: Moeller describes a top cover held by plastic hooks in five places and a base held at four more, says he usually breaks some of the base hooks when opening one, and notes a circular plastic spacer between the layers of the membrane.[6] Details are on Intellivision II General Maintenance.
Maintenance and repair
[edit | edit source]Service documentation
[edit | edit source]- Intellivision II Service Manual: Mattel's Service Manual, model 5872 (PDF).
Related pages
[edit | edit source]- Intellivision
- Intellivision II General Maintenance
- Intellivision II Troubleshooting Guide
- Intellivision II Capacitor Replacement Guide
- Intellivoice
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Wikipedia, "Intellivision", revision of 5 October 2026, sections "Intellivision II", "Mattel Electronics" and "Technical specifications": introduction in spring 1983, smaller footprint, longer cords, pack-in games, $150 launch price and $69 price cut, Digiplay version, INTV Corporation stock, System Changer video input, Exec changes and affected cartridges, sound chip variants, 16.2 V AC adapter. Used for history and dates.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Mattel Electronics, Service Manual, Intellivision II model 5872, "Specifications", p. 1: CP-1610 CPU, three-channel PSG, 16 colours, 192 × 160 picture elements, 120 V AC 60 Hz, 10 × 6¾ × 3 in, 2.3 lb console alone. File:Mattel Intellivision II Service Manual Model 5872.pdf.
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 Mattel Electronics, Service Manual, model 5872, parts list, pp. 21 and 23: ICs U1–U13, sockets for U1, U2 and U4, 10-pin power supply connector, 44-pin connector J1, 9-pin connectors P4A and P4B, AC jack, fuse F1 2.0 A, power supply board 5872-9539, wall-mounted transformer 5872-9629. File:Mattel Intellivision II Service Manual Model 5872.pdf.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Mattel Electronics, Service Manual, model 5872, operating instructions, pp. 2–3: RF channel select switch at the back; hand controllers unplug where the coiled cord meets the console; ON/OFF/RESET button. File:Mattel Intellivision II Service Manual Model 5872.pdf.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Mattel Electronics, Service Manual, model 5872, "System Description and Operation", pp. 5–8: console assembly, switching-regulator power supply board on a 10-pin connector, logic board with 12 ICs, hand controllers, 16 V AC wall-mounted transformer. File:Mattel Intellivision II Service Manual Model 5872.pdf.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Larry Anderson, Intellivision FAQ, section 7, "Repair tips and information": 7.6, "Fixing INTV II Controllers" (contributed by William Moeller), and 7.7 (System Changer note), 1995–1996, hosted at INTV Funhouse (retrieved 2026-10-19).
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Repairing the Intellivision: Vintage Gaming Console", SaskaPriest, 29 March 2022, saskapriest.com (retrieved 2026-10-19).
- ↑ Mattel Electronics, Service Manual, model 5872, "Disassembly Procedure", p. 9. File:Mattel Intellivision II Service Manual Model 5872.pdf.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Mattel Electronics, Service Manual, model 5872, Figure 8, schematic diagram, p. 25 (fold-out; PDF p. 26). File:Mattel Intellivision II Service Manual Model 5872.pdf.
- ↑ Steven A. Orth, "Repairing the Intellivision's Power Supply Ribbon Cable", INTV Funhouse, updated 3 November 2018 (retrieved 2026-10-19): the metal housing around the logic board is not present on the Intellivision II.
- ↑ Mattel Electronics, Service Manual, Intellivision model 2609, logic board parts list, pp. 6-7 and 6-8. File:Mattel Intellivision Service Manual Model 2609.pdf.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Mattel Electronics, Service Manual, model 5872, troubleshooting procedure, pp. 12–13, and Figure 6, p. 19. File:Mattel Intellivision II Service Manual Model 5872.pdf.