Atari Jaguar CD
| Atari Jaguar CD | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Atari Jaguar CD unit | |
| Manufacturer | Atari Corporation |
| Type | CD-ROM add-on for the Atari Jaguar |
| Release date | 21 September 1995[1] |
| Price | US$149.95[1] |
| Interface | Jaguar cartridge slot, with a pass-through cartridge slot on top[1][2] |
| Compatible | Atari Jaguar |
| Model | Main board assembly 700037[3] |
| Power | Own 9 V DC adaptor, interchangeable with the console's[2][4] |
| Media | 8 cm and 12 cm discs; Jaguar CD games, audio CD, CD+G[2] |
The Atari Jaguar CD is a CD drive add-on for the Atari Jaguar console, released by Atari Corporation on 21 September 1995 at US$149.95. It plugs into the console's cartridge slot and has its own pass-through slot for cartridges.[1]
History
[edit | edit source]Atari announced a CD drive for the Jaguar before the console went on sale in November 1993. Developed under the codename Jaguar II, it was meant for the 1994 Christmas season and was delayed several times. The unit was bundled with Blue Lightning, Vid Grid, the Tempest 2000 soundtrack CD and a Myst demo disc.[1] Atari abandoned the Jaguar in November 1995, two months after the drive's release.[5]
Hardware
[edit | edit source]
The Jaguar CD is a double-speed drive.[1] Graeme Hinchliffe identified the transport as a Philips CDM12.1; a supplier's gallery he used lists it as a CDM12.0.[6] The transport sits in a plastic cradle on four rubber suspension mounts, clipped to the main board, with a spindle motor, a sled motor and a limit switch wired to the board through a six-wire plug and the laser on a flat cable.[7][8]
Evan-Amos's photograph of a main board marked "ATARI Jaguar CD ROM Drive ASSY 700037", labelled Rev. E, shows a Philips SAA7345GP and TDA1301T, a TDA1302T, two TDA7073AT chips, two LM2941T regulators, an NM27C020 EPROM, an Atari ASIC marked 500490 V2.0, and the power socket and pass-through cartridge connector.[3]
Jaguar CD games use a proprietary disc format based on the audio CD format, not on standard CD-ROM data formats. A disc holds up to 790 MB, at the cost of weaker error correction.[1] The unit contains Jeff Minter's Virtual Light Machine, which displays light patterns to audio CDs.[1][2]
Power
[edit | edit source]The CD unit is powered by its own adaptor plugged into its own socket, and Atari's guide says the console and CD adaptors are interchangeable. If the unit has no power, the console shows a picture of the back of the CD unit with an arrow pointing to the socket.[2]
Memory Track
[edit | edit source]The Memory Track cartridge plugs into the pass-through slot and gives Jaguar CD games 128 K of EEPROM for saved games and settings.[5]
Common faults
[edit | edit source]- Discs that do not spin, from a bent lid switch contact, a platter that has crept down the motor spindle, or a seized spindle motor.[9][10][6]
- Loud clicking at power-on from a broken limit-switch wire.[11]
- Weak reading, cured by a new transport.[12]
See the Atari Jaguar CD Troubleshooting Guide and Atari Jaguar CD Laser Replacement.
Documentation
[edit | edit source]- Jaguar CD Multimedia Player user's guide, Atari, 1995. Described on Atari Jaguar Documentation.
Related pages
[edit | edit source]- Atari Jaguar CD General Maintenance
- Atari Jaguar CD Troubleshooting Guide
- Atari Jaguar CD Capacitor Replacement Guide
- Atari Jaguar CD Laser Replacement
- Atari Jaguar
- Atari Jaguar Documentation
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Wikipedia, "Atari Jaguar CD", revision of 24 August 2026: "History" and "Technicals". Used for dates, price, bundle, speed and disc format.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Atari Corporation, Atari Jaguar CD Multimedia Player User's Guide, 1995: assembling (p. 6), using cartridges and playing games (p. 7), VLM (pp. 12-13), care (p. 14). Hosted here as File:Atari Jaguar CD Multimedia Player User's Guide (1995).pdf.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Evan-Amos, photograph of the Jaguar CD main board, 20 June 2014. Hosted here as File:Atari Jaguar CD main board (700037 Rev E).jpg.
- ↑ Evan-Amos, photograph of the Atari Jaguar/Jaguar CD adaptor model PP-912 and its label, 20 June 2014. Hosted here as File:Atari Jaguar power supply (PP-912).jpg.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Wikipedia, "Atari Jaguar", revision of 10 September 2026: "History" and "Jaguar CD".
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Graeme Hinchliffe, "Replacing Atari Jaguar CD Unit Laser Transport - Introduction", 2002. Personal repair guide.
- ↑ Graeme Hinchliffe, "Replacing Atari Jaguar CD Unit Laser Transport - page 3", 2002. Personal repair guide.
- ↑ Graeme Hinchliffe, "Replacing Atari Jaguar CD Unit Laser Transport - page 4", 2002. Personal repair guide.
- ↑ James Jones (cubanismo), "Atari Jaguar CD - Disk Not Spinning/Bent Lid Switch Repair Guide". Personal repair guide.
- ↑ Graeme Hinchliffe, "Atari Jaguar CD Unit, Stuck Platter", 2002. Personal repair guide.
- ↑ Graeme Hinchliffe, "Atari Jaguar CD Unit Maintenance, Loud clicking noise", 2002. Personal repair guide.
- ↑ James Jones (cubanismo), "Atari Jaguar CD - Fix a Replacement Transport with a Black Platter/Weak Magnet". Personal repair guide.
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