Best regular Dreamcast console version? (CD-R Use)

[nnorton44]

I am looking to add a DC to my living room and I am wondering what the best regular Dreamcast models are for playing emulators/games from a CD-R. I have read some DC do not read CD-R so well. The store has a few systems and I want to choose the most compatible one.

[BrianC]

They'll all work fine as long as you don't get the Revision 2 (circle with 2 on the back of it, and some people claim that certain variations of the 2 can play CD-Rs, just in case avoid 2's though). Anyways, emulation kind of sucks on the DC and is extremely easy and convenient on the PC and even a lot of cell phones if you don't mind shit controls and basically being limited to RPG's.

[CD AGES]

Good advice there BrianC. I actually have 2 model (2) DC units and one play backups fine while the other refuses to read any mil-cd of any kind. Addtionally, model (2) DC's have a unique GD rom drive that appears to be incompatible with model (0) & (1) untis which are built with a daughterboard. The latter consoles have GD rom drives that can be interchanged.

[nnorton44]

Okay Ill make sure I do not get model (2).

[CD AGES]

Good call! Another major way of knowing its a model (2) console aside from the looking at the manufacturing sticker is by the weight of the unit. Due to the lack of a daughterboard, it's very light.

[nnorton44]

Okay so one more question for you guys....are all the system cases the same? Say my black console dies, rather then finding another one could I get a cheap (0) or (1) white console and dump its guts into the black case?


Oh yeah also whats up with the daughterboard? Why was it dropped from the system? My guess would be they shrunk the mfg process and integrated it elsewhere. Just want to educate myself more on DC hardware...