Proper way to end a Sega Saturn game and power down?

[retrofuture]

Anyone have their Saturn instruction manual? I never had one and I just looked all over for a PDF or transcriptions. It would totally help out if you could look up the official procedure and report it word for word here. I will worship you!

From the manual:

Ending a Session

1. Press the RESET button while holding down Button A.
2. Press the OPEN button to open the CD door and take out the CD.

Note: Before you remove the CD, check that the CD Control screen appears (which means the CD has stopped spinning and is safe to remove from the Sega Staurn)

I uploaded it for you.

http://rapidshare.com/files/128774846/H ... S.pdf.html

MEGA THANKS!!! You're a real hero, like a kidney donor for my Saturn.

EDIT:


I'm returning the favor. For all the people wondering about the Dreamcast--the text I've transcribed below comes from the manual. This is the official and therefore only way you should handle your DC when it comes to turning off and resetting it. HEED THIS:

ENDING A GAME


1 Press the OPEN button to open the disc door.
Make sure the disc has stopped spinning completely
2 Remove the disc.
Put your index finger or middle finger in the center hole of the disc, then gently lift up the edge of the disc with your thumb
3 Close the disc door and press the POWER button to turn off the power.


Changing Discs
To change discs and continue playing games, shut the disc door without turning off the power after exchanging discs. Certain games may encompass more than one disc. Follow directions in the game to exchange discs during gameplay.

Caution
-Opening the disc door after the Dreamcast power is turned off is extremely dangerous, since the disc will continue spinning at high speed without the brake to slow it down.
-Be sure to follow the proper procedure when removing a disc.
-Do not press down forcefully on the disc drive hub. Doing so may result in personal injury or damage the Dreamcast.
-----------------
RESETTING
If the A Button, B Button, X Button, Y Button and Start Button are all pressed at the same time, the game in progress will be stopped and the game title screen or the main menu will be displayed.
If you are using a Sega authorized controller which does not have these buttons, see the operating manual which came with your controller.

If a game is in progress
The game will stop and the game title will be displayed.

If the game title screen is displayed
The main menu (see page 13) will be displayed.

Notes
-You cannot reset the Dreamcast while game data is being saved or while the disc is being accessed.
-The game data of the game in progress will NOT be saved if you reset during gameplay.

That's the end of the text from page 15 of the manual. Here's one more important thing I found out (credit goes to some random guy on the internet, another champ. He calls VMUs "VDUs" though--don't ask me why):

"If you're concerned about making sure your Dreamcast lasts a long, long time, there one thing you should pay attention to is to never, ever, ever plug in or unplug controllers or VDUs while the machine is on. The Dreamcast's MAPLE I/O chip is especially fragile about this; it was (according to my friend at Sega QA) the number one cause of broken consoles at Sega. One of my kids killed a Dreamcast by carefully unplugging a controller while the machine was on."

I think this needs thread needs to be stickied. All this stuff needs to be common knowledge for people who are picking up used Dreamcasts and Saturns that may be on their last limbs/already improperly handled by their original owners, or even for people who chose not to read the manuals even though they have it! The best solution to any problem is prevention. This already provided information that most people wouldn't bother to read sure beats pseudo "know-how" like blowing on NES carts or wrapping up a Xbox 360 in a towel. Do things proper and don't make any guesses!

Now... anyone up for spilling the beans on the Sega CD?

[SpaceBooger]

I always just turned the power off of my DC and walked away...

[Ivo]

"Caution
-Opening the disc door after the Dreamcast power is turned off is extremely dangerous, since the disc will continue spinning at high speed without the brake to slow it down."

It's probably good advice, but still funny.

This thread is nice, I'd like to preserve my Saturn and DC for a long time.

[RyaNtheSlayA]

I always just turned the power off of my DC and walked away...

thats what i do with most of my systems, i would leave the controllers plugged in though after turning the system off but it makes for alot of wire clutter (unless of course you have wireless)

[Doctor Fugue]

Is pressing reset while holding A on a Saturn just the same as pushing all three buttons and start? I'm too lazy to go downstairs and try it I guess...

And for both systems, the main point seems to be using the drive's brakes to stop a disc before opening the tray or turning the system off. I've always done it that way, but isn't that wearing out the brake? The disc will eventually stop spinning if you are powering down the console (and not switching games).

Also, isn't the main difference between the Saturn and DC the fact that the DC's brake turns on upon opening the lid (even during a game), but the Saturn's brake does not function unless the lid is closed? I'm not sure since I haven't opened the lid on my Saturn during a game without going to the menu first in ten years.

[retrofuture]

And for both systems, the main point seems to be using the drive's brakes to stop a disc before opening the tray or turning the system off. I've always done it that way, but isn't that wearing out the brake?

Oh boy, one MORE thing for me to mull over! That's really something to contemplate though...Thanks for pointing it out.

I was browsing Dreamcast Scene and I found this: http://www.dreamcast-scene.com/index.php/Main/Shutdown

How to Shut off your Dreamcast

I know what you're saying, "it says power on this button right in front of my nose! what kind of a dumbass do you take me for!?"

Well for some it's that simple, but in order to even further the lifespan of your GDrom drive, you'll want to do a little extra in turning off your DC.

SO here's what you've been doing each time you play your Dreamcast: Hit power Button, play game, hit power button, live life, hit power button....

You'll notice when you turn off your dc, everything stops (duh). So the gdrom drive will stop dead in it's tracks. The problem is that onece you boot up again, the laser wont have immediate access to the start up data it needs, and will have to do some straining to find it.

Now, instead of simply turning off the dc, open the lid while it's on. The dc will go back to the bios screen, and the GDrom drive will reset back to the edge of the spindle, all set and ready to read those first bits of data on the next gdrom!

While you're at that bios screen, try hitting A+B+X+Y+START for and neat looking alternate bios menu

And that's it. This isn't really a MUST for dc owners, but if you're paranoid like we are, you'll do it everytime.

Here's to our dc's outliving our children!

DCS Team.

I've bolded the important part detailing why we should consider doing it by the book. In the end, they say the procedure is not a must. I can agree with that now since Doctor Fugue pointed out the whole brake issue. But hey, let's get more thoughts on this everybody, so far it's been really good.

[nick944]

It really does not matter. All consoles will die eventually, so you really shouldn't be too concerned with little things like turning the system off. The point is that it will have to be repaired sooner or later.

[Niode]

never did i say reset

Thanks for that Yoda.

Hmm, open disk drive you should, system power off you will.

[RyaNtheSlayA]

never did i say reset

Thanks for that Yoda.

Hmm, open disk drive you should, system power off you will.

lol

[Ziggy]

I really don't understand. On the Saturn, what the hell is the difference between holding A and pressing reset and just holding A, B, C and Start? Also, I don't get how restarting the system THEN turning it off would do anything, save for the fact that if you turn it off while loading the laser eye would be some where in the middle of the track from a forceful stop. If the game isn't loading anything, why can't I just press the power button? If you reset the console, the eye just has to check what kind of disc it is anyway, and move some more, before you turn it off. I really just don't get why Sega says to do that in the manual for.