Overview:

The JagLink 2 is simply a three port hub. Two of the ports have RJ11-4 (telephone style) connectors, while the third port has a card-edge connector. These three ports are used as follows:

• RJ11-4 (telephone style) ports: These two ports are used to either interface to official JagLinks or interface to other JagLink 2s.
• Card-Edge port: This port is used to connect to the DSP port on the back of the Jaguar console. Additionally, it is through this port that the JagLink 2 receives power.

Features:

• Fully compatible with the original (official) JagLink.
• Allows networking of 2 to N Jaguars in a daisy-chained network. The JagLink 2 repowers all signals at each Jaguar and thus imposes no physical upper limit on the number of Jaguars that can be networked together.
• Compatible with all currently available Jaguar games the support networking (AirCars, BattleSphere, and Doom).

Pictures:

Game Compatiblity:

The JagLink 2 is compatible with all Jaguar network-ready games. This includes:

• Aircars (up to 8 Jaguars)
• BattleSphere (up to 16 Jaguars)
• Doom (up to 2 Jaguars)

Hooking Multiple JagLink 2s Together

As already mentioned, multiple JagLink 2s may be hooked together. When doing so, it is necessary to hook them together in a daisy-chained fashion. They should not be hooked together in a circular or "ring" fashion (doing so won't harm anything, but the network won't work).

So this means:

• 1 JagLink 2 will allow you to network 3 Jaguars*
• 2 JagLink 2s will allow you to network 4 Jaguars*
• 3 JagLink 2s will allow you to network 5 Jaguars*
• etc.

* When used with an original JagLink, which you must supply. Since the JagLink 2 is compatible with the original JagLink, the end units of the daisy-chain may use either an orginal JagLink or a JagLink 2 (because end Jaguars only need a single connection).

Unused JagLink 2 Ports

Any unused JagLink 2 ports may be left empty. No termination is required.

The Catbox

The JagLink 2 is compatible with the Catbox in two ways:

• Using the DSP pass through port
• Using the RS232 port (you will need to fabricate your own DB9 to RJ11 cable)

The JagLink 2 is not compatible with the Catbox CatNet ports.

How to Wire a Catbox to JagLink 1 or JagLink 2 Cable:

Pricing:

$30.00, plus $3.85 shipping within the USA (shipping to other countries will vary). Included with this are:

• 1 JagLink 2 interface.
• 1 JagLink 2 instruction sheet.

To keep costs down and rather than assume everyone will want the same length, a 4-wire telephone cable is not included.

Appendix A - Pinout:

The pinout is similar to the original JagLink:

Appendix B - Programming Requirements for Future Games:

There are a couple of programming requirements that are needed for future games to be compatible with the JagLink 2:

1. The Jaguar's UART must be set to operate with "active low" polarity rather than "active high" polarity. All currently available network compatible games (AirCars, Battlesphere, and Doom) operate in this way.
2. Depending on the number of Jaguars in the network, half-duplex communication may be required:
   1. When more than two Jaguars are networked together, it is software's responsibility to insure that only one Jaguar is transmitting at at time (i.e. half-duplex). If more than one Jaguar transmits at the same time, garbled data will result (however, no physical harm will occur).
   2. When only two Jaguars are networked together either full-duplex or half-duplex may be used.
3. The bug documented in the Jaguar's UART is still valid and must still be coded around by software.