Mattel Aquarius Documentation
Hosted documents for the Mattel Aquarius: the owner's manual in Mattel's edition and in a transcription of Radofin's, Mattel's Simplified Instruction Cards, the Extended BASIC instructions, the instructions for the Mini Expander, redrawn schematics of the main board and the Mini Expander, and two pages of Mattel's 1983 catalogue.
| Document | Publisher and reference | Pages | File |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aquarius Guide to Home Computing (scan) | Mattel Electronics, 5931-0240-G1, 1982 | 204 | |
| Aquarius Guide to Home Computing (retyped transcription) | Radofin Electronics (Far East) Ltd, 5931-0038R-1, 1983 | 69 | |
| Aquarius Home Computer System Simplified Instruction Cards | Mattel Electronics, 5931-0250-G3, 1982 | 18 | |
| Extended Microsoft BASIC Cartridge Instructions (retyped transcription) | Mattel Electronics; transcribed 2009 | 43 | |
| Aquarius Mini Expander instructions | Mattel Electronics, 4063-0920, 1982 | 8 | |
| Aquarius Motherboard v1-1-0 Rev D schematic | Sean P. Harrington and Mack Wharton, 30 April 2022, GPL version 3 | 1 sheet (A1) | |
| Aquarius Mini Expander v1-1-0 Rev C schematic | Sean P. Harrington, 14 February 2021, GPL version 3 | 1 sheet (A2) | |
| The Aquarius Spectrum of Choice catalogue, cover and Aquarius II page | Mattel Electronics, 1983 | 2 images | cover, page |
Aquarius Guide to Home Computing
[edit | edit source]Mattel's owner's manual for the US machine, "All you need to know about using your Aquarius Home Computer System", © Mattel, Inc. 1982, publication 5931-0240-G1, printed in Hong Kong.[1] The scan has 204 pages. It opens with "Key points for trouble free use of your Aquarius Home Computer System" (stand it on a firm surface so that the vents underneath work, keep fingers out of the cartridge port, protect it from heat, fit the dust cover, switch off and unplug the transformer when not in use), the introduction and a quick tour of the computer, then eleven chapters on BASIC, with chapter 3 on saving and loading programs on cassette, a reference section of keywords, an appendix of error messages and codes, and practice programs.[1]
Radofin's international edition, 5931-0038R-1 (© 1983), is hosted as a retyped transcription. Its inside cover explains that each machine was built for one country's television channels and lists the models: PAL I, 240 V and channel E-36 (UHF 36) for the United Kingdom; PAL B, 220 V and channels E3 or E4 for Germany, Scandinavia, the Benelux countries, Switzerland, Austria and Spain; SECAM, 220 V and E-36 for France; NTSC, 110 V and channels 3 or 4 for Canada; PAL B, 240/250 V and channels 0 or 1 for Australia; NTSC, 100 V and channels 1 or 2 for Japan.[2]
What the manual does not contain: any circuit description, schematic, parts list or service procedure. Hardware coverage is limited to set-up and the connection of peripherals.
Download: Aquarius Guide to Home Computing (Mattel, 1982).pdf (scan); Aquarius Guide to Home Computing (Radofin edition, retyped).pdf (transcription)
Instruction cards
[edit | edit source]A spiral-bound set of A5 cards packed with the computer, "Illustrations: © Mattel, Inc. 1982", printed in Hong Kong, publication 5931-0250-G3.[3] The scan has 18 pages: the cover, sixteen numbered cards and the back cover. Contents by card number (PDF page in brackets):[3]
- 1 (2): keyboard and overlay; the CTL key and the BASIC keywords printed on the overlay.
- 2 (3): "Meet Aquarius", the special keys, the cartridge port, the power light and the power switch.
- 3 (4): "The Aquarius Connection", a drawing of the back panel: cartridge port, printer cable jack, data recorder cable jack, channel selector, TV cable jack and the power cord ending in a plug-in transformer.
- 4 and 5 (5-6): set-up with the antenna switch box, twin-lead and coaxial aerials, the channel 3/4 switch and the order for switching on.
- 6 to 13 (7-14): first programs, graphics characters, the colour codes and a cheque-book program.
- 14 (15): editing features.
- 15 (16): troubleshooting tips: blank screen, bad TV picture, error messages.
- 16 (17): service telephone numbers in the USA.
What the cards do not contain: any hardware detail beyond the back-panel drawing, power supply ratings, or service information.
Download: Aquarius Simplified Instruction Cards.pdf
Extended BASIC instructions
[edit | edit source]A transcription of Mattel's instructions for the Extended Microsoft BASIC cartridge, typed and converted to HTML by iGame3D and Retro-Zone Dean in 2009.[4] Nine chapters cover the line editor (EDIT), screen co-ordinates and colour, LINE, CIRCLE and DRAW, LOCATE, GET and PUT for animation, MENU and DEF FN. The Mattel Aquarius II has this BASIC built into ROM.[4]
What it does not contain: any hardware information about the cartridge.
Download: Aquarius Extended BASIC Cartridge Instructions (retyped).pdf
Mini Expander instructions
[edit | edit source]Mattel's eight-page leaflet for the Mini Expander, item 4063-0920, "Illustrations: © Mattel, Inc. 1982", printed in Hong Kong.[5] It covers the contents of the box (the Mini Expander and two hand controllers, each with a detachable coiled cord), fitting the Mini Expander to the Aquarius cartridge port with the computer switched off, connecting the controllers, the front program and game port and the back memory port, the 4K and 16K memory cartridges (giving 8K and 20K in total), the 16-position disc and six action buttons, and Mattel's 90-day limited warranty and service numbers.[5]
What it does not contain: a schematic, the sound chip's part number, or any repair information.
Download: Aquarius Mini Expander Instructions.pdf
Main board schematic (recreation)
[edit | edit source]A single A1 sheet from Harrington and Wharton's open-source like-for-like replacement for the Aquarius main board, drawn from the NTSC board, Radofin part number 5931-4229 A. PAL-only and NTSC-only parts are marked, and PAL values are given where they differ.[6] The sheet covers the Z80, the two PLAs, ROMs and RAM, the expansion port, keyboard and printer interfaces, the cassette port, the TEA1002 video encoder and RF modulator connections, and the power system.[7]
What it does not contain: original Radofin designators. The authors renumbered many resistors and capacitors, and corrected values from the 1986 "MEKO" schematic, which was drawn from a PAL board.[6] It is a redrawing, not a Mattel or Radofin document. The matching bill of materials is in the project's GitHub repository.[6]
Download: Aquarius Motherboard v1-1-0 Rev D Schematic.pdf
Mini Expander schematic (recreation)
[edit | edit source]A single A2 sheet from Harrington's open-source recreation of the Mini Expander: the edge connector to the Aquarius, 74LS244 address buffers, address decoding, the AY-3-8910 sound and I/O chip, the two control pad connectors, the sound mixing transistor, the front and rear cartridge ports and the supply filter.[8] Harrington checked it against Radofin's original schematic and corrected minor discrepancies from an actual board; his recreation adds solder jumpers and an I/O header that the original does not have.[8]
Download: Aquarius Mini Expander v1-1-0 Rev C Schematic.pdf
1983 catalogue
[edit | edit source]Two pages of Mattel Electronics' 1983 Aquarius catalogue, The Aquarius Spectrum of Choice: the cover, showing the Mattel Aquarius II in front of the Aquarius, and the page describing the Aquarius II, the 4-Color Printer and the 4K and 16K memory cartridges.[9]
-
Catalogue cover, 1983 -
Aquarius II, 4-Color Printer and memory cartridges
.jpg)
.jpg)
Other documents online
[edit | edit source]The Internet Archive holds manuals for the Aquarius Data Recorder, the thermal printer and the 4-Color Printer.[10]
Pages that cite these documents
[edit | edit source]- Mattel Aquarius: back panel, set-up, power section, export versions.
- Mattel Aquarius Troubleshooting Guide, Mattel Aquarius General Maintenance and Mattel Aquarius II General Maintenance: the Guide to Home Computing's care instructions, reset key and switch-off order.
- Mattel Aquarius General Maintenance: back panel, TV channel set-up, regulator and power section.
- Mattel Aquarius Troubleshooting Guide: Mattel's troubleshooting tips, the power circuit and supply rails.
- Mattel Aquarius Capacitor Replacement Guide: capacitor positions in the circuit.
- Mattel Aquarius II: the 1983 catalogue.
- Mattel Aquarius Mini-Expander: the Mini Expander instructions and recreated schematic.
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Mattel Electronics, Aquarius Guide to Home Computing, 5931-0240-G1 (1982). Scan from the Internet Archive item aquarius-guide-home-computing, hosted here as File:Aquarius Guide to Home Computing (Mattel, 1982).pdf: cover, "Key points for trouble free use" and table of contents.
- ↑ Radofin Electronics (Far East) Ltd, Aquarius Guide to Home Computing, 5931-0038R-1 (1983). Retyped transcription from the Internet Archive item AquariusGuideToHomeComputing, hosted here as File:Aquarius Guide to Home Computing (Radofin edition, retyped).pdf: inside cover, table of countries, TV systems, voltages and channels.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Mattel Electronics, Aquarius Home Computer System Simplified Instruction Cards, 5931-0250-G3 (1982). Scan from the Internet Archive item aquarius-simplified-instruction-cards, hosted here as File:Aquarius Simplified Instruction Cards.pdf.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Mattel Aquarius Extended Microsoft Basic Cartridge Instructions, transcription by iGame3D and Retro-Zone Dean (2009), from the Internet Archive item aquariusextendedbasicinstructions, hosted here as File:Aquarius Extended BASIC Cartridge Instructions (retyped).pdf: table of contents and chapter 1.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Mattel Electronics, Aquarius Mini Expander instructions, 4063-0920 (1982). Scan from the Internet Archive item mini-expander-manual-aquarius-1982, hosted here as File:Aquarius Mini Expander Instructions.pdf.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Sean P. Harrington and Mack Wharton, Aquarius Motherboard 1-1-0 (GitHub, retrieved 2026-10-19), README and bill of materials: NTSC board, Radofin part 5931-4229 A; components renumbered; the 1986 "MEKO" schematic drawn from a PAL board; PAL and NTSC differences marked; GPL version 3.
- ↑ Sean P. Harrington and Mack Wharton, Aquarius Motherboard v1-1-0 Rev D schematic, 30 April 2022, hosted here as File:Aquarius Motherboard v1-1-0 Rev D Schematic.pdf.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Sean P. Harrington, Aquarius Mini Expander v1-1-0 Rev C schematic, 14 February 2021, hosted here as File:Aquarius Mini Expander v1-1-0 Rev C Schematic.pdf, and the project README on GitHub (retrieved 2026-10-19).
- ↑ Mattel Electronics, The Aquarius Spectrum of Choice (1983 catalogue), Internet Archive item aqbrochure, files "AQ AQII.jpg" and "AQII.jpg" (retrieved 2026-10-19).
- ↑ Internet Archive items aquarius-data-recorder-full-manual, aquarius-thermal-printer-manual and aquarius-4-color-printer-manual-mattel (retrieved 2026-10-19).