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XEcuter 3 Flashing Bios


Albert
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Hi

 

I have bought a original xbox that as been modded with a xecuter3 chip with a Xapt3r 1.6 but it keeps asking to flash the bios i have no idea where to start can anyone give me any info on this please

I m not sure if i have put this in the correct forum this is all new to me

 

 

20170814_155958.jpg

20170814_160004.jpg

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Well, looks like the modchip is disabled from the picture just above.  The X3 logo is RED. The stock Xbox Dashboard has loaded ready to set the date/time as the Xbox has been unplugged too long and lost them.  (with a good clock cap 4-5 hours unplugged, bad clock cap v1.0-1.5 xbox instant loss)

If you press and hold the power button for >1sec the X3 will disable itself.  Power on with Eject and Power will boot the recovery BIOS (FlashBIOS 3.0.[1,3]).  A short tap on the power button should have the X3 logo BLUE (modchip enabled) and if you've not flashed the X3 BIOS to the modchip that's where you were with FlashBIOS 3.0.1 screen.

Select (Press A) to Enable Network Flashing.  You'll need to obtain a copy of the X3 BIOS from xbins ftp site or other site where it's available -- Eurasia.nu: X3 BIOS Build 3294.  Which .bin file to use depends on the Xbox version: X3 3294.bin for v1.0-1.5 or X3 3294 v16plus.bin for v1.6.  From the pics shown, you do not have a 1.6 Xbox as FlashBIOS 3.0.1 is working.  WIth a 1.6 Xbox, the screen would be blank -- requires FlashBIOS 3.0.3 instead.  Follow the on-screen instructions/information to upload via FTP to the address shown the correct dot bin file to flash the X3 modchip.

The front panel switches should be set to Bank 1 2 3 4 (ON ON OFF OFF) and Flash Protect (OFF).  

(OFF = button out, ON = button pressed in)

P.S. If the clock cap on a v1.0-1.5 Xbox is leaking electrolyte , it needs to be removed and the electrolyte mess cleaned up.  Q-tips and  91% isopropyl alcohol work then let the board thoroughly dry before connecting A/C and powering on.

Edited by KaosEngineer
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V1.6 Xbox with that mfg date.  There should be a Xyclops chip near the LPC debug port (no TSOP flash memory chip), no extra pad locations to add additional 64MB of DDR SDRAM, and a Xcalibur video encoder chip right behind the A/V interface port.

You'll need to use the X3 BIOS for a v1.6 Xbox:

   X3 3294 v16plus.bin 

The X3 modchip should have FlashBIOS 3.0.1 and FlashBIOS 3.0.3 BIOS's pre-flashed.  256KB banks 1,2,3,4 with 3.0.1 and 5,6,7,8 with 3.0.3.  Set the Bank select switches to boot from one of the 256KB Banks 5, 6, 7 or 8 else you'll generally have no video output.  Although, you did post a picture showing the FlashBIOS 3.0.1 startup screen. With the chip disabled, X3 logo RED, the Xbox is booting the stock BIOS.

X3 BANK SELECT SWITCH SETTINGS (1 2 3 4)

(On = pressed in position, Off = out position)

256k Bank
Bank 1: on on on on
Bank 2: off on on on
Bank 3: on off on on
Bank 4: off off on on
Bank 5: on on off on
Bank 6: off on off on
Bank 7: on off off on
Bank 8: off off off on


512k Bank
Bank 12: on on on off
Bank 34: off on on off
Bank 56: on off on off
Bank 78: off off on off


1MB Bank
Bank 1234: on on off off (Set to this when flashing first time with FlashBIOS)
Bank 5678: off on off off

2MB Bank
Bank 12345678: off off off off

After booting FlashBIOS 3.0.3, change the BANK switch positions to:

ON ON OFF OFF = BANK 1234 (1MB)

in preparation to flash the 1MB X3 BIOS file to the modchip.  Flash protect switch to OFF position too (Flash Protect LED RED).

Select (Press A button) on the FlashBIOS Network Flash option. An IP address should be the last line shown on the FlashBIOS screen.  Mine shows:

DHCP IP: 192.168.1.129/255.255.255.0

Open a web browser and enter the IP address into the address box.  A screen similar to the following should be displayed:

Xecuter FlashBIOS Network Flash 3.0.0 via HTTP.JPG

Follow the instructions on this web page.

1. Choose the file on your PC:  X3 3294 v16plus.bin

2. Click on Upload and Flash.  

X3 BIOS's Config Live screen should show up after the Xbox reboots.

599bf49c13ebf_X3ConfigLive.gif.a613e492e1d0e4178399c081ee21c504.gif

The Build will be 3294 nto 3029 as shown above.

That should be it for now!  However, one (1) step left, update the Recover BIOS to FlashBIOS 3.0.3. More on that later...

Edited by KaosEngineer
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Depends if the LED next to the switch is GREEN or RED.  RED is what you want but the flash protect switch on the X3CP may change that LED color too.  I don't have a X3CP to test only the X3 modchip not a X3CE which is a bit different.  My X3 PCB is RED in color not WHITE and has a different switch location.

There should be writing on the back of the chip about the setting of that switch.  Protected and Unprotected.  See page 13 of the attached X3CE hardware installation guide.

x3ce.pdf

Edited by KaosEngineer
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Hi

 

I just like to say thanks for the information and the help you have given me on this modded xbox.

 

I have read through the info and set the banks accordingly so now i have a working machine.

Do i need to do anything to the bios?

Also can i use the usb connection for inputting data?

20170826_165557.jpg

20170826_165721.jpg

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If the latest version 3924 is installed nothing to do there.  Only thing I was thinking of is since it's a 1.6 Xbox.  Most had problems getting FlashBIOS 3.0.1 running which is the recovery BIOS pre-flashed to the modchip.  It has a separate 256KB flash memory chip to hold it. Recovery BIOS loads by pressing both the Eject and Power buttons to power the  Xbox.  If you get a black screen instead of the FlashBIOS 3.0.3 screen, it needs to be updated. 

To enter the X3 Config LIve screen if you've not seen it already, press and hold the White button when powering on the Xbox until it appears.  There is a menu item to flash the Recovery BIOS (backup ROM) under Bios Tools, Upload the FlashBIOS 3.0.3.s dot bin file to the HDD (C, E, F,etc) to update/flash this BIOS (256KB in size).  Select the drive and subdirectory/file as the onscreen instructions show.

There's also an Xecuter X3 XBOX Modchip BIOS User's Manual online at http://x3.bustedchain.com. (Some menus may be different as it is based on the 3029 build)  

IIRC, DO NOT use Settings -> Password Protection feature it's broken. Doing so will lock you out without any way to get back in. A bug that was NEVER fixed before the Xbox 360 came out and Team Xecuter stopped updating the X3 BIOS. (There was some sort of x3_erase.xbe to fix it but .???)   P.S. There is mention of reflashing the BIOS may get rid of the password.  Haven't tried. The bug might have just been in older releases too.

Edited by KaosEngineer
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  • 1 month later...
On 8/27/2017 at 9:09 PM, KaosEngineer said:

If the latest version 3924 is installed nothing to do there.  Only thing I was thinking of is since it's a 1.6 Xbox.  Most had problems getting FlashBIOS 3.0.1 running which is the recovery BIOS pre-flashed to the modchip.  It has a separate 256KB flash memory chip to hold it. Recovery BIOS loads by pressing both the Eject and Power buttons to power the  Xbox.  If you get a black screen instead of the FlashBIOS 3.0.3 screen, it needs to be updated. 

<SNIP>

IIRC, DO NOT use Settings -> Password Protection feature it's broken. Doing so will lock you out without any way to get back in. A bug that was NEVER fixed before the Xbox 360 came out and Team Xecuter stopped updating the X3 BIOS. (There was some sort of x3_erase.xbe to fix it but .???)   P.S. There is mention of reflashing the BIOS may get rid of the password.  Haven't tried. The bug might have just been in older releases too.

Hi @KaosEngineer,

I am, unfortunately, in a similar boat... Unfortunate that in this case, as I believe my recovery FlashBIOS is still 3.01 on my XBox v1.6 (blank screen and purple X on backup power+eject boot), and both 1MB banks on my Xecuter 3 have 3924 on them and a password was set on both (which was working fine for some ~4 years from 2006). Both banks currently stopped accepting any passwords.

I only knew of those password problems and the FlashBIOS incompatibility now, after things fail. O.o

Any suggestions? Is there a way to connect a serial port directly to the Xecuter 3 to flash it, or pull the backup and/or main EEPROM to re-flash externally?

Thanks!

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On 8/26/2017 at 11:07 AM, Albert said:

Hi

 

I just like to say thanks for the information and the help you have given me on this modded xbox.

 

I have read through the info and set the banks accordingly so now i have a working machine.

Do i need to do anything to the bios?

Also can i use the usb connection for inputting data?

On a v1.6 Xbox the recovery BIOS needs to be updated to FlashBIOS 3.0.3.  While in X3 Config Live, select Bios Tools -> Flash Backup Rom and use one of the listed options to Load 256KB Bios From C:, E:, F:, G:, or DVD-ROM.  Locate the FlashBIOS3.0.3's dot bin file on the selected drive and reflash the recovery BIOS on the X3.

Those two ports act as any Memory Unit port on the Xbox.  Game save transfers, keyboard and/or mouse connection for Linux or Phantasy Star Online uses a USB keyboard too.  

XBMC can read data from FAT32 formatted USB thumb drives but as those ports are only USB1.1 they are slow - max. 11Mbits/second.

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On 9/29/2017 at 7:37 PM, reb00tz said:

Hi @KaosEngineer,

I am, unfortunately, in a similar boat... Unfortunate that in this case, as I believe my recovery FlashBIOS is still 3.01 on my XBox v1.6 (blank screen and purple X on backup power+eject boot), and both 1MB banks on my Xecuter 3 have 3924 on them and a password was set on both (which was working fine for some ~4 years from 2006). Both banks currently stopped accepting any passwords.

I only knew of those password problems and the FlashBIOS incompatibility now, after things fail. O.o

Any suggestions? Is there a way to connect a serial port directly to the Xecuter 3 to flash it or pull the backup and/or main EEPROM to re-flash externally?

Thanks!

1

reb00tz's question answers:  No, there is no serial port on X3. Pull backup - no way that I know of short of unsoldering it from the modchip.  Possibly destroying it in the process. DON'T!  There may be TSOP clips that could be pressed on top of the Flash memory chips similar to Playstation 3 BIOS downgrading methods to reflash the X3 BIOSes.  Never seen such a device made for the Xbox though or X3 modchip.

There are two flash chips on the X3 modchip.  A 2MB (16Mbit) TSOP48 and a 256KB (2Mbit) TSOP32 package flash memory chip.

I've never set a password on the BIOS so not sure what actions it allows until the correct password is entered.  Do you know the IP address that X3 setup for access to your Xbox? If so, FTP to the Xbox and enter the Admin directory. 
Select the BIOS bank and upload a fresh copy of the X3 BIOS.  It may clear the password.  But, may not. 

You could install the X3 modchip into a non-1.6 version 

  1. Boot the recovery BIOS. 
  2. Set the bank select switches to Bank 1+2+3+4 or 5+6+7+8 (1MB BIOSs )
  3. Re-flashing the BIOS looks possible without a password - X3 3294 v16plus.bin (v.1.6 Xbox) or X3 3294.bin (1.0-1.5 Xbox's). Not sure where the password is saved though. Hope in the X3 3294 BIOS saved in flash itself and that a clean copy of the BIOS reflashed will clear it.

Before removing the X3 from the non-1.6 Xbox, flash the recovery bios (Backup Rom) with the 1.6 version of FlashBIOS - 3.0.3.  Reinstall the modchip into the 1.6 Xbox. 

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I also see that there are two releases of FlashBIOS 3.0.3 (3.0.3 and 3.0.3-1)  Use the latter.  The description states that this BIOS boots on all version Xbox's not just v1.6/1.6b. However, if you have a v1.6/1.6b Xbox, standard definition (SD) AV cable are required or NO video output.  The v1.6 Xbox's Xcalibur video encoder is only supported for SD not HD output -- no documentation on the Xcalibur chip's register set was ever leaked to help decipher how to fully support it.

Edited by KaosEngineer
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  • 9 months later...
On 10/2/2017 at 7:27 AM, KaosEngineer said:

I also see that there are two releases of FlashBIOS 3.0.3 (3.0.3 and 3.0.3-1)  Use the latter.  The description states that this BIOS boots on all version Xbox's not just v1.6/1.6b. However, if you have a v1.6/1.6b Xbox, standard definition (SD) AV cable are required or NO video output.  The v1.6 Xbox's Xcalibur video encoder is only supported for SD not HD output -- no documentation on the Xcalibur chip's register set was ever leaked to help decipher how to fully support it.

Hi @KaosEngineer,

Sorry for the ~1 year lag... I left off this in frustration then, but want to come back to thank you. Your last post mentioned about the need for the SD AV cable and that actually did the trick - the "blank screen" attempting to boot the backup/recovery FlashBIOS 3.0.1 was due to my use of the HD component cables (duh).

Once that was resolved, everything else was "as expected" - I managed to "erase"/overwrite the 2x 1MB 3924 with 4x 256KB ROMs, then re-flashed 1MB bank #1 again with 3924 and my Xbox was working again, replete with all my saved games, profiles, et. al. still on my HDD...

Thank you so much, @KaosEngineer!

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  • 1 year later...
  • 4 months later...

I have some questions on BIOS banks that contain working flashes.

If an X3 BIOS bank is booted is this the BIOS that will be flashed with the Phoenix BIOS flash program or is the BIOS config live used.

My X3 has all banks flashed Xblast network flash is out.

What I want to do is have 3 BIOS settings TSOP Indi for 128mb backup

X3 1mb 1.4ghz 133 FSB

X3 1.4ghz 98FSB down clocked for compatibility 

 

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6 hours ago, xicat487 said:

Yes it is all ready to go. Just needed some clarification that you have provided Thank you.

On a Xblast lite I want to do the same thing but as you know its 512 and 256 I have a 1mb TSOP.

What is the INDI BIOS for 128 MB 512k version.  

Xecuter 2 5035 is a 512Kb bios, most of the others are 256Kb but can be resized. Check from the list here https://www.reddit.com/r/originalxbox/wiki/bios/features?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf

the M8 is not compatible.

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