Jump to content
OGXbox.com

XBmp, Ntsc-J, Alladin Advance V32 and Error 21


stewielives
 Share

Recommended Posts

Hi all,

Feeling pretty embarrassed.

I have a PAL 1.4 XBOX with what I think is an Alladin Advance v32 installed.

I was having issues with PAL games and the HD modes. I used XBMP to change the video output setting to NTSC-J.

The console loads into the chip black and white (with shades of brown). Part way through the boot, the lights change back over to stock bios (bright green eject light).

The console then displays Error 21.

I cannot load back into EvoX to change the video setting back. No discs load.

Is there anything I can do to change the video setting?

All help is good help.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I can't put the video back to PAL. Nothing gets past the XBOX splash screen.

Since last night, I can get discs to recognise, but the console just turns off.

I have tried HeXeN and Slayer discs. Each will be recognised by the XBOX on splash screen (it will state Linux instead of Microsoft).

As soon as it registers the disc, the console turns off and reboots.

I'm wondering if this is more than just NTSC-J messing with the chip.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have learned a lot more since my original post.

I'm hoping the forum will forgive me re-framing the problem with better specifics.

I have a 1.4 XBOX with what I think is an Aladdin Advance v32 installed. (pic of modchip and BIOS info attached - from before the console would not boot) 

I think something has gone wrong with the BIOS of my modchip and the original XBOX bios. 

Essentially, the modchip boot times out and then loads the original BIOS before displaying error 21 with a flashing green eject light. 
If I try and use HeXeN, the console suddenly resets after Linux appears on the splash screen. At the same time, the eject light flashes red before the reboot into the original BIOS. 
It's really sudden - like it sounds like the console is stopped dead. 

For those interested, videos for the boot sequence and errors can be found here: 
No disc - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fXav2cDyHzOeT97C9YAK74q_CBZq6Uy8/view?usp=sharing 
HeXeN - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zQ9vhrFJpMooxt2w99xQpeRzDVK5MukW/view?usp=sharing 

I have tried a new hard drive and the same thing happens, except for an error 13 flag due to the new hard drive not being setup properly. 

How did this happen? (I think) 
I accidentally changed the video output settings to NTSC-J and reset. 
The next load, the console started with weird colours on screen before erroring out. Fixable, if I could get anything to load. 

Any ideas on what to try next? 

20190330_185851.jpg

20190330_202034.jpg

Edited by stewielives
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just a final word on this, as I couldn't get the console going again.
Thanks to all those who offered advice.

I acquired another XBOX (1.4 TSOP flashed). I put the old HDD in that console and it errored out - no dashboard files. So, something went wrong with my HDD.

I tried HeXEn and other recovery software with the old HDD in the new console, and while the red light would come on, HeXEn would never load.

The newer console's HDD in the old console does not work either.

I think my problem is two-fold. Either way, I'm giving up and will use the old console for donor parts.
1. The Aladdin v32 BIOS is stuffed. This is why the console turns off and then cold boots into the stock BIOS whenever HeXEn is inserted.
2. The dashboard files on the HDD are either missing or corrupted. This is why the stock dashboard does not load once the console cold boots following the modchip crash.

I've learned a lot through this process. Shame I can't make any more progress.

Thanks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hexen takes about a minute before the menu appears.  The Eject ring LEDs will change to RED to indicate that HeXEn is loading but the screen will not change until that minute of delay.  Leave it alone, wait patiently and see what happens.  If the menu has not appeared after waiting 2-5 minutes, somethings wrong.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Oh, I see, there's the weird thing about the Aladdin chips. 

To enable the chip, you have to press and hold the power button for ~1 second. 

If the console reboots, the modchip does not see a long power button press (modchip disabled) and the stock BIOS boots which leads to the stock dashboard loading.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the help.

I let it sit there for an hour on the working console and no luck. I know what HeXEn loading looks like and this is not it.

No luck either with the original console. As soon as it shows Linux, the console turns off, then cold boots into the stock bios.

Thanks anyway.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

I fixed it. Thought I’d post the solution. Solution involves making an EEPROM reader and uploading a new .bin file to the EEPROM. I can promise that I tried absolutely everything before this.

So, the original fault as described was the problem, and not something else. BIOS files on modchip and stock TSOP were fine. I guess this is a note of caution to anyone playing around with video modes using anything other than Enigmah, as these are ultimately written to the EEPROM.

As best as I can tell, when that particular version of XBMC changed the video output to NTSC-J, it caused a problem with the EEPROM which prevented anything from loading. At the same time, something happened to the stock MS dashboard files – I’m not sure if these two things are related.

I tried everything suggested, plus lots of other things, all to no avail. I even fried the original HDD when trying to do a swap using XBOXHDM.

I ended up making an EEPROM reader using Slot1Gamer’s guide -

 

I then extracted the EEPROM using Slot1Gamer’s other guide -

 

I initially tried reading the EEPROM from a working XBOX with a USB to Serial converter on 64 bit, Windows 10. No good.

In the end, I had to get an old PC out of storage that had built in serial ports. 32 bit, Windows 7.

Here’s some specifics in terms of my connection, as I cannot find guides that cover these areas online.

-          I removed the HDD and the DVD drive.

-          I removed the IDE cable and DVD drive power cable from the motherboard.

-          My modchip was covering the header holes, so I had to flip the board.

-          I unplugged the cable for controllers 1 and 2 from the motherboard. I flipped the board on its side (picture attached).

-          I attached the earth alligator clip to the side of the ethernet port.

-          I attached the EEPROM reader cables to the underside of the motherboard (reversed from Slot1Gamer’s guide, of course).

-          With all cables attached, and with the reader plugged into the PC, I turned on the XBOX.

-          I didn’t get flashing orange lights like in Slot1Gamer’s video – mine were flashing green. I had to turn the console off at the power though. The front buttons would not work.

Side note – man, these old motherboards are resilient. On my first attempt with the working console, I plugged the earth pin into the 3.3V header. The cable caught on fire and disintegrated before my eyes. That console still works. Wow.

In terms of reading the EEPROM on the old PC, everything went like clockwork.

I read the EEPROM and saved it as a .bin file.

When I went to open it in LiveInfo, I kept getting an error stating that the video and XBE region were incorrect.

Using LiveInfo, I changed the video and XBE region to PAL Australia (which is where the console is from) from the weird NTSC setting that it was set as, and then saved it as a new .bin file.

I went back into PonyProg and wrote the new .bin file to the EEPROM as per Slot1Gamer’s guide.

I put everything back together and turned the console on. All of a sudden, HeXEn would load again and the colours were back to normal.

From there, it was just a matter of using HeXEn and its utilities to make a new HDD (which I was going to do anyway), and the console is now working again.

Thanks to all who helped with suggestions.

20190418_141304.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

Board Life Status


Board startup date: April 23, 2017 12:45:48
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.