kaurloto Posted July 5, 2020 Report Share Posted July 5, 2020 Sup everyone! Just joined the forums, looking forward to participating in the community! I've had a modded OG Xbox with an Xecuter 2 chip since I was a wee lad. Always been able to fit ~30 games on it with the 80GB drive. Looking to upgrade the HDD and actually get my feet wet with the bios and software capabilities these days though and learn more about it. This seems like the right place! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaurloto Posted July 5, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 5, 2020 I recently yanked the clock capacitor (not sure what version Xbox I have, but since the capacitor was there it's def not a 1.6). I also replaced the ODD rubber band to fix the tray getting stuck. But I think I bricked it: I was testing out connecting to it via FTP and before I was able to get in successfully, the Xbox froze on a black screen after saving and quitting the IP settings. It looks like it may have reset my evox.ini file because I lost all my menu options; can no longer launch apps or navigate to games. Disk drive is still good, after a reboot I can still FTP in and browse the file structure. Everything is still there. Just not sure how to get it fully functional again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SS_Dave Posted July 5, 2020 Report Share Posted July 5, 2020 Did you delete any files of edit the evox.ini file? Have you checked the AV connection is fully plugged in and the TV is set to the correct input. I always help you get better help if you post pics of the main board and if there is any error messages/led flashing codes. I have had a Xbox do the same and it was a BIOS problem. Cheers SS Dave Soft modding is like masturbating, It gets the job done but it's nothing like the real thing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaurloto Posted July 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 (edited) Dave's been helping me out in PMs since I'm still limited to daily posts (thanks man!), but I thought I'd update the thread here on my progress: I said "fuck it" and decided to start from scratch. Created a Hexen 2018 disc and used that to reformat my drive as new. No more ancient EvoX version lol, and getting used to UnleashX/XBMC. I lost all my games and apps but those can always be replaced. I copied over some of my physical discs which is easy enough. A lot more tools available now, choosing copy location and editing the display name which is awesome. Set up FTP and started testing sending files over and it's been working well. Gotta find a good place to download Xbox ISOs now... I ordered a SATA to IDE adapter and an 80 conductor IDE cable, once those come in I'll end up repeating this process so I can toss a spare 2TB in there. The IDE cable already came in, waiting on the adapter now. Also waiting on an Xbox-to-USB adapter so I can try softmodding two spare Xbox's I picked up recently. Will be cool to learn about the softmodding side of the fence, TSOP flashing and whatnot. I burned the 2020 version of Hexen and gave it a shot recently, XBMC4Gamers is pretty slick. I had toyed with it a little prior, installed it using the downloader that's part of XBMC-EmuStation, but doing it that way doesn't add the shortcuts to UnleashX, I had to browse the file system each time to run the xbe so this is much better. Some questions I still have though: - Is there a thread or documentation around on how to customize the UnleashX menu options? I'd like to nest them differently to my own preferences and add new shortcuts etc. - Also any info on the site about updating an Xecuter2 chip BIOS would be really appreciated. I've read a lot online but everything seems to be info geared towards softmod flashing. I'm not sure where to begin with flashing my mod chip. I'm not sure what version it currently is, but it hasn't been modified since day 1 so it likely won't be able to read a 2TB HDD as-is. Edited July 10, 2020 by kaurloto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ging3rguy Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 https://www.ogxbox.com/forums/index.php?/files/file/34-unleashx-tutorial/ copy the config.xml to a pc and edit with notepad. Change the original on your C partition to configorg.xml and then add your edited config.xml. If it all goes wrong you can then use the original by renaming it. Take a pic of the chip so someone can give advice on how to flash a newer bios and also check your C & E partItion for a bios or flash bios folder/app. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaurloto Posted July 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 10 minutes ago, Ging3rguy said: https://www.ogxbox.com/forums/index.php?/files/file/34-unleashx-tutorial/ copy the config.xml to a pc and edit with notepad. Change the original on your C partition to configorg.xml and then add your edited config.xml. If it all goes wrong you can then use the original by renaming it. Take a pic of the chip so someone can give advice on how to flash a newer bios and also check your C & E partItion for a bios or flash bios folder/app. Nice, that's exactly what I was looking for! I was snooping through those config files using FTP and have a pretty good idea how to change them, but I'm all about reading the man pages. Still working towards my post count and membership days so I can't download it yet but it won't take long at this rate. I'll get a pic of my modchip asap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaurloto Posted July 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 Here it is in all its glory: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaurloto Posted July 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 Also I always wondered what this ribbon cable running from the chip out through the av port is used for? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SS_Dave Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 That is to connect to a serial port to allow reprogramming the mod chip and even then you will need a windows XP computer. As it's a version 1.1 I would recommend you flash the TSOP as it's a 1 meg BIOS chip. but it's not going to be a simple job to do that. To flash the TSOP you would need to softmod the Xbox and then solder 2 links to the main board that enables the writing of the TSOP chip, When you have done that you remove the mod chip and the the Xbox will boot from the original BIOS to the softmod on the hard drive, then you can reflash the TOSP with a new BIOS file. The simple method would be replace the modchip with a new chip, you could get an Open Xenium or a Aladdin chip Fitting a new chip would be almost just plug it on the board with only 1 wire that will need soldering. Cheers SS Dave Soft modding is like masturbating, It gets the job done but it's nothing like the real thing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ging3rguy Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 8 minutes ago, SS_Dave said: That is to connect to a serial port to allow reprogramming the mod chip and even then you will need a windows XP computer. As it's a version 1.1 I would recommend you flash the TSOP as it's a 1 meg BIOS chip. but it's not going to be a simple job to do that. To flash the TSOP you would need to softmod the Xbox and then solder 2 links to the main board that enables the writing of the TSOP chip, When you have done that you remove the mod chip and the the Xbox will boot from the original BIOS to the softmod on the hard drive, then you can reflash the TOSP with a new BIOS file. The simple method would be replace the modchip with a new chip, you could get an Open Xenium or a Aladdin chip Fitting a new chip would be almost just plug it on the board with only 1 wire that will need soldering. Cheers SS Dave Soft modding is like masturbating, It gets the job done but it's nothing like the real thing. Borrowed this from another site, check your setup. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ging3rguy Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 16 minutes ago, Ging3rguy said: Borrowed this from another site, check your setup. Or these. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SS_Dave Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 As far as I am aware that chip can not be flashed like normal mod chip and it requires a serial lead to a computer and the software that's needed will only run correctly on a windows XP computer Cheers SS Dave Soft modding is like masturbating, It gets the job done but it's nothing like the real thing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaurloto Posted July 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 (edited) So this means I can use the DIP switches to allow flashing and not have to get a new chip/sauter? Mine has the black switch to enable/disable the chip entirely so it's 2.1/2.2. And since it's a 1.1 Xbox with a 1mb (how do you know?) I would follow the first diagram and then use hexen to TSOP flash? sw1-off sw2-off sw3-off sw4-on (I never knew what those switches were for so I'm happy to finally learn!) Edited July 10, 2020 by kaurloto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ging3rguy Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 Not sure you will be able to reflash but you could try using hexen as it will just do multiple images of the bios if needed using a 256KB. Check your current bios size and also see if you have others on the chip. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SS_Dave Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 10 minutes ago, kaurloto said: And since it's a 1.1 Xbox with a 1mb (how do you know?) The version 1.0 -1.1 Xbox has a 12 pin power connector and the version 1.1 does not have a fan on the GPU ( smaller heat sink) . The versions 1.0-1.1.4 have a 1 meg bios and the 1.2-1.4 have a 256kb bois. Cheers SS Dave Soft modding is like masturbating, It gets the job done but it's nothing like the real thing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ging3rguy Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 24 minutes ago, SS_Dave said: The version 1.0 -1.1 Xbox has a 12 pin power connector and the version 1.1 does not have a fan on the GPU ( smaller heat sink) . The versions 1.0-1.1.4 have a 1 meg bios and the 1.2-1.4 have a 256kb bois. Cheers SS Dave Soft modding is like masturbating, It gets the job done but it's nothing like the real thing. It's a 1.1, no fan a 12 pin power connector in his pic further up the thread. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ging3rguy Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 4 hours ago, kaurloto said: So this means I can use the DIP switches to allow flashing and not have to get a new chip/sauter? Mine has the black switch to enable/disable the chip entirely so it's 2.1/2.2. And since it's a 1.1 Xbox with a 1mb (how do you know?) I would follow the first diagram and then use hexen to TSOP flash? sw1-off sw2-off sw3-off sw4-on (I never knew what those switches were for so I'm happy to finally learn!) Hi, here’s an old thread about flashing without the programmer, I know I have done it in the past on a 2.6 which didn’t have flash bios on one of the banks. https://www.xbmc4xbox.org.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7254 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SS_Dave Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 7 hours ago, Ging3rguy said: It's a 1.1, no fan a 12 pin power connector in his pic further up the thread. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaurloto Posted July 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 (edited) Thanks again for all your help Dave & Ginger - I wouldn't have been able to get this far without it. With the 1MB Banks selected and flash protection off (sw1-off sw2-off sw3-off sw4-on) I booted hexen 2020 and loaded the Modchip/TSOP Flash tool and here's what I see: BIOS: Xecuter2 4976.02 - Where do I see the current BIOS size? (I would assume it would just match the DIP switch bank selection?) - And how do I switch between memory banks to see what's on each one? I'm assuming I power it off, change the DIP switches, boot back into the Modchip/TSOP tool separately for each bank? I'm not sure I fully understand this part. Aren't the banks shared? So if you have 4 BIOS's across the 4 256 banks you wouldn't be able to boot the 512 banks (1+2 & 3+4) or the full 1MB banks (1+2+3+4) together and vice-versa. So If I flash 1+2 with a 512 BIOS, then 1 & 2 can't be booted individually? - Dave hooked me up with the X2.5035.67.bin BIOS and x2config.ini. I'm guessing I FTP these somewhere on the internal drive and use the flash tool to select that specific BIOS? Edited July 10, 2020 by kaurloto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SS_Dave Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 I would try setting the switch like this. And use this BIOS. And see how it goes. Cheers SS Dave Soft modding is like masturbating, It gets the job done but it's nothing like the real thing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaurloto Posted July 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 11, 2020 Hell yea it fuckin worked!! I'm running x2.5035 now. You guys are awesome!! Now all that's left is to wait for my SATA to IDE adapter in the mail, and then make a blood sacrifice to ensure it fits and my 2TB works with it lol. I already swapped in the new 80 conductor IDE cable just to make sure it's working. Had to put it in backwards since the spacing inside the old box is atypical. So now I have the Controller connector (blue) in my HDD and the Master connector (black) in the board, but it seems to work just fine. Fairly certain the cable-select/drive-assignment functionality lost by doing this isn't required for the SATA drive to function once it gets here anyways. Time will tell... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SS_Dave Posted July 11, 2020 Report Share Posted July 11, 2020 That's good to here The IDE cable being backwards will be fine just make sure the master/slave link on the Sata adaptor is set to master. Cheers SS Dave Soft modding is like masturbating, It gets the job done but it's nothing like the real thing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ging3rguy Posted July 11, 2020 Report Share Posted July 11, 2020 8 hours ago, kaurloto said: Hell yea it fuckin worked!! I'm running x2.5035 now. You guys are awesome!! Now all that's left is to wait for my SATA to IDE adapter in the mail, and then make a blood sacrifice to ensure it fits and my 2TB works with it lol. I already swapped in the new 80 conductor IDE cable just to make sure it's working. Had to put it in backwards since the spacing inside the old box is atypical. So now I have the Controller connector (blue) in my HDD and the Master connector (black) in the board, but it seems to work just fine. Fairly certain the cable-select/drive-assignment functionality lost by doing this isn't required for the SATA drive to function once it gets here anyways. Time will tell... Try putting a bios on the other 512 banks or split it and have 2 x 256 on 3 & 4 banks. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KaosEngineer Posted July 11, 2020 Report Share Posted July 11, 2020 On 7/10/2020 at 4:25 AM, SS_Dave said: That is to connect to a serial port to allow reprogramming the mod chip and even then you will need a windows XP computer. Connects to a bi-directional parallel printer port. PC's use a female DB-25 connector which makes you think it's a serial port but its not. X2BM - X2 BIos Manager software is used to flash the modchip with a BIOS. You need a 25-pin straight-through parallel cable with DB-25 connectors on both ends to connect from the PC to the DB-25 connector on the back of the Xbox. Not a serial cable. A serial cable only has a few of the pins connected in a crossed over configuration. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaurloto Posted July 13, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2020 On 7/11/2020 at 2:55 AM, Ging3rguy said: Try putting a bios on the other 512 banks or split it and have 2 x 256 on 3 & 4 banks. I'll definitely give it a shot! My SATA to IDE came in the mail today. It didn't like two of my 2TB drives, but I was able to get a third one to work. Wouldn't even power on with the first drive. Second would boot but the Xecuter splash wouldn't show up and it'd throw an error afterwards. Third one's a SSHD and it worked just fine so I'm sticking with it lol. Ran the New Disk setup in Hexen 2020, partitioned the drive, and I'm now throwing some of the extras like XBMC4Gamers/Emustation on there. So far everything's kosher. Next steps: FTPing over all my backup save files and games. Future steps: Building up XBMC-Emustation with emulators and ROMs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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