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Xecuter3 - Can't get passed T3CH splash screen


Freddan101
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I'm trying to revive by Xbox original 1.2 (I believe this is the version) which haven't been in use for the last 15 years. I thought I would show my son the games I used to play. The console is hardware moded with an Xecuter3 and have a custom front panel with BIOS push buttons and display.

The Machine seems to start up fine but after the "Xecuter Rox My Box" splash screen the "T3CH" splash screen is shown and nothing happens after that. When bypassing the Xecuter chip it's boots into the original Xbox menu without problem. Thought it could be the HDD, but it is detected together with thd DVD drive. Also I can see the save games stored on the HDD and the activity LED on the front panel is blinking.

When changing the BIOS banks on the front panel I see that the behaviour changes. The banks with BIOS starts up until it hits the T3CH splash screen, the banks without generates a blinking power button and boot loop. So the chip seems to be alive and work as expected until that splash screen.

Happy for any tips for further troubleshooting. Would be very nice to be able to play the old games with my son during Christmas. 😊 

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6 hours ago, Freddan101 said:

I'm trying to revive by Xbox original 1.2 (I believe this is the version) which haven't been in use for the last 15 years. I thought I would show my son the games I used to play. The console is hardware moded with an Xecuter3 and have a custom front panel with BIOS push buttons and display.

The Machine seems to start up fine but after the "Xecuter Rox My Box" splash screen the "T3CH" splash screen is shown and nothing happens after that. When bypassing the Xecuter chip it's boots into the original Xbox menu without problem. Thought it could be the HDD, but it is detected together with thd DVD drive. Also I can see the save games stored on the HDD and the activity LED on the front panel is blinking.

When changing the BIOS banks on the front panel I see that the behaviour changes. The banks with BIOS starts up until it hits the T3CH splash screen, the banks without generates a blinking power button and boot loop. So the chip seems to be alive and work as expected until that splash screen.

Happy for any tips for further troubleshooting. Would be very nice to be able to play the old games with my son during Christmas. 😊 

If you are booting the X3 BIOS, get into its X3 Config Live (X3CL) menu. 

When you power on the console, hold the White button on the controller until it appears.

X3CL has its own settings for network configuration.  Notice the IP address displayed in the lower left-hand corner of the screen as seen in Figure 1.

1616393238_X3CL-IPAddressLocation.png.22e78eb651f562b154df944ab8578c83.png

Figure 1. X3CL IP Address

Use an FTP client to connect to X3CL's FTP server at this IP address.  (Note: You will most likely need to change your PC or Xbox's network settings to have both of them on the same subnet to connect.)

The username and password to connect to the FTP server are both:

  • x3

Obtain a listing of the top-level folder on each of the hard drive's partitions: C, E, F, and/or G.

Post them in a reply for further assistance.

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10 hours ago, Freddan101 said:

I'm trying to revive by Xbox original 1.2 (I believe this is the version) which haven't been in use for the last 15 years. I thought I would show my son the games I used to play. The console is hardware moded with an Xecuter3 and have a custom front panel with BIOS push buttons and display.

The Machine seems to start up fine but after the "Xecuter Rox My Box" splash screen the "T3CH" splash screen is shown and nothing happens after that. When bypassing the Xecuter chip it's boots into the original Xbox menu without problem. Thought it could be the HDD, but it is detected together with thd DVD drive. Also I can see the save games stored on the HDD and the activity LED on the front panel is blinking.

When changing the BIOS banks on the front panel I see that the behaviour changes. The banks with BIOS starts up until it hits the T3CH splash screen, the banks without generates a blinking power button and boot loop. So the chip seems to be alive and work as expected until that splash screen.

Happy for any tips for further troubleshooting. Would be very nice to be able to play the old games with my son during Christmas. 😊 

Last time I encountered this I had to remove password set by previous owner.  There is an app for this.

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Thank you very much for the tips. I really appreciate it. 

On 12/19/2022 at 1:49 PM, prtscn said:

Try inserting hexen disk, if it load - flash x2 bios to other memory bank.

The DVD drive won't open so can't test this I'm afraid.

On 12/19/2022 at 10:55 PM, Donnie-Burger said:

Last time I encountered this I had to remove password set by previous owner.  There is an app for this.

I'm the only owner and can't recollect that I have set a password. But shouldn't there be a password prompt in that case?

On 12/19/2022 at 6:37 PM, KaosEngineer said:

If you are booting the X3 BIOS, get into its X3 Config Live (X3CL) menu. 

When you power on the console, hold the White button on the controller until it appears.

X3CL has its own settings for network configuration.  Notice the IP address displayed in the lower left-hand corner of the screen as seen in Figure 1.

1616393238_X3CL-IPAddressLocation.png.22e78eb651f562b154df944ab8578c83.png

Figure 1. X3CL IP Address

Use an FTP client to connect to X3CL's FTP server at this IP address.  (Note: You will most likely need to change your PC or Xbox's network settings to have both of them on the same subnet to connect.)

The username and password to connect to the FTP server are both:

  • x3

Obtain a listing of the top-level folder on each of the hard drive's partitions: C, E, F, and/or G.

Post them in a reply for further assistance.

I indeed could get into the XC3L. Everything looks good. Build 3294. I could FTP to the box as well and I've attached the dir listings.

image.thumb.png.0b4f2c1de69fd012bc447d974899e284.png

image.thumb.png.4844b4caa8561a2300633dac8047c21c.png

image.thumb.png.adf1b63cef26cd15ba613b171b0c1a45.png

image.thumb.png.88708c16927cd24960c9a05b9841ea2b.png

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2 hours ago, KaosEngineer said:

Download the xbmc.log file.  What does it contain?

 

I also suggest deleting all the files and folders on the Z drive.  You might want to back them up first.  However, they should all be temporary files created as needed by applications.

Below is xbmc.log. Noticed that the D : drive is completely empty by some reason so that might be a lead.

I tried as well to change the start order of the dashboard files, but end up on the same splash screen.

INFO - Mounting D: to \Device\Harddisk0\partition2
INFO - launching cutfile: D:\xbmc.cfg
INFO - openening cutfile: D:\xbmc.cfg
INFO - Launching xbe: e:\apps\xbmc\default.xbe


C208444C-D7C1-4A51-A7F2-13EDCB5E000F_1_102_o.thumb.jpeg.59904ee929755df28c5b8b706f792658.jpeg

Edited by Freddan101
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Just now, Freddan101 said:
INFO - Mounting D: to \Device\Harddisk0\partition2
INFO - launching cutfile: D:\xbmc.cfg
INFO - openening cutfile: D:\xbmc.cfg
INFO - Launching xbe: e:\apps\xbmc\default.xbe

Ok, here "D:" is not the DVD D drive.  The first line states that mounting of D, not the DVD drive's D:\ you are used to, is to partition2 of harddisk0 which is what other replacement dashboard's access for the C drive.  There's some low-level system file access going on here.

xbmc.xbe (an XBMC xbe shortcut app) which loads the cutfile D:\xbmc.cfg which is actually C:\xbmc.cfg from your FTP listing.  It executes the file stored at the location specified in the cutfile.

Please attach the C:\xbmc.xbe and C:\xbmc.cfg files to a reply. Thanks.

What is the content of the file C:\xbmc.cfg?

From the log file, looks like it will be one line:

  • e:\apps\xbmc\default.xbe

So, xbmc.xbe tries to launch e:\apps\xbmc\default.xbe.

Is that file on the hard drive?

 

Is there another xbmc.log  file in the e:\apps\xbmc\ folder?

If so, attach it too.

 

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You are right about the xbmc.cfg file. It only contains one line. The file exists under that path.

  • e:\apps\xbmc\default.xbe

I see below lines in the end of xbmc.log (located under e:\apps\xbmc\). The date is probably way off, could that interfere? Also the DVD drive won't open so can't check if there is a disc in there (though if it is I'm pretty sure I wasn't able to open it when I successfully used the box years ago).

Pls, also see attached files.

09:35:45 M: 51597312  NOTICE: Checking the Date!
09:35:45 M: 51597312  NOTICE: start dvd mediatype detection

image.thumb.png.6c99678e5aa680a61ea2c7409222e1e7.png

xbmc.xbe xbmc.cfg xbmc.log

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15 hours ago, Freddan101 said:

The date is probably way off, could that interfere? 

Possibly.  It is an very old build of XBMC.  I don't have that build available to compare like applications to know exactly why it is not continuing at that point.

 

I suggest you try XBMC4Xbox's button combo to reset configuration settings to their default values:

  • do this by holding down both thumbstick buttons on bootup.

Edit: Continue to hold this button combo at least until the T3CH splash screen appears.

I may or may not work.  I don't know how long this recovery method has existed in XBMC / XBMC4Xbox.

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I was able to wipe the user data using the method you described. But I'm still stuck at the T3CH splash screen.

Could I replace XBMC by something else? I don't really need it anymore. I just want to be able to get to a dashboard where I can launch the games stored on the HDD.

Edit: Tried to set the time but it's not stored between reboots. I assume there's a CMOS battery that's been depleted. It is a long shot anyway. I don't think the time set really matters.

Edited by Freddan101
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1 hour ago, Freddan101 said:

 

Could I replace XBMC by something else? I don't really need it anymore. I just want to be able to get to a dashboard where I can launch the games stored on the HDD.

 

Yes,  install a different replacement dashboard on the hard drive and edit the path line in the C:\xbmc.cfg file to point to that file instead of the current xbe file for XBMC - e:\apps\xbmc\default.xbe.

 

Upload UnleashX's file set to E:\Apps\UnleashX\.

Change the xbmc.cfg file to E:\Apps\UnleashX\default.xbe (that is as long as unleashx's xbe file is actually named default.xbe).

 

Note: The Xbox's FATX filesystem is not case-sensitive.

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5 hours ago, Freddan101 said:

Thank you very much @KaosEngineer. I will continue the troubleshooting during Christmas Day and try to bring the box to life. 😊 

A Merry Christmas to you all! 🎅

Clock capacitors are known to leak causing trace rot.  It's normal even with a good capacitor to only keep time a day or two,  but removal or replacement of the clock capacitor is recommended to protect the mainboard.  Unless it's already been removed or replaced?  

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On 12/24/2022 at 4:59 PM, Puritan001 said:

Clock capacitors are known to leak causing trace rot.  It's normal even with a good capacitor to only keep time a day or two,  but removal or replacement of the clock capacitor is recommended to protect the mainboard.  Unless it's already been removed or replaced?  

Yea, I saw traces of what you describe. I don't think I dare to do the work myself so need to find someone that I can trust to recap it.

Right now I'm waiting for a component->HDMI cable which will be delivered tomorrow. 

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So I go the component->HDMI cable and just continued the troubleshooting by following the tip from @KaosEngineer. I changed to Unleash dashboard and now when booting up I get stuck on the "Xecuter Rox My Box" splash screen. The HDD LED is flashing and the HDD is making suspicious sounds.

I think the next step is to see if the HDD is corrupt/broken. Is there a disk utility provided by Xecuter or do I need to hook the HDD up to a computer?

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After further investigation I think the HDD needs to be replaced. What are my best options?

I have a spare SATA disk and found this converter that should work if I can fit it in the box. I believe that I still have the original HDD in a box somewhere if that would help. The DVD drive won't open, but will unmount it and see if I can force It open.

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2 hours ago, Freddan101 said:

After further investigation I think the HDD needs to be replaced. What are my best options?

I have a spare SATA disk and found this converter that should work if I can fit it in the box. I believe that I still have the original HDD in a box somewhere if that would help.

If available in your area, I suggest obtaining either Startech's IDE2SAT2 adapter or Delock's 62510.  Both look the same and are based on Marvell's 88SA8052 IDE-to-SATA bridge.

You'll also need an 80-wire 40-pin high-speed 24 inch / 60 cm long IDE cable.

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1 hour ago, KaosEngineer said:

If available in your area, I suggest obtaining either Startech's IDE2SAT2 adapter or Delock's 62510.  Both look the same and are based on Marvell's 88SA8052 IDE-to-SATA bridge.

You'll also need an 80-wire 40-pin high-speed 24 inch / 60 cm long IDE cable.

Thank you for the recommendations. Are these the correct products?

Adapter / Cable

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2 hours ago, Freddan101 said:

Great, then I will place an order for these.

Do I need to worry about drive compatibility? I think this is my drive so a good sign that it's on the list. :) 

Should I make the effort and look for the original drive? Will it make it easier to prep the new drive, or which method do you recommend?

Wait on ordering the Startech IDE-to-SATA adapter and high-speed IDE cable. 

You have a 500GB IDE hard drive, not a SATA hard drive. I thought you were upgrading to a SATA hard drive.

The only reason you need the adapter is for a SATA hard drive.  The cable however will speed up access to the 500GB IDE hard drive to UDMA4 (66 MBs/second) over the stock IDE cable's speed of UDMA2 (33MBs/second).

NEW HARD DRIVE INSTALLATION METHOD

Download the current hard drive's content to your PC.

With the X3 modchip, you do not need the original hard drive. You can format the new hard drive in the X3 BIOS's X3 Config Live (X3CL) menu.  Set the Use Saved Partition Table menu option to Enabled before you Prepare And Format New Drive.

After formatting, you will need to use the X3CL's FTP server to upload current hard drive's content to the new 500GB drive.

Edit: What brand and model is the current hard drive in your Xbox?

 

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9 hours ago, KaosEngineer said:

I have a spare SATA disk and found this converter that should work if I can fit it in the box. I believe that I still have the original HDD in a box somewhere if that would help.

The hard drive you linked to is an IDE drive, not SATA.  Do you have a different hard drive that is SATA, not IDE?

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