Original XBox Modding

After clearing some space I've finally got my XBMC modded 'box in the game setup mix. Halo really is as good as the hype and Panzer Dragoon Orta is just legend. I don't like not being able to perform my own softmods though, and am keen to give it a go. I'd like to do it this way...

https://youtu.be/DJOEen1-234

... Anyone know if this works for PAL units? Also, anything else / tips anyone can offer? XBoxes are well cheap at the mo so now would be a good time. One more thing, I've checked an online resource and found some HDDs that should work, I may even already have one in a box, anyone able to confirm any they got working?

As always, thanks for looking :).

http://www.sega-16.com/forum/showthr...-original-xbox

make sure at least to find a usb stick less than 2 gb :P

Cheers dude.

The softmods are decent, but if you can still find an xecuter 3 modchip it works so much better. The install isn't hard at all, and there are some nice options it opens up (like being able to use a front Panel LCD, selectable BIOS banks, etc).

I've had one in my oXbox for many years now and it's never given me a single issue.

As for HDD's. I think I have a Seagate in there with 250GB I believe, which is the largest PATA IDE drive I was able to get at the time without getting into crazy expensive territory.
You CAN get a SATA drive to work in an oXbox with a SATA to PATA converter, and I believe it will support up to 2GB, but that's where things get flaky in terms of it working or not.

Thanks for the info Groove, I'll check that out.

Sorry to double post here; I can't see from searching the internet that it makes any difference which model ('early' or 'late') XBox you have with respevt to the modding process. Just to he sure, there are none that are mod proof are there?

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Originally Posted by cleeg

Sorry to double post here; I can't see from searching the internet that it makes any difference which model ('early' or 'late') XBox you have with respevt to the modding process. Just to he sure, there are none that are mod proof are there?

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No, just some were a bit more difficult (later batches). But at this point you should be able to find a guide to mod any (soft mod or hardware mod) no matter what revision you get.

In short:
All models can be softmodded, in the same way (and if you know how to "hotswap" the HDD you don't even need an exploitable game).
All models can be chipped - if you have one (aladdin xt clones are still widely available). straightforward. just note that on 1.6 models you should put a slightly different BIOS on the chip.
All models below 1.6a/b can be modded in a way that's basically identical to being chipped, without using an actual chip (look up "TSOP mod").

wrt HDDs, to use larger disks (>137gb iirc) you need to use a BIOS with support for "LBA48", but that's no big deal.

Thank you mordapn, I'll do some more reading. I have a 1.5/6 (the seller isn't 100% clear on it) model on the way. I have a HDD (PATA 300GB Maxtor something something) which I think will work. I'll report my progress...

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Originally Posted by mordapn

wrt HDDs, to use larger disks (>137gb iirc) you need to use a BIOS with support for "LBA48", but that's no big deal.

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That's good to know. I just picked up a cheap Xbox with no way of testing it until my mail order SCART cable came in, and I'm seeing that the CD-ROM is not working. I'll still try to fix it, but I'd much prefer being able to boot from HDD anyway.

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Originally Posted by Benjamin

and I'm seeing that the CD-ROM is not working.

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A friend of mine (who owned a store at the time) once gave me an Xbox that had a "broken CD-rom drive"
So I opened up the Xbox and then the CD-Rom drive and cleaned the lens, worked fine after that.

Might be worth a shot.

I will say after cleaning the lens the drive does spin and attempt to read the disc now, but I still can't get games or music CDs to load. Apparently the original Xbox used custom backwards spinning drives (?), so finding parts is not as easy and cheap as I had hoped. Disappointing, too, seeing how my Samsung drive is supposedly the better drive to have. Oh well.

Yeah CDRs can be a pain to read with a tired lens, but if its modded you don't need the DVD drive. you can just install stuff via the network.
That's what I always tell people when they want to get into xbox modding, set it up so you can ftp to it from your pc or hook it up to your network.

I have it hooked up to my network, it can see my nas and both my xboxes can see each other. very handy.

At one point I even had a program on my xbox that would look at a certain folder on my NAS where I kept my xbox isos,
allowed me to install straight from there, though its been ages since I last did that so.. not sure if I remember the details.

I always hoped for a nice program that would allow me to create my own kinda Xbox Live Marketplace.. where I could install emulators/rom packs/games/dashboards from.
but alas, the scene died.

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Originally Posted by Benjamin

I will say after cleaning the lens the drive does spin and attempt to read the disc now, but I still can't get games or music CDs to load. Apparently the original Xbox used custom backwards spinning drives (?), so finding parts is not as easy and cheap as I had hoped. Disappointing, too, seeing how my Samsung drive is supposedly the better drive to have. Oh well.

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It's been ages, but there were drives that could be modified to work with the oXbox. I did that on one of mine. Basically you unmounted the motor and reversed it, then flashed the drives firmware with a compatible version.

The oXbox can't tell the difference, and more reliable.

But it's been a hell of a long time since I've done that, and no clue how easy it would be to even find working versions of those drives now.

It's far less hassle to just buy any OG Xbox DVD drive listed as working. They're cross-compatible across every revision of the Xbox. Dunno if my system is compatible with massive drives, so I just have a 120GB drive in mine. Installed almost all of my disc games, but I CBA to play them. ALSO: Had no end of fun in the softmodding process with my Pelican controller. While the controller is great, Linux HATES it, and you have to have an original MS controller to get to the point where you're formatting the new drive. At least in my experience.

Should be landing today, I'll report in after a tinker. Will my wireless Logitech pads get me through? Or do I need a wired official one? I'm just installing the new dash today / this week, and leaving the HDD changeover until next.

Thanks for all the support on this folks.

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Originally Posted by NeoVamp

Yeah CDRs can be a pain to read with a tired lens, but if its modded you don't need the DVD drive. you can just install stuff via the network.
That's what I always tell people when they want to get into xbox modding, set it up so you can ftp to it from your pc or hook it up to your network.

I have it hooked up to my network, it can see my nas and both my xboxes can see each other. very handy.

At one point I even had a program on my xbox that would look at a certain folder on my NAS where I kept my xbox isos,
allowed me to install straight from there, though its been ages since I last did that so.. not sure if I remember the details.

I always hoped for a nice program that would allow me to create my own kinda Xbox Live Marketplace.. where I could install emulators/rom packs/games/dashboards from.
but alas, the scene died.

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Lately I’ve been having a bug in my ear to get into some emulation, but I wasn’t sure where to begin. I had a feeling that you might be a good person to ask about it, though.

Got the new box, all modded already, the seller must have known! I splurged on Splinter Cell too. £2 down the drain!

Anyhow, whacked in a new 500GB HDD (Seagate) and made it NTSC HD compatible and it's running like a charm.

Happy days!

Splinter Cell is one of the best Xbox games, even if you only judge it by its technical merits. No waste of money, even if you don't like espionage games very much.

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Originally Posted by MrMatthews

Lately I’ve been having a bug in my ear to get into some emulation, but I wasn’t sure where to begin. I had a feeling that you might be a good person to ask about it, though.

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Try the Coinops build for modded xboxes. Be warned tho, the FULL package is gigantic, and can occasionally be a bit hard to find (since it includes all the iso's and rom's prepackaged).

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Originally Posted by cleeg

Got the new box, all modded already, the seller must have known! I splurged on Splinter Cell too. £2 down the drain!

Anyhow, whacked in a new 500GB HDD (Seagate) and made it NTSC HD compatible and it's running like a charm.

Happy days!

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Nice!
If you like that, I highly suggest Escape from Butcher Bay. Not a SC game, but it's a great stealth game (if you want it to be). I only recently played it about a year and a half ago for the first time, and it still holds up incredibly well.

Thanks for the tips. Truth be told, I've never even looked into Splinter Cell, but I'll maybe have a look after the recommendations.

CoinOps is a must, no reason to mod the thing without it! I think I have version 5 and never updated.

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Originally Posted by Greg2600

CoinOps is a must, no reason to mod the thing without it! I think I have version 5 and never updated.

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It's good yeah. I still like XBMC as the default dash however, but ever since they re-branded themselves as Kodi and moved away from the Xbox roots updates have been pretty few and far between. Still a phenomenal media player, but only for older displays or for streaming audio.

bought a new usb stick and it worked! I have now softmodded my xbox. one question though: how can I force my games into 720p? I have enabled all hd resolutions but when inserting a game that is supposed to be 720p it doesn't go higher than 480p.

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Originally Posted by bultje112

bought a new usb stick and it worked! I have now softmodded my xbox. one question though: how can I force my games into 720p? I have enabled all hd resolutions but when inserting a game that is supposed to be 720p it doesn't go higher than 480p.

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Try enabling only 720p in the dash, although it's possible the game is defaulting to 480 for some other reason.

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Originally Posted by EclecticGroove

Try enabling only 720p in the dash, although it's possible the game is defaulting to 480 for some other reason.

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I did this and no 720p. all my games are now forced into 720x480p though which is higher than what 480p games are supposed to be, so happy with that but can't get 720p to work yet :P

You are using the right kind of cable? The pack-in composhite lead won't get you too far. You want component (YpYWhatever) or maybe even VGA, though the latter is an advanced topic.

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Originally Posted by mordapn

You are using the right kind of cable? The pack-in composhite lead won't get you too far. You want component (YpYWhatever) or maybe even VGA, though the latter is an advanced topic.

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I use component cables. they should be able to showcase hd.

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Originally Posted by bultje112

I use component cables. they should be able to showcase hd.

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It should, unless your TV refuses to. Might want to see if you can ensure they didn't do something idiotic like lock out "HD" resolutions when not using HDMI.