Who's got a modded xbox?

[drowd]

I am interested in how many folks out there have their xbox's modified and what they got.

I will go ahead and kick it off. I have an xecutor lite and a WD 120 gig hard drive running EvoX.

This might be a little slow at first, but I would like to get some good conversations going in here about this . . .

[Ladypcer]

So how do you go about modding an Xbox?
I have one that was used for one week and never touched after that.

[drowd]

well, the first thing you need to do is get a mod chip. there are a number of places you can order mod chips. you should be able to find some at www.xbox-scene.com . as far as i know, the best mod chips are the xecutor pro and the xecutor lite, but i dont have any experience with anything else, so i cant say for sure. the only difference between the pro and the lite is that the pro has an external hookup that you can hook up to your computer and flash the bios from there with. in addition the pro is able to store 4 different bios's. you dont have to have either of those features (the xecutor lite) because you can either flash it with a cd or flash it through the ftp that the evox (the mod chip gui, sort of) sets up. i hope that makes sense, and if not i can try to help a little more. but xbox-scene.com is the best resource for information of this nature.

i guess the great thing about a modded xbox, is that it is so much more versatile after it has been modded. the biggest advantage is that you are able to make a back up copy of all of your games and keep it on the hard drive. you literally put the disc in, and it will copy the entire contents onto the hard drive where it can be accessed later. one of the great things about this, is xbox load time is reduced to almost nothing because its reading from the hard drive rather than from the dvd drive. in addition, it sets up and ftp that allows you to very easily communicate back and forth with the xbox from your computer. one of the applications of this is that you can store your divx or mpg movies on the xbox and watch it with a special version of media player called xbmp. this is great, because once the movie is there, it can be watched on the television screen. its really really great. anyway, i have gone on for long enough. if you have any more questions, just ask, i am sure either i or some other folks around here can answer them . . .

[dydx]

This looks pretty interesting.

You just swap out the drives, right? Is there any way to use 802.11b/g on the xbox by bridging the NIC to an AP or something, because my mum wont let me run CAT5 into the living room where the decent TV is so I can only have the xbox hooked up in my room with the smaller tv.


mD

[skidrowrocks]

You can use the wireless bridge from linksys its a little pricey though.

I have a 2.1 lite with stock HD. Its great playing MAME games with my XBOX. XBMP is great too so I don't have to mess with VCD's anymore.

[drowd]

yeah you can go wireless using a bridge like skidrow said. yeah, not having to try to find movies in vcd format is so much better now, cuz the xbox seriously has almost every codec you could possible think of. when a movie wont werk cuz i dont have a codec installed on my computer, i just send it to my xbox. i havent had a movie NOT werk yet . . .

[McBain]

I have a matrix, 100 gig, and evox as well.

[stoopid]

Originally posted by drowd
yeah you can go wireless using a bridge like skidrow said. yeah, not having to try to find movies in vcd format is so much better now, cuz the xbox seriously has almost every codec you could possible think of. when a movie wont werk cuz i dont have a codec installed on my computer, i just send it to my xbox. i havent had a movie NOT werk yet . . .

Does it do Xvid ? I know that's a newer codec...

BTW, I haven't personally done this as I won't need an Xbox anytime soon, but a friend has hacked a few and it was a pleasure learning about the process by watching him do it. It's very cool stuff, and load times rock! :D

[Sleepstalker]

Yes the latest version of XBMP can handle xvid. I've only found one divx movie that doesn't play on newest version of XBMP. The xbox plays more of my movies than my pc and I don't have to go searching for codecs to put on the xbox. Even if you're not a console person, the modded xbox is worth it just for the dvd/divx playing capability. I've found that several of my divx files actually look sharper on my tv with xbox than on my pc. I have an x-ecuter 2 Pro and 120gb drive with the Samsung DVD drive, so that it can play cdr's.

[dydx]

Ok, ordered a D-Link 802.11b to ethernet bridge. Cost about £60, more than id rather pay, but it keeps my mum quiet.

Anyonw know a UK source for the XB mod chips?



mD

[NaVeriOuS]

Instead of talking about them how about you guys post pics. All I have done to mine so far is the X is painted silver. I am getting a red led light put on the top where the xbox logo is. I will post my pic after I get the light in

[drowd]

the actual modchip is the only mod i have. actually, there is a fan on the underside of my hard drive that my friend installed. the same guy put an LED on one of his controllers. he is a member here, sleepstalker, we might be able to get him to post some pics. i have another friend that added a separate button that restarts the xbox, but it seems a little pointless with IGR (in game reset (both triggers + start + select)). I will try to get a picture of the fan though . . .

[FormFactor]

I too have a matrix w/ 120 gig maxtor drive 8mb cache....


Its one of the kewlest things I have ever seen!!! Plays nearly ALL media formats including XVID. Great for downloading futurama/simpsons/family guy episodes off kazaa and watchin them on the ol xbox.

Ive got a ton of games on it, and they load extremely fast so there is basically NO load time.

If you live in a country that has no laws against hacking your xbox than I would HIGHLY recommend modding dat b*tch!!!!!

but if you live in the states, then it is illeagle and unethical to mod your xbox.



unethical?

WHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!!
WHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

funny stuff

[T-BirD]

I've looked adding a modchip to my box a couple of times, but every time I come to the conclusion that once it's done, I'd be fascinated by it for a few hours that first day, and then it would just sit there gathering dust.

Heck...why mess up a decent dvd player (unless I can get rid of those annoying 'regions' (can you?) - thank God for the Panasonic Q)....cuz it sure as heck hasn't played any games in many months.

[McBain]

Yup, you can play an region game and any region dvd with a modded xbox. I thought mine would sit there collecting dust too, but I revamped my enthusiaism when I tossed some old nes roms on there.

[FormFactor]

On top of that, there is a progressive scan dvd player app for modded xboxes. The stock dvd app in the xbox does NOT play dvds in progressive scan, only games. A definate bonus for hdtv users :).

And ROMS rokck. I spent a couple hours playing Killer Instinct on the snes emu on xbox. Very cool just for nostalgia sawke.

That would rock if they would make a xbox version of killer instinct, because all other fighting games combo systems are week in comparison.

[FormFactor]

Originally posted by T-BirD
I've looked adding a modchip to my box a couple of times, but every time I come to the conclusion that once it's done, I'd be fascinated by it for a few hours that first day, and then it would just sit there gathering dust.

Heck...why mess up a decent dvd player (unless I can get rid of those annoying 'regions' (can you?) - thank God for the Panasonic Q)....cuz it sure as heck hasn't played any games in many months.

Funny you mentioned that...because everyone was laughing at mine when I was modding it, because there was about an inch of dust on it before I modded it. I now like it a lot better, and use it a lot more. I even ordered one of those nifty skins off ebay for it. Pimp it up a little.

[drowd]

yeah, i have a friend that is getting one to use solely as a media box. he doesnt even play the games. but being able to watch divx, xvid, etc on the tv this easily is great. hey formfactor, your xbox hd has 8 mb cache? i originally heard that some of the xbox's had problems with the 8 mb cache hd's. i had always heard that the 2 mb cache ones worked the best. did you have any problems?

[FormFactor]

No none while playing games. I was unaware of such an issue.

However now that you mention it, I just noticed that if I am ftping lots of small files and lots of large files from it, the ftp session can hang after transferring a large file. I have to disconnect and reconnect and continue transferring the queue.

I have know idea if this is related to the 8mb cache, in fact I kind of doubt it. Sounds like more of an issue with either the version of evoX i run, or maybe even my ftp client (leapftp). I have been very happy with its performance. I have a friend that uses a Western Digital in his with 8mb cache, and he never has problems either. I would say its prolly pretty safe. Only issue Might be heat, but I have yet to experience a heat related issue either.

[drowd]

huh. well thats cool, i wonder if there is any performance increase? and about the ftp hangs, i used to use cuteftp for my xbox, and it would hang sometimes for me too. a friend recommended that i use flashfxp, and so far i have had no problems, so you might want to give it a shot and see if you still have problems . . .

[FormFactor]

I will have tyo give that a try. I like flashfxp and have used it in the past. this only happens on the laptop, and not on any of my other pcs. very strange.

[PyobliE]

Id still love to have a modded Xbox, but dont have the guts to pull it apart to install a mod chip. I dont even want it to play copied games, I would love to play Divx and VCD's on it. Also, where can I buy modchips in the UK, and which one do I get from where.

Also, once modded, can they take any HD at all?

[drowd]

i have never been to the uk, but i dont imagine there are stores selling them. you pretty much have to order them online. www.xbox-scene.com should have some links. www.system-mods.com actually sells the mod chips. as for your question about the HD's, pyoblie, the only thing i had heard was that some of the 8 mb cache hd's had issues, but FormFactor has said it doesnt affect his. I had heard of some people having problems and some people not though. so i would suggest to still go with the biggest 2 mb cache HD you can find . . .

[PyobliE]

I did a quick search on google for UK pages relating to Modchips. the following link gives a list of a number of modchips, but as I know nothing about modchips, I dunno which is the best one to get.

Also, many sites mention 'home brew software' or similar phrases, are these proggies such as Xbox Media Player and such? cos they are what im really interested in as i understand they allow the playing of Divx's and VCD's.

Cheers guys.

[PyobliE]

Doh, forgot the link, sorry!

Mod Chips (http://www.whitedog.co.uk/catalog/default.php?cPath=11_45)

[drowd]

well, typically when folks refer to homebrew, its a reference to non xbox games that are playable on the xbox. for instance, some people rewrite older games to make them playable on the xbox like rise of the triad and doom. then you have your emulators that will play any rom that would normally play. i have a snes emulator and a regular assortment of games for it. then you have some folks that will just change certain files, but the rest you have to actually pull off of the cd. there arent too many of these, but someone did a really good job of getting quake 2 to werk on the xbox. there were a few small files you had to download, and you had to pull a few really large files off the quake 2 cd (lucky i had it still) and it runs absolutely flawlessly on the xbox. i enjoy it more on it than i ever did on my pc. anyway, that is typically what is refered to as homebrew. dvd players (without the xbox attachment i might add) and divx media players are typically just referred to as apps. a good place for software (no illegal games or anything) is #xbins on EFnet. go there and they will give you some info for their ftp. it has all the software you could possibley want. it has xbox pc tools, it has the latest builds of xbmp and dvdx, and it has the majority of homebrew games and emulators out there. good luck . . .

[FormFactor]

hmm...quake 2 on xbox. I had seen it for download but noticed it was only a few megs and didnt think it could be true at only a few megs so i never grabbed it. I was unaware you could rip the rest from the CD. does the music work too? Loved the q2 music. that rocked. Im pretty stoked. Im gonna have to go get that tonight!!!

[drowd]

yeah, the music does indeed work. there are a few extra steps you have to take in order for the xbox to play it, but it isnt really hard. like, i think you have to rip the wav's from the q2 cd and dump it somewhere in the q2 folder. i dont remember exactly, but there is a text file explaining how with the download. i do remember that it did not take me very long . . .

[PyobliE]

Right I realy wanna do this Modchip stuff, Which of you have actually installed a modchip yourself? Cos I will prolly wanna pick your brians about it via Email of IM / IRC.

Im scared! :(

[Coaster]

Well, we shall do it together Pyoblie :D

I want a mod chip as well, the USB one looks good because it cant be messed up :D

[FormFactor]

Originally posted by Coaster
Well, we shall do it together Pyoblie :D

I want a mod chip as well, the USB one looks good because it cant be messed up :D


I am unaware of a USB chip that actually works. I could be wrong but it sounds a little too easy.

I used the Matrix, but thats only because thats what everyone I know used. The most popular seems to be the Executer Lite chip. Thatun might be easiest because it comes bios flashed. You actually have to flash the Matrix and Executer pro.

[SpY]

i would love to get a modded xbox but i was all into the xbox scene when the shiz started hittin the fan and bought one of the first modchips. it was 29 wires and i ended up overheaing my xbox mainboard and toasting it (bridged traces). so i havent had an xbox since..... im actually gettin an xbox this tuesday just not sure bout the moddin. can anything be done with that "007" trick to get a modified bios on? or maybe some foolproof modchip. id shoot myself if i toasted another box. but tht first one was so damn hard u have no idea. and the instructions were printed on a buisness card sized piece of paper that looked like it had been translated from chinese.

[PyobliE]

/me grabs Coasters hand...

Drowd has contacted my Via PM with his contact detials, so I think I shall be annoying the hell outta him over the coming weeks.

[drowd]

yeah, if you guys need any help, i would love to help out if i could. there are a few other guys in these forums that i know personally that could help out. so if any of you needs some help, shoot me a pm . . .

[Coaster]

Yep we need ya pal, if you use IRC come into gamesnet and #icronticgames sometime

[drowd]

aight, i am in . . .

[dobbs120988]

can any one please post a link or two where i can get a cheap 120 gig harddrive for a modded xbox

[kryyst]

I just modded my xbox 2 weekends ago. Pretty easy actually Used the Executer 2.3b+ solderless chip. It's now all flashed and set up with a dashboard media player all the good stuff.

As for you 120gig harddrive. There is no special 'xbox' harddrive that you have to buy, just look to all your regular places that you buy computer stuff from. The trick is that the hard drive has to be lockable.

I found a list once for which drives are lockable and aren't but I can't find it now. I seem to remember that most newer Western Digitals and Maxtors had the greatest compatibility though.

[drowd]

yeah, get either a maxtor or WD for this. fortunately, modded xbox's have come a long way as far as HD compatibility goes. when i first got into the scene almost a year and a half ago, they had a hard limit of 138 gigs (i think that was it, maybe 137, 136, something along those lines), but they have overcome that. in addition, hd's with 8 mb cache's used to cause problems as well, but these are also no longer a problem. I would say as long as you stick with either of those two hd manufacturers, you should be fine. especially with some of the great deals that have been going on lately (this last semester i have picked up two separate 160 gig hd's from fry's and OD that were 68 bucks out the door. it doesnt get much better than that).

kryyst, how is your solderless chip going? i refuse to even touch those guys. last summer i had a friend that despite all our warnings about some of the problems with these guys, he bought one anyway, cuz he didnt want to solder on his xbox. of course, he couldnt get it working, so he brought it to me, and when all was said and done, we had 3 experienced xbox modders, and none of us could get it consistantly working. the stupid pogo pins were huge in comparison with the d0. anyway, i have heard they had gotten better and smaller, but havent touched them since then. lucky for me, whenever anyone wants an xbox modded i take it to this guy at work who is a soldering god and he solders it in our lab at work with all our tools in 2 or 3 minutes. anyway, did you have any problems with yours?

[kryyst]

I have a 1.0 xbox so the bridge where the pins all sit had solder in the wholes so first I tried setting the board on and getting it to work but I couldn't get a good connection ie it'd work for about .5 secs then crash. The D0 wasn't hard to set you just have to scrap off the contact down to the copper and you get a good connection. Once I removed the solder where the rest of the pins were sitting (just scrapped it off gentely with an exacto knife) it set in no problem. It's a good secure fit as I bumped it around a little bit to see if it'd pop off. Last thing I wanted was to put the thing back together again and have it knock loose in the re-assembly.

The chip I used is the Executor 2.3b+ which is probably the best solderless chip around. I would recomend it to anyone that for whatever reasons can't or doesn't want to solder their board. The chip in general is awesome now mind you the x3 will be out or is out which is a step up from that. But with any mod chip I'd recomend one that you can boot either msdashboard or another dashboard at the flick of a switch.

[dobbs120988]

thx for the advice, i found a 120gig Western Digital hard drive on sale at Circut City for $40. One more question tho can any one post a website where there is a list of all or most of the mod chips that i can buy

[drowd]

for buying chips, i always go with this site

http://www.system-mods.com/index2.php

for general info i go here:

http://www.xbox-scene.com/

good luck and let us know how it goes!

[Zecter]

Hey I'm interested in this whole xbox modding thing. Can anyone tell me the basics about it or what I need to look for or what benefits I can get by modding one? As of now I am pretty much clueless except for some pieces of the puzzle scattered in the above posts.

[drowd]

www.google.com

:D just kidding, i will type of a little general info for xbox's sometime tonite, unless someone answers first. just too damn busy right now :(

[Zecter]

fair enough

...hey, maybe someone could write up an article to go on the front page or something?

[drowd]

ok here is the short answer. basically, the typical modified xbox is akin to back in the day when you used to have to unlock a processor to gain access to the higher multipliers. it essentially "unlocks" your xbox to more of a role of a regular computer or media center pc. there are many various advantages anywhere from using modified and homebrew games to running linux on it, but i would say that the main reasons that people mod their xbox is so that they can run games off of the hard drive and so they can watch divx movies on their television. running games off the hard drive is one of the greatest advantages in my mind. i always forget just how slowly games load when playing off of the disc until i have to. but basically, you are running games at hard drive speeds rather than at dvd rom (and shitty dvd drives at that, cept for some of the later samsungs). it really just makes everything better all around. and as far as a media center pc goes, i would much rather have an xbox. the vast majority of xbox's run evolution X which is basically just an operating system that allows you to manage the settings, programs, and games that you have on your xbox. for media files, most people use XBMP (Xbox Media Player) or XBMC (Xbox Media Center). XBMP used to be the standard for the xbox, but XMBC is the more popular one nowadays because XBMP used locked media player 9 code that could not be modified, so XBMP is fully open source. anyway, evolution x (also called evox or evo-x for short) automatically sets up an ftp server on your xbox so that you can transfer files and folders over with ease. this allows you to upload your divx or xvid (or pretty much any codec you can think of. occasionally i will need a new codec for my pc, but i have never found a file that wont play on XBMC) to your movies folder and then simply browse and play. in addition, these players have enhancements that often times will make your divx movies appear better on the xbox than they would on my pc (mainly because of the clarity of lcd's, but still :D ). in any event, there are tons of useful applications to be found. one of the really exciting communitys is the homebrew community for xbox. they focus on both coding new games for play on the xbox and modifying existing games for xbox. you can get all your favorite older pc games for play with a controller if you want such as doom, rise of the triad, duke nukem, and quake 2. quake 2 plays better than it ever did and it has full networking capabilities and can even run a quake 2 server for you right off of your xbox. anyway, thats enough about that, if you have any questions let us know.


in the meantime, maybe some of us folks can get together and start an official xbox modding thread and we can throw in all the collective knowledge that folks have and then we can toss together a general article about it . . .

[yagga]

so, first step: mod card? then optional second step: Upgrade the harddrive?

DOH! (I didn't mean to use yagga! Look at my posts!!! We need the delete option like at SM)

[Kyle]

Ok, so it's been two months. pyobliE, Coaster, Zecter... you guys modded yet or what?

I've got the DMS X-Bit modchip. Solderless. Can be connected to PC via USB and have bios flashed. External switches to disable the modchip. Have a 120gb 8mb cache Western Digital.

www.consolesource.com is a good place to get modchips and such. It's a Canadian company.

If you guys haven't actually looked yet, www.xbox-scene.com is a great source for n00b info.

[kryyst]

Old news but I'm modded solderless Xecuter 2.3. It's the shiznit.

[drowd]

yup
once you go modded, you never go back. :D