Hong Kong Dreamcast: name that mod

I've got a HK Dreamcast which got a strange PCB soldered inside as well as a bi-color LED:








Does someone know what kind of mod we're dealing with here?

The DC doesn't seem to be region-free, it only boots japanese discs but not US and PAL ones. The LED is green all the time. Very strange: Now and then the Dreamcast swirl while booting is black instead of orange.

I also posted this on the gamesx forums: http://nfggames.com/forum2/index.php?topic=5289.0

 

most likely some kind of region switch that you need to activate somehow, similar to the switchless mods on the mega drive etc. thats all i got!

 

Try to switch region using Dreamshell.

 

Thanks!

I think ASSEMbler is right. The DC is from about 1999 before there were any modchips available. Also the solder joints look very clean/professional.

One question remains unanswered: Why the bi-colour LED that only shines green? Maybe to make it visible from the outside that the DC is modified? Then why not just install a normal green LED...?

 

The bi-color was for identifying that the mod was in fact active and working without checking with a multimeter or a monitor, IIR. I think there was a post about it on the gamefaqs.com boards.

 

Do all HK Dreamcasts have heat pipes? I never saw this (I have a US model)

 

Its a V0 board. You probably have a V1 or V2 board which are more common.

 

Now, that is an interesting looking DC. What if the different LED light is to indicate the region that is on? For example, for those that have region modded their sega saturns, and hold the reset button down to change color, for said region. Then I don't really know myself.