Is there some sort of "flag" for CD media that tells the PS2 that it has a PS2 game on a CD instead of a PS1 game? I've got a matrix infinity (clone actually) sporting PS2 that refuses to boot the translated version of the Japanese version of King's Field. The PS2 detects it and loads up telling me it has a PS2 game with the blue bottom icon. Selecting it causes the screen to go black and come right back to the blue bottom icon. Guessing it has something to do with the modchip. It is labeled "XeNo" but it runs the Matrix Infinity firmware.
IIRC, it goes like this: CD && PS1 signature on analog tracking signal? => PS1 CD (maybe with audio) PS2 signature in special sector? => PS2 disc (CD or DVD) DVD && Video DVD file system => Video DVD CD && audio tracks present => Audio CD Otherwise => go away You can authenticate a PS2 disc as a PS1 disc by injecting the correct analog signal (that's how the Crystal Chip's installer checks that the corresponding wire has been soldered in correctly), but I don't remember whether that works for CDs only (i.e., whether you could authenticate a PS2 DVD as PS1 CD this way). Sorry, but I have no experience with your particular modchip and cannot you help there :shrug:.
The Modchip is clearly running in the wrong mode (am i right that you are trying to boot a PS1 game?). Find out, how you can switch the mode and try again (I think you need to hold Triangle+Circle on reset to get in the configuration mode if this is a matrix clone). If this don´t work try some other burned or "wrong-region"- ps1 game first. If these games work you have a bad image or bad media (ps1 discs are mode2 and ps2 cd games are mode1 if i remember correctly).
On my matrix clone, I have to boot PS1 games while holding circle too. Instructions for matrix (and clones) with buttons to hold: http://www.mod-chip.bz/PS2/matrixreadmed.html
On older chips you have to hold the eject button until the blue button flashes and then it'll be in PS1/DVD mode.
It boots all other PS1 burns and pressed media. This title is unique in that it is Japanese and has had a fan translation applied. I'd be willing to bet the translation patch doesn't do a perfect job and is being misinterpreted somehow. I'll give the instructions a shot and report back. Unfortunately for me this is a slim and best I can tell the eject button doesn't seem to really do much beyond open the lid.
Authentication of discs using the "SCEx wooble" for PS1 software work only for CD-ROMs. And the status register of the drive will reflect the media type that was detected so PS2 software written with SONY's SDK will have code in it that detects if it's running on the wrong mode. Obviously this does not apply to homebrewn. I think Crystal chip (Matrix does that too when you use it's recovery mode) do that to be completely free of code when shipped and be "legal" on more countries. Sadly it makes the chip a pain in the butt to install and that was one of the reasons I loathed to install that chip in particular. The PS2 can be pretty damn finicky with CD-R media. The tolerance for DVD discs is much, much better.
Both are MODE2-XA. Put a MODE1 CD-ROM on a PS2 and you will get nothing but red screen out of it, even if the data is "proper". That's a big issue for discs that had been copied to the HDD because HDLOADER ISO handling software are dumb (as much as the people who made it) and it spits MODE1 ISOs (and I suppose that's why you said that). Burn such a ISO to a disc and you will have a nice coaster. :shrug: The most significant differences are the 1st sector (PS1 has the 3D logo and PS2 has the "PlayStation 2" bitmap logo in there) and the syntax of the System.cnf file. A properly installed Matrix chip will use that file to decide which boot mode to use (It aways tries first to boot a CD as a PS2 game and get system.cnf from it). If it finds a PS1 system.cnf file it will then send a low level drive reset command (this causes the blue led on the eject button to blink once) and will start to spam the SCEx serial stream at the pin 1 of the DSP chip. If the "Z" signal is not connected properly this process goes out of sync and the boot stalls. Then the only recourse is force the PS1 boot mode by holding the circle button. If the SCEx wire is not connected, you will get nothing but red screens. :shrug:
The image is missing a system.cnf file, at least a visible one. Addendum: I don't know why I didn't think to do this earlier. :redface: Booted up PCSX2, log entry complains about the missing SYSTEM.CNF file but continued to boot to a black screen. There was a specific entry that said it was going into PS1 mode. Changed the GPU plugin to ZeroGS which had the log complain several times about the missing SYSTEM.CNF file. This time around I found a log entry stating that it was going to boot in PS2 mode. It then proceeded to crash and burn. I've read that the file isn't necessary if PSX.EXE exists, which it does in this image. Clearly something isn't adding up here.
Does PCSX2 support playing PS1 games at all ? And yes, that's correct: A real PS1 or PS2(in PS1 mode) will try to load PSX.EXE if no SYSTEM.CNF file exists on the disc.
It does not. That's why in the README they direct users to other emulators if they wish to play those games.
Hrm, for some reason I'd swear it did. Just reran the image in ePSXe, ran just fine without any obvious complaints. Will have to check to see if it has any verbose messaging system to check for any errors. Then again this could be yet another case of "works in an emulator, but not on real hardware".
I had this problem with a nice white slim PS2 once. Managed to get it into DVD/PS1 mode a few times but I couldn't figure out how I was doing it.
