Time to mod the ol' PS2! (installing a mod chip)

is the drive eject button a hard switch or a temporary interrupt switch that could be ignored in software?
because you can open the drive in apps and not trigger a reset of freeze

 

Well, the DVD drive is a complete and independent computer with ROM, RAM and specifically determined known behavior (dictated by it's ROM) whose purpose is read discs. I hope that help you to understand that when you are being blocked from reading a disc, it's not the PS2 itself that is blocking you from reading the disc, but the DVD drive itself.

Sneakly swapping a disk makes the TOC for the legit disc you loaded before the swap keep the drive unlocked. Cogswap or Swapmagic reset the IOP and forces re-caching of the disc filesystem structures on the IOP RAM (without reseting the DVD drive or affecting whatever is on the DVD drive RAM memory) which in turn make the swap possible.

 

oh i see i was thinking it was a simple on off switch but its more complex then that its actually a reset command routine from the DAC and mechacon
thats a real pain because the worm gear will get trashed from the swap key
and he dont want to install the flip top

and i did indeed do understand that the swap trick relys on the drive thinking the disk is still there and due to TOC being cashed at all times

 

So even if I use CogSwap, I still need to force the drive tray open? Dang.

You'd think that since the PS2's DVD drive is a separate computer that someone would have hacked it by now to give them thumbs up to everything it sees

 

It's ROM and it's a SoC (System on a Chip) so it's virtually impervious to hacking. What modchips do is fool the DVD drive CPU in believing that the data which identifies the disc as original was found in the disk by the DSP chip. Hence modchips being connected to the lines that connect the DVD drive CPU to the DSP chip.

 

Ah, so that's how they work is it?

Do you guys think an older motherboard version would fit in my PS2's case? I'm thinking it would save shipping to only ship the main board, plus, I can re-use my existing PS2 case which is in very good condition.

 

Man i remeber when i did this years ago,but i use infinity modship.
i dont know the difference from mobo,but i guess they all do the same.

 

the mobo mod chips support adding a hard drive to ANY slim PS2 including the 9xxxx series

 

Got any info on that?

Far as I know, they completely removed all the IDE points on the board..

 

yah i do actually its called the HD-PRO kit https://www.dealextreme.com/p/hd-pro-network-adapter-for-ps2-90xxx-116907
there is at least one thread about it on PSX-SCENE http://psx-scene.com/forums/f85/hdpro-all-ps2-slim-hdd-62321/
this image on PSX-SCENE shows a MOBO chip connected to a hard drive adapter/weiring diagram
http://psx-scene.com/forums/attachm...6-hd-pro-ps2-slim-modboconecting-diagram2.jpg

 

Oh that, its not really the same thing.

They are basically piggybacking the bios datalines and sending/reading the data from that. Id imagine it should be slower than an original interface. Requires patched software and generally isnt all that good from what I was told about it.

Also, the matrix chips should work just fine with it, not just the modbos.

 

it was more a comment to ryosuke324 saying all modchips do the same not really a suggestion here for a solution to seemless import backups

 

Better than nothing but the alternative to nothing is a whole slew of PS2s with native IDE chipsets I don't know why you'd bother with this. Not like chipped slims are even $200.

 

HDD PRO has nothing to do with the modchip itself. The modbo is part of the kit because since HDDPRO uses the PS2 BIOS bus as I/O port (It places a PIO fake IDE port on top of the PS2 BIOS) the modchip needs a custom modified program so it does not conflict with the IDE/ATA port. That's why they use a MODBO. But in theory it should be able to work without a MODBO, too provided you have means to boot it's program.


Also, it's PIO so it SUCKS. Dead slow. Slower than playing a game through TCP/IP with Open PS2 Loader. Only faster than USB.


And on 75000 and newer PS2s, SONY removed the expansion bus design, got rid of the SPEED chip (the chip with the Ethernet MAC and ATA ports) and moved the ethernet MAC controller into the IOP chip so indeed they "Far as I know, they completely removed all the IDE points on the board.." ...

 

I think I've managed to locate an early Australian PS2 Phat, it's model number appears to be "SCPH-30002" (I say "appears" since the photo isn't very clear, I've sent a message to the guy asking for confirmation), which according to the PS2VersionTable website, makes it a V3 or V4. Where about on the console should I be looking in order to find the "GH" number in order to confirm?

In addition, would I be able to use my current PS2's shell with this older PS2? Also, the seller says the tray doesn't open, but it starts up fine. How would I go about fixing this issue (stuck tray maybe?) or can I use my existing PS2's parts to solve the issue?

 

When I hear about "Tray doesn't open" it's sometimes the plastic has broken from the unit being dropped... Many people I knew had that problem. Of course it could also include gluey bands and other stuff. I'm no expert though.

 

it could also mean it was swap tricked and the door gear is off the track

 

Are both these things repairable? Would I need to salvage parts from my current PS2? My experience with door trays extends only to the Mega CD, which suffers from both worn belts and mis-timed timing gears that cause the drive to not open.

 

I know I would love to get an Australian GH-007 (10 screws) PAL PS2...

Apparently PS2s with GH-007 boards were sold only in Australia ...

 

oh its very fixable as simple as opening the case opening the drive cover and aliening the gear
there are youtube vids on it

but if its been swap tricked the lazier might be worn