Merry Christmas/Repairaganza

Merry Christmas 2017/Repairaganza!

   Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas/New Year for 2017!

      Although I did not get as much done as I wanted with EagleSoft Ltd this year (I took the year off to focus on my professional video game development job), I plan to do a lot for the early next year. Since the job started in January 2017, I have gotten a year's worth of valuable, real-world professional experience in the video game industry. Both my résumé and the portfolio sections of the EagleSoft Ltd website are quite outdated now, and will be updated early next year as much as NDA allows me to, especially for the professional projects.

   
    There are also a few older, cancelled projects from a few years ago that I'd like to upload and document on the site, and I'm going to try finishing Socket the Hedgeduck hack next year. Those two older projects were a Super Mario 64 and F-Zero X ROM hack. A lot of work was put into the Socket the Hedgeduck hack, and I would love to do what it takes to polish it up to completion as a personal project. This ROM hack really helped me understand how the Sega Genesis hardware works, and was one of the projects that helped me get my professional video game development job. Other plans are to begin either a YouTube channel or Twitch channel called Nerdology, where I will review old video games and technology 😀.

Repairaganza 2017

  
     On a different note, I recently received from someone a few old video game consoles and other video game memorabilia (including a custom arcade cabinet). Some of the consoles had some issues, and needed repair, while others were working and needed some cosmetic refurbishment. In a few previous posts, I repaired a Sega Game Gear and an awesome Sega Saturn, but recently received a few other consoles. I would like to use the rest of this post to detail the repairs in getting them fixed, for fun. These consoles will obviously be used when I begin reviewing video games for the Nerdology channel, coming next year!

Consoles:

• Nintendo
• Game Boy Color chassis
• GameCube
• Wii 
• Custom piano SNES
• Misc.
• N64 Arcade Cabinet
• Sony
• Fat PS2
• Microsoft
•  XBox 360
• Yerf-Dog
• Refurbished unit

Game Boy Color chassis replacement

      One of the items received was a lime-green Game Boy Color Chassis. Although, back in the day, my parents gave me a lime-green Game Boy Color (which I still own), this unit cosmetically was trashed, especially for the screen. The screen got pretty badly scratched and scraped after loaning it out to a friend back in 4th grade, and the chassis edges got pretty badly dirtied by myself. (I owned it way back when I was younger, and, being younger, I did not take very good care of the handheld.) Now having a Tri-wing screwdriver and this older chassis, I figured it was finally time to restore its appearance, by transplanting the Game Boy Color motherboard to the new chassis.

     Transplanting was easy, after following some iFixit guides for the front and back covers. The old chassis was somewhat dirty, and needed cleaning. Opening it up also gave me the chance to apply rubbing alcohol to the button pads, which I really found to help in maintenance of buttons for gamepads and such. I managed to transplant the motherboard without breaking anything.

 

Nintendo GameCube refurbishment/repair

     Two other things I received were a working (albeit dirty) Nintendo GameCube, and a Nintendo Wii. The Nintendo GameCube was working, but sometimes the power button (which is spring loaded) would not depress all the way to actually turn the console on. This was easily fixed by removing the plastic button altogether; there's a hole there now where the button can be manually depressed with a long, pointed object (such as a screwdriver). It was quite dirty, and I had to open the GameCube up in order to vacuum up the dirt/dust near the fan, by following this iFixit guide.

    Unfortunately, I ended up damaging the GameCube in the process of cleaning up the fan, by accidentally breaking off a lever for the CD sensor switch when putting the top lid back on. Most CD-based game consoles have a CD sensor switch; this is used to determine if the CD lid is open (for top-loader based systems, such as the original PS1) or if the CD tray is slid out all the way (for front-loader based systems, such as the fat, original PS2). Most top-loader systems (such as the GameCube) have a piece of plastic on the lid, which depresses a switch somehow. This switch is usually a "normally-opened" (NO) type of switch. When this switch is closed, the console knows that the CD lid is closed/tray is in; when the switch is opened, the console knows that the CD lid is opened/tray is slid out. When the switch is opened, the CD motor spindle is idle; when it is closed, the machine begins spinning and reading the disc (since there should be one in there now). The Nintendo GameCube uses a DPDT (Double-Pole, Double-Throw) type of switch, using two lever switches. One of the levers got broken off.

       The circuit board for the Nintendo GameCube CD sensor switch is about the size of a US quarter, and easy to replace (being a modular PCB component). Rather than waste $6-$12 for the replacement part on eBay (which seems excessively expensive for how simple the CD sensor switch module is), I just soldered up an override switch on the CD sensor switch module with a spare SPST switch to get around the broken switch. I could technically use this sensor override switch to do a swap-trick if I really wanted to do so. (The swap-trick is a method where the user puts in an authentic disc into a game system, and quickly swaps out the authentic CD with a bootleg copy at the right time. This is done with an override switch, in order to fool the console that the CD lid is closed when it is actually opened physically, and vice-versa when needed. If the swap-trick is done correctly and quickly enough, the console will not know that the authentic CD was swapped, and will use the authentication data from the authentic disc to boot the bootleg disc. This is an especially useful technique to run bootlegs on security-based CD consoles, such as the Sega Saturn, Sony PS1, and the Sony PS2. However, it is a risky trick, and, if done incorrectly, the motor or console can be damaged.)

 

GameCube CD Sensor switch

Repaired GameCube 😎

 

     The main reason for picking up this GameCube (even though I also got a Wii, which is backwards compatible with GameCube discs), is the fact that, unlike the Wii, only the GameCube is compatible with the Game Boy Player add-on (which I have). It is an awesome add-on for the GameCube, which allows the user to play original Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advanced games on a TV via the GameCube. In the future, I plan on either installing an XenoGC modchip (which allows the playing of mini DVD-R discs without the swap trick) or purchasing an SD Media Launcher bundle for playing homebrew on the console. The latter loader method contains a special GameCube software disc (with the proper BCA area, so that it is read as an authentic disc), which can launch homebrew from a special memory card which interfaces with an SD card, as well as boot mini DVD-R backups. One homebrew I would love try out is the Game Boy Interface, which is an advanced Game Boy Player boot disc, which fixes all of the issues for the original boot disc made by Nintendo for the add-on.

     I also received with this GameCube a turbo-enabled GameStop controller and a semi-rare GameCube Lodgenet controller. It was a special controller that worked with a special Lodgenet GameCube model. This GameCube model was used in Lodgenet hotels for a simple pay-to-play trial system, and came with this special controller for using the system menu. The special controller includes special buttons for the menu interface. The controller uses a 6P6C RJ11 connection (instead of the standard GameCube connector) with a super long telephone cord, and I plan to solder up an adapter after doing some original research in the near future.

Stock image of a semi-rare

GameCube Lodgenet controller

   Nintendo Wii repair/hacks

    The Nintendo Wii I received was fully working, other than the fact that the Wii disc drive mechanism was jammed. It also lacked covers for the GameCube ports and the Memory Card slots, which will be replaced later, and has the final firmware version for the model (4.3U). Unlike most other CD-based consoles (which either use a top-loader system or a front-loading tray), the Wii uses a disc slot. When you insert a disc, a simple conveyor system "eats" the disc and spits it out as necessary (similar in concept to VHS players of yore, or exactly like most automotive CD audio systems). Unfortunately, the previous owner somehow got a copy of Mario Kart Wii stuck in the system. After forcibly prying out the game out with tweezers, I disassembled the Wii (using the iFixit guide at https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Nintendo+Wii+DVD+Drive+Replacement/5164), and determined that some gears for the conveyor system got out of alignment, making some nasty clicking noises. The gears were not catching, the conveyor system would not run, and the disc could not be either sucked in or spitted out. I tried watching and following this repair video, but the gear system was too finicky/sensitive to repair. I plan just to throw out the old drive and eventually purchasing a compatible, replacement drive on eBay.

     To prepare for that replacement day, I surfed over to the Wii Drive Chip DB website in order to determine what type of DVD drive I had in the Wii during disassembly. The Wii product line contained various different DVD drives during its lifetime; some were cost reduced and had physical changes made to it in order to make modchip installation more difficult. Earlier drives can play both GameCube and Wii games, while later drives can only play Wii games. When replacing a disk drive, it is a good idea to replace it with one containing the correct drive chip. After inspecting the drive, I determined that it is a full-sized DVD drive, with a D2B drive chip, with cut pins (harder to install modchip), and no CD clip.

Wii Disc Drive identification

 

    After determining the drive chip type, I soft-modded my Wii with the Homebrew Channel, via Letterbomb exploit 😎. I later installed some fun homebrew games and applications (to tide me over until I replace the dead disc drive), and modified the Weather Channel, News Channel, Wii Mail, and Everybody Votes channel to work again online via the RiiConnect24 project. (News Channel is throwing a FORE000006 error, so I have to reset the RTC clock). The coolest part about this Wii was that the previous owner did not remove his/her Wii Shop Channel account, and left 2250 Wii points for me 😀. Unfortunately, the Wii Shop Channel is closing in January 2019, so I am trying to get as many original WiiWare titles as possible and enjoy them while they last. After the disc drive is replaced, I am going to have a blast playing some games online again via the Wiimmfi project and its patches.

 

Wii hacked with HBC, RiiConnect24 

Although the previous Wii owners broke the disc drive,

they left me with 2,250 Wii Points 😀

 

Custom piano SNES

        From the same person as the other consoles, I received a custom-painted Piano SNES that nobody wanted. (Poor SNES!) The unit was not working at all; it would power up, but would never read cartridges. Somebody I knew took a closer look at the unit with an oscilloscope; turns out the CPU (a Ricoh 5A22) was reading garbage data when cartridges were inserted, and he determined that the CPU was dead. He was able to repair the unit by soldering in a working, replacement CPU. (I am quite glad he repaired it; I do not have the hardware or skills yet to do surface mount soldering, yikes!) It is a sexy console, and works well 😎.

Fat Sony PS2 repairs

    I also received from this same person an older, fat PS2, with a cool barbed wire skin on it. It is a SCPH-350001 model, with relatively low versions on the system components, and the much sought-after Expansion Bay. Supposedly, it had "Disc Read Errors," but I determined that it did not have such issues. I was able to get it to read PS1, PS2 (Single Layer DVD 4GB discs), audio, and DVD Video discs. I am assuming that the tester used a Dual Layer PS2 disc (such as those in the TimeSplitters series), which have been known to have issues with some models of fat PS2s without adjusting the laser potentiometers. I remember having to do that and place transparent tape on the inner CD rings (where the motor spindle attaches) to get TimeSplitters 1 to work on my older brother's PS2 back in the day.

    The fan was incredibly dirty, the unit had some minor scuffs, and the CD tray sometimes would not open (it would jam). I cleaned out the fan, washed off the scuffs as best as I could, and cleaned off/lubricated the tray drive belt via rubbing alcohol, which improved the disc tray sliding. Controller ports and Memory cards work on this unit too. (In fact, this was the first unit that booted up a particular, old, blue, 8MB, 1st-party PS2 memory card I had in over 8 years! I thought this particular memory card corrupted years ago to the point of being unreadable, yet it read it!)

      Eventually I plan to purchase a PS2 Network Adapter for the Expansion Bay, which can mount an IDE HDD, for loading homebrew via FHDB and similar utilities.

 Before cleaning the Fat PS2 up

 During cleanup

(Look how dirty the cotton swabs

got when cleaning the fan; yuck!)

After cleanup

(So much cleaner!)

Video of disc drive before/after lubrication

Microsoft Xbox 360 repairs

     In terms of consoles, lastly, I saved two XBox 360 Fat units from the person. Both had some minor scuffs and scratches which I would clean off, and very dirty fans which I cleaned out. Both did not work fully, and I was saving both because the other unit had the parts the other lacked, and because I planned to hack one of the consoles (with RJTAG) for homebrew and other features. One would be kept stock for XBox Live features, while the other would be hacked and stay permanently offline (hacked consoles are banned on XBox Live). One had a custom sticker on top ("Yerf-Dog"), while the other one had a refurbishment sticker on it.

 

    The former XBox 360 model was fully working, other than a jammed CD drive, while the latter had an out-of-order wireless module. The latter would not allow the connection of wireless XBox 360 controllers, and would not display the state of the power button (the console would boot however). Both have some of the latest firmware versions available (16k and 17k versions), meaning I would have to hack one later with a complicated R-JTag hardware hack. I was also allowed to keep a 60GB HDD, and both a Composite/S-Video AV cable, and an HD Component AV cable (with SD/HDTV toggle button). While repairing them, I identified the processor type and other specs from this guide, so I could determine which XBox 360 would be better to hack.

 

    I repaired the jammed DVD Drive in the Yerf-Dog model by following this guide and disassembling the DVD Drive. Inside was a belt drive, which I cleaned out and lubricated with rubbing alcohol. This made the drive slide smoother and open up properly. This unit was identified with the following:

Yerf-Dog model

• CPU
• 2009 Jasper CPU
• Firmware
• Version 17000 dash (Metro Dash)
• DVD Drive
• Model type: Liteon
• MS Part no : X800474-009
• MFR Date: July 2009
• HW Ver: A0A2
• FM Ver: 83850C
• 256MB Internal Memory Unit

    

     For the other model (the refurbished one), I was able to fix the wireless module by properly connecting the module; it was loose. This XBox 360 was cleaner than the other was, and I identified it with the following specs:

Refurbished model:

• CPU
• 2007 Falcon CPU
• Firmware
• Version 16000 dash (Metro Dash)
• DVD Drive
• Model type: Liteon
• MS Part no : X800474-009
• MFR Date: July 2009
• HW Ver: A0A2
• FM Ver: 83850C
• Epoxied drive chip!
• No Internal Memory Unit

          After repairing both units, it was determined that the refurbished model would be the better one to hack. It has an older firmware, and a Falcon processor (better R-JTag results). My only concern is the epoxied drive chip on this model.

N64 Arcade Cabinet

 

 

     The last thing (and arguably the coolest thing) I received from the person was a custom N64 arcade cabinet, and two additional, replacement LCD monitors! It was formerly a botched portable N64 stuffed into this arcade cabinet, with the N64 begin a bare motherboard. (Hence the N64 joypad ports in the front, and Super Smash Bros. 64 artwork.) The N64 was a dead motherboard. The unit had a single power supply, which powered the N64 power brick, the mini LCD, and a HiFi system. This arcade cabinet has a miniature LCD monitor, which has two RCA Video input channels and a power jack pigtail (tied to the single power supply). The LCD monitor has aspect ratio options (4:3 and 16:9) brightness, color, and contrast settings. The HiFi system outputs audio to two large speakers in the top panel of the cabinet, and accepts audio input via a left/right RCA pair (red and white jacks). The HiFi system has knobs for volume, bass, and tone, and the knobs will light up and change color when powered.

  

    Since the N64 was dead, I removed the N64 and de-spliced the N64 power brick from the common power supply. Some of the wires running from the HiFi system to the speaker broke off, so I repaired them by soldering them back onto the speakers. I mounted the HiFi system to the side panel, and mounted the common power brick onto the other side panel. This allows both the HiFi system and power brick to be encompassed into the cabinet design, to make the whole thing portable. I replaced the old LCD monitor with a newer one, which has two RCA video inputs, as well as a VGA input port. Lastly, I pimped the unit up by tracing the cabinet borders with cool, red EL wire. Using a battery powered EL wire inverter, the whole cabinet lights up 😎.

Although I have both a full-sized CRT and a LCD monitor, I use this cabinet as both a decoration and as a portable screen. It has been useful for testing consoles after repairs (such as those in this post) to make sure everything still works, and as a portable game system.

Overall, I picked up and fixed a a lot of old consoles, accessories, and a cool custom arcade cabinet. Next year is going to be more active for EagleSoft Ltd, with an updated porfolio website and even a YouTube/Twitch streaming channel called Nerdology, where I'll review old video games/consoles 😀.

-Tamkis