PS1 Do you own a PSX? - Lets Talk Mods!

[ZEGA ZONIC]

Unlike Anti over here, I do have a OG Gray model PSX. But I don't think I have modded it yet.

 

[popckorn]

No.

Oh

 

[FTLOTG]

I thought this thread was gonna be about this

The eternal confusion of an awkwardly maintained prototype name clashing with an official product that uses said name.

My PS1 is modded, it's an scph-5501 (pu18) running an XStation. Previously it had a Mayumi V4 installed but I upgraded to XStation the year it came out. It's a must-have console, PS2 had many rendering flaws the PS1 does not so I prefer to use the real thing.

 

[ThatOneLum]

I currently have a PSX with some third-rate modchip in but I'm probably gonna shelv/sell it soon. It was some modchip that my dad had put in the system back in the early 2000s so god-alone knows what it's like inside. If he had someone at the pub do it then it's probably filled with more patching wire than I'd care to admit.

I have to agree that memcard mods are much more appealing, especially since they also enable you to mod any PS1/2 you are using, rather than installing a hardware mod where you have to do it to each system you want to run the software on.

 

[popckorn]

My PS1 is modded, it's an scph-5501 (pu18) running an XStation.

I am so jelly!
My PSOne is not elegible for XStation.
But I heard there will be solderless Xstation for the PSOne in the future.
I must admit I am just too happy with my black CDRs, but only God knows how long will the Laser live.
The latter is the reason why I researched cleaning and maintenance of the Laser Module. After some White Lithium Grease on squeaky clean gears, and a bit of liquid oil inside the actual metal motors, the PSOne FLIES SWIFT AND SILENT! I had no idea I could improve the loading times so much.

 

[FTLOTG]

had no idea I could improve the loading times so much.

Healthy drives work wonderfully, provided that laser still fires up (you can check with your phone camera and by depressing the lid sensor switch when powered on) if it starts being spotty with reading discs you likely need to recap in the drive controller and power region of the board. Still if it's working great then don't worry about it at all!

 

[The_Real_Thing]

So, PSX mods work by injecting a 4-letter region code during boot, the first screen, right before it goes to the black secondary boot screen. For NTSC-U, like my (SCPH-9001, PU-23) PSX, that code is 'SCEA'. That's it. This code was burned into retail discs using factory equipment; home burners cannot replicate such in the inner ring.

My first mod method was to buy a PS-X-Change v2. It's a basic swap disc with a brass springed mechanism to hold the open tray sensor button down. It worked great, but was a pain because swapping and taking longer to get to playing.



Later, got my first modchip, an OLD sort that was cheap, on a simple PIC. It was my first time touching a soldering iron. Not (completely) awful for not using a bit of flux, heh. The chip worked perfectly for almost all games, but anti-mod games made the anti-piracy message show. Metal Gear Solid Integral, among others, required using a seperate boot disc and game genie style code to bypass the protection.



I just recently decided to update the mod to a new chip, one that uses the new(er) PsNee open-source firmware. It can be flashed to a very inexpensive arduino clone, and there are several models to choose from. I chose a NANO, as it has a built-in LED set, is like 2 bucks, and because the bottom right corner of the console is all empty space where it can live. When it injects the region code, an amber LED lights up and can be seen out of the front air slots. Install is 6 wires, since I don't require any bios patching like a Japanese console would. Works great on everything.



You may have noticed the spindle area of the laser assembly above has some tabs missing, 2 of them. So sometimes if a disc starts spinning quickly without ramping up, it'll just not grip the CD and not read. So I ended up replacing the whole assembly with a KSM 440-BAM model that a PSOne uses. It just required getting an extra extension cable. Working great, no complaints. Buying from Aliexpress seems to be hit or miss, but I got a good one.



I've got some extra spindle plate assemblies and a 1.5mm spacer (veroboard) coming so that I can fix the old drive and keep as a spare. The veroboard serves to act like a barrier to keep from pushing it down farther than 1.5-1.6mm from the motor 'deck', as this is the optimal factory spacing specified in the (leaked) PSX service manual(s). *nods*

 

[popckorn]

Man I wish I had the equipment and the knowhow to solder at home.
The furthest I'll go is open and clean and lube and that is all.
Reason why I am so satisfied by FreePSXBoot

 

[FTLOTG]

Man I wish I had the equipment and the knowhow to solder at home.

It's a great skill to have and very fun. I'd recommend learning it, especially if you're into using the real hardware. I've found all kinds of use for it in life too. Even something as simple as replacing a wire on my mom's electric kettle.