Questions that do not deserve a thread

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kitty666cats
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by kitty666cats »

fernan1234 wrote:
kitty666cats wrote: Have never personally used the RT2X + DAC - here is some pics of the CYP unit RGBS out w/ N64 Svid as input:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CRC6ejJlRAv/

The Kramer VM-19N, by comparison, seems to have duller colors (tried two units and someone else I know had tried one as well)
Thanks for the pics. Those look great! I briefly used a Kramer unit once and did find colors to look a bit dull. It sounds like the conversion with this CYP one is virtually "lossless". It feels that way with the RT2X passthrough too. I guess an OSSC's passthrough should perform similarly. But you never really know until you compare these things and see something even better.
On the Kramer units, Luigi’s hat is pretty dark green, like the section near his ear in these CMT-7 shots - only the whole hat is that dark shade of green. Kramer decoders seem to have trouble with green/blue levels & the differences between the two in particular.
fernan1234
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by fernan1234 »

kitty666cats wrote:On the Kramer units, Luigi’s hat is pretty dark green, like the section near his ear in these CMT-7 shots - only the whole hat is that dark shade of green. Kramer decoders seem to have trouble with green/blue levels & the differences between the two in particular.
Yeah I remember this, and particularly being disappointed by how blue looked kinda muddled. I guess that's consistent across the Kramer units.
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vol.2
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by vol.2 »

I'm looking at PS1 S-video cables, and the only one my local video game store carries is a multi-system cable that has PS1, GC and XBOX. Is there any reason to not buy this cable? I don't require perfection, but I would like a quick better-than-composite solution for a CRT that doesn't have component inputs. Is this going to be okay, or are they terrible for some reason?
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Guspaz
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by Guspaz »

Is it wired correctly? Some cheap no-name cables just wire composite to both pins.

Prices for the OEM cable on eBay vary wildly, ranging from around $14 to $90 for new in box OEM. So there might be a deal there if you keep an eye out. Insurrection Industries announced in May that they were working on (among other things) new Playstation S-Video cables.
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vol.2
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by vol.2 »

Guspaz wrote:Is it wired correctly? Some cheap no-name cables just wire composite to both pins.

Prices for the OEM cable on eBay vary wildly, ranging from around $14 to $90 for new in box OEM. So there might be a deal there if you keep an eye out. Insurrection Industries announced in May that they were working on (among other things) new Playstation S-Video cables.
Thanks. I can bring a multimeter with me to the store and check it I suppose. If it is, that's probably good enough for now. I'm more looking for immediate than high quality because I'm staying away from home for a short time with a setup I don't often use.
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NewSchoolBoxer
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by NewSchoolBoxer »

vol.2 wrote:I'm looking at PS1 S-video cables, and the only one my local video game store carries is a multi-system cable that has PS1, GC and XBOX. Is there any reason to not buy this cable? I don't require perfection, but I would like a quick better-than-composite solution for a CRT that doesn't have component inputs. Is this going to be okay, or are they terrible for some reason?
I mean, I'm sure it's better than Composite. Even my cheapest SNES S-Video cable in the world beats Nintendo official Composite.

I paid $25 for Sony SCPH-10130 Multiout into Composite, S-Video, RCA Audio female jacks + connector to another Multiout. Pretty sweet to use S-Video male to male cable I had just sitting around that I'm sure was machine made to professional standards.

Since I'm starting cable research, I just ordered two Sony official S-Video cables from Japan. Cheaper than from US cable cartel sellers. Plan is to use one and sell the other. If you want to buy your own with proxy bidding, search for S端子. It's "S-Terminal" like how their Component is "D-Terminal".
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kitty666cats
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by kitty666cats »

Anyone else here own an Apple IIgs monitor / ever ran into an issue where the contrast knob has stopped working? Replaced the caps with the console5 cap kit and replaced the AN5356 IC... no dice, the contrast knob is still wonky and the image is a bit 'washed out'. I think it's honestly just a bad solder joint that is REALLY good at hiding, but WHEW what a tease.

Here it is in good, normal working order:
https://www.reddit.com/r/crtgaming/comm ... s_a_15khz/

And here it is as of present:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CRIKujwlrCi/

"close, but no cigar"
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vol.2
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by vol.2 »

kitty666cats wrote:Anyone else here own an Apple IIgs monitor / ever ran into an issue where the contrast knob has stopped working? Replaced the caps with the console5 cap kit and replaced the AN5356 IC... no dice, the contrast knob is still wonky and the image is a bit 'washed out'. I think it's honestly just a bad solder joint that is REALLY good at hiding, but WHEW what a tease.

Here it is in good, normal working order:
https://www.reddit.com/r/crtgaming/comm ... s_a_15khz/

And here it is as of present:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CRIKujwlrCi/

"close, but no cigar"
It could also be the contrast pot itself. They can short out. Rip it out of there and replace it with a same value pot to verify. Also you should just reflow every big solder joint in the set. Absolutely anything that sees heat and anything on a connector because it receives stress. Also sockets and big things like the tube socket and the flyback, and every single switch or pot.

I know that sounds like a lot of work, but just do it. If it's a bad solder joint, there's bound to be a bunch more ready to pop.
NJRoadfan
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by NJRoadfan »

CRT repair techs, this question is for you.

Anyone familiar with the Toshiba TIMM? My beloved TIMM has developed a fault in it's horizontal section. I get a scrambled display on all inputs, like if you push the horizontal position pot too far left or right on an old TV. Oddly, the on-screen display still works, but there is a sin wave wobble of varying degree. I'm thinking its something to do with the horizontal oscillator, but CRT fault diagnosis and repair is not something I'm well versed in.

The monitor sat turned off for over a year in a climate controlled environment (my living room). No issues elsewhere with the TV. Vertical deflection, high voltage, input processing all appear to work fine. I have the full service manual and tech training book for the set if needed.
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cave hermit
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by cave hermit »

I have a sff optiplex with a pretty good cpu that I had set up for 31khz groovymame, but at this point I feel like it would be better to set it up for playing native pc shmups. I assume that pretty much any 2d shmup would have essentially zero gpu requirement and I have a ATI HD 5450 card, but I'm considering buying a cheap Radeon HD 8490 to upgrade it (upgrade being a relative term here). Is the HD 5450 sufficient for consistent smooth performance, or should I get the 8490? Would the 8490 even be enough for smooth performance?
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vol.2
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by vol.2 »

The S-Video cable for my PS1 turned out to be of much higher quality than I was expecting. It's an old used cable that has PS1, GC and XBOX inputs, and each connector has it's own breakout box with soldered terminals inside. I brought a multimeter to the store with me, and it rang out perfectly for s-video and it works great. Night and day better than the composite PS1.

I would report on the brand, but it has no markings. All I can say is that it's a gross clear grey color that looks like an early 2000s thing. Like that period of time when stuff was imitating the translucent colored imac cases and their cables, even when it had nothing to do with apple stuff.
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maxtherabbit
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by maxtherabbit »

vol.2 wrote:The S-Video cable for my PS1 turned out to be of much higher quality than I was expecting. It's an old used cable that has PS1, GC and XBOX inputs, and each connector has it's own breakout box with soldered terminals inside. I brought a multimeter to the store with me, and it rang out perfectly for s-video and it works great. Night and day better than the composite PS1.

I would report on the brand, but it has no markings. All I can say is that it's a gross clear grey color that looks like an early 2000s thing. Like that period of time when stuff was imitating the translucent colored imac cases and their cables, even when it had nothing to do with apple stuff.
Haha I think I have that exact same cable
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by Dochartaigh »

cave hermit wrote:I have a sff optiplex with a pretty good cpu that I had set up for 31khz groovymame, but at this point I feel like it would be better to set it up for playing native pc shmups. I assume that pretty much any 2d shmup would have essentially zero gpu requirement and I have a ATI HD 5450 card, but I'm considering buying a cheap Radeon HD 8490 to upgrade it (upgrade being a relative term here). Is the HD 5450 sufficient for consistent smooth performance, or should I get the 8490? Would the 8490 even be enough for smooth performance?
I am NOT an expert on the PC side before I write this reply fyi... but I was always told that mame (including groovymame which my 240p build is for) pretty much did nearly everything on the processor side and not so much on the graphics card itself.... so I've been fine with my HD 6450 which is in pretty much the same realm as your HD 5450.

But I was also told that i didn't need a super fast processor either so I bought a modern (but cheap) Skylake G4400 3.3ghz dual core which struggled with even early 3d games in groovymame... then switched to an i7 7700 and have had zero issues with anything I've ever ran (with that same HD6450)... so as long as your CPU is up to the task you should be fine in my experience.
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by EmperorIng »

Here's a well-worn topic of discussion: Octo gates or square gates?

I am in the process of modding a new 8bitdo arcade stick with a seimitsu joystick, and the question of which gate to use is starting to creep into my mind. At first it made immediate sense to install an octogate but posts around here seem to be all over the place as to preference or what is best for shmuppin'.
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vol.2
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by vol.2 »

I dusted off my OG XBOX from storage this weekend and the DVD drive will not open and close. I took it apart and cleaned it, and made sure the belt looks tight, but it still seems to be caught on something that happens when I put the metal case on it. If I remove the metal shell from the drive, it opens and closes just fine. I can't see anything catching, so it must be squeezing the plastic in some way that prevents the tray from opening. It's a Hitachi drive.

Does anyone have a best solution here? I found a couple samsung ebay replacements, but they are like $80 and I reckon they have a limited lifespan. Does anyone have experiencing fixing a stuck drive, or perhaps there is a modding solution I should seek out to run the XBOX from a HDD? Perhaps I can just burn my disks onto the drive?

Thanks
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by Issac Zachary »

EmperorIng wrote:Here's a well-worn topic of discussion: Octo gates or square gates?

I am in the process of modding a new 8bitdo arcade stick with a seimitsu joystick, and the question of which gate to use is starting to creep into my mind. At first it made immediate sense to install an octogate but posts around here seem to be all over the place as to preference or what is best for shmuppin'.
Personally I'd prefer an octogon instead of a square. For me a square makes it hard to hit straight up, down or side to side. I only like a "square" if it's in a diamond 4-way position for something like PACMAN.
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by bobrocks95 »

vol.2 wrote:I dusted off my OG XBOX from storage this weekend and the DVD drive will not open and close. I took it apart and cleaned it, and made sure the belt looks tight, but it still seems to be caught on something that happens when I put the metal case on it. If I remove the metal shell from the drive, it opens and closes just fine. I can't see anything catching, so it must be squeezing the plastic in some way that prevents the tray from opening. It's a Hitachi drive.

Does anyone have a best solution here? I found a couple samsung ebay replacements, but they are like $80 and I reckon they have a limited lifespan. Does anyone have experiencing fixing a stuck drive, or perhaps there is a modding solution I should seek out to run the XBOX from a HDD? Perhaps I can just burn my disks onto the drive?

Thanks
If you're not concerned about using original discs, it's definitely easy to load all your games from the hard drive. Softmod with a USB adapter and compatible game, and then you just rip the games or move them over via FTP and an ethernet cable. From there you just select them from a list on the dashboard. Of course you'll want to put a larger drive in too, either an old IDE lying around or using an IDE to SATA adapter.

The metal piece you're talking about isn't that little flimsy square piece around the drive is it? You definitely don't need that or anything. Unless you mean the entire enclosure of the drive.
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vol.2
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by vol.2 »

bobrocks95 wrote:
If you're not concerned about using original discs, it's definitely easy to load all your games from the hard drive. Softmod with a USB adapter and compatible game, and then you just rip the games or move them over via FTP and an ethernet cable. From there you just select them from a list on the dashboard. Of course you'll want to put a larger drive in too, either an old IDE lying around or using an IDE to SATA adapter.

The metal piece you're talking about isn't that little flimsy square piece around the drive is it? You definitely don't need that or anything. Unless you mean the entire enclosure of the drive.
I don't care about the discs, but I can't do a disc swap trick if my drive is toast though. I think a have an old IDE drive laying around, but the power adapter is different. I guess I could hook up a separate ATX PSU to the drive and try that?

The metal piece on my drive contains a spinning part in the top that the disc clamps against; I believe that I have to use it. I thought maybe that part is what's causing the issue, but it's not problem if I put my finger down on that part to simulate the pressure. It just works when it's missing. That's why I think that it's squeezing the plastic and making it stick. I can't figure out where though.
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by bobrocks95 »

vol.2 wrote:
bobrocks95 wrote:
If you're not concerned about using original discs, it's definitely easy to load all your games from the hard drive. Softmod with a USB adapter and compatible game, and then you just rip the games or move them over via FTP and an ethernet cable. From there you just select them from a list on the dashboard. Of course you'll want to put a larger drive in too, either an old IDE lying around or using an IDE to SATA adapter.

The metal piece you're talking about isn't that little flimsy square piece around the drive is it? You definitely don't need that or anything. Unless you mean the entire enclosure of the drive.
I don't care about the discs, but I can't do a disc swap trick if my drive is toast though. I think a have an old IDE drive laying around, but the power adapter is different. I guess I could hook up a separate ATX PSU to the drive and try that?

The metal piece on my drive contains a spinning part in the top that the disc clamps against; I believe that I have to use it. I thought maybe that part is what's causing the issue, but it's not problem if I put my finger down on that part to simulate the pressure. It just works when it's missing. That's why I think that it's squeezing the plastic and making it stick. I can't figure out where though.
There are converters that handle both Molex to SATA power and IDE to SATA in one https://www.cdw.com/product/startech.co ... dd/3118950

Not sure there's really a disc swap for Xbox softmodding, I think you typically just buy or make a cheap USB adapter and put a modded save file and some install files on the hard drive. If you can manually hold it in such a way that it loads long enough to get one game going you're good.

Probably a way to fix it though! Still not quite sure which metal piece you're talking about, sorry. I guess you mean an internal piece?
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vol.2
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by vol.2 »

bobrocks95 wrote:
Probably a way to fix it though! Still not quite sure which metal piece you're talking about, sorry. I guess you mean an internal piece?
Kind of. The metal shell that fits over the drive has a spinner inside the top. The drive spindle comes up through the center of the DVD and clamps the disc between the spindle and the spinner. I haven't taken apart too many optical drives, but I'm sure I've taken some apart that were not constructed this way.

Im not sure I can get any games to play off a disc. I will try but I think it's impossible. Is that necessary to soft mod it?
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by bobrocks95 »

Ah, okay. I thought you were talking about that flimsy little piece of aluminum on the outside somehow getting in the way. So it's more of a mechanical drive problem.

Supposedly there is a way to hot-swap your hard drive (after the console unlocks it) into a PC and mod it from there. I never got it to work and tried for hours one time though.

If replacement disc drives are so expensive, why not just buy another console for parts? Another possibility is some old talk about flashing the firmware on more modern LG drives to get them to read discs- https://circuit-board.de/forum/index.ph ... 3B-Einbau/
PS1 Disc-Based Game ID BIOS patch for MemCard Pro and SD2PSX automatic VMC switching.
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vol.2
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by vol.2 »

bobrocks95 wrote: If replacement disc drives are so expensive, why not just buy another console for parts?
yes, that was going to be my next move. the issue is that the drives all seem to break pretty frequently, and buying a new one would just be a temporary solution. if I absolutely need it to soft mod the xbox, I guess I have to buy a "working" unit and just use the drive once to mod it. was hoping to not have to spend any money on it.
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by bobrocks95 »

vol.2 wrote:
bobrocks95 wrote: If replacement disc drives are so expensive, why not just buy another console for parts?
yes, that was going to be my next move. the issue is that the drives all seem to break pretty frequently, and buying a new one would just be a temporary solution. if I absolutely need it to soft mod the xbox, I guess I have to buy a "working" unit and just use the drive once to mod it. was hoping to not have to spend any money on it.
Here's the guide I tried to use for hot-swapping the hard drive so I didn't have to buy an exploit game and a USB converter. Give it a shot if you want, but it was a huge hassle and didn't end up working for me, but of course YMMV
https://old.reddit.com/r/originalxbox/wiki/hotswap

You could buy another console just to use the disc drive for a little bit and then return it or sell it again haha.
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Re: clock capacitor removal = code 6?

Post by HDgaming42 »

Hi there--bought an original xbox with a broken dvd drive. couldn't get it to work so just used another one I had, to get the system softmodded (most recent rocky5 method).

I used chimp to prepare a 1.5TB drive. Chimp successfully locked both drives (I verified this). Also rewrote the HDD key to a string of 1s. I swapped out the HDD (via a SATA to IDE adapter), set it as master and loaded all my games. Powered off a number of times between and eventually played a few games.

Before re-assembly I decided to remove the clock capacitor (it's a 1.4--I verified it was the correct cap). Super easy with a Hakko.

But now the system just boots to error 06. Online claims that a HDD unlock failure. Whaaaaaaaat?

I swapped back to the stock drive, and stock IDE cable. Still error 06.

What's going on here? Any help? Thanks!
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by HDgaming42 »

vol.2 wrote:I dusted off my OG XBOX from storage this weekend and the DVD drive will not open and close. I took it apart and cleaned it, and made sure the belt looks tight, but it still seems to be caught on something that happens when I put the metal case on it. If I remove the metal shell from the drive, it opens and closes just fine. I can't see anything catching, so it must be squeezing the plastic in some way that prevents the tray from opening. It's a Hitachi drive.

Does anyone have a best solution here? I found a couple samsung ebay replacements, but they are like $80 and I reckon they have a limited lifespan. Does anyone have experiencing fixing a stuck drive, or perhaps there is a modding solution I should seek out to run the XBOX from a HDD? Perhaps I can just burn my disks onto the drive?

Thanks
The XBOX I just snagged does exactly this. Drawer won't open unless i pull it upward and give it a pit of a tug. Even after that it doesn't read discs though--and mine has the metal top in place.
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bobrocks95
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by bobrocks95 »

If your original hard drive isn't working either it sounds like the code has changed in the BIOS EEPROM. Did you make a backup of it? Must be either the drive is all 1's and the EEPROM is expecting the original code, or the drives weren't properly set to all 1's and that's what the BIOS is now looking for. At least I think?
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HDgaming42
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by HDgaming42 »

bobrocks95 wrote:If your original hard drive isn't working either it sounds like the code has changed in the BIOS EEPROM. Did you make a backup of it? Must be either the drive is all 1's and the EEPROM is expecting the original code, or the drives weren't properly set to all 1's and that's what the BIOS is now looking for. At least I think?
I did back up the EEPROM, but without a programmer I don't imagine that will do me much good will it?

I *did* change the key to both HDDs, so maybe you're on to something. Can't imagine how the BIOS could have changed.

The only difference between it working and not was the removal of the clock capacitor. I have half a mind to just put it back in and see that happens.
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by bobrocks95 »

HDgaming42 wrote:
bobrocks95 wrote:If your original hard drive isn't working either it sounds like the code has changed in the BIOS EEPROM. Did you make a backup of it? Must be either the drive is all 1's and the EEPROM is expecting the original code, or the drives weren't properly set to all 1's and that's what the BIOS is now looking for. At least I think?
I did back up the EEPROM, but without a programmer I don't imagine that will do me much good will it?

I *did* change the key to both HDDs, so maybe you're on to something. Can't imagine how the BIOS could have changed.

The only difference between it working and not was the removal of the clock capacitor. I have half a mind to just put it back in and see that happens.
It looked like there were some programs that can use the EEPROM backup to lock/unlock your hard drive. Assuming you can get the file off of it and get it connected to a Windows PC.

Some odd posts here and there say older rocky5 versions had problems without the clock capacitor. I think the newer ones will automatically set the clock to a certain date on boot. Not sure what's going on, but you could replace it with another capacitor if you want. When I removed mine it had some leakage and corrosion underneath it that wasn't visible before, so they're definitely ticking time bombs.
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by HDgaming42 »

vol.2 wrote:
HDgaming42 wrote: Is it just an adhesive, or does it have thermal properties? Any guesses, as I don't have any of whatever that is...
Spoiler
Image
Yes. It is hot glue.

I have some doubts if replacing the caps will fix the issue (unless you have detectived it to that point). If you want help figuring out what is wrong with it you should post more thorough information.
How right you were. Finally had time to fire up my iron. Cap replacement showed no improvement. I'd love a hand trouble-shooting if you have the time. When initially powered on the woofer overextends and makes a loud "pop" sound. A slight hum/buzz can be heard that slowly increases in volume. Powering the monitor off results in an even bigger pop. This is without any inputs attached. Multiple power cords.
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Re: Questions that do not deserve a thread

Post by HDgaming42 »

bobrocks95 wrote:
HDgaming42 wrote:
bobrocks95 wrote:If your original hard drive isn't working either it sounds like the code has changed in the BIOS EEPROM. Did you make a backup of it? Must be either the drive is all 1's and the EEPROM is expecting the original code, or the drives weren't properly set to all 1's and that's what the BIOS is now looking for. At least I think?
I did back up the EEPROM, but without a programmer I don't imagine that will do me much good will it?

I *did* change the key to both HDDs, so maybe you're on to something. Can't imagine how the BIOS could have changed.

The only difference between it working and not was the removal of the clock capacitor. I have half a mind to just put it back in and see that happens.
It looked like there were some programs that can use the EEPROM backup to lock/unlock your hard drive. Assuming you can get the file off of it and get it connected to a Windows PC.

Some odd posts here and there say older rocky5 versions had problems without the clock capacitor. I think the newer ones will automatically set the clock to a certain date on boot. Not sure what's going on, but you could replace it with another capacitor if you want. When I removed mine it had some leakage and corrosion underneath it that wasn't visible before, so they're definitely ticking time bombs.
I saw those warnings too, and ensured I was on the newest Rocky5. Good lord I should have left the stock HDD stock. I guess I'll order a new cap and see for the pennies it will cost. Mine too had corrosion underneath, but it was minimal and didn't affect any traces.

The odds of me digging up a PC old enough to interface with xbox HDDs is probably low. Guess this goes on the back-burner until I can get a new cap.
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