shmups.system11.org

Man, I literally just bought a PSIO. Well hopefully a little friendly competition will get Cybdyn to improve their firmware a bit more.

Looks like it does replace the CD drive https://twitter.com/_ramapcsx2/status/1 ... 4364988419
If compatibility is as good as true ODEs for other systems (perfect or nearly perfect) then I consider that acceptable. PS1s are cheap enough to get a secondary one for disc drive usage if needed for some reason.

Removing the disc drive is unfortunate. It's always good to have it in place and ready to fall back on in case of incompatibilities or inaccuracies in the ODE.

The Cybdyn ODE is supposed to be an inline install that leaves the original drive in place, so it would be superior in that regard at least.

So it looks like it's compatible with everything up to the PU-18 (SCPH-550X) models.

https://twitter.com/_ramapcsx2/status/1 ... 51651?s=19

*sprints to game room* phew, SCPH-5501.

As far as removing disc drives for ODEs, it's never been a huge deal to me. I assume doing would add additional complexity to the ODE and in some systems just lack of physical space for both. The only times i really care about a working optical drive in a system that has a solid ODE is:
a.) Just wanting to test a new game I got in (but for most systems I can just put it in my PC to rip the disc to put on the ODE, which is good enough testing for me)
b.) If I do encounter a potential compatibility issue with the ODE and want to test against an original disc.

Both of those are infrequent and don't require me to always have a second console hooked up with an optical drive. On rare occasion it just has me pulling a spare system out of the closet to hook up to test for a few minutes. Maybe some people get more nostalgic satisfaction than me for physically inserting a disc. I somewhat do with carts, but not in particular with discs. All these optical drives are going to die someday long before cartridge slots.

General
Q: Who are the creators of XStation?
A: I'm (rama) is the designer and @8BitModsThanos is helping and coordinating.

Q: Where can I buy it?
A: XStations board sales will be from Castlemania Games only.
8BitMods will not offer the board directly as they are busy with Fenrir, the upcoming 21-pin Fenrir, and others.

Q: Who will be offering installation services or pre-modded consoles?
A: There is no exclusivity on install services so the list will be large. 8BitMods will be offering installs and pre-modded systems. In the US, Voultar and iFixRetro will also offer installations.

Q: What is the price and release date for XStation?
A: Price and release date are TBD and yet to be announced. Estimated to be under $100 and around September in time for the @citrus3000psi's ps1digital mod.

Q: What models of PlayStation can I install XStation?
A: Every PSX model up to and including PU-18 which includes Japanese launch units, through early SPCH-70xx. It does not support PSOne or any newer models.

Q: What special features does XStation have?
A: XStation is region free and anti-modchip protection is integrated. Chris Covell's de-dither option will also be toggled. 50/60 hz output is automatic.

Q: How are multi-disc games handled?
A: You can change to the next disc by opening and closing the lid. It's yet to be determined if this functionality can also be added to ps1digital's in game reset (IGR) feature.

Q: What compatibility problems are anticipated?
A: None. This should work identically to the CD drive with the same timings.

Q: What are the current known defects remaining?
A: Roswell Conspiracies, and Wing Commander IV freezes at the end of the intro. These are both being researched and expected to be resolved.


FIRMWARE
Q: How will firmware updates be handled?
A: No registration necessary, unless it gets cloned. No registration necessary for updates. It is transferable, you can also roll back FW if needed. XStation won't hold any personal information. The sellers will, for shipping purposes only. All user data is private and not shared or released to the public.

Q: Can i update the firmware from WiFi?
A: Firmware can be updated from SD card at first, but it's planned to support updates over WiFi later.


INSTALLATION
Q: How difficult is the mod?
A: It is primarily soldering a quick solder board (QSB) in place, and connecting with the XStation via a single flat flex cable There are some pins that need to be lifted or snipped from the DSP chip.

Q: Can I keep existing modchips?
A: Any modchips must be removed.

Q: Does it require cutting any traces?
A: No traces are cut but pins need to be lifted from the DSP chip.

Q: Can the CD drive still be used with the xStation installed?
A: No, the xStation will replace the drive but the tray will remain.

Q: Is there a detailed installation guide?
A: Voultar will release a video over the next few days and it will become clear what the process entails.

Q: Can I keep existing modchips?
A: Any modchips must be removed.

What about the PSIO switchboard? I imagine that the audience for this ODE and people who already use PSIO are largely overlapping.

50/60hz is mentioned but not sure if it would be using a dual frequency oscillator crystal?

...get exact PS1 NTSC timings on PAL consoles (instead of the weird 59.2 you get now without the specific mod) or chances are that this subject will be overlooked given that this a US product?

Well done rama! This all sounds amazing.

It’s not a US product, Rama is german and 8bitmods is from the UK.

In any case, having DFO functionality in this board seems a bit complicated as I presume it must then be connected to more points on the mobo, and the present crystal needs to be disconnected. Granted, I’m no hardware wiz, but I’d guess it would be a non-trivial thing to add (as well as increasing cost).