olokos
Member
Hey,
At first I have to begin with a classic disclaimer:
This guide is meant for advanced users to experiment and test various possibilities of the hardware that PS2 has to offer, while it worked with my model, there's absolutely no way to tell for sure how it will work on others.
With that said, any 75000+ PS2 (but before 90K) should be able to do this, but I tested it only with SCPH-75004
At first I have to begin with a classic disclaimer:
Code:
/*
* Your warranty is now void.
*
* I am not responsible for bricked devices, dead MCs,
* thermonuclear war, or you getting fired because the alarm app failed. Please
* do some research if you have any concerns about modifications performed here
* before flashing it! YOU are choosing to make these modifications, and if
* you point the finger at me for messing up your device, I will laugh at you.
*/This guide is meant for advanced users to experiment and test various possibilities of the hardware that PS2 has to offer, while it worked with my model, there's absolutely no way to tell for sure how it will work on others.
With that said, any 75000+ PS2 (but before 90K) should be able to do this, but I tested it only with SCPH-75004
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Keep in mind, this is not a full unlock, as retail PS2's also have a PS2 logo check in DVD ROM, this is more of a semi-unlock or "as good as you can possibly unlock" the PS2 at this point, without any external devices for this to work afterwards.
With help of @akuhak and @l_oliveira We have found out a way to freely change regions of various mechacon components, by changing the update in nvram, which is "patching" the original bootrom.
Breakdown of String at 0x180 in NVM.bin:
Code:EEengEE (from PS2 75004 - Europe) E - ROMVersion Eeng - 4Byte lanuage E - PS1 Version E - DVD Player region
Each letter in that string corresponds to a specific region.
USA region does not have a PS2 Logo check in place, I think the same goes for PS1 logo, no check in USA region
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In order to unlock a PAL PS2 75k4 (and probably more) you need to perform following hex edits:
1. "HESOYAM" (I jokingly call it that as this code is really powerful) from @l_oliveira which allows to actually unlock the MagicGate region by setting the MG region to 0x0 and makes DVD Video work again, when combined with valid string at point 2 (Please correct me if I'm wrong here.)
Replace! (CTRL+B on HXD, not CTRL+V!)
0x1c6-0x1d9 with hex value:So it should look like so after the edit:Code:4D 65 63 68 61 50 77 6E 00 EC 05 0D 36 04 6F 69 B6 76 00 AF
2. Editing the region string at offset 0x180 so it looks like so:
In my case the console is originally PAL so second and last letter is E for me, so DVD Video works again aswell as original PAL games. I recommend editing the string directly on the right side in HXD instead of changing hex values here.
If your console is NTSC/USA then Your string would be AAengAA
If your console is JAP then Your string would be AJengAJ or AJjapAJ (not tested yet!)
In case of an originally PAL console, the string is AEengAE:
3. Correcting the checksum - so ethernet works again
Offset 0x280-0x280F
Code:40 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 40
Above checksum fix is meant for SCPH-75004 - if this also fixes ethernet for you and you're on a different model, please report it below!
Above 3 modifications allow to actually make a Deckard PS2 (75k+) region free, along with reading PS1 backups, playing DVD Video with copy protection.
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So the course of action to perform this mod would be:
1. Start PS2Ident and save a full dump of the console - just in case.
2. Restart console
3. Start MechaPwn available here.
4. Make a backup
5. Execute exploit
6. Once completed it will says "Unplug" on the screen - so unplug the console from power supply.
7. Get the pendrive with your original nvm.bin and make a copy called "nvm-original.bin" (backups are important)
8. Open HXD and perform hex edits as explained in "What to edit" - replacing the HEX values and changing string
9. Make sure that the file size is exactly the same as original
10. If the file size of Your modification is larger than original, then you did not replace Hex values, but pasted them in - wrong!
11. If the file size is the same, backup the nvm.bin files that you have to a safe place on your PC, along with PS2 Ident dumps.
12. Put the pendrive back into the PS2 with your modded nvm.bin
13. Select keep current backup
14. Restore nvm backup
15. Once completed it will says "Unplug" on the screen - so unplug the console from power supply.
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PS1 Original PAL - Works with PAL PS1 logo perfectly
PS1 Burned USA - Works With American PS1 Logo perfectly
DVD Video PAL - Works perfectly with interactive menu
PS2 Original PAL game - Works without PS2 logo and with glitched playstation splash, but it works!
(All of the above is autobooting the disc everytime without any modifications or MCs inserted - from a regular OSDSYS)
PS2 Burned PAL game - untested - most likely needs ESR patch or Masterboot disc conversion
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- All media is being displayed in NTSC format, so Original PS1 PAL game is moved slightly to bottom right and other issues because of this may arise.
NTSC Graphics mode Could be worked around by using GSM before booting the game from disc or PS1, but I haven't tested that myself yet.
Most likely the graphics mode is set based on the console region string above, so experimentation is welcome.
- If your original region is USA then it's most likely only being able to play NTSC DVDs.
In case you still want to play other regions DVDs and Your console is NTSC, you will still need a MagicGate supported MC with a DVD player update available here.
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The point of this is also to allow non-NTSC models to run their original region DVDs WITHOUT having to have a MG Supported MC inserted, which isn't possible by simply changing the model to DTL (testkit) as all DVDs stop working, unless DVD Player update from above link is installed to a Magic Gate supported MC, then the PS2 uses that DVD Player software from MC, allowing for even more DVD Video regions support.
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What does this allow in the end?
- Playing original PS1 and PS2 games from ANY region
- Playing backup burned copies of PS1 games from ANY region
- Probably also playing backups of PS2 games from ANY region (might need ESR patch or Masterdisc conversion)
- Playing DVD Videos of the same region as the console
All of the above is possible via normal OSDSYS - PS2 Browser and without any memory card inserted. The games/DVD Video will autoboot with console and will be read as usual in the PS2 built in regular Browser, where you can find the MCs.
At this point, I think that there is literally no reason to install a modchip on a 75000 PS2 whatsoever.
If you're a noob - don't do this yet - wait for somebody to release a tool, which will do all of the modifications above in a programatically controlled way, as this actually has the potential to leave your console permanently damaged.
If you have consoles to burn or really know what you're doing and you have tried this yourself on some different model of console, please write your experiences and results in the posts below.
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