I finally got a HDD/network adapter and Free McBoot memory card for my O.G. fat PS2, so I busted it out. This thing's had a hard life & was apparently treated pretty rough by previous owners, but it works 100% flawlessly and the DVD drive is super quiet, so I want to keep it going and give it a comfortable, gentle old age. 😀 Naturally "installing a HDD" turned into a full-on teardown and cleaning.

^^ Sony, helpfully warning you not to plug a phone jack into the network port. I guess somebody had to try it... Incidentally this is a JDM network adapter, the North American one includes a modem. I figured the chances of me using a modem on a PS2 are literally 0%, and this was local and cheap.

Step 1: void the warranty. It's amazing how many of my dumb projects begin with this step.

Got it apart, and:

Eww...

EWW...

OGOD.

Hell. No.

...actually it wasn't that bad, but I figure that dust isn't helping anything. The outer case was easy to clean:

The inside is kind of a board sandwich. My original idea was to disassemble everything, vacuum it out, replace the 2032 battery and re-apply all the thermal goo, but when I saw how tightly it was put together and considering it was working perfectly when I pulled it apart, I sanely decided to scale back my plans.

Incidentally If your PS2 isn't keeping time and you want to replace the clock battery, it's predictably located on the motherboard between both RF shields. You pretty much have access to it at the very last stage of total disassembly. Sheer genius, Sony.

Even though I stopped taking it apart at this stage, the vacuum & canned air blaster did a pretty good job of the "organ block":

And I took the opportunity to clean the DVD tray & dust off the laser:

Back together and looking good!

No HDD in there yet - I seem to have depleted my stash of spare IDE drives lately, although I have an 80GB in a test machine that'll go in there once I dig it out. You can order 3rd-party SATA adapters off Ebay but like I said this was local, and cheap.

Another system modded!

Need to desolder that bad battery and clean up a little corrosion, but I've seen worse. In case it's not clear, it's an AMD 386/40. Odd layout, very compact, lots of ISA slots. I *might* be able to fit a 1/2 AA 3.6V battery in there, but probably not a socket for one.

xjas wrote:

OGOD.

Hell. No.

...actually it wasn't that bad, but I figure that dust isn't helping anything.

It looked really bad, but turned out great.

I received my pair of 600mhz P-III processors with 100mhz FSB, so I used one to upgrade my voodoo 3 3000 card system with Asus P2B motherboard.

Not a bad increase over the 350mhz processor I originally had in it.

lvader wrote:

I’m quite interested in this because I have a couple of case covers that need a paint job. i havn’t experimented yet but getting the right paint gloss level and colour is probably key.

You know that nightmare where you are running down a hallway and the hallway keeps getting longer and longer? Yeah, I'm still running.

peido wrote:

It looked really bad, but turned out great.

Thanks! Much happier knowing it's not a cake of filth & dust on the inside. 😀 Incidentally the 80GB HDD I wanted to put in it wouldn't fit (the spacing between the IDE & Molex connectors was wrong), but I found an empty 40GB Maxtor that would work, so stuffed it in. Not as much space as I wanted, but should be enough room for ~90% of the games I play regularly as well as some other misc. homebrew & ISOs.

Today I busted out my SUPER rusty lockpicking skills and managed to open one up. It was on this:

For some reason this thing was locked despite not having a laptop attached, and that meant no laptop could be attached, rendering it useless. Which is probably why I found it in the bin. Well, I wouldn't have won any awards for style or technical execution, but I got it open (it's not a very complicated lock.) I probably haven't picked a lock since high school and was never that good, but handy to know I can still do it.

...as to why I knew how to pick locks back in high school, let's not even go there. 😜

Your 80GB drive is likely an WD, and those won't fit in the network adapter unless you hack the metal shield. There's a guide on the internet on how to do that.

xjas wrote:

Incidentally the 80GB HDD I wanted to put in it wouldn't fit (the spacing between the IDE & Molex connectors was wrong), but I found an empty 40GB Maxtor that would work, so stuffed it in. Not as much space as I wanted, but should be enough room for ~90% of the games I play regularly as well as some other misc. homebrew & ISOs.

PcBytes wrote:

Your 80GB drive is likely an WD, and those won't fit in the network adapter unless you hack the metal shield. There's a guide on the internet on how to do that.

I disassembled my PS2 network adapter and now I can pull the connectors to make them fit in any hard drive. I just have to be careful when handling.

Oh. My. God.

A lot of sh-*cough* has happened in the past two/three days.

xjas wrote:

Back together and looking good!

No HDD in there yet - I seem to have depleted my stash of spare IDE drives lately, although I have an 80GB in a test machine that'll go in there once I dig it out. You can order 3rd-party SATA adapters off Ebay but like I said this was local, and cheap.

Another system modded!

It's funny, because the same day you posted this (Wednesday), I too just finished soft-modding my fat model 30001 PS2 following this awesome guide (note: you have to use the copy of FreeMCBoot he provides; I believe it's a custom version with extra files that enables access to the FreeHDBoot's apps while running FreeMCBoot when you follow his steps).

As you can tell, the first game I loaded up onto the 250GB Seagate HDD -

PcBytes wrote:

Your 80GB drive is likely an WD, and those won't fit in the network adapter unless you hack the metal shield.

RIP my 500GB Western Digital IDE HDD I originally bought for it

- was Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. Man, it's like night-and-day on the hard drive. I noticed when playing the game off the disc slower loading times, as well as distasteful stuttering. I think my PS2's optical drive is feeling it's age. I mean, when I pop open the disc tray, it doesn't open up all the way and immediately stop; instead, as it is about to finish opening, it begins to sound like it's rubbing up against something and slows down a bit and then stops. It works, but obviously not as it should.

Any who, what a great game. I think though I need a better analog-to-HDMI converter and a better PS2 display cable, because I noticed weird not-game-induced effects while I played. Besides, I bet the image quality would be much, much better too. Thank you again xjas for sharing with me that video dealing with the PS2's video:

xjas wrote:

Here's more info than you ever thought you wanted about the PS2's video modes (including how to fix it 'blind' if you set it to the wrong mode and can't see what you're doing on the TV.)

It's going to come in handy still. 😀 Regardless, I'm happy with the result.

Afterwards, I got to trying to update my new Windows Vista Ultimate installation on my high-end Asus P5E WE Professional motherboard workstation w/ Core 2 Quad Q9850, which I plan to use to test components and such - a test bench in a PC case, as it were.

Up to that point, like I was a month ago, I was stuck trying to update Vista to SP1 from the Windows Updater, but it seemed as though Vista would not download and install SP1 until I installed the LAN driver for the board (the download link for the driver on Asus's website doesn't work; I have been trying to work with Asus for the past month to get me that damn driver, and am still waiting 😠 ; if that doesn't work out, though, the last chance I have is to download a seemingly newer version of the driver straight from Marvell, the maker of the driver that Asus "has" for their LAN ports on the board, and hope it's what I need). So, I finally decided to just bypass Windows Updater and download the SP from Microsoft directly and try to install it that way.

Well, what do you know, it work! I was finally able to update to SP1, and from there update to SP2 using Windows Updater, and because of all of that, install Google Chrome and get all of my bookmarks (just in case). I also went ahead and installed IE9, the last version for Vista. Again, though, after all of that, I'm at odds with Windows Updater. The newer version Updater that was installed after SP2 continually hangs at "searching for updates" for hours, and I think, like with trying to install SP1, it has to do with using the generic Ethernet driver provided with VIsta. My troubles never seem to end. 😀

Moving on, yesterday, I got my replacement Socket 7 board to be used instead of that poor Asus TX97-XE board I had to return - an Intel LT430XT. And man, my impressions of it are pretty good. Sure, the front I/O is really weird and unconventional, the layout of the RAM slots is weird too, there's a large heatsink for the VRM (?) (and man, that heatsink will get so hot you can cook an egg on it), and the BIOS is much less feature-packed than that Asus board (just from looking through the screenshot-filled manual that Asus provided for that motherboard; really wanted that cache-disabling feature to be able to slow down the system to 386 and 486 speeds, but I think there are software solutions for that so, *shrug*, I'll deal with it), but it's still a solid board overall. Can't find anything inherently wrong with it.

The sad thing, though, is that there are like no other Socket 7 boards on ebay of the same caliber like the Asus TX97-XE and few like my Intel LT430XT that support SDRAM, have the Intel chipset, and are of the ATX form factor and have an ATX power connector 😢 . There's actually this website I found while looking elsewhere for such a motherboard called Interloper.com that sells some boards that match these specifications, but likewise, only a few (mostly weird-name brands). They actually sell the same exact Intel LT430XT that I bought for less than I paid for it (I forgot about it, and only after I bought the board did I remember 🤣 ), and actually have this OP-looking ALI-chipset Microstar board for a cool crisp $350 if you're interested. Actually, while just looking throw my bookmarks found this other site selling an Asus TX97-X motherboard (basically a TX97-XE with EDO SIMM and SDRAM DIMM slots) for only $30 more than I spent on this Intel board. Now I'm kinda angry at myself. 😠 ... 🤣 Too late now.

Anywho, I spent a couple of hours cleaning the board, putting it together with the other components (Pentium MMX 233MHZ, 32MB SDRAM, Cirrus Logic GD5446 as recommended by PhilsComputerLab with what appears to be the max number of onboard memory chips, AWE64 Value, and an 8GB SanDisk Ultra CF card) -

- updating the BIOS, installing MS-DOS 6.22 (after finding out that to be able to have 2GB partitions instead of 0.5GB FAT16 ones, I had to enable "LBA mode" for the CF card in the BIOS), and finally, to truly test out the capabilities of the machine, I installed The Need for Speed SE and played that for an hour or two.

Was the FPS bad? Yes, yes it was (go figure with only a 2D card in DOS and with medium/high settings at 640x480), between I would say 15-60-like FPS. Is the game bloody challenging? Yes, very. But, it was still very fun, and was a good demonstration that everything worked. I was pleasantly surprised, though, to find the in-game videos to actual display at all.

On my P3 system, I can hear the videos' audio, but nothing is displayed. 🙁 I know that there is supposedly a hex edit you can do to fix TNFS's weird video behavior, which is technically for a different problem than mine, but I have yet to try it, though.

Finally, after I got done doing all of that with my P1 setup, I took time to turn on and configure an Xbox 360 E I bought from ebay. All seems to work. 😀

I plan to use this to play Xbox 360 and Original games that are not supported on my Xbox One S. I also bought a new 500GB HDD to replace its 250GB 'cause, you know, make it balla, and to hopefully completely meet all of my storage needs for this console. 😀

*sigh* Okay, still there? I applaud you. That's all I have to say. I spent probably 2+ hours typing all of this. Hope you enjoyed. 😀

Now, if you excuse me, I have some Jojo's Bizarre Adventures to watch and other work to do.

Dissassembled my new Sound Canvas SD-35, which was surprisingly clean on the inside despite all the dirt and grime on the outside. Replaced the coin battery, fixed the Stop button which now works but isn't as tactile as the others (so I will eventually replace it later on). It's now fully functional. I will order a black GOTEK unit next month, flash it with FlashFloppy and replace the floppy drive.

love me some Ferrari 512TR

oeuvre wrote:

love me some Ferrari 512TR

Testarossa is the best Ferrari ever.

appiah4 wrote:

oeuvre wrote:

love me some Ferrari 512TR

Testarossa is the best Ferrari ever.

Personally, I have a strange affinity for the Toyota Supra. I think it is its curvy body and mid-tier performance. 😀

Cleaning time again...

the_ultra_code wrote:

I too just finished soft-modding my fat model 30001 PS2 following this awesome guide (note: you have to use the copy of FreeMCBoot he provides; I believe it's a custom version with extra files that enables access to the FreeHDBoot's apps while running FreeMCBoot when you follow his steps).

I think my PS2's optical drive is feeling it's age. I mean, when I pop open the disc tray, it doesn't open up all the way and immediately stop; instead, as it is about to finish opening, it begins to sound like it's rubbing up against something and slows down a bit and then stops. It works, but obviously not as it should.

That doesn't sound surprising considering you have the original SCPH-30001 model, that was the model of the PS2 that I had during my childhood, I remember having hard times trying to get it to load discs. I think somehow the original optical drives don't age well.

I have an original Playstation 2 (SCPH-50001 - not the same as the one I had back then) with a Network Adapter that I wouldn't mind putting a hard drive in, I have a few spare IDE hard drives that should work with it so all I need now is a FreeMCBoot memory card.

xjas wrote:

Step 1: void the warranty. It's amazing how many of my dumb projects begin with this step.
3.jpg

It's not like Sony still honors the warranty on such an old console so it doesn't really matter anyway. You'd be surprised how many devices require you to "void" the warranty before you can service them. I'm sure you've noticed the Original XBOX has a few of its screws hidden underneath its stickers. 😜

http://www.tmeeco.eu/BitShit/PCschit/RTCfix.jpg

I fixed the RTC module of my 486, it is amazing it lasted 24 years !

After a 24 hour wait the paint remover stripped 4 coats of spray paint off and I see some raw metal. One more coat of paint remover overnight should get me a bare metal case shell. Then time to paint on the new enamel coat.

KCompRoom2000 wrote:

That doesn't sound surprising considering you have the original SCPH-30001 model, that was the model of the PS2 that I had durin […]
Show full quote

the_ultra_code wrote:

I too just finished soft-modding my fat model 30001 PS2 following this awesome guide (note: you have to use the copy of FreeMCBoot he provides; I believe it's a custom version with extra files that enables access to the FreeHDBoot's apps while running FreeMCBoot when you follow his steps).

I think my PS2's optical drive is feeling it's age. I mean, when I pop open the disc tray, it doesn't open up all the way and immediately stop; instead, as it is about to finish opening, it begins to sound like it's rubbing up against something and slows down a bit and then stops. It works, but obviously not as it should.

That doesn't sound surprising considering you have the original SCPH-30001 model, that was the model of the PS2 that I had during my childhood, I remember having hard times trying to get it to load discs. I think somehow the original optical drives don't age well.

I have an original Playstation 2 (SCPH-50001 - not the same as the one I had back then) with a Network Adapter that I wouldn't mind putting a hard drive in, I have a few spare IDE hard drives that should work with it so all I need now is a FreeMCBoot memory card.

xjas wrote:

Step 1: void the warranty. It's amazing how many of my dumb projects begin with this step.
3.jpg

It's not like Sony still honors the warranty on such an old console so it doesn't really matter anyway. You'd be surprised how many devices require you to "void" the warranty before you can service them. I'm sure you've noticed the Original XBOX has a few of its screws hidden underneath its stickers. 😜

There's a way to set up the hard drive for a PS2 without a FreeMCBoot card - it's how I did mine recently. Just can't seem to find the guide I used, but basically you set it up as a PS2 hard drive and write a pre-built FreeHDBoot image over to it, and the PS2 can boot from that. Maybe a bit slower than from memory card but it's totally doable. Mine's got a 500 GB IDE Seagate drive in it, boots and runs games from the drive no problem, and I still haven't bothered to make a FreeMCBoot memory card.