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Week of May 26, 2002
IE Problems with some users on the forum...
>> Some users have been having some problems with the forum. When they logged in and tired to post, they would be kicked back to the login screen. This was because IE was blocking the cookies from the board. If you are having difficulties with posting read this.
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(Saturday 01 June 2002 22:06 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Enigmah review
>> We received some xbox enigmah samples some days ago and we have been testing them in the last few days so thought we would update everyone with what we have found.
The install was pretty much like expected. Not the most easy job , but compared to Messiah or NEO4 installs on playstation2 this install went smootly. The final enigmah will be even easier 'cause the chip will be on pcb. (I had to wire all those wires on the ic legs ;) ). The points on the xboxboard are small (let's say about 0.05mm) but if you have some experience in soldering (or if you take some Diazepam ... j/k ;p) this shouldn't be a problem.
Don't get me wrong thought ... you better don't start soldering an xbox if you have no experience at all.
Once installed , everything booted like expected.
I tried some PX releases on Apple DVD-R's (I don't have any cheap DVD-R's right now ... still using my ps2 DVD-R stock ;)) , some RIOT rips on CD-RW (Ricoh CDRW 4X) , a NTSC/U original DOA3 game on my PAL xbox & the NTSC<->PAL boot selector. It all worked fine , direct boot from the 1st try and without any swap :).
As we announced earlier , we are giving away 5 of these enigmah samples for free. You can find more info here.
I hope we will be able to make a review of the Xtender1.1 & final Enigmah soon.
We will also give more news about a NTSC/U enigmah install soon.
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(Saturday 01 June 2002 19:37 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Japanese HW sales
>> It looks like the Xbox is doing *better* since the pricedrop in Japan. It's the first time the Xbox sells more then the GameCube in Japan. But the PS2 is still far ahead of the cube&box ...
PlayStation 2 56.87%
Game Boy Advance 26.97%
Xbox 6.47%
PSone 4.24%
GameCube 2.27%
Game Boy Color 1.10%
WonderSwanColor 0.99%
WonderSwan 0.48%
Dreamcast 0.43%
Game Boy 0.04%
N64 0.14%
PocketStation 0.00%
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(Saturday 01 June 2002 16:48 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Difference between final & sample enigmahs
>> For those who wonder what's the visual difference between the sample(beta) enigmahs & final enigmahs , check this :
Final Enigmah (as far as I know this version will ONLY be sold on pcb , not the chip alone).
Sample/Beta Enigmah. (note that this version is always using a XILINX ic)
The PCB-version
The IC-version
Enigmah also confirmed the next batch of (final) enigmah will have the pcb error corrected.
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(Saturday 01 June 2002 15:55 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
BIOS select on pcb
>> These are the jumper settings for the final enigmah pcb's
If you still don't know how to detect your version of BIOS , here's a copy&paste from enigmah.com :
"There are two kernel versions of XBOX. One is 3944 and the other is 4034. All PAL and JAP machines are the 4034 version - so no checking needed there. The USA machines were first released with a 3944 version and later updated to the global standard 4034. To tell the difference between the two is very very simple, and to set your mod to a particular version is just as easy.
If you have a USA machine and you want to know the version, well the easiest way without opening your machine is to check the manufacture date. We have found that all machines made before December 2001 are 3944, and after that 4034. To be absolutley sure simply goto the settings option in the XBOX manu and select information. You will see lots of legal text. Simply scroll to the bottom and when its a 4034 the kernel version is clearly displayed. If its a 3944 then it is not displayed. Yet another way of checking is to look inside. All 4034 machines we have seen have it written on the hard drive itself or has a sticker on the flash rom with 4034 written on it.
To be honest, if this is still too taxing for you, just connect the mod up as a 4034 - if the machine boots up but does not goto the menu screen, then change to 3944 - very simple."
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(Saturday 01 June 2002 15:45 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Enigmah Non-Board Version
>> For those who can't wait for the final version I saw gamegizmo is selling enigmah betas (no macrovision & not placed on PCB) for just $34.97 each. (they ship overnight to USA).
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(Saturday 01 June 2002 01:43 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Bunnie Xbox paper
>> Bunnie posted an interesting paper on this website.
"In late February, I built a device to tap the LDT bus. The LDT bus is the link between the Southbridge MCPX and the Northbridge NV2A chip. The reason why this bus is of interest, as noted above, is because any secret boot code contained in the MCPX would traverse this bus on its way to the processor. And indeed, I did find the secret boot code. I wrote a paper about my findings, which I have submitted to CHES (Cryptographic Hardware in Embedded Systems) 2002 for review and I have also submitted to the AI Lab at MIT as a lab technical memo."
you can check the paper here
Xtender pictures
>> One of our visitors just received his Xtender from Lik-Sang today.
He took some pictures :
And for those who still don't believe Lik-Sang ships to the United States, check this :
 click picture for full view
More about Enigmah PCB error
>> I see alot of reactions about the mistake on the enigmah pcbs. It isn't sush a big deal thought , the enigmah will work fine and without any problem. (with all features)
You will just have to make a small link on the chip itself (easy) and solder one point directly on one of the ic legs.
This last step is a bit more difficult , but I soldered 29wires directly on the legs when I installed the enigmah beta sample ... so I'm sure you can do it for 1wire.
You need soldering eXPerience anyway ... this 1 wire on the ic leg won't make a big difference.
For those who wonder what "4034" and "3944" means , it's the BIOS version.
All NTSC/J & PAL versions have 4034.
For NTSC/U models : go to settings on the xbox menu and find the legal information. Scroll to the bottom and it should give you a kernel version of 4034. If not , you have a 3944 BIOS.
Enigmah problems ...
>> From Enigmah.com ::
"Final chips have arrived but sorry to say a mistake was made at factory :(
It seems the pinouts for a different version we were using were used instead of the final version. They will still work of course but with different diagrams and a small link on the chip itself.
Easily fixable but a pain in the ass all the same. Apologies for any confusion.
Heres a link to the fixed version of the diagram."
DivX early release ...
>> d7o3g4q of the xboxhacker.net forums released a very early version of his DivX;) player for Xbox.
At the moment it will only play DivX;) 3.11 video , no sound yet or DivX;) v. 4 or 5 yet.
This is only a very early release , not ready to watch full DivX;) movies.
The ISO will include a trailer of The Matrix.
You can download the iso here from our server.
Check this thread over at xboxhacker.net for more info
UPDATE::The file wasn't complete on the server , I re-upped it , it should be ok now.
DVD tweaking
>> As we reported earlier some version of the xbox have alot of problems to read cheap DVD-R/RW or CD-RW media while other xbox version read them without any problem.
For those versions that have problems , maltloaf wrote a tweaking tutorial on the digital-forums , check it out here
UPDATE:: For those who don't have access to digital-forum , I made a mirror of the tutorial here
swap DVD drive
>> I found an interesting post on digital-forums.com.
They switched the Xbox DVD drive with a Pioneer DVD-105SZ.
The drive was put in slave mode and they used a splitter from the HDD powerconnector to power the Pioneer DVD-105SZ. (xbox DVD powercable uses a special connector).
All dvd-r, dvd-rw, cd-r, cd-rw worked , and even faster then with the original drive (the Pioneer DVD-105SZ has a faster read speed).
So all people looking for a solution to read any brand of cd-r's can try this trick.
Only downside : the xbox will not read original xbox games anymore & you need to power off the console to change game/disk. (eject doesn't work)
Note that this has NOT been tested by xbox-scene (yet) , but several people confirm it on the digital-forum thread.
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(Wednesday 29 May 2002 16:33 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
More messiah info
>> From China-Messiah ::
"MX will be available ASAP, PCB's are underway and manufacture will done as usual from China. We will post a manufacture wmv. shortly.
In the meantime, only bare chip samples will be shipped for testing, our total time on this X-Box project now goes to 6 days, so we need a little space for in-field testing, production and shipping."
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(Wednesday 29 May 2002 15:55 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Enigmah PCB scan.
>> Here's a PCB scan of the final design for Enigmah (35mmx20mm). The demo mods we received yesterday are (40mmx40mm).
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(Wednesday 29 May 2002 03:35 EST) - (Category: (default)) - (Posted by::
)
Xtender lowers price
>> Xtender just lowered the bulkprice to 30GBP/43.86USD/47.22EUR.
www.xtender.info
Messiah's reply ...
>> Copy&Paste from china-messiah :
"We have been accused of 'confusing the market', let us explain:
There are already two proven functional chips in this marketplace, therefore strategy is as follows:
A) Make cheaper
B) Make better
We all know that a Xilinx device is a couple of $ to purchase, therefore if it was a sole marketplace device, a cost of lots of $ is justified. It is NOT a sole marketplace device, there are already functional mods using very cheap components available, therefore it is JUSTIFIED to produce this design at a lower cost, and also to do something the others dont know how to do....reduce wiring count to the technical minimum required.
This is all we have to say on this matter: our advice is to purchase technically whatever you may think is the better solution whatever the price, quality can outweigh price, and if your in need of something fast, purchase what is available right now !"
They also said they will NOT add X-Box support to original (PS2) Messiah. This because the Xbox chip doesn't need sush an expensive design (actel chip).
The MX will be single chip PCB design.
Enigmah shipped to resellers !
>> The final enigmah (on pcb , with macrovision off & no need for any patch) is ready and is shipping from china in the next few hours. So the enigmah's will soon be available from resellers/traders.
They also gave more information about future developments :
"Development will always continue with this mod. Of course if less wires are possible (on a stable and cost effective platform) we will acheive these goals. If a less wire mod means using a very expensive and hard to source device (LPC, BGA etc) then we will not proceed as this will starve the market of stocks for the sake of protection and/or wire count."
Beside hardware , the Enigmahteam is also working on software products (like the "Enigmah Video Select CD" they released a few days ago). Currently they are working on :
*DiVX Player
*VCD/SVCD Player
*MP3 Player
*Linux Shell
*Web Browser
This will all be released as freeware ofcourse :-)
Enigmah's reply to Messiah's announcement
>> From Enigmah.com
"Looks like some others are trying to destroy the market with releasing premature information on other modchips. Well done for confusing the many gamers out there waiting for a decent mod for their xbox. At the moment there are only two working chips available. Same features. Good price. Nothing more nothing less.
Remember the last time certain others announced a chip was ready? It took them 2 months to get it on the market and then charged double the price and with less features that they first announced. I'm sure many customers have very very good memories.
Trust the chips that have been tested for weeks and weeks not just 4 days. Trust the chips that have been tested by many others. Trust the groups that will be bringing you many many FREE CD based applications for the XBOX. If more chips come out then thats great - means a better deal for all customers. But if you want a mod right now in your box - you know what to do :)"
Here we go again ...
Xbox Tools
>> The Xbox Tools section has just been opened.
You can find all kind of small tools.
Xbox Online tools (XboxGW , Gamespy tunnel , ...)
Xbox development tools (HDD driver , HDD dumper , xbox ISO reader , ...)
Patches (enigmah beta patches)
Other useful tools (PAL<->NTSC bootdisk , ...)
Will be updated as soon as new stuff gets released.
XBE Patch V1.0
>> XBE Patch V1.0 will patch XBE files designed for a devkit to work on a modified retail XBox.
You can find more information here.
I got the information from XboxHacker.net
MessiahX 12wires (?!)
>> China-Messiah update :
"Our Messiah resellers have been informed......
We have held off the supply of MX chips for a few days due to optimization work, we can now announce MX for X-Box is finalized with 12 wires only, and is self-configuring for old and new bios versions, no need to set jumpers or wire anything, MX detects and configures itself.
You may be aware that we were late taking on the MX project due to commitments to the USA and Japanese Messiah development, however MX took priority for a few days so we went hard-at the design. USA Messiah WILL be launched in approx. two weeks, we apologize for those that are eagerly waiting.
Test samples of the MX chip are being shipped to resellers this week for feedback purposes, we have yet to encounter any adverse performance, but we are honest in stating that our time of working on the X-Box is less than 4 days, therefore any bugs reported will be ironed as fast as possible so that chips are available by the end of the week to Joe public.
Our schedule is to release the 12-wire version of MX by the end of the week, the device being available from your usual Messiah supply routes worldwide. We will however, be doing a little more work on this project to allow any dongle to play any region DVD film, this will be within the next couple of weeks should we find that its electronically viable without adding too much cost to the mx design, this then will be the final release.
On an additional note, we will be adding the MX functionality to the existing Messiah versions of chip, therefore Messiah will shortly support both PS2 and X-box in one chip, simply configurable using the on-board jumpers.
We look forward to continuing to develop for the X-box versions, and set the precedent that other chip designers have to follow as we did with the Messiah for PS2
MX.... no imitation, pure innovation !"
we also found the retail prices (very low) :
1 @ £25/36.5USD
5+ @ £23/33.5USD
10 @ £22/32.0USD
20 @ £20/29.1USD
50 @ £19/27.6USD
100 @ £18/26.2USD
500 @ £17/24.7USD
More enigmah news.
>> Xboxmods got some PLCC beta mods (the same chip we received , but placed on PLCC).
Here's a picture :
Like said before , the final enigmah will be on pcb and alot smaller. This final mod should start shipping any day now.
Here are our Enigmah pictures ...
>> I didn't know photographing small chips was so difficult ;p
Enigmah Samples.
>> We received our Enigmah samples today.
These are just the chips , but the final mods (those that will be shipped to all the stores around the world) will be on PCB.
The sample doesn't remove macrovision and 3 ProjectX games need a patch (All Star Baseball 2003 , Bond 007 Agent Under Fire & FIFA World Cup 2002).
Enigmah told us the FINAL mod will NOT need any patch for any game and will have macrovision removed.
There seem to be 2 different "versions" of Xbox consoles after all. ALL PAL & NTSC/J and the newer NTSC/U have a 4034 BIOS version and the older NTSC/U consoles have a 3944 BIOS version.
Don't worry thought , Enigmah works on both , there is just 1 different solderpoint.
I'm taking some pics right now , I'll post 'em soon :)
Xtender 1.1 followup
>> several people were having confusion on where the mod was located on the board in the first pic so Matt from www.gamesaccessories.co.uk sent us a followup image of the installed Xtender 1.1 chip:
hopefully this clears up any confusion people had about the first 2 pictures
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