Hacking Hardware Supercard DSTWO Plus flashcart gives "an error has occurred" with Old 3DS XL

mokofoko · May 21, 2024

Hi folks, I lucked into a DSTWO+ (the 4-in-1 type) flash cart, but it errors out when I try to run it. No option to update. Just an error telling me to power off.

1. Same issue on 3ds XL SW 11.0.0 (unmodded) & 11.17.0U, the latter with Luma3ds CFW installed.
2. It DOES show the expected Alex Rider image preceding the error, so it's not dead.
3. I'm using a good 32gb sandisk card that has been fat32 formatted using SD Formatter 5.0.2.
4. I've added the _dstwo folder (EOS 1.14) to SD root and dstwoupdate.dat (v1.25) also.
5. From what I was told, this thing was NEVER used, so probably was never updated and needs a 9.x.x 3DS for the initial firmware update.

Any solutions that don't involve buying a DS Lite (or original DS, I guess) just to update this flash cart? I've seen a few posts of people successfully updating by using a DS Lite, but I have none handy. The supercard site itself says to run on a compatible DS, but I have no idea what software version they need to be on:

Step 4: Find a DS console (NDS\DS\DSLite\DSi\3DS) which can run this EOS system, if you have the latest version console can not run EOS system, sorry, you have to find one.

In the tips&tricks section of Terminator02's DSTWO setup guide, there's a way to update the card on a 3ds, but it runs the risk of bricking a $200+ flashcart... and it's a 12-year old guide, so probably cannot be trusted.

I don't mind buying a DS Lite (or DS) just to get this cart firmware updated, but are they all pretty much guaranteed to work? Best I can tell, the DS/DS Lite/DSi were all discontinued around 2014, so that means a better chance for compatibility? Any record of someone successfully applying 1.25 firmware to one of these carts on a fully-updated DS/Lite?

4d1xlaan · May 21, 2024

I mean I guess you could always downgrade

make nand backup, get the files for older fw, install with sysupdater. reboot into older fw, do what you need to update the card, then flash your backup back to the system to get back to your original state

I don't think that's necessarily the problem, though. luma patches out the ds whitelist, so even old un-updated flashcarts should be able to run. if it's not running even on luma then your card is probably bad I'm afraid

Pong20302000 · May 21, 2024

the DSTwo+ never got a firmware update, applying the standard DSTwo firmware will not do you any good. might be why its not working correctly if it was flashed with a DSTwo standard firmware.

also $200+ flashcard is off, they go frequently on eBay for $80-120 (maybe a little more if you have the box and guides included)

mokofoko · May 22, 2024

Pong20302000 said:
the DSTwo+ never got a firmware update, applying the standard DSTwo firmware will not do you any good. might be why its not working correctly if it was flashed with a DSTwo standard firmware.

also $200+ flashcard is off, they go frequently on eBay for $80-120 (maybe a little more if you have the box and guides included)

Thanks for responding. It may not have had an official update, but I saw a handful of postings that implied the dstwo+ cart could be updated with the original DSTWO firmware. Correct or not, I have no idea.

I've checked terapeak, and these carts have historically gone for far more over the last 3 years. The last one that sold for $130 was an aberration, a fixed-price seller mistake. If I could get another for $80, I wouldn't feel bad about taking risky steps to update (without confirmation), but I have no confidence that I'll be able to get another one of these on the cheap... and everything I've read leads me to believe that this is still one of (if not the best) DS flash cart ever made, despite numerous issues.

Post automatically merged: May 22, 2024

4d1xlaan said:
I mean I guess you could always downgrade

make nand backup, get the files for older fw, install with sysupdater. reboot into older fw, do what you need to update the card, then flash your backup back to the system to get back to your original state

I don't think that's necessarily the problem, though. luma patches out the ds whitelist, so even old un-updated flashcarts should be able to run. if it's not running even on luma then your card is probably bad I'm afraid

I am very tempted to try this, but would I risk bricking if I attempt a major downgrade? I'm currently on 11.17, and I'm worried that restoring to 9.0.0-20u or earlier might really mess up my 3ds XL. Assuming I could use the firmwares here on my old 3ds XL (there's a separate link for "new 3ds", so I assume they apply to XL as well):
https://archive.org/download/nintendo-3ds-firmwares/USA/Firmwares/3DS/

From everything I've read, a clear sign of a bricked DStwo+ is if it isn't recognized as an "alex rider" cart... which mine is. I've found a number of threads where people with DSTWO+ carts had the same issue as me, but they still worked on older/lower models like un-updated DS Lite models.

Pong20302000 · May 22, 2024

Well in regards to a flashcard it is the most powerful (because it has a CPU) but I wouldn't say best.

Best in terms of playing DS games would be Acekard2i with AKAIO or a R4iGold.cn running Wood 1.64 as these have the highest capability with DS games with no issues. The R4iGold.cn having the 3DS+ version that also allows for it to be used as NTRBoot with no reflashing.

Then you could say current with support would be Ez Flash Parallel due to it still getting updates, they just need to work on there bugs and maybe release the secret feature with the FGPA but I'm guessing they still working on it.

4d1xlaan · May 22, 2024

mokofoko said:
I am very tempted to try this, but would I risk bricking if I attempt a major downgrade? I'm currently on 11.17, and I'm worried that restoring to 9.0.0-20u or earlier might really mess up my 3ds XL. Assuming I could use the firmwares here on my old 3ds XL (there's a separate link for "new 3ds", so I assume they apply to XL as well):
https://archive.org/download/nintendo-3ds-firmwares/USA/Firmwares/3DS/

From everything I've read, a clear sign of a bricked DStwo+ is if it isn't recognized as an "alex rider" cart... which mine is. I've found a number of threads where people with DSTWO+ carts had the same issue as me, but they still worked on older/lower models like un-updated DS Lite models.

actually I just remembered ctrtransfer is a thing, you can get ctrtransfer images for older firmware versions somewhere online and flash those in godmode9 to downgrade

you're not going to mess up your console as long as you have b9s, you can reflash your backup after you're done

this is for if you ever needed to do a downgrade for any reason whatsoever, but like pong above said there were no firmware updates for the dstwo+, so you don't actually need to do this. there's plenty of other reasons why it could be not working, maybe there is hardware failure or the firmware is corrupted, or maybe your sd card is bad and it can't load EOS correctly

I would at least try cleaning the contacts on the card

mlemm · May 22, 2024

if you're in Charlotte NC I have a DS Lite I'd be willing to let you use if you have a Switch I could use to update some cartridges I own.

Hacking Hardware Supercard DSTWO Plus flashcart gives "an error has occurred" with Old 3DS XL

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