GCN Game Cube softmod?

[NoSmokingBandit]

My friend is selling me his gamecube for $10 if i mod his wii, so naturally my first instinct is to mod the GC if possible. I've googles a bit but all i've seen are modchips, so im wondering...

1) Is a softmod possible? If so what would i need to do it? If i need to buy all sorts of stuff to softmod is it just cheaper to get a chip? I'm decent at soldering so i can handle it.

2) Is it possible to burn games to mini dvds? I'd rather keep the GC looking original (i love the way they look) so i want to burn games if theres any way to do so.

3) Is there anything else i should know? I've never owned a GC, so im pretty excited to finally have one.

 

[purplesludge]

1.There was some way to load games with pso I think. http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/61273
2.yes

 

[NoSmokingBandit]

It seems that the PSO method is a pain and is going to cost a ton to get it running. I'll order a XenoGC chip and install that when i get the GC. Unless someone can convince me a different mod chip is better. All i want is to load "backups" i dont care about homebrew at all.

Thanks for the link!

 

[Juanmatron]

Just buy XenoGC. You have to use money to do that.

 

[lenselijer]

not all mini-dvdr discs work in the gamecube.

I had good luck with traxdata mini-dvdr with mediacode RITEKG04, but i think they stopped producing them

 

[NoSmokingBandit]

Are there any mini DVDs that are still in production that work? I'd only need a spindle of 10, theres not a whole lot of GC games i'll be burning.

 

[NoSmokingBandit]

Im going to be a dick and bump this.

During my travels i found this guide:
http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/468895

It tells you to load a backup loader app from an SD Media Launcher, then booting backup discs from that. CodeJunkies has the Media Launcher for $20, which is just a little more than a XenoGC (and looks a lot easier to use).

Has anyone ever used one of those? I'm more inclined to go with a softmod than a chip, but i'm a complete gc noob.

 

[thaddius]

I have an SD Media Launcher and a modded and unmodded cube and I prefer the modded cube. It's a lot less hassle (no swapping, etc.).

You're probably going to need to adjust the GCs laser either way if you want to play backups.

 

[trans am]

I used XenoGC to mod and Maxell mini (RITEKG04), played everything and never had an issue.

 

[thaddius]

Some GCs are capable of reading discs without adjusting the laser, but a lot aren't. Or at least, that's my understanding.

I own a Viper GC and use the same DVDs as you and had to adjust the laser for it to work. Otherwise it would only read them sometimes and often failed to read in the middle of a game if it did read to begin with.

 

[NoSmokingBandit]

You're probably going to need to adjust the GCs laser either way if you want to play backups.

That wont be a problem. I have a pretty good ohmmeter so i can dial it in close. What do you recommend i set it to? I've read anywhere from 175 to 220ohms, so i was going to go for 200 and adjust as required.

These mini dvds look well priced, though out of stock. They have 20 packs for ~$8. They should work well from what i've read.
http://www.meritline.com/ritek-ridata-mini...---p-18394.aspx

I'm getting the GC tomorrow but i have yet to order a XenoGC chip. I should probably do that today.l..

Thanks for the pointers everyone

 

[trans am]

If you're going to do a direct install, mask the points first otherwise it will most likely bridge once you drop the solder on those points.

 

[NoSmokingBandit]

I'll probably do it with wires, it just seems a lot easier that way.

 

[trans am]

Yeah that was what I did, I recommend using the very fine wires, you don't want to put any stress on those ultra small points because there's the risk of the solder pads lifting from the Gamecube PCB due to the pressure on the wires.

If you have an old round IDE cable around the wires inside the tube are perfect.

 

[NoSmokingBandit]

Just to update, i havent gotten my XenoGC yet, but i decided to solder wires on in preparation. Damn those contact points are tiny! I had to get out my magnifying glass and file a point on my soldering iron to do it. All 6 wires are on though, so now i just wait for the chip. Stupid holiday weekend is going to rape shipping times though...

I actually used wires from an old Serial cable. I figured theres a rare chance i might use an ide cable, but no way i'll ever use Serial again. Whats neat is that the serial cable wires were all different colors so i can keep it organized very easily.

 

[playallday]

I used Cat5 wires for my XenoGC. At first I tried to solder it right on, but after around 5 times of resoldering it I used wires and it worked the first time.

 

[NoSmokingBandit]

Just to post an update, i got my XenoGC yesterday and installed it without a hitch. I killed two mini dvds before i got one to work, but that was mostly my fault

 

[thaddius]

Yay! Congrats man.