Gaming Installing A Custom Firmware Tutorial

[ediblebird]

HOW TO INSTALL A CUSTOM FIRMWARE ON A PSP SLIM WITHOUT THE NEED FOR PHAT PSP(at all!)

A lot of people Have made threads About Getting their PSP onto custom firmwares so I thought Id make one for GBAtemp.
More specifically though this shows how to get a PSP slim onto CFW without the need for a Phat.
This tutorial can also be used to get a Phat PSP onto CFW without a CFW PSP.

The Steps that are below worked for me, but you are doing this at your own risk. It is not my fault if you screw up your PSP.

The way to use this guide is pick a method for hardmodding a battery, then pick a method for making a Magic Memory stick
I recommend using anime_junkie's method for hardmodding, and PSP Grader for making the Magic Memory stick.

What You need
HARDWARE:
-PC (with Windows XP or VISTA(VISTA is still not the best option Windows XP Recommended, as VISTA wont work sometimes)
-PSP Slim (obviously) or Phat PSP
-Memory Stick Pro Duo (64 MB to 4GB in size, preferably 128MB or more)
-Slim Battery OR Datel Tool Battery OR PSP Phat Battery

IF YOU USE A SLIM BATTERY(e.g the one that came with your PSP) OR A PHAT BATTERY MAKE SURE THAT IT IS MADE IN CHINA,
AS SONY HAVE MADE SOME BATTERIES THAT CANNOT BE HARDMODDED! I used the slim battery that came with my PSP Slim.

SOFTWARE:
-PSP Grader (THE EASIEST WAY TO MAKE A MAGIC MEMORY STICK DOWNLOAD FROM HERE)
OR
-TOTALNewbieasyInstallerPandorasmenu (Google is your Friend)

Outcome:
A Slim PSP with custom firmware and not a PHAT in Sight!

HARDMODDING A BATTERY

Slim Battery:

THE FIRST METHOD IS THE BEST AS IT IS EASILY REPAIRIBLE
Thanks to anime_junkie for this method

Spoiler

I couldn't help but notice one of the easiest Slim battery methods isn't here, so I thought I'd contribute a little, as this method saved me the hassle of ruining a battery!

PANDORA'S BATTERY MOD
Repairable Edition

Want to load your slim with custom firmware, but don't want to buy a new battery/TOOL battery? Good news, there is a solution! (that's not mentioned in the op, it seems) This pandora's battery mod is repairable, so you can use your battery after booting M33 on it! Isn't that great?

Materials:
Box Cutter/something similar
PSP Slim Battery
Magic Memory Stick
PSP Slim (duh.

)
A Pencil (Graphite reparation! explanation below)

First off, all of the software/firmware stuff is the same as the first post. Totallynewbiepandoraetcinstaller (or pspgrader) is still your magic memory stick maker. This is ONLY a hardware mod. Just to make things crystal clear.

now, as far as cutting cords go, you can cut the pin (making your battery pretty much useless), or you can take a box cutter/razor/whatever and cut here(anywhere along the area selected in blue):



see the connection wire thingy? (I'm not sure what it's called, lol) slice it up with your box cutter/whatever. Be careful, as it's small hardware, and it's tough to get it disconnected right. you can check by popping the battery back in when you think you've got it cut. If your PSP boots automatically and goes to a blank screen, you did it right. If not, open the battery back up and try and deepen the cut. It took me a few tries. Also, be careful not to hit any other parts. You don't want to mess your battery up, now do you?

Congrats, you should now have a Pandora's Battery! follow the firmware installation instructions like the first post, and success is yours! Now let's repair that battery. It's a simple task, really. Take your pencil and color the connection back. Yes, it's that simple. It really works. Just color in the valley made by your knife, and the graphite repairs the link! and viola, CFW with one battery that still works in the end!

(Note: please tell me if this needs to be revised any, or any other comments/suggestions. And why did I write this? I keep seeing people modding their PSPs and needing new batteries, I thought I'd save future modders a few bucks.

)

ANOTHER METHOD

Spoiler

First you need to open the battery up, which I did by prying it open with a Flat Headed Screw Driver.
Remember, It is better to be cautious than stab the thing to death and break it.

Once The case is open, lift up the circuit board.

Locate the Chip Pictured:

below it the letters "IC04" will be written upside down.

(If your battery is not like this, i would probably advise against modifying it)

And cut the the shown leg, I just used the scissors my Swisse Pocket knife, which did the trick nicely.

Close Her Back Up!!!!!!!

To test Whether it works pop it into your PSP, if its was made correctly the PSP will the automatically turn itself on but the screen will stay blank and the power Light will stay on and be green.

AND ANOTHER METHOD

Spoiler

Another way to convert a slim battery into a Pandora is to solder wire to the two points shown below.

I have tested this method and can confirm it works as well.

This image was taken from PSP Hacks(which they got from eurasia), which also shows how to wire a Phat battery.
http://www.psp-hacks.com/2007/10/22/one-wi...uired/#comments

PSP PHAT Battery:

Spoiler

Pry it Open same as the slim battery.
Once The case is open, lift up the circuit board.
Locate the Chip.
Cut the the leg.
Close Her Back Up!!!!!!!
For Pics and more details about converting a phat battery go to:
http://www.pspmod.com/forums/psp-hardware-...ut-fat-psp.html

To test Whether it works pop it into your PSP. If its was made correctly, the PSP will the automatically turn itself on, but the screen will stay blank and the power Light will stay on and be green.

Charge your Battery Now so that when you are installing the firmware, it doesnt die.
To charge, Plug in your power cable then put the battery in.


CREATING THE MAGIC MEMORY STICK

THE BEST AND EASIEST WAY USING PSP Grader

Spoiler

DOWNLOAD FROM HERE
Then download the official sony eBoot.pbp's(You are on your own here, not really that hard to find though)
This program will format your memory stick so backup any needed files

Install PSP Grader, then run it. PSP Grader will work on Windows XP or VISTA(But VISTA can be stupid, i recommend XP).
In PSP Grader, browse to the locations of the eboots.

select any IPL. If the magic memory stick doesn't work then try another IPL.

Select the PSP's Drive letter(If you attach the PSP after you open the program it will automatically recognize the drive)

Select Format memory stick.

Click Create Pandora stick. If you haven't figured out that the memory stick will be formatted, you will now.

It will copy the files to the memory stick.

SUCCESS!

Turn off Your PSP, Take out the battery, Put the Memory Stick in.
HOLD THE L TRIGGER(If you dont hold down the trigger it will just boot like normal into the XMB)
Put the Pandora Battery in while still holding L trigger.
You will now see a menu with 4 options.

Now press Square to make a dump of your nand. DO THIS BEFORE YOU INSTALL THE CUSTOM FIRMWARE!!!!!!!!!!
YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO COPY THE NAND IF YOUR MEMORY STICK IS 64MB IN SIZE, AS THE NAND BACKUP
IS 66MB AND THE FILES ON THE MEMORY STICK ARE 22MB. IF YOU DO TRY TO DUMP YOUR NAND ON A 64MB
MEMORY STICK YOU WILL CORRUPT IT

Spoiler

After the PSP has finished copying the nand, it will shut itself off.

Take out the Memory Stick and Plug it into your PC and copy nand-dump.bin so you have it as a backup.

Reinsert the memory stick and the battery, hold the l trigger down again, and once it is back on, press X. When the firmware has finished installing you can take out the battery, plug in the power cable, and when you turn it back on 3.80 M33!!!

USING TOTALNewbieasyInstaller(use psp Grader, its easier, trust me)

Spoiler

Extract TOTALNewbieasyInstallerPandorasmenu into a folder.
(And as Icarus stated below, TOTALNewbieasyInstaller will not work on windows Vista, only XP)

Format Your Memory Stick on your PSP via Settings>System Settings>Format Memory Stick

You can Use TOTALNewbieasyInstallerPandorasmenu with your memory stick in your psp and attached to your PC from your PSP, or you can use it with the memory stick in the card adapter directly into your PC.(I did it with the adapter)

In the folder containing TOTALNewbieasyInstallerPandorasmenu, run START.exe and follow exactly what it tells except Don't worry About the first Format as we already did that in a previous step.

Type the Memory Sticks drive letter in and press Enter twice.

Then Give the volume a label and press enter. I called It "Magic Mem"

It then asks about formatting,press "y" and press enter.

Then it says to take out the Memory stick and Stop USB connection. Do This.
If You are using an adapter, stop the device then disconnect it from the adapter.

Press Enter.

Then Plug it Back in the Adapter or PSP (whichever you where using)
If you are using your psp, switch usb mode back on.

Press Enter.

Then Choose 4 and press Enter, it will then proceed to copy files to the memory stick.

If it asks you to write ABS then press y and enter(sometimes it won't).

There we have it the magic memory stick is completed. Press enter to exit the program.



The Moment of truth has arrived!!!!!!!!!!

Put the Memory Stick In the PSP and then plug in the Battery. If all is good the Memory stick light will flicker(If you are using
this on a Phat PSP, you will see a menu).

Now press Square to make a dump of your nand. DO THIS BEFORE YOU INSTALL THE CUSTOM FIRMWARE!!!!!!!!!!
YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO COPY THE NAND IF YOUR MEMORY STICK IS 64MB IN SIZE, AS THE NAND BACKUP
IS 66MB AND THE FILES ON THE MEMORY STICK ARE 22MB. IF YOU DO TRY TO DUMP YOUR NAND ON A 64MB
MEMORY STICK YOU WILL CORRUPT IT

Spoiler

After the PSP has finished copying the nand, it will shut itself off.

Take out the Memory Stick and Plug it into your PC and copy nand-dump.bin so you have it as a backup.

Reinsert the memory stick and the battery, and once it is back on, press X. While the Firmware is installing, the lights will be flickering. When All the Lights turn off you can take out the battery, plug in the power cable, and when you turn it back on 3.71M33!!!

Now go buy yourself another battery.

NOTES:
It didn't work straight away for me(with TOTALNewbieasyInstaller), so it may not work straight away for you(THIS IS WHY I RECOMMEND USING PSP GRADER). I had a period when only the green light of the battery would turn on, even though i had the Memory Stick inserted. To overcome this, just remake the Magic Memory Stick.(I had to about 5-6 times)

FAQ
My Firmware is version X.XX can I put it onto custom firmwre?
Yes. Pandora's battery works with every version firmware so far. But it is yet to work on the psp 3000.

Can I use my memory stick as a normal memory stick again after i have installed custom firmware?
Yes Just format it in your psp's system settings menu.

Can i use my battery as a normal battery again?
Yes, but use anime_junkies method described above.

Can I use a phat Pandora battery on a PSP Slim?
Yes, phat batteries do work for Slim but you won't be able to use the battery cover. You cannot use a slim bat with a phat psp.

Once I have installed the CFW, is there any way to get back to the OFW at some point?
Yep. Just run Pandora's Battery with the Magic Memory stick again but this time press Circle, which will install Official Firmware.



I will not help anyone to get these files and any requests for them will be ignored.
I will try to help anyone with questions regarding the steps set out here via PM or below.

 

[Icarus]

This is nice, but the thing is, you can't restore the battery back so I don't see the point of this. Unless if you know how to solder the pin back, but I don't know how so I'll just probably go with the Datel Tool Battery. Thanks for the tutorial though

 

[rhyguy]

This is nice, but the thing is, you can't restore the battery back so I don't see the point of this. Unless if you know how to solder the pin back, but I don't know how so I'll just probably go with the Datel Tool Battery. Thanks for the tutorial though

if you can get a psp battery cheaper than a tool battery then i think its a better way

 

[Icarus]

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, you CAN hardmod a phat battery too, huh?. Well I'll actually look into this. If I can find one for cheap[like 10 bucks] I might actually try it.

 

[ediblebird]

This is nice, but the thing is, you can't restore the battery back so I don't see the point of this. Unless if you know how to solder the pin back, but I don't know how so I'll just probably go with the Datel Tool Battery. Thanks for the tutorial though

Because I only cut it and didn't remove it completely I could solder it back together, you just need to be delicate. Im pretty sure that i could've even wedged a bit of foil in the gap and got it working again.
And like rhyguy said if you get a cheap other battery you can use the original bat as the pandora. I bought a cheap battery for use($20 AUD)

 

[x1badMoFo]

This looks very helpful. I look forward to trying out this tutorial if I ever manage to find the Daxter bundle somewhere. I finally decided it was the bundle I wanted to buy, and of course now all i can find is the Piano Black and Star Wars editions.

 

[ediblebird]

Updated my first post with clearer pictures, and a different method to hardmod a Slim Battery

 

[Icarus]

And one more thing. The Installer DOES NOT work on Vista. You'll need an XP computer to use it. That's why I had problems with it at first. Other than that, it's very easy to install this thing.

 

[serg0]

Im planning on getting the Daxter pack also. So i'll only need a Daxter pack and an extra battery? Can I use the memory stick it comes with after modding it? Thanks for this guide, I might have the balls to try this out soon.

 

[Icarus]

Im planning on getting the Daxter pack also. So i'll only need a Daxter pack and an extra battery? Can I use the memory stick it comes with after modding it? Thanks for this guide, I might have the balls to try this out soon.

Yes, you'll need and extra battery unless you have good soldering skill which you'll be able to solder the pin back. If you don't, just get a cheap used battery like I did. New batteries are like 30-35 bucks and I'm sure you don't want to spend that much money on something that you'll use only once[also there is a chance that you might screw up while hardmodding it(I almost did) so you don't want to spend too much money on it]

I'm pretty sure you'll be able to use it for Magic Memory Stick. I've used a 4gig Sandisk and it worked just fine.

 

[superkrm]

nice tutorial
i think i might buy 2psp phats now

 

[serg0]

Can I use a phat Pandora battery on a PSP Slim?

 

[Icarus]

Yes, phat batteries do work for Slim but you won't be able to use the battery cover. But you don't one anyway because it fits real tight.

 

[jalaneme]

hmmm, dosn't look noob friendly at all, the safer way is to buy a psp with the CFW installed already. (which is what i am doing)

 

[Icarus]

hmmm, dosn't look noob friendly at all, the safer way is to buy a psp with the CFW installed already. (which is what i am doing)

Why don't you just buy a Pandora Battery? Then you can easily install custom firmware and you wouldn't have to go through the hardmodding or anything. Modded systems are pretty expensive actually, but if you think you can find one with a good price, go ahead.

 

[serg0]

My friend has a phat broken PSP, that he never uses, so I might be able to mod his. Sweet, i'll only need the Daxter bundle to mod my PSP.

 

[ediblebird]

hmmm, dosn't look noob friendly at all, the safer way is to buy a psp with the CFW installed already. (which is what i am doing)

Well it was the first psp i got onto a custom firmware, and it survived my noobiness

 

[Armadillo]

I got a question , once you have the battery and the magic stick , as long as you backed up the nand files , you can't brick the psp?. No matter what it's always restorable? , or can it still be killed.

 

[ediblebird]

I got a question , once you have the battery and the magic stick , as long as you backed up the nand files , you can't brick the psp?. No matter what it's always restorable? , or can it still be killed.

Lets just says that it lessens the chance of a complete un-restorable brick by 99.9%

 

[jalaneme]

Why don't you just buy a Pandora Battery? Then you can easily install custom firmware and you wouldn't have to go through the hardmodding or anything. Modded systems are pretty expensive actually, but if you think you can find one with a good price, go ahead.

i don't have soldering equipment nor do i have the skill to solder, there is a high risk it would brick and meaning i would have to buy another psp, i don't have that kind of money to waste.