Is it worth the hassle moving from an RVL-101 to an RVL-001 for BootMii as boot2?

[RedP]

I currently have a normal rvl 101 wii (not modded) with all my saves and data. I should be getting my hands on a RVL-001 in a month or so (I’m not buying one , it’s gonna be given to me). Should I go ahead and mod the 101 or should I transfer everything to the 001 for native gc and bootmii as boot2?

 

[V800]

Go ahead and mod the 101. That way you'll practice and mod the 001 in no time.

 

[CoolMe]

Should I go ahead and mod the 101 or should I transfer everything to the 001

You can't transfer Wii saves from a stock system, atleast not all of them, and you definitely can't transfer GC/Wiiware games to another. So yea, better mod that system.
Btw, i highly recommend using ModMii to do that, just get an sd card and format it as FAT32 32kb clusters, and follow the instructions.
Or you could follow the Wii.guide here, both lead to the same thing, a modded system.

And bootmii as boot2?

It's not a big deal really, if you choose to mod the RVL-101 system that you have, and install BootMii as ios, make a nand backup with it, and have Priiloader installed, then there's nothing to worry about. Just be careful installing random wads from the internet, or themes, those are the ones that usually cause a system corruption, and even then since you have a nand backup, you'd restore it quickly with BootMii.

 

[Aeredren]

and even then since you have a nand backup, you'd restore it quickly with BootMii.

Yea, you need to mess up badly with the wii to make it not bootable. Often it is just a System Menu corruption and therefore PriiLoader load and you can use it to launch BootMii and restore your Wii.

To make a wii not even load PriiLoader, you'll have to really want to... No way it happen when modding with those recommended guides or with normal usage of a modded wii.

 

[godreborn]

I'd just keep it as backup, since it's free. it's not worth redoing everything as I think most thinks are noob proof now anyway.

 

[KleinesSinchen]

Just be careful installing random wads from the internet, or themes, those are the ones that usually cause a system corruption, and even then since you have a nand backup, you'd restore it quickly with BootMii.

Is NAND restore (easily) possible on RVL-101 now? I vaguely remember that BootMii never saw any kind of update removing the need for entering the Konami Code for restore on a console without BootMii@boot2. Without GC ports entering the code isn't possible which pretty much means no restore (unless you want to solder lots of stuff)

Yea, you need to mess up badly with the wii to make it not bootable

It is not hard:

• Borked region change
• Normal upgrade of a poorly region changed Korean Wii → 003 Error, Priiloader gone
• Up- or downgrading System Menu (removes Priiloader, could have missing corresponding IOS)
• Any Title Deleter removing essential stuff
• Forced NAND restore of a bad image (e.g. wrong encryption key)

No way it happen when modding with those recommended guides or with normal usage of a modded wii.

Agreed. But the list I wrote above doesn't come from the void. All things I have seen here in the forum.
===========

I would prefer the RVL-001 over the later models all the time. Possibly vulnerable boot1. Possibly loading burned DVDs with softmod. GameCube ports. Dumping of legit GC discs (RVL-101 drive can't catch the small discs).

 

[torrent_get]

RVL101 should output slightly better video and less power draw which looking at your avatar would be advantageous.

 

[KleinesSinchen]

RVL101 should output slightly better video and less power draw which looking at your avatar would be advantageous.

Hasn't the small problem with 480p been solved with the help of homebrew software? I thought there was some patch that could be applied to games by the USB loaders.

The power draw of a Wii is significant in standby mode – sadly. And yes, older models are worse. Disconnecting the power adapter from the outlet after playing is a good idea. The amount that can be saved comparing old/new models when only connecting it for playing is neglectable in my opinion (unless playing 10 hours each day… or going for building a custom portable, battery powered Wii).

 

[RedP]

Is NAND restore (easily) possible on RVL-101 now? I vaguely remember that BootMii never saw any kind of update removing the need for entering the Konami Code for restore on a console without BootMii@boot2. Without GC ports entering the code isn't possible which pretty much means no restore (unless you want to solder lots of stuff)

Would a gc adapter help there?

Post automatically merged: Jan 9, 2023

Hasn't the small problem with 480p been solved with the help of homebrew software? I thought there was some patch that could be applied to games by the USB loaders.

The power draw of a Wii is significant in standby mode – sadly. And yes, older models are worse. Disconnecting the power adapter from the outlet after playing is a good idea. The amount that can be saved comparing old/new models when only connecting it for playing is neglectable in my opinion (unless playing 10 hours each day… or going for building a custom portable, battery powered Wii).

Aren’t black rvl 001 wiis essentially guranteed to have a lower power board?

 

[RetraCarteR]

Aren’t black rvl 001 wiis essentially guranteed to have a lower power board?

Short answer: yes they are, but you can't install BootMii as boot2 on them. Though depending on your needs, that might not matter as much as you'd think.

Long answer: the RVL-001 has five motherboard revisions (labeled as 01, 20, 30, 40, and 60, respectively), with each iteration lowering the power requirements for the system. The last three revisions (30, 40, and 60) have by far the lowest power requirements (especially in standby mode), and revisions 40 and 60 also have updated video circuitry that provides higher quality video output. Homebrew can improve the quality of 480p video on older motherboard revisions, but even then, it's not quite as good as on newer revisions with the fix built in.

RVL-101 Wiis have two motherboard revisions (K01 and K02), but they're basically identical to each other, and for all intents and purposes, they're both the same as RVL-001 Wiis with revision 60 motherboards aside from the obvious lack of GameCube support.

Nintendo only started producing Wiis in colors other than white after they introduced the revision 40 motherboard, so all black, red, and blue RVL-001 Wiis are guaranteed to have either a revision 40 or revision 60 motherboard unless they've been case-swapped. White RVL-001 Wiis can have any of the five motherboard revisions.

There's an easy way to tell which revision you have without taking your Wii apart: simply unscrew and remove the CMOS battery tray on the underside of the system, and you'll see the motherboard revision code printed on the tiny portion of the PCB that's exposed.

However, Nintendo patched the BootMii-as-boot2 exploit on later revisions of the Wii, and on all revisions if their System Menu is updated to at least version 4.2. I don't know exactly which motherboard revision they were on when they patched it out, but it was for sure patched by the time revision 40 started production. So it's really a case of whether you want the older board's ability to install BootMii as boot2, or the newer board's lower power draw and slightly better video quality. You can't have both.

In all honesty, having a boot2-capable Wii isn't that important these days. As long as you have Priiloader and BootMii IOS installed, have a working NAND backup, and don't do anything catastrophically dumb while tinkering around with homebrew, it's highly unlikely you'll be able to brick your Wii permanently. However, you do need a Wii with GameCube ports built-in to be able to use BootMii's "Restore" feature; controller adapters won't help you at all on an RVL-101.

With all that being said, it's ultimately up to you which revision of the Wii you want to use, and your answer will depend on how important factors like brick protection, GameCube compatibility, video quality, and power consumption are to you personally. At the end of the day, as long as you're having a good time, there's really no way you can go wrong.

Spoiler

... unless you get a Wii Mini. Seriously, a console without component video output, an SD card slot, or any way to connect to the internet? Why, Nintendo... just why?

 

[RedP]

Short answer: yes they are, but you can't install BootMii as boot2 on them. Though depending on your needs, that might not matter as much as you'd think.

Long answer: the RVL-001 has five motherboard revisions (labeled as 01, 20, 30, 40, and 60, respectively), with each iteration lowering the power requirements for the system. The last three revisions (30, 40, and 60) have by far the lowest power requirements (especially in standby mode), and revisions 40 and 60 also have updated video circuitry that provides higher quality video output. Homebrew can improve the quality of 480p video on older motherboard revisions, but even then, it's not quite as good as on newer revisions with the fix built in.

RVL-101 Wiis have two motherboard revisions (K01 and K02), but they're basically identical to each other, and for all intents and purposes, they're both the same as RVL-001 Wiis with revision 60 motherboards aside from the obvious lack of GameCube support.

Nintendo only started producing Wiis in colors other than white after they introduced the revision 40 motherboard, so all black, red, and blue RVL-001 Wiis are guaranteed to have either a revision 40 or revision 60 motherboard unless they've been case-swapped. White RVL-001 Wiis can have any of the five motherboard revisions.

There's an easy way to tell which revision you have without taking your Wii apart: simply unscrew and remove the CMOS battery tray on the underside of the system, and you'll see the motherboard revision code printed on the tiny portion of the PCB that's exposed.

However, Nintendo patched the BootMii-as-boot2 exploit on later revisions of the Wii, and on all revisions if their System Menu is updated to at least version 4.2. I don't know exactly which motherboard revision they were on when they patched it out, but it was for sure patched by the time revision 40 started production. So it's really a case of whether you want the older board's ability to install BootMii as boot2, or the newer board's lower power draw and slightly better video quality. You can't have both.

In all honesty, having a boot2-capable Wii isn't that important these days. As long as you have Priiloader and BootMii IOS installed, have a working NAND backup, and don't do anything catastrophically dumb while tinkering around with homebrew, it's highly unlikely you'll be able to brick your Wii permanently. However, you do need a Wii with GameCube ports built-in to be able to use BootMii's "Restore" feature; controller adapters won't help you at all on an RVL-101.

With all that being said, it's ultimately up to you which revision of the Wii you want to use, and your answer will depend on how important factors like brick protection, GameCube compatibility, video quality, and power consumption are to you personally. At the end of the day, as long as you're having a good time, there's really no way you can go wrong.

Spoiler

... unless you get a Wii Mini. Seriously, a console without component video output, an SD card slot, or any way to connect to the internet? Why, Nintendo... just why?

After doing some research I found this

I’m getting the hint that I should aim for a CPU 60

 

[DinohScene]

If your goal is to just play videogames on it, go for the RVL-101.
You wouldn't need BootMii if your only goal is to pirateplay videogames.

If you're going to mess around with system files or are going to develop software/test things, yes, having a BootMii capable Wii is recommended.