Hacking M3DS Real question/s

[CrisR82]

I've had my DS Lite and a M3DS Real (v4.9 firmware) for a little over a month now.
I noticed some things that look weird to me so I decided to ask here, since it seems to be the biggest info souce I've seen (and people recommend it the most) so far:

- I noticed in the settings that it won't let me select a "Yes" in the boot options (the display-the-cartridge-like-a-normal-game thing, instead of starting right away). Is that normal?
- I noticed several ROMs failing to play: Sonic Classics Collection, The Sims 3, Castlevania Portrait of Ruin (crashes when you press the start button). Are there any known games that just don't run on it? I mean I heard it's stupposed to have 100% compatiblity. (note: I DO own the games, but I still prefer to carry around only the M3DS cartridge in my pocket)
- Is it possible to edit the menu options? (I mean removing the Media link for example since it doesn't seem to work well, or replace it with a MoonShell shortcut)

Thanks in advance fo any replies.

 

[The Catboy]

I am going to be honest with you, all these problems are typical M3 problems and there is nothing anyone can do on the temp to fix any of them.
The best thing I can tell you is simply go and buy a better card, examples being; Acekard 2i. Supercard Two, CycloDS iEvolution, EZ-Flash Vi, R4, and R4i Gold.
You can't buy from shoptemp, but it gives a great list of cheap and trusted sites to buy from, but all of those cards have active teams and are far better than M3 products.

 

[CrisR82]

I am going to be honest with you, all these problems are typical M3 problems and there is nothing anyone can do on the temp to fix any of them.
The best thing I can tell you is simply go and buy a better card, examples being; Acekard 2i. Supercard Two, CycloDS iEvolution, EZ-Flash Vi, R4, and R4i Gold.
You can't buy from shoptemp, but it gives a great list of cheap and trusted sites to buy from, but all of those cards have active teams and are far better than M3 products.

Thank you for the reply.
I have another small question:

Is "M3 Sakura" just a different firmware or another M3 cartridge alltogherther?
10 minutes ago I tried the "M3 Quad-Boot" which I found here and I noticed it looks a lot better than the M3DS Real firmware (and seems to have the same compatibility since the games that failed before failed again with it).
If it's just a firmware difference, which should I use - the M3DS Real or the Sakura one?

 

[The Catboy]

I am going to be honest with you, all these problems are typical M3 problems and there is nothing anyone can do on the temp to fix any of them.
The best thing I can tell you is simply go and buy a better card, examples being; Acekard 2i. Supercard Two, CycloDS iEvolution, EZ-Flash Vi, R4, and R4i Gold.
You can't buy from shoptemp, but it gives a great list of cheap and trusted sites to buy from, but all of those cards have active teams and are far better than M3 products.

Thank you for the reply.
I have another small question:

Is "M3 Sakura" just a different firmware or another M3 cartridge alltogherther?
10 minutes ago I tried the "M3 Quad-Boot" which I found here and I noticed it looks a lot better than the M3DS Real firmware (and seems to have the same compatibility since the games that failed before failed again with it).
If it's just a firmware difference, which should I use - the M3DS Real or the Sakura one?

M3 Sakura is the official M3 Firmware alternate to Touchpod. It use the same core for compatibly and pretty is the same, it just look and works a little better.
The M3 Quad-Boot uses M3 Sakura (has no longer has Touchpod those) to load alternate firmware such as YSM3, R4i RTS and the now out of date M3 Wood.
YSM3 does has better compatibly as compared to Sakura, but half the features

 

[CrisR82]

I am going to be honest with you, all these problems are typical M3 problems and there is nothing anyone can do on the temp to fix any of them.
The best thing I can tell you is simply go and buy a better card, examples being; Acekard 2i. Supercard Two, CycloDS iEvolution, EZ-Flash Vi, R4, and R4i Gold.
You can't buy from shoptemp, but it gives a great list of cheap and trusted sites to buy from, but all of those cards have active teams and are far better than M3 products.

Thank you for the reply.
I have another small question:

Is "M3 Sakura" just a different firmware or another M3 cartridge alltogherther?
10 minutes ago I tried the "M3 Quad-Boot" which I found here and I noticed it looks a lot better than the M3DS Real firmware (and seems to have the same compatibility since the games that failed before failed again with it).
If it's just a firmware difference, which should I use - the M3DS Real or the Sakura one?

M3 Sakura is the official M3 Firmware alternate to Touchpod. It use the same core for compatibly and pretty is the same, it just look and works a little better.
The M3 Quad-Boot uses M3 Sakura (has no longer has Touchpod those) to load alternate firmware such as YSM3, R4i RTS and the now out of date M3 Wood.
YSM3 does has better compatibly as compared to Sakura, but half the features

Well, I guess Sakura would be my prefered then since both have the same compatibility.
I noticed that the Sakura's media player works a lot better than the M3DS Real one, so it'll save me the trouble with the menues.

I tried the other firmwares aswell, but all seem to fail in the same places (I tried the Castlevania P.O.R. - enter the menu by pressing Start, and the game crashes on all). I read that it may be due to my memory card being slow (2GB Kingston memory card)...could be true?

 

[The Catboy]

Well, I guess Sakura would be my prefered then since both have the same compatibility.
I noticed that the Sakura's media player works a lot better than the M3DS Real one, so it'll save me the trouble with the menues.

I tried the other firmwares aswell, but all seem to fail in the same places (I tried the Castlevania P.O.R. - enter the menu by pressing Start, and the game crashes on all). I read that it may be due to my memory card being slow (2GB Kingston memory card)...could be true?

True Sakura is better
And it's more of an M3 Hardware problem. They said they fixed that, but they never did speed up the card like the other cards did. Even the R4 can get past those points.

 

[CrisR82]

Well, I guess Sakura would be my prefered then since both have the same compatibility.
I noticed that the Sakura's media player works a lot better than the M3DS Real one, so it'll save me the trouble with the menues.

I tried the other firmwares aswell, but all seem to fail in the same places (I tried the Castlevania P.O.R. - enter the menu by pressing Start, and the game crashes on all). I read that it may be due to my memory card being slow (2GB Kingston memory card)...could be true?

True Sakura is better
And it's more of an M3 Hardware problem. They said they fixed that, but they never did speed up the card like the other cards did. Even the R4 can get past those points.

Many thanks for the help.
I'll be considering a new flashcard sometime this spring I guess if I encounter more issues with this one.
At least I didn't pay for it since it came with the console.

 

[The Catboy]

Well, I guess Sakura would be my prefered then since both have the same compatibility.
I noticed that the Sakura's media player works a lot better than the M3DS Real one, so it'll save me the trouble with the menues.

I tried the other firmwares aswell, but all seem to fail in the same places (I tried the Castlevania P.O.R. - enter the menu by pressing Start, and the game crashes on all). I read that it may be due to my memory card being slow (2GB Kingston memory card)...could be true?

True Sakura is better
And it's more of an M3 Hardware problem. They said they fixed that, but they never did speed up the card like the other cards did. Even the R4 can get past those points.

Many thanks for the help.
I'll be considering a new flashcard sometime this spring I guess if I encounter more issues with this one.
At least I didn't pay for it since it came with the console.

No problem

And that's good to hear!

Just keep that list in mind since those are the best cards available.

And your M3 came with your DS? Lucky!

 

[Joe88]

Well, I guess Sakura would be my prefered then since both have the same compatibility.
I noticed that the Sakura's media player works a lot better than the M3DS Real one, so it'll save me the trouble with the menues.

I tried the other firmwares aswell, but all seem to fail in the same places (I tried the Castlevania P.O.R. - enter the menu by pressing Start, and the game crashes on all). I read that it may be due to my memory card being slow (2GB Kingston memory card)...could be true?

True Sakura is better
And it's more of an M3 Hardware problem. They said they fixed that, but they never did speed up the card like the other cards did. Even the R4 can get past those points.

think it was more of a microsd problem then anything
my old kingston 4GB japan one played it fine, no crashing
my 8GB sandisk is a different story however...

 

[The Catboy]

Well, I guess Sakura would be my prefered then since both have the same compatibility.
I noticed that the Sakura's media player works a lot better than the M3DS Real one, so it'll save me the trouble with the menues.

I tried the other firmwares aswell, but all seem to fail in the same places (I tried the Castlevania P.O.R. - enter the menu by pressing Start, and the game crashes on all). I read that it may be due to my memory card being slow (2GB Kingston memory card)...could be true?

True Sakura is better
And it's more of an M3 Hardware problem. They said they fixed that, but they never did speed up the card like the other cards did. Even the R4 can get past those points.

think it was more of a microsd problem then anything
my old kingston 4GB japan one played it fine, no crashing
my 8GB sandisk is a different story however...

It's more like both.
Yes it's true that slow microSD cards are a problem, it's also a hardware problem because the M3 cards don't work that well with slower cards unlike most flashcards who have hardware to work with slower cards.

 

[CrisR82]

Well, I guess Sakura would be my prefered then since both have the same compatibility.
I noticed that the Sakura's media player works a lot better than the M3DS Real one, so it'll save me the trouble with the menues.

I tried the other firmwares aswell, but all seem to fail in the same places (I tried the Castlevania P.O.R. - enter the menu by pressing Start, and the game crashes on all). I read that it may be due to my memory card being slow (2GB Kingston memory card)...could be true?

True Sakura is better
And it's more of an M3 Hardware problem. They said they fixed that, but they never did speed up the card like the other cards did. Even the R4 can get past those points.

think it was more of a microsd problem then anything
my old kingston 4GB japan one played it fine, no crashing
my 8GB sandisk is a different story however...

It's more like both.
Yes it's true that slow microSD cards are a problem, it's also a hardware problem because the M3 cards don't work that well with slower cards unlike most flashcards who have hardware to work with slower cards.

I would like to mention something here that happened a few minutes ago:

I just found and used the "DS-Rom Trim Tool" and it seems that the Castlevania P.O.R. game now DOES let me use the start button menu and switch weapons and stuff, but sometimes (seems like at random) it still freezes.

 

[The Catboy]

Well, I guess Sakura would be my prefered then since both have the same compatibility.
I noticed that the Sakura's media player works a lot better than the M3DS Real one, so it'll save me the trouble with the menues.

I tried the other firmwares aswell, but all seem to fail in the same places (I tried the Castlevania P.O.R. - enter the menu by pressing Start, and the game crashes on all). I read that it may be due to my memory card being slow (2GB Kingston memory card)...could be true?

True Sakura is better
And it's more of an M3 Hardware problem. They said they fixed that, but they never did speed up the card like the other cards did. Even the R4 can get past those points.

think it was more of a microsd problem then anything
my old kingston 4GB japan one played it fine, no crashing
my 8GB sandisk is a different story however...

It's more like both.
Yes it's true that slow microSD cards are a problem, it's also a hardware problem because the M3 cards don't work that well with slower cards unlike most flashcards who have hardware to work with slower cards.

I would like to mention something here that happened a few minutes ago:

I just found and used the "DS-Rom Trim Tool" and it seems that the Castlevania P.O.R. game now DOES let me use the start button menu and switch weapons and stuff, but sometimes (seems like at random) it still freezes.

Well that's strange

The Freezing is still something no one can fix, there is a patch, but it still doesn't get all the freezes. Pretty much it's still something only a different flashcard can fix

 

[CrisR82]

Well, other than Castlevania's menu problem, all other incompatibilities seem to be there.
No idea what changed with the trim tool, but at least now I have a better chance to play the game. XD

 

[Keram]

We're talking Portraits of Ruin here right? Which if I recall correctly is the second latest installment of the Castlevania series on the DS, so its well, not old but a little aged, dunno how to put this. Fact is, that I played P.O.R. with absolutely no problem the first time I got my hands on it.
I sadly cannot say what firmware version I ran, but I used touchpod back then.
Played on a DSlight with a M3DS Real and a Kingston 2 GB. Kingston is for me a quality producer, though the micro SD was bought together with the M3 at a local shop, which is now roundabout 2 years ago, so I cannot say if microSD card speeds nowadays have much changed.
But the game at least played fine and I cannot remember any slowdowns or choppiness.

So, either the more recent firmwares broke compatibility with the game,
your microSD card really is at fault,
or, which I rather do not believe but also not negate, the rom I obtained back in the days was already prepatched in case portrait of ruins really needed one.
But I usually try clean roms first, I don't remember seeing anything in the form of a patch for that game and I am absolutely sure I did never apply any patch to it.

Well, I actually think the SD card is the most plausible issue here, though you mentioned using a 2 GB Kingston yourself, and I am still using my 2 GB Kingston till now.

Also I read you are using quad boot, did you try running P.O.R. with the included wood or ysmenu also? If m3 Sakura would be at fault then wood and ysmenu might solve that problem.

Edit: Maybe if I find some time (and space on my 2GB micro sd..) I'll see if I can still run portrait of ruins without any issues with my installment.
It seems pretty identical, since I too have a m3ds real with 2 GB Kingston and am using quad boot now.

 

[CrisR82]

We're talking Portraits of Ruin here right? Which if I recall correctly is the second latest installment of the Castlevania series on the DS, so its well, not old but a little aged, dunno how to put this. Fact is, that I played P.O.R. with absolutely no problem the first time I got my hands on it.
I sadly cannot say what firmware version I ran, but I used touchpod back then.
Played on a DSlight with a M3DS Real and a Kingston 2 GB. Kingston is for me a quality producer, though the micro SD was bought together with the M3 at a local shop, which is now roundabout 2 years ago, so I cannot say if microSD card speeds nowadays have much changed.
But the game at least played fine and I cannot remember any slowdowns or choppiness.

So, either the more recent firmwares broke compatibility with the game,
your microSD card really is at fault,
or, which I rather do not believe but also not negate, the rom I obtained back in the days was already prepatched in case portrait of ruins really needed one.
But I usually try clean roms first, I don't remember seeing anything in the form of a patch for that game and I am absolutely sure I did never apply any patch to it.

Well, I actually think the SD card is the most plausible issue here, though you mentioned using a 2 GB Kingston yourself, and I am still using my 2 GB Kingston till now.

Also I read you are using quad boot, did you try running P.O.R. with the included wood or ysmenu also? If m3 Sakura would be at fault then wood and ysmenu might solve that problem.

Edit: Maybe if I find some time (and space on my 2GB micro sd..) I'll see if I can still run portrait of ruins without any issues with my installment.
It seems pretty identical, since I too have a m3ds real with 2 GB Kingston and am using quad boot now.

Well, the memory card was brand new when I got it, but so far seems like it's the more likely reason (after reporting the incompatibility issue, I was suggested to try a different one in their forums).

Still, if you have time/chance to try it with the new firmware, I'd apreciate it if you share the results later.

 

[Keram]

Hey there, I just right now dropped the clean US version of POR on my m3, went through the intro and CHARLOTTE! JONATHAN!'d my way up to the first save point.

Everything fine so far.
I started it under Sakura, when booting up the game it showed the version Sakura 4.9a X. Afaik thats the one with the cheats back fixed and to my knowledge no newer one exists yet, so its the same as in the most recent quad boot.

Save your roms, homebrew and saves to the hard disk, try reformatting your micro sd with panasonic SD card formatter, set up quad boot cleanly again and drop your stuff back on the micro sd and try again. No particular reason to do that actually, but trying again from a clean environment is never wrong.
If its still not working, look if you can test on another SD or try returning your micro SD and trying another one. I doubt its a general problem with Kingston, even they can have faulty cards every now and then. Sadly I'm not very informed about micro SDs and their speeds and quality and other thingamajigs so I cannot suggest other brands, someone else please do that.

Other than that, good luck!
I'm off to bed...actually, I think I'll play POR a little, the anime character design is drop dead ugly, but it was a fun game...now it got me back hooked.

 

[CrisR82]

Hey there, I just right now dropped the clean US version of POR on my m3, went through the intro and CHARLOTTE! JONATHAN!'d my way up to the first save point.

Everything fine so far.
I started it under Sakura, when booting up the game it showed the version Sakura 4.9a X. Afaik thats the one with the cheats back fixed and to my knowledge no newer one exists yet, so its the same as in the most recent quad boot.

Save your roms, homebrew and saves to the hard disk, try reformatting your micro sd with panasonic SD card formatter, set up quad boot cleanly again and drop your stuff back on the micro sd and try again. No particular reason to do that actually, but trying again from a clean environment is never wrong.
If its still not working, look if you can test on another SD or try returning your micro SD and trying another one. I doubt its a general problem with Kingston, even they can have faulty cards every now and then. Sadly I'm not very informed about micro SDs and their speeds and quality and other thingamajigs so I cannot suggest other brands, someone else please do that.

Other than that, good luck!
I'm off to bed...actually, I think I'll play POR a little, the anime character design is drop dead ugly, but it was a fun game...now it got me back hooked.

Well, the memory card's hardware seems to be perfectly functional after some tests (I work as tech support and I took my card to work for a funccionality test, which turned out ok). The problem seems to be a memory card class (speed) issue...from what I read on the internet, it's recommended to use a class-4 card, while mine is class-2...perhaps that is the problem, cant say for sure.

Currently, I'm using the Sakura firmware with updated cheats database (which I found here in the forum), all the issues seem to remain, but everything else works perfectly like before.

I also found a "crash fix" for Castlevania P.O.R., but I heard that it removes music, so I prefer not to use it.

P.S. I didn't buy the M3DS Real cartridge or the memory card, they just came with the console as a "free gift", so cant really return them... o_o