Gaming Okay folks, let's talk Modding a 360!

[Gaisuto]

I always am trying new things, anyone notice this? I constantly ask here the five thousand different possible things...I can't ever make up my mind...

Okay, I just got some cash and I want to play some games. The 360 has a lot of great looking stuff heading this way and I can't normally afford it, so I want to take advantage of what I got and get them all at once practically by modding the 360!

FIRST, what do I need? I heard of flashing the firmware? How does this work, what can you do, what do you need, how much does all of it cost?
SECOND, How does playing downloaded games work? Is there any way to play games downloaded directly off the harddrive like the original Xbox or do you have to use burned discs? If you have to use burned disc how do most of the games work. Aren't most 360 games on Dual Layered Discs or am I just falsely assuming that?
THIRD, is there a way to play downloaded Xbox 1 games or Live Arcades games this way? This isn't important but it'd be spiffy if I could.

Also, I know damn well that I'll be banned off of Xbox Live. I will not care really, because I suck at pretty much every online game I've ever played on it enough to discourage me off of it.

 

[aslacker55]

I suggest reading the tutorials here: xbox-scene. Also go to the newbie forum of xbox-scene.

1. There different types of drive for the xbox 360. The best ones are the samsung drives ( they are the easiest to flash), Hitachi drives can also be flashed (but they are harder and the new ixtreme firmware are not available for it yet). Benq drives can't be flashed yet. Each drive have different ways to flash them, but basically you'll need a computer, a sata card or a connectivity kit.

2. 360 back ups use dual layer dvds ( verbatims are the best). You can't play games off the hard drive. The back ups play exactly like the originals.

3. You can also play xbox 1 backups, but with the new ixtreme firmware it has to be on a dual layer disc. Live arcade can't be put on a disc.

Note: The new ixtreme firmware (only for samsung drive at the moment) are online safe. To be safe from being banned, make sure all your back ups are stealth patched properly and use the ixtreme firmware. If you don't care about being banned go with the older firmwares, they have more features.

 

[Gaisuto]

I just found out I have a Samsung drive on my 360.

Okay, I just found out my computer can also burn Dual Layered Discs. Already. Damn I'm lucky.

How much do Dual Layered Discs usually cost anywhere and would Wal-Mart have them?

 

[UncleChuckle]

DL media is very expensive compared to regular DVD's. And I've never seen them at any WalMart I've been too.

 

[aslacker55]

I just found out I have a Samsung drive on my 360.

Also, someone on another forum told me I need a Dual Layered Burner. First off, I didn't even know those existed. How much do DVD-Rs for Dual Layered usually cost, and where would I find them? And how do I know if my computer possibly has one already? I bought this PC a while back already made, custom made, so it's possible it might have one already.

That's good, samsungs are the easiest to flash ( I suggest getting a 6421L sata card:here) that's what I used to flash my samsung drive. To check if your dvd drive can burn dvd dl use Imgburn and go to Tools, Drive, then click on capabilities. Check if your drive has a check next to DVD-R DL.

The best places for Verbatim dual layers are either costco and sams club. They have the best prices for them.

 

[Gaisuto]

I'm not able to order anything online at the moment, are you able to get one of those SATA cards at a place like Radioshack or some other place? And I don't even know if I have a Costco or Sams Club nearby...

 

[Dthruking]

i get them from walmart and they are about 13 US dollars for 3 DL DVD's

 

[martin88]

I've got a MSI k9VGM-V motherboard that has SATA interface on it. Do I still need a SATA card to flash my 360?

 

[aslacker55]

I'm not able to order anything online at the moment, are you able to get one of those SATA cards at a place like Radioshack or some other place? And I don't even know if I have a Costco or Sams Club nearby...

Do you have a sata controller on your motherboard, if you do you might be able to use that if you have the right one. I doubt if radio shack carries them.

 

[Gaisuto]

I've had good luck, maybe I can push it further. Anyway to check if my Motherboard has one of those without opening it up? If I do have to open it up to check, what am I looking for? Can I get a picture?

 

[aslacker55]

I've got a MSI k9VGM-V motherboard that has SATA interface on it. Do I still need a SATA card to flash my 360?

Download this tutorial:360 flashing for dummies, it has the sata controllers that you can use.

 

[martin88]

I've got a MSI k9VGM-V motherboard that has SATA interface on it. Do I still need a SATA card to flash my 360?


Download this tutorial:360 flashing for dummies, it has the sata controllers that you can use.

Thanks for the great guide. It says VIA chipset will work, so "VIA® VT8237A Chipset" will work right?

 

[Gaisuto]

hey Martin, how do you know what kind of Chipset you have without opening it up?

Also to slacker, that guide says you can't play games from another region. Is that still true or has that problem since been fixed in this world?

 

[aslacker55]

Thanks for the great guide. It says VIA chipset will work, so "VIA® VT8237A Chipset" will work right?

Some people have been able to use that, but it requires hex editing. I haven't hex edited yet, so I don't know how to.

 

[martin88]

hey Martin, how do you know what kind of Chipset you have without opening it up?

Also to slacker, that guide says you can't play games from another region. Is that still true or has that problem since been fixed in this world?

I just look up the model of my motherboard on the internet, in this case it's the MSI K9VGM-V. It says on MSI's website that the chipset is a VIA® VT8237A Chipset that controls the SATA interface.

Thanks for the great guide. It says VIA chipset will work, so "VIA® VT8237A Chipset" will work right?

Some people have been able to use that, but it requires hex editing. I haven't hex edited yet, so I don't know how to.

What's hexediting?

 

[Gaisuto]

So you knew what it was already, or did you use a program to find out?

 

[martin88]

So you knew what it was already, or did you use a program to find out?

Uh...I just find the box for my motherboard and read the model number off the box. (I built the computer myself)

I think there are programs that can find out what your motherboard is.

 

[aslacker55]

hey Martin, how do you know what kind of Chipset you have without opening it up?

Also to slacker, that guide says you can't play games from another region. Is that still true or has that problem since been fixed in this world?

The games are have regional lock on them, but some of the games are region free. like I just played PAL versions of The Darkness, Dirt, and Hour of Victory on my NTSC USA xbox 360. It's the games that decide if it can work on your region 360.

 

[Gaisuto]

Even if I opened up my PC to look at it myself, how would I know what kind of Chipset it was? Would there be a sticker or something to see? I know I'm looking for those blue plugs from the FAQ so that should be simple enough to spot...

*Found out what it is through a program, it's a Shuttle FB95V20...I think that's what I needed.

 

[martin88]

Even if I opened up my PC to look at it myself, how would I know what kind of Chipset it was? Would there be a sticker or something to see? I know I'm looking for those blue plugs from the FAQ so that should be simple enough to spot...

*Found out what it is through a program, it's a Shuttle FB95V20...I think that's what I needed.

Try cpuZ, it tells you what chipset you have under the Motherboard tab.