Xbox Problem - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

poppinfresh · 04-19-2003, 08:27 AM

Hey guys. Just thought i would vent my frustration here. I just bought a used xbox off of a newsgroup. Came to a really good deal and all but i started seeing an error when playing games. I did some searching online and found out that my xbox is one of the first generations with a thompson DVD rom drive, some of which have problems reading cd's. So i thought, man this sucks, even brand new games sometimes didnt read right. So i called M$ tech support and they said ' we'll fix it for you for free ' because they know this is a common problem ( but they will never tell you that ) Anywho. Long story short, someone who owned the xbox before me opened it up ( for reasons unknown ) so microsoft wont fix it for me, ( i even offered to pay ). They told me the problem would be in the dvd rom or the hard drive. I then asked them where i could get replacement drives and they said that no one was authorized to make them. WTF? What am i supposed to do with my xbox now? It annoys the hell out of me and microsoft, the only people that can fix it, wont. Anyone else had a similar experience? It would seem the only option microsoft is giving me is to mod the damn thing .

Poppinfresh

Magpie0001 · 04-19-2003, 10:27 AM

Fuckers!
Get modding!

MarvinHole · 04-19-2003, 10:32 AM

which games? I had issues with a few, most notably Ghost Recon and Sega Gt. I read somewhere about boiling the cds for a little while, and it seems to have worked - no more errors. I Googled the groups for a bit and cant find the article again.

Good luck!

poppinfresh · 04-19-2003, 10:39 AM

It's actually all games that do it. Sometimes they do and sometimes not, doesnt depend on the surface of the cd as i bought DOA3 brand new and the audio tracks skip around sometimes. I read you can tweak the laser in the unit but im no electrician and i dont want to break it even more.

guthmund · 04-19-2003, 01:41 PM

Mod it.

I helped a pal replace the hard drive and install a mod chop in his so he could store games directly on the drive among other things. But now he uses Evol-X to keep track of his MP3s, Mpegs, and turned his X-box from just a gaming console to a full multi-media center.

I don't know if you can just replace a hard drive without the mod chip. I'd keep that in mind.

If you can follow directions and use a soldering (Is that how you spell that?) gun you can do this yourself. TechTv has a pretty good article here:

http://www.techtv.com/screensavers/h...420568,00.html

If you still feel you can't do this....Do you have any friends who might feel a little more comfortable with this?

Microsoft obviously isn't going to fix it, and you're not going to be able to resell it, so I'd just take the chance and try and fix it yourself.

Good luck and keep us posted.

poppinfresh · 04-19-2003, 01:45 PM

I've read that you can use a samsung model dvd rom instead of the unit that is in it. That would be my first choice on something to try. However its hard to find the right model of it and im a student so im too poor to buy a mod chip + 80 + gig HDD .

guthmund · 04-19-2003, 01:46 PM

Oops, almost forgot....

To try Evol-X you're going to need a DVD Burner. And if you're going to play an X-Box Live you need to install a switch to turn off the mod chip, cause the boys at Microsoft can tell.

It's all in the article and links.

thecow · 04-19-2003, 03:06 PM

I'm pretty positive you need a modchip to switch HDs.

I bet this brings back the old NES days. Take out the game, blow on it, put it back in, wash, rinse, repeat.

poppinfresh · 04-19-2003, 03:58 PM

Ya you need a mod chip to switch HDD's cuz the xbox wont naturally read any standard PC harddrive without a little help ( mod chip ) as well no other dvd rom ( aside the samsung ) will read xbox dvds. something about a different kind of format that ms uses that is different than the pc dvd standard

Mr.Deflok · 04-19-2003, 04:08 PM

Buy a PC

skinnedmink · 04-20-2003, 12:23 AM

You could just wait until someone does the last part of the Linux on X-Box challange and puts out Linux for the X-Box for free. Then you have a really poor computer that can't do much. Enjoy! Also a link the the x-box hackers.

http://xbox-linux.sourceforge.net/

RenegadeSoul · 04-21-2003, 06:10 PM

Those Jerks at Microsoft, it makes me feel good to pirate their software.

04-19-2003, 08:27 AM	#1 (permalink)
poppinfresh Upright	Xbox Problem Hey guys. Just thought i would vent my frustration here. I just bought a used xbox off of a newsgroup. Came to a really good deal and all but i started seeing an error when playing games. I did some searching online and found out that my xbox is one of the first generations with a thompson DVD rom drive, some of which have problems reading cd's. So i thought, man this sucks, even brand new games sometimes didnt read right. So i called M$ tech support and they said ' we'll fix it for you for free ' because they know this is a common problem ( but they will never tell you that ) Anywho. Long story short, someone who owned the xbox before me opened it up ( for reasons unknown ) so microsoft wont fix it for me, ( i even offered to pay ). They told me the problem would be in the dvd rom or the hard drive. I then asked them where i could get replacement drives and they said that no one was authorized to make them. WTF? What am i supposed to do with my xbox now? It annoys the hell out of me and microsoft, the only people that can fix it, wont. Anyone else had a similar experience? It would seem the only option microsoft is giving me is to mod the damn thing . Poppinfresh

04-19-2003, 10:27 AM	#2 (permalink)
Magpie0001 Nobody Loves Me Location: Irish In Madrid	Fuckers! Get modding! __________________ Music is my first love & It will be my last.

04-19-2003, 01:41 PM	#5 (permalink)
guthmund big damn hero	Mod it. I helped a pal replace the hard drive and install a mod chop in his so he could store games directly on the drive among other things. But now he uses Evol-X to keep track of his MP3s, Mpegs, and turned his X-box from just a gaming console to a full multi-media center. I don't know if you can just replace a hard drive without the mod chip. I'd keep that in mind. If you can follow directions and use a soldering (Is that how you spell that?) gun you can do this yourself. TechTv has a pretty good article here: http://www.techtv.com/screensavers/h...420568,00.html If you still feel you can't do this....Do you have any friends who might feel a little more comfortable with this? Microsoft obviously isn't going to fix it, and you're not going to be able to resell it, so I'd just take the chance and try and fix it yourself. Good luck and keep us posted. __________________ No signature. None. Seriously.

04-19-2003, 01:46 PM	#7 (permalink)
guthmund big damn hero	Oops, almost forgot.... To try Evol-X you're going to need a DVD Burner. And if you're going to play an X-Box Live you need to install a switch to turn off the mod chip, cause the boys at Microsoft can tell. It's all in the article and links. __________________ No signature. None. Seriously.

04-19-2003, 10:32 AM	#3 (permalink)
MarvinHole Upright	which games? I had issues with a few, most notably Ghost Recon and Sega Gt. I read somewhere about boiling the cds for a little while, and it seems to have worked - no more errors. I Googled the groups for a bit and cant find the article again. Good luck!

04-19-2003, 10:39 AM	#4 (permalink)
poppinfresh Upright	It's actually all games that do it. Sometimes they do and sometimes not, doesnt depend on the surface of the cd as i bought DOA3 brand new and the audio tracks skip around sometimes. I read you can tweak the laser in the unit but im no electrician and i dont want to break it even more.

04-19-2003, 01:45 PM	#6 (permalink)
poppinfresh Upright	I've read that you can use a samsung model dvd rom instead of the unit that is in it. That would be my first choice on something to try. However its hard to find the right model of it and im a student so im too poor to buy a mod chip + 80 + gig HDD .

04-19-2003, 03:06 PM	#8 (permalink)
thecow Crazy Location: Fayetteville, AR	I'm pretty positive you need a modchip to switch HDs. I bet this brings back the old NES days. Take out the game, blow on it, put it back in, wash, rinse, repeat.

04-19-2003, 03:58 PM	#9 (permalink)
poppinfresh Upright	Ya you need a mod chip to switch HDD's cuz the xbox wont naturally read any standard PC harddrive without a little help ( mod chip ) as well no other dvd rom ( aside the samsung ) will read xbox dvds. something about a different kind of format that ms uses that is different than the pc dvd standard

04-19-2003, 04:08 PM	#10 (permalink)
Mr.Deflok Blood + Fire Location: New Zealand	Buy a PC

04-20-2003, 12:23 AM	#11 (permalink)
skinnedmink Banned	You could just wait until someone does the last part of the Linux on X-Box challange and puts out Linux for the X-Box for free. Then you have a really poor computer that can't do much. Enjoy! Also a link the the x-box hackers. http://xbox-linux.sourceforge.net/

04-21-2003, 06:10 PM	#12 (permalink)
RenegadeSoul Banned Location: British Columbia	Those Jerks at Microsoft, it makes me feel good to pirate their software.