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Q. Why ask us to modify your xbox Q. How many games can my modified Xbox backup? Q. What "Mod Chip" do you use? Q. I want to learn more about mod chips and bios flashing Q. What about xbox live ? I heard you need a switch and chip if you want to play online... Q. I want to learn more about Bios switches and Xbox Live Q. I'm having trouble backing up new games Q. My Eject button light is flashing strange colors. What's wrong? Q. Which Rom drive do I have ? and why won't my Xbox read some types of CD's? Q. How do I become an Xroad mod agent?
If you are looking for setup or operation hints, try our "how do I page" >>>HERE
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Why ask us to modify your Xbox?
First and most importantly we give a LIFETIME MODIFICATION WARRANTY! And our hard drives are ALL warranted regardless of size. On-Site modification has been very popular and is now available in all states. All our customers can update their modification to the latest version, and do it without re-modification. To keep our valued new and old customers up to date, our technical development team works continually on the ever changing Xbox hardware and software environment. Keeping on the leading edge of the development wave, allows us not only to be a market leader, but also (and somewhat more importantly) to keep you our customers up to date with ALL the new current and ground breaking advancements that are now so rightfully expected by all those Xbox gamers out there. Our quality modification requires leading edge technical prowess and plenty of painstaking regular development. We believe this along with our warranty & service is why we deserve your business.
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Q. How many games can my modified Xbox backup? A. It all depends on the size of your hard drive. An xbox has a either a 10Gig or an 8Gig drive as standard allowing about 4.5Gig - 7 Gig of free space. Games can vary between .4Gig and 5Gig+ in size. Most gamers fit 0-3 games on a 10Gig drive. If you up the size of your hard drive to an 120Gig drive for example you will fit more like 50+ Games.
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Q. What "Mod Chip" do you use? A. Well it's more like what Mod chip do you want. Firstly, we don't actually solder a "chip" as such to your Xbox motherboard. This practice is way outdated. These days we re-program your bios, better known as "flashing" your bios. There are a lot of brand name chips out there like Matrix, Chameleon, Bit, Aladdin, Executer, OZX, Cheep mod, Messier X and Apple X to name a few but you must remember that there are only 3 bios versions used on all these chips. So now the choice is down to 3. We prefer use a modified version of the Executer 2 bios that works reliably on all machines and with all the products we supply with our modifications. It works that well, we have absolutely no reason to change the bios we use, for the moment anyway. However, if you prefer to use one of the other available bios versions, namely - Evolution X or Linux Cromwell, we are only to happy to use them on your machine at no extra cost. Do keep in mind though, that these bios versions are not up to the standard at the moment that we would like to use on our modifications. Please Contact Us for even more explanation or read below.
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Q. I want to learn
more about mod chips and bios flashing
What's all this flashing the bios stuff mean ?
Well this is somewhat involved so
we'll break it down so you can REALLY understand what all the jargon
ACTUALLY means.
What is a flashrom?
A flashrom is a very simple memory
storage device that will hold data in a non volatile manner
(ie will not lose its contents after
it power is removed). They are commonly used in computers
and many wide and varied application (eg
USB "hard" drives are large flashroms) and in the xbox
there is one that stores the bios
(basic input output system) information code.
What does it mean to 'flash
your bios'?
Flashing your bios' means
reprogramming the flashrom with a new set of code.
Is it dangerous / risky /
dodgy to flash your bios ?
Flashroms are designed to be flashed
so flashing/reprogramming your Xbox's flashrom is done in the
manufacturing process by Microsoft and we reprogram it when modding.
Who makes flashroms?
Flasroms are made by silicon
manufacturers such as Intel, st, sharp, hynix and many more manufacturers.
Microsoft do not make their own flashroms and for that matter neither do
any mod chip manufacturers. They all use a off the shelf reprogrammable/
flashable chips. The flashroms used in Xboxes vary and we have seen in
excess of 10 different manufacturers used.
How is a flashrom programmed?
To really understand how a flashrom is
programmed you need to understand how they work. every flashrom can store
a set amount of data. to store and access this data there are 2 buses
(sets of wires) an address bus and a data bus. when accessing a byte of
data from a flashrom you provide the location you wish to read on the
address bus, then in the blink of an eye (or actually 70nS later) the data
stored at that location appears on the data bus. In the case of the xbox,
the early versions have a 1Mb bios, that is they can store 1024 Kbytes (1
Mb) (sometimes known as a 8MBit, as one byte = 8 bits) of data.
So to program a flashrom you tell it
to enter programming mode by putting a certain voltage on a certain pin
called we (write enable) then when you apply address and data bus info
that you want to store in the flashrom (rather than reading it out)
So what's all the fuss about?
Well the flashrom on the xbox is
what's known as a TSOP (thin small outline package) and take it from us it
is small and thin :)
it is surface mounted to the Xbox's
motherboard. They are difficult, infact near impossible, to work with
without the right tools, with the right equipment, its a cinch! (if you
know how to use them) and we have invested in the tools we need to give
you a lifetime guarantee on your flashrom once we reprogram it!
So what are these chips people
are putting in everywhere?
If you do not have the tools required
to adequately program and reprogram flashroms many mod installers will not
reprogram the onboard flashrom for it can be easily done via software, but
in the event of a problem or some issue (ie power out while your
reprogramming) doing it via hardware its not such a simple task. So
instead they solder in a (usually cheap) replacement. You may be surprised
to know that even the most expensive of chips such as the matrix/exodus,
popular to those who fear a soldering iron, uses at its heart a ST 49LF020
flashrom, a $5 part (cheaper if you buy more like your average modchipper).
So why solder in a $5 part,
apply unnecessary heat to your motherboard and risk permanent damage?
especially when you already have a perfectly good flashrom that can be put
to good use?
Well we cant quite work it out, but im
sure the mochip vendors wouldn't like it too much...as they depend on your
ignorance for selling their product...so they give bad press to 'bios' (flashrom)
reprogramming, to us that's the equivalent of saying you cant use that
engine under the hood of your car to move your car, you have to stick my
lawn mower motor in the boot, then you'll be in business!
ok lets get right into the nitty
gritty, your xbox has a 1meg flashrom, but the actual bios data is only
256k and the one meg is used up by putting in 4 copies of itself. With the
latest hardware developments we no longer need extra chips to run multiple
bioses you can do it with the on board flashrom by electronically hiding
part of the flashrom, when live is launched here we will support our
customers. switching can now be done via software and once perfected will
make drilling holes and gluing switches in a outdated procedure.
If you make the decision to become an
Xroads customer be fully aware that we support our work to point that we
have established a national network throughout Australia, so no matter
where you are we can support you (well currently qld, nsw, vic, sa and nz,
other states will be online soon!)
Our lifetime warranty is an indication
of our confidence in our methods and technical expertise.
We will not get involved in flaming
our competitors who use unnecessary flashroms, that is their decision,
and yours too, we simply present you the facts and hope you make an
informed decision.
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Q. I'm having trouble backing up new games A. Make sure the disk and your CD Drive is clean. If the game is brand new, you may need an update to fix the problem. Individual game fixes can be found on our Fixes Page
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Q. My Eject button light is flashing strange colors. What's wrong? A. Usually it means one of the plugs aren't in properly. Try unplugging everything and put it back in again. If this doesn't help, you may have a hardware failure or a faulty lead. This may require a technician to repair the problem for you.
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Q. Why won't my Xbox read some types of CD's? A. Xboxes come from the factory with 3 different types of CD ROM Drives. Some of these drives won't play cdr (writeable) or cdrw (Rewriteable) PC "Burnt" media. The CD ROM drives and their abilities are listed below.
Samsung Rom will play all types of media including cdr. Shown here in this picture. Note the holes in the CD tray. Philips and Thompson Roms don't have the extra 2 holes. Click on the picture for an enlarged view. BE AWARE If your console is dated after about April 2004 and the CD tray looks like the above picture, it's most likely you have a Samsung - Toshiba Rom drive that has the characteristics of the Phillips drive mentioned below.
Phillips Rom
will usually play cdrw media and has been known to read cdr on occasion. Take note of the " key hole" appearance. Click on the picture for an enlarged view. NOTE: We have noticed some machines dated 2003 + with Phillips Rom drives have been able to read CDR media and have some have not been able to read some DVDR media.
Thompson Rom...
It's a good drive but it won't read cdr, has been known to read cdrw but rarely and is probably the best drive for reading DVD media. Take note of the arch like cut-out in the CD tray. Click on the picture for an enlarged view.
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Want to become a mod agent for Xroad?
As Xroads expands, the need for additional mod agents also increases. Although we are Australia’s largest by far, we still have many regional, outer metropolitan and some inner metropolitan areas that still need to be serviced. Our ideal aim is have an agent within reach of all gamers around Australia, so even if your setup on the Birdsville track, we want to talk to you.
Our operation is simple, precise and very easy to operate, and thrives on customer satisfaction and service, so you don’t need to be a guru, but you do need to care.
The basic criteria we look for in a mod agent are as follows;
Our preferred criteria (although not essential) includes;
If you think you fit into this category, please email us here with some relative info about yourself like where you are, your contact details (phone number a must) and also include a brief background on yourself.
All enquires will be answered after consideration |
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