Submeg upgrading PSP to 3.03 OE-C

[Submeg]

Hey Harrison my PSP has 2.7.1...hehe sweet. So what the deal with the emulation?

[Harrison]

The first thing you need to do is determine if your PSP is a TA-82 model or not. To do this open the UMD drive and look inside at the bits of the motherboard you can see. You are looking for the serial code IC1003. If this is printed on the motherboard then you have a TA-82 model. If there is nothing there then you have the better earlier motherboard.

This is what I'm talking about:


http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/9902/taea8.jpg


If your PSP is a TA-82 model then follow this guide:

http://forums.maxconsole.net/showthread.php?t=42069&highlight=2.71

But only follow it as far as downgrading back to the 1.5 firmware, as you will then want to upgrade to the custom firmware 3.03 OE-C, which I can explain next.

Or if you PSP is not a TA-82 model then you can follow this guide:

http://www.psphome.com/forum/psp-tutorials/689-tutorial-how-downgrade-your-non-ta082-2-71-psp-1-50-a.html

When doing either of these methods make sure you first fully charge up your PSP to 100% and then during the process of downgrading the PSP make sure the mains power supply is also connected to the PSP at all times. If you don't do this it could go wrong and kill/brick your PSP.

Also before you start I recommend you format the memory stick in your PSP, and then once downgraded to firmware 1.5 you format the memory stick again before doing the 3.03 OE-C upgrade.

OK, if you have done that and now have a PSP with firmware 1.5 you are ready to upgrade to the custom Dark_AleX firmware 3.03 OE-C. First before you do anything format the memory stick just to make sure it is clear and fully formatted to work correctly with the current firmware in your PSP.

[Harrison]

Now you are at firmware 1.5 you are ready to upgrade to custom firmware 3.03 OE-C

First you will need to download the files needed:

- Custom firmware installer 3.03 OE-C (http://www.psp-hacks.com/file/1030)
- Official Sony firmware updater 1.5 (http://www.psp-hacks.com/category/43)
- Official Sony firmware updater 3.03 (http://www.psp-hacks.com/file/958)

Once you have all of these files unrar the 3.03 OE-C archive and it contains a guide on how to install the firmware. It is quite straight forward. Just make sure you follow the instructions properly and also format your memory card before doing this and charge your PSP to 100% and leave it connected to the mains power before starting.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

[Submeg]

Ok, is what I'm looking for inside the UMD slot? I'll take a pic for you of what I can see...

[Harrison]

Yes it is. Just open the UMD slot and then look inside from the back of the PSP. At the very top edge of the inside you should see parts of the PSP circuit board visible. It will either have that IC1003 code printed on the board or no code at all.

[Submeg]

mine has IC6001...

[Harrison]

mine has IC6001...

That code indicates you have the older TA-081 based motherboard in your PSP, so you need to follow the other tutorials I posted for all other PSPs.

[Submeg]

Cheers Harrison, just downloaded the files, will try it tomorrow! Fingers crossed it doesnt die...is there anyway to revive it?

[Harrison]

If you make sure the PSP is fully charged and plugged into the mains power when you do it nothing should go wrong. Just make sure you follow everything exactly as stated and it should be fine.

[Submeg]

Sounds good. So once I've done all this, then what?

[Harrison]

Ocnce you have downgraded your PSP to 1.5 and the upgraded it to the custome 3.03 OE-C firmware it opens your PSP up to use for a lot of things.

First you can run PSP emulators. There are many including the PSPUAE Amiga emulator. You just copy the emulators to the memory stick in the PSP following the instructions that come with each emulator, add some game roms and then you can launch the emulators.

You can do the same with the homebrew games and programs available.

Next you can run PSP game ISOs. There are full ISO images of PSP UMD game discs. You just copy them to the PSP memory stick in the ISO directory at the root of the memory stick and then you can boot the games diirectly.

And finally PSX games. You can also convert Playstation One games and then run them on the PSP just like a PSP game.

A good site to start with is http://psp-news.dcemu.co.uk/ as it contains links to most available emulators, homebrew games and lots more.

Some other cool sites worth looking at include:

http://www.pspuae.com/ (Amiga emulator of course)
http://yoyofr92.free.fr/psp/snespsp.html (the great PSP SNES emulator that is perfect)
http://www.pspbrew.com/ (another general scene site with a lot of information and links)
http://www.psp-hacks.com/ (contains most files needed for anything PSP)
http://forums.maxconsole.net/ (this forum contains the most information and knowledgeable people in the PSP scene. This forum is the first place most things get announced and discussed and this is also where hackers such as Dark_AleX release their custom firmwares. It also has a lot for other systems too).

[Harrison]

BTW, for PSP Game ISOs just search on most P2P networks and you should find them quite easily. Also try places like ISOHunt.

[Submeg]

Sweet, it worked, so how do I get PSPUAE to run?

[Demon Cleaner]

There's a tutorial for PSPUAE on the main site.

[Submeg]

Lol, yea I remembered just after I posted :p whoops!

[Harrison]

Oh, one thing I forgot to mention.

Now that your PSP has 3.03 OE-C, format the memory stick again and it will create a few new directories on the memory stick. When you look at the contents from your PC you will see some new directories.

In the root of the memory stick is a new directory called ISO. Just copy any game ISOs into here, then from the PSP you can go to the memory stick and launch them.

Inside the PSP directory are two new directories, GAME150 and GAME303. Normally if you want to run emulators or homebrew place them into the GAME150 directory, and again to run them

If the instructions with an emulator or homebrew software refer to a method for 1.5 and other versions, just follow the 1.5 instructions.

So for example, with PSPUAE just copy the folders and files it instructs into the GAME150 directory. Then from the PSP go to Game section and then the Memory stick and the emulator should be listed in there ready to load and run.

An additional feature of the custom firmware is a boot menu. When you switch your PSP on you can hold down the R button and it will boot to a custom menu. In here you can change many aspects of how the PSP will work. Only change things if you understand what it will do, otherwise you can mess things up.

A couple of useful features of this Boot/recovery menu are inside the configuration menu.

1, Hide Corrupt Icons is useful to enable, otherwise emulators and other homebrew can display some of their files as corrupt files in the PSP menu system.
2, Use No-UMD - This is an important option. When it is disabled you need to have a game UMD in your PSP when you wish to run any game ISOs. The PSP uses the game UMD to bypass the game protection and boot the ISO. You can however enable No-UMD mode with this option so you don't need a disc in the drive to run ISOs. This doesn't work with all games though.
3, Free UMD region allows you to run Film UMDs from other regions.
4, Fake Region tricks the PSP into showing a game or film it is a specific region.
5, Game Folder Homebrew. This tells the PSP what mode to run files in the normal PSP/Game directory. Leave it as 3.03 and just use the GAME150 for most files as it is easier.

A new feature of the actual 3.03 firmware worth using as an option in the system settings menu. You can now disable the autobooting of a UMD in the drive. So if you keep a disc in the drive so that ISOs boot correctly you can disable them autobooting when the PSP is switched on to stop them running.

I think that is about it. If you have any other questions please ask.

[Submeg]

question, can I use the ROMS that I use for WinUAE with PSPUAE?

Also, which Dark-Alex firmware should I use?

[Harrison]

Indeed you can, and this is the same for all emulator roms. SNES roms work with the PSP SNES emulator, Amiga ADFs work with PSPUAE etc... So nice and easy to get running.

So for PSPUAE just copy the emulators %__SCE__PSPUAE and __SCE__PSPUAE directories into the PSP/GAME150 directory on your PSP then you need to rename your kickstart files to the names it instructs in the emulators readme file, and copy them to the memory stick, and finally just copy the game ADFs you wis to play into the PSP/GAME150/__SCE__PSPUAE/DISKS/ directory and then run the emulator. Pretty straight forward.

Do remember that some games might have trouble working as the emulator is still in development and behind WINUAE in compatibility so far.

I recommend you try Turrican as this will show you how good the emulator is.

BTW, I also highly recommend you try the SNES emulator as it runs every SNES game I have tried so far perfectly.

[Harrison]

Also, which Dark-Alex firmware should I use?

Ah, so you are currently at firmware 1.5?

You should currently use Darl-Alex firmare 3.03 OE-C. There is a newer 3.10 OE-A firmware but it currently has a few problems so unless specific features are needed I don't recommend using that one yet.

Just follow the second part of the mini guide I added under the 1.5 downgrading info. Here it is again for you:



Now you are at firmware 1.5 you are ready to upgrade to custom firmware 3.03 OE-C

First you will need to download the files needed:

- Custom firmware installer 3.03 OE-C (http://www.psp-hacks.com/file/1030)
- Official Sony firmware updater 1.5 (http://www.psp-hacks.com/category/43)
- Official Sony firmware updater 3.03 (http://www.psp-hacks.com/file/958)

Once you have all of these files unrar the 3.03 OE-C archive and it contains a guide on how to install the firmware. It is quite straight forward. Just make sure you follow the instructions properly and also format your memory card before doing this and charge your PSP to 100% and leave it connected to the mains power before starting.

[Submeg]

How many games are able to be emulated at this time? Did you know that either B-boy or Lumines has the firmware update for 2.7.1?

[Harrison]

How many games are able to be emulated at this time?

For the Amiga emulator PSPUAE? I don't have any information on the percentage, but out of the 20 or so games I have tried, 2 didn't run and one was quite slow. The rest ran fine and were near 100% speed most of the time. Some such as Swiv do slowdown a bit when more activity is on screen, and I estimate it slows to about 85-90% speed which is still fully playable. And with sound disabled there is no slowdown at all.

As for SNES emulation, I've yet to find any games thet do not run perfectly and at full speed!

Some of the other emulators are also really good.

Even the Nintendo 64 PSP emulator is coming along well. It is still in development, but can already run commercial games, all be it slowly at the moment, but it will improve.


Did you know that either B-boy or Lumines has the firmware update for 2.7.1?

Most PSP games come with a version of the official Sony Firmware, but whatever you do, do not run the updater on any of your game's discs or it will upgrade your PSP back to a version that cannot run ISOs, homebrew and emulation.

Some newer games need a newer version of the PSP firmware or they refuse to load, which is where the Dark_AleX firmware is so good because it is based on firmware 3.03 so will run everything currently released for the PSP. Also if you leave the no-UMD option disabled in the boot menu and instead just leave any game disc in the PSP all the time then pretty much all PSP games will boot from ISO images. I've tried a lot of game ISOs on the PSP and they have all worked, including the more recent releases such as Tekken or Lego Star Wars II

[Submeg]

My point with the 2.7.1 firmware was that if people had one of those games you dont have to worry about the downgrading to it if you have one of them.

[Harrison]

I don't quite get your point there. 2.71 isn't really much use for homebrew, emulation or running ISO's either.

Also you cannot downgrade official firmware using the updaters. They only allow you to upgrade from an older firmware version. This is one reason people are always creating downgraders to get their PSP back from newer firmware to 1.5 so they can then run their own stuff.

[Submeg]

my point was it says in the tutorial to have the 2.7.1 firmware and then download from there....luckily I already had it so I didnt have to worry about that step :)

[Harrison]

Oh, I see what you mean. In fact, any version of PSP firmware up to 2.80 can be downgraded using different downgraders that have been released, and anyone with a newer firmware can downgrade by first upgrading to the official 3.03 firmware and then using the exploit in the GTA:LCS game save.

So currently the only PSPs that cannot be downgraded back to 1.5 are ones with firmware 3.10 or 3.11 on them and no PSP currently comes with either of these latest versions pre-installed, so everyone is able to downgrade a new PSP using one of the methods) ;)

BTW, did you manage to upgrade your PSP to 3.03 OE-C OK?

[Submeg]

doing so now...will let you know how it goes!

Ok....just unrared the 303oe_c, and looking in the readme file. It says...

1."Copy oeupdmaker and oeupdmaker% to /PSP/GAME if you are in 1.50" - have done
2."Copy also the 1.50 and 3.03 updaters with the names 150.PBP and 303.PBP" -where?
3."Execute the update maker. It will generate the dxar file" -where, on the PSP or on the PC?
4."Copy 303oeflasher and 303oeflasher% to /PSP/GAME (1.50)"
5."Execute the flasher and follow the instructions"

Help? :huh2:

Will post the entire help file....

" This is the 3.03 OE-C update.

It can be only installed as a full installation, due to some substantial changes in the bootstrap.
Both, update maker and the flasher work in 1.50, 2.71 SE (whatever version), and 3.02/3.03 OE (whatever version)

The instructions are as always:

- Copy oeupdmaker and oeupdmaker% to /PSP/GAME if you are in 1.50, or to /PSP/GAME150 if you are in
2.71 SE, 3.02 OE or 3.03 OE. Copy also the 1.50 and 3.03 updaters with the names 150.PBP and 303.PBP.

- Execute the update maker. It will generate the dxar file.

Checksums of the generated file:

CRC32: 27A38F3A
MD5: 95C84F1F20643FB29E5F7DFFF6D04291
SHA1: E4CE6EB16F90F0F667071085416C10B0BEA7CC22
SHA256: 1C72C1BE3C7E03E56F127AF365B8AA0B6C8C7A70BFF30E2770C222E28D1CBBFE

- Copy 303oeflasher and 303oeflasher% to /PSP/GAME (1.50) or to /PSP/GAME150 (2.71 SE, 3.0X OE).
Copy also the dxar file inside 303oeflasher.

- Execute the flasher and follow the instructions.

Changes in OE-C:

- AVC videos bitrate limit patched. The firmware limited the bitrate of avc videos to only 768 Kbps.
OE now forces the limit to be 16384 Kbps. (Note: this doesn't mean than the psp can handle such a high bitrate;
this means than they won't show error. I don't know which is the real maximum bitrate than the psp can handle at
full speed).

- Speed of OE boot is now ~3 seconds faster than previous versions. (without plugins).

- Cpu speed of XMB can now be changed.

- Wifi can now work at 333 Mhz.

- Added access to flashes 0 and 1 via usb in the recovery menu, based on the great idea of USBSSS by Booster.
Note that writing is enabled, so this is intended only for advanced users that know what they are doing in each moment.
(It is not a great idea to change anything from the kd folder).
Because of this addition, the rest of flashing options were removed.

- PSP isos can now be deleted as any normal memstick games. (also the size of the iso now shows fine when you press triangle->information).

- When formatting memory stick, GAME150, GAME303 and ISO directories will be automatically created.

- Changes in internal HEN core:

* If a EBOOT.PBP with a plain DATA.PSP had a data.psar, modulemgr took as size of the executable the size
of data.psp+data.psar. Fixed. (this fix enables psx games to have plain data.psp without causing a memory error).

* Added a couple of patches found by Tyranid. One allows syscalls instructions to be used in kernel mode
without causing a crash. The other allows sceKernelQueryModuleInfo to work with sceInit and previous modules.


For changes in popstation, refer to popstation readme."

[Harrison]

Don't worry about trying to follow the instructions in the readme file as they are missing some of the information from previous version of the firmware because they assume everyone has done this before.

Instead follow the guide I made for you here. (http://forum.classicamiga.com/showthread.php?t=451)

[Submeg]

Cheers Harrison...Im a bit lost, all the guides are all over the place! Lol need one central hub for it all!

[Harrison]

That is a huge problem with any hacking community, and especially bad with the PSP. It took be some time to read through forums and lot of different sites to learn everything I could about the PSP and hacking it.

Also as I have a chipped PSP it was even harder to find any information on the best way for me to use the Dark_Alex custom firmwares.

[Submeg]

Sweet.....it worked! :cool:

Question, can I format my mem card now?

Question, it wont run PSPUAE, keeps saying:

"the game could not be started.
(8002014C)"

what the? followed Oz2 guide....

[Harrison]

For check it has upgraded the firmware to the correct version by looking at the system information. It should how as 3.03 OE-C

Next you first do need to format the memory stick otherwise it won't work correctly with the new firmware. Once formatted it will have created some new directories on the memory stick.

In the root of the memory stick should be a new one called ISO. Place any PSP game ISOs in here to run games. And in the PSP directory will be the two new directories GAME150 and GAME303. Play all the emulators in the GAME150 directory to get them working.

[Submeg]

Ok so this is what is on my mem card at the moment...

- ISO (empty)
- MP_ROOT -> 100MNV01
-> 101ANV01
- MUSIC (empty)
- PICTURE (empty)
- PSP -> COMMON
-> GAME
-> GAME150 -> %__SCE__PSPUAE -> EBOOT.PBP
-> __SCE__PSPUAE -> GUI
-> DISKS (I made this directory)
-> Kickstart roms
-> GAME303
-> SAVEDATA
-> SYSTEM
- VIDEO

I try to run PSPUAE, but then it just shuts my PSP down after the splashscreen...
:huh2:

[Harrison]

You have to have everything to do with the emulator inside of the GAME150 directory. All of the directories for Disks, Kicks, configs etc are already created in there ready for you inside the __SCE__PSPUAE directory.

[Submeg]

So do I have to move any directories?

[Harrison]

Well, from your list of directories above you have things like the kickstart files in the root of the memory stick in a folder called kickstart roms, right?

Your kickstart files need to be in the PSP/GAME150/__SCE__PSPUAE/KICKS directory named as stated in the PSPUAE readme text file. That's the main reason the emulator isn't running.

Next your game ADFs need to be in the PSP/GAME150/__SCE__PSPUAE/DISKS directory.

So your memory stick structure should be like this:

- ISO (empty)
- MP_ROOT -> 100MNV01
-> 101ANV01
- MUSIC (empty)
- PICTURE (empty)
- PSP -> COMMON
-> GAME
-> GAME150 -> %__SCE__PSPUAE -> EBOOT.PBP
-> Game150 -> __SCE__PSPUAE -> GUI
-> Game150 -> __SCE__PSPUAE -> DISKS
-> Game150 -> __SCE__PSPUAE -> SCREENSHOTS
-> Game150 -> __SCE__PSPUAE -> CONFIGS
-> Game150 -> __SCE__PSPUAE -> STATE
-> Game150 -> __SCE__PSPUAE -> KICKS
-> Game150 -> __SCE__PSPUAE -> EBOOT.PBP
-> GAME303
-> SAVEDATA
-> SYSTEM
- VIDEO

Also make sure you are using the 1.5 version of the emulator and not the other hen 2.71 version. Both come in the emulators archive normally.

[Submeg]

Ok, I have that file structure, but still it shuts down. It didn't make any of those folders you mentioned....KICKS,STATE,SCREENSHOTS,CONFIGS,DISKS.....but still it shuts down...and its in GAME150....

[Harrison]

Have you tried running anything else other than the Amiga emulator? Just to see if you can run anything? Maybe the SNES emulator.

[Submeg]

OK I will try that!

[Harrison]

Remember when copying anything like an emulator to your PSP, if the instructions say copy it to the GAME directory, instead copy it to the GAME150 directory.

[Submeg]

Right, that would explain why it is saying that its corrupted...

Sweet, I have Final Fantasy II running on the SNES emulator, but I have some "corrupted data" not sure what it is though...

[Harrison]

Is the corrupt data showing as an icon in the list of files on the memory card next to the SNES emulator icon?

If so this is perfectly normal. The PSP doesn't know what some of the files the emulator is using and so shows them as a corrupt data icon.

To try and hide these corrupt data icons hold down the R button when you switch on your PSP to make it go to the recovery menu. Then go to configuration, and there is an option in there to hide corrupt files/data. That hides most of them for me.

Glad you managed to get the SNES emulator to run. Cool isn't it. Now you just need to get PSPUAE to work. :)

Also try some game ISOs and see if you can get those to run too. A smallish game for testing it works (download wise) is Mercury if you can find it. Most torrent sites will have it.

[Submeg]

So why does my PSP shut down when trying to run PSPUAE? very strange! any ideas?
Yes emulation is cool! Hey this is actually a good use for the PSP!

[v85rawdeal]

Many thanks, Harrison, for providing a clear, concise guide to installing 3.03 OE-C on he PSP.

Followed the instructions and now have a Japanese PSP quite merrily thinking it is a PSP, Amiga, SNES, GBA at the moment is is well on the way to discovering many other split personalities for it torevel in.

Have you thought of writing "Emulation For Dummies" as you seem to have a good grasp on providing a well-thought-out guide.

So far, I have not had any problems with installing emulators, but should some occur, I will keep people updated as to how I proceeded to solve the problem.

Currently tho, highly engrossed in playing Shadowrun on the SNES.

As a slight aside, does anybody know where I might be able to locate a copy of Little Computer People for the Amiga... 'Cos that would be a great game for the PSP!

[Teho]

Planetemu (http://www.planetemu.net) has it. Don't let the alien language throw you off, it's quite easy to navigate. ;)

[Harrison]

So why does my PSP shut down when trying to run PSPUAE? very strange! any ideas?
Yes emulation is cool! Hey this is actually a good use for the PSP!

I'm guessing you either don't have the kickstart files in the right location, or you haven't renamed the kickstart files correctly.


Many thanks, Harrison, for providing a clear, concise guide to installing 3.03 OE-C on he PSP.

Glad you found the guide useful and have now managed to upgrade your PSP. It definitely opens it up to become a much greater system once emulation and homebrew are possible as the system is pretty powerful for a handheld.


Have you thought of writing "Emulation For Dummies" as you seem to have a good grasp on providing a well-thought-out guide.

I have actually considered creating a "guide to emulation" site and may well do so in the future. :)

[Submeg]

So why does my PSP shut down when trying to run PSPUAE? very strange! any ideas?
Yes emulation is cool! Hey this is actually a good use for the PSP!

I'm guessing you either don't have the kickstart files in the right location, or you haven't renamed the kickstart files correctly.



oh what do they have to be named as...that is probably the problem. Also what kickstats should be there....I have all of them currently

[Harrison]

Didn't you read the read-first.txt file that came with the emulator?! :rolleyes:



They should be named as follows:-
KickStart 1.0 = kick10.rom (A1000)
KickStart 1.1 = kick11.rom (A1000)
KickStart 1.2 = kick12.rom (A500 - A1000)
KickStart 1.3 = kick13.rom (A500 - A1000 - A2000 - CDTV)
KickStart 2.0 = kick20.rom (A3000)
KickStart 2.04 = kick204.rom (A500+ - A3000)
KickStart 2.05 = kick205.rom (A600HD)
KickStart 3.0 = kick30.rom (A1200 - A4000)
KickStart 3.1 = kick31.rom (A1200 - A4000 - CD32)

These should be placed in the following folder:-

MS0:(MemoryStick ROOT DIR)
|
|-PSP\
|
|-GAME150\
|
|-__SCE__PSPUAE\
|
|-KICKS\


So as a minimum you would need kick13.rom in the KICKS directory so the emulator will run.

[Submeg]

Me, read?

Insufficient memory. Please click left mouse button to continue.

Ok, renamed, now it runs! I tried Sensible Soccer, but its a bit jumpy....I guess that will be improved during newer versions. Cheers for the help ppl.

[Harrison]

You have access to a lot of settings in PSPUAE that are very similar to the settings in WinUAE, so you can experiment with changing the kickstart used, the chipset, amount of ram etc... these do make a difference in emulation speed.

You can also overclock the PSP which helps alot. Without booting the PSP now I cannot remember if PSPUAE has this feature, but many emulators including the SNES one have the option to speed up the PSP CPU to 333MHz which can make a big difference. And with the 3.03 OE-C firmware you can even do this even if it's not an option in the emulator. In the boot menu it allows you to speed up the CPU speed. This doesn't harm the PSP as it is a supported feature of the processor, but it will reduce the battery life so remember to return the clock speed to normal after you have finished otherwise you won't be able to use the PSP for so long between charges.

Finally, many games work better than others in PSPUAE so it is worth trying a few and seeing what does and doesn't currently run well. As I mentioned somewhere before, Turrican is a good one to have a play around with as it has always been one of the text games for this emulator and runs well.

[Submeg]

I guess I will have to fiddle around with it to try and work it out!

[Demon Cleaner]

I have the same problem with PSPUAE 0.63, it boots the splash screen, then just turns off the console. Also tested with 0.62 and 0.55a, same problems.

- kickstart is renamed kick13.rom and placed in KICKS
- __SCE__PSPUAE is placed in psp/game150/

I have fw 3.52 M33-4. PSPVice (C64 emulator) is just running fine, so I'm sure it runs homebrew stuff.

[Harrison]

I'm running it under the same firmware and it works fine, so it definitely has to be something not setup correctly. Are you sure you have everything where it should be inside the Game150 directory?

FOL has a guide to setting up and running PSPUAE on his site here. (http://pspuae.condor.serverpro3.com/index.php/topic,271.0.html) Just follow the part for FW1.5 and when it talks about the GAME directory instead use the GAME150 directory on your PSP.

Hope that helps.