TUTORIAL: How to play backups w/o mod chip, only Max Drive Pro Memcard

sorry for double post but , will tuffdisk mini's work with the gc? , i heard traxdata uses go4 dye is this true? , and any1 know the name of the screwdriver i need to open my gc , i bought a gamebit one is this correct?? i seen some gamecube screwdrivers on ebay (3 prong) but my screws are different to those (one of those funny type slots lol)

 

To tnarg:

Yes, I confirm that they do ship to Canada as I live in Canada myself. I got it in about 2 weeks after order date. Also the software can be downloaded from their website, that's what's on the other disc and I figure they thought they could save money by making you download the software rather than pressing a minidvd.

to tigr:

Roy basically answered all your questions, but I will say this:

up to now, nobody has confirmed that a replacement top and full size dvd-r will work with the MDPro method, however, someone in this thread said that it did NOT work. So be careful. And anyways, if your gonna open up your gamecube to put on a replacement top, you might as well just slap in a modchip while you are at it. It is about the same price as the MDPro, but I will admit that a modchip is much better. MDPro is only for people who don't want to open up their gamecube or mess with the insides in fear of breakin it.

Roy:

I believe Tuffdisc is one of those hit-or-miss brands, it may or may not work depending on how picky your gamecube is. As for the screwdriver, yes, the gamebit is the correct one. The one you saw on eBay which has 3prongs (I'm assuming for the electric outlet) is probably a soldering iron used to install modchips.

 

cheers for the info , how about a lite-on 1635 burner (latest firmware) , and traxdata disks (4x) , anyone know if this combo will work?

 

a replacement top with this method works. i use full size dvd's and everything works perfectly fine.

 

So, after reading some pages and the first page, it seems like to me there are only 2 annoyances to the MDPro softmod; someone please correct / add if I am wrong here:
1. You have to use the MDPro loader disc then switch (I think swap is a dirty word here cause it makes it sound like you're doing a PS1 swap trick) the disc to your burned one. From what it looks like in the video though, this only takes about 30 seconds.
2. You have to buy and burn on media. I don't know how expensive this is though I'm pretty sure that I've heard to use Ritek (more specific?) mini-DVDRs. But then again you'd have to do this with a mod chip anyways (unless you use replacement case).

So is that all the trouble that's associated with MDPro?

 

3 traxdata mini dvd-r (ritek g04) 99p inc vat

http://www.lynxdv.com/product_info.php?products_id=43&osCsid=b322b2b0591c7c97af5bc8a6573f5e99

 

yea roy, but the biggest thing is POT adjustment. If your gamecube's factory pot setting is not right it won't read any burned media whether you have a modchip or MDPro, you will have to open up the GC and adjust it. Other than that, there are no problems.

 

@tigrfire,

brucedlx is the man to talk to about your questions but I will try to give you a little more info.

1. Yes you have to switch the discs after you load a BIOS but I have taught my 5 year old to do it. lol. Not a hassle at all. As you said it takes less than a minute.

2. Yes Ritek Ridata seems to be the going thing in the mini-DVD camp for GameCube. I think the dye has something to do with it. There are other disc manufacturers that work but the Ridatas have the best results and the best reviews by users. I have found the Ritek Ridatas for as little as $.55 shipped but have paid as much as $.62 shipped. It is much cheaper to purchase online with www.meritline.com or www.supermediastore.com than any B&M store I have seen ($1-$2 each). Of course there may be other online websites to get stuff but these two places are where people shop. lol. Good luck and happy gaming.

.........c

Here's a good combo deal form Meritline.
http://meritline.stores.yahoo.net/102286-153154-combo.html

Just the discs (inkjet printable 100/200/500)
http://meritline.stores.yahoo.net/ritek-ridata-4x-mini-dvd-r-white-inkjet-printable.html

Here's another deal from SMS but not as good on the money!
http://www.supermediastore.com/rida...ic-canon-samsung-dvd-camcorders-cake-box.html

 

Just to make sure before I purchase anything here..
This is the right Max Drive : http://us.codejunkies.com/shop/product.asp?c=US&cr=USD&cs=$&r=0&l=1&ProdID=297

And these are good mini-DVDRs?:
http://supermediastore.com/ritek-ridata-8cm-4x-mini-dvd-r-media-white-inkjet-printable.html

Total Price to play backups: $15.99 + $39.99 + my very "valuable" time = $55.98

 

@tigrfire,

You have the right MDPro, just make sure you purchase for your area, ie: UK-pal or US-ntsc. The MDPro will force the region but I think brucedlx indicated in one of his earlier posts this is the case. Check the first page of the tutorial. I honostly don't know about the inkjet printables, haven't used them myself but these should do (not inkjets):

http://meritline.stores.yahoo.net/ritek-mini-dvd-r-media-4x.html

and these with cases:

http://meritline.stores.yahoo.net/102286-153154-combo.html

I think the consensus is the Ritek Ridata G04 are the discs you want. It's what I have and they work well if you have a good image to work with. An .ISO that is. Hope this helps and good luck.

...........c

edit: For some reason the link is not working but you can find both products at www.meritline.com!

 

Hmmm I am worried now, I am in Australia (PAL), however have ordered mine through the U.S site (but billed through the UK site??). NTSC vs. PAL did cross my mind but it specifically said in the description "Works on any Gamecube from any region". Is this actually not the case?

 

OK I didn't mean to confuse anyone. The device will force any region so you don't have to worry. Well according to the website. btw I have forced one PAL game so it works. Whew!

@brucedlx,

To make sure I am giving the correct info; please interject here to set the record strait.

@tigrfire & KazAdley,

I am sharing my experiences here so don't print this out as gospel, it is what has worked for me and some of the others here in this thread. KazAdley as it said you were billed through the UK site and if I am correct the UK is a PAL region, so there should be no worries. Good luck to all.

............c

 

Well, I have only had my Cube for 4 days so I really have N.F.I what I am doing anyway Listen and learn I guess. BTW You are all so friendly and patient here *NOT a suck job*

Another thing I read is that images need to 'fill' the entire disc yeah - I am putting the bigger box on it to use full size DVD's as the minis aren't stocked at all here in Oz. Does this mean in FstFix(sp?) I need to use the 3Gb option? So far all the images are 1425760 and 1426080 Kbytes in size, even using the 3Gb option I don't see how it'll pad out to 4.3Gb or whatever full size takes?

 

Now you have gone to far. lol. I am not that familiar with the fstfix program. I seem to get the full disc image everytime. DL it that way. I have dl_ed some gcm files but they fix with the click and type of the keyboard. All and I mean all of the images I have are 1,425,760KB no less no more. They are packed that way in the Rar files that I dl for backups of the games I have.

I don't do this for me but for my almost 4 and 6 year old. Kiddies are so hard on discs, games and movies.

You may need to get some expert advice on the modding of the cube for different discs (4.7 DVD-R). I think the image still has to be 1.35 GB because the GC can only read an image that big. Again you must seek professional help. lol. That came out wrong. Good luck and let us know how you came out.

.........c

 

OK let's set some things here straight.

The Maxdrivepro disc is not region coded, so it doesn't matter where you live, as long as you have a gamecube the maxdrive pro will load up.

As far as replacement tops and full size dvd's, I will say once again I recommend against it, I see no point of doing a softmod and opening up your GC to replace the case, if your going to open it, install a modchip! But, if you must do this, than no, it doesn't matter that your using full size discs, you still only need to pad .gcm files up to the standard 1.4gb whether your using full size or mini-dvd.

As far as mini-dvd's go, they can be had for cheap prices, you just have to find somewhere that will ship them to you cheaply. I live in Canada, so I used blankmedia.ca since the shipping is cheaper. Traxdata or Ridata are the best, I've never even heard of inkjet printable mini-dvds.

 

Yeah yeah I know I am going about it the hard way getting the MDPro and a cover - but the reason for this is the closest I ever came to a soldering iron was running into the back shed, knocking my Dad's off the bench and then standing on it (Yes it was on and yes, I was barefoot). As a somewhat reclusive middle aged female I don't know anyone who'd even know what an iron is - and not really interested in personally learning the art!!!

The little DVD's, I found some here for $AU1.60 each but they are no namers, have some full size Ritek G04's and a handful of various other brands lying around I will test. I am fairly happy 'n confident with my plan of attack so just waiting for everything to arrive in the post

 

Just brought my max drive pro + gamebit + multimeter + traxdata minis , will post my results when they come , btw for an alternative to ridata or ridisk , traxdata are apparently the top end g04's and rate highly on cdrfreaks etc.

brucedlx how can i tell my laser version (04 , 08 etc)??

 

>> how can i tell my laser version (04 , 08 etc)??

When you get the MaxDrivePro 'software' working on the Cube, you load the DOL off the memory card and then select the Boot Game option.

The screen will then show which version of laser you have.

 

ahh ok then , are purple cubes generally older (probs a noob question lol)? as i seem to read more people have probs with older (04) cubes than newer (06 , 08 )

 

IF anyone can help me it would be very much appreciated.

First, i got the MAX DRIVE PRO hack to work correctly.

I want to know if you have to have the BroadBand Adapter to backup your gamecube games.