Tutorial - playing perfect GC backups on mini-dvd's(direct boot, no swapping, no PSO/memory card BS)

For those of you who are oblivious, gamcube modchips have been on the scene for several months now. I see people are still streaming GC games to their cubes when they could be playing perfect mini-dvd copies just like me! So here, pips and peeps, is a basic tutorial on how to make perfect 1:1 copies of those GC games and play them on mini dvd-r's. Some people have been streaming, others using full sized media, others using softmods. I strive for a better more authentic way of playing GC games, and here goes....

[bold]Step 1: Selecting the modchip[/bold]

There are several GC modchips on the market to date; some good, some not so good. They include the viper chip, ripper 3 chip, ninja mod, and the Qoob pro/Qoob sx.

Out of all of these, the hands down best chip is the Qoob pro, and is what I am framing this tutorial around. All other modchips fail in comparison to the Qoob's plethora of features. It's capable of direct booting a number of types of media including dvd+/-r, mini dvd+/-r, cd-r. The Qoob also has an integrated usb feature where you simply connect the chip to your pc via usb to flash the bios. This is made easy by the Qoobs flashing software(no command line). You can also flash many fun things to it's ample memory capacity. I've been able to load an mp3 player, mpeg player, game ripper, alternate bios, and bios backgrounds. I have about 15 backgrounds on mine; everytime I start the cube a new pretty Nintendo image shows up. Oh yeah; you can also use the wavebird wireless controller!(others you can't)

You can try a different modchip if you wish; some are catching up to the Qoob. Do some research!

[bold]Step 2: Installing the modchip[/bold]

The Qoob is very simple to install. Most of the time you'll spend is on taking out the 15,000 screws Nintedo decided to use to secure the thing. The Qoob uses a handy dandy wiring system when you plug one end of the wires to the chip. No soldering! You only need to solder 5 wires to the cube board itself. Instalation diagrams are available at the Qoob site(google it).

[bold]Notes:[/bold] The heatsink can be a bastard to get off, there are a tons of heat pads under it to keep the chips cool. Just pry the crap out of it till it pops off. If a pad cracks off, don't worry, just make sure to put it back into place when you put the heatsink back on.
Most wires are pretty easy to solder on. Make sure to sand the gold connection a little bit, and maybe a little alcohol to clean it. Gold connections are harder to solder to.
I find it easiest to solder when i tape the wire down to keep them in place.
Once you're done soldering it in you'll have a very tight area to get the wires through the metal cage thing of the cube so that you can connect it to the chip(you'll see what I mean when you get to it). When you get the heatsink back on and the top portion of the cube, you can just plug the wires strait into the chip which will rest snugly on the side of the cube. Make sure you break off the USB part off the chip. You'll mount that outside the cube for flashing. Also it helps for better airflow since it rests in front of an air cage.
There is also another two cables left on the chip. One connects to the lid cable, and the other to the port itself. This in a sence bypases it(it obvious where these connect when you are installing it).
Finally, you want to take the included copper cable and connect it to the chip and string it out the back of the cube(through one of the slits). I've seen other people cut a hole into the side of the cube(why would you do that?!). Then just take that USB portion you broke off the main chip and connect it to it. You could let it hang outside the cube; I took a piece of tape and stuck it to the back.
If you really wanted, you could just not hook the cable to the chip; it won't effect booting games. However when you want to flash, you have to open the case everytime.

[bold]Step 3: Selecting the media[/bold]

There is only one choice in concern with GC media. Ritek g04 mini-dvd-r media. Here's why:

1. All backups play perfect(no freezing,skipping,or rebooting,plays just like an original)
2. It looks like a GC disc! You could use large media and a modified case, but why? I like the authentic feeling.
3. You can buy mini-cases too! They're quite cute. (>*_*)> wee

[bold]Notes:[/bold] I have used cheap generic mini-dvd-r media before I knew of the ritek discs. Most games didn't boot, and the ones that did froze in certain parts or didn't load. I bought the 4x versions of the media; not sure if there is 8x. I also burned them at 4x.

[bold]Step 4: Changing the POT![/bold]

What the hell is the POT you ask? It's short for potentiometer, and is what regulates how big or small the GC laser is. Gamecubes start out at a high POT value of around 600 brand new, and lower over time. When I tested my POT I had a value of 480. The thing is, for your GC to read your media the best you need to lower your lasers POT value to between a healthy range of 95-210. I used 210, since the laser lowers itself over time and it would leave me with less maintenance.
In order to lower your lasers POT value you need to use a digital multimeter. I got mine at home depot for $20. Just get a cheapo one, but make sure it has a 2k ohms setting. It will just say 2k on it(usually near a horseshoe symbol). To get at the cube's potentiometer, you must open the cube and take that metal cage off. This will expose the board of the cube's laser. The potentiometer is the piece with the little screw in the center. You turn it counter clock-wise(using mini philips head) to lower the POT value, and clock-wise to raise it.
[bold]STEPS:[/bold]
1. Take the two leads of the digital multimeter and plug them into it. On mine the red lead goes into the horseshoe hole, and the black goes into the "Com" hole.

2. Take the black lead and put it on the left side of the pot touching the metal.Take the red lead and touch it to the right side on the metal part. It might take a little adjustment to get a reading on your multimeter.(Make sure your multimeter is set on 2k!)

3. After you get the reading, assuming you have a high POT of say 500, you want to take the screw driver and lower it slightly(like half a milimeter!). It's really sensitive. Keep taking readings and adjusting it clock-wise or counter clock-wise until within the range of 95-210. Again I suggest using 210 as a value.

4. Put the cube back together again!

[bold]Step 5: Backing up the games![/bold]

Backing up games with the Qoob is a breeze. All you have to do is put the original disc in the drive and hold B as you start it up. This basically just brings up the Qoob menu and prevents the game from loading. Otherwise just start the cube without the disc, then press B and stick the game in.
Then open up internet explorer and type in http://192.168.1.32/DVD
Save the iso to your pc!
[bold]Better alternate way[/bold]
The way I now use, and the way you should use, is to download gcom 1.0 (modthatcube site). It's a super slick backup program you can flash to your cube and streams super fast and makes perfect 1:1 backups. Games using gcom take only about 10min to stream, while the Qoob way takes 45min! Just go to the applications menu on the Qoob and select gcom1.0 and type http://192.168.1.32/backup.iso into your internet explorer and save it. DO NOT use firefox or other browsers, they will fux0r the image.

[bold]Step 6: Burning the games![/bold]
The easiest part is finally here. To burn the images, just open up nero and select burn image. I burn at 4x using the 4x media and I get perfect copies every time. Just make sure to click on finalize image before burning. If you don't, the game won't work!


[bold]NOTE:[/bold] If the game doesn't boot in your cube, make sure you actually upgraded the bios. Also, on very rare occasions, either the disc was bad or possibly the image got messed. Just stream and burn it again, and it should work(I had this happen to me with Donkey Kong Jungle Beat). If you downloaded the image, it could be corrupt or not a full sized GC game. If you don't know already, all GC games are exactly 1,459,978,240 bytes Any less than that and the image had the junk data ripped from it. There is a prog called wiped_gcm_fixer_v1.5f-loonycube that will add back the junk data and realign it so it's back to a normal image(hope you know dos).

[bold]Step 7: Play the games![/bold]
Put em in the cube and they boot up and play like original GC games! Fantastic!

[bold]NOTE:[/bold] The modthatcube site is up and running. They have a huge database of tutorials and files to help you with your cube. If you're looking for more clarity on items discussed in this tutorial, seek out the site. However, all you need is this tutorial, and updated bios to get up and running.

I never tryed the bios the Qoob came with, maybe it does boot backups... you'll have to try it out.

[bold]Compatability List[/bold]Here is a list of all the perfect backups I have made thus far.No rebuilding, just streaming and burning to disc.

1080 Avalanche
Animal Crossing
Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean
Battalion Wars
Bomberman Generation
Bomberman Jetters
Bomberman Land 2
Donkey Konga
Donkey Konga 2
Donkey Kong Jungle Beat
Extreme-G 3
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles
F-zero GX
Geist
Harvest Moon A Wonderful Life
Harvest Moon Another Wonderful Life
Hudson Selection Vol. 2 Star Soldier
Hudson Selection Vol. 3 Pc Genjin
Hudson Selection Vol. 4 Takahashi-Meijin
Kirby Airride
Luigis Mansion
Mario Golf Toadstool Tour
Mario Kart Double Dash!!
Mario Kart Double Dash!! Bonus Disc
Mario Party 5
Mario Power Tennis
Mario Superstar Baseball
Metal Gear Solid - The Twin Snakes
Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime 2 Echoes
Naruto Gekitou Ninja Taisen
Naruto Gekitou Ninja Taisen 2
Paper Mario The Thousand-Year Door
Phantasy Star Online Episode I&II Plus
Pikmin
Pikmin 2
P.N.03 Product Number
Pokemon Colosseum
Pokemon Colosseum Bonus Disc
Resident Evil
Resident Evil Zero
Resident Evil 3: Nemesis
Resident Evil 4
Skies of Arcadia Legends
Sonic Gems Collection
Soul Calibur II
Starfox Adventures
Starfox Assault
Star Wars Rogue Squadron III Rebel Strike
Super Mario Sunshine
Super Monkey Ball
Super Monkey Ball 2
Super Smash Bros. Melee
Tales of Symphonia
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 Battle Nexus
Wario Ware, Inc. Mega Party Game$!
Wario World
Waverace Bluestorm
Zelda Four Swords Adventures
Zelda The Wind Waker
Zelda Ocarina of Time Bonus Disc

[bold]This looks like a lot of crap, but take it slow and have fun![/bold]

 

Forgot to mention I am using an NTSC US machine. Pal people have trouble playing US games becuase of having to force a different refresh rate. Also you'll need a broadband adapter for streaming games(duh, obvious I know).

Oh yeah, the Gameboy player for Gamecube works perfect too, as well as japanese games!

 

under you're heading 'Better Alternate Way', you say use IE, as other browsers stuff up the image. well, IE corrupts the image 8 out of 10 times(check MD5 Hash), because it saves downloads to the temp folder and the copies it to the place you save it; this stuffs it up.
use WGet to get the image(google it). the image was identical 10 out of 10 times tested.
sure it needs some DOS knowledge, but would you rather have a corrupt image?

 

I've back up 70 or so games. They all play perfect. They are not corrupt.

 

not corrupt per se, just not perfect 1:1. Feel free to ignore me if you're not a perfectionist...

 

I understand what you mean, but it doesn't effect the actual game play. I guess I'm not a purist. However I will reccommend your method if people are having problems with backups.

 

That list is useless, unless u put release names, thats a lot important when choosing what release to download. by release, i mean: someone who has released his name with a game, invasion, eurasia, hoodlum, RARE etc.

 

Not a bad guide at all, very well explained, I however have to say it's a choice whether to get a modchip or not. You're paying more when selecting a modchip just so you can directly boot the games without using a swap method.

So it all comes down to really asking "Do I want to pay $50 more so I don't have to make a swap when I want to play a game".

Anyways, modchips will not be needed no more anyway, why you ask? Because it has been announced said that there is a team of developers making PC dvd writer firmware for all dvd burners that will patch the drives so that gamecube discs to be read in your PC drive AND it will allow the disc to be burned a special way so your gamecube will read it just like a normal original would read as! Don't beleive me? Check this out for yourselves! http://www.geocities.com/exodus_teamgc/ and I heard about this new information from www.ngcdev.com NO MORE NEED FOR A MODCHIP SOON, HURRAY

 

Quezacotl - there are no release name next to the games, because I copied them myself(says that in the tutorial). The list is just to show what games will work with the Qoob.

 

Sorry, my bad, i did'nt read it good enough, half sleep at work.

 

well, I have a few additions to this guide if possible seeing how I have a Viper GC chip and have to disagree with some things that were said.

Here we go:

Yes, the Qoob pro/sx is the best selection of chips to use, however the viper is always singled out because it has smaller banks on the chip.

THE WAVEBIRD CONTROLLER ALSO WORKS WITH THE VIPER GC CHIP, BELIEVE ME I USE ONE!

I installed this chip myself and it was easier than the qoob install, note that "You only need to solder 5 wires to the cube board itself" well, the viper only needs 4 wires to be soldered.

I loaded the Cobra 1.2 with the GCOS ripper plug in you can find it here --> http://www.tehskeen.net/modules/Downloads/userfile.php?id=254

It only takes a few moments to start ripping a disc, all you need to do is turn on the GC, hold the Y button then move down to the 'GCOS Ripper' selection, then in there you press A and insert the game you want to rip and then press A again, then at which point you go to your PC, open an Internet Explorer window then enter '192.168.1.32/backup.iso', I even created a shortcut in my favorites for this (thats how lazy I am, and note that I have given you every step in detail for this).

Now although the Viper GC does not use a USB cable it does use old school parallel port cable, luckly I still use one for my scanner so it does'nt bother me.

I have noticed that I never needed to touch my POT setting, honestly, I recommend not touching this setting unless you ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO, most DRE's are caused by poor selection in media, people have said that the Ritek dvd's are the best, well I would have to say that normal 8x Maxell dvd-r's have worked perfectly for me. I tried fujifilm dvd-r's but they did'nt work, i'll keep those for movies

please note that when burning the ISO's to dvd Please, please burn at the slowest speed, it will prevent errors

In my experience I have had problems ripping games, for some reason soul caliber 2 did'nt work the first time, so instead of wasting money on coasters I ALWAYS stream a game using the PSO method first.

Now I know PSO is a waste of money unless you actually like the game (I dont) So if there is anybody out there who would like a copy of the game let me know via pm or email me at djrazor@mts.net and we'll work something out

Seeing how poodude had a list of games he has been able to backup I will also make a list of games I have successfully backed up, please forgive me if its not as l33t as poodudes, but I dont own many games

True Crime: Streets of LA
Mario Kart: Double Dash
Mario Superstar Baseball
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles
Phantasy Star Online
Soul Caliber 2
Super Mario Sunshine
Zelda Bonus Disc

Thats it off the top of my head for right now

if you have any questions, feel free to ask me here or on PM

Poodude, sorry if I have stepped on your toes with this but people need to know

 

Hi there

when i boot a backup on my viper gc (1.2 bios), then the game starts but after one second the disc don't rotate anymore. so then it give a disc error. i have used optodisc and memorex mini dvd's. i've set the laser resistance to 210, but that wont work.
I hope there's someone who can help me.

 

I would try better media, I hear memorex sucks for Gamecube games, and i've never heard of optodisc, sounds pretty generic, go and buy maxell or ritek media

 

best media is Ritek/Ridata (same company) G04 Mini Dvd-r

You can order them online cheap here... http://www.cdrdvdrmedia.com/ritek-mini-dvd-r-media-4x.html

Never had a dre with them yet!

 

Hey djrazor, thanks for the input! I think it's better if we get input from people with all the different modchips available. This way many more people can be helped with the solution they decide on, or already have. Also I think you might want to try how backups work without modifying the POT value. Personally with my media, and other people using the same media, you have to change the POT for it to read the Ritek g04's. It all depends on the media.

 

Ok thanx i will try that

BTW is Traxdata the same as Ritek?

http://www.opus.nl/produkten_detail.asp?l=ned&pdid=5344

because i prefer to buy them there.

 

I only use Maxell DVD-R's and have never had to touch the POT, granted sometimes (once in a blue moon) I have had errors where the disc cant be read, but most of the time thats caused by me trying new media

 

Can you even play backups with drive 8 without dre? Because my friend has a drive 6 gamecube, uses my exact backups, same media, and his pot he never touched, but I checked it to see what it was set at and it's at 530! And he never had one single dre ever using any game. I have tried all values between 1-500 in increments of 20's. All have failed me, I have a feeling it's my drive since it's newer and might have some new protection on it for reading burnt games since my friend's 6 drive can read my excact backups perfectly and never dre... I just don't know what to do any more.

 

I myself have the version 6 drive model, and have had no problems. If you are using the ritek media and have tryed all those POT values, I would say it's definatly your drive. It shouldn't have trouble reading the media. It would make sence that Nintendo tryed to make it tougher to pirate their games; however I do see pre-modded systems for sale using new gamecubes and Qoob chips. If I was in your situation I would probably just take the chip out and sell the cube, and install it back into a different one(cube with lower drive model).
Everyone here should post what GC drive model they have along with their media type and POT value. This might make it easier for everyone else.

For those who don't know how to find the drive model.. load Gcos(modthatcube site) onto the Qoob, I think other chips like viper have that already in the bios..

I'm using:
drive model: 6
media: ritek G04 mini dvd-r
POT: 210

 

Well, I do have some interesting information I would like to post.

For the record, I do not use a modchip, I use a softmod. Anyways, For the longest time I have been using GCOS bios to boot all my backups, and have tried every version of it. I get DRE randomly on a lot of my games no matter what pot setting, but then recently I decided to try the ninja shell BIOS. Now I do not receive dre errors, but instead, I receive an error like this when I play games sometimes...

"An error has occured, please turn off the Nintendo gamecube and consult the manual for more information"

Which is strange because on those games I get this error on randomly now, I know they would say this instead when a disc read error occured.

"The Nintendo Gamecube Disc could not be read. Please consult your manual for more information."

Why is there 2 different error messages? When I receive the "an error has occured message" before it happens when using ninja bios, I hear quite a bit of noises that sound like "CA CLUNK CA CLUNK CA CLUNK". and then the error pops up.

My pot is seting around 290, so I am going to try setting to like 210 like everyone else does and see if these errors go away. But it's good news to find out these errors do not happen near as much as the dre in GCOS bios. I will post my results.