PCB Swap v Unlocked Drive?

[baldrick45]

Hi guys - I have been using a C3ki and probe to update my own phat for the last 3 years but its dieing and I have a slim arriving next week. So - not a total noob - but new to slims.

I want to flash it (obviously) but since I'm not going to do this to make profit, I don't want to lash $$$$ into an x360usbpro, DGX, LTU etc. to gather dust.

So... I got the name of a local guy who will do the necessary - however he is giving me advice which doesn't entirely stack up.

He is recommending that I buy an unlocked replacement drive from an eBay vendor he has used many times. He will then extract my key and flash it to the new drive. BUT he is saying this solution is also safe for XBL and safe to use with any dashboard updates without ever having to revert to stock FW. 'Do it once and you're sorted' was his pitch....

That bold assertion concerns me a bit whenever there was no mention of LTU. (Hey - I trust TXs implicitly - everyone else has to earn my trust) . Also Uber's exortation in his sig has now been burnt into my soul so deeply it seems to be heresy to think of dash updates without reverting first! :biggrin:

So my question is - Is he bullsh*ting me or not?

Never read anywhere about using an unlocked drive, but I presume in essence that is what the TX unlocked PCBs give you. Would a generic unlocked drive even accept LTU?

I'm nervous - the guy comes highly recommended - but I don't want my shiny new console to get flagged the first time I use it because his 'knowledge' on the subject is just, ever so slightly, incomplete......

Bottom line - I'll buy an LTU PCB and hand that to him to fit in my slim if that is the view of folks here.

The idea of having a complete original drive as backup is also appealing though (and there's not much in it pricewise).

So then, I'd appreciate it if you could strain your collective brain-power and years of expertise and tell me if I'm safe enough or this guy's a completely ill-informed [email protected]!:crazy:


Mods please note that this is not an attempt to recommend any non-TX products. That is the solution which has just been suggested to me - and if my 'fixer' has a way he likes to work which will still keep me safe - then fair enough. But I simply want a TX guru to tell me if this is a genuine option or a huge stinking pile of bullsh*t.

Thanks in advance

 

[tingedace]

The replacement LTU PCB is only required for new 1175/1532 liteon drives or older hitachi slim drives. If your slim console is brand new then you'll need to buy the LTU PCB.
If it's not a new slim then you should wait to see what drive it has.

 

[TilVl]

Always need to revert to stock. What dvd rombisbin you rb box?

Ltu is for the 5 series. No board or custom firmware is 100. C4 does amazing work and noa ban hammers so far but who is to say.

Or you can use ltu to rebuild 0225 firmwares. Where the dummy was lost.

typos due to fat fingers and on screen keyboards

 

[playingmax]

if your gettting a new console u will be getting a drive w/ DG-16D5S pcb. meaning u will have to buy a TX Liteon DG-16D5S. but if ur getting a used console and it comes a DG-16D4S then the guy modding ur console could unlock the drive for you or u could buy an unlocked one or TX Liteon DG-16D4S . n about updating console on a flashed drive. We always tell ppl to flash back to stock b4 updaing console once updated u could reflash.

 

[tingedace]

I remember at the time that LTU was announced (the lord of the hacks thing) it was mentioned that LTU was "update safe".
But 0272 LTU was also mentioned as being complete and tested (which we now know isn't needed) so maybe things have changed.

Would be really good to get confirmation if LTU is update safe or not.
Apologies if I've missed the official word on that!

 

[sk8boy204]

as far as it being one flash and done this is what c4eva says on his site;
"LT Ultimate has been developed specifically for use with the new Slim DVD PCB, and is safe for use on Xbox LIVE and when performing dashboard SystemUpdates"
So it may be safe for now, but it is always recommended to update on stock firmware just to be as safe as possible. I've been practicing this since buying a phat Hitachi and it still has yet to be flagged.

 

[Dicko316]

Yeah agree with the other guys, if its a new console it will most likely be a 5 series, so LTU board will be needed.

What he is sort of saying is partly correct on the unlocked drive, but I wouldn't reccomend them to anyone for CFW, just people who wanted to repair their stock drive that was damaged in some way and flash OFW to it. Basically once its writted to it's locked like a stock series 4 pcb, then it would need modifying and unlocking to write to it again.

Its advised by people in the know to restore to stock before any update as we do not know if M$ will come up with a way of detecting the FW in a future update. So an unlocked drive in this senario isnt really a good thing.

Your cheapest option would be to send off to get it done for you.

 

[Xecuter]

I remember at the time that LTU was announced (the lord of the hacks thing) it was mentioned that LTU was "update safe".
But 0272 LTU was also mentioned as being complete and tested (which we now know isn't needed) so maybe things have changed.

Would be really good to get confirmation if LTU is update safe or not.
Apologies if I've missed the official word on that!

Sure you can update - at your own risk as always.

 

[sk8boy204]

Thank you Xecuter for the confirmation, as well as all your hard work over the years!

 

[baldrick45]

Many thanks for all the quick replies. Will crack open the box and check it on arrival to see is it a 4 or a 5. Its coming from the stock room of a local shop which is closing down so it might have been gathering dust for 3-6 months. Either way. You've convinced me to stick with TX and stay safe.

Cheers!

 

[tingedace]

I guess I'd interpret that as not necessarily safe, although I don't know if it's possible to ever be 100% sure. Thanks.

 

[baldrick45]

Just wanted to add that I got my system and cracked it open. I have a 1532 D5S drive so I'm looking at the LTU PCB.

Three questions though - As I understand it, the guy I will now be handing the console to must use RGH to extract the DVD key, CPU key etc and then use this to generate a customised , unique LTU FW to flash onto my blank PCB and this can only be done using an x360USB Pro. But the plus side of all this effort is that the system is 100% XBL safe and is update safe as far as we currently know (YMMV etc etc). Correct?

Question 2 - If I need to revert to stock before a future dashboard update or needed to update to a future LTU v1.1, what tools would this require (just an x360usb pro?) and what RGH files would I need copies of if I wanted to do these future updates myself?

Question 3 - If I keep the original PCB, could I just plug this bare board back into the system, do the Dash update and then replug my moded drive and carry on?

Sorry if these are obvious points - as I said, I'm not interested in doing this commercially but there is an obvious balance between buying kit to do minor updates for myself and running to a commercial 'fixer'4-5 times over the next year or so. That's why I bought my CK3i in the first place and that turned out to be a very good investment.

Cheers guys.

 

[tingedace]

1 - yes all correct although you can never say 100% safe.
2 - No, you can't put stock fw on an LTU PCB (without locking it for good)
3 - Yes, this is the only way you have your original fw so make sure you keep your original board. I assume you don't need to connect it up to a drive if you wanted to update this way to be ultra cautious.