A tray that refuses to open is one of the most common faults on a console this age, and it is also one of the easiest to fix. In most cases nothing is broken: a rubber belt has gone soft and no longer grips. First, get it open With the console switched off, look underneath […]
Original Xbox guides
Working out which revision you have, whether to softmod or hardmod, and what to do about the clock capacitor before it eats the board.
This is the part where people get caught out, and it is worth being blunt about why: an Original Xbox power supply that physically fits is not automatically the right one. The connector changed during the production run, and then changed again in a way you cannot see. Three connectors, not one There are three […]
A console that does nothing when you press the button is rarely a mystery. The Xbox tells you what it thinks is wrong, and it does that with the ring of light around the eject button — before it has managed to put anything on screen at all. Start there. On a 1.0 you have […]
Softmod, modchip or TSOP flash your Original Xbox? Compare risk, cost, soldering and revision support, with a decision table that gives you an answer.
The Original Xbox clock capacitor leaks and destroys motherboards. Here’s how to check yours, remove it safely, and clean up the damage before it spreads.
Identify your Original Xbox motherboard revision (1.0 to 1.6b) from the outside, through the vents, or on the board. The first step before any mod.