Hardware revisions of the Xbox
Microsoft has released several revisions of the Xbox, taking advantage of more mature manufacturing processes to cut costs. As a side-effect, newer Xboxes are quieter and more reliable. While Microsoft refuses to comment on the existence of different versions, let alone give them codenames, the Xbox modifying community has imaginatively dubbed them versions 1.0-1.5 . There are also a few special editions of the Xbox, for collectors and developers.
Summary of changes
- 1.0
- 1.1 - August 2002
- Bios encryption key changed
- Updated north bridge chip - north bridge fan removed.
- USB interface migrated from daughtercard to motherboard
- 1.2 - December 2002
- D0 point moved - existing pogo pin mod chips no longer work.
- Power connector changed from AT-style to ATX-style
- Onboard bios chip shrunk from 1Mb to 256Kb.
- 1.3 - March 2003
- LPC bus hobbled - many LPC mod chips no longer work
- 1.3 is identical to 1.2 in every way apart from the LPC bus. The trace carrying the LFRAME signal appears to have been removed from the board entirely.
LPC flash roms expect LFRAME to be pulled low before every read or write operation. If the signal is absent, the LPC flash rom will do absolutely nothing. Existing BIOSes will still work on the 1.3, but many modchips will not.
It is possible to reconnect the signal by scraping through the top of the package of the BGA north-bridge, and soldering to the via that connects the ball to the package, but this operation is definately not for the faint-hearted, being an even smaller target than the vias on the motherboard.
- 1.4 - August 2003
- New north-bridge/video chipset - all previous hacked BIOSes no longer work.
- 1.4 has a new version of the video chip, incompatible with the earlier version. BIOSes for the earlier versions (and hacked BIOSes based on these) do not recognise this new chip, and fail to boot. Any modchip designed for the 1.3 will work on the 1.4, provided it has a compatible BIOS onboard.
- 1.5 - September 2003
- LPC bus further hobbled - many LPC modchips no longer work
- 1.5 is very similar to 1.4 - it has the same updated video chip, and same new BIOS, but the LPC header has had (In addition to LFRAME) the power and ground pins disconnected. Any LPC modchip that depends on the LPC header for power will no longer work, unless it is supplied with power from another part of the motherboard (The USB ports work quite well for this purpose).
- 1.6 - May 2004
- Major motherboard redesign
- The most sweeping revision since 1.1, the Xbox 1.6 has the following changes:
- Empty SDRAM spaces gone
- On-board BIOS EEPROM removed!
- Custom chip "Xyclops" provides LPC flash BIOS
- Audio encoder chip removed. Probably integrated into larger 'XCaliber' video encoder.
- Power supply changed - standby power is now 5v instead of 3.3v.
- The 'Xyclops' chip is an LPC BIOS, much like current modchips. The LPC header is still available, and with a little soldering, can be restored to working condition. The Xyclops bios has to be deactivated, ironically by disconnecting its LFRAME signal. An unexpected consequence of this move to LPC BIOS is that all the LPC signals are available from test points on the motherboard, and (with the right BIOS) the old cheapmod is now usable again!.
- Rather than a move against modability, this revision appears to be aimed at cutting the Xbox motherboard's size and cost. Large tracts of the motherboard on the front edge are unpopulated, leading me to believe that this motherboard is practice for a smaller 'PSone-style' Xbox. The move from 3.3 to 5 volt standby power seems to be a cost-cutting measure, as this brings the Xbox in line with standard ATX power supplies.
Special versions of the Xbox
- Debug version: Available to licensed XDK clients, and magazines (to playtest prerelease games). Has a transparent green case, 128 Mb of RAM, and a BIOS that allows remote debugging, and supports USB keyboards and mice.
- Development version: Available only to licensed XDK clients. Has a clear transparent case, 128 Mb of RAM, the debug BIOS, a SCSI port, serial port, and LPC header. The SCSI port is used in conjunction with a PCI card in the development machine to emulate DVD images without burning blanks. The serial and LPC ports are not used by the BIOS, but can be used by developers for debugging, or testing new hardware.
- Limited edition green version: A retail Xbox with a transparent green case and transparent green pads. No difference in hardware.
- Limited edition crystal version: A retail Xbox with a clear transparent case and clear transparent pads. No difference in hardware.
Debug/Development Xboxes can run only debug binaries, not retail games, but can be reflashed to emulate a retail Xbox and back again using a CD supplied with the XDK. Retail Xboxes can be reflashed with the development BIOS, but without doing some surface-mount soldering, they only have 64 Mb of RAM.
DVD drives
The Xbox has been confirmed to use three different brands of DVD drive, identifiable by their DVD tray.
Samsung, Philips, Thomson
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The Samsung drive reads just about any kind of media, including CDRs, CDRWs, and writable DVDs. The Thompson drive reads some brands of CDRWs. The Philips drive reads only pressed CDs and DVDs. This is relevant even if you don't modify your Xbox, as the Thompson and Philips drives are usually incapable of ripping music on CDR to the Xbox's hard drive.
I feel that I must defend the honour of the Xbox controller. If the writeups above (and the writers of penny arcade1) are to be believed, I "should go and see a doctor because there's quite possibly something wrong with [my] hands". I have neither gigantism or acromegaly; I am of average height for a 'western' male. I have no problem reaching any of the controls, including the 'start' and 'back' buttons. At no point do I have to change my grip on the controller, nor remove my index finger from the trigger. I can only assume that people who have problems with the controllers have abnormally small hands, or are holding the controller incorrectly. (I've seen some seriously odd ways of holding a Sony dual shock controller).
To hold an Xbox controller correctly, grasp the sides of the pad with the center of each palm. The slide joint of each thumb should be just below the lower d-pads, and the head line of the palm should be on top of the groove in the sides of the pad. Curl your middle, ring, and little fingers around the prongs of the pad. Place your index fingers on the triggers. You should now be able to reach the left analogue stick, the 'back' and 'start' buttons, and the six analogue buttons with the tips of your thumbs, and the digital pad and right analogue stick with the middle joint of your thumbs.
Not that I totally discount the possibility that I am a grotesquely deformed freak with enormous thumbs.
1 - http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2002-03-25&res=l