Anyone have experience in using an HD Loader on the PS2?

[Shawn]

throughhim was telling me about how he's using an HD Loader on his PlayStation2. Since I have one of the important parts needed (the Network Adapter), all I need is an HD.

Now, I've read up on various ways to get the free HD Loader software to work. They all require some way to get homebrew coding running on the PS2 (Swap Magic, etc.). I have a GamePro disc that has a slimmed down version of Action Replay for specific games. Since AR is one of the things that can be used to get homebrew loaded, would that work, or would I need an actual AR disc (or Swap Magic, etc.)?

[stahn]

It's waste of time and money. Many games simply don't work ;/

Swap magic is needed only if you want to play "copies" of yours original games and got nothing to HD plays -_-

You will lunch all kind of media like HD Loader, Action Replay and all witch Swap Magic no problem.

The prob. is that it is a wayyyyy better to get Swap <for example> and play freely games and not to convert games to HD etc before you can actually play. not mention not all hard drives are working with PS2 ;/

And with hard drive PS2 lost its consoles soul 

[throughhim413]

It's waste of time and money. Many games simply don't work ;/

Really? I have yet to find a game that won't work for me. Maybe I'm just lucky? Plus, there are compatibility lists all over the place, it's not like a game working or not working should come as a surprise. Considering that the PS2 is nearing its end, you can know exactly which games will work and which won't before ever putting money into a HD Loader setup.

In any case, I have no regrets about using the HD Loader. It'll last a lot longer than swapping (which causes heavy wear on the laser).

[jajaswipo]

yea not to mention the fact that ps2's are very picky with dvd's. Mine overheats in 10 minutes if i use dvdr+'s. and thats with an external fan attached

[Kevassa]

yea not to mention the fact that ps2's are very picky with dvd's. Mine overheats in 10 minutes if i use dvdr+'s. and thats with an external fan attached

Thats a WAY too fast overheat o-o
My PS2 can stand 3 hours or so with dvds, then starts making strange things .p.

[stahn]

whoa 

what kind of PS2 you've got there!!! I use Swap Magic for over 5 years never got any problem <overhiting lol? > yours PS2 should have died by now 

I never got any prob. and I playing for days ;/ not hours <not wierd sounds etc;/ got 5 friends who yousing SWAP all the time and never got problems at my county the games are still WAYYY TO EXPENSIVE to bought them so we useing internet <probalby like most of gamers>

:::jajaswipo:::

yea not to mention the fact that ps2's are very picky with dvd's. Mine overheats in 10 minutes if i use dvdr+'s. and thats with an external fan attached

but are you using swap or you got a modded ps2 with some kind of chip ?? 

I using TDK-DVD b x8 others media work fine too but TDK is the best for me.

Still HD plays is not worth on PS2 <well that my opinion but if you got time and money have fun>

[jajaswipo]

yea i used sony dvdr+'s and that always made it overheat. non backup games work perfectly fine. ive got a modded v12 with flip top. i bought a batch of tdk's to use(regular DVD-r's) but sadly i think it was bad since i only got one game running after burning multiple cd's using multiple burners. could just be a case of bad luck but i dont really play it anymore cuz of those problems

[pedrocasilva]

well... HDLoader is not flawless... sure, but ToxicOS is. 

This said, HDLoader has a pretty high compatibility nonetheless. specially the newer non-oficial versions (still chasing after ToxicOS though)

For compatibility lists go here:

-> http://list.sksapps.com/

I have a SCPH-39004 (best PS2 model manufactured) with a DMS4pro with ToxicOS and a 500 GB disc, great value, really. (this said I can't advise you guys enough to still buy your software, which I do so)

The prob. is that it is a wayyyyy better to get Swap <for example> and play freely games and not to convert games to HD etc before you can actually play. not mention not all hard drives are working with PS2 ;/

huh? I never had to convert my games to HD. I can either put them in the drive and backup, take the HD out and link it to a PC using Winhip or transfering via ethernet... all works.

And with hard drive PS2 lost its consoles soul 

If by that you mean no more severe loadings then that's a good thing. (the improvement in tales of the abyss in particular is miraculous)

[jajaswipo]

how much did all tht run u by?

[pedrocasilva]

how much did all tht run u by?

the ps2 was for free, I actually assembled it, some dude had a broken PS2 while attempting to install a chip and the other had a dying laser lens, so I snatched both disassembled and switched the DVD drive to the good motherboard... the chip+toxicOS was 15 euros and I don't remember how much installation was since it was soldered by some soldering monkey... then broadband adapter was 24€ and the HDD was 80 euros or so (but those 80 didn't come out of my pocket) all in all it wasn't that expensive.

[FSLink]

Really? I have yet to find a game that won't work for me. Maybe I'm just lucky? Plus, there are compatibility lists all over the place, it's not like a game working or not working should come as a surprise. Considering that the PS2 is nearing its end, you can know exactly which games will work and which won't before ever putting money into a HD Loader setup.

Yeah, I use it as well, and there were maybe one or two of my games that had a problem with HD Loader, that could be fixed by patching the game...so I'd say the compatibility is great..

[stahn]

Cant tell we encounter many problems ;/ not mention that creating isos on hard drive taking long enough.

True faster loadings but louder sound going out of PS2 

Still I think it's not worth time and $

[bungiefan]

Cant tell we encounter many problems ;/ not mention that creating isos on hard drive taking long enough.

True faster loadings but louder sound going out of PS2 

Still I think it's not worth time and $

A hard drive makes much less noise than an optical drive, and making an ISO doesn't take that long, plus you only do it once. Other advantages of the hard drive are not having to change discs at all, since you can keep an entire collection of games in the console at once, and greatly reduced load times. It's also much easier to patch a game, since you don't need to burn a patched copy. Most games are compatible, or there are fixes to make them compatible. It also works with dual-layer games, which Swap Magic doesn't.

Of course, short of a modchip, HDL and Swap-Magic make a very compatible pair, but HDL doesn't need you to modify the system to be able to make the disc swap work.

[EvilMan_89]

throughhim was telling me about how he's using an HD Loader on his PlayStation2. Since I have one of the important parts needed (the Network Adapter), all I need is an HD.

Now, I've read up on various ways to get the free HD Loader software to work. They all require some way to get homebrew coding running on the PS2 (Swap Magic, etc.). I have a GamePro disc that has a slimmed down version of Action Replay for specific games. Since AR is one of the things that can be used to get homebrew loaded, would that work, or would I need an actual AR disc (or Swap Magic, etc.)?

i use this method to play import games as well. swap magic killed my PS2 twice and i had to send it to Sony for repairs, i didn't want to go through that a third time so i found a better option. however, i found that you DO need to use Swap Magic AND the sliding trick to install import games onto the hard drive, but swapping once for every game you install is still better than swapping every time you PLAY the game.

anyways, i know that Action Replay Max is capable of loading homebrew, but i don't know exactly how since i've only done it once. i use codebreaker, but you an use Swap Magic or you can also create a trigger disc for the homebrew from a PS1 game. here's a link for everything you need to know about homebrew, exploits, and the like

http://www.exploitstation.com/index.php?page=faq

[bungiefan]

i use this method to play import games as well. swap magic killed my PS2 twice and i had to send it to Sony for repairs, i didn't want to go through that a third time so i found a better option. however, i found that you DO need to use Swap Magic AND the sliding trick to install import games onto the hard drive, but swapping once for every game you install is still better than swapping every time you PLAY the game.

anyways, i know that Action Replay Max is capable of loading homebrew, but i don't know exactly how since i've only done it once. i use codebreaker, but you an use Swap Magic or you can also create a trigger disc for the homebrew from a PS1 game. here's a link for everything you need to know about homebrew, exploits, and the like

http://www.exploitstation.com/index.php?page=faq

Don't even bother to install the games with the PS2's optical drive. If you do it with a PC, you can install dual-layer games, and imports. All you do is plug the hard drive into the PC and use a program like WINHIIP, to install from the optical drive or an image. It also allows you to patch images that are already installed.

Also, you can now boot your system without needing any disc, though you need someone to install the exploit for you if your system isn't modded. Free McBoot is an exploit that locks to the memory card you install it on, and can be used to boot any PS2 model from that region except the 90000 series. Once it is installed, it adds entries to the main system menu that says Browser and System Configuration. All that is required once the exploit is installed is that the memory card be in the console at boot. You can add all sorts of homebrew programs to that menu, but at the very least you want uLaunchELF and HD Loader. Programs can run off USB drives or either memory card.

Free McBoot means your console can play games and boot to the hard drive even if the optical drive no longer works at all.

HDLoader doesn't have that many compatability problems. Out of about 250 games I have, only about 5 don't work with the hard drive. Swap Magic can be a good addition to play those few incompatible games if a domestic version isn't available, but it still uses the optical drive, and thus leads to it wearing out. I'd rather play with the decreased load time and no wear on the optical drivce with HDLoader, and not have to carry game discs around with me. The benefits greatly outweigh the few incompatible games.

[EvilMan_89]

Don't even bother to install the games with the PS2's optical drive. If you do it with a PC, you can install dual-layer games, and imports. All you do is plug the hard drive into the PC and use a program like WINHIIP, to install from the optical drive or an image. It also allows you to patch images that are already installed.

Also, you can now boot your system without needing any disc, though you need someone to install the exploit for you if your system isn't modded. Free McBoot is an exploit that locks to the memory card you install it on, and can be used to boot any PS2 model from that region except the 90000 series. Once it is installed, it adds entries to the main system menu that says Browser and System Configuration. All that is required once the exploit is installed is that the memory card be in the console at boot. You can add all sorts of homebrew programs to that menu, but at the very least you want uLaunchELF and HD Loader. Programs can run off USB drives or either memory card.

Free McBoot means your console can play games and boot to the hard drive even if the optical drive no longer works at all.

HDLoader doesn't have that many compatability problems. Out of about 250 games I have, only about 5 don't work with the hard drive. Swap Magic can be a good addition to play those few incompatible games if a domestic version isn't available, but it still uses the optical drive, and thus leads to it wearing out. I'd rather play with the decreased load time and no wear on the optical drivce with HDLoader, and not have to carry game discs around with me. The benefits greatly outweigh the few incompatible games.

never tried the WinHIIP method because i lacked the equipment, and i  heard it was slower than installing from disc. also, i can intall imports by using the swap method so that's not a huge problem.

i never knew about Free McBoot, that's interesting program, i'll have to check that out.

the compatibility list helps ALOT with the compatiblity. the only game i have a problem with is Kingdom Hearts 2 Final Mix+ but i'm working on a patch for that.