DVD Drive Replacing help.

[Sisee]

I know this is probably a very "newbie" question, and I think I know what the answer is going to be.
But I feel I should ask anyway, to be sure.

Can I swap a Hitachi drive for a BenQ, if I copy the drive key?

My situation:
I ruined my last attempt at "flashing" my old Elite.
I lost the original firmware by mistake. But both the console and the DVD drive are still in working order, it just can't play game discs. The BenQ drive actually has iEtreme 1.6 on it, but without a drive key. So it plays DVDs but it can't even see the games.
I bought another Elite, thinking that the BenQ was standard in all Elite consoles, since all the Elites I've encountered till now have been, but this one has a Hitachi v79 drive.
The reason I wanted another BenQ console was so I could "flash" my old drive using the drive key from the new console, keeping the new drive untouched, so I have a backup drive.
But I bought a "console only" off ebay without checking. As I assumed all Elites have a BenQ I didn't see any reason to.

Now, as the connections seem to be identical, would it be possible to flash my BenQ using the drive key from the Hitachi? (not the whole firmware, just the "key")
Then I could still keep the Hitachi as a backup, but use the BenQ "flashed" in the new console.

Is this even possible, or am I just wishing?
I have looked at the method of "flashing" a Hitachi v79, and I think I can do it, but i I can do what I'm asking here, at least I'd have a fallback drive incase anything goes wrong.

[jimbojimjay]

read the hitachi drive save the file hook up the ben get it into vendor mode put the o/fw from the hitachi into the source slot in j/f firmware 32 then put copy of extreme 1.6 ben firmware in the target slot then presss spoof to target then press save to file then go to the mtkflash tab and as long as the drive is in vendor mode press write

[Sisee]

If that works, I'll be one extremely, happy rabbit.
Just need access to my friends PC again.

[on_the_jazz]

You should sell your old xbox for parts since it's essentially just a dvd player now. There is no easy way to recover the key on that console and so it will never play games
Check everything you do with this new console. Then double check it and flash. Put the other console down to experience.

It is possible to have a spare drive ready but you don't need it. It's like buying a car and having a spare steering wheel "just in case". Usually your xbox will die of something else or will be outdated long before the dvd-rom dies. I still have an xbox1 with the dvd-rom going strong!

[cunny]

This is what i would do:

Read the firmware off the drive that in the working xbox (hitachi) and then leave it be.
Load your firmware into jungleflasher as source, then load the ixtreme 1.6 for benq drives. Spoof taget to source, this will copy all drive ids and keys to the new benq ixtreme firmware.

Load up your benq drive, get it into vendor mode, erase then write the cfw you have just created to it. Load back into the xbox and test. If works then leave it be.

If the write fails post back and we can recover the drive via dosflash.

If it totally fails you will still have 1 working drive so no bricked xbox this time.

Also if all works and fine. You could try to flash the hitachi to get the benq back, but thats your call.

Dont forget to email yourself your working firmware as this could come in handy.

[Sisee]

You should sell your old xbox for parts since it's essentially just a dvd player now. There is no easy way to recover the key on that console and so it will never play games
Check everything you do with this new console. Then double check it and flash. Put the other console down to experience.

It is possible to have a spare drive ready but you don't need it. It's like buying a car and having a spare steering wheel "just in case". Usually your xbox will die of something else or will be outdated long before the dvd-rom dies. I still have an xbox1 with the dvd-rom going strong!

It's not for "breakdown" spare, it's for if, for any reason, I want to go back to the 360s original factory standard I can.
I don't have a PC, only my Mac, so I don't have regular access to SATA, and for the amount I'd use it, I don't see the point in a USB kit or anything.

Plus, the Hitachi can only have the 1.51 version of iXtreme, where as the BenQ can have version 1.6 (latest version to date).
I know that there's little difference in the two, but I'd like to stay as up to date as possible.

[Sisee]

This is what i would do:

Read the firmware off the drive that in the working xbox (hitachi) and then leave it be.
Load your firmware into jungleflasher as source, then load the ixtreme 1.6 for benq drives. Spoof taget to source, this will copy all drive ids and keys to the new benq ixtreme firmware.

Load up your benq drive, get it into vendor mode, erase then write the cfw you have just created to it. Load back into the xbox and test. If works then leave it be.

If the write fails post back and we can recover the drive via dosflash.

If it totally fails you will still have 1 working drive so no bricked xbox this time.

Also if all works and fine. You could try to flash the hitachi to get the benq back, but thats your call.

Dont forget to email yourself your working firmware as this could come in handy.

Helping me out once again, cunny?
Starting to think you're stalking me.
But, I do appreciate the help.

The idea I'm going for is to leave the Hitachi as-is, just in case I need to go back to factory settings for any reason, or if I send the machine to Microsoft for anything. Then I'll have the BenQ separate already flashed for that machine.

I've read that Jungle Flasher takes over and it's an automatic system when flashing a Hitachi, but I've also read if it goes wrong, it's a dead drive, it can't be saved like others.
So, with that risk I'd like to "mess" with the BenQ.
This is all relatively new to me. And that's why I managed to mess up so bad last time. I'm not used to using PCs to modify consoles. The PSP and Wii both do it themselves once you've loaded the files to their memory cards. And in the past actual physical "chips" I could deal with. I'm quite proficient with a soldering iron. But due to updates and constantly changing OSs in the new consoles, a "chip" can very quickly become useless, and even a burden.
I only do this kind of thing for a personal level, I've always modded all of my own consoles. It's part of the fun. I avoid doing it for others as if I mess up like I did on my first 360 try, it can get "complicated".

Well, I'm not going to be able to get to my friends till next week, so I'll post any success or failure on what happens.
I can't foresee any issues in swapping the drives, as long as I copy the drive key properly. As far as I'm aware SATA is mostly "plug-and-play" like USB.

Almost forgot!
I'm going to burn my Hitachi's original firmware to a CD, before I do anything.
I'm not making the same mistake twice.

[cunny]

Helping me out once again, cunny?
Starting to think you're stalking me.
But, I do appreciate the help.

The idea I'm going for is to leave the Hitachi as-is, just in case I need to go back to factory settings for any reason, or if I send the machine to Microsoft for anything. Then I'll have the BenQ separate already flashed for that machine.

I've read that Jungle Flasher takes over and it's an automatic system when flashing a Hitachi, but I've also read if it goes wrong, it's a dead drive, it can't be saved like others.
So, with that risk I'd like to "mess" with the BenQ.
This is all relatively new to me. And that's why I managed to mess up so bad last time. I'm not used to using PCs to modify consoles. The PSP and Wii both do it themselves once you've loaded the files to their memory cards. And in the past actual physical "chips" I could deal with. I'm quite proficient with a soldering iron. But due to updates and constantly changing OSs in the new consoles, a "chip" can very quickly become useless, and even a burden.
I only do this kind of thing for a personal level, I've always modded all of my own consoles. It's part of the fun. I avoid doing it for others as if I mess up like I did on my first 360 try, it can get "complicated".

Well, I'm not going to be able to get to my friends till next week, so I'll post any success or failure on what happens.
I can't foresee any issues in swapping the drives, as long as I copy the drive key properly. As far as I'm aware SATA is mostly "plug-and-play" like USB.

Almost forgot!
I'm going to burn my Hitachi's original firmware to a CD, before I do anything.
I'm not making the same mistake twice.

Not stalking you m8 just helping out .

Let us know how you get on with it

[Sisee]

Can't get the Hitachi into Mode B, Service Mode, or whatever it is.
Jungle Flasher sees it on the port, but the Eject, Send Mode B buttons are grayed out.
I've tried Slax but it doesn't seem to work on this PC.
Even tried shorting pin 0 and 9 on the pwer cable. The light flashes but still nothing.
I even installed the PortIO32 thing and I still can't get the PC to do anything.
I'm going to be at my friends for a while, but I'm tempted to check the drive still works and give up.

[Sisee]

To anyone that cares, I've succeeded.
I managed to put iXtreme 1.6 on my BenQ with the drive key from the Hitachi, and it worked.
And with the knowledge that I had a working drive, I decided to attempt in putting 1.51 on the Hitachi. Knowing if I went wrong I at least had one working drive.
Well, both went fine.
Even thought the Hitachi is 1.51, I'm using that instead of the BenQ, as it seems to run quieter. The BenQ is actually quite loud, it was even when it was in my old console.
Also made several reads of the Hitachi original firmware, with it's drive key and burnt them onto a CD. I'll also be e-mailing them to myself and putting them on my various external HDDs and even my phones MemoryStick.

Well, I'm happy.
A much better feeling than the last time, when I messed up.

Thanks to all the people who offered advice and methods, I did get a little confused, and nearly gave up and left it as factory settings, but I got there in the end.

[cgscott]

Congrats mate.

This becomes a pretty easy process once you do it the first few times.