OPL and GTA games using DX HDD adapter

[sold]

Hi, I have been trying OPL out for a while and I gotta say, the USB support is great except for the stuttering, so I bought a "network" adapter from Deal Extreme and it is hooked up to a 500GB Seagate SATA drive in my fat PS2 and I have had nothing but trouble so far. Gta games show up in the menu and load up fine, but once I get past the intro, the games freeze. I have notices a few other games do the same but I don't understand why they freeze before I can actually start playing. Devil May Cry ran but stuttered badly on USB but is black screen with the internal drive (same ISO).

I have read many guides and I have tried formatting my HDD using WinHiip and uLaunchElf but to no avail. Still getting nada. Tried using HDL Dump and same results

It seems the compatibility lists are focusing on USB drives and there isnt as accurate information for HDD compatibility. This is something that I am a little perplexed about cause I dont think USB is the best solution, but I have found that it is the most compatible. Granted it would be the most common solution, but still...

Any help or responses would be greatly appreciated. I am using the most recent public 0.8 release of OPL and I am happy to provide more information if required. I just don't get why the games don't work.

Thanks for all the info I got to read prior to making this, my first post

[JNABK]

Sata HDDs are not supported by the PS2 or homebrew apps, the standard HDD is IDE.
You need to use a SATA to IDE converter/adapter. I dont use one, so thats about all i know on that subject.

[crazyc]

Hi, I have been trying OPL out for a while and I gotta say, the USB support is great except for the stuttering, so I bought a "network" adapter from Deal Extreme and it is hooked up to a 500GB Seagate SATA drive in my fat PS2 and I have had nothing but trouble so far. Gta games show up in the menu and load up fine, but once I get past the intro, the games freeze. I have notices a few other games do the same but I don't understand why they freeze before I can actually start playing.

Any chance of a debug trace?

OEM adapters are still fairly common on ebay if you want to take JNABK's advice.

[sold]

Here is the adapter I am using if you guys haven't checked them out before. Plugs directly into SATA drive, but has no network socket. So it is just a HDD adapter.



@crazyc: How do I do a debug trace? Are there some instructions anywhere? I Googled it, but I only found instructions for compiling a debug binary and generating a log file over ps2link. The problem is that this HDD adapter doesn't allow me to network my PS2 at all.

[TnA]

Here is the adapter I am using if you guys haven't checked them out before. Plugs directly into SATA drive, but has no network socket. So it is just a HDD adapter.

Yepp, there are a few threads about it here.

@crazyc: How do I do a debug trace? Are there some instructions anywhere? I Googled it, but I only found instructions for compiling a debug binary and generating a log file over ps2link. The problem is that this HDD adapter doesn't allow me to network my PS2 at all.

Sorry, but that is somewhat funny.

I'm not sure.

@others: Is there a debug-version available, which logs into a file on MC or mass?

[JNABK]

That is what crazyc meant by getting an OEM network adapter. That one you posted is a clone (modded) and im guessing they didnt include the network chip or connector slots to save a few bucks.

Here is the thread of someone who made a mod for a Sata HDD using an OEM Network Adapter:
http://psx-scene.com/forums/f98/sata...ication-68117/ (SATA Network Adapter modification!)

[sold]

I tried some more games and they seem to work fine, so the adapter does work, it just isn't as compatible as the OEM adapter or USB drives. Games that work so far without any modes are:
Rez
Burnout 3
Psychonauts
Manhunt 2 Uncut

Castlevania games don't work, nor do any of the GTA games. And I was totally bummed out when Z.O.E wouldn't work either.

If there is a way to get a log file to save to USB, I would be glad to help debug for this adapter. It's actually pretty good considering the lack of network support and the compatibility issues.

[crazyc]

@others: Is there a debug-version available, which logs into a file on MC or mass?

Nope and limited IOP RAM means it's probably not possible (MC should be possible though...). The only other way to get debugging is through SIO and that's EE only and we'd need the IOP output.

[sold]

Would anyone have any idea why this adapter is any different to the OEM one in terms of how the HDD is connected? Its just got a SATA plug and I have read about people going IDE to SATA with no problems. There seems to be a problem with loading after the intros in most games, but most games load at least. Only a couple are black screen immediately.

Also I have noticed that even the games that do work will only work on udma4. Anything else and the games freeze at the yellow screen when loading.

These adapters are easier to get than the OEM ones, so it would be great to see them working. Since I have one, I'd be happy to help any way I can. Is there any chance of this adapter becoming more usable?

[SP193]

Would anyone have any idea why this adapter is any different to the OEM one in terms of how the HDD is connected? Its just got a SATA plug and I have read about people going IDE to SATA with no problems. There seems to be a problem with loading after the intros in most games, but most games load at least. Only a couple are black screen immediately.

It could be a result of a quality issue with that network adaptor.
You must understand that no SATA Network Adaptors were ever manufactured by Sony.

Therefore, it was probably a compatible adaptor that was manufactured by some 3rd party manufacturer.

On a side note, I should probably also mention that the PS2's NA was probably never made to operate at a higher transfer rate than ATA66.