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Sony PlayStation

This page has no intention to be complete. I am not responsible for you bricking your devices: It is just a summary of things I find useful/interesting.
See actual forums for PlayStation to read about more/better information.
Additionally, ps3hax.net is still readable thanks to archive.org, containing threads and tutorials for PS3+PS4.
As always: DO NOT AUTO-UPDATE your devices if you want to run exploits.

PS4

FYI: Check first which versions have exploits for HEN/CFW, e.g. on wololo.net

DualShock4

DO NOT USE FAST CHARGERS ON DS4! They might kill your PMIC. Charge on console USB port or with dumb 5V USB charger (<1A) only.

USB charging

DS4 JDM-055 seems to be the worst, as PMICs (S2PG00 / S2PG001) die. This is mostly due to voltage spikes on USB port. DO NOT USE QC FAST CHARGERS. There is no TVS diode or high-side clamp to kill a sudden surge - even if the spike is only microseconds, it can punch through the PMIC’s internal FETs.
If battery voltage drops like with a short (~0.4V in my case), cut VCC trace of PMIC (no desoldering necessary). There is a “replacement” fix using another LiPo-charger IC and AMS1117-3.3 LDO. See reddit comments - if you read the following schematics on acidmods, you will quickly see that you will lose audio and rumble, as the PMIC is also the DSP.
Schematics of JDM-055 on acidmods.com
There are PCB scans of other DS4 controllers too.

There are USB-C replacement boards available (e.g. on aliexpress) to convert DS4 from micro-USB for convenience.
Also consider to add a small fuse and a VBUS TVS / ESD protector with VRWM ~5–5.5 V (reverse standoff) so it doesn’t clamp during normal 5.0–5.25 V USB - Vishay VBUS053 would be suitable part.

DS4 battery upgrade / replacement

The max size of LiPo battery is: <insert here> w/o the original plastics casing.

other DS4 resources

PS4 SysCon Renesas glitching

It is possible to glitch Renesas RL78/G13 (which is PS4 SysCon in some models) to roll back to previous installed FW version (no real downgrade, only one version back!). It uses a recovery feature of SysCon to reverse on failed FW update.

https://www.psxhax.com/threads/ps4-sysglitch-tool-and-syscon-glitching-pinout-by-vvildcard777.7545/
https://github.com/VV1LD/SYSGLITCH

https://www.psxhax.com/threads/ps4-syscon-tools-released-by-abkarino-egycnq-with-guide-demo-videos.15904/
https://github.com/AbkarinoMHM/PS4SysconTools

Also see https://github.com/andy-man/ps4-wee-tools

For more, read writeup of fail0verflow https://fail0verflow.com/blog/2018/ps4-syscon/ and see psdevwiki

there even is a tutorial on psx-place.com

#TODO: Teensy is expensive, port to RP2040.

PS3

Development

PSL1GHT: a lightweight SDK
ps3dev Toolchain & Supporting Tools
Tiny3D
PS3 Soundlib
Windows-oriented SDK Environment bundling PSL1GHT, Tiny3D, PS3 SoundLib with MinGW - read more on psdevwiki
There are MirrorSDK & NixSDK on the web, which are leaked snapshots of official PS3 SDKs (no license, under NDA).

https://github.com/gzorin/RSXGL
https://github.com/RPCS3/rpcs3

General

Read PS3 Guide on CFW / HEN
Compare CFW to HEN

Use PKGi-PS3 to install homebrew
Also install MultiMAN (or lightweight IRISMAN / ManaGunZ) and use webMAN MOD plugin

DS3 SixAxis

DS3 battery upgrade / replacement

The max size of LiPo battery is: <insert here> w/o the original plastics casing.

other

MCU / ESP32 stuff

Other

- There are PCB scans of DS5 controllers on acidmods.com too.
- PCB scans are available for XBox1 controller too.

- See this Library to integrate wired PSX/PS2 controllers to your project: https://github.com/GiuseppePorcheddu/PsxLib
Or if you must use Arduino: https://github.com/SukkoPera/PsxNewLib or https://github.com/madsci1016/Arduino-PS2X

- Read how light guns work and why they work with CRT. Wii mote iR camera sensor does not rely on CRT. There is OpenFIRE project for LCDs, also usable with PCSX2 (PS2 emulator).

- Also see various modifications for consoles here: https://circuit-board.de/forum/index.php/CustomPage/11/

- For PlayStation Cameras see playstation_camera

- See awesome list for game remakes

PS2

- For PS2 psx-place has a good AIO guide on psx-place.com and a comparison of choices. See how to use FreeMCBoot with FreeDVDBoot and use USB-Loader with it, e.g. Open PS2 Loader (OPL), to not need any discs anymore (in case of broken drive).
- If you use a modchip on PS2, see if you need a laser protection circuit for LA chip to prevent laser burnout.
- There is MX4SIO/SIO2SD SD Card Adapter
- There is a new way (2024) to load Apps from Memory Card with 3D icons.
- For Homebrews, see psx-place forums and PS2Homebrew repos
- There a good wiki pages: psdevwiki and consolemods
- Read Awesome-PS2 page
- For creating homebrews use the PS2SDK with its toolchain and gsKit graphics library. Read how to begin
- ModBo modchip PCB points and FYI read how ps2logo works

PSX / PS1

- How to install modchip on PSX: https://quade.co/ps1-modchip-guide/
- PSX has an open source modchip: PsNee and a derived python version with a write-up
- Modchips are not needed anymore since there is FreePSXBoot
- There is an effort for open source ODE Picostation, based on Pi Pico - to replace expensive x-station.
- As DIY solution to connect memory card to PC, use memcarduino. There is also a DIY memory card PicoMemcard using Pi Pico.

- SDKs for homebrew PlayStation 1 development: PSn00bSDK and PSXLib library
- There is a PSX modding toolchain with a scene creating CTR mods with CTR-ModSDK. Yes, of course there is DOOM, called PSXDOOM-RE.
- To learn how to decompile PSX games, read tetracorp and learn how to use Ghidra PSX plugin (also see YT videos by its dev), also see the workflow of https://github.com/xeeynamo/sotn-decomp and open-ribbon#how-to-decompile. PCSX-Redux is also a good source.
- Read PS1 bare-metal C examples and PSX Bare Metal Code

- There is a PSX .cue/.sbi files collection

Portable PlayStations: PSP / Vita

- Check awesome pages on github: awesome-psp and Awesome-PlayStation-Vita
- For PSP there are µSD to Memory Stick adapters (even for dual µSD).
- SD2Vita: µSD-Card adapter for Vita game card slot.
- See PSP Serial Adapter and Vita Pinout. (FYI: The upper (never used) accessory port on Vita is USB-OTG)
- Vita has solderless USB-C breakout boards for multi-use port available. Alternatively, you can remove the inner contacts of the vita socket - use the hollow connector to solder an USB-socket on, close the gaps with glue, solder up the wires to the PCB.
- You can modify nearly any system to USB-C, also for >5V with IC, thanks to USB-PD (or QC).
- You can add rumble/vibration for nearly any system capturing the sound output with an MCU and even add LEDs for fancy blinking (to integrate into transparent shoulder buttons).
- You can add accelerometer to nearly any system having an analog joystick by connecting a digital potentiometer IC with an MCU.
- Somebody tries to add L2/R2 buttons to Vita: https://github.com/Zucchy00/PsVitaCustomController/

- All versions of PSP are hacked. The latest actively developed CFW is Ark-4. Read a simple howto guide on pspunk.
- PSP development: PSPDev PSPSDK and minimal SDK minPSP

- All FW versions of Vita have been hacked: if you are on FW 3.60 just visit henkaku.xyz. Read PS Vita Tutorials Index
- PS Vita AIO installer: VitaDeploy and a plugin archive collection
- VitaDB has a huge collection of HomeBrew for Vita and PSP; install VitaDB-Downloader or [https://www.cfwaifu.com/vita-homebrew-browser/|VHBB]
- There are Android-to-PS Vita Ports (like GTA) by TheFloW: A wrapper is used to load ARMv7/ARMv6 games. It uses a Shared Object Loader (.so loader), resolves imports/function calls and uses vitaGL instead of OpenGL ES 2.0. The games are not emulated, in POV of the game it still runs on android.
- PS Vita development: https://vitasdk.org

Sony (Playstation) (fun) facts

- Show Sony (Playstation) (fun) facts

- Show Sony (Playstation) (fun) facts

- PSX game Spyro 2 had antipiracy protection which randomly removed items from game and told that functionality is not guaranteed on hacked version.
- PSX game Crash Bandicoot 3 Warped (naughtydog) had playable Spyro the Dragon (Insomniac) demo game included and hidden in title screen - and vice versa. In CB hold L1+R1, then press Start; in Spyro use button combo (Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, then Square).
- making of Crash Bandicoot is a nice write-up and there is an extended video documentary (2h14m) and a short version of it (32min)
- PSX discs have a wobble in the inner, unwriteable disc tracks, which modchips worked around. There is AtTiny85 OSS modchip 'PsNee'. There used to be black coloured burner CD-Rs (for aesthetics).
- There is an ODE SD-card reader to replace faulty CD lasers/drives if laser tuning does not work
- nsOne is a PS1 PCB recreation project from 2025 working with original chips. PCB scans of PSone is also a nice view.
- PlayStation Portable had pandora battery recovery mode long undiscovered - (Pandora battery’s EEPROM serial number makes the boot ROM enter service mode and load the Initial Program Loader (IPL) from MemoryStick). It was discovered because modified battery and MagicGate MemoryStick were still inside when someone had received it from manufacturer repair. <insert good link>
It came up with the "Nintendo PlayStation" project, a CD-Drive for upcoming SNES-console and became it's own console by Sony.
- You can modify a USB-C socket inside hollowed PS-Vita connector (done myself with microUSB sockets on defective ports)
- For Vita 3G there was an active µSD-Card adapter for mini-PCIe slot called Psvsd, replacing the 3G modem. Instead:
- Buy µSD-Card adapter for Vita game card slot (passive, as game card is an electrically µSD).
- Buy µSD-card adapter for MemoryStick (Photofast CR-5400 for dual µSD); works well with SE phones and Sony PSP (except for PSP recovery with pandora battery due to no real MagicGate MemoryStick); adapter has ASIC inside; needs reformatting in dual µSD-card mode
- M2 MemoryStick micro is basically a shrunk down MemoryStick, they are electrically the same.
- Glitch PS4 Renesas MCU to revert to previous firmware
- PS4 and PS5 are vulnerable to BD-JB exploit which was 12-2024 updated - jar-loader integrated :)
- early PS3 prototype model had no GPU. As Cell Processor is complicated to programm, devs protested, Sony added NVidia GeForce 7 GPU onboard. It is impressive what Graphics can be squeezed out of Cell PS3, see Naughty dogs Uncharted 3 and its progression documentary
- Original PS3 SixAxis controller lacked vibration due to a patent dispute with Immersion over rumble technology. It featured motion sensing instead, hence the name SixAxis. Later, after settling, Sony reintroduced rumble as DualShock 3.
- All PS3 with CFW are able to run backwards-compatible PSX and PS2 games with official emulator. Phat PS3 has PS2 coprocessor.
- the CFW story behind PS3 Cell (+PSP) hacking is entertaining *keyword golden firmware, golden times*; fully hacked; read the short version on wiki
- PS3 had OtherOS to boot Linux (no RSX GPU acceleration). The U.S. Air Force even built a PS3 “supercomputer cluster”. OtherOS was removed with FW 3.21 (April 2010) due to security concerns: George Hotz (Geohot) gained hypervisor-level access through it. Sony removing OtherOS lead to a lawsuit in US (and lost it) and actually accelerated hacking efforts of PS3. Hacks introduced OtherOS++ with unlocked RSX GPU but there are no 3D drivers for it.
- There is Linux on PS1 since 2019. There is official and unofficial Linux for PS2 (but no GPU acceleration, framebuffer only).
- The Logo of PS1 is a standing 'P' with a lying 'S'.
- FreeMCBoot for PS2 uses a BIOS update function exploit to run homebrew from a memory card. There is now FreePSXBoot for PS1 too | PS2 FreeDVDBoot to setup FreeMCboot (2020 way for no modchip at all)
- For PS2 there is ESR exploit which tricks the drive into thinking it is a VIDEO_DVD in no need of game-piracy-protection (needs patching of game-image first)
- Vita/PSP/PS2/PS1 have tons of emulators for other systems; Vita/PSP have Retroarch. Vita runs ePSP or PCSX. PSP runs PSX games either with POPSLoader or with converting with PSX2PSP. Sounds like a Matrjoschka to me.
- There are many emulators for Sony PlayStation with upsampling and AntiAliasing (look@ Retroarch/Libretro)
- PS1 lack of FPU has become its own renderer style. Also good read is copetti.org. See ultimate retro shader collection.
- PS1 Demo discs are still being created, read about Haunted PS1
- There is an active romhacking community
- There are decompilation efforts made to port/modify games, like https://github.com/open-goal/jak-project
- PS Portal has been hacked in 2024. It runs a heavily modified version of Android 13
- The round Sony Ericsson logo is a fluid joint of Sony 'S' and Ericsson 'E' (SE)
- Sony Ericsson phone scene is still (kept) alive :)


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