[Guide] New To The PSP Scene? Don't Know Where To Start With Hacking? Start Here!

[leo9891]

Hey there CSpot! Just wanted to make a new guide on how to hack your PSP, whether its a 1000, 2000 or a 3000.

I am doing this because I am noticing more and more people everyday are asking how to hack their PSPs, or how to get to this CFW or that CFW, and which one is better, and so forth.

So to stop most of the thread making from people who are new to the PSP Scene (n00bs), and people who are not new but still don't know what the hell they are doing (nubs), they should check this thread out and post if they need help.

I will upload all the tools needed to hack your PSP.

Note: Just to take some extra saftey precautions, please do not upgrade your PSP past 5.03 Official Firmware! Even if you have a PSP 1000 or PSP 2000 v1/v2!

Legend
PSP Phat = PSP 1000
PSP Slim = PSP 2000
PSP Brite = PSP 3000
FW = Firmware
OFW = Official Firmware
CFW = Custom Firmware
HEN = Hombrew ENabler
MoBo = MotherBoard
v1 MoBo = Hackable via Pandora/HEN CFW
v2 MoBo = Hackable via Pandora/HEN CFW
v3 MoBo = Hackable via HEN CFW ONLY
MS = Memory Stick
MMS = Magic Memory Stick
DAX = Dark Alex, the maker of SE/OE/M33 CFWs
GEN = GENyUS, the makers of GEN CFWs
Green Bold Text = Clickable Links To Pictures
Blue Bold Text = Clickable Links To Other Pages/Threads
Red Bold Text = Must Read/Caution
Orange Bold Text = Download Links

Now to find out what kind of PSP MoBo you have on your PSP to see if you can install a Full CFW or HEN CFW.

The Difference between a Full CFW and HEN CFW is that:

Full CFWs you are able to Shut Down your PSP fully, and when you turn it back on your CFW will be loaded. Full CFW is more stable and has Recovery Mode.

HEN CFWs will lose their CFW when you Shut Down the PSP fully, so to keep that from happening, people put their PSP with HEN CFW on Sleep Mode instead. HEN CFWs do not have Recovery Mode except for 5.03 GEN for HEN CFW.

IF your PSP is a Phat a.k.a PSP-1000, Slim a.k.a PSP-2000, or a Brite a.k.a PSP-3000 and below OFW 5.03, then you can hack your PSP. To do so, you have to:

Step 1: Upgrade your PSP to 5.03 OFW, unless you are already on that OFW.

Step 2: Download ChickHEN R2, and install it, and get ChickHEN R2 Mode to load.

How To Run ChickHEN on PSP Phat

How To Run ChickHEN on PSP Slim/Brite

Tips On How To Run ChickHEN for PSP Phat/Slim/Brite

Step 3: Do this step ONLY if you have a PSP Slim. When you get ChickHEN R2 to load, download and install PSPIdent. This will tell you what kind of MotherBoard you have on your PSP Slim. If your MoBo is a TA-085 v1 or v2 or a TA-088 v1 or v2, then you will be able to install a Full CFW. If your MoBo is a TA-088 v3, then you will have to install a HEN CFW.

If your PSP is a Phat or a Slim TA-085/TA-088 v1 or v2, then click the first spoiler.
If your PSP is a Slim TA-088 v3 or a Brite, then click the second spoiler.

PSP Phat or Slim TA-085/TA-088 v1 or v2

Since your PSP is a Phat or a Slim TA-085/TA-088 v1 or v2, then you can continue with the following steps.

Now this is where you decide to install 5.00 M33-6, or 5.50 GEN-D3. Some of you may be asking whats the difference and are there any upsides/downsides to each CFW? To answer your question(s) I will tell you... because that would only be the right thing to do, duh!

5.00 M33-6
Upside - Made by the person who started the whole PSP Hacking Scene, DAX/Dark-Alex/Dark_Alex/DarkAlex

- Has the most Fanboy-ism

Downside - Can not play games that require FWs higher than 5.00 unless it is Patched

- Can not access PSN Store, or play games that were downloaded from the PSN Store unless you have a plugin such as PSNLover

5.50 GEN-D3
Upside - Has been becoming more popular due to DAX (M33 HeadMaster) not upgrading his M33 CFW to 5.5X.
Downside - Can not play games that require FWs higher than 5.50 (This is with every CFW) unless they are Patched. 5.50 GEN-D3 is more compatible with patches so most games get patched just to play on 5.50 GEN-D3 and not 5.00 M33

- Can not access PSN Store, or play games that were downloaded from the PSN Store unless you have a plugin such as PSNLover

Step 4: Now that you have ChickHEN R2 loaded, you have to download and install HellCat's Recovery Flasher v1.60.

If you want 5.00 M33-6, Open this Spoiler

Step 5: Download the 5.00 OFW Update a.k.a 500.PBP.

Step 6: Once you have the 5.00 OFW Update, make sure it is named "500.PBP". Next, put that on the root of your memory stick (The root of the memory stick is the window that pops up when you first plugin in your PSP to the Computer via USB Cord).

Step 7: Now that you have all those files and tools downloaded and installed, you are ready for the process to install Full CFW!

Step 8: Run HellCat's Recovery Flasher on your PSP. It will bring you to a menu, where you have to accept the disclaimer or it won't let you run the application. Once you accept, you will be in another menu, this is where the magic happens.

Step 9: Scroll down to where it says "Install CFW (of version selected above)"
Note: MAKE SURE THE VERSION ABOVE IS 5.00, IF IT IS NOT CHANGE IT!

Step 10: Now you can press the "X" button to start installing CFW. It will do some stuff for a few seconds, and once it is done, it will ask you to press any button to shutdown your PSP, do that and when you turn your PSP back on, you will be on CFW!

If you want 5.5. GEN-D3, Open this Spoiler

Step 5: Once you are on 5.03 ChickHEN, download and install 5.50 GEN-D3 XGEN Installer onto your PSP, also download the 5.50 OFW Update and rename it to 550.PBP and put that on the root of the Memory Stick. Once you have both files on your PSP, run the XGEN Installer. Select "Install 5.50 GEN-D3" and let that finish, when it is done you will be on the latest CFW!

Slim TA-088 v3 or Brite

Since your PSP is a Slim TA-088 v3 or a Brite, then you can continue with the following steps:

Step 4: Now that you have ChickHEN R2 loaded, you have to download and install 5.03 GEN-A or 5.03 M33/MHU

Step 5: Once you have 5.03 GEN-A or 5.03 M33/MHU up and running, your now on HEN CFW!
Note: 5.03 M33/MHU has constant updates so make sure you are always up to date, as for 5.03 GEN-A, there are no updates cause there are basically no flaws.

Note: Since your PSP is not able to run a Full CFW and only a HEN CFW, you will not be able to Shut Down your PSP fully, you will only be able to put it on Sleep Mode/Standby Mode. This is cause HEN CFW is loaded from the RAM and not the Flash0. If incase you do decide to Shut Down your PSP or accidentally Shut Down your PSP, you will have to repeat Steps 2 (only the loading part, not installing), 4 and 5.

For PSPs with Full CFW, not HEN CFW!

Now that you have Full CFW on your PSP, I am going to give you some advice on things you should have in case something goes wrong with your PSP. It will save you time, frustration, and probably some money.

First, I would like for you to backup your Flash0 onto your Desktop and your PSP using Hellcat's Recovery Flasher v1.60. You should have installed it onto your PSP already, if not, do so now please.

Hellcat's Recovery Flasher v1.60 main purpose was to recover the PSP from a Semi-Brick, but people also use it to upgrade or downgrade. Semi-Bricks usually happen when people are flashing files into their Flash0 and it becomes corrupt.
When you have a Semi-Brick, the good thing about it is that you can still access Recovery Mode which will help you get your PSP back to normal.

NOTE: You do not have to do the steps below, this is just telling you how to un-brick your PSP if anything were to happen.

Symptoms of a Semi-Brick: When you turn on your PSP, only the green light lights up but the screen stays black a.k.a Black Screen of Death (BSoD). You will be able to enter Recovery Menu.

How-To Recover From A Semi-Brick: To recover from a Semi-Brick, enter Recovery Menu, and scroll down to "Run program at /PSP/GAME/RECOVERY/EBOOT.PBP" and it will start up Hellcat's Recovery Flasher v1.60. When it boots up, scroll down to "Flash/Restore complete FW from backup" and it should fix it and everything should work from there.

The next step I would like for you to do is to make a Pandora's Battery and MMS. This will help you recover from Full-Bricks. Full-Bricks can be caused by the same thing as Semi-Bricks, or by just deleting some or all the files in the Flash0. When you get a Full-Brick, you can not access Recovery Mode so Recovery Flasher v1.60 will not be able to help you get your PSP up and running. This is why it is very handy to have a Pandoras Battery and MMS made just incase of something like this.

Step 1: Download PSP Pandora Deluxe v3.2
Link: [Release] PSP Pandora Deluxe v3.2

Use that and you will be able to make a Magic Memory Stick. Make sure you install 5.00 M33, no other CFW. The XGEN Installer has an upgrade so your MMS can install 5.50 GEN-D3 instead of 5.00 M33-6. To do so, run the XGEN Installer and select "Update Pandora to 5.50 GEN-D3 and thats all. Once done, your Pandora + MMS will install 5.50 GEN-D3 instead of 5.00 M33-6

Now time to make yourself a Pandora Battery. The best way is to Softmod it using an app on the PSP, but some PSPs can not create Pandora Batteries (even if they are hackable) cause of the MoBo. Recovery Flasher v1.60 also has this feature built in it so run Recovery Flasher and scroll down to the option that says Make Pandora Battery. Now test the Pandora Battery and MMS to see if it worked. To do so, follow the instructions below on "How-To Recover From A Full-Brick"
Now if you followed the instructions correctly and it didn't work, your PSP probably can not create a Pandora Battery. So now we move on to Hardmodding a Pandora Battery.

Your second option is to Hardmod your battery to operate as a Pandora Battery. If your PSP can not make a Pandora Battery, then follow the video below. It is the easiest that I have found.

NOTE: You do not have to do the steps below, this is just telling you how to un-brick your PSP if anything were to happen.

Symptoms of a Full-Brick: When you turn on your PSP, only the green light lights up but the screen stays black a.k.a Black Screen of Death (BSoD). Also, you are not able to enter Recovery Menu.

How-To Recover From A Full-Brick: Put the MMS in your PSP first, and then insert your Pandora Battery.
It will turn on and flash some files and when it is done you will now be on CFW 5.00 M33-4!

If you think I should add something, please tell me as it will help other people in need.

If you need help, just post in this thread and I will get back to you ASAP!

If you want to learn and know how to put plugins in your PSP and how to enable them, I would suggest that you would check out Akira's "How to Install Plugins" guide.
Link: How to Install Plugins

*These videos were not made by me, just gathered them up from youtube. Took the ones that look the best, and if you have found a video which is better and/or easier to follow, feel free to post it.*

*Do not post this guide on any other site without my permission! If I agree to your request, you must state that I, leo9891, is the creator of this guide and you do not take any credit for it. All other credits go to the people who created these tools and whose videos I have used to complete this guide.*

If you download, can you please download the text document that I attached to this post. I would like to see how many downloads I have, as it does not tell me on MegaUpload. Thank You!

Tools Needed

5.00 OFW Upgrade
5.03 OFW Update
5.50 OFW Update
ChickHEN R2
PSPIdent v4.0
HellCat's Recovery Flasher v1.60
5.03 GEN For HEN-A
5.03 MHU A.K.A. CFWEnabler v3.60
5.00 M33-6 Upgrade
5.50 GEN-D3 Final Upgrade

[Peza]

Nice work Leo! This will be stuck for sure.

Only thing you might want to mention is if those YouTube videos are not by you, then maybe add something along the lines of "These YouTube videos are not mine and belong to their respectful owners."

This should cut down on the threads or at least make it easier to guide someone who makes a thread.

[Anonymous Blah]

nice guide!
this should help out a lot of people

[(+/blazedpsp/+)]

Very nice Guide Well made for someone in a rush

[nike sony]

cool .. what a nice guide ..
it's too awesome .. specialy for the people that don't have a CFW or HEN

[psphkkr4u15]

well done nice tutorial man keep it coming.

[MJaj13]

ooh ill bookmark this
in case some friends ask me to hack their psps
this will be a great help

[leo9891]

Nice work Leo! This will be stuck for sure.

Only thing you might want to mention is if those YouTube videos are not by you, then maybe add something along the lines of "These YouTube videos are not mine and belong to their respectful owners."

This should cut down on the threads or at least make it easier to guide someone who makes a thread.

will do

nice guide!
this should help out a lot of people

thats what i'm hoping for, I am going to add more stuff but this is just the basics for now...

Very nice Guide Well made for someone in a rush

yeah, most of the stuff was quoted from one of my old posts and i just put it on here so that helped me make it in such a quick time and still look kinda neat.

cool .. what a nice guide ..
it's too awesome .. specialy for the people that don't have a CFW or HEN

well done nice tutorial man keep it coming.

ooh ill bookmark this
in case some friends ask me to hack their psps
this will be a great help

thanks guys! keep the good comments coming!

[aCekinG]

Great tutorial for all those n00bs (and not just n00bs) who have no idea where to start and what to do in order to hack their psp.

Keep up with the awesome tutorials that you do.

[leo9891]

Great tutorial for all those n00bs (and not just n00bs) who have no idea where to start and what to do in order to hack their psp.

Keep up with the awesome tutorials that you do.

thank you!