PS2 [MX4SIO/SIO2SD] SD Card Adapter and SD-driver for the PS2 SIO2 interface

playstays_shun said:
beautiful PCB work sir, hats off.

looked up on Ali, and yeah its by bitfunx - they're the absolute literal worst. serpent cloners of the retro community that have their hand in everything, with everyones else hard work on the line.

not surprised. but $10+free slow international shipping doesnt seem that crazy expensive.
The bundled 'deals' with SD cards theyre selling are ridiculous though thats probably to go after people that dont know any better. and screw em (bitfunx) in any case not interested. was just curious of what's out there.

Maybe more manufacturers will come to market with MX4SIO that are closer to spec of the original project than just Helder's offering? Competition is good in the end.

Sorry if you all have been bogged down with support questions though for another product could see that being annoying

me, im just a curios one.
Click to expand...

We just did a free MX4SIO give away (here on psx place) and those ones in the photos were the winner's prizes, they have all been shipped off now.

Yeah on Ali (bitfunx) it was the bundle price i was referring to, for the fake MX4SIO + fake 64MB PS2 MC + cheap SD card, it's like £37 which is about $50, and that is their "sale" price, last week and before it was like $70, ouch!

I believe the devs / project team of MX4SIO are looking to sell them soon i think, again manufacturers aren't allowed to make or sell MX4SIO, it's copyright, only personal ones are allowed.

The thing with Helder's version, is that he sent it to many Youtubers (Mr.Mario etc) who did review videos on his MC2SIO product, and so anyone who does a search for MC2SIO (after watching those videos) will only find Helder's website selling them. Sales marketing at it's best. Maybe in small print Helder refers to this thread somewhere, but really imo that's just to offset the problems / support he should be providing himself lol. You'd think with all the profits he's making off the back of the Dev's (free) hard work (for the last 2 years) he would give a contribution to the project, right Helder? ;) ...right?
 
please someone help me my MX4SIO is crashing my Playstation 2 SCPH 90006 I had managed to find a build that worked but I ended up losing it could someone help me
 
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Hi, I'm running FMCB v.1.966 and OPL v.BDM3 on a MC2SIO in a 75001 Slim, and I'm having a lot of trouble running games that are listed as working in the compatibility sheet here, such as Burnout, Gran Turismo, and the Need for Speed Titles. The games either get stuck at the loading bar or splash screen, or just won't start at all.

My SD card is a TeamGroup Elite A1 128GB. I'm using a DS2 controller, so I don't think it's the issue involving what kind of controller it is. I've tried a mixture of several loading modes, to no effect. Some 4GB+ games work, so I don't think that has to do with Gran Turismo.
 
I will share my findings during the weekend with whomever find it useful enough.

MicroSD compatibility:
- Kioxia Exceria 64GB (NOT WORKING) (to my suprise)
- Kingston Canvas Select Plus 128GB (WORKING) (best value in my country)
- Unknown Brand and model 2GB (WORKING)

1SdPgWg.jpg


No matter what I did the OPL BDM3 (1629 & 1627) didn't boot giving me a black screen on my PS2 FAT not matter what I did (wiping OPL config folder, creating a new one with OPL 1.1.0, etc.) but booted with no problems on my SCPH-70004.

I could be wrong but It seems to be no difference in lagging on FMV between a fast MicroSD card and a cheapo one if both are compatible.

I am using a microSD to USB adapter and I swap it between USB or MX4SIO because sometimes I find it faster an more reliable using my microSD as USB than MX4SIO on some situations, for example when the game is not heavily FMV dependent. On the other hand MX4SIO works flawlessly on other games like Futurama where USB is almost unbearable.
 
tonyflow said:
I will share my findings during the weekend with whomever find it useful enough.

MicroSD compatibility:
- Kioxia Exceria 64GB (NOT WORKING) (to my suprise)
- Kingston Canvas Select Plus 128GB (WORKING) (best value in my country)
- Unknown Brand and model 2GB (WORKING)

1SdPgWg.jpg


No matter what I did the OPL BDM3 (1629 & 1627) didn't boot giving me a black screen on my PS2 FAT not matter what I did (wiping OPL config folder, creating a new one with OPL 1.1.0, etc.) but booted with no problems on my SCPH-70004.

I could be wrong but It seems to be no difference in lagging on FMV between a fast MicroSD card and a cheapo one if both are compatible.

I am using a microSD to USB adapter and I swap it between USB or MX4SIO because sometimes I find it faster an more reliable using my microSD as USB than MX4SIO on some situations, for example when the game is not heavily FMV dependent. On the other hand MX4SIO works flawlessly on other games like Futurama where USB is almost unbearable.
Click to expand...
strange the kioxia didnt work for you as @Workz_777 posted a couple times he used a kioxia card fine.

would be cool to add mx4sio support to ps2esdl to see how it compares to opl
 
psydefx said:
strange the kioxia didnt work for you as @Workz_777 posted a couple times he used a kioxia card fine.
Click to expand...

Yeah that is strange, i have a few Kioxia exceria 32GB and they all work perfectly, @tonyflow maybe you could try to format the MicroSD cards using GuiFormat and select 16K cluster size, if you didn't already.

Towersss said:
Hi, I'm running FMCB v.1.966 and OPL v.BDM3 on a MC2SIO in a 75001 Slim, and I'm having a lot of trouble running games that are listed as working in the compatibility sheet here, such as Burnout, Gran Turismo, and the Need for Speed Titles. The games either get stuck at the loading bar or splash screen, or just won't start at all.

My SD card is a TeamGroup Elite A1 128GB. I'm using a DS2 controller, so I don't think it's the issue involving what kind of controller it is. I've tried a mixture of several loading modes, to no effect. Some 4GB+ games work, so I don't think that has to do with Gran Turismo.
Click to expand...

@Towersss ...this is odd, the issues with the racing games you describe are exactly the same when using a PS1 controller, once i swap to only having a DualShock 2 inserted in the PS2 all those racing games then worked perfectly.

Maybe you could try to re-format your MicroSD card using GuiFormat and select 16K cluster size. Each time you add games you should do the lot (adding all of them) in one go, and not add more games at different times to avoid fragmentation.

I'll go through a quick run down of the process i do when adding games...

1) Format MicroSD / SD card using GuiFormat FAT32 and 16K clusters.
2) Use OPL Manager to add the folders (structure) to the MicroSD / SD card.
3) Then i copy all the OPL folders (structure) from my MicroSD / SD across to a dummy folder on my PC.
4) Using this dummy folder on my PC (replica of the MicroSD / SD OPL folder layout) i work all the games into their correct folders:- (A) 4GB+ ISOs split (using USBUTIL) to the root. (B) All .bin files converted to ISOs using Tools in OPL Manager, and placed into the DVD folder. (C) less than 4GB ISOs added to the DVD folder.
5) Once done, i copy all of the contents of this dummy folder across to the MicroSD / SD card.
6) I then open OPL Manager and get all the correct Game Titles of the games i added, and shorten any Game Titles over 32 characters.
7) Put MicroSD / SD back into the MX4SIO (inserted in the PS2) and load the list of games using OPL BDM3.

The reason for doing this, is because i want to add all the games in one go to the MicroSD / SD (to avoid fragmentation).
 
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Workz_777 said:
Yeah that is strange, i have a few Kioxia exceria 32GB and they all work perfectly, @tonyflow maybe you could try to format the MicroSD cards using GuiFormat and select 16K cluster size, if you didn't already.
Click to expand...
Sorry, I did not mentioned beforehand, but all my testings were made using FAT32 GuiFormat and16K cluster size. I guess I will need to do more testing to figure it out. Maybe using test_bdm.elf? @Workz_777 Are those 32GB Kioxia the same model as mine? Because I bought mine yesterday thinking it would be compatible. Maybe KIOXIA silently changed the manufacturing of the microSD. Thanks for that guide on avoiding FAT32 fragmentation btw.
 
tonyflow said:
Sorry, I did not mentioned beforehand, but all my testings were made using FAT32 GuiFormat and16K cluster size. I guess I will need to do more testing to figure it out. Maybe using test_bdm.elf? @Workz_777 Are those 32GB Kioxia the same model as mine? Because I bought mine yesterday thinking it would be compatible. Maybe KIOXIA silently changed the manufacturing of the microSD. Thanks for that guide on avoiding FAT32 fragmentation btw.
Click to expand...

They seem the same from the outside...
Kioxia.jpg

...and on the back in very small font is written:- "Taiwan - 2003CQ1076N" only
 
Workz_777 said:
Yeah @Towersss ...this is odd, the issues with the racing games you describe are exactly the same when using a PS1 controller, once i swap to only having a DualShock 2 inserted in the PS2 all those racing games then worked perfectly.

Maybe you could try to re-format your MicroSD card using GuiFormat and select 16K cluster size. Each time you add games you should do the lot (adding all of them) in one go, and not add more games at different times to avoid fragmentation.

I'll go through a quick run down of the process i do when adding games...

1) Format MicroSD / SD card using GuiFormat FAT32 and 16K clusters.
2) Use OPL Manager to add the folders (structure) to the MicroSD / SD card.
3) Then i copy all the OPL folders (structure) from my MicroSD / SD across to a dummy folder on my PC.
4) Using this dummy folder on my PC (replica of the MicroSD / SD OPL folder layout) i work all the games into their correct folders:- (A) 4GB+ ISOs split (using USBUTIL) to the root. (B) All .bin files converted to ISOs using Tools in OPL Manager, and placed into the DVD folder. (C) less than 4GB ISOs added to the DVD folder.
5) Once done, i copy all of the contents of this dummy folder across to the MicroSD / SD card.
6) I then open OPL Manager and get all the correct Game Titles of the games i added, and shorten any Game Titles over 32 characters.
7) Put MicroSD / SD back into the MX4SIO (inserted in the PS2) and load the list of games using OPL BDM3.

The reason for doing this, is because i want to add all the games in one go to the MicroSD / SD (to avoid fragmentation).
Click to expand...

I'm at work so i won't have the chance to test this until later today, but I did have some questions I wanted to get out of the way so I can get right to work after my shift:

-Is changing the clusters size something thats done in GUIFormat? If so, I don't think I did that at all. I remember just switching the type to Fat32, and there was a number option under it that started with a 3.
-OPL Manager didn't create the CD, DVD, and ART folders automatically on my SD card, I had to manually make them. Would that cause any problem? Also, games smaller than 4GB go into the CD folder correct? I wanted to make sure, you wrote DVD twice.

Before I do all this I'm also gonna try using the other DualShock 2 controllers I have. I doubt it'll help but it's certainly worth a try.
 
Towersss said:
I'm at work so i won't have the chance to test this until later today, but I did have some questions I wanted to get out of the way so I can get right to work after my shift:

-Is changing the clusters size something thats done in GUIFormat? If so, I don't think I did that at all. I remember just switching the type to Fat32, and there was a number option under it that started with a 3.
-OPL Manager didn't create the CD, DVD, and ART folders automatically on my SD card, I had to manually make them. Would that cause any problem? Also, games smaller than 4GB go into the CD folder correct? I wanted to make sure, you wrote DVD twice.

Before I do all this I'm also gonna try using the other DualShock 2 controllers I have. I doubt it'll help but it's certainly worth a try.
Click to expand...

1) Yep changing Cluster size is done in GuiFormat, there is a drop down menu "Allocation unit size" - choose "16384"

2) OPL Manager should create the folders "CD, DVD, CFG, ART" automatically, a pop-up will say "No CD or DVD or ART folder found in the selected OPL folder... Make sure this is the correct folder! D:\" ...then press "OK" ...after should say:- "Would you like to create ART/CFG/CD/DVD folders?" ....clicking "Yes" will then automatically create them on the MicroSD / SD card.

Normally after you format your SD card each time, and then load up OPL Manager it should go through that process above. If not then click on "Settings" in OPL Manager then "Change Mode/OPL Folder" and select your correct drive D:\ or E:\ or F:\ etc, etc manually.

3) So ISOs that are smaller than 4GB go into the DVD folder. Also converted .bin games to ISOs also go into the DVD folder. I'm using OPL Manager v21.8

4) Yes, try another Sony DualShock 2, or PS3 DualShock 3 if you have one (connected via USB cable) and also regardless - always have PADEMU set to "Global" and "Enabled / ON" - leave the other settings in PADEMU as default.
 
Workz_777 said:
1) Yep changing Cluster size is done in GuiFormat, there is a drop down menu "Allocation unit size" - choose "16384"

2) OPL Manager should create the folders "CD, DVD, CFG, ART" automatically, a pop-up will say "No CD or DVD or ART folder found in the selected OPL folder... Make sure this is the correct folder! D:\" ...then press "OK" ...after should say:- "Would you like to create ART/CFG/CD/DVD folders?" ....clicking "Yes" will then automatically create them on the MicroSD / SD card.

Normally after you format your SD card each time, and then load up OPL Manager it should go through that process above. If not then click on "Settings" in OPL Manager then "Change Mode/OPL Folder" and select your correct drive D:\ or E:\ or F:\ etc, etc manually.

3) So ISOs that are smaller than 4GB go into the DVD folder. Also converted .bin games to ISOs also go into the DVD folder. I'm using OPL Manager v21.8

4) Yes, try another Sony DualShock 2, or PS3 DualShock 3 if you have one (connected via USB cable) and also regardless - always have PADEMU set to "Global" and "Enabled / ON" - leave the other settings in PADEMU as default.
Click to expand...

Oh man, the Nacho and MrMario tutorials told me to separate games into CD if they were smaller than 4GB, which I thought was weird because even on my HDD it all went into the DVD folder. I doubt that matters for the bigger games but maybe that could be why smaller ones wouldn't work. Although some of the smaller ones DID work being in that folder.

Thanks alot Workz, I'll try this out tonight.
 
Towersss said:
Oh man, the Nacho and MrMario tutorials told me to separate games into CD if they were smaller than 4GB, which I thought was weird because even on my HDD it all went into the DVD folder. I doubt that matters for the bigger games but maybe that could be why smaller ones wouldn't work. Although some of the smaller ones DID work being in that folder.

Thanks alot Workz, I'll try this out tonight.
Click to expand...

Yeah, i have nothing in my CD folder, all the smaller than 4GB ISOs are in the DVD folder and they all work perfectly.

Let us know how you get on bro :encouragement:
 
My TeamGroup Go Card 256GB works with 16k cluster size... and its only $23 on amazon I'd give that a try

How are you all handling saves?

just swapping FMCB card with memory card in game every time?
VMC to a USB drive / can you do it to this? Or nah?
custom FreeDVDBoot that somehow points to this device, so you have a freed up MC all the time?

some other method im not aware of?
 
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First post ever here... so be gentle... or not... its up to you.

I got Helder's MC2SIO and I'm having an issue. When I try to boot into a game from OPL, I get some flashing screens and then a black screen. The game never boots up. So I'm looking for suggestions on how to fix this.

What I have and what I've done so far:
  1. I'm using a PS2 SCPH-7001 with a busted DVD drive.
  2. Free McBoot is Version 1.966. I'm using the "standard" OPL and not the one for the 7500+ models
  3. I'm using a freshly formatted 8gb MagicGate Certified memory card I bought from the local retro store for Free McBoot
  4. I formatted a 256gb Onn Micro SD card in FAT32 with 16k clusters using guiformat.exe for the MC2SIO adaptor
  5. I've tried to load is Persona 3 FES. I used USBExtreme.exe to get on the FAT32 SD card. OPL sees it fine.
  6. Pad Emulation is turned on.
I've tried a couple of other games too, but all with the same problem. The only luck I've had is with Futurama. I got the first splash screen and it stay there. Every other game only gets as far as flashing colors and then black.

Any ideas on how to solve this would be great. Thanks!
 
Workz_777 said:
Yeah, i have nothing in my CD folder, all the smaller than 4GB ISOs are in the DVD folder and they all work perfectly.

Let us know how you get on bro :encouragement:
Click to expand...
Dude, I feel like giving you a smooch. Before I reformatted my SD card I turned on PADEMU and almost every game that's supposed to work is smooth as butter. I was under the impression PADEMU was only if you wanted to use a newer DualShock, is there an explanation behind why games just work with it enabled?

The only game still giving me trouble is Gran Turismo 4. With no modes on, I was able to create and save a profile, but after the "Sony Entertainment Presents" splash screen I get the game's chime, I see the symbol for auto-loading my profile, and then it freezes. The compatibility list says "DS2 issues, unplug/replug required" so should I be replugging in my controller when I get to that freeze?

zetazot said:
First post ever here... so be gentle... or not... its up to you.

I got Helder's MC2SIO and I'm having an issue. When I try to boot into a game from OPL, I get some flashing screens and then a black screen. The game never boots up. So I'm looking for suggestions on how to fix this.

What I have and what I've done so far:
  1. I'm using a PS2 SCPH-7001 with a busted DVD drive.
  2. Free McBoot is Version 1.966. I'm using the "standard" OPL and not the one for the 7500+ models
  3. I'm using a freshly formatted 8gb MagicGate Certified memory card I bought from the local retro store for Free McBoot
  4. I formatted a 256gb Onn Micro SD card in FAT32 with 16k clusters using guiformat.exe for the MC2SIO adaptor
  5. I've tried to load is Persona 3 FES. I used USBExtreme.exe to get on the FAT32 SD card. OPL sees it fine.
  6. Pad Emulation is turned on.
I've tried a couple of other games too, but all with the same problem. The only luck I've had is with Futurama. I got the first splash screen and it stay there. Every other game only gets as far as flashing colors and then black.

Any ideas on how to solve this would be great. Thanks!
Click to expand...
I had a similar issue. Most of my games would flash green-yellow-pink and then not start, or would not start at all. I use the same version of FMCB but at first I was using the 7500 OPL version with Helder's card, since I have a 75001. You should try using a different OPL version; specifically the BDM3OPL 1629 version. Using that and then turning on PADEMU got almost all my games going. Here's a link to it: PS2 - [MX4SIO/SIO2SD] SD Card Adapter and SD-driver for the PS2 SIO2 interface | Page 15 | PSX-Place
 
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