Now that Sony seems to have pretty abandoned the PSP and as no further official firmware updates can be expected, I need a bit of advice on modding my Slim PSP so that I can run homebrew. I modded my old phat PSP with a Pandora battery modifier device and ancient CFW after an official firmware bricked it two days after the warranty expired (it's still on 3 point something, I haven't bothered updating it), but that one is my girlfriend's now, and I'm looking to set mine up so that I can play low-performance DOSBox stuff and ScummVM on the PSP on the road.

The catch is that the PSP still needs to run my extravagant collection of original UMD games.

I don't know where my modifier is anymore and in any case I understand that it is actually possible these days to install CFW without using a Pandora battery.

I see there are quite a few different types of custom firmware floating around. Does anyone have any recommendations on which one to use that will allow me to keep using my original UMDs and homebrew (I couldn't give a toss about PSN now, anything in that regard goes straight onto the Vita anyway).

You don't need anything extra. CFW is completely compatible with regular psn. Wait a couple of minutes while I find the instructions.

Edit: Here it is.
http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3391974#post388498288

Edit: If clicking the link does not work for some reason, here are copypasted instructions:


Just use 6.60 Pro-C. Its updated frequently and it works on all the PSPs, even those 3000s or Gos or whatever psp model you mistakenly think it won't work on.



For people just looking for quick info:

The first post here will detail getting Pro-B on your PSP so you can run homebrew and the first reply will have all sorts of fun things you can do with your system. If you need help getting started, this is the post to read, otherwise, if you're looking for post-install info, scroll down to the first reply here.

Prep work before installing Pro-B
First you need to grab an official 6.60 update (usually called eboot.pbp or 660.pbp). If its still the newest OFW, you can do the update option in the XMB; grab from Sony's site or some other place.

1. Put the unzipped firmware update (should be named eboot.pbp) in PSP/Game/UPDATE
2. Turn on the PSP, go to the Game -> Memory Stick menu, and select the update. When given the option, choose to update from memory stick. You'll need your battery fully or nearly fully charged for this step.


Actual installation of Pro-B
1. Download 6.60 PRO-B10.fix1.
2. Put the unzipped contents of the PRO download in PSP/Game. Keep them in their original folders, so it looks like F:\PSP\GAME\Fast Recovery\eboot.pbp as the file structure. The folder name isn't actually important (its display in the PSP is read from the eboot) but that it's in a folder is.
3. Go to the game -> Memory Stick menu, and run Pro-B10 (white with 'Update').
4. You're done. Go to System Settings -> System Information to confirm, your firmware version will have changed from "6.60" to "6.60 PRO B10".
5. If you got a PSP 1000 or one of the hackable PSP-2000s, run CIPL Flasher to avoid having to use Fast Recovery after a shutdown. If you don't know if you have a hackable psp, run the program anyways, it's got a built-in check.
6. Now you can remove the various installers (firmware upgrade, pro b10, and CIPL Loader) from your memory stick.

If you can't use the CIPL Flasher: whenever you turn your PSP on from a full shutdown (instead of just sleep mode), you'll need to run Fast Recovery (' Fast Recovery').


If you wanna try out the permanent patch. aka Fast Recovery is too much work.
6.20 Pro allows you to install a permanent patch which allows Pro to autostart every time you turn on your PSP. The catch is that some PSP-3000s can't be downgraded to OFW 6.20. If you even suspect that you have a PSP-3000, you should download PSP Module Checker, and see what it reports.
If it says your PSP's module is 07g or 09g, you can not downgrade to 6.20.

1. Go grab a OFW 6.20 update, its probably floating on the internet somewhere.
2. Put the unzipped 6.20 firmware update in PSP/Game/UPDATE. Make sure you're replacing the old one.
3. Get the Downgrader and put the '63x Downgrader' folder in PSP/Game/
4. Turn on the PSP, go to the Game -> Memory Stick menu, and select the downgrader. Again make sure your battery is pretty full before doing this.
5. Check System Info to make sure you are now on OFW 6.20.
6. Install 6.20 Pro-B and then its permanent patch afterwards.

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You shouldn't need to mess with pandora batteries anymore, but Sir Unimaginative wrote a tutorial on them if you need to make one for some reason.

Just a nitpick, "bricked" doesn't mean "broken" it means permanently unusable (arguably outside a reset at the factory). If you were able to fix it yourself, even by applying a different software, it wasn't bricked. If it had been bricked the boot process itself would have been pooched to the point there would have been no way to load an alternative firmware.

Sorry for the digression, but the term "bricked" seems to be going the way of the term "hacker" and I'm trying to save it;)

Thanks, will try this later on. The thing is, it's nigh on impossible to brick a PSP in the manner that you describe. There is a permanent bootstrap in the PSP that loads the firmware. If a firmware update fails, the PSP will simply cease to boot up, and in official terms, without returning the device to Sony, there is no way to fix it. It is, to all extents and purposes, bricked.

The Pandora battery is simply the nickname for the same method that Sony uses internally to access the bootstrap and reload the firmware onto the flash ROM, charging an extortionate amount of money for off-warranty repairs in the process.

I was going to post this: http://wololo.net/cfw4dummies/

But I think it's basically the same thing that Luisfius posted already. However, my link isn't in Forum Thread format. :P

It really is incredibly simple to mod a PSP now with the recent soft CFWs out there. If you ever need to go back to your official firmware, all you need to do is turn the system off and restart it (not sleep mode, I mean the "Hold the power slide up until the system shuts down completely). Once you do that, boom, it's back to normal Firmware. If you want back to custom, just run the quick recovery program and there you go.

Do you hook up to JTAG or something like that to intercept and reflash the boot process? If not, it wasn't bricked. I get what you're saying, it was a pain in the ass and not just any user could have done it, but by definition if it can be done in user land without super expensive equipment, then it's not bricked.

And that just if your PSP is not compatible with the PERMANENT hack (which some PSP3000s aren't. PSP2000? You can permahack it.)

Less than a month ago I got a used psp2000, once the battery was charged, the entire process of softmodding it took 5 minutes. Kind of annoying that it won't let one update it without a charged battery even while plugged, but eh, whatever.

Have used it on PSN and all since then, no issues whatsoever.

Edit: Somewhat related. My used PSP has a cracked outer shell (actually, the crack is in the "glass" that protects the display, fortunately not on the display itself), so I am planning to get a replacement shell. Should I go for red (http://www.dealextreme.com/p/repair-parts-full-replacement-housing-for-psp-slim-2000-13256?item=8), transparent (http://www.dealextreme.com/p/fully-transparent-replacement-housing-for-psp-slim-2000-12686?item=10) or translucent blue (http://www.dealextreme.com/p/repair-parts-full-replacement-housing-for-psp-slim-2000-13258?item=16)?

Dealextreme also sells unbricker batteries, it seems. It takes MONTHS for the things from there to arrive, btu they always arrive. Someday.
(I've fixed busted DSs and DSlites with dealextreme parts, so I know they work well)

Back when I had a hacked PSP, I was generally running either 5.50 D3 and 5.0 m33 with a plugin to pass the FW check by games. All UMDs ran, and all could be dumped as an ISO within the firmware through a USB connection. I always found 5.50D3 to be my favorite.

These tutorials helped me immensely.

When you get yourself up and running: If you are into RPG's may I suggest the Wizardry I-II-III - Story of Llylgamyn. I am having a blast playing it currently. It is a Japanese only SNES release and there is an English Patch. Have fun.

I can't confess to having played those. Will have to give them a crack., thanks :)

In any case, the PSP is now successfully modded. We're now able to play C64 and DOS games on the toilet, my girlfriend is happily playing Tiny Toon Adventures (the Sega Mega Drive one, quite possibly one of the best platformers ever) with the PSP connected to the TV.

Decided to try that RemoteJoyLite mentioned in the SomethingAwful thread I linked to. It was a pain in the ass to set up, since the instructions for it are kind of outdated in parts, but it is nice novelty. If anyone else is interested on it, here is a video with links to the required things.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDGFyPEANA0

All in all, I'd say it is neat to be able to do so, but there are compatibility issues in some things. Also, it requires one to not disable the boot screen for the games, which makes it take a little bit longer, but it is still a fun thing to do.