Where can I get a mod chip for the original Playstation?

May 13, 2008 2:05 PM

Where can I get a mod chip for the original Playstation?

I realize this sounds like I want to pirate games, but I found my old PSX in my parent's attic and all my discs are scratched up and unplayable. I'm visiting a friend soon who has some of the same games and he said I could make copies, but I would need to track down a mod chip. My Google-fu is failing to turn up anything that doesn't set off my scam radar, and it's hard to tell what's legit when all the customer reviews I can find are years old.

I would rebuy the games used, but a lot of them (I like RPGs) seem to have become collector's items on Ebay and cost more than I'm willing to pay.

posted by bradbane to technology (6 comments total)

Let's reserve judgement, shall we Pollomacho?

This site looks like it'll serve your needs, bradbane.
posted by InsanePenguin at 2:29 PM on May 13

If you take your scratched-up games to a rental store, they can polish them for a few bucks each and very likely restore them to working condition. PSX games are pretty resilient, and unless the paint has been scratched they're probably okay underneath.

As far as burnt games, yes, modchip vendors are shady - they're selling shady merchandise, after all. They only seem to last a year or two, so find the least scammy-feeling place and try to use Paypal so you can easily dispute the charge if you get ripped off. Also, I understand you can do a simple swap trick with a Gameshark type disc or even a good original - google 'ps1 swap', 'psx swap', etc.
posted by pocams at 2:39 PM on May 13

I've dealt with these guys in the past for my original Xbox's modchip (it's in my bedroom running XBMC for my MythTV frontend). They've been around for a few years.
posted by barc0001 at 2:47 PM on May 13

It still sounds a lot like you want to pirate games.

I just want to make backup copies of hard to find/expensive games I already own for a console that is several generations behind now. Spending 15 minutes soldering a chip is more appealing to me than getting in bidding wars with collectors on Ebay.


I will try getting them polished, I didn't think of that (they're in pretty bad shape, they got thrown in a box without the cases and left in a hot Southern attic for years). If that doesn't work modchip.ca looks good (lot of positive & recent reviews on reseller ratings). I soft-modded my Xbox for XBMC so I never had to deal with this. Thanks for the tips guys.
posted by bradbane at 2:56 PM on May 13

If you have a modded xbox, you can play PSX games on it via the emulator pcsxbox.
posted by bizwank at 3:32 PM on May 13

I was bored about a year ago and did some peeking around on this topic. I bookmarked a few sites, and most have disappeared--not surprising if you ever looked into the economics of modchips.

Anyway, I heard the "Stealth" will play most any game (PS1 games started checking for protection in later years), and you can't go wrong with Modchip.ca. Bought other stuff from them years ago, and they're still around. That one comes prewired to save some hassle.

Also, FWIW, you could pick try the plug in mod which works about 70% of the time--but you have to have the port in the back of your PS1. I remember buying mine from ConsoleSource.com.
posted by BenzeneChile at 5:41 PM on May 13