About
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About Chiip
Chiip is a modchip for the Nintendo Wii. The difference between Chiip and most other Wii modchips currently available is the fact that you can build it yourself.
It works because a simple micro controller is all the current Wii drivemods need - the Wiinja is a perfect example, but the other current modchips are very similar in fact.
Building Chiip is a two-step procedure:
- The first step is building a small device that allows uploading firmware to a micro controller, by connecting it to a PC.
Building this device took me 0.94 € and about 2/3 of all the work, but it's a device that you can reuse for a whole number of cool things. (Just search the web for projects using a micro controller, and you should soon get an idea of how many cool things you can do with it). You will also update the firmware with this device as long as there is no firmware update via DVD available. I'm planning to release more cool-things-to-do-with-a-cheap-micro controller projects myself every now and then, like interfacing other kinds of controllers to a Wii, and maybe similar modchips for other video game consoles too.
- The second step is building the modchip itself.
The bare minimum to build a single working modchip may take just about 1.70 € and no soldering at all, but even with the optional stuff (like a socket for updating the chip and a status LED) it took me just 2.38 €.
Open source
This firmware used by the modchip is free; as soon as a current version is reported to work fine for almost anyone it will be released using a GPL open source license.
How hard is building it?
The short answer is: If you can install any of the current Wii modchips, you'll be able to build and install Chiip too.
The more detailed answer is:
Building Chiip and the programmer is easy. You'll need to do some soldering, but everyone who ever used a soldering iron you should be able to do it.
Installing any Wii modchip on the other hand is a bit harder. You have to be quite precise when soldering, or you might just mess it all up. Of course the Quicksolder modchip producers will try to tell you something different, but I have experienced that Quicksolder chips do not really solve that problem; they just take less time to install (That's why they're called Quicksolder not Easysolder I guess ;-) ) and they're a bitch to get rid off.
So if you're not sure if you're able to install a modchip: better not risk it. Go to a professional shop instead and ask them to do it.
Features
Chiip is technically capable of doing about everything any other current modchip does. If there is an important feature that modchip XY has while Chiip doesn't, it will most probably be available as a firmware update for Chiip too sooner or later.
Currently (v0.9.1), Chiip has the following features and flaws:
Features:
- Works with Wii orginals and backups from the same region
- Works with Gamecube orginals and backups from the same region
- Partially works with Wii orginals and backups from different regions
(All current Wii modchips have in common that only certain games will work with region free patching - Check out this page for a compatibilty list) - Partially works with Gamecube orginals and backups from different regions and homebrew
- Works with DVR+R / DVD-R / DVD+RW / DVD-RW media (booktype setting no longer required)
- Works with DMS / D2A / D2B chipsets
- Works with both ATmega8L-8 and ATmega8-16 on 3.3V supply
- Backup discs are running at full speed, no more stuttering videos
- Can be updated
- Optional status LED
Known bugs:
- No Gamecube audiofix
- Only partial Gamecube region free
Not implemented yet:
- Update via DVD
Most other features the other modchip developers try to advertise their chips with are not worth mentioning in my eyes. As they want to sell their chips, they of course try to list as many features as possible. "Stealth" for example sounds great, but in fact all current Wii modchips (including Chiip) have about the same amount of "stealth". If Nintendo finds a way of detecting modchip users, chances are all the current drivemods will be rendered useless.
Requirements
You'll need:
- A PC with a parallel ("lpt") port, running Linux or Windows
- A soldering iron and solder-tin
- A triwing screwdriver, for opening the case (You can build one yourself by using a rasp on a cheap standard screwdriver, but I recommend buying one instead)
