Advice: I have a headache.

[captainmccool]

Ok, so the last week or so I've convinced myself that I need to mod my Wii. The reasons don't matter. My situation is that I have absolutely 0 experience in either soldering or programming or anything else that would benefit me in this endeavour. Also, I don't know anything about the chipsets in the wii, what the difference between a lot of stuff in there or really any technical knowledge of it.

The opportunity I have for a modchip involves driving about 20 miles to a store that will have the WiiD chip in next week and they charge $90 dollars for the Chip and Install, I know that this is a lot of money for something that can be built for 10 dollars, so i've read. They guarantee their job so there's no risk...and there would be if i tried it myself.

So my question is do I go for that opportunity? Try to do it myself? wait for a better chip? Any advice on the matter would be greatly appreciated.

[SadSack]

if you have the tools? why not try soldering some of the tracks with some cables( used old pcb, something very with very small tracks) if you have too buy tools and all the bits you need. will you use them again( look at the cost)

i buy blank disks :)

[captainmccool]

Thanks for the reply, to answer your question I don't have any of the tools meaning i'd need a soldering gun, wires, a tri-wing screwdriver, whatever else you need. Chances are, things like that I'll never use again...unless it involves further modding. That reminds me of another question, do these things last? all i want is to play burnt wii games....as long as that keeps functioning and doesn't F up nintendo updates I'm fine with the features.

[bowser2]

no,after 1 day your soldering gun explodes releasing deadly toxins if used and your triwing will dissintergrate

[bowser2]

also,the wiid is a **** chip,get a cyclowiz

[SadSack]

myy wii next to my computer so i'm using serial lead. still need to solder but can put chip in later with same wires with few extras( i'll go for free mod chips)

[Funkwheat]

Something you also need to keep in mind is that the WiiD will probably need frequent updates, and you're going to need to open the Wii to do them, unless this place installs it externally somehow. (Unless WiiD supports DVD upgrading...I don't know about that as I have not really looked into that particular chip) Nintendo will attempt to counteract modchips, as will the game companies, and probably in a few months there will be games incompatibile with these chips without a firmware flash.


Here's my advice for you:

1. Buy a soldering iron. It will prove useful later on, mine does very often. RadioShack has them for like seven bucks.
2. Bust out an old modem, broken motherboard, etc. etc....Something... And goto town on it. See how you do, and see how confident you feel about doin it to your Wii.
3. If you feel you did ok, buy the WiiD parts yourself (or chiip, or whatever you feel like doin. Chiip seems to have the best n00b instructions, and you can easily build your own programmer for real cheap. If you want a pro chip I think the WiiKey is the current winner) and install dat *****!


Consoles will continue to come out, and mods will continue to come out, and you'll continue wanting to mod them. I've been doing it since the PS1, and I love it. It is a great skill to have. Not to mention, it gives you huge bragging rights and makes you feel better about yourself than having someone else install it.

As for the install itself, here's a quick failsafe guide to go by:

1. Follow the instructions on opening the Wii on modyawii.tehskeen.com, or a similar guide. The only real delicate step of this is to be careful of the drive's ribbon cable as you are taking it apart, as it breaks easily. This is easy to avoid though as long as you are slow and careful at that part.

2. Bust out your 30awg wire (available at RadioShack), cut it to the desired length, and tin the ends by melting a thin layer of solder onto the exposed part of the wire. You don't need a lot at all, just enough to turn the wire silver really.

3. Touch the tip of said wire to the desired point, and hold the soldering iron TO THE WIRE. You hardly have to touch the actual point on the Wii, if at all. The solder on the wire and the solder on the pad react very very well together. Then give it a light tug to make sure it's solid.

4. Obviously do the same on the chip itself with the other ends of the wires, but that should be a lot less delicate.

Note: USE A 15W SOLDERING IRON, NO HIGHER!




....ok I don't know why I just decided to type out that much crap, but I hope it helps. If you follow those instructions, you will not break your Wii, and it will be an easy install. The Wii is the easiest system I've ever modded. Good luck, and let us know how it works out!

[R3PUBLIC0N]

Ok, so the last week or so I've convinced myself that I need to mod my Wii. The reasons don't matter. My situation is that I have absolutely 0 experience in either soldering or programming or anything else that would benefit me in this endeavour. Also, I don't know anything about the chipsets in the wii, what the difference between a lot of stuff in there or really any technical knowledge of it.

The opportunity I have for a modchip involves driving about 20 miles to a store that will have the WiiD chip in next week and they charge $90 dollars for the Chip and Install, I know that this is a lot of money for something that can be built for 10 dollars, so i've read. They guarantee their job so there's no risk...and there would be if i tried it myself.

So my question is do I go for that opportunity? Try to do it myself? wait for a better chip? Any advice on the matter would be greatly appreciated.

Man if you have a place in 20 miles that will only charge about a 40 dollar profit and guarantee their work, and you have no experience, just go with them. I'm sure you're still saving money on software. You filthy pirate.

[Hooya]

$90 is absolutely an absurd rate for just the install. If that were for a WiiKey plus the install sure, but since the chip is free, you're just paying for the install, which is not worth $90 even if Reggie installs it himself.

$40 is reasonable for a professional install. Better to learn to do it yourself though. Besides, you'll have acquired a new skill, and that's cool!

Do not get the WiiD. Get a Wiikey or Wiinja Deluxe (I suppose Cyclowiz is OK, but not as good as Wiikey or Wiinja Deluxe in my opinion). Hell, even the WiiFree is better than the WiiD at this point.

[captainmccool]

Something you also need to keep in mind is that the WiiD will probably need frequent updates, and you're going to need to open the Wii to do them, unless this place installs it externally somehow. (Unless WiiD supports DVD upgrading...I don't know about that as I have not really looked into that particular chip) Nintendo will attempt to counteract modchips, as will the game companies, and probably in a few months there will be games incompatibile with these chips without a firmware flash.


Here's my advice for you:

1. Buy a soldering iron. It will prove useful later on, mine does very often. RadioShack has them for like seven bucks.
2. Bust out an old modem, broken motherboard, etc. etc....Something... And goto town on it. See how you do, and see how confident you feel about doin it to your Wii.
3. If you feel you did ok, buy the WiiD parts yourself (or chiip, or whatever you feel like doin. Chiip seems to have the best n00b instructions, and you can easily build your own programmer for real cheap. If you want a pro chip I think the WiiKey is the current winner) and install dat *****!


Consoles will continue to come out, and mods will continue to come out, and you'll continue wanting to mod them. I've been doing it since the PS1, and I love it. It is a great skill to have. Not to mention, it gives you huge bragging rights and makes you feel better about yourself than having someone else install it.

As for the install itself, here's a quick failsafe guide to go by:

1. Follow the instructions on opening the Wii on modyawii.tehskeen.com, or a similar guide. The only real delicate step of this is to be careful of the drive's ribbon cable as you are taking it apart, as it breaks easily. This is easy to avoid though as long as you are slow and careful at that part.

2. Bust out your 30awg wire (available at RadioShack), cut it to the desired length, and tin the ends by melting a thin layer of solder onto the exposed part of the wire. You don't need a lot at all, just enough to turn the wire silver really.

3. Touch the tip of said wire to the desired point, and hold the soldering iron TO THE WIRE. You hardly have to touch the actual point on the Wii, if at all. The solder on the wire and the solder on the pad react very very well together. Then give it a light tug to make sure it's solid.

4. Obviously do the same on the chip itself with the other ends of the wires, but that should be a lot less delicate.

Note: USE A 15W SOLDERING IRON, NO HIGHER!




....ok I don't know why I just decided to type out that much crap, but I hope it helps. If you follow those instructions, you will not break your Wii, and it will be an easy install. The Wii is the easiest system I've ever modded. Good luck, and let us know how it works out!


I first just want to thank you for taking the time to type all of that out because it definitely makes me consider doing it myself especially in how cheap a soldering iron is (thought it was more expensive) If i do decide to go that road I will definitely consult this advice. And yes, as far as all of this is concerned I'm a n00b and for the right price wouldn't mind staying one, but it may just be too expensive.

[captainmccool]

$90 is absolutely an absurd rate for just the install. If that were for a WiiKey plus the install sure, but since the chip is free, you're just paying for the install, which is not worth $90 even if Reggie installs it himself.

$40 is reasonable for a professional install. Better to learn to do it yourself though. Besides, you'll have acquired a new skill, and that's cool!

Do not get the WiiD. Get a Wiikey or Wiinja Deluxe (I suppose Cyclowiz is OK, but not as good as Wiikey or Wiinja Deluxe in my opinion). Hell, even the WiiFree is better than the WiiD at this point.

See, that's the thing this "free modchip" i don't know how to make one if that's what you're referring to so the $90 is for the WiiD and the install, which i suppose i was misled in because according to this very excited employee the WiiD is the new thing coming out and is supposed to be the best but just a small amount of research convinced me otherwise. Another thing about it is that I'd love to buy a chip AT a store rather than deal with it online since the site i know with the best deal on a wiikey is dealextreme, and that ships from hong kong. I guess I'm just really nervous to seriously mess up my Wii and I can't provide myself with a guarantee.

[Funkwheat]

See, that's the thing this "free modchip" i don't know how to make one if that's what you're referring to so the $90 is for the WiiD and the install, which i suppose i was misled in because according to this very excited employee the WiiD is the new thing coming out and is supposed to be the best but just a small amount of research convinced me otherwise. Another thing about it is that I'd love to buy a chip AT a store rather than deal with it online since the site i know with the best deal on a wiikey is dealextreme, and that ships from hong kong. I guess I'm just really nervous to seriously mess up my Wii and I can't provide myself with a guarantee.


If you go with Chiip, there are very very good instructions right on the site (chiip.dl.am). All of the parts for it can be ordered from futurlec.com. If you look in the Chiip thread, thread, someone posted a complete shopping list from this site. However, the shipping does take forever from there.

If you're a restless person like I am and hate waiting, use WAB ModCheap while you're waiting for the Chiip parts or other mod. This is a mod that just requires making a simple cable and soldering it to the Wii. Luckily, though, it uses the same solder points as all of the modchips, so you only have to solder once. Downside: You gotta have it near your computer (For me this wasn't a problem, as my computer was already right next to my Wii.) You can find a guide for this here: http://www.wiivision.org/viewtopic.php?t=23 ). All parts for this can be purchased from RadioShack, and like I said, that way you will have your chip pre-soldered for when it comes in.

If you don't wanna go through the trouble of building a free chip, buy a wiikey or something.




With that said, I can understand the temptation of having that option to just drive down to that place near you and getting it done garaunteed and fast. But, don't be afraid, and remember, you'll feel great about yourself if you do it yourself. and your wallet will thank you. :)


Good luck man!

[captainmccool]

If you go with Chiip, there are very very good instructions right on the site (chiip.dl.am). All of the parts for it can be ordered from futurlec.com. If you look in the Chiip thread, thread, someone posted a complete shopping list from this site. However, the shipping does take forever from there.

If you're a restless person like I am and hate waiting, use WAB ModCheap while you're waiting for the Chiip parts or other mod. This is a mod that just requires making a simple cable and soldering it to the Wii. Luckily, though, it uses the same solder points as all of the modchips, so you only have to solder once. Downside: You gotta have it near your computer (For me this wasn't a problem, as my computer was already right next to my Wii.) You can find a guide for this here: http://www.wiivision.org/viewtopic.php?t=23 ). All parts for this can be purchased from RadioShack, and like I said, that way you will have your chip pre-soldered for when it comes in.

If you don't wanna go through the trouble of building a free chip, buy a wiikey or something.




With that said, I can understand the temptation of having that option to just drive down to that place near you and getting it done garaunteed and fast. But, don't be afraid, and remember, you'll feel great about yourself if you do it yourself. and your wallet will thank you. :)


Good luck man!

The thing about Chiip, while it is free(ish) appears to require further tampering with the Wii via installing updates. The fact that it doesn't have DVD updates frightens me. So, if I'm to go with something like WiiKey and wait for that to ship too, there's $40 plus buying a solder gun is 10, a triwing screw driver...maybe 5 or 6 some wire...$5? i guess it'd come to 20-$25 to buy the supplies and still risk damaging my Wii. I'm trying to convince myself that $90 is worth avoiding all the hassle but everyone seems to think otherwise. What, if i might ask, are the problems with the WiiD chip?

[captainmccool]

Unless I can find some undeniable evidence that getting it professionally installed is a bad choice, I'm going to have to go with that. I don't have anything to practice soldering on and I'm the kind of person who, when trying to solder it, would get nervous/shaky and mess something up and if I did mess something up i'd panic and not have the state of mind to rationally solve my error. I'm interested in any last ditch arguments for me to do this myself including any terrible things about the WiiD modchip that should completely deter me from it. (what i understand is that it's basically the same as the Wiikey) If it is upgradable via DVD and can play backup Wii games that's really all i need. Any final thoughts would be appreciated.

[bodyhead]

Good decision. The max you'll have to spend for a professional install = $90. The max you'll have to spend for a home install = $50 (chip) + $250 (new nintendo). Seems like a no-brainer to me.

[coolcepi]

What´s the point on saving 90$ and risking 250$. That makes no sense to me.

My advice: give the installer the 90$ already. He´ll do it fast, clean, and I´m sure your Wii is not the first he modded.

And I bet the pro will do it faster, and less stressful to you.

[captainmccool]

Ok, so since I'm mainly decided on this, my only concern that still remains is about the WiiD chip. I've read as much as I can but what to people actually think of this chip? I know it isn't out yet but at the store it's my only option and is supposed to work great. As long as it can play back up GC and Wii games (and maybe region free if I'm curious) AND upgradability hopefully via DVD that's all I need. If it does all that then i think i'm good to go.

[grabb]

Good decision. The max you'll have to spend for a professional install = $90. The max you'll have to spend for a home install = $50 (chip) + $250 (new nintendo). Seems like a no-brainer to me.

I agree, $90 for a chip and install (with a guarantee to boot) is a good deal. Especially since you have no equipment, soldering skill, or interest in acquiring either. I would get a chip that is upgradeable from DVD (wiikey, cyclowiz, others?) if at all possible. I say this because:
1. you will need an update eventually, practically guaranteed.
2. without a DVD upgradeable chip, you will have to open up your wii.
3. without a DVD upgradeable chip, you'll need some sort of flashing hardware.

I know some people will say paying $40-$50 for an install is expensive, but it's really not. My soldering station cost me 10x that amount, and the time required to learn to use it correctly would be at LEAST several hours. Your time is worth a lot, why spend it acquiring a skill you don't want?