Install Messiah2 on Playstation 2 v3 (part 1)
DISASSEMBLY
Prior to disassembly, test the PS2 for both CD and DVD games. This should then be the first test to perform when the PS2 is re-assembled.
You will need the following tools to accomplish the disassembly task
1. A Philips screwdriver for Disassembly/Reassembly
2. An optional pair of TWEEZERs (a TWEEZER) to manipulate the flat cables
3. Double-sided tape to hold detached objects and the Messiah 2 in a stable position
Detailed disassembly instructions are not currently available. The principal steps are:
1. Remove the 10 screw covers and then the screws
2. Carefully remove the black casing and watch for wires (not to be pulled)
3. Locate and remove the screws holding the memory card slot
4. Remove the 2 screws holding together the ON/OFF switch and the fan
5. Unplug the fan, carefully
6. Locate and remove the screw at the base of the Switch/Fan assembly
7. Remove the ON/OFF swiitch and the fan
8. Carefully turn the PS2 over, lift off the black cover and remove 4 screws holding the board
9. Locate and carefully remove the RESET/EJECT button assembly (cable not to be stressed)
10. Unplug and remove the power supply
11. Remove the plastic insulating barrier and the metal cage (held by several screws)
12. The PS2 board is now removable.
When you have disassembled your PS2, you are ready to commence installation of the modchip.
SOLDERING NOTES
The recommended equipment needed for the soldering job is:
a) 15-18 watt soldering iron for the solder work (not higher than 18 watt or damage could result)
b) 25-35 watt soldering iron (450°C) for stripping enamelled copper wire** (if you use this wire)
c) 0.10 mm solder tip (this is very small)
d) 35/36 swg wire (=32/33 awg) ** for all but 3.45v and GROUND
e) 23 swg = 22 awg insulated stranded wire for 3.45v and GROUND
f) Liquid Flux for assisting in the cleaning of target points
g) Solder paste (a mixture of flux and solder) to assist soldering to lacquered points
h) De-soldering braid
i) A safety razor blade & Blue Tack (plastic dough) to hold the razor blade in place
j) Double sided tape to fix the mod chip into final position
k) Optionally a 1μ F 35V polarised (tantalum) capacitor to avoid choppy DVD
** “Self-Stripping” (a misnomer), enamelled copper wire is recommended rather than sheathed as it requires less space and is easier to feed through to the other side of the motherboard.
With reference to the picture on the left, it is straightforward to solder a wire to a PAD.
However soldering a wire to a VIA must be performed with great care since damage to a VIA can ruin the motherboard. If you solder to a VIA, you would strip and tin your wire, dip it in solder paste, spray the VIA with flux spray and touch solder the wire end for half a second to just above the end. This is sufficient for the solder paste to take the lacquer away from the VIA and bond the tinned end to the VIA. If you linger too long with the iron, the VIA will disappear into the motherboard layers and it’s all over.
Generally, this is the soldering technique where the small processor pins are involved:
• Strip the solder end of the enamelled copper wire using the hot 25W iron.
• Dip the stripped end into the solder paste
• Squirt a small amount of flux spray onto the BIOS pins to assist adhesion of the solder
• Solder to the pin using the razor blade technique described below.
The razor blade technique is to place a single safety blade between the pin on which you are working and a neighbour. This protects the neighbour from bridging and splatter. With your 0.1mm tip and 15W or 18W iron, work towards the blade (so as to avoid contaminating the other neighbour).
For the Ground pads a low wattage iron is challenged. The tip must be clean so that it is able to reach full temperature; the Ground pad should be scraped back to bare copper which should then be freshly tinned, as with the end of the Ground wire and heat then applied to the end of the wire touching the tinned pad.
MESSIAH 2 INSTALLATION
There are 24 wires to solder and this is a difficult, specialised job. The Messiah 2 is small (the picture below is at c. 9x magnification). The official Messiah 2 web site (http://messiah2.com/) may be worth a visit for cross-reference. All of the Messiah 1 points are preserved and the only additional point is the clock CLK since the Messiah 2 carries no internal clock. The chip may appear ‘upside down’ in the picture but that is the recommended orientation for placement on the motherboard.
The low resolution pictures below show which PS2 motherboard chips and locations are directly affected by the installation process together with their orientation on the motherboard. This covers points B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I on the CD/DVD Controller; M, N, O, P, Q, T, U, V, (W) on the BIOS chip. Note that there are two BIOS types – GAP (usually on PAL systems) and Non-GAP (usually on NTSC systems). The W point differs in each case and this difference is noted in the relevant sections of this document.
It is recommended that you solder to the PS2 motherboard first and then connect each wire to the appropriate point on the Messiah 2.
Power (3.3v), Ground (GND), RESET, R and W (Gap BIOS)
Install these points first. Note that 3.3v & GND are 23 swg = 22 awg insulated stranded cable. The GND pad is covered with lacquer that must be scraped off or the lacquer removed with flux spray as described in the soldering section.
R and W (Gap BIOS only) are next.
Pass SCEx and CLK through the hole to the other side of the board
Having regard for the location of SCEx and CLK on the other side of the board and the distance of the hole from the Messiah 2, this would be as good a time as any to run the wires (of adequate length) through the hole as illustrated left.
CD/DVD Controller: A through I
With the “easy” points now connected on the PS2 motherboard, you will need to solder the wires to CD/DVD Controller (points ABCDEFGJHI) and later, the BIOS chip (points MNOP QTUV).
This stuff is difficult!
These pins are very close together; so you should take one safety razor blade (or Exacto blade) and some blue-tack (plastic dough) into which you would bed the blade. The blade would be placed between the pins to prevent solder from bridging to the adjacent pins. You would work towards the blade.
Note that there is very little available solder on each pin and you should be skilled in soldering techniques to ensure a good bond.
This completes the work on the “top” side of the PS2 motherboard. Now turn the motherboard over and begin work on the other side.
