PlayStation PS2 - Adding a HDD /Using ROMs? and Guitar Hero Dongles?

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  whatwasherproblem on 29/04/2022 - 12:28

  but still confusing as i have no idea the difference between a ROM and a copy of the game itself

  In terms of the data, literally nothing (a ROM is literally the data that's on the disk). However the disks themselves often physically have extra stuff on them that distinguishes them from burnt CDs/DVDs, I think. Back in the day we used to have to 'chip' the PS2 to get it to play burnt ROMs (e.g. as described here).

  Any reason it has to be the PS2 specifically? I'm not a gamer but I always thought Sony was pretty good with backwards compatibility for that sort of stuff.

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  trustnoone on 29/04/2022 - 12:49

  +1

  A) Do emulation roms work on the Ps2 itself?

  I think a few but most won't run well I think you can see compatibility in the link below, you might get GBA and NES?
  https://emulation.gametechwiki.com/index.php/Emulators_on_PS…

  B) I could only find US ROM versions of the games we have. Will these work on a PAL PS2?

  I think so, you're running MCboot which AFAIK will just work around all that anyway.

  C) Any things to watch out for when buying a IDE HDD adapter? My 3.5" is 250gb and my 2.5s are 120gb. I also have a SSD, but seems a waste.

  If you have a phat version you can get an adapter where the drive fits in one of the bays which is cool.

  D) Any solutions to finding guitar hero dongles (cashies seems the way). I have a standard controller wireless receiver, but didnt work.

  Not much I know of besides cashies, FB Marketplace, garage sales or similar. IMO you'd probably find it easier finding a 360 with one, and the 360 are quite cheap nowadays.

  • 

    tunzafun001 on 29/04/2022 - 15:44

    Just to clarify, i mean do the PS2 emulator ROMS (the ones people use on PCs) just work natively on a ps2 (via either a usb/ HDD) or in my case if I burnt them on to a CD. I just tried a burnt / patched copy of Guitar hero 5 on CD-R (patcher removed all the video sequences to fit on a CD), and that worked.

    So i guess im asking, how do i burn ROMs on to a CD. Do I need to compile it into some PS2 or iso format first?

• 

  idonotknowwhy on 29/04/2022 - 14:13

  +1

  TIL Guitar Hero was on PS2

  Ordered a new laser off eBay.

  Those lasers on ebay are often fake / or just as worn out as the worn out laser in your PS2 (but the pot has been turned up, burning out the laser even faster).
  Just gab one of these: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/33047125524.html and use OpenPS2Loader.

  USB

  The PS2 has USB1.1, which is several times slower than the DVD drive. Music would skip in guitar hero.

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  tunzafun001 on 29/04/2022 - 15:47

  Ah balls re laser! Oh well, ordered now.

  Good point re usb ..thanks.

  Other than requiring a special format, to make it FAT32 over 32GB, No size restrictions / issues with an IDE drive?

  Still not sure how to overcome the 4gb file limit, but we'll cross that later.

  Cheers

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  silverrat23 on 29/04/2022 - 16:04

  Presuming your Guitar Hero guitar is wireless, they will only connect to their respective wireless receivers. Without it, it's almost useless.

  Ebay is the only source that reliably have them, but they're fairly costly as a result. Otherwise, find one second-hand or find a wired Guitar, such as the Red Gibson SG, instead.

  • 

    tunzafun001 on 29/04/2022 - 23:10

    Yeah its wireless. There must be 1000s of these lurking in peoples draws etc. Everyone selling the stuff second hand dont have the dongles.