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How to Pimp Your Xbox Media Center - Lifehacker
lifehacker.com — So you've turned your classic Xbox into a full-blown media center (or you're thinking about it) and now you want to add the finishing touches —like games, album art and streaming video—to your setup. Read how to do it with this article at lifehacker.
Riley- 1499 diggs
- digg it
- xstnothing, on 10/10/2007, -38/+7Buried for the word pimp being used to describe something other than a man who solicits for prostitutes.
- specialK16, on 10/10/2007, -5/+1hehehe
- Visnik, on 10/23/2007, -0/+10You are thinking of a John. A pimp finds and manages clients for prostitutes.
- utkwes, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1No, he phrased that correctly, a pimp does look for prostitutes, just not in the same way that a john does.
- intent, on 10/10/2007, -3/+7Too bad Action Replays cost a lot now...or at least they do around here.
- theraapster, on 10/10/2007, -2/+5This is for you: http://www.xbox-scene.com/articles/xbox-usb-xbox-c ...
- qwerty121, on 10/10/2007, -0/+7Or if you are a tramp like me, http://forums.xbox-scene.com/index.php?showtopic=4 ...
I did that and popped in AID afterwards and my XBMC is pimped.- IBadassI, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Sorry for being ignorant, but what does the "AID" stand for that you popped in afterward?
- Kanundra, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Agreed- No need for an action replay anymore. I don't know why sites keep telling users to buy one.
- chedabob, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Everyone does it some really hard way. If you own a USB flash drive, you can use the cable theraapster linked to, along with Xplorer360 to copy files to the stick in the correct format. You don't even have to open the Xbox.
- IBadassI, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Sorry for being ignorant, but what does the "AID" stand for that you popped in afterward?
- MagicCake, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3For everyone who wants to mod their Xbox without buying extra *****, I highly recommend the method in the link qwerty121 just posted. I did it the other day and it worked nicely, no Action Replay needed. As long as you have some basic PC knowledge, you'll be fine.
- RobotBuddha, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Agreed. The hotswap seemed a little nervewracking at first, the system being a giant black box in more than one way. But it's pretty dead on simple for the most part.
- 10001110101, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Tip for Canadians: if you're having trouble finding the Action Replay Kit, check your local Zellers..
- joshman5k, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2I did it with just a normal memory card and having a friend with a modded xbox transfer the hacked saves onto my memory card. It worked fine :)
- weebmac, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2You don't need an Action Replay. Use the USB controller mod theraapster posted and then tweak the ActionReplay driver file to accept whichever memory device you're using. Here is a guide:
http://forums.xbox-scene.com/index.php?act=ST&f=44 ...- chedabob, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1It's hit or miss whether it works though.
- Rikushix, on 10/10/2007, -12/+4The title of the article was "Soup up your Media Center"...I'd rather he use the word "pimp" than "soup".
- voodooKobra, on 10/10/2007, -3/+6Fukken saved!
- specialK16, on 10/10/2007, -3/+4"pr0n downloaders."
What? Where!!?? - ClOlD, on 10/10/2007, -10/+2Don't album/DVD covers taking up the screen just make it take longer to scroll through your list of media? The actual song/movie is the content, not the cover. The content is what I want, so get me to it faster, not slower!
And nothing about the cool hacks that actually add functionality to XBMC, like using python to control a remote satellite tuner and stream the video over the network?
I guess to "pimp" something really does mean to make it flashy without adding any substance. Xzbit, you have taught us well.- Protoss, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5Well then dont use the album covers. I like being able to scroll through fairly fast, looking for my favorite album by cover, than by name. I can spot it much faster.
- ClOlD, on 10/10/2007, -1/+0Well, I can read, and have just as many videos on my network share that have DVD covers available for them as those without, so I prefer to use the smallest font I can make out at 1080i. To each his own, apparently.
- Juntistik, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2Honestly I love the DVD covers, and my Wide Icons for my Tv shows, looks more flashy and my girlfriend can understand the UI better. What I find really cool is all I have to do is just label the content and pick a source and if named properly it will download the art directly from IMDB or TVDB and apply art to each movie/show, although at times you do get the occasional ugly DVD art, such as the discs protruding out of the case. (example: http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/I/51EERECWD8L. ... But a simple search can fix it no problem.
I don't really use the movie or episode information but still a neat feature none the less. You can also have the information from the movie or tv show hidden if you haven't watched it yet. I haven't found a media center that can do what XBMC can.
...Oh yeah it plays games too... - Juntistik, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2fixed link: http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/I/51EERECWD8L. ... forgot to put a space :p
- Protoss, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5Well then dont use the album covers. I like being able to scroll through fairly fast, looking for my favorite album by cover, than by name. I can spot it much faster.
- AndrewDB, on 01/10/2008, -15/+3How are all these LifeHacker stories making the front page lately?
It just seems very suspicious... almost like.. Oh I don't know..LifeHacker says to its regular posters "If you don't Digg this story we'll take your first born and cut your testicals or reproductive organs off or out of your body with a dull wooden spork..".. but.. nah.. I regress.. it couldn't be something like that..
Or could it?- abandonedhero, on 10/10/2007, -0/+11By people digging it because they think it's interesting? That's the concept, right?
- merdiesel, on 10/10/2007, -14/+2Again with "news" on XBMC making front page?..
Thats 2 in less then a month I believe. We already did this 4 years ago...- ClOlD, on 10/19/2007, -2/+4For serious. The application hasn't been improved at ALL since its first release. Oh, wait...
- p0tent1al, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4Guess what, I didn't know about this 4 years ago. And Xbox is much cheaper than it was 4 years ago. About 400 people have dugg this up so far. Why be so elitist? I have never even tried this, and I dugg it up, because I'm definitely thinking about setting up something like this.
- Monk22, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1unlike you mer, i have had XBMC for 3 years now but i still come into these to find out if someone needs help it can be nerve racking for a noob to hack his xbox. it was for me, anyway merdiesel compared to the daily flood of ipood stories i dont think you have any reason to complain about 2 stories in a month.
- mrboratsagdiev, on 10/10/2007, -1/+13Not only can you do all of the above, you can watch over 400 International and Domestic TV stations (recorded and live) from the comfort of your own home with the free and updated downloadable XBMC-TV stream pack: http://op9.net/tag/xbmc-tv -- a friend of mine assembles it, and it's 100% awesome.
- Juntistik, on 10/10/2007, -1/+10Anything xbmc related gets my digg. Watching CSI on it right now as a matter of fact.
- stoppedcode12, on 10/10/2007, -4/+4XMBC needs to be ported to x86.
- WolfDV, on 10/10/2007, -0/+8they are porting it . . XBMC linux is being actively developed, visit the xbmc homepage. . they are looking for good people to help out
- dsn0wman, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I got this one running on my feisty box last month.
http://www.digg.com/linux_unix/How_to_install_the_ ...
- dsn0wman, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I got this one running on my feisty box last month.
- WhiteHamster, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1theres also linux mce and various things of that sort, its supposed to be really cool
- chedabob, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1It's already running on x86. But it uses libraries that only work on the Xbox.
- bjevers, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1One of the founders of XBMC left the project a few years ago to start up Media Portal for the PC. It's free and open source. I have never tried it, but you can check it out here: http://www.team-mediaportal.com/
- WolfDV, on 10/10/2007, -0/+8they are porting it . . XBMC linux is being actively developed, visit the xbmc homepage. . they are looking for good people to help out
- str3ama, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Use it in conjunction with http://www.getdemocracy.org / http://www.freetube.us.tc
- aspen, on 10/10/2007, -1/+6You can browse scripts from within XBMC if you're online, and you can find many here as well: http://www.xbmcscripts.com/
- aspen, on 10/10/2007, -10/+2You can browse scripts from within XBMC and get them from here as well.
http://www.xbmcscripts.com/- aspen, on 10/10/2007, -5/+2dig this down
- ClOlD, on 10/10/2007, -4/+0Don't you mean
"digg this down
digg this down"?
- ClOlD, on 10/10/2007, -4/+0Don't you mean
- aspen, on 10/10/2007, -5/+2dig this down
- messs, on 10/10/2007, -1/+8And here I thought all this was pretty obvious from the prompts built right into XBMC... Maybe we all need tutorials for the obvious.
No, really, XBMC is really refined and these are all pretty easy to configure right through the XBMC interface. No hacks or XML editing or special knowledge needed. - Tenoq, on 10/10/2007, -5/+1Does XBMC support 1080i? And while I realise it's unlikely, anyone using a USB TV tuner with an XBMC at all? Been tempting to do this, but not sure it would be a good substitute for my laptop-come-HTPC.
- ClOlD, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Yes and yes.
Also, yes. - RandomSkratch, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Care to explain how you have done this or provide any websites with the how to's?
- ClOlD, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Sure - I use a Twinhan StarBox DVB tuner on a PC running MyTheatre with the AVBroadcaster plugin to stream MPEG2 over my network, and a python script in XBMC to switch channels and access the program guide.
As for 1080i, it's BUILT-IN to the default install. How is anyone missing this?- zingit, on 10/10/2007, -1/+0It's a bit sluggish though (choppy framerate), 720p is a lot smoother and looks just as good.
- Tenoq, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Not interested in running a DVB tuner in another PC - I want to replace the HTPC with the Xbox. Can an Xbox run a USB DTV tuner? As in PLUG IN DIRECTLY TO THE XBOX. I understand it's Linux-based, but can you install the driver binaries required?
- ClOlD, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Sure - I use a Twinhan StarBox DVB tuner on a PC running MyTheatre with the AVBroadcaster plugin to stream MPEG2 over my network, and a python script in XBMC to switch channels and access the program guide.
- TypeEE, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2it can't decode 1080i H.264 because it doesn't have enough power. It can do 480p upscale to 1080i though.
- ClOlD, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Yes and yes.
- vidhyakamalakan, on 10/10/2007, -11/+0hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
- huntr2, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4I think XBMC supports up to 1080pi but only for the interface, some 720p content will work, I have been sucessful with xvid at a reasonable bitrate. A lot of HD content won't work because of the lack of processing power, it's a 733Mhz Celeron with 64MB RAM so it's doing pretty well considering it's features.
I've modded 2 xbox's with the SmartXX chips and it's pretty easy. You need a torx driver to take apart the console but it's just like a computer inside. You do need some soldering skills but you can get solderless adapters for most chips, including the SmartXX ones.- Juntistik, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2or you can softmod. Chips are obsolete now.
- chedabob, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Chips offer a lot more stability that softmods don't have.
- mrboratsagdiev, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I've had a softmod running for about 2.5 years now without fail. In fact, the only time it failed, it was because the partition table went to ***** on the hard drive.
- chedabob, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Chips offer a lot more stability that softmods don't have.
- Juntistik, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2or you can softmod. Chips are obsolete now.
- void, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1Or you could download a version of xbmc that already comes "pimped"
http://bitspace.dyndns.org:6560/ - Stryker412, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Anyone have a good tutorial for upgrading the XBOX HDD?
- gfnw, on 10/19/2007, -3/+1Open case. Remove HDD. Insert new one.
- urbinwaste, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1http://forums.xbox-scene.com Slayers 2.7 boot cd makes it really painless.
- chedabob, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4Doesn't work with Softmods though.
- HellGlitch, on 10/10/2007, -3/+2It's been my observation that The XBMC software is kinda hard to come by as of now. That and Action Replays for Original Xbox are really hard to come by In my town also. That and, I have a 360, I see no point in doing this. Although It does look pretty cool.
- electricmba, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4XBMC is available in #xbins on EFNet. Action Replay and Original Xboxes are all over eBay - about 2,000 Xboxes on there at the moment, as cheap as $40.
I have a 360 also - and the media sharing and streaming you have to use is pathetic compared to XBMC. That, and XBMC can be extended and customized to do just about anything you would want a Media PC to do. - 9tendo, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Use XBINS TIRC. It's an IRC client pre-configured for XBINS. Alternatively, here's a direct T3CH link out there and also a Pimped Edition site. You can find many used Xbox1s at Gamestop or Craigslist. You don't need action replay. Softmod and TSOP files are available on Xbins, get that stuff, read up on xbox-scene.com, and go get yourself a soldering iron.
- akiller, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1ftp://xbins:homebrew@xbmp.uk.xbins.org - the latest T3CH SVN releases are always here.
- gfnw, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1The 360 is not yet a substitute for XBMC for many people. I for one don't give a ***** about streaming media from my PC, I want a media center with a HDD that can store and play content locally with the features that XBMC has. Unless you have some massive multi-TB media server that's always on, I see no point in running two machines to do a job that one can do just fine.
- electricmba, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4XBMC is available in #xbins on EFNet. Action Replay and Original Xboxes are all over eBay - about 2,000 Xboxes on there at the moment, as cheap as $40.
- JohnnyRad, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4you know...you don't need an action replay to run xbmc
- greenmountain, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3VISION skin seriously great
http://forums.xbox-scene.com/index.php?showtopic=5 ...
SVN
https://xboxmediacenter.svn.sourceforge.net/svnroo ...
Icon packs https://OpenSVN.csie.org/Icons - Cimlite, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Too bad those screenshots looks a little weird... I've never really liked that perticular font. You can make it look a lot cleaner by switching to one of the others.
And when showing off XBMC, the screenshots should be at 720p. Makes it look a lot better.- mrboratsagdiev, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I've used 1080i for the interface, and it bogs down a little and seems too far-spaced. 720p is really ideal.
- RandomSkratch, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I still need to find the component cables for my xbox. Are they even being sold?
- JFitzpatrick, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0You can find legacy XBOX parts all over the net... but I can only recommend eStarland.com since thats the only site I've personally ordered from. The parts are cheap and they have everything from replacement AV cables to power supplies. The cable you need is only $6.50.
http://www.estarland.com/XBox.cat.AC.product.14425 ...
- JFitzpatrick, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0You can find legacy XBOX parts all over the net... but I can only recommend eStarland.com since thats the only site I've personally ordered from. The parts are cheap and they have everything from replacement AV cables to power supplies. The cable you need is only $6.50.
- jalexhall1989, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1A good one he missed out is the built in Xlink-Kai support. If your not sure what this is, it's basically free Xbox-Live. It works through a process called tunneling. Tunneling is pretty much just tricking your Xbox into thinking your just on a huge lan. The Plus of having XBMC control xlink-kai is that you don't have you get up to connect to any of the servers, you do it right from the xbox. Which is very nice if your stringing a 40 ft ethernet cable to your computer. It's also nice in that you don't have to have your friends tell you if they joined the server or not by yelling across your house :)
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