PSP: Custom Firmware M33 source released for popular tool’s 10 year anniversary
Hacker Mathieulh has released the source of the M33 CFW, as well as for Despertar Del Cementerio, two essential tools back in the days of PSP hacking. This release celebrates the 10th anniversary of the tools. M33 meant “March 33rd”, or April 2nd.
The public face of M33 was famous PSP hacker Dark Alex, but other hackers contributed to the two tools, including Mathieulh and adrahil, the two other members of Team M33. As most of the developers behind such tools have moved on a long time ago, it made sense to finally release the source.
M33 was widely used as a custom firmware for PSPs, until it was later replaced on newer models by TN HEN and CFW Pro, both of which were based on reverse engineered versions of M33.
Despertar Del Cementario was a tool used to unbrick and downgrade PSPs, with the use of the “service mode” batteries. In those days, entering service mode on the original model PSP only took a special battery with serial code “0” (or was it -1?), which then allowed “easy” access for downgrade, unbrick, or to install custom firmwares.
The combination of DDC and M33 was nothing short of magical: one would insert their magic battery in the device, boot it, and be presented with a Sony-like menu to install a CFW. Everything looked and felt like an official Firmware install, except more magical.
To this day, I still have my DDC kit (the battery + the memory stick on which DDC is installed) to easily switch between firmware on my PSP.
In practice, this release will not be useful for most of you, but for PSP and ePSP (Vita) developers, it it a critical piece of PSP hacking history.
Download M33 and DDC source code
You can download the source code for the M33 Custom Firmware and for Despertar Del Cemterio on mathieulh’s github, here and here respectively
Source: Mathieulh
10 years
Ah. The good old times <3
It was -1 (0xFFFFFFFF).
Exactly
0x00000000 was “autoboot”, right?
Yes!
I believe both settings were valid, but one just turned it into an auto boot battery without service mode, while the other turned it into an auto boot battery with service mode.
Nice , better PSP Support on Vita i guess might be coming then
What makes you think this? I’m no expert by any means, but this really only seems to benefit developers that want to make an improved M33…which is fun for some people to play around with I guess, but ultimately pointless for end users already running PRO and other CFW on their PSPs. As for the Vita, it might help with eCFW, but eCFW itself is quickly becoming obsolete with (tai)Henkaku out. This is really just for posterity. Wololo even says this: “In practice, this release will not be useful for most of you, but for PSP and ePSP (Vita) developers, it it a critical piece of PSP hacking history.”
Doubtful seeing as how the eCFW was based on more advanced versions of PSP CFW that reverse engineered M33 so there isnt realy anything that this would really help with.
It’s mostly for archiving purposes most likely.
Man, I remember bustin’ open my first battery to turn it into a Pandora’s Battery, then reverting it with just some pencil lead. ***’ priceless.
Then they released the software version where you could turn any battery into a Pandora’s Battery with just a few button presses, and still use it as a regular one. Back when things were simplier. lol.
happy 10 years ! 😀
Used my DDC lots of times for my friends back in those days, I can only agree about the magical feel it procured
M33 was the peak PSP CFW, I’m still using 5.00M33-6 with the 1.50 kernel addon on my launch PSP 1000
I’m sorry.
yeah you are
I still have my Pandora’s battery and memory stick all stored away, and from time to time play my PSP which is still on 5.00 M33-6 with the 1.50 kernel too. My lovely 32GB memory stick, which is a micro SD in a wonderfully useful Sony PSP memory stick adapter, best £5 I ever spent for any gaming system. heck, it’s the best adapater for any system that I ever got. Love it, and have actually decided to treat my faithful, launch date PSP 1000 to a new suit, and am looking at new cases as we speak. There’s talk about a new PSP to be released, alleged to be fully PS1&PS2 backwards compatible out of the box, as well as UMD and VITA compatible too, all with a lovingly enhanced Android OS making it fully awesome, ALMOST! If they wanted to really blow the market away and ensure it sells like the original PSP did, even better than that, they should give it phone capability also, with Bluetooth stereo headset included, they could use the slightly older but still amazing Sony MW600 Bluetooth headset adapter, https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-Ericsson-MW-600-Bluetooth-Headphones-black/dp/B0038M3H4S this allows you to use your own preferred choice of headphones, and yet give full stereo and microphone capability, as it’s an older product they could include it in the bundle, with decent front and rear cameras too, I believe it would be the FIRST EVER, successful portable gaming/multimedia/phone device ever. And I’d pay upto £350-£400 at the very top end for something with all that capability. Wouldn’t you all?
I was hoping for a real surprise, not some outdated source code. Sure, it was great 10 years ago if you had a PSP, but not very useful today,
That’s why the original announcement clearly mentioned the release was intended for PSP *developers*. It was clear from the beginning that there would be nothing particularly usefull or interesting for end users and everyone that was expecting anything usefull like henkaku for 3.63 or similar can only blame themselves for a lack of text comprehension.
Heh, that article image brings back so many memories…
“Despertar Del Cementario was a tool used to unbrick and downgrade PSPs”
There is a typo, its “Despertar Del Cementerio”, which translates to something like “Back from the dead”.
Ahh yes break the leg of the little chip on the battery lol good old days
6.61 M33 with imorovements from TEAM M33 was a nice try, homeverin future based on the source of 3.90?
neur0n was a good coder withnskills, who is he? hmmm`?
God, this is familiar…
Heh, 10 years passed already. Good memories, thanks to those devs for their dedication.