Any theories on why I couldn't create a MMS?

Hello everyone.

I hacked my PSP Slim about a year ago, and I thought I should buy another one as a gift before they all have the TA-088v3 motherboards. To make a long story short, I was successful in hacking this new one, but I ran into some unforeseen problems (including bricking it during the process!).

So at this point it's for my own curiousity as to why I'm asking this. I would love to know what I was doing wrong.

I ordered the limited edition Daxter bundle (the one with the silver PSP Slim), thinking it was older and would be my best bet to get a motherboard compatible with my Pandora battery. When I first booted it up, I was happy to see it had OFW 3.72. I say this because that is exactly what the firmware was on the other one I successfully hacked a year ago. So even though there's about 800 different CFW installers floating around on the internet for various models of PSPs, I knew I could do exactly what I did before with no worries. Simple right?

Well, my problems began immediately. I was using the Pandora Universal Downgrader Easy Installer to create a MMS and install 3.71-M33. But everytime I clicked on step 4 it would immediately indicate it was finished, and there would be no files on the MMS. (I'm still using XP like I did the last time I did this by the way.)

So I thought maybe there was something wrong with the memory stick. I took out the 1gb stick (which came with the bundle) and tried a 256mb stick I used when I hacked my last one. Same problem - no files on the MMS even though the installer indicated it's complete.

So now I have no idea what's wrong. I download a different installer (Total Newbie Installer) and it seems to be working like a charm. It installs a bunch of files on the 256mb stick and it looks like I'm ready to go.

I insert the Pandora battery, the green light comes on, but the screen is black. I'm not sure what went wrong after that, but I can only assume I pressed a wrong button - because after I removed Pandora, the PSP would no longer boot. Dang, I bricked it.

It was then I realized I still had my original 3.71-M33 install files saved on my hard drive for my last PSP. (These were the very files I created with the Pandora Universal Downgrader Easy Installer last year.) I transferred those to my 256mb stick, reinserted Pandora and - thank goodness - I now have a menu with an option to install custom firmware. Aside from the fact that I have no way now to backup my nand, all is good.

But I just don't get it. How come I can use the same installer on the same memory stick with another PSP Slim using the same official firmware and create a MMS? But on the new silver slim it doesn't work? If I hadn't already had a hacked PSP with MMS files saved, I have no idea how I could have fixed this!

Now that my silver PSP Slim has 3.71-M334, I thought just for kicks I would try creating the MMS again on it. Reinserted the 256mb stick and started up the Pandora Universal Downgrader Easy Installer. Wouldn't you know it - it created a MMS without a hitch.

I'm sure I tried it at least 3 times yesterday when the PSP still had OFW 3.72. The program obviously works fine. Is it possible the official firmware had a way of preventing the files from being created? (Even though I never had this problem hacking OFW 3.72 before?) :confused: This is too bizarre.

I thought to make a MMS u had to do it on a modded psp.

Next time your psp gets Bricked use Despater Del Cementerio

psp slim can not use the old methods of downgrading since the built in firmware is 3.72 so the cfw has to be 3.72 m33 or higher

i had a problem similar but it did not brick it. what i did was use DCv4-tm but it would not boot to menu no matter what i did but noticed during mms install it did not write an ipl so i downloaded RainsUltraLiteMMS installer and used it to just inject the ipl and it worked perfect