PSP 200x Series 5.50 Firmware Hacking?

[Maverik]

I've searched high and low to try and figure out how to hack my PSP so that I can just run some custom firmware and get into the homebrew scene. I'm reluctant to go spending money on the whole "Pandora Battery" solution, and I'm getting conflicting information regarding my situation from all over the internet. Especially since most of the stuff I'm finding is circa 2009ish...

I have a 2002 series PSP Slim running OFW 5.50. Now, I THINK I don't have the TA-088v3 Motherboard, as my Date Code is "7c" and my serial number starts with "HA0", which I've been lead to believe are both strong indicators that I do not have the dreaded TA-088v3 board. I tried to look into a definitive way to check this, but the best I found was a program that tells you what motherboard you have so you know if it's safe to hack your PSP, but you apparently need a PSP already running CFW? So THAT was no help at all...

I WAS following this very handy step by step guide on how to hack your PSP, reportedly so long as you're under version 5.51, but got stopped at the updater step when the official patch refused to downgrade. And this is the tricky patch I guess. Everything suggests that I need to downgrade my OFW version. Some people claim that it's impossible without a Pandora Battery, others claim otherwise (and mostly link to dead links). I even looked into something called Libtiff, but that seems to be a dead end, as even if it IS just a program that crashes the PSP, I can't find a working download for it...

So is there ANYTHING I can do here? Is there ANY other solution besides "go buy a pandora battery"? Upgrading, downgrading... ANYTHING at all? I'd really appreciate it if I could get a modern answer to this problem rather than all these threads and musings of 2009 wondering if there will ever be a solution for us poor 5.50 OFW users.

EDIT:
Would this solve my problem? I'm not sure if I have the right version for it? Nobody is ever very clear as to what works when with what

http://pspslimhacks.com/release-easy...run-6-20-tn-b/

[Doja]

As far as your edit goes, it may be like putting a band-aid on an open wound. You are pretty far out of date, so I would suggest getting this (6.60ME 1.8) as your CFW, it is a permanent patch, which I prefer. Just format your memory stick and start from there man. Reply back if you had problems doing that.

[Maverik]

I seem to have hit an immediate wall in this procedure. I apparently need to first install OFW 6.60, then get CFW 6.60 ME 1.6, then upgrade THAT to CFW 6.60 ME 1.8.

But I can't get the damn thing to upgrade to OFW 6.60! I can't do it directly through the PSP because it refuses to connect to my WiFi, so I go and download it from the official site. I get my EBOOT.PBP file, I follow some directions and stick it in PSP/GAME/UPDATE, go into the newly formed folder and... The PSP tells me the Data is corrupt. Am I going to need to get some other intermediate step here? :\

EDIT:
I read elsewhere that you should only have to go into "System Update" and select storage medium, but I only have "Network Update" and it does not give me the option to do it from the storage...

[El Guapo]

Can you update wirelessly?

EDIT: Restore default settings first before you try to connect wirelessly. You have a wireless network I hope?

[Maverik]

I do have a wireless network, but some setting was clashing with the PSP causing it to be unable to confer the password correctly. Ended up having to circomvent this by tethering it to my phone and downloading it over 3G. Got the update and both CFW's, so now I'm successfully running 6.60 ME-1.8!

Is there anything special I need to do to run ISO's etc on this? I remember reading something about loaders? My friend on Ventrillo is saying that you just have to put the ISO's in the correct folders, but he may be using a different system to me (as he has an ancient PSP that's been hacked and re-hacked since the dawn of time).

[El Guapo]

Create a folder on your memory stick and name it ISO, this folder will be alongside all your other folders. In other words, it will be in the root of the memory stick and not inside any other folders. Set your UMD ISO MODE in your VSH menu to either ME Driver or Sony NP9660

[Maverik]

And the ISO's I put in that folder will appear under Game's in the XBM (or whatever the acronym was)?

[El Guapo]

Yes sir they will

[Maverik]

Awesome! Thanks for the help guys! Once you stepped in, this whole headache became so much easier to get through. Now I finally have a PSP I'll actually use, instead of constantly forgetting I own one at all hahaha.

You guys rock!

[El Guapo]

Glad everything worked out for you