Why can I not copy PSX CD's.
Protection detail.
Two methods of protection within the psx include identifying "BAD BLOCKS" that are written purposely into the CD. There is also a country code lockout protection to compare the first 5 sectors on a CD with the origination of the machine to make sure they match, to keep a user from importing versions. They are not intended to use. Black CD's are made with special recorders which are able to create bad blocks (segments of data on the CD which have been marked as invalid). These blocks normally are not wanted because any data that is located in a bad block is lost. Because of this, nearly all consumer CD recorders are designed to correct bad blocks when they read them before writing them to new CD's. Unless you work with Sony's special development recorders, (These recorders are only leased to companies that have a vested interest in keeping the protection intact., they are NOT available to end-users). Then using the below methods for copying WILL allow you to fully copy all data successfully onto a blank Cdr.
But will require a modified boot chip, (MOD chip for short) to replace the boot chip in your psx to tell the psx that all discs are original and for the country made. There is also a swap trick method that works with the early Playstation models, but in most cases the swap trick will not work 100% and it is recommended to get a mod chip to play copies.
Advanced: Details on the actual Bad Blocks: (Written by Icepick)
Sectors 12 through 15 contain a zeroised EDC/ECC checksum (impossible) so if the PSX reads and doesn't see an invalid EDC/ECC then it knows that the CD in the drive is a copy. (The EDC is simply a CRC type hash that is used as a checksum to determine if the sector was read correctly. The ECC is used to recreate the sector data). The entire range of sectors is written in a RAW format (2352 bytes) and is completely zeroed, even the XA sub-header and EDC/ECC are zeroed. When it is copied on a CDR, these sectors are exact, except for the EDC/ECC code that is (correctly) written as 0x3F13B0BC. Icepick also mentions that modifying the bios of the Cdr. to allow you to write in either disc-at-once or track-at-once mode. That way it would not automatically 'correct' what it thinks to be corrupt sectors with invalid EDC/ECC codes and using a copy method of writing the first track in RAW mode (2352 byte sectors, CD-DA) and then force the table of contents to report the track as a CD-XA track. (NOTE: copy instructions below include methods to do this), it is possible to play a Cdr. copy on an original psx without a mod chip.
NOTE: I have copied numerous CD's with Gear 4.2 for example using the above method without a modified bios of the CD writer, and this DOES NOT allow using the disc without a mod chip. So unless you have knowledge of modifying the firmware/bios of the Cdr, then you will need a mod chip simply to play the CD's. Many people have asked if software can do it without a CD-writer modification, and the answer is NO, the software methods are below and will tell you how to back up the CD properly, but again will require a boot chip or swap trick to play back.
Last modified 18-01-98