Cobra BiOS v1.0 -Review-

Written by Brakken, 2005

The Cobra BIOS v1.0 release has come and gone and I have decided to give my impressions on BIOS itself. First I will go over the new features and give the positives and negatives associated with each one. I will be only covering new, fixed or updated features. If you want to know more about the entire BIOS please see reviews for v0.1 - v0.4.

For a full detailed description on how to use Cobra v1.0 and get the most out of it's new features please see my "Mod That Cube" FAQ at http://modthatcube.psx-scene.com

"Direct boot of all media, without swapping!"

Well this in itself is very misleading as only DVD-R media works and DVD+R doesn't work with direct boot. Also there is now less compatibility for -R media as a lot of cheap media that used to boot under v0.4 no longer boots. Also there is a problem with the drive not spinning up fast enough for full sized DVD media so a lot of people cannot direct boot full sized media either. The positive aspect is apparent it's a great feature as long as you're using good quality mini DVD-R media. Can we say Ritek G04 Mini's?

"Fixed compatibility problem with DOL-101 units "

All in all this works 100% and is a great feature. I had a few friends one mine that had to have been using GCOS because of this, now they can switch over to the king of BIOS the Cobra!

"Automatic Media Detection: Insert disc, turn on GC and play!"

This is cool. Basically it will detect whether or not you have a backup or original and play it.

"Fixed Idle bug, you won't have any DRE if the drive is resting"

This in itself is a godsend as is a great addition! Mario Tennis and Resident Evil 4 are prime examples of games that you can actually play now!

"Powerful Cheat Code System compatible with Action Replay codes, codes are stored in the Viper GC Flash so no memory card is needed!"

Cheats are nice, but fellows do you realize there is only 4 kilobytes of BIOS space reserved for the codes? For example try installing all the codes for Resident Evil 4. Once you install the codes you're already out of room! Who the hell would want an Action Replay that can only store a few codes in it? They also try to spin it so that it's like some great thing that you don't need a memory card! For now the only solution is to constantly delete and add new codes when you run out of space.

"Cheat codes can be either entered using Cobra Menus or loaded from a file using the Disc Explorer"

I dig the ability to load the files from the disc explorer. This option is great! Lots of people have already posted code(s) for most of the games out there on the net. Get 'R done!

"Unique Multi-Boot feature: put several games on one single disc!"

This is a godsend for the people out there who use emulators that create ISO files. It sure as heck will save you a bunch of blanks! The downside is that if you're going to be making multi-boot DVDs with original games on it you're most likely not going to be able to play most of them as this is buggy and tends to not work half of the time.

Okay I've gone over the features. First thing I want you to understand is that I'm not bashing the BIOS, but I am giving a fair an honest opinion it.

I also want to point out that this release DID NOT fix the Audio Streaming Bug, the DOL loading bug or the Multi-Disc Game Bug as previously promised. In my opinion "no-swap" is pointless if you can only play half way through a game and can't listen to it's sound. Yes I know there is the "sound fix" floating around, but this "sound fix" is bugged and will result in producing faulty sound.

Being very disappointed that I still cannot load 75% of the DOL files on the net using this BIOS left me with a bad taste in my mouth. I really want to play SNES9XGC on my Cube. The thing is GCOS also cannot load DOL's correctly from the Viper chip, but can load them fine using "soft mods". This is proof that there is something wrong with the Viper hardware itself.

Some good things they fixed were the random crashing of the BIOS, the random black screens when starting the BIOS and the random not loading of media during the swap. I am really glad that these bugs have been fixed!

Conclusion

Since the release of v1.0 I have been greatly impressed and am glad that Mental Cube is doing such a fine job with the BIOS. Without this BIOS we would all be lost!

I for one don't believe this BIOS deserves the "1.0" label as this status is generally given to a product that has been thoroughly tested and all of its features actually work. I think that lying to the public about creating a BIOS that would run most games all the way through that you could listen to, but instead create a no swap solution that only works with 45% of the media out there and including a cheat system that is basically pointless due to storage space was a great error of judgement.

Of course this went over well for the lamers because as soon as they saw these functions they creamed their pants and went on their merry way, but trust me once these problems become know these same people who complained for months "where is cobra" are going to start complaining again "where is the next cobra".

The release is good for what it is and shows that DMS/Mental Cube is still supporting a product that is on its last leg, but due to the small BIOS size, the DOL loading issues and the fact that Mental Cube barely updates anything, lies about it's next versions and now refuses to have outside beta tester I doubt we'll see any more really innovative features coming out any time soon.

I would also like to comment on the Cobra BIOS going into GPL and its source going to be released. This is a last ditch effort for DMS to bring life into its Viper chip. I think it's too little too late as other chips are being released as you read this that are far superior and will be rich with features that sadly the Viper chip does not have room for. Don't be sad though, as this happens in every modchip scene. Chips grow up and new generations come out which are all of course based on previous generations. I personally just rather use a DMS 4 Pro on my PS2 then use an old Magic Chip. It's the same deal here.

At least the Viper had its time and brought much life back into the scene.

Overall the Cobra BIOS is one of the best BIOS around for the GameCube. Don't think because I pointed out some negative aspects that I do not like the Cobra BIOS. It's a damn great BIOS and I use it all the time!

Do not forget this is only a review of v1.0 and v0.1 - v0.4 have many great features that were not mentioned here due to the fact they have already been reviewed.

I would suggest anyone that owns a Viper GC chip to upgrade to Cobra v1.0 right away!

NOTE: A lot of people think that due to my situation with PS2NFO (http://ps2banz.pxn-os.com) I have written this review to spite them. What most people do not know that PS2NFO is simply a news site and DOES NOT make the Viper or Cobra BIOS.

DMS makes the Viper GC Chip along with other products such as the HD Loader/Advance/Extreme, DMS 4 Pro & Lite and the DMS 4 EZI Pro & Lite. I personally own the Viper GC, DMS 4 Pro and the HD Advance and I love these products!

Mental Cube (aka Paradox) creates the Cobra BIOS and is paid to do so. I've always enjoyed paradox's work and am glad they are making such a killer BIOS!

PS2NFO are just some sellouts that happen to get to release Cobra to the public first. As you can see they have nothing to do with the chip and/or bios other then the fact the get to release the BIOS first.

If I were to base my review on the fact that someone who lies, cheats, steals and alters information to make money gets to release some BIOS first then I would be as guilty as they are.

Links

www.teamxtender.com
- Team Xtender's Homepage

www.extreme-mods.com
- Great source in the USA for the Viper GC!

modthatcube.pxn-os.com
- The Mod That Cube Online FAQ

-=[Cobra BiOS v1.0 Review Discussion Thread]=-

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