GE 5803P

IMPORTANT NOTICE!!!

There is a GE 5803P and now also a GE 5803PB! They look identical on the outside -- they all say "GE5803P" on their respective boxes (except for a small sticker on the side of the box). But there is one crucial difference: the players use different video encoder chips. THUS, THEY CANNOT USE THE SAME FIRMWARE. Using firmware from the 5803PB on the 5803P (or vice-versa) will RUIN the player's firmware chip!

This page will explain how to tell the difference between the 5803P and 5803PB. Once you've figured out which player you have, you will be able to add the Loopholes Menu (or remove the Loopholes Menu, if you want to return the player to its factory state.)

NOTE: The instructions on this page assume that you have never upgraded your 5803P in the past. If you have upgraded it in the past, and you cannot figure out how to alter the instructions accordingly for the upgrade described here,
join the GE Yahoo Group and ask for assistance.

The first step in this process is to open up your 5803P and verify that you have the "BT865" video encoder chip. When looking at the player from the top, with the back facing towards you, the chip is located on the lower-left corner of the main circuit board:

Here's a close-up of the "BT865" chip:



IF YOU CANNOT LOCATE THIS CHIP ON THE CIRCUIT BOARD, OR IF YOU HAVE A DIFFERENT TYPE OF VIDEO CHIP, DO NOT CONTINUE. THE FIRMWARE PATCH IS DESIGNED TO WORK ONLY WITH THE "BT865" CHIP. IF YOUR PLAYER HAS A DIFFERENT CHIP, THE FIRMWARE PATCH WILL CAUSE YOUR PLAYER TO STOP FUNCTIONING.

IF YOU SEE THIS CHIP INSTEAD...

...YOU LIKELY HAVE THE 5803PB.
IN THIS CASE, DO NOT USE THE FILES ON THIS PAGE!
INSTEAD, CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE 5803PB PAGE.

Unlike many other players discussed on this site, Shinco-built players (such as the 5803P) do not allow you to simply download firmware and burn that firmware to a CD for upgrading purposes. Instead, you must download the firmware AND a special program. The special program, in conjunction with the firmware you download, will create a separate file which is used for upgrading.

For the purpose of clarity, these instructions assume that all files will be downloaded to the Windows Desktop (i.e., C:\WINDOWS\Desktop) and all folders created will be on the Desktop (i.e., C:\WINDOWS\Desktop\My_New_Folder)

1. Download the "Shinco CD Generator" program by clicking HERE.

2. Download THIS file.

3. Unzip the contents of the Shinco CD Generator file you downloaded (Shinco_CD_generator.zip) to the Windows Desktop, into a new folder named "Shincocd".
(i.e., C:\WINDOWS\Desktop\Shincocd).

After unzipping, you should have the following files inside the "Shincocd" folder:

MakeASD.bat
mce.bin
Readme.txt
rest.bin
SHINCOCD.EXE
subst.bin

4. The file you downloaded in Step #2 will contain a file named readme.txt and a file named ROM.BIN. Unzip the ROM.BIN file to the "Shincocd" directory.

After unzipping, you should now have the following files inside the "Shincocd" folder:

MakeASD.bat
mce.bin
Readme.txt
rest.bin
ROM.BIN
SHINCOCD.EXE
subst.bin

5. Now, double-click on the SHINCOCD.EXE file. An MS-DOS window will now appear:

6. Enter "63" WITHOUT the quotation marks, and push
"Enter" or "Return" on your keyboard.

"63" is the firmware's "machine code".

7. You should now see the following sentence added to the MS-DOS window
(without the quotation marks) --

" POIUYTRE.ASD succesfully generated ! "

8. You should now see all of the following files inside the "Shincocd" folder:

MakeASD.bat
mce.bin
POIUYTRE.ASD
Readme.txt
rest.bin
ROM.BIN
ROMOUT.BIN
SHINCOCD.EXE
subst.bin

9. Right-click on the POIUYTRE.ASD file and select "Properties" (or do whatever is necessary to view the Properties.) Make sure that the file size is EXACTLY 2,276,401 bytes.
If the file size is NOT 2,276,401 bytes, DO NOT CONTINUE!

10. Burn the POIUYTRE.ASD file to a blank CD-R/CD-RW. Be sure to apply these specifications before burning the disc:
Data CD, ISO9660, Mode 1, "Close"/"Finalize" disc session.

(If you don't know how to apply these specifications, or if you need any other help with burning the disc, you might want to check out this excellent article put together by the guys at Area 450.
The article references Sampo firmware, but the burning specifications are the same.)

11. Read this disclaimer:

DISCLAIMER: USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. I DO NOT OWN A GE 5803P, SO I CANNOT TRY THIS UPGRADE MYSELF. I WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE THAT MAY RESULT TO YOUR PLAYER. PERFORMING
THE PROCEDURE DESCRIBED HERE WILL SURELY
VOID THE WARRANTY OF YOUR 5803P!

12. Eject the disc tray on the DVD player.

13. Put the CD-R/CD-RW, data side down, on the tray.

14. Close the disc tray.

15. Within a few seconds, the screen will start changing colours, and a message that says the following will appear:

READY TO UPDATE CODE.
YES: PRESS PLAY.
NO: PRESS STOP.

(If you got a different message, scroll down to the bottom of this page for links to other sites that may be able to help.)

16. Push PLAY on the remote control (Pushing PLAY on the front panel will not work.)

17. Now the screen will read as follows:

FILE ID IN PROCESS...
SCREEN WILL BE ABNORMAL
DO NOT SWITCH OFF
PLEASE WAIT 4-6 MINUTES



18. Soon the screen will say this:

WRITING
SCREEN WILL BE ABNORMAL
DO NOT SWITCH OFF
PLEASE WAIT 4-6 MINUTES

NOTE: The above screen may say "WRITING MX"
instead of "WRITING". Or, you may see a "WRITING MX"
screen in addition to the one shown above.

19. Eventually, you will see:

DONE
SCREEN WILL BE ABNORMAL
DO NOT SWITCH OFF
PLEASE WAIT 4-6 MINUTES

IT IS POSSIBLE THAT THE SCREEN WILL GO
BLANK EITHER WITHOUT SHOWING THE SCREEN
ABOVE, OR AFTER SHOWING THE SCREEN ABOVE.

20. The VFD (digital display) will go blank.

21. BE PATIENT! It says to wait 4-6 minutes, but wait 10 minutes just to play it safe. After the 10 minutes have passed, listen closely and make sure no sounds are coming from the player. If you are hearing sounds, continue to wait until they are gone.

22. Put the Power switch back in the "OFF" position. Now, turn it "ON". LET THE PLAYER READ THE DISC. INSTEAD OF RE-UPGRADING, A BLUE "VCD" SCREEN WILL APPEAR. ONCE YOU SEE THIS THIS BLUE "VCD" SCREEN, IT WILL BE SAFE TO EJECT THE DISC. PUSH OPEN/CLOSE ON THE REMOTE CONTROL
IN ORDER TO EJECT THE DISC.

23. Push "SETUP" on the remote control. If the menu looks like the following - congratulations, you have applied the upgrade correctly:



24. Here's a sample of what you'll find in the "LOOPHOLES" menu
(ignore the APEX background)--

RETURNING TO THE ORIGINAL
(NO LOOPHOLES MENU) FIRMWARE

To remove the Loopholes Menu, repeat the first 22 steps above, EXCEPT for this change:

* In Step #2, download THIS file instead of the one linked
in the main instructions.

WHERE TO GET HELP / ADVANCED OPTIONS

GE 5803P forum on Nerd-Out.com

GE Yahoo Group

To learn about other modifications you can make to the firmware,
join the GE Yahoo Group and the EZPatch Yahoo Group.

Please Note! I do not own a GE 5803P. All care taken in accurately providing this information which is kindly provided by others who do own these models. Please visit the sites linked above if you require any assistance.

ALSO NOTE I AM NOT A FIRMWARE PROGRAMMER!!!
So please don't ask me when other features will be available...