Psp Themes .ctf Files
There are two types of PSP themes: -.PTF themes can be used on official firmware (OFW), but offer very limited customization. -.CTF themes, on the other hand, allow you to totally change your user interface (XMB). To use CTF themes, you need CFW and a plugin called CXMB. Sort latest files by Name Date Downloads. Homebrew Games; PSP Firmware; PSP Themes; CTF Themes; PTF Themes; Views. Matrix Dynamic XMB theme for PSP. CTF and PTF files are used for themes on the Playstation Portable, or PSP. Converting from CTF file to PTF is done by using a conversion program on your computer.
Creating your own XMB/VSH themes for PSP custom firmware Dec 8, 2015 The PSP homebrew and hacking scene flourished from the PSP’s release up until 2011, when it was phased out and replaced with the PS Vita. Since then, a lot of the guides and tutorials that used to be available have been lost. Now it’s hard to find detailed guides for homebrew apps and such things, and the few that I managed to find were often for older or outdated versions. So I worked on a personal guide for something I wanted to do, and this is the result.
It’s a long tutorial and I didn’t edit it further, so it’s not the easiest read – consider yourself warned. Regardless, here’s how to create a CTF from scratch and using a Linux distro for usage with CXMB. The PSP’s main menu (called XMB for ‘XrossMediaBar’) is customisable. Sony allowed users to create their own themes and share them, but only icons could be changed.
With CFW people have been able to access the PSP’s flash memory and overwrite the resource files to change more things including gameboots, sound effects and lots more. This page is intended to be a full guide to all things PSP theming for Linux systems (even though most programs required are Windows). Definitions. PTF: PSP theme file (I’m assuming that’s the abbreviation) generated by Sony’s Custom Theme Converter. Can change icons and wallpapers, and that’s pretty much it.
CTF: Custom theme file (again, assumed). Used by CXMB to override resource files stored in the PSP’s flash memory (flash0), without you having to do it manually.
RCO: Resource files stored in flash0 which contain various resources including. VAG: Sony’s own audio codec, compressed sound format used in the PSX. The PSP uses VAG files for its cursor sounds and other XMB sound effects. Note that you can use both mono and stereo VAG sounds – just that some people suggest against it, perhaps due to space considerations.
XMB: Sony’s XrossMediaBar, the interface used in the PSP, PS3, Sony Bravia and maybe a few more Sony products. Can be customised to an extent. CXMB: Homebrew VSH plugin which allows changing more XMB elements including sounds and icon layouts.
VSH: The XMB internally? Not really sure. According to, “The XMB on the PSP is known internally as the 'VSH’”. Overview of the CTF creation process To make a CTF (including sounds) from scratch, you’d do this:. Create a PTF with Custom Theme Converter.
This is where you choose icons for things. Convert -resize '!300x170' BMP3:out.bmp I use BMP3 because imlib2 can’t load whatever ImageMagick uses for.bmp by default. Both seem to work with Custom Theme Converter. Obtaining your PSP firmware’s RCOs This is for ME/PRO CFW, some strings might be different in respective VSH menus.
Go into the recovery menu (hit Select for the VSH menu), select 'Configuration’, and change 'XMB USB Device’ to Flash 0. Then connect to your PC and mount the disk that shows up (for me it was a plain disk not partitioned). $ mkdir tmp $ mount -o uid=$(id -u),gid=$(id -g),utf8,ro tmp (For some reason I couldn’t mount properly to /mnt so I’m giving the instructions I used myself.) The RCOs you want are at vsh/resource. Copy the whole folder over to your computer, then change the USB device back to the memory stick. Now you need to decompress them using a PSP app, Resurssiklunssi. However, that is a 1.50 kernel app, which recent only old PSPs and CFWs can run (I think).
The workaround is to use LEDA, a 'legacy software loader’ which allows you to run 1.50 kernel homebrew. This only works in ME CFW, so install it if you haven’t, run it, make sure LEDA is enabled in seplugins/game.txt, and start Resurssiklunssi. Hit X, then connect back up and copy across the decompressed file(s).
Replacing sounds To change a sound in a CTF theme, you need to replace the sound’s VAG file in its respective RCO file. A lot of basic system sounds like cursor ticks and confirmations are kept in systemplugin.rco, so we’ll use that as an example. Getting a WAV file First you need a short WAV file with a frequency of 44.1kHz and 16 bit depth. Usually, I’d recommend FFmpeg.
Sox output.wav So I suggest using SoX to make your WAV files. Full steps for adding a sound to a CTF theme: This should be an overview, each step should be gone into in detail in subsections. Creating & replacing a VAG file VAG (LMAO) files are a Sony compressed audio format. The PSP uses them in the VSH for sounds. Converting to VAG isn’t something most average audio converters can handle, so we use MFAudio in Wine.
For output file format, you want 'VAG - Sony PSX Sound - Compressed ADPCM’. Stereo or mono is fine, but remember you have limited space, so in most cases mono will be sufficient. Also, I’ve only used mono so far – you might have to do something different when replacing the VAG if you make it stereo. To replace a VAG with the new one you’ve just made, use RCO Editor.
It’s simple enough. Creating the CTF Now we have all the resources and files to create a CTF. CTFtool GUI (goes by CTF Tool GUI, CTFtool GUI) conveniently lets you make CTFs on your computer rather than using CXMB to package them, so it’s definitely worth spending time to set up. You’ll have to use Wine, but CTFtool GUI plays nice with it, even though being a little poorly designed on the GUI front messes up some window functions. The thing is, there are next to no guides out there for using CTFtool GUI, and it requires some certain firmware files to make it produce CTFs for different firmwares. I eventually found the answer in some thread about another tool, CTF Manager. For every firmware that you want to create CTFs for, you need 3 decrypted PRXs:.
commongui.prx. paf.prx. vshmain.prx CTFtool GUI comes with what seems like all the main firmware files for a range of common firmwares (even though only those 3 should be required). You should be able to create a theme for 6.61 by decrypting the required PRXs from your PSP and putting them in the folder base/661. Don’t panic when an error dialog comes up! CTFtool GUI is lying to you!
Every time I make a theme a “CTF Package Error” dialog box pops up and talks abuot termination and whatnot. Don’t worry, the theme should have been properly created! Full text of the error for extra help (all spelling/grammar exact): CTFtool:CTF Package Error, the task termination Error No.: 6 Error Description: Overflow As long as the CTF has been created, it’s probably been successful. And you’re done.
Copy the CTF over to ms0:/PSP/THEME and try it out! CXMB In earlier PSP homebrew times, to change gameboot sounds and cursor SFX you had to directly access the PSP’s flash memory (named flash0) and overwrite certain resource files.
Best Psp Theme
This is dangerous:, creator of RCO Editor, “it’s possible to semi-brick by flashing RCOs”. CXMB removes the need to do this by enabling you to create and use CTF themes, which can override VSH resources in flash0 safely. Installation To use CXMB, put the cxmb.prx file in ms0:/cxmb and add a line to ms0:/seplugins/vsh.txt. Ms0:/cxmb/cxmb.prx 1 Enabling a CTF theme Just go into Theme Settings - Theme and choose one.
CTF themes aren’t indicated specially, so you need to know what it might look like (you don’t actually get shown the theme name). Disabling the current CTF theme Changing the theme in Theme Settings to a non-CTF theme (i.e.
A PTF) will only change a few features of the theme. Like, it won’t properly revert it. If you want to remove the current CTF theme, delete the config file CXMB generates at ms0:/cxmb/conf.txt.