Start by disassembling your dreamcast

Turn your Dreamcast over

Remove the Broadband Adapter by sliding it away from the console

Remove the 4 black screws at the bottom of the console and remove the top section of the case.

Unplug the power connector at the back of power board

Remove the 2 screws holding the power board in place

Gently pull the power board away from the console, this can be quite tricky as their is a set of pins coming through the power board from the main board below and a small clip in the center.

Unplug the ribbon connecting the controller ports to the mainboard

Remove the 4 screws holding the controller ports in place and the 2 screws holding the black fan in place

Gently lift the fan and controller ports out by pulling them back slightly towards the console

Remove the 3 screws holding the GD-Rom drive in place

Firmly lift the GD-Rom drive out of console

Remove the 8 screws holding the mainboard in place

Remove the mainboard from the console and turn it over

This mod works by connecting a +12v source to a resistor on the mainboard, this allows the region changer disc to modify the consoles region settings.

Locate point R512 on the mainboard (use images for reference)

Locate the +12v point on the mainboard (use images for reference)

Take your wire and lay it out on the mainboard, place 1 end on the right hand side of the R512 resistor (the side with the number 2) and the other end on the +12v point, leave some extra length on your wire to allow the ends to be stripped and tinned, try to keep your wire running as straight as possible to make a neat job.

Strip the ends of your wire and tin them, lay the wire down on the mainboard roughly in the correct position.

Solder one end of the wire to the right hand side of the R512 resistor, leave this a few seconds to cool, you can very gently pull on the wire to ensure a good joint.

Solder the other end of the cable to the +12v point on the board, keep the wire held down to ensure it doesnt pull the other end and rip the resistor off the board.

Once both ends are soldered in place you can cover the joints with some tape, you can also add some take over the wire itself to ensure it wont snag or move whilst you are putting the console back together.

Thats it, you can now re-assemble your dreamcast

Once you have re-assembled your dreamcast boot it up and check that its working correctly (you should see the menu screen)

You can now burn the Region Changer Disc, to do this you must use Padus Discjuggler (search google) to burn the downloaded cd image to a blank CDR disc.

Boot up the Region Changer Disc, once loaded it will ask you if you wish to display in 60hz, at this point dont press anything on your controller and the menu will load after a few seconds in 50hz.

You will now be presented with a menu screen that allows you to make the changes to your Dreamcasts region settings. Use the analogue stick to move the mouse cursor around the screen and the red button to select the options.

Once you have made your changes you need to click on the button at the bottom of the screen that has a green arrow pointing down, this saves the new settings to your Dreamcast.

When you have finished you can either turn the dreamcast off and then back on or click on the Dreamcast logo button at the bottom right of the menu screen to restart the console.

If you set the console to Europe + PAL output you will get a Blue boot logo when your turn the Dreamcast on, you can now play all games from Europe.

If you set the console to Japan or USA + NTSC output you will get a Red boot logo when your turn the Dreamcast on, you may get a black and white boot screen and menu if your TV does not support NTSC output, if this is the case you will want to look at another mod on this site which will allow you to force a PAL 60hz display which means you will get your screen in colour rather than black and white.

Once this mod is complete you can set the console to either Japan or USA to allow direct booting of imported games as the console believes it is from the region you set it to, the changes you make will remain until you use the disc again to change them.

!Warning! - According to some reports you should not use this Mod if you have a Dreamcast Modchip installed as it could cause damage to the chip. (source mmmonkey Console Modifications)

If you have problems with your dreamcast when you have re-assembled it try one of the following:

Ensure all cables are correctly plugged in and secure (internal and external) - the console wont boot if all cables are not correctly inserted.

Disassemble your Dreamcast again and check your soldering to ensure the wire hasnt come lose and that you have soldered to the correct points on the board.

If the disc does not boot in your Dreamcast ensure that you have burned it correctly using Padus Discjuggler, if you have then try a different brand of CDR media and re-burn the disc.