Matrix USB NAND Flasher Tutorial

What is the Matrix USB NAND Flasher?

The Matrix USB NAND Flasher is a budget-friendly option for reading and writing Xbox 360 NAND dumps. It reads NAND in 7-26 minutes, which is slower than most other options, but it's very affordable and easy to find.

Important limitations: The Matrix cannot be used for programming glitch chips unless you modify it, does not support 4GB NANDs, requires unsigned drivers, and cannot be used for flashing Sonus Sounds.

Equipment Needed

Matrix USB NAND Flasher
Mini-USB cable to connect the flasher to your computer
28AWG or 30AWG wire (Solid core recommended)
Soldering iron, solder, flux, and isopropyl alcohol with cotton swabs
J-Runner with Extras installed on your PC

Installing Drivers

Download and extract J-Runner with Extras.
Press Win+R and type devmgmt.msc and press Enter to open Device Manager.
Plug the USB cable into both your Matrix flasher and your PC.
Windows should find it and it will appear as two USB Serial Port entries under the "Other Devices" category in Device Manager.
Important: On Windows 10, you will need to disable signed driver enforcement before installing the drivers.
Right-click the Matrix's name in Device Manager and select Update Driver Software… → Browse my computer for driver software → Browse… → navigate to your J-Runner folder → common → drivers → OK → Next.
You may receive a popup saying that Windows can't verify the publisher of the driver, select the option to install it anyway.
It should successfully install and file your device under its own category in Device Manager. Your Matrix's LED light should also turn green.

Wiring Diagrams

Solder a wire to each of the labelled pads on the Matrix and to the corresponding pads marked J1D2/J2B1 (phat) or J2C1/J2C2 (slim) on the motherboard in the diagram below.

Important: Use 28AWG or 30AWG wire (solid core recommended) and keep wires short to avoid interference.

PHAT Wiring Diagram

Use the diagram below to wire your Matrix flasher to the PHAT motherboard. Solder wires to the labelled pads on the Matrix and to the corresponding pads marked J1D2/J2B1 on the motherboard.

Wiring diagram for Matrix USB NAND Flasher to PHAT Xbox 360.

PHAT Installation Steps

Identify your PHAT motherboard revision (Xenon, Zephyr, or Falcon).
Solder a wire to each of the labelled pads on the Matrix.
Solder the other ends to the corresponding pads marked J1D2/J2B1 on the PHAT motherboard following the diagram above.
Clean up any flux with isopropyl alcohol and cotton swabs.
Plug the Mini-USB cable into the Matrix flasher and your PC.
Open J-Runner on your PC.
Plug your Xbox 360 power supply in, but do not turn the console on.
Click Read NAND in J-Runner.

Trinity Wiring Diagram

Use the diagram below to wire your Matrix flasher to the Trinity motherboard. Solder wires to the labelled pads on the Matrix and to the corresponding pads marked J2C1/J2C2 on the motherboard.

Trinity Matrix NAND Flasher wiring diagram

Wiring diagram for Matrix USB NAND Flasher to Trinity Xbox 360.

Trinity Installation Steps

Solder a wire to each of the labelled pads on the Matrix.
Solder the other ends to the corresponding pads marked J2C1/J2C2 on the Trinity motherboard following the diagram above.
Clean up any flux with isopropyl alcohol and cotton swabs.
Plug the Mini-USB cable into the Matrix flasher and your PC.
Open J-Runner on your PC.
Plug your Xbox 360 power supply in, but do not turn the console on.
Click Read NAND in J-Runner.

Corona Wiring Diagram

Use the diagram below to wire your Matrix flasher to the Corona motherboard. Solder wires to the labelled pads on the Matrix and to the corresponding pads marked J2C1/J2C2 on the motherboard.

Corona Matrix NAND Flasher wiring diagram

Wiring diagram for Matrix USB NAND Flasher to Corona Xbox 360.

Corona Installation Steps

Solder a wire to each of the labelled pads on the Matrix.
Solder the other ends to the corresponding pads marked J2C1/J2C2 on the Corona motherboard following the diagram above.
Clean up any flux with isopropyl alcohol and cotton swabs.
Plug the Mini-USB cable into the Matrix flasher and your PC.
Open J-Runner on your PC.
Plug your Xbox 360 power supply in, but do not turn the console on.
Click Read NAND in J-Runner.

Important Notes

Note: The Matrix does not support 4GB NANDs. For Corona consoles with 4GB NAND, you'll need to use PicoFlasher, xFlasher 360, or another 4GB-compatible flasher.

Reading the NAND

Plug your Xbox 360 power supply in, but do not turn the console on. You can leave the RF board disconnected to prevent turning it on by accident.
Plug the Mini-USB cable into the Matrix flasher and your PC.
Launch J-Runner. Select "Read NAND" in the top left.
It may prompt you for your Xbox 360's model, make the correct selection and click OK.
If everything is wired properly, it will read your NAND twice and automatically compare the dumps.
Note: Matrix reads NAND in 7-26 minutes, which is slower than most other flashers. Be patient during the read process.
If it says "Device Not Found" or anything about missing CB/CD files, see the troubleshooting steps below.
If you get messages about bad blocks, ignore them.
When it has finished, it will tell you if the two dumps are an exact match. If they are, you can close J-Runner and proceed. If they aren't, take more dumps until you get matching ones.
Copy both of the dumps to a safe place such as cloud storage or send it to yourself in an email to keep them safe. They are located in the output folder in the J-Runner directory.

Writing XeLL to the NAND

In J-Runner, select "…" next to the Load Source field and choose your nanddump1.bin or nanddump2.bin file.
Select the appropriate radio button in the top right of the window:
- JTAG - For JTAG, R-JTAG, or R-JTOP.
- Glitch - For RGH1.
- Glitch2 - For RGH1.2, RGH2, RGH3, EXT_CLK, Muffin/Mufas, or S-RGH.
- Glitch2m - Same as Glitch2, but only used if your eFuses are in a non-bootable state.
Put a check in the appropriate checkbox (if applicable) in the top right of the window based on your modification type.
Select the Create XeLL button and wait for it to finish.
Select the Write XeLL button, select your system, and press OK. It will write the XeLL to the first 50 blocks of the motherboard's NAND.
If it says "Device Not Found" or Flash Config 0x00000000, see the troubleshooting steps below.
Once it has successfully written to the motherboard, unplug the power cable from your Xbox 360 and unplug the USB cable from the computer and Matrix flasher.

Troubleshooting

"Device Not Found"

Re-insert the USB cable
Check that the drivers are properly installed (remember you need to disable signed driver enforcement on Windows 10)
Verify the Matrix's LED is green
Check that the Matrix appears correctly in Device Manager

"Flash Config 0x00000000"

Check that your power brick is plugged in, with an amber colored LED, and that it is plugged into your console completely (console turned off).
Check your soldering to your motherboard. Each point should be solidly connected and have a shiny round joint.
Check that you've cleaned up any flux you had used. Depending on the type, it may be conductive and cause issues. MG 835 is strongly suggested to avoid this.
Verify all wire connections are secure and not loose.

"Wrong Version"

Re-insert the USB cable
Try a different USB port

Slow Read Times

The Matrix is inherently slower than other flashers (7-26 minutes for a full read). This is normal. If reads are taking significantly longer or failing, check your wiring and connections.

What should I do if I ripped off a soldering pad?

Look online for an alternate point to solder onto. Practice more on junk electronics before attempting to continue.

Bench tips (quick)

Keep wires short (28AWG or 30AWG solid core recommended), twisted where possible, and avoid routing near noisy power sections.
Always verify dumps and compare multiple reads before writing.
Label dumps with console type + date + board revision.
Clean flux thoroughly to avoid connectivity issues.
Be patient - Matrix reads are slower than other flashers, but reliable when wired correctly.