Hardware n3ds XL / LL mainboard swap?

[alice_latte]

hello.

in some hypothetical circumstance where i'm getting a new 3ds XL to replace my old beat up one, i'm wondering something... if i were to buy a n3ds LL, and swap the mainboard from my us XL, would it be smooth sailing as far as my nintendo account/etc are concerned? i'm running cfw and it's a bit of a pain to hack another 3ds, not to mention i'd figure system transfer is a nightmare, and i like the "pearl white" housing color only offered in the jp reigon.

basically, i'm wondering if the main region locking is limited to only the mainboard, or if it's a different cartridge reader as well or something? and would my current mainboard recognize it was paired with different hardware and not work? sorry, i don't really know how to research it myself.

 

[TurdPooCharger]

You can swap motherboards between systems of the same 3DS/2DS model. There are no regional hardware incompatibilities to watch out for, except for the AC wall charger due to differing country wall sockets and voltage standards. You do understand disassembling a perfectly working JPN n3DSLL to change out the motherboard carries the risk you can end up with two nonworking 3DS?

While technically possible, it is impractical to System Transfer between two systems from different regions. Old 3DS series can have the 3DS firmware region changed with CTRTransfer and use Nintendo eShop from other regions after a Format System Memory(?), but New 3DS series are permanently locked in to only their native/original eShop.

If your current USA n3DSXL has custom firmware and is still functional, you may want backup your games, DLCs and updates into *.cia with GodMode9 and the game saves + exdata with Checkpoint or JKSM in case your repairs aren't successful. This way, you don't lose any important data.

 

[alice_latte]

yeah, i understand that i could end up bricking both. i like to think that i'm experienced enough to not do that though. i guess there's only one way to find out...

thanks for the response, appreciate it