XCloud4 Lab 0.7.53-lab — Experimental Tester Release Notes

EXPERIMENTAL BUILD WARNING: XCloud4 Lab is an experimental laboratory edition intended for advanced testers and protocol/decoder diagnostics. Some combinations of settings (such as 1080p streaming profiles or alternative decoder pipeline depths) may be unstable, freeze, or abort the stream. For everyday play, use the stable Public Beta (XCloud4-1.0.2-beta-publico.pkg).

Package Information

• File: XCloud4-0.7.53-lab.pkg
• PS4 Menu Title: XCloud4 Lab
• Title ID / Content ID: XCLD00001 (IV0000-XCLD00001_00-XCLOUD4APP000000)
• Product Version / PS4 APP_VER: 0.7.53-lab / 01.21
• Size: 13,565,952 bytes
• SHA-256: 230b66f37a03eaa05f4fa0eda0c71cea2a73d8d87b8ea20b61b22b4f57462963

Side-by-Side Installation with the Public Beta

XCloud4 Lab uses its own Title ID (XCLD00001), menu title (XCloud4 Lab), and LAB badge icon (assets/icon0-lab.png). It can be installed on the PS4 at the same time as the Public Beta (XCloud4, XCLD00003) without overwriting it.

What's New in 0.7.53-lab

• Smoother Adaptive Audio:
  • Dynamic Headroom Buffer (50–100 ms): The audio buffer now automatically expands following network delays/stalls, preserving delayed packets within target headroom rather than discarding them immediately. After stability is maintained, target headroom steps down gradually.
  • Gentle Crossfaded Trimming: When trimming is required to prevent buffer bloat, cuts are bounded (<=10 ms per 200 ms) and smoothly crossfaded to avoid clicks and pops.
  • Low-Latency 512-Sample Audio Blocks: AudioOut requests 512-sample blocks natively (with automatic fallback to 1024), halving buffer granularity and reducing audio latency.
  • Measured Console Validation: In a 16-minute live test on PS4, audio underflow episodes plummeted from 35–109/min (in 0.7.48) to ~1.05/min (17 episodes total), and PLC concealment dropped to 0.07%.
• Enhanced /data Diagnostic Metrics:
  • target_ms: Logs dynamic target adjustments, current target, median, and maximum.
  • trim_events and trimmed_ms: Explicitly reports gentle trim actions and sample counts.
  • audio_out_open: Records native 512-sample negotiation and exact return codes.
• In-Game Touchpad Menu (since 0.7.52): Hold two fingers on the DualShock 4 touchpad for 1 second during streaming to open the in-game menu.
• Removed L1+R1 Chords: Fixes GitHub issue #2 (EA Sports FC Power Shot conflict). Legacy L1+R1 shortcuts are removed.
• Lab Menu Options:
  • Return to catalog: Cleanly disconnects the current session and returns to the catalog.
  • Mute / Unmute audio: Toggles audio stream state.
  • Xbox button: Sends the Xbox Guide / Nexus button (~200 ms pulse).
  • Mark test: Toggles the diagnostic epoch marker (stable / transition) in session traces.
  • Exit app: Initiates clean application exit.
  • Cancel: Closes the menu and resumes play.
• 15-Second Inactivity Timeout: Automatically closes if no buttons are pressed for 15 seconds.
• Neutral Gamepad Input: Sends neutral controller state to Xbox while the menu is open, preventing game interactions.

Experimental Features Included in 0.7.53-lab

1. 720p and 1080p Request Profiles

From the catalog, testers can switch between six cloud session request profiles before launching a game:

• 720p60 · android (default baseline)
• 720p-HQ · web windows · alias 720HQ
• 1080p-G · web windows · alias 1080
• 1080p-G8 · same as G · 8 Mbps request
• 1080p-H · native windows · alias 1080
• 1080p-HQ · web windows · alias 1080HQ

2. Technical Settings Menu (R3 in Catalog)

Press R3 inside the catalog to open the next-session experimental configuration panel (Opciones de la próxima sesión), adjust fields with D-Pad Up/Down/Left/Right, and press X to apply:

• Request Profile (Perfil de solicitud): Select among the 720p and 1080p request profiles above.
• Fallback Color Matrix (Color si el SPS no especifica la matriz): Auto (BT.709 for >=720p) or BT.601.
• CPU Scheduling & Affinity (CPU de la próxima sesión): CPU-0, CPU-1, CPU-2, or CPU-3.
• Decoder Pipeline Depth (Profundidad del decoder): Auto (720p: 1 · 1080p: 2), 1, or 2.
• Controller Sending (Envío del mando): Immediate (Inmediato) or 60 Hz (previous).
• Vibration (Vibración): Yes (Sí) or No.
• Audio Mode (Audio): New (Nuevo, adaptive) or Previous (Anterior).

3. Automatic /data Session Diagnostics

Every streaming session writes bounded numeric diagnostic files to /data on the PS4 (/data/xcloud4-stream-*, /data/xcloud4-trace-*). These contain no tokens or credentials.

Requirements and Installation

• Console: PlayStation 4 with GoldHEN (tested on PS4 Fat, firmware 12.00, GoldHEN v2.4b18.7).
• Subscription: An Xbox Game Pass plan that includes cloud gaming (PC Game Pass does not).
• Network: At least 15 Mbps stable internet connection, preferably via wired Ethernet.
• Installation: Copy XCloud4-0.7.53-lab.pkg to a USB drive or via GoldHEN FTP to /data/pkg and install it with the GoldHEN Package Installer.

Mission, Non-Affiliation, and License

• Mission: Helping more people play next-gen games without buying a new console.
• Voluntary support: https://ko-fi.com/asapedgr (voluntary donations support development and do not grant access to games or subscriptions).
• Non-affiliation: Independent open-source project; not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Microsoft, Xbox, or Sony Interactive Entertainment.
• License: GPL-3.0-only. See LICENSE, THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.md, and BUILDING.md.