I'm at a point where I would rather someone call/text me to walk me through this. Here is a list of what has transpired:
- Finally got a custom ROM installed and tried to root it - it buggered up. Can get into fastboot, but fastboot commands don't work. When booting into recovery, the screen is all static looking. When booting system, it'll look like static, then start into a never-ending splash screen (loading screen).
- Installed Qualcomm drivers .exe, rebooted. MSM tool says "waiting on device".
- Uninstalled device on device manager, rebooted.
- Downloaded Qualcomm drivers .7z. Computer cannot find the drivers listed in the folder.
- Tried all 3 MSM tools just for kicks because why tf not at this point. All 3 say "waiting on device".
- Googling relentlessly , trying to find anything that would help.
- Device manager recognizes my device as "Qualcomm HS-USB QDLoader 9008", but MSM still giving same message.
Update: managed to get better USB drivers from Droidwin and installed the .inf (this is something I believe should also be posted in the stickies for people like me who install numerous versions of the drivers but still end up nowhere). This allowed me to actually run fastboot commands and install LOS recovery, then boot into it. Currently sideloading CrDroid.
ALL THIS TO SAY... if your device appears to be soft bricked, it MAY NOT be. This forum is a mess when it comes to searching for anything, and a ton of people who have issues do not get any responses. The MSM tool appears to be a lifesaver for those who need it. However, I did not need it in this instance, and due to me not being able to utilize it despite having the correct drivers, I hope I never need to.