ram controls yoke dualstrike hack mame setting

[Chunce DeLeone]

got the ram controls yoke hackt to a dualstrike, it works but is not set right.  doea anyone know what settings to put in analog controls in mame, using 1.09  also should i use the software from the ds? the motion is jerky and won;t stay still, if i turn the yoke to the right and stop the aimer still goes right

[Havok]

I would first double check your wiring. If you used the 1UP guide, his X-Axis black and red connections are wrong: at least on my pcb they were reversed. Plus, make sure you have the ground connected correctly. If that isn't the problem, you most likely need to calibrate the DS in Windows (in control panel). The software that comes with the DS only works in Windows 95\98, so if you have XP or higher, nothing needs to be installed.

[Xiaou2]

Are you using 10k pots or 5k pots?

 Delete all nvram and ini settings for mame and starwars before trying again.
Old settings can cause problems with new drivers.

 Starwars has an Auto-Calibrate function in the game.  Start a game up, and as you
play, move the yoke fully in all directions a few times.  The game should then calculate
the new values, and adjust automatically.

 Try a game like Terminator 2.  Calibrate the gun at start... and it should work very
well.   You can also check it in windows, in the game controller icon, in the control panel.

 Mame itself also has "Dead Zone" settings which may need tweaking.
(and or may be causing conflicts with the dual strike)

[Havok]

The dual strike is expecting 5K pots, and since the OP is using a Ram Controls yoke, most likely has 5K...

As far as sensitivity goes, try around 50% for X and Y and see if that's better. I still have yet to tweak mine since I haven't built my panel yet.

** Edit **

One more thing - you will need to drop down the dead zone in Mame - it's waaaay to high.

Look for joystick_deadzone  in mame.ini - it's most likely set to 30% (.30) I would drop it down to around 5% (.05), or lower depending on your preferences.

[Chunce DeLeone]

cool will try those tonight.  Also should i change to joystick mode or FX mode?  I want the Yoke to work exactley like a mouse in that I can pinpoint a spot and stay on it,  i think that is how the original game worked???  but i can't be sure becasue the last time i played this game in its original form had to be twenty years ago, and i am using XP so i won't change any dirvers or software.  Also i was getting no response from the pots until i reversed the red and black wires from the pots(in Dave's Ram controller he has the blacks from the pots twisted together and the reds twisted together, the whites are separate, on the dual strike they have individual black and reds for the pots, so i twisted them togther on the dual strike, but it didn;t work straight away so i just swtiched some wires around and then i got the up/down left rigth motion i was looking for, the only issue is in mame, in the windows config, i can hit all the corners with the X, hold it to a spot, just when i get into to mame its jerky and like i said before it drifts rather than moves like a mouse....thanks for the info gonna try it tonght....I actually waited so long for this yoke that by the time it came i was in a down period of this hobby and it sat for a few weeks, i now have 4 cabs that need to be finished and mutliple modular control panels to be finished.....I really just want to finish these projects to save space and get all this stuff thats lying around etiher installed or chucked and then widdle down to three cabs, close up the panels that are gushing wires and be done with it.....not done palying games but done with this limbo half finished crap everywhere phase that has lasted years and years, also would love to save and stop spending money until i use everything i have purchased which means not buying Daves 60$ adapter, have nothing against him or the adapter just feel guilty about spending anymore on games, time to build and finish what i started, getting this yoke sealed up will be a great load off my back.....if there is soemthign glaring that i am missing please let me know...thanks again

[Chunce DeLeone]

Just tried it with a mouse and it worked perfectley, need to try it with a yoke tonight,  ALso Havok, I have the green ground from the DS wired directley to the green wire on the yoke chasis , is that right?

[Havok]

If the yoke is still jittery, try reducing the autocenter for X and Y; I prefer mine at zero - but mess around with it and see how you like it.

[Chunce DeLeone]

Havok, were the red and black pot wires reversed on both X and X pots?  or just one?  also did you twist blacks together and the reds togther, or hook up separately? im a little afraid to cut off Daves molex connecter and go ape on this thing just yet....

[Havok]

Green to green is right.

Don't cut off the yoke's connector!!! Use the spare connector that came with the yoke instead. That way, if you ever plan to sell the yoke it will not lose value. If you are nervous about connecting, just crimp the connectors on to the DS wires and don't insert them in the plug. Just plug each connector on each pin of the yoke separately to test your hookup. Once it works properly, then take one connector out at a time and insert into the plug. Once they lock in, it's a pain to get them out without a pin extraction tool.

And to answer your other question, I only had to reverse my X axis. It appears there are some different revisions of the DS board, so your connection may very well have been different. It's been a while since I hacked my DS now, but yes I believe the reds connect together as well as the blacks.

[Chunce DeLeone]

Dudes, checked the wires all was good,  had a feeling that my old Mame 109 was flakey and needing an upgrade so I popped a compiled 135 version and everything worked like a charm, still need some fine tuning but the difference is night and day from before, this is a huge relief thanks Havok and Xiaou2!

Havok, if possible let me know if you think Daves interface plays better or different than the Sidewinder DS hack,  just curious, i do notice that at the edges of the screen it gets real jekry....but again i didn't have time last night to fine tune.

Oh and one other thing the top right thumb button doesn't work so i am going to talk to DAve about that and see what he says,  it might be my troubleshooting skills but i'm pretty sure its hosed up....

[Havok]

Cool - good to see you're up and running!

Did you use a multimeter to check the button? Use the pinouts in the manual to see which pins you need to hook the leads up to. I would go that route first just to verify it's the yoke and not the DS.

As far as the DS vs. Dave's interface - no difference. The only real advantage is the plug and play aspect. I have played with both interfaces and noticed absolutely no difference in yoke response.

[Chunce DeLeone]

I did use the volt meter back thorugh the buttons without the DS conected....one thing i noticed though that when i use a mouse the control is way more solid, even with the same analog settings,  just jerkier, did  you see the same kind of problems when you go to the edges of the screen or in genral or was your DS hack solid? 

[Xiaou2]

The Pot controls should be just as smooth as the mouse.

 If you are getting lag, its probably something to do with your pc's OS.  Maybe some
spyware crud, maybe too many installed and running processes.. maybe need more
ram..   

 If you calibrate it in windows, and see it jumping around in the windows calibration
box... then you might have a bad pot.
(or your DS circuit is crapping out... or your solder connects are not so hot)

 Also, USB bandwidth can cause problems at times.  Unplug most all other USB devices
and see what happens.


 

[Havok]

I did use the volt meter back thorugh the buttons without the DS conected....one thing i noticed though that when i use a mouse the control is way more solid, even with the same analog settings,  just jerkier, did  you see the same kind of problems when you go to the edges of the screen or in genral or was your DS hack solid? 

Nope - I didn't see any issues, the hack performs just as well as the Ram Controls interface.