Happ optical vs. mechanical rotary

[laggerific]

Alrighty...my first post on this forum...here's hoping to many more.

Is there a significant difference between the optical and mechanical rotary joysticks?  I am working on a quad control panel, and considering putting 2 of these in the 3rd and 4th player positions per my design (basically the outside positions).  I'm mainly interested in playing Ikari et al, but I'm curious if I could use a digital rotary joystick to also use as a makeshift spinner until I get around to picking a proper one up. 

Also, does anyone know if the GPWiz40 has any issues working with the Happ rotary joysticks?

[isucamper]

I've got a 4 player panel with mechnical rotaries for player 3 and 4 and a GPWiz.  Works great.  Was a little hard wiring  the 12 wires to the 3 inputs on the GPWiz, but it works fine once you get all the wires stuffed into the screw terminals. 

If Ikari is a priority, you're going to want mechanical sticks.  Opticals will work, but they don't play as well on mechanical rotary games. 

[laggerific]

Thanks...good to know I'm not the only one with that idea.  So, how does the rotary feel when playing non-rotary games?  I figured the mechanical might feel a little odd, but nothing debilitating for your average gauntlet player. 

[Dazz]

I installed the Happ Mechanical Rotary via the Ultimarc Rotary interface for second joysticks for players 1 & 2 on my cabinet.  This allows for some Ikari Warriors action as well as an easy setup for Smash TV, Robotron, etc.

Might I suggest going with the Ultimarc Rotary Interface instead of the GPWiz40.  The Ultimarc Interface is a simple plug and play setup and uses the wiring harness that's already installed on the joysticks.

[bkenobi]

If you have a wiring harness that matches the layout of the Ultimarc interface, that would work well.  My LS-30's didn't have any harnesses, so I had to construct them myself.  As a result, I find that the GP-Wiz works very well for connecting things up.  If you have a larger gauge wire, fitting 4 into a single screw down terminal might be a bit tight.  If that's the case, you can always use an extra wire with a wire nut and connect the free end to the GP-Wiz.   

[isucamper]

Thanks...good to know I'm not the only one with that idea.  So, how does the rotary feel when playing non-rotary games?  I figured the mechanical might feel a little odd, but nothing debilitating for your average gauntlet player. 

The rotary function of the stick is pretty tight and not a problem when playing non rotary games.  But honestly, the normal movement (up/down/left/right) of the Happ Mechanical sticks I have is very sensitive and pales in comaprison to the U360s I have for player 1 and 2.  Very difficult to aim diagonally with in Gauntlet.  Usuable, but not great, but there's not many other options, and I'm not sure the optical sticks would fare any better in this catagory. 

[divemaster127]

I carry both the happ optical, rotary & the ultimarc rotary interface all are in stock, I can send you a quote or you can purchase at arcadeemulator.net
thanks
dm

[RandyT]

I've got a 4 player panel with mechnical rotaries for player 3 and 4 and a GPWiz.  Works great.  Was a little hard wiring  the 12 wires to the 3 inputs on the GPWiz, but it works fine once you get all the wires stuffed into the screw terminals. 

I just wanted to note that it's much simpler to twist the three wires onto one extra wire before connecting to the GP-Wiz40 terminals.  But if you can get them in there, that's fine too!

One thing that no-one seems to have mentioned is that the Optical Rotary and Mechanical Rotary sticks require different interfaces.  The optical rotary will require a "mouse-style" optical interface, whereas the mechanical one can be used with the GP-Wiz40 rotary support.  It should also be mentioned that the rotary support on the GP-Wiz has features not found on other rotary interfaces, such as a special "front-line-style" mode and the ability to adjust timing.

RandyT

[divemaster127]

Randy not to change the thread but I have been meaning to ask you is there anyway for the GPwiz 40 to work with daphne 1.0, so far the only answers I have seen is change to a keyboard encoder, hate to do that after all this work

[RandyT]

Randy not to change the thread but I have been meaning to ask you is there anyway for the GPwiz 40 to work with daphne 1.0, so far the only answers I have seen is change to a keyboard encoder, hate to do that after all this work

Daphne has poor joystick/game controller support.  Apparently, it supports only the first joystick type device, and there is probably a limit on the number of buttons it can see as well.  If Daphne sees a joystick controller attached to the GP-Wiz40, then just make sure the buttons you are using are attached to the lower inputs.

You could also just use JoyToKey.  I understand it solves the Daphne poor gaming controller support issue pretty handily.

RandyT

[divemaster127]

thank you for the info i really appreciate it
dm

[laggerific]

I have a GPWiz40 that I put into a converted X-Arcade 2player tankstick.  Also sporting a pair of JLW's (which replaced some iL Competitions, that I felt were too tight after the JLF), which I have really grown to like, along with the JLF in my Hori.  I soldered the grounds to one wire for the GPWiz and that seemed to work well.  So, that said, once I get my 4 player control panel going, I'll probably retire my x-arcade and give the GPWiz a shot for rotary.  Really excited.  And I guess I'll go for the mechanical, since they are compatible with the GP-Wiz40.  Any other rotaries besides Happs anyone would recommend, as I mentioned my issues before with the Competition style?  I know the classic Ikari ones are around, but I want the stick itself to be more traditional, since it will have multiple uses. 

[bkenobi]

I know the classic Ikari ones are around, but I want the stick itself to be more traditional, since it will have multiple uses. 

What do you mean by that?  The LS-30 is a decent all around stick according to comparisons done by kowal:

http://www.kowal.itcom.pl/ArcadeParts_pliki/joySLS30SRJ.htm

I personally haven't played with leaf switch based sticks, but as far as micro switch style joysticks he seems to like them.  The only non-classic thing I can see is the shape of the handle and/or the length of the shaft.  I can't say how those compare to the Happ ones, but I would assume they are functionally identical.

[laggerific]

The unconventional shape is exactly what I was referring to.  It was geared towards the rotary style gameplay.  I'm sure it would be perfectly functional, but aesthetically and comfort-wise, I'm not sure.  Thanks for the link, though...it will be useful info to have in my research.

[bkenobi]

The LS-30 did have an octagon shaped handle that is certainly not standard for any other games than SNK rotaries.  However, there are other mechanical rotaries that I've seen on ebay and here which have a cylindrical shaped handle.  I would guess that there's no reason someone couldn't make a ball/bat shaped unit either.  The main difference between these and a lot of other sticks is that these ones don't screw off.  These ones have a set nut (I don't know what else to call it) that locks the handle on.  It's much like a collet used for rotary tools.

If you don't have any preconceived notions of how a joystick should feel, they are fine.  If you are expecting something like what you played in your youth, you might not like them (unless you played a lot of Ikari).