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Author Topic: Aimtrak Gun Help  (Read 5040 times)

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1001mph

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Aimtrak Gun Help
« on: December 01, 2013, 02:36:08 pm »
HI there,

Just putting together a MAME system and cabinet and with everything working last minute decided to add a light gun - a lot of reading and good reviews led me to the Ultrimarc Aimtrak gun.

Anyway, I set the gun up in windows (7) and it tracks perfectly in Windows (quite impressively really)  but in MAME the aim is way off to the right (cross hairs are to the right of where gun is pointing) it jumps around, gets stuck where it won't go all the way to the top and other times bottom of the screen.

I followed all the instructions (i think) and the only thing different is that where the instructions say in MAME that it should say GUN 3 x, for example mine says Mouse 1 X or Mouse 1 Button 0 but i figured that was just that it was technically a 'mouse'

I'm assuming that with all the good reviews of how great this gun works there's just something i'm missing but I'm pulling my hair out trying to find it!

Any help greatly appreciated!

DarthMarino

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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #1 on: December 01, 2013, 06:27:47 pm »
What game are you trying to play?  Did you calibrate in game?

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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #2 on: December 01, 2013, 08:48:08 pm »
a very few mame games and many of the atomiswave/naomi games have in game calibration.  check the dip switch menu if it's in mame or the service menu for the sammy games if that's what you're running.  If you messed up the calibration in mame you may need to delete the config file for the game so that mame thinks it's being played for the first time.  I think terminator 2 may have had one time only calibration???

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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #3 on: December 02, 2013, 12:38:38 am »
Make sure youve edited your mame.ini file correctly so MAME knows how to handle the guns, then setup within MAME itself. You SHOULD end up with something like "GUN 3X" and "GUN 3Y" if done correctly. Then they should work.

 
See comments below video, especialially to "Scott"
 
« Last Edit: December 02, 2013, 12:57:24 am by Wade007 »
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1001mph

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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #4 on: December 02, 2013, 09:39:36 am »
Make sure youve edited your mame.ini file correctly so MAME knows how to handle the guns, then setup within MAME itself. You SHOULD end up with something like "GUN 3X" and "GUN 3Y" if done correctly. Then they should work.

 
See comments below video, especialially to "Scott"

Thank you - I suspect this is the problem as well but maybe you could help me a bit with the MAME.ini edit.

I'm using Hyperspin as my frontend and MAME UI64 1.50 and it seems with this setup i have a few MAME.ini's - i assumed, perhaps wrongly that I'd have to edit the MAMEUI64's INI file which is named mameui64.ini and is where i inserted the following at the bottom of the file per the Ultrimarc instructions

#
# CORE INPUT OPTIONS
#
joystick 1
lightgun 1
offscreen_reload 1

Is there something else I should be doing? I read the comments to Scott in the youtube video - this seems similar but again, not sure if i'm editing the right mame.ini


Thank you!




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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #5 on: December 02, 2013, 10:26:31 am »
1001mph, do NOT edit the mameUI64.ini file. Wrong file. Leave as is.

mameUI64.ini controls the interface for MAME UI's interface, not MAME itself. I use MAMEUI64 as well. I understand what you're talking about.

Find and edit the "mame.ini" file only. If you have more than one mame.ini file, then you'll have to figure out which one your frontend is using.  It's possible that you have one inside the "INI" folder and another in the root directory of MAME. Maybe edit them both to be sure. :)

Open the file (mame.ini) with Notepad/Word and make the following edits:
mouse 1
joystick 1
lightgun 1
offscreen_reload 1
lightgun_device none
mouse_device mouse
dual_lightgun 0

You will already find these lines of text in the ini file towards the bottom. You won't copy and insert all text shown above. You are mainly only editing the "1", "0", or "none" values of existing lines so your AimTraks will be recognized correctly. By default your light guns are configured to work in mouse mode for cursor x and y movements.

THEN, launch MAMEUI64 (without Hyperspin) and set up your controls for the lightgun games within MAME: Tab, Inputs - General, Lightgun X, Lightgun Y, etc as described in the AIMTRAK manual. You should get a value of something like "GUN 2X" and "GUN 2Y", etc when you move your gun across the screen for MAME to pick it up. Test/play the lightgun game. Once you get this working, try playing via your frontend, Hyperspin. If there's still a problem at that point then you know there's a disconnect with Hyperspin (likely using a different mame.ini file). You may need to delete the individual ini files in the INI folder for any lightguns games you've messed with (ie: ptblank.ini) just to be sure there are no conflicts with your correct lightgun setup.

I hope this helps. ;)
« Last Edit: December 02, 2013, 10:30:02 am by Wade007 »
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1001mph

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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #6 on: December 02, 2013, 11:15:27 am »
Thank you Wade!

I think I'm making progress - I found that ini subfolder in the mame folder and it had the mame.ini that you described.

I've made the changes you've suggested but I still seem to be getting the x and y axis showing as mouse not lightgun and if i change P1n Button 1 and 2 it does come up now with GUN 1 but with the cross hairs still jumping around it also is picking up the x and y axis and setting P1 button 1 as Mouse Axis X Gun 1 X-axis and Gun 1 button 1

I've also removed anything i changed in the other ini files

I've obviously missed something - back to my real work now but if you have any suggestions they'd be greatly appreciated

Here's what the mame.ini looks like now

#
# CORE INPUT OPTIONS
#
coin_lockout              1
ctrlr                     X-Arcade
mouse                     1
joystick                  1
lightgun                  1
multikeyboard             0
multimouse                0
steadykey                 0
ui_active                 0
offscreen_reload          1
joystick_map              auto
joystick_deadzone         0.3
joystick_saturation       0.85
natural                   0
joystick_contradictory    0
coin_impulse              0

#
# CORE INPUT AUTOMATIC ENABLE OPTIONS
#
paddle_device             keyboard
adstick_device            keyboard
pedal_device              keyboard
dial_device               keyboard
trackball_device          keyboard
lightgun_device           none
positional_device         keyboard
mouse_device              mouse

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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #7 on: December 02, 2013, 01:55:36 pm »
Triple check that you're using the right mame.ini file. You may be using one that is in your root directory not in the INI folder. Be sure you edited the correct mame.ini (or edit all you find to be sure).

I'll take a look at my mame.ini file and perhaps attached it here later as a guide. Perhaps there's something not tweaked quite right.
I too use an X-arcade tankstick, so the settings should be nearly the same. Hold tight... we'll get you though this.  ;)

Also... when setting up the lightguns in MAME, be sure NOT to point the gun at the screen when setting up the trigger or other gun buttons. Only point the gun at the screen when mapping the X/Y axis of each gun.

One more thing...this may sound dumb but did you actually calibrate your guns within Windows before trying to set them up with MAME? You have to calibrate them first in Windows environment and later in a select few MAME games as well. You have to push one of the Aimtrak buttons for a few seconds before it will enter "calibration" mode. See my video posted above for more help.

[EDIT]
Below is the core input options code from my mame.ini file:
Code: [Select]
#
# CORE INPUT OPTIONS
#
coin_lockout              1
ctrlr                     x-arcade
mouse                     1
joystick                  1
lightgun                  1
multikeyboard             0
multimouse                0
steadykey                 0
offscreen_reload          1
joystick_map              auto
joystick_deadzone         0.3
joystick_saturation       0.85
natural                   0
joystick_contradictory    0
coin_impulse              0

Looks like you probably have the mame.ini file set up correctly. Check that you've calibrated your guns within Windows correctly next.


« Last Edit: December 02, 2013, 11:10:55 pm by Wade007 »
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1001mph

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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #8 on: December 02, 2013, 11:59:33 pm »
Thanks Wade!

Making some progress but also going backwards lol

I went back and calibrated in Windows (again) and it seemed to help  with the crosshair movement in Mame - it took quite a few tries in Mame to get it to recognize gun 1 x and gun 1 y but it finally did (it kept doing the mouse 1 x and mouse 1 y instead but after about 10 tries it finally came up gun 1 x and y

However, now i can't get the P1 Button 1 and 2 to work??? (they worked at least sometimes previously).

With the gun away from the screen i get Mouse 1 Button 1 and Gun 1 Button 0 (same with pointing on the screen with usually a x or y axis thrown in). The more interesting part is now the front button on the gun also programs the same Mouse 1 Button 1 and Gun 1 Button 0.

I've gone into the aimtrak utility and made sure the button assignments were checked and correct - they are

Not sure what else i can do?

Thank you!

Mike

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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #9 on: December 03, 2013, 10:06:26 am »
Glad you're making some progress. Still, something odd is happening with your set-up.

I think you've solved or at least are on the right track with the crosshair movement. Calibration within Windows is the first step and can be tricky. Don't move your wrists when pointing at the three calibrations targets on the screen. Only point the barrel of the gun if that makes sense. That will yield the most accurate and smooth calibration. Stand back from your screen at least 4 feet when doing this. If your guns then work as mouse pointers in Windows, you should be good to go. Move onto to MAME (but not Hyperspin yet...that's the last step).

I'm not sure what to tell you about the P1 & P2 button mapping. Getting something like "Gun 1 Button 0" or "JOY Button 1" is correct and should work. Don't point your gun at the screen when mapping the buttons. You DON'T want it to pick up any X/Y axis coordinates along with your selected button(s).

If both your trigger button and your rear "reload" button map the same button, something is off. Sounds like you already checked it out in the AimTrak utility. That's what I would have suggested. Maybe you go back there (configuration tab) and change it up to be sure they are separate buttons? Write down what the buttons are supposed to come us as and then cross-reference those button names to what comes up in MAME (or should be coming up). Be sure you are NOT moving your mouse while doing any button mapping of any kind. keep it on lock-down somehow so it doesn't get accidentally picked up. :)

When mapping a gun button in MAME: select the button in the menu, press ENTER, then press ESC to clear ALL entries. The mapping should now say "None". Then go back to the button, press ENTER again, now pull the trigger or press the gun button desired. That's the best way to map gun buttons (for me) so there are no conflicts or additional unwanted mapping entries.

Mmmmm... I may have to think a bit more on this. Have you tried contacting AimTrak/Ultimarc directly to troubleshoot? They may be better equipped at this point to help you. I know Andy (Ultimarc) and could give you his email address. Or are your guns Arcade Guns (also AimTrak tech)? I also know Eric Harbo at Arcade Guns.

Another advanced idea: I don't know how computer saavy you are but the thread below talks about a utility that is used to automatically map ALL buttons, joysticks, AimTrak guns, triggers, etc each time you boot up your MAME system along with remapping the IDs correctly when/if Windows decides to change them. This requires some XML coding and a knowledge of what your buttons are supposed to be. The main obstacle this utility overcomes is the Window's ID issue (separate from your setup issues) but it can also be used to correctly map all your buttons and X/Y axis for ALL of MAME perfectly every time. Not required, but I use it. See my comments toward the very end of the thread along with code you could copy and paste. Maybe this will help you...or maybe just confuse you more at this point. I don't know. Thought I'd just throw it out as an option:
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=108767.0
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1001mph

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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #10 on: December 03, 2013, 12:10:58 pm »
Thanks again Wade!

I have Andy's email (they are Ultrimarc guns - I'm thinking perhaps its a windows/os problem where the lightgun is not being differentiated with the other mice (the regular one and the tankstick) but lets see what he has to say. Worse case I'll play with that XML mapping - i'm comfortable with that level but leery to play with it and risk messing up the rest of my setup.

I'll report back hopefully soon with whatever the resolution may be but thank you for all your help!

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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #11 on: December 03, 2013, 06:41:43 pm »
Hey Wade,

I think i have it figured out - it was in the ultrimarc utiltiy button assignment. I had left them at the default mouse left/right settings but started thinking about the wierdness i was having and thought that it might be in there.

Unfortunately the instructions weren't much help as they don't actually tell you what the setup for these guns should be but I entered what was in pictures in the manual - although that didn't work either it at least started to come up Joy button 1 and 0

A little trial and error i have it working well in operation wolf - trying to find a game with off screen reload to test that out next and then onto Hyperspin.

If i might ask though, how do you have your button assignments in the Aimtrak Utility? I figured doing what you did would be best for me as well!

Thanks Wade!

Mike

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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #12 on: December 03, 2013, 07:02:45 pm »
Hi Mike,
Glad you got it figured out!  :applaud: You had me really starting to scratch my head there for a while.  :dunno

I didn't mess with the AimTrak Utility at all. I find it best (at least for me) to leave the default settings as is. Don't change their IDs either unless you really know what you're doing.

I believe the only tweak Arcade Guns has by default that is different than what Ultimarc ships is that the default rear button timing for calibration is 10 full seconds whereas Ultimarc's setting is much shorter (3 seconds?). I think a longer button push requirement is safer in order to avoid entering calibration mode during game play.

Anyway, I believe my button settings come up as something like "GUNCODE_3_BUTTON1" for the trigger and and JOYCODE_1_BUTTON3 and JOYCODE_1_BUTTON2 for the rear and handle buttons. "Joycode" buttons can be correct for the second and third buttons.

The trigger button can change depending on the ID that Windows picks up, enter the utility mentioned prior. I would imagine that your buttons settings would be similiar but not exact.

Have a great time with the lightgun games!
« Last Edit: December 03, 2013, 07:04:37 pm by Wade007 »
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1001mph

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Re: Aimtrak Gun Help
« Reply #13 on: December 03, 2013, 11:20:36 pm »
Hi Wade,

All seems good now - i played with those settings in Ultrimarc and seem to have a good combination.

In hindsight my mistake was following the Ultrimarc instructions. Perphaps the later versions of Mame are more gun friendly but my mistake was changing the settings per the Ultrimarc instructions - I went back and started from scratch and found that when I went into the Mame settings it already had the x y axis and P1 button settings for the gun (along with mouse settings). However, had i edited the right Mame.ini in the first place i'm sure it would have been almost plug and play.

hopefully all this helps someone in the future.

thank you again for your help - it was very kind of you.

Mike