As far as controller hardware goes- what else might I need?

[SpatzST]

Hello everyone, I am new to arcade building, and the most daunting task to me seems to be the electronics.  I plan on having a 4 person setup.  I did some research and found that 6 buttons for players 1 and 2 is best, and 4 for players 3&4.  I came across USB controller boards which seems simple enough, just plug the joystick and buttons into it, then in to the computer.  Is it that simple?

Additionally, does the amount of buttons make sense? 4 6 6 4 with joysticks? And a player select for each person... Should I have any additional buttons?

thank you for your input
-chris

[severdhed]

4-6-6-4 is a pretty standard setup for a 4 player panel.  you will need start buttons for each player, plus i highly recommend a coin button for each player, as well as exit and pause buttons.  sure, you can use button combos to perform those actions, but that just gets confusing for other people who use the cabinet.  i like to use a single button for pause and exit...quick press pauses, hold for 3 seconds and it exits. (made possible by an autohotkey script)

[SpatzST]

Thanks for the reply,

So for instance player 1 will have 6 buttons + a Player 1 button, coin button and an Exit/Pause? or is the Exit/Pause a master control for everyone?

so player 3 and 4 would have 4 buttons + player, coin?

[PL1]

As previously noted here, one thing to watch for on the IPac4 default keymap is that inputs 2SW5-2SW8 (Player 2 buttons 5-8) come mapped to the same keystrokes (I, K, J, and L) as the P3 joystick directions.   

If you don't change the defaults, P2 can press button 5 or 6 and move P3 up or down.   

I recommend reprogramming the IPac's P2 buttons 5-8 since they come undefined in MAME (no associated defaults) -- HOME, END, PAGE UP, and PAGE DOWN keys aren't used by MAME and would be good choices AFAIK.

For easiest setup, you'll probably want to define the new keys in MAME's "Input (general)" menu instead of manually configuring all of the 5 or 6 button games.   

is the Exit/Pause a master control for everyone?

Yes, 1 pause and 1 exit button is usually shared by all 4 players -- be sure that the pause and exit buttons aren't too close to any coin or start buttons to avoid accidental presses during vigorous gameplay.

so player 3 and 4 would have 4 buttons + player, coin?

Each player gets their own coin and start button.


Scott

[uiucphoenix]

Listen to PL1 and severdhed, they know their ---steaming pile of meadow muffin---! Here is the control panel layout I went with after getting everyone's advice:

[severdhed]

I generally only have 1 pause/exit button on the panel. You don't need one for each player. The exit button is tricky, you want it to be easy to access, but difficult for someone to activate accidentally.   That is why I did mine with a script so that you have to hold the button for 3 seconds before it will exit. This prevents accidental exiting of a game, plus reduces the amount of buttons on my panel since it shares the pause button.

I placed the coin buttons on the edge of the box below the panel to further reduce panel clutter.



Here you can see the coin buttons

[SpatzST]

As previously noted here, one thing to watch for on the IPac4 default keymap is that inputs 2SW5-2SW8 (Player 2 buttons 5-8) come mapped to the same keystrokes (I, K, J, and L) as the P3 joystick directions.   

If you don't change the defaults, P2 can press button 5 or 6 and move P3 up or down.   

I recommend reprogramming the IPac's P2 buttons 5-8 since they come undefined in MAME (no associated defaults) -- HOME, END, PAGE UP, and PAGE DOWN keys aren't used by MAME and would be good choices AFAIK.

For easiest setup, you'll probably want to define the new keys in MAME's "Input (general)" menu instead of manually configuring all of the 5 or 6 button games.   

is the Exit/Pause a master control for everyone?

Yes, 1 pause and 1 exit button is usually shared by all 4 players -- be sure that the pause and exit buttons aren't too close to any coin or start buttons to avoid accidental presses during vigorous gameplay.

so player 3 and 4 would have 4 buttons + player, coin?

Each player gets their own coin and start button.


Scott

Thanks again Scott for your help.  I will remember this once I get building!

Listen to PL1 and severdhed, they know their ---steaming pile of meadow muffin---! Here is the control panel layout I went with after getting everyone's advice:

This is awesome!  i like the layout, this will help me greatly. thanks!

I generally only have 1 pause/exit button on the panel. You don't need one for each player. The exit button is tricky, you want it to be easy to access, but difficult for someone to activate accidentally.   That is why I did mine with a script so that you have to hold the button for 3 seconds before it will exit. This prevents accidental exiting of a game, plus reduces the amount of buttons on my panel since it shares the pause button.

I placed the coin buttons on the edge of the box below the panel to further reduce panel clutter.



Here you can see the coin buttons

interesting idea with the coin buttons on the side.  thanks for the inspiration