A few random questions about control panels, P360 vs U360, etc....

[ScoopLV]

A couple questions:


1) I purchased all of the parts to make this thing years ago. Life threw me a wrench and the project sat in a box. When I started, the Happ Perfect 360 was the latest and greatest. I have four of them. I like them. (I don't really LOVE them. But they work as they should.) I'm thinking about getting at least one UltraStik 360 to play Sinistar. (I suck at Sinistar, but I always threw a token or two into that game when I was a kid. So if there's an option to make it play decently, I'm interested.) The question is: How does the bat-top U360 compare to the bat-top Happ P360? If I just put ONE U360 on my four-player control panel, will it stick out like a sore thumb? Also, is there any reason whatsoever to have more than one U360? I can't think of any games off the top of my head that require two 49-way sticks.

2) The setup includes 4 Happ Perfect 360s, one Happ trackball, a Tornado Spinner, and an I-Pac 4. Before I took everything apart to redo the control panel (see the control panel thread to see why), I was powering the 360s off Molex connectors from the computer's power supply. The rest was all USB powered. Should I be concerned about all those connections and their power draw?

3) Besides coin-in and player start buttons, I'm assuming it's basically a requirement to have a button that maps to the ESC key. (I realize that I can hold the 1 Start button and get an ESC. But that isn't intuitive for houseguests who want to quit. I think it would be best if there was a red "quit" button near the monitor. (And away from the control panel so it isn't hit accidentally) Are there any other button/key combinations that are considered must-haves, or at least very convenient for people who like games, but don't know jack about emulation?

4) And while I'm on the subject of key mapping, why is there overlapping in the defaults? (1 Switch 8 and 4 Left, for example.) What is the common strategy for this?


Thanks!

(That'll get me through the "build the CP" phase of this project. I won't need to ask any more questions until I get to the front end, quite awhile from now...)

[PL1]

While you're reworking your 4-Player panel, you may want to check out this thread for a few ideas.

2) The setup includes 4 Happ Perfect 360s, one Happ trackball, a Tornado Spinner, and an I-Pac 4. Before I took everything apart to redo the control panel (see the control panel thread to see why), I was powering the 360s off Molex connectors from the computer's power supply. The rest was all USB powered. Should I be concerned about all those connections and their power draw?

Pretty sure a powered USB hub with a decent power supply (>700mA?) should be able to handle that.

3) Besides coin-in and player start buttons, I'm assuming it's basically a requirement to have a button that maps to the ESC key. (I realize that I can hold the 1 Start button and get an ESC. But that isn't intuitive for houseguests who want to quit. I think it would be best if there was a red "quit" button near the monitor. (And away from the control panel so it isn't hit accidentally) Are there any other button/key combinations that are considered must-haves, or at least very convenient for people who like games, but don't know jack about emulation?

The new FAQ has some pros and cons to consider on this subject.

Pause and Exit are often used.

Menu sounds tempting, but it's usually better avoided -- keep a wireless keyboard around for (rarely needed) configuration changes once you finish configuring the cab.

You may want to reprogram shifted functions like P1 Start + P1 Right = Tab(menu) so people don't accidently mess up your settings when you're not there.

4) And while I'm on the subject of key mapping, why is there overlapping in the defaults? (1 Switch 8 and 4 Left, for example.) What is the common strategy for this?

Yeah . . . I asked Randy and Andy about that here.   

The method that requires the least editing is to start with the inputs that you will use that are defined by MAME.  (If you aren't using the input, the setting doesn't matter.)

Since P2 buttons 5-8 (not defined by default in MAME) overlap with P3 joystick directions (default in MAME), change P2 buttons 5-8 to unused keystrokes.

Repeat until you resolve any the overlapping/conflicting inputs that you want to use.


Scott

[ScoopLV]

Thanks for the info. I didn't actually start routing anything, although I did build a standard Happ template so I can easily route the underside of the CP using a collet.

I would appreciate more pairs of eyes on my new CP layout:



At the top are the four "Coin/Start" button groups. And then, working counter-clockwise from the top left, we have the standard player 3-1-2-4 setup. Four buttons for players 3 & 4; seven for 1 & 2.

I placed the spinner dead center -- the only games I play that use the spinner are Tempest and Arkanoid. The positions seem to give me a nice place for my forearms using the spinner either left or right handed. On either side of the spinner are Player 1, Switch 1 buttons.

To the left of the spinner is a Pac Man 4-way joystick. The Player 1, Switch 1 buttons from the spinner will work nicely for games like Donkey Kong.

To the right of the spinner are two top-button joysticks for Battlezone; but also for games like Robotron.

I placed the trackball in front of the spinner, between players 1 and 2. Doing the "Golden Tee" move at the trackball position didn't ram me into the spinner knob, so I think I'm good there. The buttons for the player 1/2 positions will do the trick for games like Missile Command and Centipede.

At the top center, I plan on placing administrative buttons -- ESC and Pause. And a Keyboard will slide out from the bottom for fiddling.


This isn't going to allow me to play everything, but I think this will work nicely for the sorts of games I play the most.  If you see any glaring errors or omissions, please let me know.

[yotsuya]

Props to you for getting your joystick angling correct! 

[EMDB]

Props to you for getting your joystick angling correct! 

Although the angle of the stick and corresponding buttons of the outer players positions them almost 90 degrees rotated towards the screen 

[kmack1023]

ok, to rehash the angled joystick argument, is "north" for the joystick pointed at the screen in this situation?  or is north toward the spinner for P3?  My head must not be able to comprehend the number of times of read over this argument and what's supposed to work best... could someone summarize?

[PL1]

The FAQ has the info here.

Green = good.  Red = bad.




Scott

[kmack1023]

man, been stucking looking through the old wiki and I've seen several good references to the new one lately...  thanks for the quick reply and explanation...

[ScoopLV]

New question:

How are people hinging/attaching the control panel top to the rest of the panel for easy access in the event of a malfunction? I'm thinking piano hinge or just setting the top into a groove and letting gravity take care of things.

[eds1275]

Someone is going to break a finger on that spinner if you play any bowling or golf games...

[ScoopLV]

I posted elsewhere that I did repeated "Golden Tee" moves on the trackball, and placed the spinner in a safe location. It's further away than it looks in that picture.

So... opening the panel down the road, any advice?