Atari paddles for Kaboom and such??

[jshel65]

Has anybody discovered a way to use the atari 2600 paddles on emulators for games like Kaboom? All of my searches have led to discussions of folks talking about how it never works out for them?

[PL1]

Has anybody discovered a way to use the atari 2600 paddles on emulators for games like Kaboom? All of my searches have led to discussions of folks talking about how it never works out for them?

If you don't want to wait for the KADE miniConsole (yeah, I had to mention it ), you may want to look into the "2600-daptor" available here.

BTW, if you need troubleshooting info or replacement parts for your Atari CX30 paddles, check out this page at Best Electronics -- they stock tons of Atari console/computer parts and controllers.


Scott

[jshel65]

Ok, cool..I hadn't seen this one yet. Oh I am definitely hoping to learn more about the KADE miniconsole. I check their site almost daily to see if there is any news.

[yotsuya]

Has anybody discovered a way to use the atari 2600 paddles on emulators for games like Kaboom? All of my searches have led to discussions of folks talking about how it never works out for them?

If you don't want to wait for the KADE miniConsole (yeah, I had to mention it )

To be fair, the question the OP asked would have included mentioning that as a valid answer. 

[Louis Tully]

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[Vigo]

Would KADE work well for BYO paddles? (AKA, wiring up a couple paddle pots directly to a KADE)

[Louis Tully]

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[PL1]

Would KADE work well for BYO paddles? (AKA, wiring up a couple paddle pots directly to a KADE)

Paddles:
The problem with using the CX30 paddles with most analog encoders is that Atari wired them as variable resistors (2 wires - measures resistance) instead of voltage-dividing potentiometers. (3 wires - measures voltage)

"Pong Paddle" schematic and pinout is in the upper right corner here.

Based on the schematic/pinout you can probably add a ground jumper wire from the unused tab on the paddle pots to the pin 8 wire on the button.

That gives you 5v (pin 7), ground (pin 8 ), and wiper (pins 5 and 9), which is probably going to work.

Haven't tried it yet -- might cause jitter sharing analog and digital grounds.

LMK if you want me to test this configuration.   

KADE:
MiniArcade and microArcade, the current generation of KADE encoders, use the at90usb162 or atmega32u2 AVRs which do not have analog input pins. (digital or optical device inputs only)

KADESTICK, KADE+, maxArcade (prototype -- details in KADE Loader when you enable Beta updates) and the upcoming miniConsole use an atmega32u4 (or newer) AVR with analog input pins.

The KADESTICK AVR is sold out at MattairTech and KADE+ is in beta testing and not currently in Loader.

If you want to "roll your own" right now, I'd suggest getting the AVR used in maxArcade from MattairTech here.

There are three firmwares in Loader:
-- USB/HID Joystick 2 Player with Analog (Beta) - each player has 4 analog axes, a d-pad, and 14 buttons
-- USB/HID Joystick 4 Player (Beta)
-- MAME 4 Player Encoder (Beta)


Scott
EDIT: MattairTech restocked, but only a few available.

[Louis Tully]

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[PL1]

I suspected as much.   

It's on the list of things to do.


Scott

[Louis Tully]

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[Vigo]

  Thanks, Scott. You are the best.

[jshel65]

while we are on the topic of Kade and Atari, I wonder if it will support the infamous Atari Jaguar controller?

[PL1]

Has anybody discovered a way to use the atari 2600 paddles on emulators for games like Kaboom?

Rise from your grave, Necropost!

Finally figured out the answer for how to do this in MAME as long as you have an interface that allows you to see the paddles as an analog gamepad.   

1. Configure MAME to use the Atari 2600 software list.
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,168079.msg1769033.html#msg1769033

2. Use a command line/batch file like these to launch a game via the software list.
(Changing configuration didn't seem to work from within the GUI.  )

The "-joyport1 pad" option configures the Atari 2600 with paddles for P1/P2.

mame a2600 kaboom -joyport1 pad

Adding "-joyport2 pad" configures the Atari 2600 with paddles for P1-P4.  (Multimouse in mame.ini is your friend.)

mame a2600 warlords -joyport1 pad -joyport2 pad

The "wheel" option is for games like Indy 500 that used the driving controller.

mame a2600 indy500 -joyport1 wheel -joyport2 wheel

There are joyport options for other controller types like keypads or the CBS Booster Grip.
- You can find the names of them under the MAME "slot devices" menu.
- Press ENTER to see a more detailed description of the option.

Map/adjust the controls in MAME as usual.

All three of the examples above confirmed working with mouse/spinner.  Warlords was also tested using an analog joystick. (potentiometer)

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,168079.msg1769036.html#msg1769036


Scott