For those using both a gaming system and PC -How do you do it?

[rvs0002]

Forgive me if this is already in a thread somewhere...I've been searching and can't find the answer.

I see that many are using both a gaming system and a pc in their units. How do you switch back and forth? Are you unplugging your wheel each time and moving it to the other system or is there some sort of switching box/Y cable type of thing to make it easy?

Hoping for the switcher....

Thanks!

[rvs0002]

Well after doing some digging I found this on Amazon and I think it should work. I wish it was automatic, but I will incorporate it into the dash somehow (hopefully) so it shouldn't be a big deal.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FEM3OKM?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00

I'll report back after I get it and try it out in case anyone else is ever looking for the same thing.

[yotsuya]

I think those guys who are using their cab as a PC just have one beefy machine in the cab - I don't recall anyone doing any switching.

[rvs0002]

Well, I figured as long as I have a ps3 sitting there doing nothing it might as well be used for racing! My nephew said he has several racing games he will donate to the cause since he upgraded to a ps4.

[Howard_Casto]

Probably the easiest way is to use a tv for a monitor and put the game console on one input and the pc on another.  For the wheel just have the usb plug somewhere close where you can switch it out.  You might actually be able to make a usb y-cable, but I don't know how electrically safe that would be. 

[yotsuya]

I see, my mistake- you were talking about using a PC and a CONSOLE, not a gaming PC. Carry on.

[BadMouth]

I'm not running a console, but I assumed most people were using KVM switches.
The HDMI or DVI ones can get pricey though. 

You could always use a KVM switch for everything but the video and use different inputs on the TV or monitor.
The one I use at work has a separate wired "remote" with a button on it I can press to switch back and forth.
It would blend in to a dashboard pretty easily.

This is the one I have at work: http://www.amazon.com/Syba-SY-KVM20051-Interface-Compact-2048x1536/dp/B0042FZ51I/ref=sr_1_13?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1454101941&sr=1-13&keywords=kvm+switch

Something like this with audio built in might be better though:
http://www.amazon.com/IOGEAR-Cable-Switch-Audio-GCS72U/dp/B002K0TU2C/ref=sr_1_5?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1454101941&sr=1-5&keywords=kvm+switch

If it were me though, I'd lay out the money for an HDMI+audio version so EVERYTHING would be handled by the one button. 

[BadMouth]

I think those guys who are using their cab as a PC just have one beefy machine in the cab - I don't recall anyone doing any switching.

It's fairly common to have a PS2 or PS3 since the Logitech wheels work with them as well as a PC.

[yotsuya]

I think those guys who are using their cab as a PC just have one beefy machine in the cab - I don't recall anyone doing any switching.

It's fairly common to have a PS2 or PS3 since the Logitech wheels work with them as well as a PC.

Yeah, I get that now. I read "gaming system" as a PC set up for gaming. I also didn't see where this thread was.

[BadMouth]

This one isn't priced bad.  DVI is just HDMI without the audio, so you can use cheap adapter cables to connect to HDMI devices.
http://www.amazon.com/crest-Switch-Audio-Support-SY-KVM20075/dp/B0056HNRPC/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1454102713&sr=1-1&keywords=O+crest+2+Port+DVI+%2B+USB+KVM+Switch+with+Audio+and+Mic+Support+%28SY-KVM20075

Not sure if all the newfangled HDMI "handshaking" BS is present on the PS3 and would screw something up.

[rvs0002]

I just ended up ordering the manual USB switcher I posted above (very similar to a KVM) which I will probably mount behind the dash so just the buttons are visible, and then I ordered an HDMI auto switch. (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0018DQYQ2?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00).

The HDMI switch is nice as it automatically switches to whatever device was powered on last, so if I'm running my PC, it will show that, and then if I power up my PS3 it automatically switches to the video from that source, then when my PS3 is powered off it goes back to the pc video source.

I have one on my TV for my FireStick, DVD player and cable box and it works great.

My monitor is actually a 32 inch Samsung tv so it should all be good to go. Famous last words.

I already have several things I want to change, but I am going to get it up and running for the party we are having on Sunday (hopefully) and then I'll go back and actually take my time with the customizing.

[nugarp]

A bit in the weeds here but here it goes.

My build incorporates a 360 and PC in there. The PC talks to the 360 via an arduino for polling power status and turning it on and off, and FTP to launch games. The arduino also turns on a relay to swap all of the input microswitches to 360 controllers, but that took a forever to wire up and too many relays to count. For the wheel, I used a fanatec gt2. The wheel used wireless comm to connect to a 360 but USB to connect to the PC, so no manual wire switching was needed. To swap modes there, the wheel needs the back button or Xbox buttons held on reboot...so when switching platforms from PC -> 360 or vice versa, an arduino sent a power off signal to a PowerTail II switch (basically a relay-controlled power plug) to reboot the wheel. I then opened up the wheel and soldered extra wires to the Xbox button (easy) and back button (massive pain in the ass as it had to go through the steering column and was a tight fit). I also put the arduino in charge of checking if the 360 turns off and if it does, restore the wheel to PC mode.

For video input switching, I used an HDMI switcher with an RS-232 port, which lets you send switching commands to it over a serial port (I used a USB-> serial adapter). My front-end was aware of if it needed to swap out the controls and video etc so just communicated w/the helper programs I wrote for that.

I should note the 360 was modded and set up to run an ftp server on boot that allowed for exec commands.

I haven't really put up much info on the driving "extension" of the cab, but the upright has a bunch of info in my thread for it.

Was a ton of work for all of that. Am I happy I did it? Absolutely - because I learned a bunch and its neat having everything be automatic. Would I do it again? Probably not; there are many more opportunities for failure with a more complex setup.

I know you've already ordered some stuff but if you or anyone else ever wants to try anything remotely similar, feel free to hit me up.

[rvs0002]

A bit in the weeds here but here it goes.

My build incorporates a 360 and PC in there. The PC talks to the 360 via an arduino for polling power status and turning it on and off, and FTP to launch games. The arduino also turns on a relay to swap all of the input microswitches to 360 controllers, but that took a forever to wire up and too many relays to count. For the wheel, I used a fanatec gt2. The wheel used wireless comm to connect to a 360 but USB to connect to the PC, so no manual wire switching was needed. To swap modes there, the wheel needs the back button or Xbox buttons held on reboot...so when switching platforms from PC -> 360 or vice versa, an arduino sent a power off signal to a PowerTail II switch (basically a relay-controlled power plug) to reboot the wheel. I then opened up the wheel and soldered extra wires to the Xbox button (easy) and back button (massive pain in the ass as it had to go through the steering column and was a tight fit). I also put the arduino in charge of checking if the 360 turns off and if it does, restore the wheel to PC mode.

For video input switching, I used an HDMI switcher with an RS-232 port, which lets you send switching commands to it over a serial port (I used a USB-> serial adapter). My front-end was aware of if it needed to swap out the controls and video etc so just communicated w/the helper programs I wrote for that.

I should note the 360 was modded and set up to run an ftp server on boot that allowed for exec commands.

I haven't really put up much info on the driving "extension" of the cab, but the upright has a bunch of info in my thread for it.

Was a ton of work for all of that. Am I happy I did it? Absolutely - because I learned a bunch and its neat having everything be automatic. Would I do it again? Probably not; there are many more opportunities for failure with a more complex setup.

I know you've already ordered some stuff but if you or anyone else ever wants to try anything remotely similar, feel free to hit me up.

I am impressed.  I would never even attempt anything like that as I know that it would be a massive fail for me. Not even close to being smart enough to pull something like that off. I'm always blown away with what you guys pull off on this forum.

Thanks for replying as well. I'm going to go check out your build.

[Fursphere]

nugarp - What HDMI switch did you use that supports RS232 commands?

[Boomslang]

Mine from a few years back