I need your opinions on my 4 player CP

[Griggs619]

Hello, I recently started work on my first build and I'm finding it difficult to get the buttons/joysticks & trackball placement right. I'm hoping you guys can give me some tips or pointers. I want to make sure there is wrist space for the four players as well as enough space surrounding the trackball so I don't have to worry about jamming fingers. It's kinda hard to see the trackball placement in the pics cause it's just sketched inbetween player 1 & player 2. The 4 buttons at the to middle are the admin buttons and the othe 8 are the players elect and coin buttons, although I was thinking of getting the light up coin insert style buttons and put the in the front where a coin door would normally go.. Let me know what you guys think so far.
Thanks, cho

[PL1]

Welcome aboard, Griggs619.   

Cue the obligatory reminder to not angle your P3/P4 joysticks. (green=good, red=bad)
http://newwiki.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?title=FAQ#Orientation




Scott

[Malenko]

before you look at MAME cabs to see how 4 players should be done, look at real arcade machines like NBA Jam.

I dont understand building something, then asking advice on how to build it/do the layout, but I'm just happy you didn't build an aircraft carrier. Obligatory you don't need 6 buttons for the end players comment.

[Griggs619]

Thank you guys for the reply. I did read somewhere before that it's a good idea to not angle the joysticks,  but when I did a mock up without the angles it's seemed weird and as malenko states all the mame control panels examples online have the player 3 & 4 joysticks at an angle, so I assumed it would be fine. I did look at ninja turtles and nba jam but they are a bit different since mine is octagon shaped and has more buttons. Does anyone have an example of a 4 player mame panel without angles joysticks? Thanks again and sorry about the noob questions.

[PL1]

Does anyone have an example of a 4 player mame panel without angles joysticks?

There are tons of them in Project Announcements, and many of those started the design process with angled sticks.   

Better question:  Did the arcade companies angle P3/P4 joysticks?

Answer:  Almost none of them did, and the very few games with angled sticks weren't popular.

Keep in mind that the arcade companies did far more research and play-testing than any MAME-cab builder.   


Scott

[n3wt0n]

It looks like you cut a poker table in half. My opinion is that it looks massive and you should seek advice from dudes like Malenko who have made reasonable sized 4 player CP's. Even the often argued over aircraft carrier seems dwarfed by your panel.  Welcome to the board. No hate, just my opinion. I look forward to seeing your build progress.

[Nephasth]

1. Control panel is too big.
2. Players 3 and 4 shouldn't be angled.
3. Players 3 and 4 shouldn't have more than 4 buttons.
4. Players 1 and 2 shouldn't have more than 6 buttons.
5. I don't care if you want to play console games on this.
6. Too many admin buttons.
7. LCDs suck. (CRT or GTFO)
8. Lose whatever it is you have marked out in the center.
9. The angles coming to a point in the front are weird. Either curve the front edge, or make it flat.

[Griggs619]

Thanks For the advise PL1 I will spend some time checking out the projects announcement section and see what others have done. I do realize my CP is a bit on the larger side but really the picture makes it look bigger than it really is. When I look at the cabinet as a whole it only looks slightly out of proportion to me. The reason I made it slightly bigger is because my friends and I are not small by any means and I was trying to avoid a cramped feel when 4 players are playing at once.
     The reason I went with the 8 - 6 button layouts instead of 6 - 4  is for emulators. Although I'm not sure what 4 player games require 6 buttons but I'm sure there are some and I dont want to regret not adding the extra two buttons in the future. After hearing everyone's feedback I may cut player 3&4 down to 4 buttons but I will leave player 1&2 at 8 buttons for PC games like Mortal Komat X which use 8 buttons.  All input is appreciated, so thanks again everyone.

[yotsuya]

The photo of the A-frame holding up the control panel tells you everything you need to know about why you should rethink the design.

[Slippyblade]

... but I will leave player 1&2 at 8 buttons for PC games like Mortal Komat X which use 8 buttons.  All input is appreciated, so thanks again everyone.

Fighting games that have 8 buttons still only use 6 buttons.  Those last two buttons are basically just cheaters for folks that don't have a full controls.  They just macro presses of the other buttons.

[05SRT4]

I guess if it doesn't work out you can drape a blanket over the CP and the kids will have a little fort to play in.


Really though if you plan on having that much over hang please make sure everything is anchored well, last thing any of us want to hear is that a little kid getting crushed.

[paigeoliver]

Cut off all that extra space at the front and the sides. All that dead empty wood adds nothing to the machine other than making it ugly and unwieldy.

[lisowskikevin]

Sheesh, my control panel feels so insignificant compared to yours! But in the end it's what YOU WANT. Everyone here is giving you their advice based on their experience, there are some amazing contributors in this forum. Best of luck whichever design you choose.

No greater sense of accomplishment once you are all finished your arcade machine and people come over and are totally amazed by your machine.

[Nephasth]

1. Control panel is too big.
2. Players 3 and 4 shouldn't be angled.
3. Players 3 and 4 shouldn't have more than 4 buttons.
4. Players 1 and 2 shouldn't have more than 6 buttons.
5. I don't care if you want to play console games on this.
6. Too many admin buttons.
7. LCDs suck. (CRT or GTFO)
8. Lose whatever it is you have marked out in the center.
9. The angles coming to a point in the front are weird. Either curve the front edge, or make it flat.

Man... You nailed all including #7! Good job!

Hopefully the OP comes to his senses...

[lisowskikevin]

haha thanks Nephasth. I am glad I listened to people like yourself. Best to learn from other's experiences considering that once yo build it....theres no going back to change it. Like you pointed out......I'm really glad I didn't go with an LCD screen. Would have been easier but not the same great end result for the nostalgia of playing games the way I remember them.

[05SRT4]

lisowskikevin,

Have you ever had issues with bumping shoulders with that setup or has it been comfortable for 4 plays with that setup?

Also build thread?

[Titchgamer]

Sheesh, my control panel feels so insignificant compared to yours! But in the end it's what YOU WANT. Everyone here is giving you their advice based on their experience, there are some amazing contributors in this forum. Best of luck whichever design you choose.

No greater sense of accomplishment once you are all finished your arcade machine and people come over and are totally amazed by your machine.

Is that a spinner under the CP?

[lisowskikevin]

Sheesh, my control panel feels so insignificant compared to yours! But in the end it's what YOU WANT. Everyone here is giving you their advice based on their experience, there are some amazing contributors in this forum. Best of luck whichever design you choose.

No greater sense of accomplishment once you are all finished your arcade machine and people come over and are totally amazed by your machine.

Is that a spinner under the CP?

No I decided against a spinner or trackball for my cab. It's actually a master volume control.

[lisowskikevin]

lisowskikevin,

Have you ever had issues with bumping shoulders with that setup or has it been comfortable for 4 plays with that setup?

Also build thread?

No issues with bumping shoulders but I'm not a big guy and I play it mostly with my young kids. Looking back at it now I could have made it a bit bigger ,  but I stuck to roughly the measurements of a TMNT cab.

As for a build thread I didn't get too detailed with it, I just posted a few progress flicks. I was so focused on finishing the project I didn't take the time to post more detailed build info (which is selfish in hindsight and I apologize). I have also since installed 2 aim track guns with holsters each side of the cab. I did that after I took the photos at the link below.

Progress Photos------   http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,145672.msg1514972.html#msg1514972

[yotsuya]

Bumping shoulders is ok. You can't catch cooties as an adult.

[yotsuya]

Sheesh, my control panel feels so insignificant compared to yours! But in the end it's what YOU WANT. Everyone here is giving you their advice based on their experience, there are some amazing contributors in this forum. Best of luck whichever design you choose.

No greater sense of accomplishment once you are all finished your arcade machine and people come over and are totally amazed by your machine.

Tastefully done.

[lisowskikevin]

Sheesh, my control panel feels so insignificant compared to yours! But in the end it's what YOU WANT. Everyone here is giving you their advice based on their experience, there are some amazing contributors in this forum. Best of luck whichever design you choose.

No greater sense of accomplishment once you are all finished your arcade machine and people come over and are totally amazed by your machine.

Tastefully done.

Thank you sir, and yes you are absolutely correct about the cooties haha. 

[Titchgamer]

Sheesh, my control panel feels so insignificant compared to yours! But in the end it's what YOU WANT. Everyone here is giving you their advice based on their experience, there are some amazing contributors in this forum. Best of luck whichever design you choose.

No greater sense of accomplishment once you are all finished your arcade machine and people come over and are totally amazed by your machine.

That makes more sense.
Thought it was a odd place for a spinner lol
Is that a spinner under the CP?

No I decided against a spinner or trackball for my cab. It's actually a master volume control.