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Author Topic: New Mame Arcade Questions  (Read 12678 times)

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PL1

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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #40 on: December 06, 2021, 11:11:11 pm »
I am not sure if have a coin slot 2
There are two slots on your coin door and both slots should have a coin mech installed inside the door.



Left slot is Coin 1.

Right slot is Coin 2.

The microswitch near the bottom of each mech on the inside of the door should be wired like a button microswitch with ground on common (COM) and the wire to the IPac input on Normally Open. (NO)



Is it correct to assume if my hidden button on left does not return anything on keyboard test it is not configured or not working.  Reason i ask is i wondered how will i know where it goes minus tracing wires if it does not work.
Use standard troubleshooting 101 procedures.

You can narrow things down by comparing that printed chart of keystrokes to the IPac inputs that have wires attached.
- Is there an input that has a wire connected, but the associated keystroke didn't show up while you were checking?
- Is there an input with more than one wire connected?  For example, you probably have the left coin mech microswitch and the yellow admin button both wired to the "1Coin" input that sends keystroke "5".  Is anything wired to the "2Coin" input?

That should give you a very short list of wires to trace/check.

Be sure to power down the system before performing continuity checks with your multimeter -- unless you want to fry your meter.   >:D

Back to shifted functions do i need them or are their good examples that will give me an ahhh moment or are they hard code for example key 5 with shift enabled with do x.  In ipac i was under the impression a primary key could be set to perform whatever shifted function supported.
There are pros and cons to both dedicated admin buttons and shifted functions.
http://wiki.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/FAQ#Number_of_admin_buttons

With a dedicated ESC button, you can accidently hit it.

With shifted functions, P2 can hit 2Start just after P1 hits 1Start, but before P1 releases the 1Start button ==> default shifted function = ESC.
- It's less likely than hitting the dedicated button, but still possible.

To minimize the odds of accidently exiting the game you can physically move the exit key away from the other admin buttons or use an AHK script that pauses the game when you press a button (default "P" keystroke) and exits the game when you hold that button for three seconds.

One shifted function that can come in very handy if you're running low on quarters/tokens is P1 Start + P1B1 for Coin. ("5" keystroke)

For the rest of them, keep the ones you want and clear the ones you don't.

As I mentioned earlier the big one to avoid is P1 Start + P1 Joy Right for TAB -- you don't want button-mashing kids or drunk friends getting into the MAME menu system.   :scared

I prefer to program the SHIFT or ADMIN function to go with ENTER, as this is not usually used during gameplay but can be very useful to have available.
True, but I'm pretty sure he's already using Enter for P3B3.




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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #41 on: December 07, 2021, 04:37:33 am »
I suggest rather than trying to work out what someone else did, you blow away whatever settings you have inherited and make up your own. Think about how it needs to work for you.

Reset the IPAC to MAME default. Then you'll need to reprogram some buttons to your preferred layout, but at least it'll be yours. Once you are settled save that and reload as needed.

IMHO enter is too important and useful to relegate to P3B3, and making your ADMIN/SHIFT button double as ENTER (instead of "1", that is P1_START) saves potential dramas from accidentally quitting games, especially for a multiplayer cab.
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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #42 on: December 07, 2021, 08:37:15 am »
If someone accidentally hits that red button they deserve to lose their game.  I like my ESC button its top left and nobody that plays has epilepsy and hits its accidentally.  Just do what you want not what we like.

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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #43 on: December 08, 2021, 12:10:56 am »
i made discoveries tonight.  I took second look at the ipac and realized there is no wiring for coin for player 3 or 4.  So that explains that part of the mystery.  Also i don't believe i have coin mapped for p2 so i have to figure that out.  I also noticed 42w4 and 3sw4 were wired, but i only have three buttons for those players.  I determined 4sw4 is my purple button set to pause currently and 3sw4 is my red button which is esc.  I also found that 2sw7 is a hidden button underneath on the right.  It was f8 and i set it to x for now just to use something that will exit bigbox.  Finally the button on left side underneath i found lost wire and made it work as a jumper to the pc and now have a power on and off button working. 

I have not messed with shift buttons just yet as i keep going back and forth on what i would do with them.   I have wondered if my coin issue for p2 could be solved by doing player 2 shift and say coin for the option somewhere?  I am kind of bummed that i don't have 4 coin wiring, but for now it will have to do.  maybe my future is a new controller board and run a few wires. 

I think i am making progress and appreciate the responses.  At moment i have quite a few games that open with various nag screens about whatever isn't 100% emulated but they run.  My only immediate outstanding issue besides p2 coin or other items i don't understand yet are consoles.  I have found arcade mappings straight forward but console mappings of keys seems to be more challenging.  I have post on emulation forum here no responses just yet.   Maybe i was incorrect to assume i could run nintendo and playstation but i think it can be done at least for some games. 

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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #44 on: December 08, 2021, 01:10:49 am »
“x” is a P1 button, sw5 iirc.

 only some games require separate credits for P2 etc, and often that can be avoided by game setup.

For those few games that need it you can wire P2 credit to P1 credit so the same button does both at same time
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faulkkev

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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #45 on: December 08, 2021, 07:09:42 pm »
tonight i was wanting to setup my spinner but it has ps2 connector.  I don't see an option on my IO board for that so i suspect it was direct to a pc at some point.  i could get an adapter but wonder if replacing it would make sense then i believe i could wire it to my older IO board correct?  It is my understanding ipac4 will not deal with it and the io controllers is the spot.

Zebidee

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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #46 on: December 08, 2021, 07:36:49 pm »
Wiki on spinners:

http://wiki.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/Spinners_and_Dials

There are different kinds of spinners, I'm no expert. To my understanding, at least some types of spinners can be treated simply like a mouse and nothing more needed. You may need a PS2-USB active adapter if your PC won't recognise it normally.
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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #47 on: December 08, 2021, 08:36:53 pm »
tonight i was wanting to setup my spinner but it has ps2 connector.  I don't see an option on my IO board for that so i suspect it was direct to a pc at some point.  i could get an adapter but wonder if replacing it would make sense then i believe i could wire it to my older IO board correct?  It is my understanding ipac4 will not deal with it and the io controllers is the spot.
If by "IO board" you mean your IPac4 encoder, then you are correct.
- The IPac4 does not support optical (spinner/trackball) inputs like the IPac2 or Mini-Pac.
- The Dupont pins on the IPac4 are only used at the factory to program the boards.

For your old Opti-Pac you can plug the PS2 into your PC, just like a mouse.
or
Get a PS2 to USB adapter (some adapters work, some don't, search this site or Ultimarc site for more info) and plug it into your PC, just like a mouse.
or
If neither of those options works, you can replace the old Opti-Pac.
The Optipac (on the left) is a much older optical encoder for the trackball.
- Your pic doesn't show if you have the cable to pass the serial/USB data to the computer from the upper left connector.
- As long as you have that cable and you can connect it to your computer and the trackball still controls the mouse cursor properly, you shouldn't need to replace the Optipac.
- If you do need to replace it, there are a variety of optical encoder options like Optipac, OptiWiz, or "roll-your-own" with an inexpensive Arduino Pro Micro.




Scott

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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #48 on: December 09, 2021, 02:54:41 am »
A new spinner from Ultimarc can be bought with a separate board that will plug directly into a PCs USB port.
Works great.  Have two myself.
If using a trackball also, then that separate USB connection for your spinner becomes absolutely necessary so your I/O board doesn't mix/blend inputs on you.

A TurboTwist2 from GroovyGameGear comes with its own interface board and cabling also.
Bonus is the GGG version is made to be used with a trackball also without any concern of input interference and so would save some $$ if using both in the same cabinet.
You'll have to decide if you kind of start over with your interface plans.

And my 2 cents (shared by many here I believe) is that consoles and arcade machines have controls that just don't cross over well.  Really different animals.

But a great excuse for a second build for console games- maybe even with a MiSTer!
Relax, all right? My old man is a television repairman, he's got this ultimate set of tools! I can fix it.

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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #49 on: December 09, 2021, 05:47:11 am »
On closer examination:
1. The spinner isn't connected through the old Opti-Pac, and
2. I don't recognize what kind of spinner that is.



No idea if that PCB houses an optical encoder outputting mouse data to a PS/2 or USB connection (fairly likely due to the size of the PCB and the visible components) or if the PCB just contains the optical circuits outputting the quadrature waveforms for a separate encoder.   :dunno


Scott

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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #50 on: December 10, 2021, 07:35:48 pm »
well i don't know where the coin 2 goes.  it has a wire, but i seem to find what button it goes to or maybe it doesn't at all.   There is so much wiring in this thing i don't fully understand all of it yet, but i know on ipac4 there is a wire in coin2, where it goes is a mystery.  I am working on spinner at moment found usb adapter. 

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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #51 on: December 10, 2021, 09:30:46 pm »
Invest in a digital multimeter. You can buy a basic one from a hardware store or whatever for about $10-15. Look for one that makes a BEEP when using the continuity/diode testing function.  If you aren't sure, ask a staff member.

It can tell you when one end of a wire connects to the other end, like with your Coin 2 issue.
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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #52 on: December 11, 2021, 01:57:59 pm »
i will have to do something.  I don't think coin two goes to a button at all.  At least based on the fact all wires are colored differently i never see it run up to a wire coupler or to a button.  i believe i have all buttons accounted for to be honest .  i wondered if it ran to the actual coin box.  Even though all the wiring is a new adventure for me and i am very insecure about how well understand it, i am beginning to wonder if next year a new controller board with all the coin buttons and so on might be in my future.  might opt for newer IO board then as well.   i like the setup as it came and im learning, but i want it to maximize the player options etc and suspect my obsessive perfection personality trait will over come me.  I do think if i go that route the learning experience surely will clear the fog on wiring.  I have zero understanding on how the buttons are wired or the best practices per say.  I see the power runs in parallel and so on, but there are areas in this cabinet where wires are grounded and so on, so i need to chase them around to wrap my head around that with regards to the rules.  I understand the there needs to be ground wires but electricity is not my forte and again this board has exceeded my expectations for the help i have received. 

side note with my spinner installed it shows up a mouse/keyboard in windows, but doesn't work or do anything the driver is an old driver which is fine i suspect, but i am torn on whether it is a windows 10 issue or the IR sensor is bad as the spinner itself does show up.  I did notice on the spinner PCB board there are three little squares with red buttons that push or reset almost like little circuit breakers.   I tried them nothing happened, but with windows seeing the device i wonder if the actual spinner is toast. 

side comment:
i came to the conclusion wtih my setup running gamecube or higher games just aren't going to work with my button layout.  I did get sega, nintendo and super nintendo to work well once i got rid or changed various hot keys in retroarch and bigbox.  So i supposed for now ill focus on those platforms and mame arcade which is working well.  Might seek a mame how to guide to increase graphics quality beyond just enabling the basic HLSL settings.

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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #53 on: December 11, 2021, 06:07:27 pm »
There is no need to replace your IPAC4 - even if it was a 15 years old version (it isn't) it would still work fine. You may need some older drivers, but it will still do everything that you need it to.

Get a cheap digital multimeter instead.

Try connecting your spinner using an active PS2 to USB adapter, something like this one:

https://www.amazon.com/SANOXY-USB-Active-Adapter-Electronics/dp/B000I97N1M

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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #54 on: December 11, 2021, 08:05:35 pm »
I don't think coin two goes to a button at all.  At least based on the fact all wires are colored differently i never see it run up to a wire coupler or to a button.  i believe i have all buttons accounted for to be honest .  i wondered if it ran to the actual coin box. 
Did you find the microswitch on each coin mech or are there no mechs installed in your door?

If the switches aren't wired to the IPac, you would only need to run 3 wires -- two inputs and a ground -- an easy way to get some practice with wiring.   ;D

i am beginning to wonder if next year a new controller board with all the coin buttons and so on might be in my future.  might opt for newer IO board encoder then as well.
FIFY.  :P

The IPac4 is working fine so why re-do the most labor-intensive part of the wiring to end up with the same result?

If you're thinking about replacing the optical encoder for the spinner that makes more sense.

I have zero understanding on how the buttons are wired or the best practices per say.
Did you skip this part of the FAQ?

http://wiki.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/FAQ#How_do_I_wire_microswitches_to_an_encoder.3F

I see the power runs in parallel and so on, but there are areas in this cabinet where wires are grounded and so on
I'm guessing that your "where wires are grounded" comment refers to ground wires connected to the metal parts of the cab like the coin door frame and trackball body.

Those are commonly referred to as "frame ground" and are a safety feature to drain off the static charge generated by using the trackball and prevent users from being electrocuted if a power wire shorts to metal parts like the coin door.

side note with my spinner installed it shows up a mouse/keyboard in windows, but doesn't work or do anything the driver is an old driver which is fine i suspect, but i am torn on whether it is a windows 10 issue or the IR sensor is bad as the spinner itself does show up.  I did notice on the spinner PCB board there are three little squares with red buttons that push or reset almost like little circuit breakers.   I tried them nothing happened, but with windows seeing the device i wonder if the actual spinner is toast. 
It is probably possible to troubleshoot whether the optical circuits are working, but I'll need much closer and clearer photos of the PCBs to guide you through the process.
- If the optos are working you might be able to connect them to a an optical encoder -- either the old OptiPac your trackball is connected to or a new encoder.
- If the optos are not working, you will have to either repair them or replace the spinner.

Because of the hole in the panel, that spinner will be tough to replace unless you do something like 3d print a mount.
- It's very easy to remix parametric models like the chamfer and roundover mounts in this thread or make a different custom one if you want to use a spinner like the TT2 or SpinTrak in that panel hole.



i came to the conclusion wtih my setup running gamecube or higher games just aren't going to work with my button layout.
Wise decision.


Scott

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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #55 on: December 22, 2021, 07:00:11 pm »
been busy took me a while to respond, but i have not traced coin 2 wire to figure out where it goes to yet. I am certain it is not tied to an actual button.   I have the arcade working pretty much with a few platforms and arcade games, so being able to use it is nice.  I disabled all the hot keys from the emulators that conflicted or changed them so i think im ok with regards to all joystick or button movements not interfering with game play.  I will come back to the spinner later as i don't need it right now but would like it to work eventually. 

Regarding my redo the control panel i was not referring to the IPAC card, but the actual top panel where the buttons and joysticks are located, apparently control panel is the wrong word.   I thought maybe next year replacing it with one with proper buttons to cover coin 1-4 and so on might be a good idea, maybe add led button lights, just to make it my own since most the wiring was already done i feel like it lacks my touch per say.   I will have to read up on the wiring 101 as i am not sharp on that yet, but will cross that bridge when i get there.

the only thing if possible i think needs attention is if there are ways to really enhance graphics.  I have it turned on in Mame, but did not use a custom INI or anything.  I mean  most games look ok with the exception of nintendo doom, which is just flat out horrible. 


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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #56 on: December 22, 2021, 08:59:14 pm »
Regarding my redo the control panel i was not referring to the IPAC card, but the actual top panel where the buttons and joysticks are located, apparently control panel is the wrong word.
Just to be sure we're using the same terms:

"Control panel" refers to the whole panel covered by the lightning graphic.  It can also include the enclosure that protects the wiring and underside of the controls if the combined assembly of the control panel and protective enclosure can be detached from the cabinet body.
- It can be "un-populated" (no controls installed) or "populated". (controls installed)

"Player buttons" refers to the 3 yellow, 6 blue, 6 red, and 3 green buttons next to the associated joysticks, plus the two black buttons above the trackball.

"Admin buttons" refers to the row of buttons across the top of the panel, including Start buttons, Coin buttons (if you choose to add them), etc.



I was going to suggest adding another hole on each side of the current row of 7 admin buttons for a total of 9 (4 Coin, 4 Start, and Pause/Exit), but those metal brackets on the underside of the panel are in the way.   :dunno




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Re: New Mame Arcade Questions
« Reply #57 on: January 01, 2022, 04:08:49 pm »
yeah was wondering same thing adding buttons somewhere.  I mean if i have to put a new setup on some day so be it, but for now it is working pretty good. 

I did install a 4 fan cooling kit using AC Infinity fans and a thermostat.  i used 80mm fans and for the bottom two fans i took them apart and flipped them to reverse flow "supported by manufacturer" so they pumped air into the cabinet.  I did have to build custom 1 by 1 wood bracket for the bottom fans as this particular cabinet has metal across bottom with fan holes and no where easily to mount fans without drilling metal.  i then attached magnets to the frames sides and stuck them to the metal.  Then attached fans to the wood frames, and it worked great.  This also allowed me to hide the fans inside the cabinet and keep cutting holes for all the fans and use existing passive vents.  I did have to cut one hole for the thermostat, but i didn't see way around it as it is digital and supposed to be exteriorly setup.  I set the thermostat when to turn fans on and off to auto cool, so it just does it on its own now. Super quiet can't ever hear them running.  Even though i know i have read fans aren't needed i wanted to add that touch to my cabinet.  Before fans with a thermometer it easily hit 100 or more before adding the fans.  Now it keeps the cabinet between 83-85 degrees at all times.   The pc i am using is overkill but i had it available so it does generate more heat then is typical i suspect.