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Swappable Control panels: How to connect?
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telengard:

--- Quote from: JAZ on June 03, 2004, 05:10:54 am ---I've arranged for the following swappable control panels to be wired up for my Jaleco Pony sit-down cab:

Each panel would have the following:
1 player start button
2 player start button
1 player coin button
2 player coin button

In addition:
Street Fighter panel:
2 x 8-way ball-top joysticks
6 buttons per player

Pacman panel:
1 x 4 way ball-top joystick
5 buttons

Robotron Panel:
4 x 8-way bat-handle joysticks (2 per player)
no buttons

Ikari Warriors Panel:
2 x SNK rotary joysticks
3 buttons per player

The guy who is making the panels has said he will "wire up to 12 way plugs so you can plug and play".

Once I have these panels, what is my best way of connecting them? The cabinet is JAMMA so I use a J-Pac. Do I just need an iPac2 for the sticks and buttons above the JAMMA standard?

Thanks for the help (I've searched the board extensively and Ultimarcs website but I'm now suffering from information overload..)

--- End quote ---

I had used Molex connectors but grew tired of needing 3 hands to put in controls.  1 to hold the control and two to connect the Molex connectors.  Someone had demonstrated not too long ago the use of cat5 cables (ethernet) for plugging in.  I'm in the process right now of switching to that scheme.  I bought pass thru keystone jacks and a patch panel.  This will allow very easy means to plug in the controls.  The only thing I'm worried about are some of the controls that need power, like the spinner/trackball, etc.

I have only used IPACs so that's all I can speak for.  I know nothing about Jamma stuff.
SirPoonga:

--- Quote from: krick on June 03, 2004, 09:49:06 am ---I was going to go with DB25 connectors (like serial cables) but the connectors are really tiny and soldering on them is a b*tch.

--- End quote ---

That's why you get the crimp ones.

BTW, something to think about.  Common butytons, like coin and start, can you put those on the cabinet on not the control panel (take a peek at my cabinet).
Tiger-Heli:

--- Quote from: SirPoonga on June 03, 2004, 02:22:05 pm ---
--- Quote from: krick on June 03, 2004, 09:49:06 am ---I was going to go with DB25 connectors (like serial cables) but the connectors are really tiny and soldering on them is a b*tch.

--- End quote ---
That's why you get the crimp ones.

--- End quote ---
And/or, you buy DB25 cables, lop it in half, and run the wires to terminal strips.
Tiger-Heli:

--- Quote from: Bumblebounces on June 03, 2004, 10:31:59 am ---I know I am so lazy that I would just use whatever panel was there and play only games it would work with.  Terrible, I know, but no one knows me better than I do.

--- End quote ---
I'm the same way.  Isn't it amazing how many people in this hobby will spend months designing the perfect set of CP's, interface methods, layouts, etc. and then are too lazy to spend 30 seconds to swap a panel around.

I do the same thing over and over - I spend hours coming up with tweaks so the PC boots 5 seconds faster . . . go figure!
REBIRTH:

--- Quote from: Tiger-Heli on June 03, 2004, 02:41:01 pm ---
--- Quote from: Bumblebounces on June 03, 2004, 10:31:59 am ---I know I am so lazy that I would just use whatever panel was there and play only games it would work with.  Terrible, I know, but no one knows me better than I do.

--- End quote ---
I'm the same way.  Isn't it amazing how many people in this hobby will spend months designing the perfect set of CP's, interface methods, layouts, etc. and then are too lazy to spend 30 seconds to swap a panel around.

I do the same thing over and over - I spend hours coming up with tweaks so the PC boots 5 seconds faster . . . go figure!

--- End quote ---

I figured the same thing for myself, plus was afraid the panels that were not currently in use would be "played with" by my kids - "hey, can my kiddie scissors cut through these cool wires?".  So I decide to rotate 3 always attached control panels and take the lazyness and fear out of it.

Back to the topic at hand, won't each panel need 2 or 3 12-way connectors?   Can't you get larger connector blocks, so you could just use 1?  Not that it is a big deal, just thinking it might be confusing connecting 2-3 plugs as well as just more time swapping the panels.  It would be nice to have a connection like a "docking station" on a palm pilot, where you can just slide in and out of it....
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