Gameport problem

[srramasu]

Hi,

I did a big mistake by buying a Saitek SP550 gameport joystick at a local clearout sale (hence cannot return).
My laptop does not have a gameport and the box says that the bloody thing works on 98

* srramasu in fine print.

So even though you laugh at my absurd craziness to buy such a think, maybe someone can help me.

Has anyone out there used the same device sucessfully with a Gameport to USB adaptor under windows XP. Please advice if i can buy any additional equipment to solve my problem that will work, or should i through the new joystick that i bought into my attic.

Thanks in advance for any help.
Sri

[Minwah]

I have a Gameport > USB adaptor that works great (I don't have the same joystick as you tho, but it should work too).  You should be able to pick one up pretty cheap...

[srramasu]

I have a Gameport > USB adaptor that works great (I don't have the same joystick as you tho, but it should work too).  You should be able to pick one up pretty cheap...

Thanks a million for your advice. I am planning to buy one, buy just wanted to know if anyone has a similar setup so that i dont commit another stupidity again. Just want to know a model of the adaptor, which is sure to work for this joystick before i spend the money on it. Do you know of any which are truly universal in this sense and work with the highest variety of devices.

[hunky_artist]

its bizzarre you posting this today.... Ive had mame on my comp for years now, btu havent used it for ages. I used to use it with one of those playstation Namco arcade sticks that i wired into a cheapo gravis gamepad, this was on Windows98

im gonna be building a cabinet this summer, so i dug out mame again (we've changed computers since, and are now on xp)

but my joystick/gamepad hack wont work!!

(I read online that xp doesnt work with with gameports?)

is this true? do i have to go and buy a gameport to usb adaptor? or is there any way to get my arcade stick/gamepad hack working...

(it has the lists for joysticks, gamepads with various button combinations.... but it just wont recognise it as plugged in)

any ideas? thanks

[Minwah]

its bizzarre you posting this today.... Ive had mame on my comp for years now, btu havent used it for ages. I used to use it with one of those playstation Namco arcade sticks that i wired into a cheapo gravis gamepad, this was on Windows98

im gonna be building a cabinet this summer, so i dug out mame again (we've changed computers since, and are now on xp)

but my joystick/gamepad hack wont work!!

(I read online that xp doesnt work with with gameports?)

is this true? do i have to go and buy a gameport to usb adaptor? or is there any way to get my arcade stick/gamepad hack working...

(it has the lists for joysticks, gamepads with various button combinations.... but it just wont recognise it as plugged in)

any ideas? thanks

XP *does* work with gameports...my guess is that you maybe don't have the correct driver installed (?)  FYI my motherboard doesn't have a gameport, but I have a Sound Blaster 16 PCI which has a gameport.  That said, my device (pedals) work much better using the USB adaptor (see this recent related thread: http://www.arcadecontrols.org/yabbse/index.php?board=1;action=display;threadid=21536).

This is the particular adaptor I have: http://www.maplin.co.uk/products/module.asp?CartID=040707151559925&moduleno=30320&Products=1

[hunky_artist]

i've got a Terratec sound card (home studio stuff) which has a separate gameport (midi) slot installed in the back of the computer

funnily enough I was looking at that adaptor just earlier on thinking about it. It's either that or I by a USB joypad at half the cost but have to re-solder the arcade stick... decisions decisions

[Chris]

USB is far more reliable than gameports.  The gyrations a PC needs to go through to read a gameport are insane and very timing sensitive.  Probably one of the most poorly designed parts of the PC architecture.  Of course, back when the gameport card first made it's appearance in what, 1981, all PC's were one speed, made by one manufacturer, and had practiaclly no need for a joystick except for Flight Simulator.  It's amazing that the same specification is still in use today.

--Chris

[hunky_artist]

i agree about all that, but if I'm only using it for mame... (dont play new games on my PC) ....and if windows xp actually has the information for joypads in there... i would have imagined that you should be able to use it

if it worked in 98, it should work in xp which is supposedly 'better'

it doesnt matter for my mame cab, that will be 98 anyway, but i just want to play my games without having to rip apart the arcade stick once more and re solder everything!!

oh well, lol