Show me a control panel that...

[JCKnife]

Hi all. I'm fairly new around here but I've decided to build a cab so I'm going to be around for a while. I've bought the Project Arcade book and I'm getting some ideas together.

I'm thinking right now that I'll have to use swapable controls to achieve what I want to play, but maybe someone can show me a single panel that can...

1. Play 2-player fighting games (using 6 buttons each)
2. Play 2-player "Ikari Warrior" style games using a rotating stick, and
3. Play 2-player Smash TV and Total Carnage, using dual joysticks per player.

...and of course still have a trakball. I'm not convinced I need a spinner, but then again I've never had one so I don't know what I'm missing.

Any advice appreciated. Thanks.

[Stingray]

If you really want to add all of those controls to a single panel your best bet would be converting the landing deck from an aircraft carrier.  

-S

[neuromancer]

Am I missing something?

If you use optical rotary controls for your sticks you get everything you want.

The only thing you need to do is make sure your sticks aren't too far apart, or else the robotron type games get hard to play.

Bob

[JCKnife]

It's gonna need 4 sticks.

[neuromancer]

So? Lots of people have 4 sticks.

Bob

[1UP]

The panel will have to be fairly large, especially with a trackball.  You're basically making a 4-player panel in that case.

I would use a layout similar to the above, and put the trackball in the middle.

[shmokes]

Bah....don't listen to these detractors  

I hate to tip my hand before my cab is finished, but since you asked here's one of my panels.  It's 26 1/4" wide and just shy of 12" deep.  Not too big by most standards.  The joysticks on the left are Happ mechanical rotaries.  Of course, this panel only has four buttons per stick, cos I've got another panel for fighting games, but I could have fit six buttons per player pretty easily.

This picture really doesn't do the panel justice, by the way.  It's laminated with brushed aluminum and looks MUCH MUCH nicer in person.  

[shmokes]

Here's the Visio layout.  I didn't know how to save it as a JPEG and keep the gridlines.  Also, it seems to have cut out the blank space around the edges.  The original Visio file has everything in there and I can give it to you if you're interested.  In the normal Visio file the trackball and 1Player/2Player buttons do not butt up against the edge of the control panel.  There is at least an inch of space on all sides.

Anyway, I put in a six-button layout in this one to show it's feasibility.

[Kremmit]

Model it after a Smash TV panel.  Put 6 buttons between each set of two sticks.  Use a Happ Mechanical Rotary for each player's right hand stick, and a Happ Super, Competition or P360 for the left hands.  If you decide to go for a spinner, put it somewhere above the sticks/buttons.  There's a small footprint spinner available that can fit just about anywhere.  (Slikstik Tornado?)

Then, either make it a wide panel and put the trackball in the middle, or make it a deep panel and put the trackball above the sticks.

Or do swapable panels or a modular system.

[eb]

Laminated with brushed aluminium? How does one do that? Or is it just glued down?

Either way there better be a tutorial at some point, it's a damn sharp looking control panel

[dumblemort]

I'm in the same boat....so the optical rotary controls can be used as 4-way, 8-way and rotary joysticks....sounds too good to be true but would be great!! My question...can mame handle 4 rotary joysticks? Are there enough inputs etc...

Am I missing something?

If you use optical rotary controls for your sticks you get everything you want.

The only thing you need to do is make sure your sticks aren't too far apart, or else the robotron type games get hard to play.

Bob

[shmokes]

   Hey thanks.

I'll write it all up.  I've been having a really difficult time getting it all done inbetween a torture school and work schedule.  There's a small possibility that I will be able to complete it during Christmas break, but probably not.  I can still basically only work on it during the weekend, cos I'm building at work out in a big garage.  Believe it or not nobody know, after a full year.  I think they see all the materials and probably wonder what they are, but just assume that someone is doing something official.  

You can imagine how thoroughly I have to clean up when I'm done.

p.s.  If you think aluminum laminate is something, wait till you see the brushed aluminum t-molding.  

[shmokes]

I'm in the same boat....so the optical rotary controls can be used as 4-way, 8-way and rotary joysticks....sounds too good to be true but would be great!! My question...can mame handle 4 rotary joysticks? Are there enough inputs etc...

No.  It's just an 8-way stick.  I mean, it can be used as a 4-way, but it won't feel like a 4-way.  But JCKnife didn't mention anything about having a true 4-way on his panel.  If he wanted one he could use my layout and substitue one or both of the top-fire sticks for one of RandyT's Omni-stik Prodigies.  They can be switched between true 8-way and 4-way action.

By the way, if you are looking to recreate Ikari Warriors you do not want to go with an optical rotary stick.  Those sticks have a smooth spinning motion, like the volume knob on a stereo.  The mechanical rotary clicks into place in 12 or 13 distinct positions as you spin it, just like the original Ikari Warriars sticks.  To use them you either have to get a keyboard encoder with places to plug them in (the MK64 is the only one I know of) or you can use an Ipac or Keywiz in combination with Druin's Interface.  An optical rotary stick can be plugged into an Optipac.

[telengard]

Hi all. I'm fairly new around here but I've decided to build a cab so I'm going to be around for a while. I've bought the Project Arcade book and I'm getting some ideas together.

I'm thinking right now that I'll have to use swapable controls to achieve what I want to play, but maybe someone can show me a single panel that can...

1. Play 2-player fighting games (using 6 buttons each)
2. Play 2-player "Ikari Warrior" style games using a rotating stick, and
3. Play 2-player Smash TV and Total Carnage, using dual joysticks per player.

...and of course still have a trakball. I'm not convinced I need a spinner, but then again I've never had one so I don't know what I'm missing.

Any advice appreciated. Thanks.

You could always go with a swappable, or even better, a modular setup.  Then you can have just about anything you want.  I did this and am *very* happy with it.  It's more work to build but worth it for the flexibility.

As for the spinner, lots of fun games use it, but not a lot compared to joysticks/buttons:

Tempest
Warlords
Arkanoid
Tron/DOT
Breakout
Tac/Scan
Star Trek

I like the older games myself so a spinner was mandatory.  

Also I guess some people use them for a low tech steering wheel which opens up probably a few dozen more games.