Help With Keyboard encoders

[N8]

Well I have decided to start my arcade project and figure I better buy everything at once so I can stay organized.  I am planning to buy this http://www.centsibleamusements.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=374
trackball.  since I have 28 buttons, 2 eight way joysticks, one 4 way and a spinner, what would be the best and most cost efficient keyboard encoder to buy? I would like to use the trackball as a mouse.  I'm not sure if some keyboard encoders won't be able to use the trackball as a mouse but I'm sure there are ones that would be able to.

thanks in advance

[axefreak]

This should help....

http://arcadecontrols.com/arcade_input.shtml#KeyboardEncoders

Rick

[Tiger-Heli]

Or this - http://www.mameworld.net/tigerheli/encoder/

BTW, virtually none of the encoders except the Mini-PAC will support a trackball, but you can use a mouse hack along with any of the other encoders.

[Crazy Cooter]

Isn't $63 kind of expensive for a 2-1/4" raw trackball?

(I've only shopped for 3" ones)

[cholin]

I say go MiniPac!  I STILL dont understand why people would rather get anything else...minipac's got everything you need!  Best 25 bucks I ever spent... well not really...but same idea.

[markrvp]

You need one of the following:

Minipac - connect both joysticks/buttons plus trackball/spinner

Keyboard Encoder + Optipac

Keyboard Encoder + Mouse Hack

For what you want to do . . .
My first choice would be the Minipac
My second choice would be a Keywiz & mouse hack

[pmc]

or buy a PS/2 or USB enabled trackball (which you can also get cheaper than the one that you are eyeing) and then get an encoder just for the j/s and buttons.

I went that route because the minipac didn't exist at the time and I didn't want to buy an optipac.

-pmc