GGG Trackball booster kit with Happ Trackball

[Kremmit]

The Groovy Game Gear web site lists their trackball booster kits as being compatible with Betson/Imperial trackballs.  I wondered, why not Happ?  Betson and Happ TBs both appear to use the exact same diameter optic wheels, with the same number of holes, so it ough to be no problem.  So I tried it out.

Reference:  I used a pair of brand new 3" Happ "Golden Tee" AKA "High Lip" trackballs, interfaced through an OptiWiz.  One TB had the stock encoder wheels, and one had the GGG upgrades.  Both have the red optic boards.

Tempest:  I use this game to test the amount of on-screen movement produced from a given amount of spin.  The trackball moves the (umm, what do you call that thing you move in Tempest, anyway?) shooter thingy about twice as fast for the same amount of trackball travel when the GGG wheels are installed.

Major Havoc:  In previous testing, I've found this game to be especially prone to backspin.  (Or maybe it's just easier to see it.)  With my analog sensetivity set at 100,  the stock TB really can't produce any backspin.  The GGG upgraded TB moves Rex faster for a given amount of spin, but I can get backspin if I try.  Lowering the analog sensetivity eliminates the backspin, and of course Rex moves slower.

Golden Tee:  Sorry, I don't play Golden Tee.  People who've tried the GGG encoders on Betson TBs say it's better, and I imagine it's true with a Happ, too.

Windows:  Finally, I can use an arcade TB as a Windows mouse, and I don't have to spin the ball three times to move the cursor halfway across the screen. 

Overall:  I like 'em.  They mount perfectly.  I haven't noticed any trouble, the Happ optics seem to like them just fine.  I've always felt that arcade trackballs weren't responsive enough when plugged into a PC- both in Windows and in MAME.  In Windows, you could adjust the mouse sensetivity all the way up, but any standard mice connected would suddenly move way too fast.  In MAME, you could adjust the analog sensetivity up to compensate, but overly high settings cause a loss of precision, which is unacceptable.  These encoder wheels bring the hardware up to speed, so that the software doesn't have to compensate.  So do I think they're worth it?  Well, I'll be installing another pair of GGG wheels in my other trackball shortly.  Two thumbs up!

[19rjs99]

Great job... I will be ordering a pair as soon as they are available again. Thanks Kremmit.