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Author Topic: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick  (Read 67607 times)

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AndyWarne

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Well 9 months of development.. I hope I have got it right..
Need an analog stick which can also be used as a 4 way, 8 way or any other profile using user-defined maps?
Plugs direct into USB
Can also optionally connect to an I-PAC or other such board.
No pots or contacts to wear out
Up to 4 can be connected and assigned IDs
Inbuilt 8 button interface
Check out the full details on http://www.ultimarc.com/ultrastik_info.html



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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #1 on: June 08, 2006, 08:28:39 am »
Looks like another joystick to play with.

Really nice feature set and a lot of accessories, too.  This is going to require one hell of a thorough review with all the different options that allow the change of how the joystick feels let alone it's normal features.  Any comments from you on how everything feels with the different options?  It'll be subjective, but still nice to hear one person's opinion.


Any idea when the hard springs are coming in? I think I'd like those.

Oh, and it looks like you have a few link issues to work out, but all the information appears to be there.


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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #2 on: June 08, 2006, 10:11:53 am »
Heh, small info for not small price :)
Please test it. How long throw? How long throw with optional restrictor plates? How hard spring? ....
It looks as Sanwa. Sanwa had a bit too long throw.

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #3 on: June 08, 2006, 10:36:50 am »
$59 isn't bad for what this joystick can do. You don't even need an I-pac anymore, but it can be connected to an I-pac if you already have one.

I am very excited about this joystick. What it can do is amazing.

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #4 on: June 08, 2006, 11:01:59 am »
Very excited about this.  I've been looking for a good balltop analog solution.

Does the analog offer as high a resolution as a standard pot-based analog stick?  And what's it use, hall-effect sensors?  And most importantly, how's the throw and resistance?  Is this gonna feel like a regular, floppy analog stick, a "regular" arcade stick, or a super-short throw stick, ala the Mag-Stik?

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #5 on: June 08, 2006, 11:06:49 am »
Well, it appears to me from reading the info on the site that it isn't high resolution. I think it is a 9x9 matrix, similar to the 7x7 matrix of the 49 ways. It seems that it would have 4 sensitivity levels in each direction, where the 49 way has 3. Seems like a step up, but not huge. I hope I am way off on this and it has a very high resolution, though.


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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #6 on: June 08, 2006, 11:25:38 am »
Is there any chance you could get these to work with PSX and Xbox as analog sticks?  I mean I guess you could hook them up to the I-Pac and use the console adapters but will they function in true analog mode if you do that or will they still only be simulated analog?

AndyWarne

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #7 on: June 08, 2006, 11:25:52 am »
I hope I am way off on this and it has a very high resolution, though.
Fortunately you are way off on this! The stick is a full analog solution. In fact the internal resolution is so high that it has to be divided by 16 before sending to the PC to comply with the standard for analog gamepads. Movement is totally smooth all across the range. The 9X9 matrix is only invoked for the purposes of assigning digital maps. When a digital map is not used (or any cells in the map are assigned as analog) then the stick is a high-resolution analog flight stick. I will think of some wording to add to the webpages to make this clear.
Feedback on this forum will be very helpful in refining the information in this way.
I am awaiting the harder springs, in fact have two levels of hardness to test with. Should only be a few days. Everything else is in stock.
Andy

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #8 on: June 08, 2006, 11:32:29 am »
Wow, sounds great! So, I'm guessing this joy will work very well with Sinistar?

I might skip my next P360 purchase and get one of these instead. :)

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #9 on: June 08, 2006, 11:48:38 am »
I hope I am way off on this and it has a very high resolution, though.
Fortunately you are way off on this! The stick is a full analog solution.

Awesome, I am very glad that I was wrong.


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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #10 on: June 08, 2006, 12:22:08 pm »
Awesome!
If only there was some way of adding a Tron style (or tank style) handle with a couple buttons on it, this would pretty much be the ultimate joystick I've been dreaming for!

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #11 on: June 08, 2006, 01:25:22 pm »
Wow, it looks like the wait might have been worthwhile.

Can you tell me whether configuration software will be available for operating systems other than Windows?

If you fit the 4/8 way restrictor plate, can it still be rotated without dismantling the joystick (like the J-Stik) in order to switch between 4 and 8 way operation?

Can the stiff springs be fitted to standard Sanwa and Seimitsu joysticks?

Thanks in advance.
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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #12 on: June 08, 2006, 01:39:09 pm »
This looks like a great multi-purpose stick. No shoes for the kids - gotta keep my priorities straight...

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #13 on: June 08, 2006, 02:14:13 pm »
that stick looks great.  I'm glad i haven't picked up my 360's yet!!!

now if only i had that dual core 9800 MHZ Pentium 4 I'd need to run Gauntlet DL...  :)

AndyWarne

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #14 on: June 08, 2006, 02:33:51 pm »
Some answers:
Console support: At the moment these can't be used as full analog sticks on X-Box / PSX. This is something in the works though. There are raw analog outputs on the I/O connector and these are for plugging into a new interface board which will support this. No timescale on this though.
Yes the 4-8 way restrictor plate can be rotated without dismantling the stick.
The thread on the handles is standard, M6 on the ball top and M8 on the oval top, and there might be alternative handles which will fit, I'll look into it.
I think the harder spring might well fit some Sanwa sticks. Not sure about Seimitsu though.
Nothing is in the works for programming software on other Non-Windows OSs at the moment.
Andy

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #15 on: June 08, 2006, 03:12:34 pm »
How does it plug into the Ipac and how does (or does it) it appear differently to Windows?

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #16 on: June 08, 2006, 03:35:40 pm »
Do you have to use a restrictor plate to use 4/8 way?  Or is that just for a more realistic feel?

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #17 on: June 08, 2006, 03:50:28 pm »
Do you have to use a restrictor plate to use 4/8 way?  Or is that just for a more realistic feel?

As I read it, it means physically restricted so that can't actually make the actuator touch the corners in 4-way.  It may also reduce the overall throw, but I'm speculating here.

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #18 on: June 08, 2006, 03:55:08 pm »
I think our good friends Kevin and James need eval equipment now to review this beast.

Or... better yet...

Andy, send me one to review, and I'll post it up ;)

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #19 on: June 08, 2006, 05:01:08 pm »
Do you have to use a restrictor plate to use 4/8 way?  Or is that just for a more realistic feel?

He mentions that they are used for the feel of the joystick. When hooked up via USB it has a directional mapping feature that seems very similar to the way the GP49's work in powermame. Since it can be hooked up digitally w/o USB the restrictor plates would probably be more functional in that case, not just for the feel.


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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #20 on: June 08, 2006, 08:31:50 pm »
Some answers:
Console support: At the moment these can't be used as full analog sticks on X-Box / PSX. This is something in the works though. There are raw analog outputs on the I/O connector and these are for plugging into a new interface board which will support this. No timescale on this though.

Hmm... I'd be seriously interested in getting full analog out of this thing for consoles.  For our sticks, we keep the pcb's in a removable project box, so the same stick can be used on multiple platforms.  If I can pull a raw analog signal from the joystick and feed it into the boxes, I'd be in heaven.  It looks like I can, but I need some clarification:

http://www.ultimarc.com/ultrastik_inst.html
When used in "output mode, USB not connected", Is it sending both digital and analog signals out?  Blue, Orange, Yellow, Green + Grey, Violet wires?  I'm confused on this point because it also says: "The post auto-detects which mode you are using."  Does this mean it auto-detects between input mode and output mode only, then sets itself to send or receive the appropriate signals to/from the posts?  Or does it also disable the analog out (grey/violet) if you're using the digital out (Blue/Orange/Green?Grey)?

My Notes (somebody correct me if I'm wrong):
Same mouting plate dimensions as a super.
Oval top is ~5mm shorter deck-height than a super, Ball top is ~18mm shorter.
Shallower than a super below panel.
BOATLOADS cheaper than Happ analog sticks.
Includes an 8-button encoder (input mode only).

btw, the link for more info on the wire harness on this page redirects to the home page.

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #21 on: June 08, 2006, 08:45:05 pm »
Andy, please send one my way when you get everything ironed out. Mods love to review things  :cheers: :applaud:

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #22 on: June 08, 2006, 08:53:27 pm »

btw, the link for more info on the wire harness on this page redirects to the home page.

I seem to have that issue with all of the links I visit on that page.    :cry:
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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #23 on: June 08, 2006, 10:58:39 pm »
Wow, this looks like an awesome product. What's the minimum mounting depth on this stick? (Wonder if I could shoehorn it into my micro cab...)

EDIT: Found it--2 inches. I think I could get it to work depth-wise. Not sure yet if I'll have room for the plate.

Oh, and it'll work with my Sanwa mini balltop? Awesome.
« Last Edit: June 09, 2006, 01:57:55 am by vrf »

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #24 on: June 09, 2006, 09:58:56 am »
Andy...I own a bunch of your encoders and I have to say you've outdone yourself this time.

I just wish I didn't have a full collection of encoders and joysticks now floating around in the MameMaster laboratory!

I still may pick up one or two soon.....

Well done!  :cheers:
Seriously. Will it fit in my basement or what?

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #25 on: June 09, 2006, 11:09:38 am »

Andy -- the more I read, the more and more I think this looks like the bomb.

Great job!
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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #26 on: June 09, 2006, 11:45:03 am »
I have a couple questions for you.  I'm pretty new to this and looking to build my first control panel.  How does the transition to 4-8way work.  Do you simple just change some settings, or is there a physical change you have to make.  Also how would you connect it to an IPAC intereface if its usb?

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #27 on: June 09, 2006, 12:26:07 pm »
I have a couple questions for you.  I'm pretty new to this and looking to build my first control panel. 
Welcome aboard!

Quote
How does the transition to 4-8way work. Do you simple just change some settings, or is there a physical change you have to make.

It all depends on what you want to do. Based on what I've read and the documentation on Andy's site, the stick can be fitted with a restrictor plate. (not sure if the three he mentions comes with the stick as it doesn't exactly say so). This restrictor plate will limit the physical travel of the stick so you can't go diagonal such as you could with an 8-way. But, since the stick is programmable (maps), then you can tell it to act as a 4-way without needing the restrictor plate, but physically you could still move the stick diagonal, it just wouldn't register in your game. It's all a matter of how authentic you want the experience to be. It also appears that the restrictor plate is "bolt-on" so you can't physically switch between the two like you can with his other product, the Mag-Stik

Quote
Also how would you connect it to an IPAC intereface if its usb?

You have two options with this. You can wire it via USB directly to the computer and it will act as a gamepad. Or, you can use pinouts that are on the joysticks mainboard and wire it to an IPAC like any other joystick (up, down, left, right, ground). The only advantages I can see for wiring it to an IPAC is if you meet one or many of the criteria:

  • You have a machine that doesn't support USB (or not enough ports), thus need the IPAC in PS/2 mode
  • You want to simplify wiring in your cabinet control panel so you don't have more USB cables running from it (you could of course put a hub in there)
  • You have more than 4 total joysticks you want to install in your cab
  • You are just picky ;)

That help?

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #28 on: June 09, 2006, 12:33:08 pm »
That does help alot, one more thing.  I would probably hook it up with usb, but I would still need to get an ipac for the buttons right?  What I'm wanting to build is just a small control panel with the stick and maybe 3 buttons and perhaps a trackball.  So I would still need to connect the buttons to the ipac right no other way around that.  Basicly I would have only 3 connections to the ipac since the trackball and stick would most likely go into seperate usb ports.

Forgot the p1 and coin buttons so really around 7 buttons.
« Last Edit: June 09, 2006, 12:34:48 pm by stephenp1983 »

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #29 on: June 09, 2006, 12:44:04 pm »
That does help alot, one more thing.  I would probably hook it up with usb, but I would still need to get an ipac for the buttons right?  What I'm wanting to build is just a small control panel with the stick and maybe 3 buttons and perhaps a trackball.  So I would still need to connect the buttons to the ipac right no other way around that.  Basicly I would have only 3 connections to the ipac since the trackball and stick would most likely go into seperate usb ports.

Forgot the p1 and coin buttons so really around 7 buttons.
If I understand correctly, You will not need a ipac.
If you use the joystick with usb, you can hook up 8 buttons to the joystick and windows will see it as a gamepad with 8 buttons.  So it looks like you could totally build a arcade cabinet  with these and no need for a ipac or keyboard encoder, If you use the usb to hook it up.
« Last Edit: June 09, 2006, 12:46:14 pm by alexandro98 »

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #30 on: June 09, 2006, 12:56:50 pm »
That does help alot, one more thing.  I would probably hook it up with usb, but I would still need to get an ipac for the buttons right?  What I'm wanting to build is just a small control panel with the stick and maybe 3 buttons and perhaps a trackball.  So I would still need to connect the buttons to the ipac right no other way around that.  Basicly I would have only 3 connections to the ipac since the trackball and stick would most likely go into seperate usb ports.

Forgot the p1 and coin buttons so really around 7 buttons.
If I understand correctly, You will not need a ipac.
If you use the joystick with usb, you can hook up 8 buttons to the joystick and windows will see it as a gamepad with 8 buttons.  So it looks like you could totally build a arcade cabinet  with these and no need for a ipac or keyboard encoder, If you use the usb to hook it up.

This is also how I understand it.
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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #31 on: June 09, 2006, 02:33:50 pm »
Some more explanation on the I/O port:
It detects whether an encoder is connected or not, and the whole of the connector switches over from input (8 buttons) to output. In output mode the 4 direction signals are available for the encoder to recognise as a switch-type stick. These direction signals by default behave like an 8-way stick. But if you also have USB connected you can download maps (for example a 4-way map) and this will be applied to these directional outputs as well. So in this mode the stick becomes a switchable 4-8 way stick (or any other such as diagonal) connected to the encoder.
Alongside all of this, if you have USB connected, the stick also sends data to USB as a gamepad would. Full analog is possible via USB but not via the 4 direction outputs.
If you use the stick via USB only, it behaves as a gamepad and any downloaded maps also apply. The 8 buttons are gamepad buttons rather than keyboard buttons and any game used must be able to respond to gamepad buttons.
About the restrictors: These only add feel only. They don't add any functionality because the stick can already be mapped to be a 4 or 8 way stick.

Whan the I/O port is in output mode, two of the wires are an analog voltage. X and Y axes. These wires could be connected to an external analog interface.

I will supply these to reviewers of course.

Andy

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #32 on: June 09, 2006, 02:49:11 pm »
Awesome. I am a brand new reviewer. Thanks Andy.


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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #33 on: June 09, 2006, 03:04:37 pm »
Whan the I/O port is in output mode, two of the wires are an analog voltage. X and Y axes. These wires could be connected to an external analog interface.

Great!  That's what I was wondering.  Could you post the voltage range of the analog output?

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #34 on: June 09, 2006, 03:35:35 pm »
Andy, all great stuff that needs to go somewhere. :) May I propose that we put all of your comments into our wiki for your Joystick model. Or would you prefer we wait for you to update your pages as to not have conflicting or obsolete information?

Few questions:

  • Do you include all restrictor plates in the order. A subset? None?
  • Go above 4 controllers per system? Not sure if this is a Windows limitation or not
  • Include the functionality of the 4/8 physical change as the mag-stik in the ultra-stik?
  • Have a rotary function for the games that need optical rotaries?


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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #35 on: June 09, 2006, 05:31:16 pm »
Less than a month ago, I was all prepped to buy P360's, having thought that was the best option.  Then I read about 49-ways and began planning to purchase those until this joystick came out.  I must say, this stick looks like it can do pretty much everything I need - plus cut down on my wiring quite significantly.   Methinks I'll be ordering a couple.

A couple of questions though:
1. When you order the balltop, can you specify color or is it just red (I noticed you sold replacement balltops)?
2.  Can this puppy handle 49-way games well?  (This was asked just didn't see an answer). 

« Last Edit: June 09, 2006, 06:09:58 pm by DaveMMR »

escher

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #36 on: June 09, 2006, 07:41:15 pm »
This might be unpopular to ask, but any chance of seeing these with a battop?

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #37 on: June 09, 2006, 08:29:51 pm »
Escher, if you had clicked the link Andy provided at the top of this thread, you would have seen this... 



Or the bullet point where he states "Available with ball or bat-top handles"

 ;)

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #38 on: June 09, 2006, 11:43:54 pm »
Andy you are awesome!
NO MORE!!

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Re: New Product: Ultimarc UltraStik 360 Analog/Digital Mappable Joystick
« Reply #39 on: June 09, 2006, 11:45:53 pm »
Escher, if you had clicked the link Andy provided at the top of this thread, you would have seen this... 

D'oh!  I lose.

I just saw everyone talking about the balltops and didn't look into it further.   :banghead: