My review of the KeyWiz

[Wade]

I bought a Keywiz about 4 or 6 weeks ago.  I couldn't really review it until now because my cab wasn't playable.  My initial impressions were good though.  It is substantial in weight and appeared to be a quality product.

I just wired up my cabinet a couple of days ago.  I wasn't sure if I'd use the dedicated Shazaam button, or use Player 1 Start as the shift key.  At this point I wanted the easiest, quickest software setup, so I decided to use a dedicated Shazaam button.  It is located on the bottom of my control panel box.  It is totally invisible but can be hit easily.

I'm glad I used the Shazaam button this way, because it couldn't have been be easier!  No special software or hardware setup.  Every single button worked right the first time, I didn't have to swap any wires, reprogram the Keywiz or Mame's controls, or anything.  I couldn't believe it, particularly since I *really* rushed on the wiring.  I did make some wires too short so I had to mount the keywiz to the underside of the CP top surface, instead of the bottom of the CP "box" like I wanted.  This is not a problem right now, but when I put the trackball in there I'll probably have to extend some of the wires.

My wife played the thing for a couple of hours last night while I was cleaning up some of my mess and working on some of the finishing details.  That's more than I've been able to play it!  She didn't have any problem operating the thing once I showed her how to add credits.  That should tell you something about ease of use...

That it's actually in use, I thought I'd let others know that I'm very happy with the product.  Easy to install, great price, and works as advertised!  As much trouble as I've had with a mouse->trackball hack, I'm SO glad I bought the Keywiz! (maybe I should learn from this lesson and buy an opti-pac?)  And it saves me the trouble of having to set up special key settings in mame, too.

Please don't respond with information about the i-pac or turn this into another "vs" thread.  I understand the i-pac can do many of the same things as the Keywiz, and it may even have some better features (I have never used an I-pac).  But I can say with confidence that the Keywiz is a very capable product, and I'm completely satisfied with it.

Wade

[Distortion]

Thanks for the review, I've been looking for one on the keywiz ever since I bought it since I haven't had much of a chance to use mine.  My cabinet is still in pieces at the moment, but should come together nicely over the next week or so (spring break is next week  ) I wish I knew where our digital camera was so I could give the world some pics of my progress.  Anyways, back to the point.  Don't forget to mention that RandyT is very prompt in his response to PMs and Emails.  He has also been very receptive/considerate in response to suggestions for future models.  Great guy to do business and tech support with!

[Wade]

Good point.  I have emailed RandyT several times with questions, and he was always prompt and thorough with his responses.

Wade

[Tiger-Heli]

(maybe I should learn from this lesson and buy an opti-pac?)

Or spend $9 for OSCAR's USB mouse interface.

This reply courtesy of OSCAR's self-appointed USB Mouse interface marketing dept.

P.S.  Glad the KeyWiz worked out for you.  Thanks for posting the details.

[Wade]

I might end up buying the oscar mouse input if I destroy another old mouse.  But the real problem with that is my current PC doesn't have USB support.  Don't know how long it will be before I upgrade. :/

Wade

[Tiger-Heli]

I might end up buying the oscar mouse input if I destroy another old mouse.  But the real problem with that is my current PC doesn't have USB support.  Don't know how long it will be before I upgrade. :/

Wade

I recently added USB to my decrepit computer.  If you have headers on the mobo and know the pinout, you can add a $7 adapter to add two ports.  Otherwise there are PCI cards to add this (occasionally free with rebates, etc).

Assuming you support PCI ;-))

[Wade]

My momboard supports USB, I just don't have a connector for it and I'm using DOS.

There are several issues that come down to my PC needing an upgrade.  Hopefully I'll resolve all of them (and not create too many new issues!) with an upgrade in the next month or two.

Wade