Please critique my control panel layout

[dislecksea]

Here is the first draft of the CP I am planning.  The box came pre-built with the cab I purchased and I have settled on sticking with it for my build.  It is made out of 3/4 inch plywood and is already laminated.  It is 43 inches wide and 16 and 3/4 inches deep at its widest point.

In the drawing (I know, I am no Leonardo), the dark blue is the buildable interior space and the light blue shows the total size of the top.  The two red joysticks are going to be UltraStik 360s and the two yellow sticks are going to be some Happ 8 ways that I have leftover from my last build.  The purple trigger stick will be a Happ heavy duty 8 way and the spinner will be an Apache push/pull.  I have no admin buttons yet, but depending on the final layout I may add some on the CP or on the riser between the CP and the monitor.

I know that this is a lot of controls to put on one CP, but to anyone who would advise cutting down I would pose the question

[Duster72]

I personally don't think you can comfortably play a 4 player game with a 43" width.  I had 20 people trying to play mine (48" wide) and everyone was bitching that we needed to go to weight watchers.

I would make it 2 players and not make it nice and comfortable.

[shardian]

You could always move p3 and p4 a little higher up the control panel ALA TMNT arcade layout.

[dislecksea]

Duster72 - nobody would ever claim that I need to go to weight watchers.  Mostly out of fear that I would sit on them.
 

Any other opinions on the 4P CP at 43 inches?

[Dervacumen]

I have a two player CP that is 23 3/4", and it is quite cozy for two people.  Doubling that to make room for 4 players would be 47 1/2", which is even wider that the 43" you are talking about.  In my opinion that's going to suck for the two in the middle.  Unless you put a couple of hotties in there, then it's a great idea.

[shardian]

I have a two player CP that is 23 3/4", and it is quite cozy for two people.  Doubling that to make room for 4 players would be 47 1/2", which is even wider that the 43" you are talking about.  In my opinion that's going to suck for the two in the middle.  Unless you put a couple of hotties in there, then it's a great idea.

IMO, and alot of other people on here, 23" panels are not comfortable for 2 players. Especially if the sides of the CP are enclosed by the  sides of the cabinet in any way, shape, or form.

[BamBam]

If you are right handed, then you may want to consider moving the trackball closer to the front of the panel.  This will help alleviate any problems with your right hand hitting the player #2 joystick while spinning the trackball forward in games like Golden Tee etc.  Alternatively, you could move the joysticks away from the front of the panel and leave the trackball where it is.
I personally have a 2 player CP and prefer it that way.  I find that the size of 4 player CP's over power the cabinet.
Aside from this, your layout looks good.

John

[Timoe]

I have a 44" 4-player panel.  I love it, though I've yet to play a 4-player game

I really built it for two player Total Carnage.

I know that the space between player 3 and 1 is no more uncomfortable than a 23" 2player panel (a la SFII)

Oh and if the players moved much farther apart, their viewing angle of the monitor would suffer.

[Brumaz]

not a huge fan of the diagonal button layout. seems a bit of a sqeeze?

[dislecksea]

OK, it seems that pretty much everyone says that 4 actual player positions on 43 inches is too much.  However, it is fine if what you really want is 2 actual player positions each with 2 joysticks.  That might be the best direction for me to go, since I already have the 2 8-way sticks left over from my last build.  If I do, should I move P1 and P2 upward so that they are even with P3 and P4 (which are as low as they can get)?  Also, Timoe, could you (or anyone else who knows) let me know what a comfortable distance is between the sticks for a 2 joystick single player position?

However, I am wondering, what if I don't go that way and just have a standard 2p layout (plus trackball, trigger joy, spinner)?  Won't the CP look kind of big and barren?  I mean, it was in fact built to be a 4 player CP (it is a Madden NFL cab).

Re: BamBam's suggestion on increasing the distance between the trackball and Player 2's joystick, can someone do a quick measurement of that distance and let me know how it works for them.  I play a little Golden Tee but I have friends who are fanatics.

Thanks for the feedback.  So many options!

[shardian]

Won't the CP look kind of big and barren?  I mean, it was in fact built to be a 4 player CP (it is a Madden NFL cab).

That's what good artwork is for.

[epic69]

Timoe could you send me your layout for a 44" cp? My main concern is 2 player smash tv so joysticks need to be inline (sounds like thats your main goal also), although having room for a few buttons on P3 and P4 would be nice in case of some instance of having 4 buds over for nba jam and the like.

[kelemvor]

not a huge fan of the diagonal button layout. seems a bit of a sqeeze?

That's what I was thinking too.  The buttons for p1 and p2 seems to be at a verys ever angle.  THe buttons for player 4 look way off compared to the rest.  SHoudln't they be much higher up on the cp since the end players usually stand at an angle...