Hey...Can I play beatmania with my spinner?

[AE35]

I just looked at beatmania and hiphopmania etc. at MAWS, and they
state that the game uses a spinner....

So would this be possible, or how far does it differ from the original machine?

Thanks,

Nicholas

[NickG]

A spinner works, but it keeps spinning (if it is weighted.)  The record shaped controller does not keep spinning when you let it go.

[RandyT]

A spinner works, but it keeps spinning (if it is weighted.)  The record shaped controller does not keep spinning when you let it go.

When used with the TurboTwist2, the TokenTop spinner knob we offer has a resistance adjustment, so it can be made to give whatever feel you want.  However, I'm not sure how playable the game would be without the larger surface the original controller provides.  Wouldn't be too hard to make a "knob" that approximates one though.  Dimensions?

RandyT

[AE35]

Hey RandyT, thanks for the spinner. My wife loves it!!

Great build, I'll make a post when I get the spinner cab built!

Can you tell me what I need to use to get the original black knob off?

Thanks,

Nicholas

[Bobbler]

Is it the black rubber one?

If so there is a bit of it which is unglued so that you can lift it up. Underneath there is a small screw to undo. You probably want one of those precision screwdrivers to get in there though, its quite small.

[RandyT]

Is it the black rubber one?

If so there is a bit of it which is unglued so that you can lift it up. Underneath there is a small screw to undo. You probably want one of those precision screwdrivers to get in there though, its quite small.

I actually gave up on that method and started punching a very small hole in the ring.  The old way looks nicer, but I couldn't imagine someone doing it every time they wanted to drop an attachment onto the shaft.  It was when I started seeing the wheels ordered with this popular style knob that the decision was made.

Depending on the knob, you will need either a small flathead screwdriver ("Big Blue" and the "Rubber" styles) or a small Allen wrench ("Stylish Black" and "Dimple"). You should be able to pick up the appropriate tools at just about any dollar store if you don't have something in your toolbox.

RandyT

[Glaine]

I rarely play Beatmania in MAME anymore, it always seemed to have a bit of lag in it and the versions I tried in MAME were so old it got borring fast for me since the play list was so small. I much prefer simfile players for Beatmania (like Stepmania is a simfile player for DDR). I suggest getting MixWaver2 or BMDX. Or get the PS2 game, looks good to me though I haven't tried it yet.

As for spinner use - I suppose you could use a spinner, though I don't think either of those simfile players accepts mouse movement as an input. Mame should be able to do it though. If it doesn't, what you would need to do is look up a mouse-to-key program that will send a key when the spinner is turned one way and a different key when the knob is turned the other way. I've seen programs that do this sort of thing before but I rarely have need for them.

Also, Beatmania is hard to play on a panel unless your pushbuttons are spaced properly like keys (like they are supposed to be for Beatmania). It will be very hard to play Beatmania on a straight button setup.

Needs to be:
  [] [] []
[] [] [] []

NOT:
0 0 0
0 0 0

I've tried the latter. Didn't work out for me. Now I use a real Beatmania controller.

Good luck! Let us know how things turn out!