Usual CP review request!

[iamnaeth]

Hey guys, working on a new cabinet here.  Thought I'd get everyone's input on the CP!  Its your usual design.  The buttons in the top right and top left are pause x2 and 1P and 2P start.  The multiple rings for the CP outline represent a 1" over hang and then the 3/4" width of the wood for the actual CP box.  Basically, everything needs to be within the smallest line.  Any other quesitons or input, post em!  Thanks!

Nathan

[moriartyds]

I'm no CP expert, but you might want to lay it out on cardboard or something to try it out.  Just looking at the picture, depending on how you hold the 4 way joystick your arm could be hitting/pressing the 8 way joystick.  If you're like me and you have them both wired into the same inputs you could get some odd results.

[Jeff AMN]

I like the layout, but I prefer mapping pause and esc buttons to other buttons with the shift command. It's personal preference, however.

[javeryh]

Any other admin buttons?  You don't need 2 pause buttons on the CP.  I'd regroup P1 and P2 start as the left pair above player 1 and then use the other pair for maybe pause and coin.

What kind of joysticks are you going to use?  Just curious.  It looks like a nice layout though.  The 4-way might be tough to use though in that location.

[iamnaeth]

Thanks for the input so far guys.  I don't plan on having coin buttons because i bought a coin door but I may reconsider.  I know 2 pause buttons is unnecessary, but I wanted some symmetry on the CP, any ideas for the other button if not pause or coin?

This is a rebuild from a previous cabinet so I'm going to reuse my Happ competitions for the 8 ways and the 4 way is the Ms. Pacman/Galaga stick.  I think you guys may be right about the 8 way getting in the way of the 4 way.  I'll have to test that out.  What do you think of the distance between the 1P and 2P joysticks?

[javeryh]

Thanks for the input so far guys.  I don't plan on having coin buttons because i bought a coin door but I may reconsider.  I know 2 pause buttons is unnecessary, but I wanted some symmetry on the CP, any ideas for the other button if not pause or coin?

I'd maybe consider "Exit" (so you can quit a game and get back to the front end) but I wouldn't put it next to the pause button because someone might hit it just as you are going for the high score!  You don't have to be symmetrical to have it look good - I just built a control panel that had no symmetry at all and I think it came out OK:



The "Exit" button is the one to the far left and the three on the right are P1 Start, P2 Start and Pause going down from the top.  I'm also planning on a working coin door so no coin button for me either...

[iamnaeth]

I currently use a shift function as the exit button.  I don't ever want it hit accidently.  on the current cab Its Pause and 1p together.

[bfauska]

I'd regroup P1 and P2 start as the left pair above player 1 and then use the other pair for maybe pause and coin.

I'd be careful about putting both player start buttons above one of the players, if you are playing a game where one player dies and wants to continue they have to reach across the other players controls, seems like dangerous ground to me.

Maybe consider the dedicated 4 way next to the 8 way as suggested in the "tricks you don't see often enough" thread.

Later,
Brian

[Timoe]

I built a few 7 button layout cps.  The 7th button really isnt needed.  You'd be fine with a 6 button layout.  Unless you are REALLY into a specific console game your you'll be playing said console game LIKE ALWAYS, everytime you go near the cab.

otherwise you wont hate yourself for going 6-button.

[moriartyds]

Thanks for the input so far guys.  I don't plan on having coin buttons because i bought a coin door but I may reconsider.

I'd vote for reconsidering that one.  You can add them as hidden buttons, but I find they're userful.  It's cool when your friends are around to use the coin door, but if you wind up playing a lot it gets annoying having to find/drop in quarters constantly.  Since both the coin door and the coin buttons can be wired to the same place you can use them interchangeably.

[iamnaeth]

Alright, lets see if I can address these questions / comments in order.

"I'd be careful about putting both player start buttons above one of the players, if you are playing a game where one player dies and wants to continue they have to reach across the other players controls, seems like dangerous ground to me."

Good point, this is why I originially had the 1P and 2P buttons in front of each player.

"Maybe consider the dedicated 4 way next to the 8 way as suggested in the "tricks you don't see often enough" thread."

While that may work out well gameplaywise, I don't like the aesthetics of it.  Additionally, I'm trying to minimize the width of the CP.

" built a few 7 button layout cps.  The 7th button really isnt needed.  You'd be fine with a 6 button layout.  Unless you are REALLY into a specific console game your you'll be playing said console game LIKE ALWAYS, everytime you go near the cab.

otherwise you wont hate yourself for going 6-button."

My current cabinet has the 7 button configuration.  I play a good bit of NEO-GEO games so the 7 button layout stays!

"I'd vote for reconsidering that one.  You can add them as hidden buttons, but I find they're userful.  It's cool when your friends are around to use the coin door, but if you wind up playing a lot it gets annoying having to find/drop in quarters constantly.  Since both the coin door and the coin buttons can be wired to the same place you can use them interchangeably."

I agree.  I'll have to think about this one.  The coin mechanisms I intend on getting will be modified to accept any coin, I want to use the thing like a piggy bank.  Wonder where I can hide them.

Okay, with those out of the way, I printed out the layout and have it a quick whirl and I have to agree with the 4 way joystick problem.  My wrist was directly over the 8 way therefore, I moved the joystick over about 2 inches.  I'll give it another test print tonight to see what that does for me.

On a seperate note, what sort of buttons do you include for navigation in your front ends?  I think you need probably 3 buttons, Next Emulator, Previous Emulator (or list), Start Game.  Thoughts?

Naet

[Kaytrim]

On a seperate note, what sort of buttons do you include for navigation in your front ends?  I think you need probably 3 buttons, Next Emulator, Previous Emulator (or list), Start Game.  Thoughts?

Naet

Most front ends (FE) will use the joystick and action buttons for navigation.  All you would need is an instruction card on the bezel or CP showing how to use the FE.  I will have a few buttons on my CP though because my main action buttons may be swapped out for another controller.  I am building a modular system, follow the link in my signature.

TTFN
Kaytrim

[iamnaeth]

Ahh, i see where I got you confused!  On my current cabinet, up/down on the joystick move up and down by 1 game.  Left and right jump up/down by 10 games.  However, since I have more than one system emulated on my cabinet, I needed additional buttons to switch from arcade games to NES games to etc.

[Kaytrim]

Depending on the front end you can still map your action buttons to help in selecting the emulator.  GameEx is one I am sure about because I use it though I am switching to AtomicFE for the GPWiz49 and LEDWiz support.  I think that Mala and MAMEWah also have mapping capabilities.  So depending on your choice of FE you don't need the extra buttons.

TTFN
Kaytrim

[iamnaeth]

Since my current cabinet doesn't have a trackball, how practical do you think it would be to map the up down to the trackball and then use the left right of the joystick to switch emulators?

[Kaytrim]

I am talking about the action buttons for player 1 not a trackball or spinner.  You can map button 3 to jump up 10 games and button 4 to jump down.  Or you could map button 3 to cycle through the emulators.  When you are in a front end the mappings for the emulator have no bearing as to which button does what.  Once you choose the emulator and game the button mappings for that emulator take over.

Take for example my current setup.  I have 4 buttons for navigation in GameEx and an exit and pause buttons for MAME.  I could just as easily map one button to choose a menu item in GameEx and while I am in MAME it could be my pause button.  I could then map the back menu button for GameEx to be my quit button in MAME.  Thus I can have 4 navigation buttons instead of 6.  To make things even more simpler I could use my joystick to navigate the menus in GameEx while using two dedicated buttons for MAME.

I just chose to use the separate navigation buttons to make it easier for my guests because I didn't have an instruction card.  My current system is only for testing out controls and layouts anyway.  When I build my real cab this summer I will nail down the navigation controls and use instruction cards in the bezel.

All it really boils down to is personal choice.  I was just trying to point out some options.

Kaytrim

[iamnaeth]

Excellent point!  Honestly, it never occurred to me to map the buttons to the actual controls due to confusion for other people however, the bezel idea is perfect.  Nice job!

[Kaytrim]

I got the idea from other threads and even from the FE hosting sites.  Just passing it on.