Galaga Bartop 19" LCD Rotating Display *UPDATED 11/26/12*

[lettuce]

"Rise from your Grave!"

[DaOld Man]

Welcome back!
I really do like the idea of the swinging sides to allow room for the monitor to turn. (Just need to automate everything! )
It looks like a good answer to the diagonal room needed to rotate the monitor (we need a good phrase for the diagonal room... hmmm..)

Im looking forward to seeing your new progress!

[kuchta]

Nice to see you pull up the old thread. It's funny that I just happen to be reading this thread yesterday and then you came back. Can't wait to see how this ends up working, especially with a 19" monitor. Good luck!

Steve

[TopJimmyCooks]

consider moving the reset button away from the pause button.  too easy to hit accidentally.

[Ritalin]

Those graphics are amazing! I like the way you were able to make the side art follow the curve of the cabinet, particularly the lower left hand side. It looks very natural and perhaps something Midway would of implemented if they were to have developed this bar top   

David.

Thanks, David!

I'm a graphics guy, so making the artwork is my favorite part. Wiring? Not so much. 

[Ritalin]

consider moving the reset button away from the pause button.  too easy to hit accidentally.

Good point. I'll definitely look into this. Thanks.

[Ritalin]

I worked on the mock up of the control panel last night.











So I'm new to the wiring, for a bartop like this, on the control panel, what exact keys are these buttons usually assigned to?
(These are being wiring into a KeyWiz.)

I'm really only playing old arcade games with this thing, not N64 or SNES, etc.

Any info is appreciated, thanks.

[PL1]

So I'm new to the wiring, for a bartop like this, on the control panel, what exact keys are these buttons usually assigned to?
(These are being wiring into a KeyWiz.)

The KeyWiz default keymap is set up for use with for MAME.

Installation document with wire-connection directions and the default keymap here.  For your panel, you won't need to use the Shazaaam! button for alternate functions. (shaded boxes in the pdf)

P2 Button 1 connects to board terminal "A".  Pressing that button sends an "A".

P2 Button 2 connects to board terminal "B".  Pressing that button sends an "S".

Just wire one input at a time.  When you finish the inputs, connect a daisy-chained ground.   


Scott

[darthpaul]

Welcome back!
I really do like the idea of the swinging sides to allow room for the monitor to turn. (Just need to automate everything! )

I was thinking the same thing

[Ritalin]

PL1/ Scott, thanks for your info. It's starting to make sense to me now.

Ok, so I've been working on the control panel this weekend. Here was my final design that I ended up mocking up in cardboard:



The cardboard mockup was really helpful, because after cutting out the holes and popping in the buttons, joystick and trackball, I was able to see just how much room I have underneath. (Not much!)

Next up was cutting it out of 3/4" plywood.


All the cuts seemed to go very well from the top view:


I couldn't really wrap my head around how to mount the Mag-Stick plus onto the control panel, and still have the CP flush from the stop. After a bit of brainstorming and beer, I routed out the underside of the control panel, to mount the plate.:

Underside View:


I then countersunk the screws, with clocking nuts from the bottom. Now the joystick is connected very well, sturdy and flush with the CP.
Then, I am going to use the mounting plate for the 3" trackball, so I routed out just a small thin layer of wood to get the mounting plate to also sit flush with the CP:

Top view:




Ok, next up was my toughest challenge, and one I was dreading this entire build.
I'm running this MAME bartop off a laptop, and the POWER button from the laptop is one that I had no idea how to make into an arcade button to turn on/off. This "button" isn't really a strong physical button at all. (Have I mentioned I know nothing about wiring? LOL) The button is more like a dimple, firmly attached to a ribbon cable. It looks like this (note this is a different button, not the power button, but just to give you an idea of the style of button I was dealing with):



Well, here, was my completely low-tech stupid idea, that actually worked perfectly. I simply drilling into a switch, and then filled that switch with a hard piece of plastic that will act as a contact point. (unlike a switch, this contact point in firmly in place.) Then, I just trimmed the ribbon cable, while holding it up to the light to ensure I wasn't cutting through any actual wires. I lined everything up before attempting, making a note of exactly where the arcade button's contact point hit that small piece of plastic. Then, the moment of truth: I KRAZY GLUED the button to the laptop's power button onto an arcade button. Now, when you push the arcade button, it touches the laptop's power button, and works perfectly each and every time! It looks like this:



It works!!

Then the last step was to go into Windows XP and set it so that the computer will shutdown automatically when you push the power button.

You do this by right clicking on the desktop and then selecting Properties > Screen Saver > Power > Advanced > "When I press the power button on my computer"  select "Shut down". (You can also set it to "Ask me what to do", but then you'l also need an ENTER button on your cabinet to confirm the shutdown. I think I'll live dangerously, and just put the power button in the back.)

This way Windows XP properly shuts down, all via the Power button. It's not a power cut, it's a proper shutdown.

Onto the wiring of the control panel...

[CoryBee]

I feel like you could probably have soldered a single wire to where the ribbon cable goes to the laptop and then one to any ground point. But I see no up close pictures posted.

Looks like what you did will work if everything is nice and secure, careful you don't rip the ribbon cable or you will be very sad. I have done exactly this when building one of my first bartops (it was a more important cable than Power Switch though).

Interesting to see you incorporate the screen rotation with a bezel in place, good work 

[Ritalin]

You may very well be right that I could have cut the ribbon cable and spliced into the power cable wires, but I cut a different section with a non-essential button and the wires are so hard to wrok with, I would definitely mess something up. (Wiring is my weak point) so I just went with the low-tech solution.

Works like a charm!

[Ritalin]

The guts:
I mounted the stripped down laptop and the rest of the guts into the interior, and I can't believe it...it all fit!





The good thing about having a strange bartop where the side doors open is that accessing the interior is actually really easy with both doors open.
My little ghetto power button attachment contraption is works great inside even when mounted in...whew! 

It's strange seeing all these components now take up such small amount of space. I've had this case, laptop, monitor and a big box of items lying around my place for YEARS. It's coming along...

[Ritalin]

It's starting to take shape.



Here is the control panel (before wiring) of the layout.
Complete with 4/8-way joystick, 6-buttons, spinner, and light-up 3" trackball.

I tried Tempest and Arkanoid at home with the spinner for the first time ever...WOW. It rocks!