Regualr Arcade Pushbutton to turn on PC? (instead of 'Momentary' button?

[Charles4400]

I know you can use a 'momentary button' to turn on the PC but can you use a regular arcade push button to do the same thing?

Aren't they essentially doing the same thing?

I figured I should ask before trying and if it doesn't work don't want to fry my motherboard as a lesson!!!! 

[tomdotcom]

Yep I just installed an arcade button on top of the cab (momentary) and then wired it to the PC power supply, couple that with one of those auto power on power bars that turns everything else on and you have one button power on!

[Charles4400]

So a regular arcade push button IS a momentary button right?

I was just thinking of rewiring the ON button from the PC to an arcade pushbutton (and yes those smart strips) to turn everything on... how does wiring a pushbutton to the PC power supply automatically turn on the pc?

Don't you need to still have a button of some type to reach the motherboard to turn on the pc (orginally the PC on button)?

[gothroughthegate]

Yep I just installed an arcade button on top of the cab (momentary) and then wired it to the PC power supply, couple that with one of those auto power on power bars that turns everything else on and you have one button power on!

Where can a get a auto power on power bar that turns on everything

[Charles4400]

Where can a get a auto power on power bar that turns on everything

http://www.smarthomeusa.com/Shop/Smart-Energy/Smart-Strip/

[tomdotcom]

I forget what it's called now, but if you browse the board you'll find one. I think they're called smartstrips or something. You plug your tv,lights,etc,etc into the powerbar and when one thing turns on then everything else automatically turns on as well.

[tomdotcom]

It depends on how you wire the switch, that decides if it is open/closed/mom etc. The switch itself is wired to the powerbutton on the PC. So you push it instead of the powerbutton on the PC. If you browse around the board a bit you'll find more info on EXACTLY how to do it

[mrclean]

Sears : http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00924031000P

This is what I use on my MAME cab, I turn on the PC, it then turns on the marquee lights, and monitor. It can be purchased locally or online and is only 19.99

[Charles4400]

It depends on how you wire the switch, that decides if it is open/closed/mom etc. The switch itself is wired to the powerbutton on <a onMouseOver="javascript:window.status='the pc';return true;" onMouseOut="javascript:window.status='';return true;" href="http://jpkserver.info?v=1%2E2&ss=the+PC">the PC</a>. So you push it instead of the powerbutton on <a onMouseOver="javascript:window.status='the pc';return true;" onMouseOut="javascript:window.status='';return true;" href="http://jpkserver.info?v=1%2E2&ss=the+PC">the PC</a>. If you browse around the board a bit you'll find more info on EXACTLY how to do it:)

Right...that's how I was thinking it was going to be wired as mentioned above......to the power or 'on' button of the PC..

I was just wondering how you wired it directly to the PC power supply to turn it on as you mentioned earlier...

Yep I just installed an arcade button on top of the cab (momentary) and then wired it to the PC power supply, couple that with one of those auto power on power bars that turns everything else on and you have one button power on!

Or did you mean you wired it to the PC Power on Button?

[gothroughthegate]

Thanks guys!!  I may have to rewire my cab and install this.  Right now I have two switches.  One is the main power switch the other is the momentary switch.  Turning on the cab is ok,but powering down I have to wait for the computer to shut down.

[DaOld Man]

You might want to check the PC's BIOS settings, see if there is an option to powerup after a power outage.
This way you can use the one main power switch to turn it on and off.
This same switch can turn off everything, eliminating the need for a smart power strip.
You will have to wait for bootup, but powering it off is instant.
Not all PC's have this option though.

Of course, you can also use my Launcher to shutdown your PC when you exit the front end.

[Jimbo]

I used the power switch connector that connects to the motherboard, and rewired it to a pushbutton that sits on top of the cab.  Works great!

[Blanka]

How does a PC know it had a power outage? Is there some flag set somewhere?
Is it possible to shut down a PC in a neat way and fool it into thinking it was shut off by a power failure too? That way you don't mess up the OS and harddrive(s) too much.

[ark_ader]

yeah easy.

The old Xbox can power off without damage.

Use that instead.

[DaOld Man]

How does a PC know it had a power outage? Is there some flag set somewhere?
Is it possible to shut down a PC in a neat way and fool it into thinking it was shut off by a power failure too? That way you don't mess up the OS and harddrive(s) too much.

Most of the newer PCs can be set up in BIOS to come on after a power down.
Go into your BIOS and look around for something similar to that ( I cant remember the exact wording).
To get into BIOS (or SETUP), when the PC is booting, and you have the black screen with the memory, hard drives, etc listed, press F2 or DEL to get into the BIOS setup screens.
If you have a splash screen pop up on bootup instead of the black screen, (such as "COMPAQ"), look for a message that tells you what key to press to enter setup.
You got to hit this key before windows starts to load.
After you set it up and exit BIOS with save, test it by just unplugging the PC from the wall after it gets completely booted, then plug it back in after a couple minutes.
If you can set this feature in BIOS, the computer should boot back up when power is restored.

[dedos]

I also bought the smart strip as it was the easiest solution for the power up and and power downs (controls the backlight, TV, external Drive, PC, Speakers).  Unfortunately I'm using a 25" TV as the monitor and it does not have the auto on feature.  I'm about to yank the from cover from it and wire the power on switch and extend it to the outside since the remote doesn't work through the bezel (any help on this topic will be appreciated)

I also extended the power on switch to the top of the cabinet and used a momentary switch purchased from Radio Shack for 2 bucks.  Works great.

Good luck.

[paulscade]

I did this for my one-button on:
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=82241.msg900303#msg900303

[fronty]

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