Codename: Mycade (My First Arcade Cabinet)

[Sitnalta]

Hi Guys,

I am new to this forum and would first like to thank everyone for all the shared information, great work. 

I am finally going to build my own Arcade Cabinet 

The design of the cabinet is almost ready, however I'm still not sure how much buttons i need on the control panel.
After a lot off research i just ordered the first parts to get things started:

Ordered so far:
- I-PAC4 Interface (Just the be sure that i have enough connections)
- PacLED64 Advanced LED Controller.
- SpinTrak Rotary Control
- SpinTrak Knob (Hopefully the small black one)
- U-TRAK FlushMount Arcade Trackball (Pearl)
- U-Trak RGB LED Illumination Kit
- U-Trak Optional Trim Bezel
- UltraStik 360 Ball Top with USB cable (2x)
- UltraStik 360 Long Handle Shaft for Ball Top (2x)
- UltraStik 360 Optional Hard Spring (2x)
- UltraStik 360 Restrictor Plate Kits (2x)

Buttons:
I Really love the angel-eye look so i think i will order the following:
- Clear IL Translucent Pushbutton PSL-L Black Plunger (Currently out of stock)
- Pele 30mm LED Rings (Currently out of stock)


Hopefully someone on this forum can advice me on how much buttons i need for my controlpanel?
[1] Player 1 Start
[2] Player 2 Start
[3] Player 1 Coin
[4] Player 2 Coin
[12] Player 1 Game buttons 8x (Is this enough for most N64 and Dreamcast games?)
[20] Player 2 Game buttons 8x
[21] Volume Up
[22] Volume Down
[23] Power On/Off
[24] Pause
[25] Save (Do i need these for specific emulators?)
[26] Load (Do i need these for specific emulators?)
[27] Shift/Admin (Please advise if necessary)
[28] Escape/Back??
[29] Mouse 1
[30] Mouse 2
[31] Mouse 3???

I watched the controlpanel topic with all the pictures, but i really have no idea what i need and why?

Design Pictures:
Here are some sketchup pictures of the design, apart from the marquee I don't know if there will be any art on it:



















Please let me know what you think, more updates soon.

[Dawgz Rule]

Consider moving the trackball.  Being so close to the screen will result in some hand bashing for some games.

[eds1275]

The tracball is too close. It's easy to play joysticks and buttons higher up the panel, not so easy with the trackball. Some play the trackball wildly and need room to do so. I ended up moving my trackball down and my controls out further to the sides. You also seem to have many buttons. I personally don't think that admin buttons are bad, but if they are there people will push them. I ended up leaving all admin buttons out, and made pause up on joystick one plus start, and down on joystick one plus start to exit back to the front end. Very simple and doesn't need constant reminder on how to operate, and most importantly noone ends up in the config except me.

[Sitnalta]

Thanks for the advise,
i will try some layouts after i received my order from Ultimarc
I don't think it is necessary to hide the power and volume buttons.

How often do you guys use the config menu, after the setup is completed?
Do all emulators support the pause button?
And what about the Save / Load buttons?

[PL1]

Welcome aboard, Sitnalta

[1] Player 1 Start
[2] Player 2 Start
[3] Player 1 Coin
[4] Player 2 Coin

Definite yes on these.

[12] Player 1 Game buttons 8x (Is this enough for most N64 and Dreamcast games?)
[20] Player 2 Game buttons 8x

NOTE 1: Install/configure the software (front end + emulators) you want to use and compile a list of games you want to play.

Once you do that, you will know how many buttons you need for the games you want.

[21] Volume Up
[22] Volume Down

Do you want to do this in software or would you rather have a volume knob discretely placed where people are less likely to mess with it?

[23] Power On/Off

Consider having this discretely placed where people are less likely to mess with it.

[24] Pause

Sounds like a good idea.  Many emulators support it, but see NOTE 1 above.

[25] Save (Do i need these for specific emulators?)
[26] Load (Do i need these for specific emulators?)
[27] Shift/Admin (Please advise if necessary)

See NOTE 1 above.

[28] Escape/Back??

Dedicated Escape key is a great idea for exiting.  Needed if you decide to add Visual Pinball/Future Pinball support.   

[29] Mouse 1
[30] Mouse 2
[31] Mouse 3???

You don't need mouse buttons.

Many people use a wireless keyboard stashed behind the coin door for the rare times you need mouse buttons after you finish configuring the cab.
-------
Start by performing the steps in NOTE 1 above.

Once you have the software installed and a list of games, you'll have a good feel for what you need for the rest of the build.

BTW, you might want to limit yourself to 200 or so games like the list in this thread -- if your day-to-day playlist is over 1000, you're doing it wrong IMHO.


Scott

[Sitnalta]

A little update:


CONTROLPANEL REDESIGN
---------------------
To get an idea of the CP layout I have done the following:

- I have the control panel print in actual size 660X325mm.
- Printed a template ​​of all the components.
- I printed a number of button layouts from slagcoin.com to see which felt best.



I have made a small change ​​to the above template because of the width of my controlpanel (63mm in stead of 95mm between joystick and button)










Based on the advice above, I have done the following:
- Trackball moved to the center.
- Looked at the Player buttons again, decided to go for 7
Will work for most games and I can always use buttons from player 2 in singe games when needed)
- Power button is still visable on the panel (will make a hidden switch to deactivate the button when needed)
- The Config button in the image is the Shift Button
(Example > Shift + Spintrak will do Sound Volume with the CabVol program)
- Added the Load, Save and Exit buttons
- Added Left and Right mouse buttons for the U-Trak
(PC will do more then gaming only)


BUTTON CONFIGURATION (Design for IPAC-4)
----------------------------------------
Player 1 (1STRT)
Coin (1coin)
Button 1 (1SW1)
Button 1 (1SW2)
Button 1 (1SW3)
Button 1 (1SW4)
Button 1 (1SW5)
Button 1 (1SW6)
Button 1 (1SW7)
Ultimarc Ultrastick 360 (USB)

Player 1 (1STRT)
Coin (1coin)
Button 2 (2SW1)
Button 2 (2SW2)
Button 2 (2SW3)
Button 2 (2SW4)
Button 2 (2SW5)
Button 2 (2SW6)
Button 2 (2SW7)
Ultimarc Ultrastick 360 (USB)

Ultimarc U-Trak (USB)
Mouse Left (To U-Trak)
Mouse Right (To U-Trak)

Ultimarc Spinner (USB)

Save (3SW1)
Load (3SW2)
Power (To PC Power)
Exit (3SW3)
Shift (3SW4)

That makes a total of 25 buttons, maybe I will add some flipper buttons to.
One think I didn't realise, i need 3 connections on my IPACLED64 per button.
I know have 25x3=75 + 3(U-Trak)=78 :S
Is it possible to group leds together, In other words Player 1 and 2 the same connection?


LED COLOR LAYOUTS (LEDBLINKY)
-----------------------------
I did some designing in Sketchup for the Controlpanel led colors.










WOODWORK
--------
Hopefully my father has room in the garage soon, so we can start with the wood

[mgb]

The redesign of the control panel looks good.
Im not sure why you'd want the dedicated mouse buttons though, especially in the way like that.
besides that and the no coin door front, very nice.

[Brian74]

You are going to kill your fingers on that spinner playing golden tee. Friend of mine has a crazy follow threw. Smashed his fingers on the board under the marquee

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2

[Sitnalta]

Maybe I will remove the mouse buttons.
I can also use Wifisend on my iPad for keyboard and mouse control, works very well.
The front door will have gun holes in the future, still didn't deside to place a real coin door,
I don't like the look off most "cheap" coin doors (tips are welcome )

@Brian74: I don't know Golden Tree, need to check that one out, but spinner will mostly be used for game list scrolling.

[PL1]

I don't like the look off most "cheap" coin doors (tips are welcome )

If you want a pushbutton that looks like a coin slot/reject button, check out the Novagem CDR from GGG.

@Brian74: I don't know Golden Tree

Umm, that's "Tee" . . . as in golf.   



Just don't ask if the "Superman" or "two-thumbs" technique is better for game-play.   


Scott

[mgb]

I personally like nothing other than a real coin door (even if it doesn't actually accept coins) but I remember seeing someone on here take just a cash box door once and he custom fitted the coin buttons like pl1 posted. It came out real nice.

As far as dedicated mouse buttons, just know that you won't need them for mame as you can set up whatever buttons to do whatever function.

Not to get on the subject of golden tee technique but I will never understand the superman, throw your arm out technique that some use while playing this game. IT'S GOLF, IT'S NOT THAT EXCITING!! I don't want those kinda people anywhere by my cabinet, they'll probably spill beer on it.

[Sitnalta]

Time for a short update:

Parts

Buttons,Pele rings and wiring from Paradise Arcade Shop

Wood


The wood did not fit in my car, so I hired an oversized bus at the shop for 6 euros 


Control Panel



I redesigned the control panel, 8 Buttons per player instead of 7, and yes the mouse buttons are still there 

Extra Control Panel




2 buttons less in the middle than initially planned.

I found a better solution for the volume control, there was an unused keyboard at work that I screwed apart.

I don't have a picture of the PCB at this moment, will make pictures when i'm going to assemble the control panel.


Drilling the holes for the buttons and joysticks


I placed threaded pop nails for the joysticks and trackball


Because of the plexiglass plate that comes on the control panel I milled 3mm away at the bottom

I still had arranged a computer for my arcade cabinet.
A colleague jokingly offered a 6 year old Dell PC.
I asked him for the service tag, It turned out to be a Dell XPS 710 to go.

I bought it for 40 Euro and was really surprised by the performance of the PC.
It runs Farcry 3 and Street Fighter IV without any problems. 

But unfortunately the Nvidia Geforce 9800GTX gave some problems after gaming for a couple of hours.
Searched the internet and decided to bake the card:





So I now own a Nvidia Geforce 9800GTX Zombie Edition and it works great again (Playing on it for a couple of weeks now) 


Because the PC housing is way to big for my arcade cabinet, i decided to disassemble the thing.

But since I've become a bit addicted to Far Cry 3 i decided to assemble the hardware on my desk so i can continiue playing 



The back of the PC housing will be mounted in the cabinet and the hardware will be mounted hanging in there.


I hope to saw the sides this week

More updates soon.

Can someone advise me on the thickness of the plexiglass for the marquee and display?

[Sitnalta]

Updates:

The side panels bolted and rough sawed


Sides milled out


A small mistake made ​​during milling


The volume button is mounted to the control panel.



While i was disassembling the computer I came up with the idea to mount the status light of the pc to the control panel.


Oh and yes that is a power button on the panel, I know it is not recommended but I am building this cabinet for myself and I find it useful;)

Bought some 2nd hand speakers on Marktplaats.nl (National Ebay site) for 70€ (Logitech z-5400)


Not sure if I am going to use al 5 satelite speakers, but the speaker panel will have 3 (Left, center, right)
Maybe I mount the rear speakers in the bottom front off the cabinet, it might seem that the sound is coming from behind.








All parts will be laminated on the outside, but the inside off the cabinet/parts will be painted matt black.



The paint is still wet on this pictures but de PC mount looks great now.

More updates next week.

[emphatic]

Nice work so far! 

[Sitnalta]

The last update was a while ago.
So here is a big picture update.




























I followed the advice and placed a coin door in it.

Tomorrow i'm going to tint film the plexiglass, and hopefully next week the T-molding and the HPL on the sides.

Please let me know what you think.

[Drnick]

Looking good,  A proper job seems to be underway, I approve.  I wouldn't have had the buttons below the trackball or the spinner just above, but that's personal preference.  Any plans on Artwork?

[Generic Eric]

Quite detailed.  I'm looking forward to seeing your wiring.

[Nephasth]

CP looks good, and I like your mobo tray!

[Slippyblade]

Very thorough on the pics, good job on the construction.  I promise you that the exit or power button is gonna get hit during play though.

[Fursphere]

Loving this build.    How wide is your control panel / cabinet?  I'm guessing 28" ?

[mgb]

Progress is looking great.
Very nicely done so far and very nicely documented.

[Sitnalta]

Thanks for all the comments

@Drnick:
I know the Spinner and mouse buttons are to close to the trackball for fast gaming,
but I will use it mostly for game selection, settings and Window Errors 

My cabinet is completely black because i'm not sure about the artwork.
I've been thinking about an Abe's Oddysee Oddworld theme.
Perhaps at a later time, but I need a marquee for sure.


@Slippyblade:
The powerbutton panel is fairly angled on the CP so hopefully it's not so bad.
I think I will set the computer to hybernate.
If player 2 hits it by accident then it is not as bad as shutting down the system


@Fursphere:
Almost right, the cabinet is 27.4 "wide

[mcseforsale]

Official mcseforsale approval status:  SUBSCRIBED!

Looks good.

AJ

[yotsuya]

Official mcseforsale approval status:  SUBSCRIBED!

Looks good.

AJ

What do you type if you don't approve? 

BTW, I'm impressed by the level of detail that went into your planning. Good job! 

[mcseforsale]

Yeah, I'm pretty loose....er, liberal.  But this build has several design features that I like.  Great job.

AJ

[Sitnalta]

I was not satisfied with the results of the window film,
there were air bubbles under the film and it did not stick well on the sides because I used too much soap.
I finally decided to remove the window film from the sides and spray the bottom of the Plexiglas black.





I did the same with the controlpanel plexiglas


If you look closely you can see the transition from black to tinted area,
but I am very happy with the end result of the monitor bezel.

[blueznl]

Meer / more!

[Sitnalta]

The control panel is almost finished and I'm very happy with the result.















With so many cables and hardware it is hard to keep everything nice.
but for something that is out of sight, I think it's good enough.


I need to purchase a extra Ledpec64 because of the unplanned buttons:
- P1B8
- P2B8
- POWER
- Flipper_L
- Flipper_R
- Plunger

I also need to order some extra Pele led rings which I'm not happy about.
From the 28 pieces that I ordered (3 spare) 10 were defective.
These are nicely replaced under warranty but again there were some defective ones.
The pele LEDs are very fragile and sometimes they are not soldered properly.
I tried to repair some of them but i failed miserably.

Maybe I'm going to order a wiring harnass for my Ultrastick 360 sticks becauce I think it is easier to configure.

[mgb]

As far as wiring in those extra buttons, Why give the flippers and the plunger dedicated inputs? why not just parallel them off player buttons? its not like you'd be using them at the same time.

maybe I missed something but I don't see why the power button would go to your encoder.

are your player buttons connected to the 360s? those handle 8 buttons

[Sitnalta]

Hi MGB,

While designing the arcade cabinet it was not clear to me how many buttons there would be needed.

That is why I then decided to buy an I-PAC4,
now i have more then enough connections and thats why the flippers and plunger will have there own connection.
The configuration overview in for examble LedBlinky is easier this way.

If I order the Ultrastick 360 harness, it will be used in output mode to the I-PAC4.
This way the player buttons and the joystick will be recognised as one device.
I installed Street Fighter 4 and I needed extra software to get the joystick and buttons working together.
I hope the harness can make this easier.

[mgb]

Oh I'm sorry, I geuss I was a little tired when reading your post.
For some reason I was reading it as you were needing to add inputs for buttons. I reread and see you're talking about lighting.
Sorry about that.

BTW, the control panel looks great. very slick