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why no top switchable joystick that has a long throw?

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DaveMMR:


--- Quote from: severdhed on December 30, 2008, 06:48:12 pm ---i've thought about swapable panels, but that takes away from the approachability of it.  This thing mostly gets used by friends and family, alot of which don't know what kind of stick they should be using..they just know it doesnt work right when they use the wrong one.  i want to have a single panel, with a single joystick per player....so it looks like the u360s are the way to go.

--- End quote ---

I was going with swappable panels too but decided on one "do-all" panel featuring the U360's, a TB and spinner for the same reason you mentioned: approachability.   It's hard enough to get people to remember how to exit out of a game, but to start explaining the mechanics of switching out a piece of wood just to play Pac-Man for 5 minutes seemed like too much to ask of casual players.  It never bothered me though - the U360's are up to the multi-tasking with nary a hiccup.

I still left my self open for swappable panels but have yet to make any specialized ones.

severdhed:

that makes sense though...i want it to be easy for anyone to just walk up and use...swappable panels don't accomplish that goal..and neither do switchable joysticks.  the only way for that to work is either 1 joystick that does everything (u360) or separate dedicated joysticks.   my panel right now is 12x30".  i had it set up as a frankenpanel and people were just confused.  so i'm thinking to u360s, and a trackball should take careof most of it.  i have a spinner that i made, but to be honest, i dont think i'm going to put it back in...it was more of a novelty than anything.  I do miss the trackball though, i want to play centipede. 

thank you guys for helping me sort this out...as it turns out..for this particular situation, the u360 is my best option.  although after i build this new panel, i am going to reassemble my x-arcade unit for use with console games...it would be really nice to have a long throw switchable stick for that...

Paul Olson:

I guess I look at this a little differently than most. I built my modular panel because I want to have the right controls for all of the games I want to play. I don't let my  guests swap the panels unless they have shown enough interest to take the time to learn how it works. At parties, I will put a fairly generic layout on there and limit the menu to games that work with that layout. The next time, I will set up a different layout. Most people do not know the difference between a 4 and 8 way joystick, and they really don't care enough to learn.

I think the u360s are the best option if you want the widest variety of games automatically configured. Like DaveMMR said, you can prepare for swappable panels without actually making any. Just make the CP easily removable, and use some type of connector to make the wiring easy to unplug. Go easy and generic for the masses, but leave other options for yourself in case you want them later on.



metaHipster:

the old top-switchable sticks I have from Ultimarc (replaced by the magstick?) work fine for me across a wide range of 8-way/4-way games though I agree the throw is a bit short.  If this was a big enough priority, I could have either top-mounted it or switched to a metal control panel.  As it stands, it seems fine, though the clicking is a bit annoying from the switches underneath.  Still way cheaper than the U-360 for sure, even with the extra ball-top knobs

-Matt

severdhed:

i bought the u360 sticks...it will take me some time to build the new panel, since i want to do it right this time..but i did make a temp panel and i have to say, so far, i like them alot...they work great for 4 way games.

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