Wiring question: 2 Player CP to 2 Hacked Gamepads.

[ViciousXUSMC]

I need to know if this will work.

I have a 2 player control panel: 1 joystick & 7 buttons for each player.

This is going to be interfaced with 2 hacked dreamcast gamepads via a DB25 connection.

I had planned on only having one ground wire chained to every button on the CP.

So thats 22 signal wires and 1 ground wire.


The question is, when using 2 gamepads can the ground be common between them?  Or will I have to use another one of the DB25 pins and run a separate ground for player 2 controllers?

Visual Diagram:

[severdhed]

i can't imagine that will work...you will need to have a dedicated ground for each controller...assuming that the dreamcast controllers use a common ground in the first place.  some game controllers do not use a common ground, so you may want to verify that first.   

are you interfacing this with a pc?  are there even drivers that will work with these controllers?

[ViciousXUSMC]

i can't imagine that will work...you will need to have a dedicated ground for each controller...assuming that the dreamcast controllers use a common ground in the first place.  some game controllers do not use a common ground, so you may want to verify that first.   

are you interfacing this with a pc?  are there even drivers that will work with these controllers?

No its going to a dreamcast, if it was PC I would not need it I would just use the I-PAC.  I found out it wont work I need seperate ground.  So I have updated the plans and added in how it will look final.

I may use the one unused wire/pin for a coin input button but it would cost a lot to order just 1 button, so thats only going to happen if I find that I need one and maybe find a nice little button at radio shack.



The I-PAC goes to PC for Mame and other PC stuff, the Hacked Gamepads go to the dreamcast for MVC2 (yes lots of money & trouble for one game, without this modular setup I could have just wired directly to the I-PAC with no need for DB25 cables, soldering, switches, project boxes ect... the payoff is that I have a modular system with room to add 2 more systems easily down the road)