How would one wire a control switch over?

[DJ_Izumi]

I've never built a cab but am interested, but at the time one for my apartment isn't suitable with space considderations.

My idea for a cab is a cab containing a PS2 and running various games off of HDDLoader.  Namely there are a lot of games I'd like to or to feature that are too high level for MAME to do any time soon.

My idea however is a PS2 based cab that can support almost anything.  The obvious act is to build a CP that is built on a pair of hacked DualShock controllers.  However what I want is to beable to plug in other controllers directly into the cab and have those 'switch over'.  You know how you plug your headphones into a stereo and the signal immediately switches from the speakers to the headphones?  I wanna know how to wire that only for a dual shock.

In the area where a coin mech would be I'd like to mount an array of connectors.  Two female PlayStation 2 controller ports, USB ports, composite video ports (For light guns), female FireWire port, female Ethernet port and some MemoryCard slots probably canibalized out of a Multi-Tap.  This way the control panel isn't the only option for input.  You can swap in real DualShocks, you can connect a racing wheel, you can connect DDR Mats, you can connect Guitar Hero controllers, you can connect in some Guncon 1's.  Know what I mean?

So I'd like some references that I could look at to wire something that'd switch over when something was plugged into the female ports on the belly of the cab.

[sinkhead]

You should be able to simply connect both at once. They'll both work at the same time, when the controller is plugged in.

[DJ_Izumi]

You should be able to simply connect both at once. They'll both work at the same time, when the controller is plugged in.

That won't work because not all PS2 controllers are DualShocks.  The DDR pad is probably the only controller that is recognised as a standard PS2 controller but many arn't.

Guitar Hero controllers, Guncon 1s, NeGcon, Jogcon and the mouse are all entirely different devices.  The hardware can't have two different kinds of controllers connected to the port at once or it'll confuse the hell out of everything.  The connection from the CP's 'DualShocks' would need to be cut or the PlayStation to recongise that a different controller type has been swapped in.

This is particularly important to me because I'd like to support the Guncon 1 for things like Point Blank.

[bkenobi]

It's kinda ugly, but you could find an old printer switcher (the box with the A-B rotary switch) and hack the controllers to that.  It has enough contacts to handle 25 pins (I think).  The PS2 only has ~9 as I recall, so that would let you switch more than one controller at once if you wanted.