Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum
Main => Main Forum => Topic started by: dislecksea on April 04, 2012, 01:10:03 pm
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I have had an old Optipac forever - it is over ten years old. But I had to do an upgrade on my cab PC and the new one has zero serial ports. Andy over at Ultimac was nice enough to send me this diagram for a cable that should work. However, I have never made a cable before and have no idea what to do with it. I don't really want to replace my trackball as it works just fine.
Anyone know of someone selling a cable like this? Or is it so easy to make one that I shouldn't have trouble (guidance please).
Or should I just suck it up and buy a new Optipac for $42 from www.arcadeemulator.net? (http://www.arcadeemulator.net?)
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Don't know what motherboard you have, but I also just got a new board that doesn't have a D-Sub 9 External Port. What it does have is a header so that you can either wire it up yourself or else buy a serial port. Like this (http://www.frontx.com/pro/cpx102_2.html).
(http://www.frontx.com/pro/cpx102_2p6.gif)
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What are you connecting to the Optipac? Just a trackball? If so, it might be cheaper(and less hassle) just to pick up an Optiwiz from GGG.
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I made one from two hacked cables--its very easy--just remember that the colors on that pdf--are for the usb cable--the serial cable may have completely different ones. All you need is a multimeter or continuity tester. on your serial cable figure out what colour goes to what pin and match them up to the corresponding pin on the usb. Pan ahead with some shrink tube and you'll be good to go--takes about 20 mins to 1/2 hr to map wires, strip them and solder etc.
by the way a usb to serial converter doesn't work--i tried --you basically want a passthrough cable and making one is the easiest way to do it.