The NEW Build Your Own Arcade Controls
Main => Main Forum => Topic started by: AndyWarne on February 15, 2007, 11:08:07 am
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Announcing a special offer until end March Now Re-launching until end June!. Special pricing on Mini-PAC board for BYOAC participants.
Just to recap on the features:
28-switch keyboard-type interface combined with trackball and spinner interface.
USB or PS/2 interface. Just change the cable. (USB required for trackball and spinner to function).
Real EEPROM.
Solderless connection using standard header. IDE cable can be used. Pre-made wiring harnesses available at regular pricing.
Switch-less keyboard pass-through.
Macro support.
Keyboard LED support.
Advanced Panel Design Software for customization if required.
Self-test LED which indicates any wiring or switch problems.
Advanced shift function can use either a dedicated or shared shift button.
There is even a free shipping option on this board (without cable) at only $24.
Discount price with USB or PS/2 cable: $26. (plus DHL shipping).
Also on the discount page are PCB mounting feet and the LED harness.
To order use this link: http://www.ultimarc.com/JShopServer/section.php?xSec=11 (http://www.ultimarc.com/JShopServer/section.php?xSec=11)
(http://www.ultimarc.com/images/minipac_new.jpg)
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I'm confused Andy,
You state in your message above:
28-switch keyboard-type interface combined with trackball and spinner interface.
Yet your advertisement is for the MINI-PAC STANDARD which says on your website:
Mini-PAC Board for switches/joysticks only.
It is the MINI-PAC OPTI that says
Mini-PAC for switches/joysticks/trackball/spinner.
Now, the original price of the STANDARD is $29.00...so this deal provides a 20.8% discount...not bad, but if the deal is for a MINIPAC that includes "trackball and spinner interface", that would be one helluva deal being the OPTI's regular price is $69.00.
Can you please clear up this confusion before I pull the trigger...
Thanks!
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so wait does this encoder do both keyboard and mouse in one set.. or is it one or the other
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It does both.
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Yes the board does both.
Andy
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I'm confused Andy,
You state in your message above:
28-switch keyboard-type interface combined with trackball and spinner interface.
Yet your advertisement is for the MINI-PAC STANDARD which says on your website:
Mini-PAC Board for switches/joysticks only.
It is the MINI-PAC OPTI that says
Mini-PAC for switches/joysticks/trackball/spinner.
Now, the original price of the STANDARD is $29.00...so this deal provides a 20.8% discount...not bad, but if the deal is for a MINIPAC that includes "trackball and spinner interface", that would be one helluva deal being the OPTI's regular price is $69.00.
Can you please clear up this confusion before I pull the trigger...
Thanks!
Sweet. Hurry up and buy one so you can put a trackball on that Joust cab. ;)
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its such a great deal. the site has crashed. lol
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I can't find a price or part number for the wiring harness. Anyone?
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I can't find a price or part number for the wiring harness. Anyone?
First item on this page I think: http://www.ultimarc.com/JShopServer/section.php?xSec=3
Nevermind, that is the Extension harness.
Just as it is,
Flip Willie
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Andy Why is shipping so expensive?
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He's located in the UK.
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Is the offer open to UK customers too?
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I'm confused as well... how much is it for the pre-made wiring harness for keyboard controls?
Awesome deal... I think I'm going to pick one up for my new project...
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Thanks Andy! I ordered 3. These are perfect for small projects.
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Thanks Andy! I ordered 3. These are perfect for small projects.
How much was it with the free shipping?
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I'm just worried it won't fit in my basement. :cheers:
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How much was it with the free shipping?
I'm just worried it won't fit in my basement. :cheers:
Also, does it work?
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Thanks Andy! I ordered 2
Guess I'm building something soon!
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Does it include the harness, and if not where can you buy that seperately? (can't find it on the site either) thanks!
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The special offer only covers the board. It is aimed at those who are looking at a very cost-effective but feature-rich interface and are prepared to spend a little more time with the wiring and save on the cost of the harness. I believe many people visiting here fit into that category.
Of course the board with the various harness options is available as normal and details can be seen on http://www.ultimarc.com/minipac.html (http://www.ultimarc.com/minipac.html). There is a "click to order" link there.
Andy
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Thanks for the great deal Andy!
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Seems like an awesome deal!!
Just wondering about shipping to Australia, Sydney specifically. The free shipping one says its not for the likes of us dirty Aussies ;D But I dont mind paying for shipping, i'll still save money if my calculations are correct.
I went thru the order pages up to 'submit your order to us' and it had $16, that seems ok but just posted wanting to double check... And to say hi, I havent had much of a chanch to get online recently, looks like I picked a good time to pop my head in.
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Andy,
If you click the board only option ($24, free shipping), it does not let you select between USB or PS2. As I understand the docs, it MUST be USB for spinner/trackball functionality. Is this board available usb? How do I tell the shopping cart to make it so?
Thanks!
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Thats because the free shipping option doesn't include a cable. You have to supply your own. the mini-pac itself is the same regardless of which cable you ordinarily would choose to have it shipped with.
If I understand correctly that is.
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Thats because the free shipping option doesn't include a cable. You have to supply your own. the mini-pac itself is the same regardless of which cable you ordinarily would choose to have it shipped with.
If I understand correctly that is.
I was under the impression that the board was either headered with a PS2 port or a USB port. Maybe he just sends an infamous green adapter if you order USB?
:dunno
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I was under the impression that the board was either headered with a PS2 port or a USB port. Maybe he just sends an infamous green adapter if you order USB?
There two are female Ps/2 plugs on the board. He ships either a Male ps2 to Male ps2 cord or a male ps2 to male USB cord.
Hope that makes sense.
Just as it is,
Flip Willie
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Now THAT is impressive...timed the offer with my tax return arriving in my bank account! :) Order submitted.
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Hi Andy,
Can you confirm what cable I would need to connect this up in USB mode --BINGO! Either that, or I was attempting to say "before" but it was too many letters to type-- I order?
Is is as simple as hacking together a 6 pin ps2 to a 4 pin USB? If so what connections do I use for the two data lines?
Thanks
Muzland
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All of our boards are dual interface, USB and PS/2 and auto-detect the interface they are plugged into. In PS/2 mode the cable is a pretty standard one ie Mini-DIN male-male but in USB mode it is a special cable as mentioed above. But you can use those small (yes usually green for some unknown reason!) plug adaptors which are supplied with dual-interface keyboards and mice. Don't use a PS/2 to USB active converter (eg Belkin).
The free shipping option is fine to OZ.
Andy
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Thanks Andy
Placed my order online.
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I was under the impression that the board was either headered with a PS2 port or a USB port. Maybe he just sends an infamous green adapter if you order USB?
There two are female Ps/2 plugs on the board. He ships either a Male ps2 to Male ps2 cord or a male ps2 to male USB cord.
Hope that makes sense.
Just as it is,
Flip Willie
Yup. This makes sense.
The trigger has now been pulled. Thanks Andy.
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Wow. Great deal. I have one in my cab and am very happy with it.
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To celebrate the fact we have just shipped an order for 400 Mini-PAC boards to one customer, we are bringing back the special BYOAC offer for one more month!
See first post for the special order link.
Cheers
Andy
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Can you tell me how many simultaneous keypresses the Minipac can handle in USB mode? Is it the same number as the standard Ipac i.e. 15?
Also, slightly off-topic, but has the Minipac with 36 button inputs now been shelved?
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It is 12 plus any (or all) which are assigned to the following:
LALT, LCTRL, LSHIFT, LWIN, RWIN, RALT, RSHIFT, RCTRL.
The 36-input board in its present guise will not appear but a future version will have 36-plus inputs. This new version will definitely appear as I am committed to doing it for an OEM customer.
Andy
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Andy are these still available at this price? I am trying to decide what to do, and right now i am leaning towards purchasing 2 ultra sticks, and i will need an encoder for the other 2 players (3 and 4) If this deal is still available please let me know.
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I got one of these and finally got around to using it in a project. Unfortunately, I had to build a PS2 Male-Male cable to hook it up to my keyboard port. Problem is, it's not recognized. I've been working with Andy trying to figure this out but so far no luck.
Before I send this back to him I was hoping to hear from anyone here that also purchased these and have successfully installed them in a machine. My questions:
1. I don't see an LED on here. Is there an LED on this board, and if so, where is it? Mine doesn't light up.
2. I don't know what pins on the minipac need to be wired. The notes from Andy say a "typical PS2 cable". What's typical? If someone could point me to a link where I can get one in the USA I'll try that route before sending this one back...I just want to complete this project ASAP and sending stuff back and forth across the world takes a little time.
If anyone has one that they know works AND a cable to hook it up I'd be interested in purchasing it. I was going to buy another one from Andy but I don't see this style one his site anywhere, neither do I see a PS2 Male-Male cable.
Any ideas?
Thanks!
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I got one of these and finally got around to using it in a project. Unfortunately, I had to build a PS2 Male-Male cable to hook it up to my keyboard port. Problem is, it's not recognized. I've been working with Andy trying to figure this out but so far no luck.
Before I send this back to him I was hoping to hear from anyone here that also purchased these and have successfully installed them in a machine. My questions:
1. I don't see an LED on here. Is there an LED on this board, and if so, where is it? Mine doesn't light up.
2. I don't know what pins on the minipac need to be wired. The notes from Andy say a "typical PS2 cable". What's typical? If someone could point me to a link where I can get one in the USA I'll try that route before sending this one back...I just want to complete this project ASAP and sending stuff back and forth across the world takes a little time.
If anyone has one that they know works AND a cable to hook it up I'd be interested in purchasing it. I was going to buy another one from Andy but I don't see this style one his site anywhere, neither do I see a PS2 Male-Male cable.
Any ideas?
Thanks!
I used 4 total. 2 from this order and I ordered 2 more.
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man...thanks for bringing up a 3.5 year old thread and getting my hopes up.
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man...thanks for bringing up a 3.5 year old thread and getting my hopes up.
I know right? I was about to order like 5
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I thought last time I was on Andy's site he had the old style mini-pacs back up?
The new one is okay, but loved the old one, with built-in trackball support!
Andy, if you're around was I seeing things? Do you have the old style mini-pacs in stock?
Update: I just went and checked out Andy's store and I didn't see the old minipac listed--maybe it was a brain fart?
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I have two "old style" MiniPACs that I've never used since at the time I bought them the optional cable wasn't long enough for my needs. They've been gathering dust until I can figure out a way to get around using those thin IDE cables.(Which seem all but impossible to strip and connect to switches anyway).
So I've been using my hydrogen controllers, which give me a different problem. I have to keep re-flowing the solder because the connections to the PCB are flaky. (I suck at soldering).
Darren Harris
Staten Island, New York.
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man...thanks for bringing up a 3.5 year old thread and getting my hopes up.
Wow - Total foul. I didn't even think about that when I resurrected this one. I was impressed that I found this thread, tho.
Craptacular. Mods, lock this and I'll start a new one that refers to this instead. {hanging head in shame}
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man...thanks for bringing up a 3.5 year old thread and getting my hopes up.
Wow - Total foul. I didn't even think about that when I resurrected this one. I was impressed that I found this thread, tho.
Craptacular. Mods, lock this and I'll start a new one that refers to this instead. {hanging head in shame}
Hopefully your Oscar spinner works.
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Hopefully your Oscar spinner works.
LOL.
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man...thanks for bringing up a 3.5 year old thread and getting my hopes up.
Wow - Total foul. I didn't even think about that when I resurrected this one. I was impressed that I found this thread, tho.
Craptacular. Mods, lock this and I'll start a new one that refers to this instead. {hanging head in shame}
Ummm, that's why there is the warning message when you first tried to post:
Warning: this topic has not been posted in for at least 120 days.
Unless you're sure you want to reply, please consider starting a new topic.
:whap
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I was pretty sure I wanted to post. After all, since I can't find pictures of this version of Minipac anywhere - at all - and others purchased this minipac directly as a result of this thread it's pretty obvious this was a good thread to reference.
What wasn't so good was a failure to realize the title could be misconstrued. If the title were "Hey I need to hook up my minipac" it' wouldn't be an issue.
That said, did you buy one and if so did you hook it up, and if you did, where did you get your cable? That's what I'm asking. I didn't ask if there was a warning notice when pulling up an old post.
Now go :censored:
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I hooked mine up using terminal strips and an old cable out of a PC.
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I was pretty sure I wanted to post. After all, since I can't find pictures of this version of Minipac anywhere - at all - and others purchased this minipac directly as a result of this thread it's pretty obvious this was a good thread to reference.
What wasn't so good was a failure to realize the title could be misconstrued. If the title were "Hey I need to hook up my minipac" it' wouldn't be an issue.
That said, did you buy one and if so did you hook it up, and if you did, where did you get your cable? That's what I'm asking. I didn't ask if there was a warning notice when pulling up an old post.
Now go :censored:
Yeah, obviously you should have read the title more closely, and started a new thread.
Yes, I've bought two. For the first one, I did what BobA did, got an old ribbon cable to wire it up. For the second I just bought andy's wiring harness made for it. Saved me the hassle.
Now you go :soapbox:
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Hi can you give me a link to the software down load for these please.