Don't tell your friends you build arcade games...

[Ed_McCarron]

because they will sucker you into building one for them.

I got talked into building a DDR replica for a relative for a christmas present.

As with all projects, I started by mocking it up in ACAD.  Having no real measurements to go off of, and the fact that I'd feel like a schmuck at the Dave & Busters with a tape measure, I did what consultants do best.

I made it up.

Going from pics, I made a rough guess at sizes.  Came out OK, so far.

Anyway, I've got the cad files available if anyone else is interested.

Pics are in my cluttered workshop, where, due to massive stupidity on my part, the first modification to the plans involved cutting the cabinet depth down to 27 inches when the plans called for 30 inches.

Guess how wide the basement doors are. 

Ed

[dennis808]

Well, it already reminds ME of a DDR machine, so it's a good start.
How did you make that rounded edge on the front? Is it prefab or routed?

[JoyMonkey]

...the first modification to the plans involved cutting the cabinet depth down to 27 inches when the plans called for 30 inches.

Guess how wide the basement doors are. 

26 3/4 inches?

[ChadTower]

I hope you got paid in advance, because every time I have ever started up a project for someone, they eventually say something like "oh, that price is no good for me now, how about half" or "Yeah, don't need it anymore".

[Ed_McCarron]

Pay?

The rounded edge is a chunk of 1" dowel with a v-notch taken out of it so it fits over the edge - it was an easy way to hide the ugly miter cut.

[Freeplay]

Anyway, I've got the cad files available if anyone else is interested.

Ed.. Yes Please.... I want to start it now.

[Ed_McCarron]

My copy of acrobat is on the fritz...  Are ACAD .dwg files OK?  I just dimensioned the drawings, but they are only close when it comes to the angled cuts - I tend to leave them long and do the mitered edges after I've dry fit stuff.

Files here:

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/emccarron2/DDRCUTDIM.dwg
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/emccarron2/ddrside.dwg

Ed

Let me know if you need some other format...  I'll figure it out.

[Silhouette]

Let me know if you need some other format...  I'll figure it out.

.jpg or .pdf would be awesome, if it's not too much trouble. I've been looking for DDR cabinet dimensions for YEARS.

[Ed_McCarron]

Reinstall Acrobat... Tonites project.

[Freeplay]

Thanks Ed... Pdf would be great

[Rook3]

I wish you'd asked earlier for measurements as I took a couple hours one day at work and measured the cabinet out.

Either way, your project looks like a good starting point.

Russ

[Ed_McCarron]

Doh!

I searched, but never bothered to ask.

[Ed_McCarron]

Anyway, as usual, life has a way of getting in the way.

Here are the .pdf plans I promised - laid out on a 1x1 grid - it seemed too cluttery once I had dimensioned everything.

The parts labeled top-top, front of base, and bottom of base are all fractional amounts of inches in at least one dimension - I can never figure out miter cuts, so I leave em slightly long and trim on the fly.

Other than that, progress is continuing.  I'd post pics, but my wife lost the digital camera.  I'll find it once I clean the house, I'm sure, but a guys gotta have some kind of priorities.

[Silhouette]

You're more awesome than awesome. Thanks a ton. 

[OntarioGamer]

I'm sure you have already seen this, but here you go anyway:

http://www.jakobud.com/

Cabinet plans in EPS format.

[Ed_McCarron]

I've used some of those plans.  I don't see a DDR style cabinet in there, tho.  Please tell me I didn't miss it.

[Crowley]

Now you tell me. 200 bucks later.. danke. 

[Ed_McCarron]

I'd post pics, but my wife lost the digital camera.

Found it.  In the bathroom closet.  No clue.

Progress pics.

Theres a coupla little dimples where the air nailer got too excited, but not bad overall.  Remember, its a gift for a college girl.  She won't be too picky.

Gotta get a PS/2-USB adapter for the dance pad so I don't have to re-invent the wheel.  Got a PC set up running stepmania, just need to put all the parts together.





Not necessarily going for authentic, but you get the idea.

[Ed_McCarron]

Oh, the pipes on the top hold the marquee sign.  I've decided for the sake of simplicity (and sanity) to leave off the annoying strobes on the sides.

[RetroJames]

I'd post pics, but my wife lost the digital camera.

Found it.  In the bathroom closet.  No clue.

Progress pics.

Theres a coupla little dimples where the air nailer got too excited, but not bad overall.  Remember, its a gift for a college girl.  She won't be too picky.

Gotta get a PS/2-USB adapter for the dance pad so I don't have to re-invent the wheel.  Got a PC set up running stepmania, just need to put all the parts together.





Not necessarily going for authentic, but you get the idea.

How did you do that side art? Is that leaf?

[Ed_McCarron]

Masking tape, newspaper, and silver spray paint.

I subscribe to the KISS method of painting.

[RetroJames]

Keeping it simple worked as it came out very good.....stupid.

[Ed_McCarron]

Hey...

I think I lost that round.

[Ed_McCarron]

Cabinet is basically done.

The sign has been added to the top, PC and monitor installed, hacked keyboard to map control buttons, USB dancepad added (annoying - must hold UP+START+SELECT to put it in DDR mode - something to do with simultaneous button presses), amplifier installed.

The monitor was tricky.  The angle I had chose was kinda steep.  I had to make a particle board cradle for the monitor to sit on, and hold it in place with a cargo ratchet strap.  Works well, but kinda awkwierd.

Added rope lights around perimeter to look cool.  Well, if I think its cool the 25 year old its going to will most likely scoff at it.  Oh well.

Speakers are kind of wimpy - not much bass.  I probably really needed free air woofers instead of the ones I salvaged, but it sounds OK.

I'll get pics up.

Oh, and I discovered I'm WAY out of shape.  After doing 'Butterfly' 20 or 30 times, I was ready to pass out.

Best part was when I fell off the pad backwards and almost killed a dog.

[markrvp]

Hey Ed:

You said you're running a PC in the cabinet.  How are you running DDR?  I didn't think it was emulated in MAME yet.  Or is it?  Is it a PC CD-Rom?

I bought DDR Ultramix 3 and a couple of pads for my kids for Christmas for the Xbox, but an actual machine would be awesome.

Please tell me more about what's under the hood.

[spuddybuddy]

Its called Step Mania. You can play thousands of songs on it too. My wife wants one of these cabs now  Oh well, It would be cool to have a DDR machine with metal pads in the garage

[Ed_McCarron]

Yup, Stepmania.

www.stepmania.com

Sweet program.  I may have to install it on my mame cab so I can get more exercise.  Just need to make MameWah call it.

[Ed_McCarron]

Pics.  Done.  Next time (c'mon, you know theres gonna be a next time...) I use an IPAC and lose the USB pad.  Theres some weird code you have to input each time for multiple keypresses.

Oh, the dog finally forgave me for stepping on it.

[Ed_McCarron]

Having problems with the dance pad.

Since it reads as a joystick, you can't really press L+R or U+D, as the two commands on the same axis would be impossible.

So, yuo do the UP+START+SELECT thing, and it maps the cardinal directions to 4 of the 14 buttons available.  Remap in SM, and all is good.

However...

After playing for a while, the mapping resets itself.

I suspect that the pad flexes enough to short some connection to the leds on it, pulling the voltage down far enough to reset the controller box attached to the pad.

USB ports are current limited, I assume?  I don't notice any glitches in the pc, so I assume its simply droppping the voltage and not hurting anything.

Trying the pad on a concrete floor seemed to resolve the problem.

[Crowley]

WOW! Nice job! Wow... I need to create an SM 'cade.

[JonnyBoy]

Yeah, I know that code you're talking about when you want to do multiple keypresses. I have a ps2 to usb adapter and I needed to do the same code. I've never had mine reset itself, probably because I just have some soft pads. I want to do a homebuilt myself using a keyboard encoder, it seems like it'd make everything a lot easier.