A new approach to 4 player CP

[willhs]

Okay, I get the impression people on these boards don't like answering questions, or are at least reluctant to do it.  This is the first community I've ever encountered that doesn't even have a "help" forum.  I understand the you probably get a lot of questions that seem obvious to you, but I promise I've been doing research for weeks and I still can't figure some stuff out.  Maybe I'll get a better response when all I'm dong is posting pretty pictures.

At any rate, I've found a huge source of inspiration in this project:

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=21952.msg241933#msg241933

He uses the corners of a lockdown bar to give pinball an authentic feel -- exactly what I've wanted to do.  The only problem is that it's hard to get a good price on a lockdown bar...

[javeryh]

Maybe I'll get a better response when all I'm dong is posting pretty pictures.

dong.   

Sorry.

[leapinlew]

Okay, I get the impression people on these boards don't like answering questions, or are at least reluctant to do it.  This is the first community I've ever encountered that doesn't even have a "help" forum. 

What?

You must not hang out at many DIY forums. We have a wiki, we've all been telling you that the spinners under the controls is a bad idea, what else do you want?

I've replied twice - both times with something to the effect of "Don't put the spinners under your controls"

[Kaytrim]

... most people wire the 4-way and the first 8-way to the same spots, right?

That is the standard practice.  My personal preference is to use a multipurpose stick for player one.  Like the U360 from Ultimarc or a 49-way stick with the GPWiz49 from GGG.  GGG is going to release their own 49-way stick in the near future so there will be another option.

Okay, I get the impression people on these boards don't like answering questions, or are at least reluctant to do it.  This is the first community I've ever encountered that doesn't even have a "help" forum.  I understand the you probably get a lot of questions that seem obvious to you, but I promise I've been doing research for weeks and I still can't figure some stuff out.  Maybe I'll get a better response when all I'm dong is posting pretty pictures.

It is not the case of reluctance to answer questions.  It is the case of lack of knowledge or time to search for some the answers you are looking for.  Then there are others here that are jaded by trying to answer the same question time and time again.  You might get better responses too if you break out some of the questions you don't get an answer for into a separate thread just for that issue.

TTFN
Kaytrim

[unclet]

I just saw this post .....  and wanted to chime in a bit since my control panel was referred-to by "shardian" earlier.

I had space in my house to put this thing, but there were two real motivations for me to build a 4-player instead of a two player cabinet:

1) I have young children (and they have friends) who play on the cabient quite frequently so a 4-player cabinet was required.  The kids like the kicking games (Simpsons, TMNT, etc..) which allowy 4 players so my cabinet gets used to the max more than most I would assume.

2) I have friends in which some    are smart enough to switch out control panels when required, but why in the world would anyone want someone else switching out modular control panels.   I figured with the amount of time an effort I put into that cab, I did not want someone coming along and switching panels out and breaking stuff (by handling to roughly, etc..) while drinking beers.   What most likely would have ended up happening (since my friends would probably feel guilty about touching the machine at all in that manner) would be that I would need to always be around to constantly switch out the control panels for them.   That would be bad for me of course....

Anyway, just wanted to through these ideas out to you to think about.   A lot of people tend to think what they want out of a cabinet "right now" in their life, but if you intend to keep the cabinet you are currently building for a long time, then you really should think about what you want out of it a bit more before making a finally decision.   Of course, if you plan on building a new cabinet every year (or every other year) like a lot of people here at BYOAC, then you should just have fun experimenting with different designs to actually see what works for you.




 

[willhs]

Thanks guys, I feel a lot better now.

@javeryh: Yeah yeah... I'll post a pic of my first cardboard next week, and hopefully that'll garner more constructive comments.

@leapinlew: I do appreciate your comments.  I guess my frustration was mainly that I'd post what I was working on and have some questions (which I see as better than just asking questions), and people just comment on the design and ignore the questions.  But, I need help on the questions before I can order the parts and move forward.  I think I've figured that stuff out now, though, and I'll be ordering soon.

@Kaytrim: Thanks!  Actually, I thought long and hard, and I'm putting Competition sticks in for players 1 and 2 for fighters.  All of the fighters from my childhood were 8-ways, and I actually like the clicking sounds.  I thought those sticks would at least be an appropriate starting point.  I can upgrade those later if needed.

@unclet:  I totally agree with you.  I originally thought I wanted 4p because I love those games, but after some thought I really think my new designs will be better.  In case you missed, I'm making one 2 player setup with all the bells & whistles, and then 2 additional fighter controllers.  For background, I'm a med student who lives in a frat house.  So, for the next 8 years or so, I won't be able to build a real cab, and it'd be really cool if I had 2 extra controllers that I could lend out to others to enjoy (using a Super for that so it'll easily switch 4-8way).  Who knows, 10 years from now I will probably build a 4p cab.

At any rate, I'm feeling good about my progress so far.  I found some good prices on lockdown bars, so it looks like my pinball feel is a "go."

Will

[unclet]

Seems like you know exactly what you want ...... that is half the battle ..... good luck and remember to post pictures as you progress.

[dynamite]

hey willhs
I too am in the 4 player cab dilemma. I like your idea of building 2 separate controllers for players 3 and 4 but I'm wondering how they'll be held when in use. Are they going to sit on tables or stools right beside the cab or will they attach directly to the sides of your control panel when needed and removed when not??

[willhs]

Yeah, I thought about making detachable controllers, etc., but decided that total standalone controllers would be better so I can just lend them out.  Realistically, I won't be playing games 4 player all that much, so that's not totally important.  So, when we do play 4p, players 3&4 will just have to play with the joysticks on their lap, though they could probably all fit on my desk if they want to cram together.  I guess it's nice having that option.  The main thing that I like about that setup is having 2 standalone controllers (looking around the internet, it's crazy expensive to buy controllers like these -- I'm building them at around half cost).