My home built metal DDR pad (Part IV)

[ch]

no problem at all.

i did that with my pad. i used a softpad control board and a parallel adapter i fashioned. if you use the right drivers, theres relatively no lag. or check the adapter thread for comments about different adapters and how they measure up.

p.s. chizzeck the stepfiles
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CStarFlare wrote:

I approve of the direction this thread is going

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch?e=20090310025322668

[grgisme]

Hey gentlemen (and madmoizelles)! Last time I posted it was in feirce frustration as we had managed to blow a fuse inside my Playstation 2 that regulated the 8v, and I thought I was toast. Well it was fixed in less than a week for free, (though I will now say to EVERYONE: buy an xbox, screw the PS2, xbox's are easier to build, fix, and understand. PS2's are built to be cryptic and impossible to open... screw sony, lol). My pad is FINISHED! I will put up pictures and such when I have time, but seeing as how this is a school project as well (called Senior Projects... had to do a massive project and wanted to do this anyways), I'm currently running around like a chicken w/ no head in order to meet the deadline for that. Hence why I'm just now posting again.

Good news and bad news! Good news: My LED circuit worked, and I was able to power 4 LEDS per arrow, (and would have been enough power in the ps2 for all four arrows to be on in 2 pads simultaneously... that's 32 LEDs total). Bad news is that I learned something no one knew because no one had done this :-). Some sort of logic or controlling of that 8v goes in inside the Playstation 2. This checks against the fact that when you play any game that supports vibration, the software itself is what activates the hardware to make the controller vibrate. The problem being that when I used the current to light the LEDs, all the buttons on my pad (the arrow buttons and the pushbuttons) stopped responding on the Playstation. In other words, all the buttons worked great and all the LEDs worked great, but they wouldn't work at the same time. I researched for a while, couldn't find any information on why this is, and I caved. I stuck 1 9v battery inside my control box with the controller (with a holder and all that, the proper way), attached the negative battery contact to the ground on the controller, and attached the positive battery contact to previous 8v line on the 25-pin "D" connector that led to the cable that leads to my pad. So I just replaced the power source, and now the pad and the LEDs work great. Perhaps someone else can use my LED design nad figure out what the sticky point was. I'll get all that info up as soon as I have time. Thanks for all the help! I'll be dissapearing for a little while again, as I've got a lot of work to do over the next week or two, but expect to see me back after that to contribute all I've learned.

[latindude88wpg]

hi grgisme,

good to see you again! i just have a question for you: what kind of leds did you use and how bright are they?
i thought of using leds, but they don't seem to be bright enough to light up a pad.

[peepsluvr]

I finally started making my pad. Today I got the up arrow done. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v334/noodleboy35/DDR_Objects/Up_Arrow.jpg

My dad and I have been having trouble cutting the metal. Does anyone have suggestions?

[mtwieg]

[james9631]

Yes, a utility knife would be best. Using tin snips is OK but it's kinda hard to cut because the metal on both sides of the snips starts to bend up along them. If you use a knife with a scoring blade (something I used), just use a straight edge to cut along. Score it a few times and then it will just snap right off after bending it along the scored line little bit.

[Hentaro]

does anyone know where I can buy lucite? 3/32 " thick and all... home depot, lowe's, maybe?'

thanks

[mtwieg]

[peepsluvr]

The metal I got is around 31 gauge. My dad got it for free from where he works. We used tin snips but the metal curled up and a jigsaw didn't help either. Would scoring it really work?

[peepsluvr]

[grgisme]

Hey guys,

First about the LEDs, keep in mind I was trying to get something that would run on 8v, and minimal amount of current. Yes they light up the pad well, and once I get my arrow graphics printed, I'll put up pictures of how it looks. If you're playing in a brightly lit room, you probably won't notice unless you're staring at my feet. But if its dark in the room, it lights up pretty good, looks cool too. Here's a link with a link to the spec sheet somewhere on the page. They were about $8.00 with shipping, and I got 50 (used 32), so it was a good deal in my mind. I had to by resistors later, and it's about 20 cents a resistor, and you need 32, so that adds on about $7.00, but its not that bad.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=3867656339&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT

As far as cutting the metal, their are metal cutting blades for table saws and saws of the like. We cut all of the sheet metal on the table saw, and it worked really well (not to mention looking really cool with flying sparks!). Makes the job go quick: you can set a rip fence and just cut all your metal squares in 5 minutes or so. I used tinsnips to cut the corners off once I had the metal glued to the wood. Note to anyone about to build one of these pads: if you have an air compressor and a air nailer, buy the size brads you need, it will make the job much quicker!

Alright, I've got some Calculus II to work on, but I'll be finished with my second pad sometime this week. Funny how my first pad took me around 3 weeks to build (It was a modified design and I was changing things as I went... and lots of mistakes you can be sure -- my pads ended up 32 by 32 because I didn't make sure the sides I was cutting off of on my base were square, and I had to square it off later). Anyhow, first pad took 3 weeks, and I got 1/3rd done with my second pad last night alone. Still have a little bit of contstruction and TONS of wiring to go though. Get back to you guys soon, good luck with your pads.

[james9631]

Calc II eh? Gosh that class blew. Our's was integrals and series gallore. The next two calc classes were easier.

Anyhow, can't wait to see your pad.

[ch]

i think im failing that right now.

and lowes wouldnt cut the lucite for me, they said it was too thin. so i ran through it really fast with a metal fast cut jigsaw.
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CStarFlare wrote:

I approve of the direction this thread is going

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch?e=20090310025322668

[SunnyDdr]

I just finished my first pad, and thought I’d share some of the things that I wish I’d known or didn’t fully appreciated before I got started. My pad is basically like Chris’ – http://2legacy.com/ddrpad/. Thanks to him and everyone on DDR Freak who made these great FAQs and answered so many questions. I’ll post again after I’ve had some more time to evaluate the pad.

1. Do not let the people at Lowe’s cut anything for you if you want it cut right. Only let them cut it enough to fit in your car.
2. Lowe’s will not cut your wood the dimensions you tell them. I’m serious about this. It sucks to get home and realize you have a 33X32 rectangle, five 10 13/16 X 10 15/16 rectangles, and four rectangles of varying, arbitrary sizes.
3. A table saw is highly recommended, not just a little recommended, particularly in light of (1) and (2) above. Jig saws and circular saws, even in skilled hands, cannot replicate the precision of a table saw, and this project depends on precise cuts.
4. Be very, very careful when cutting the Plexiglas. I had some breaks go badly. I’d recommend scoring both sides well and clamping straight edges on both sides of the Plexi to make sure you get a clean, straight break.
5. If you’re going to buy a controller for the pc board, I recommend a Mad Catz Beat Pad ($20 at EBGames), which has big, clearly labeled solder points and is tougher and simpler than most game pads. I didn’t plan on buying one, but after frying two controllers that I had lying around, I had to.
6. An external control box is the way to go, at least on the first try. A project box, standoffs, and a barrier strip will run you $10 at Radio Shack, and I recommend it. An external box facilitates construction and helps when you have to diagnose a problem; it’s also a good place to mount switches.
7. Cat5 cable works great, is really small, and one 15 foot cable will give you all the wire you need, as well as having a plug on the end that makes connecting and disconnecting a control box really easy.
8. A Dremel may come in handy.
9. Maybe it’s obvious, but consider your tools when you’re budgeting for this project. It’s easy to say “around $120” when someone asks how much it costs to build these things, but don’t forget a soldering iron, utility knife, clamps, and all the other tools you might not have. I ended up spending closer to $180 because I lacked some of these things. BTW, a wire stripper (mine, anyway) doesn’t do too well on cat5 (it’s too small). Don’t buy one, just use a utility knife.
10. I had never danced on a hard pad. It’s loud.
11. A countersink is necessary IMO for a finished look.
12. Kinko’s sucks. At lest the one on Rose Ave. in Lexington, Kentucky does. I think (might be wrong) that what you want is an enlargement on a color copier, rather than a print from one of their computers. I got no help while trying to do this, and those per minute Macs start getting expensive.
13. I used Gorilla Glue, and I’m not entirely satisfied. I’d go with the spray adhesives others have recommended if I had it to do over again.
14. I’m going to put two kitchen drawer handles on the side of mine so that it can slide out from under the couch a little easier.

All in all, the project went well. The pad works fine, and if I had to guess, I’d say it took around 10-12 hours all together. Working straight through in a well equipped shop I could have done it in 8, and an experienced person could get that down much lower (I’m not counting glue drying time).

My last thought is that CF really has a racket going. There are very few parts on these things, and I think that in an industrial setting you could crank them out pretty cheaply.

[ch]

put some of that in the FAQ
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CStarFlare wrote:

I approve of the direction this thread is going

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch?e=20090310025322668

[TheMonster]

I think this was answered already, but I read this thread over the course of many months and I don't want to go searching again:

Anyhow, what type(s) of sheet metal will not corrode/rust(or is much more resistant to it)? Lowe's had only a few different types, and it looked like most of them already had crap all over them.

I guess other than that...are there any recommended USB game pads I should get or should I look for an actual PC dance pad, if such a thing exists? I am only worried about frying the game pad. If it matters much, there will be one layer of acrylic/polycarbonate and then plywood.

Thanks for all of the info and help all! I think I finally have the courage and knowledge to pump out one of these buggers.

[slvrshdw]

its been a while since ive worked on my pad..

i have a question about the contacts..

i started out just using aluminum foil on it, but it was bad...just buy the sheet metal or whatever u plan on using..

i got some sheet metal and i replace the bottoms of all the arrows, but i kept the aluminum foil on top cuz i ran out...

what i was wondering is, is it better to use the screws/mesh like chris or sheet metal/sheet metal, or the screws with alternating wires?

i told a friend and he used the alternating wires and he says it works great..im thinking im going to do that, but i wanted your opinions..

and wouldnt it be ok if i just put the sheet metal piece on the top arrow and make the screws/wires for the bottom?

i hope you get this...this weekend i should be able to fix it; hopefully sooner though..:-)

[ch]

monster: rolls of flashing are rust resistant, but are difficult to keep bent and crease crazily. regular sheets of zinc/aluminum sheet metal is most commonly used, resists rust well, but they have the flecks on 'em. regular aluminum sheet metal is expensive, but looks the best.

usb dance pads would be the best to mod, but you can use and usb gamepad you want.


slvrshdw: aluminum FOIL = bad. aluminum SHEET METAL = good. sheet metal rips and stuff easily. i used screws/shet metal and its good. one wire to the sheet, one wire to all the screws. i recommend it.




also a general question, are your guys' pads creaking a lot with each step? cause its wood? i think its annoying.
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CStarFlare wrote:

I approve of the direction this thread is going

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch?e=20090310025322668

[slvrshdw]

thanks cartoon hero..
BUT i had the aluminum flashing i think..and it DOES NOT conduct electricity..so ya

i will probably get the screws in this weeked or next week..its SPRING BREAK NEXT WEEK!!..plenty of time to work then..yay

[geckoinc99]

For the contacts, you need to be using zinc plated sheet steel (galvanized sheet metal). This is because it conducts electricity. Aluminum will not. It will resist rust because it is galvanized.

For covering the outside of the pad (the non arrow squares) aluminum flashing is great. It comes in a long roll, is easy to cut and work with. Get a good adhesive, oversize some squares of aluminum flashing, glue to the square, then score once along the corners where you need to bend the flashing around the sides, then score several times on the excess so that it snaps off cleanly when you bend it. This will give a very clean cut and clean lines. Aluminum won't corrode, it doesn't conduct electricity so it won't accidently interfere with the system of wires, and can be easily cleaned.

On cutting the acrylic (Lucite, plexiglass, etc...), one method that will cut it very well is to use a table saw with a saw blade that has a high tooth count. Gives a clean straight cut and you don't have to worry about stray breaks (which I had). Table saw took care of this. Just have ventalation as it will smell when you cut it.

As far as the contacts go, I don't think either setup is bad. I personally am going with the mending strip method that Riptide, but this is because I have lights on mine. Good luck with your building.

-David
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