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stoli
Trick Member
Joined: 27 Mar 2005
Location: Southern NH |
4100.  Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2005 4:12 pm Post subject: |
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| steve771 wrote: | | In looking at pics of the upcoming Red Octane Afterburner pad, the most distinctive feature is that the switch pads are slightly below the stationary pads. Stoli, would you see a problem with doing that with your design? I mean, just not building up the bottom of the switch pad so much? And hey, if I haven't said thanks lately for all your help... THANKS! |
You're Welcome! I got so much good info off of this site and others that I thought I'd try to give something back.
I see no problem with taking out the 1/8" hardboard. If you followed my construction exactly, then it would be extremely easy to do since it is just screwed on to the base. The 1/4" panel would be a pain to remove since I have glued the sheet metal switch to it, but you could build a pad without it. The only issue with decreasing the height is the screw length. The tips of the 1 1/4" screws that hold the "sandwich" together will start to protrude out of the bottom of the base if you decrease the height more than 1/4". You could always grind them off with a dremel I suppose.
I guess my question would be, why would you want to do this? I guess if you wanted to emulate the new Afterburner. Is there a height difference in the arcade pads?
-Stoli
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Last edited by stoli on Wed Apr 27, 2005 5:33 pm, edited 1 time in total |
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steve771
Trick Member
Joined: 03 Mar 2005
Location: Nevada |
| 4101. Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2005 4:47 pm Post subject: |
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Stoli, you have really given back with your postings and setting up your website with detailed instructions and pics. It has helped a lot, as have the other pad makers postings (thanks to them as well!). It is really great to see this helpful attitude on the forums. When my pad is done, I hope I can give some insights as well. Anyway, I'm sure that most people changed a thing or two here or there, but from my standpoint, you made a great starting point. (plus you give all this free technical support!)
Ok, ref. lowering the switches... I understand the arcade pad switches are slightly lower than the stationary pads. It made sense to me that you would be able to better feel where you are on the pad by having a slight depression, so that was my thinking. I was only thinking of dropping the 1/8" pad from the mix, so the screws should still work fine. Thanks again. |
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daitenshi
Trick Member
Joined: 11 May 2004
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| 4102. Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2005 8:23 pm Post subject: |
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gah crap. My controllers keep dying on me and it's really starting to frustrate me! On my Riptide pad, a button will appear to stick, so I take it apart, check all the connections, and it all seems fine. I UNSOLDER the wires and remove all solder on the contacts and when I plug it back in it's still contacting! It doesn't stop contacting ever either... This has happened on 3 controllers, and on my latest one, it was working fine, and now all of a sudden it hits randomly and sometimes select, start, or x are hit randomly when I touch an arrow! Is this like a static electricity problem or something??
Has this happened to anyone before, and is there a solution?
(This never happened to my DDRHomepad, but it may just be that the controller I used in it doesn't suck... or something... )  |
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mikieson
Trick Member
Joined: 14 Nov 2003
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| 4103. Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2005 10:39 am Post subject: How can I make my pad work???? |
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| I have built 4 pads. My first 2 I thought were able to be improved on. I did improve on some aspects. But I didnt on the sensitivity. My new pads act like they are pressure sensitive instead of push and react. Seems like the harder you press the pad the easier it is to get a good grade. I used flashing on the bottom and on the top contacts. Each is aabout 10"x10" and have one wire going to each contact. They are contact cemented in place. What can the problem be? Are they pressure sensitive for some reason? Should I have used small contacts like on my first pads I built?...God I love building but I wish I would have bought some CF pads in the first place. |
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stoli
Trick Member
Joined: 27 Mar 2005
Location: Southern NH |
| 4104. Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2005 11:22 am Post subject: |
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What kind of metal is the "flashing"? If it is aluminum, how did you connect the wires?
-Stoli
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Heffenfeffer
Trick Member
Joined: 22 Apr 2002
Location: Las Cruces, NM |
| 4105. Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2005 12:56 pm Post subject: History: re: Repeating |
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| daitenshi wrote: | gah crap. My controllers keep dying on me and it's really starting to frustrate me! On my Riptide pad, a button will appear to stick, so I take it apart, check all the connections, and it all seems fine. I UNSOLDER the wires and remove all solder on the contacts and when I plug it back in it's still contacting! It doesn't stop contacting ever either... This has happened on 3 controllers, and on my latest one, it was working fine, and now all of a sudden it hits randomly and sometimes select, start, or x are hit randomly when I touch an arrow! Is this like a static electricity problem or something??
Has this happened to anyone before, and is there a solution?
(This never happened to my DDRHomepad, but it may just be that the controller I used in it doesn't suck... or something... ) |
Sadly, that's exactly what happened to me no less than five times while building my pad. If you've got a multimeter on hand, you can confirm it by testing resistance between the button and ground on each button (and arrow) that you soldered to. I'd bet 150 cents and a cake donut with strawberry frosting and sprinkles that the resistance between the buttons that were connected to the pad have an incredibly small resistance (say between 100 and 500 ohms - small enough to be a de facto short) and the buttons you didn't mess with have a resistance of 10-odd MegaOhms (large enough to be de facto infinity.)
If I can venture another guess, I'd say this happened gradually, say over about five minutes or so? If so, that's exactly what happened to me - five times! The way I solved it was to bite the bullet and buy/bum a softpad off someone, rip off the pad part, and solder to the control box. If you're EE inclined (or cheap), I'm sure there's another way - perhaps by jerry-rigging a relay to the circuit. (I forget the technical terms - essentally something that ensures that only a small amount of current goes to the controller, preventing the frying.) Realistically, though, unless you know what I'm talking about already, just save yourself a lot of unnecessary strife and buy/bum a softpad. Should be no more than 20 scripts from Gamestop.
Believe me, I feel your pain. I've no idea why some controllers work for pads and some don't. My guess is that controllers pass their QA test if they can safely conduct x mA of current and dance pad controllers pass their QA if they can safely conduct y mA - some larger number. And some regular controllers can safely conduct y mA due to a random assortment of good parts - but not all of them can. Since the dance pad controller I used has "dance pad controller" specifically written on it, I'm guessing it was specifically designed to absorb static from sliding around on the ground.
Oh yeah, and my pad is finally working properly, even if I myself am not! Though I did pass So Deep on it (compared from being able to AA it in the arcade a year or so ago - of course, I kinda fell out of shape.) Those little adjustments finally paid off!
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"If something should happen to me, all the world's women will grieve!" - Edgar Rene Figaro
"Your charisma exceeds that of mortal men. Many would lay down their lives for you." - Fall-From-Grace |
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mikieson
Trick Member
Joined: 14 Nov 2003
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| 4106. Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2005 5:30 pm Post subject: Heffen..... |
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| I have used soft pad circuit boards. So that cant be it for mine. Im thinking im gonna use a different type of contacts. Not right now though. I dont feel like messing with them...LOL....I would rather burn them!.. I will try a couple different things and let you know |
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daitenshi
Trick Member
Joined: 11 May 2004
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| 4107. Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2005 11:04 pm Post subject: |
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yeah heff, took about 5 or so minutes for the 3 controllers, and I ripped apart a two year old dance pad I had and it worked for a few hours before dying, but I think it was just old and crappy. On my old pad I used a new mad catz beat pad and that worked fine.... They are so expensive here though...  |
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Klott
Trick Member
Joined: 15 Apr 2005
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| 4108. Posted: Sat Apr 30, 2005 3:22 pm Post subject: |
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entering my third week of working on the pad... I have one question. Is grounding really all that necessary? How (and where) will static build up? Im jus stumped here and dont know if I should do anything or not..
Any advice greatly appreciated
klott |
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steve771
Trick Member
Joined: 03 Mar 2005
Location: Nevada |
| 4109. Posted: Sat Apr 30, 2005 4:14 pm Post subject: |
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| I grounded mine, or should I say, grounded the center stationary pad (pad's still in process) because it was easy and recommended. If you have all the metal connected somehow, and it touches the ground, I think you are good to go. |
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daitenshi
Trick Member
Joined: 11 May 2004
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| 4110. Posted: Sat Apr 30, 2005 6:28 pm Post subject: |
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| anyone know how many amps an average 7 dollar controller can handle? |
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stoli
Trick Member
Joined: 27 Mar 2005
Location: Southern NH |
| 4111. Posted: Sun May 01, 2005 7:57 am Post subject: |
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| Klott wrote: | | entering my third week of working on the pad... I have one question. Is grounding really all that necessary? How (and where) will static build up? Im jus stumped here and dont know if I should do anything or not.. |
My observations on static buildup:
Symptoms: My buttons were acting very random. For instance, the right arrow would stop working for a bit and then magically start again. Unplugging the controller, or waiting a minute, would always fix the problem temporarily.
Cause: The center stationary panel on my pad was isolated (electrically) from the rest of the metal on the pad. When the pad was being used, the movement/rubbing of the lucite was creating an apparent differential between the center panel and the rest of the metal on the pad. This differential was apparently causing the errant arrow functionality. It should also be noted that my controller is mounted to my pad - which may or may not have anything to do with it.
Solution: In my case, all I had to do was to make sure the center panel was tied to the rest of the metal on the pad and the problems went away. If you use the corner brackets in your design, this should not be a problem, assuming the brackets are screwed directly into the metal on the stationary panels. Note that I did not have to tie anything to ground, I just had to make sure all the metal on the pad was connected somehow. Tying the metal to ground may be necessary in certain environments but most of the info that I have gathered indicates that this should not be required.
Has anyone broken apart a manufactured metal pad to see if they do any grounding?
-Stoli
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Aflac
Trick Member
Joined: 28 Mar 2005
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| 4112. Posted: Sun May 01, 2005 12:21 pm Post subject: |
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| oof... does anyone know where to solder on a softpad circuit board? I took apart one of my gamestop pads (circuit board made by Topway) and i saw a bunch of stuff, but i really didn't know where to solder. |
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xoxoRenegadexoxo
Trick Member
Joined: 11 Apr 2005
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| 4113. Posted: Sun May 01, 2005 12:24 pm Post subject: |
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| alright, im not a genious or something, but how, after i solder the wires to the metal, will my footsteps set it off if it isnt pressure sensitive or touch sensitive? |
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dsl1
Basic Member
Joined: 24 Apr 2005
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| 4114. Posted: Sun May 01, 2005 5:41 pm Post subject: |
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| xoxoRenegadexoxo wrote: | | alright, im not a genious or something, but how, after i solder the wires to the metal, will my footsteps set it off if it isnt pressure sensitive or touch sensitive? |
When the two metal pieces make contact it registers as a step. You must put a bit of pressure on the pad to make them contact. I followed stoli's design and its pretty sensitive. My 9 year old sister has no problems playing and getting a good grade. |
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dsl1
Basic Member
Joined: 24 Apr 2005
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| 4115. Posted: Sun May 01, 2005 5:42 pm Post subject: |
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| Aflac wrote: | | oof... does anyone know where to solder on a softpad circuit board? I took apart one of my gamestop pads (circuit board made by Topway) and i saw a bunch of stuff, but i really didn't know where to solder. |
Have a picture? If you have a decent idea it doesnt hurt to use a wire and try some points. |
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mikieson
Trick Member
Joined: 14 Nov 2003
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| 4116. Posted: Sun May 01, 2005 6:13 pm Post subject: Pressure sensitive is different than touch sensitive...... |
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Touch sensitive is what you want on a pad. You touch the contacts together and they work. Pressure sensitivity you can touch soft for a small result or harder for a bigger result....You dont want this for a pad.
Now!!!!!!!!!.......Im wondering what can make my pad register better? What do Cobalt Flux and RedOctane use for contacts? What do arcade machines use for contacts?.....I dont know why mine are screwing with me. But it would be nice to know what the others use under the arrows....................Some pics would be great |
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xoxoRenegadexoxo
Trick Member
Joined: 11 Apr 2005
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| 4117. Posted: Sun May 01, 2005 6:33 pm Post subject: |
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| alright...ive got one thing done on my arcade pad.....buying the plywood. I was going to get the basic layout done today but my local Lowe's didnt have ANY stainless steel. It kind of sucked. Im going to special order some tomorrow so its going to take alot longer than i figured. Oh well. |
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slvrshdw
Trick Member
Joined: 05 Jan 2005
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| 4118. Posted: Sun May 01, 2005 6:59 pm Post subject: |
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aflac--doesnt it say what buttons are what on the circuit board?
if not, just test it out..if its anything like mine (prolly is), there is
a big center spot--thats the ground.
mikieson--i started using that dual sheet metal contact and i really didnt
have that much luck with it..now im almost COMPLETELY redoing my
pad using riptides videos i got from Ulala
renegade--poor you, haha...have fun waiting 
and now for my pad,
i completely redid my pad and now it has the 2 by 4 supports and i still have my original base plywood 
i have wired up all the arrows and still need the ground wire connected
i hope that this contact will register alot better. 
there is a BIG difference in the weight...  oh well 
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daitenshi
Trick Member
Joined: 11 May 2004
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