My home built metal DDR pad (Part IV)

Ulala321 · Trick Member Joined: 28 Sep 2004

With my X-Box pads, I use B, Select, A, and Start.

marcan · Trick Member Joined: 28 Jul 2005

OK, I'm going to add 5 or 6 control buttons, and have their mappings configurable.

HitokiriX · Trick Member Joined: 27 Mar 2004 Location: Berwyn, PA

marcan · Trick Member Joined: 28 Jul 2005

Zeeky · Basic Member Joined: 26 Dec 2005

For EX2 I'd just need arrows, x, start, select, and ground to be fully functional, right?

Aflac · Trick Member Joined: 28 Mar 2005

Kalek · Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2006 6:23 pm Post subject:

Or, you could make an O button instead of X so that you could play Japanese versions too. But that would screw up ITG.

Eradicator · Basic Member Joined: 09 Dec 2005

I'm starting to piece together my plan for a metal platform based on RipTide's design, and have a couple of questions on materials selection and construction.

The materials list calls for 0.22" thickness plex, two panels per arrow. This is almost half an inch per arrow when assembled, which seems pretty thick compared to the 3/4" ply used for the stationary panels. My guess is that this value was from the older design that used a single layer of plex per arrow - now that the arrow graphic is sandwiched between two layers, the thickness should be cut down, right? Is 1/8" per layer appropriate, for a total of 1/4" thickness when assembled?

Does the 2x4-based frame add much strength, or is this largely to create a well below each panel for wiring/lighting/etc? It appears that for a minimal thickness pad, you could get away with the 33" square base of 3/4" ply, and attach the stationary panels and corner brackets directly to it. I'm not sure how sturdy this would be - how much does 3/4" ply flex on it's own? You'd also be forced to use shorter screws, which could weaken the pad somewhat.

HitokiriX · Trick Member Joined: 27 Mar 2004 Location: Berwyn, PA

Punkly Daft · Trick Member Joined: 16 May 2005 Location: On a DDR Pad

YES!!! I finished my pad! Works perfectly! Go DDRHomepad!

I'll post some pictures soon - once I capture myself testing it out!\

EDIT: When testing, I found that a Start button is required during a name entry. If you used only X and triangle like i did, then just make sure your system is set to have a time limit on the game screens.
_________________

"One more time we're gonna celebrate
Oh yeah, alright, don't stop the dancing"

-Daft Punk "One More Time"

jtkauff · Basic Member Joined: 08 Jan 2006

I've been looking through the various web pages and through this thread, and have a few questions that don't seem to have come up:

I'm in the planning stages for a set of doubles pads - I'll likely be basing them off Riptide's design, but will be doing my own modifications.

For my standing metal plates, I am planning on using 12 gauge stainless steel (11 gauge if possible). This is quite a bit thicker than what other people are using, mainly because it needs to be bent by machine (my father-in-law owns a metal fabricating company, and can do these no problem). From what I'm understanding, this shouldn't need any reinforcement wood beneath it - correct?

Also, most people seem to be using 2 sheets of 1/4" Plexiglas for their panels. Would a single piece of 1/4" Lexan suffice, or is there danger of cracking? Given the incredible strength of Lexan (I've read that Plexiglas is 20x stronger than glass, and Lexan is about 250x) I would think that it should be fine, but I'd rather be safe than sorry. Will a single sheet of 1/4" Lexan suffice (perhaps with a very thin, cheep sheet of normal Plexiglas under it to hold the artwork in place), keeping in mind that it will not be supported in the middle?

Are the prices on the brackets still about what is listed on Riptide's page (eight 2-packs for $22.08, so about $2.75 per 2-pack)?

Thanks in advance.

HitokiriX · Trick Member Joined: 27 Mar 2004 Location: Berwyn, PA

VoijaRisa · Trick Member Joined: 10 Dec 2005 Location: Lawrence KS

I'll second the comment on needing to reenforce the 12 gauge. No way it'll stand up to repeated beating.

jtkauff · Basic Member Joined: 08 Jan 2006

t-mac · Basic Member Joined: 29 Dec 2005

Hello everyone!

I've started to build my own Stoli-style dance pad.
One little difference â I'm going the nine-button way to make it truly universal, like the CobaltFlux.

While temporariry short of cash for materials, I've built a nice control box with a 9-pin serial port and printed all the panel decals.

Check out my ITG-inspired design:

FoxFireX · Trick Member Joined: 07 Dec 2003

t-mac · Basic Member Joined: 29 Dec 2005

Klaiviel · Basic Member Joined: 18 Jan 2006

I have a question for someone with an electronics backround. I am making a riptide style pad with one exception I am modifying it so that the screws (or whatever I use for contacts) are all grounds, and the 4 sheet metal pieces under the plexiglas will be connected and carrying the positive charge. What I want to do is add lighting using LEDs without and external power source. I understand that a generic PS2 controller supplies 5 volts. If the LEDs all have 3.6V forward voltage and 20 mA forward current, how many would I be able to add under each plexiglas piece before having to worry about damaging the PS2 controller? This is keeping in mind that it is possible for someone to hold down all 4 buttons at one time and that the resistance of 10' of cat5 cable (the ammount used per plexiglas step) is about .3 ohms. Also which would allow more LEDs, wiring them under the step in series or in parallel? Thanks!