Tempest Nut Posted November 25, 2018 Share Posted November 25, 2018 (edited) I'll start it off with my PC Spinner box, At its heart is a I-PAC 2 USB interface that can have 32-Input buttons and you can directly connect a joystick/trackball/spinner so I opted for a Ultimarc Spintrack USB Spinner with the "heavy flywheel" and I added an I-PAC Xbox 360-PS3-Xinput Adaptor which will make it automatically be seen as an Xbox 360 controller by any PC game that uses Microsoft Xinput and for good measure I gave it a "point of view hat" that I use as a joystick for any games that need you to control up/down/left/right like the bonus rounds in all the modern Tempest games !... Edited November 25, 2018 by Tempest Nut 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Nut Posted November 26, 2018 Author Share Posted November 26, 2018 Here's the inside, I wanted only one USB cable coming out of the box and to the computer so I had to make some custom stuff like 2 stubby USB cables... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Nut Posted November 26, 2018 Author Share Posted November 26, 2018 Hello, Is this mic on ? Is anyone seeing this ?? No one ??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMR Posted November 28, 2018 Share Posted November 28, 2018 Neat, what did you use for the case, a cigar box? The only homebrew controller I have (currently) is a set of arcade controls mounted into a radio shack project box for my Atari 7800. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Nut Posted November 28, 2018 Author Share Posted November 28, 2018 (edited) It might be a cigar box, I found it in the garage recently and it was the perfect size for what I needed for fitting everything in it I wanted it to have and have a layout I wanted and the same time be able to have it sit comfortably on my lap, It's a complete plug & play set up... Now that I think about it it can't be a cigar box because on the underside of the lid it says "Furniture Co, Portland Oregon" so I think it was just a decorative box of some sort? But I have to say I like the feel of the wood a lot better than plastic or the like! Edited November 28, 2018 by Tempest Nut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Nut Posted December 3, 2018 Author Share Posted December 3, 2018 So no one has made a game controller of their own? How about modded controllers? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess Ragan Posted December 4, 2018 Share Posted December 4, 2018 I have, personally, but it wasn't anything to crow about. It didn't work well for fighting games, until I realized the joystick had two modes. Unscrewing and turning the gate underneath made it much more fighting game friendly. We had a discussion about this elsewhere on the site... I'm just not sure where. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Bildo Posted December 4, 2018 Share Posted December 4, 2018 I kind of hesitated responding to this, because there is a background story that's a bit rough, but I'm proud of it so here goes. Last year my cousin was diagnosed with terminal colon cancer. He was under all kinds of debilitating treatments to prolong his life and some experimental stuff to perhaps save it. He was bedridden the entire time. He was a huge arcade fan back in the 80's. My dad, knowing I work in electronics and software, had the great idea to ask if I could hook him up with an arcade stick and maybe some emulation and games that he could play from his bed. This was the genesis of the arcade stick. Not being much of an adept at wood working my dad and I tackled the project together. It was really fun and rewarding. My cousin played it with his kids and they got to see all the old arcade games their dad played back in the day. We delivered the arcade stick to him in February. Unfortunately this was the last project I got to do with my dad. The day before Father's Day my dad found out he had pancreatic cancer that had already spread to his liver. My cousin passed shortly after in June and dad passed in late July. All I have are the pictures and memories, but I think we did a decent job on it. It played well when I tested it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Nut Posted December 4, 2018 Author Share Posted December 4, 2018 (edited) It looks great ! Much more professional looking than mine ! I'm sorry for your loss, I few years ago my only sister was diagnosed with terminal colon cancer and 6 months later she was gone, and before she pasted my dad had just beat lung cancer but being that that type of cancer is what is known as "small cell" it had migrated to his brain so I moved back home and took care of him for the year and a half that he had before it took him, My dad and I were very close and worked together for a long time, Now I just take care of my mother BUT since my sister and father are gone it's been a struggle to get my mother to care about taking care of herself and she fights me on everything... Edited December 4, 2018 by Tempest Nut 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMR Posted December 5, 2018 Share Posted December 5, 2018 That's a beautiful looking stick you and your dad made. I'm not just saying that to be all heart warmy and stuff either. It looks really cool. I'm sorry about your dad, though. I lost my own dad to brain cancer, and sadly wasn't able to make any more good memories with him before he passed. I remember when he surprised me by buying me a Super Nintendo for Christmas, best Christmas ever. On another note, I've got a couple of controller projects I've been meaning to do if I can just find the time for them. Hopefully I can get them posted in here before this thread vanishes into the ether. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Nut Posted December 6, 2018 Author Share Posted December 6, 2018 I added two more buttons today... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Nut Posted December 7, 2018 Author Share Posted December 7, 2018 To connect the box to my computer I'm using a 25FT High Speed 480Mbps USB 2.0 Active Repeater M/F Extension Cable Adapter Cord... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zylon Posted December 7, 2018 Share Posted December 7, 2018 My custom 5200 "paddle", made with stock CX52 and pot assembly from SVAII controller. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Nut Posted December 9, 2018 Author Share Posted December 9, 2018 My custom 5200 "paddle", made with stock CX52 and pot assembly from SVAII controller. Great minds think alike only mine works with my Atari Jaguar... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zylon Posted December 11, 2018 Share Posted December 11, 2018 ^^ cool beans Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigO Posted December 29, 2018 Share Posted December 29, 2018 (edited) Hacks and homebrews of mine: Vectrex 5200 5200 5200 -> 2600 (More "mod" than "homebrew", but was fun to build) Edited December 29, 2018 by BigO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMR Posted December 30, 2018 Share Posted December 30, 2018 ^^^Those are awesome. How did you do the pcb for the Vectrex controller? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigO Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 (edited) No PCB. Just glued some switches to some plastic. I can't find the other pictures at the moment,but it was definitely built as a one-off. I had a stash of surplus carbon dot switches with almost the same throw as the original NES buttons. If you have an inclination to build something similar, I recommend doing it. I use that controller almost exclusively when I play Vectrex. Edit - Here's the picture I was thinking of. It's buried in an old thread about my controllers. http://atariage.com/forums/topic/117809-homebrew-controllers-modernish-5200-and-vectrex-digital/?p=1432642 Edited December 31, 2018 by BigO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMR Posted December 31, 2018 Share Posted December 31, 2018 That's a really cool method you discovered. I was trying to mount switches to the PCB, but it isn't working out. I can't get some that are short enough for the d-pad. I've been looking into alternatives, but I hadn't thought of dumping the PCB yet. I may still keep it and drill holes to mount them through the PCB instead. Some of the controllers I'm thinking of using aren't flat like the NES pads are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Nut Posted January 9, 2019 Author Share Posted January 9, 2019 Hacks and homebrews of mine: Vectrex 5200 5200 5200 -> 2600 (More "mod" than "homebrew", but was fun to build) Wow, Those are really nice! They all look very factory... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Osgeld Posted January 10, 2019 Share Posted January 10, 2019 (edited) To connect the box to my computer I'm using a 25FT High Speed 480Mbps USB 2.0 Active Repeater M/F Extension Cable Adapter Cord... you have any problems with that? USB 2.0 spec is 15 foot for high speed devices course a controller isn't exactly high speed, but I have ran into connectivity issues with nice quality 25 foot cables trying to run data loggers at work (like it will run fine for days but a bird farts while flying overhead … usually on the weekend when no one is looking at the machines and it will just drop) Edited January 10, 2019 by Osgeld Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Nut Posted January 10, 2019 Author Share Posted January 10, 2019 (edited) you have any problems with that? USB 2.0 spec is 15 foot for high speed devices course a controller isn't exactly high speed, but I have ran into connectivity issues with nice quality 25 foot cables trying to run data loggers at work (like it will run fine for days but a bird farts while flying overhead … usually on the weekend when no one is looking at the machines and it will just drop) No prob because it boosts the signal with the built-in Active Repeater... That is why the end is so big, that's where the Active Repeater is... Edited January 10, 2019 by Tempest Nut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
AtariAge on Instagram
Watch us on YouTube
Chat on Discord
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.