Arcade stick/panel check list?

[CrispyXUK]

Hi all,

What are the recommended parts for building an Arcade Panel? It will be mainly used for fighting game so what are the most authentic / best sticks and buttons to use? Sanwa? Happs?

I'll probably be getting the parts from gremlinsolutions BTW as they accept Paypal and are UK based.

Cheers all.

[babs]

I ordered my parts (sanwa) from ultimarc and have been more than happy with them.

The hardest part is choosing a button layout you're happy with. I went with 7 main buttons - 4 on the bottom and 3 on top - curved. This gives you a natural position for both Neo Geo and Capcom fighters.

Other tips:
Draw it out on card first, make sure it's big enough.
Allow plenty or room between the buttons. You don't want thin strips of wood cracking and you need to allow room for the button surrounds, and the large plastic nuts that hold them tight under.
Make the housing deep enough to comfortably house the lower half of the joystick.
Remember when wiring joystick contacts that you wire opposites. e.g. the upper contact registers as down when using the joystick.

Other than that it's really just a case of choosing what you're going to use to wire to. I bought a cheap old psx pad because a) cheap pads have huge PCB traces to solder to and b) psx non-analog pads avoid hassle with the analog sticks not being present. Stick that setup through some good converters and you have a stick which plays anything on any system

[J0e Musashi]

The preffered layout is 4 across the top and 3 on the bottom as this is far more user friendly, but whatever suits. I find Seimitsu>Sanwa, but again you have to experiment.

[Siri]

You really can't go wrong with either Sanwa or Happ parts - both of the companies are the most popular of their respective specialities (Sanwa for Japanese-Style Arcade components, Happ for American-Styled parts).

The best advice that I can give is that to try and remember what you enjoyed playing on back in the arcades. If you remember playing on big wooden cabinets, then go for Happ (or maybe Suzo, if the handle was distinctly different to what you see on the Happ parts - They go with Happ buttons btw). Meanwhile, if you played on the Megalo cabinets and generally sega machines, opt for Sanwa.

Oh, and ta for reminding me about Gremlin - I didn't know they have started to kit themselves out properly for sanwa stuff too, and they're not that dear considering they ship within the UK so you can get it in a couple of days. I feel more inclined to pick up some stuff for the DC stick

[CrispyXUK]

Cheers guys, how about buttons? there are tons of different ones, I'm at a loss as which ones to have.

Oh, by the way, wooden cabs, so the Sanwa bats any good?

[Eps]

Bat tops on a Sanwa stick are NOT recommended -- the sticks aren't designed for the extra length/leverage, and end up feeling lightweight and mushy as a result. If you want a bat-top stick you're best off with a Happ / Mag-Stik.

[CrispyXUK]

Bat tops on a Sanwa stick are NOT recommended -- the sticks aren't designed for the extra length/leverage, and end up feeling lightweight and mushy as a result. If you want a bat-top stick you're best off with a Happ / Mag-Stik.

Cheers Psi, how about the Sanwa Ball tops? there are a few different ones, which ones are best?

I'm still lost on the large amount of buttons too

[Eps]

To be honest I can't give you much more info on Sanwa sticks; being a shooting game fan, I tend to prefer Seimitsu sticks (which are equally high quality but have a 'tighter' feel and shorter throw that many people find better for shooting games but not as good for fighting games). As regards the buttons, you'll probably want standard Sanwa or Seimitsu buttons for fighting games, as they seem to be standard in that field.

Be aware though that due to the design used and the preferences of many gamers, Japanese buttons (and many American buttons) generally do not have audible or detectable-to-touch microswitch 'click' even if they do contain microswitches. This can be an issue to anyone brought up in the 80s for whom 'clicky' microswitch buttons are the most desirable. If this is the feel you want, you need to look for a button that has the microswitch horizontally mounted, like some of the Happ buttons (and maybe replace or remove the spring for a lighter feel, depending on how you like it).

[babs]

I have sanwa buttons and a sanwa bat-top for mine and love them. Mine was made almost exclusively for fighters and I'm a sucker for bat-tops on fighting games

[CrispyXUK]

I have sanwa buttons and a sanwa bat-top for mine and love them. Mine was made almost exclusively for fighters and I'm a sucker for bat-tops on fighting games

So the J-Sticks from Ultimarc are Sanwa I hear, how about the buttons? they only have one kind and I assume they are good, or is there a more recommended place to get parts from?

[babs]

They've done me proud. It depends if you want concave or the currently trendier convex tops on the buttons.

[CrispyXUK]

Cheers, so buttons and stick from Ultimarc should do the trick, got any experience of there bat sticks? I think I'd prefer these as thats what I'm used too, unless of course the Ball tops are much better to use.

[babs]

As I say, I have a bat-top from them.

Here's some pics from when I made mine.

----------------------------------------------

The buttons:


The housing (only needed half the height - I'll know for next time):


My first attempt at soldering:


Completed wiring (use 2 colours, one for the earth loop and one for everything else):


Finished (well, as finished as it ever got )

[CrispyXUK]

Thanks man, thats really helpful, where did you get the layout from or did make it up?

[babs]

I made it up with a cardboard box. Make card layouts first as you can half-mount the parts in it and see what feels comfortable. A big thing for me was making sure I had plenty of room between the buttons and the stick.