Building A Virtual Pinball Cabinet

[L33]

L33, I've been very interested in importing one, and always wondered how much to factor in for the shipping & tax costs. Was it a virtuapin you were looking at, and did they quote you for shipping or did you get a quote from a specialist shipping company/courier?

Yeah, VP. To be honest, the guy there was really helpful and I feel a little guilty not getting one after all the advice he gave. But ultimately, the shipping cost was massive for me. And a little confusing. And Im pretty sure there is a risk of getting additional charges when it reaches UK customs, but that's only a guess.

If you go to their site, add stuff to the basket and checkout, you can get a shipping estimate done. Their cabs do look good, and it would save me a whole lotta work, but Im enjoying the challenge so far.

 

[L33]

Mike R seems to be the guy to ask, so hopefully...Mike...if you read this, could I please ask...

Im obviously building my own cab (hence this thread) but as im about to design the backbox...should I be designing it with a second monitor in the back for using as the backglass and moveable dmd or would I be designing it with a second monitor with a real DMD...for playing TPA

Thought it worth the ask.

 

[mpad]

Hey I said earlier that everything is governed by the lockdown bar
At the moment FS is going to support real DMD, so if you can handle the extra expense go for it.
A movable DMD should be no problem either.

 

[L33]

Hey I said earlier that everything is governed by the lockdown bar
At the moment FS is going to support real DMD, so if you can handle the extra expense go for it.
A movable DMD should be no problem either.

It's all a big learning curve

If FS use the DMD that's obviously good...only problem is I also use PFX2 and they move the dmd to a second screen ( I think) so I may have to suss out some way of a dual setup...so much to think about

 

[L33]

Well...that's enough for tonight. Ive stared at it for long enough! Taken onboard everyones comments on here so most appreciated. Hopefully tomorrow will be more productive. Learnt so much today...and not just about VP but about pinball in general. Makes me wanna go out and buy a real on now.

 

[mpad]

A dual DMD would look strange I think. Unless you make it automatically flip inside the backbox from DMD to LCD and back
If you can live with it, the virtual DMD can always be displayed on the backglas screen, loosing some screen real estate or overlap part of the picture.

 

[L33]

Having re read this thread, it seems there is no set rule for the playfield position, only the preference of the user. Problem is...I have no idea myself. And the tv doesn't fit in the cab because the cab isn't wide enough. So, I have reached a point today where Im gonna have to take a gamble and route out a load of material from the inside, so that I have the option trying the tv in several different positions and then possibly adding a blank inside the cab to hide any routed out part. Im a little worried that this could go horribly wrong, and maybe even weaken the cab. But, as it stands, its the only option left. Here goes...

 

[mpad]

Ah OK, TV to wide even when decased?
So even more important to try a mockup on your kitchen table!!!

 

[L33]

There isn't any advantage gained when I stripped it to bare bones, so I left most of the trim on. But it was 17mm too big. I have,therefore, removed 18mm from the cab (9mm each side) and it doesn't look too bad if I say so myself. Just gotta build a frame for the TV to sit on tonight. It has a lip on 3 sides and nothing on the fourth, so a frame is my best option. May even make the frame adjustable so I can try different angles. So far so good today.

 

[DA5ID]

Ok, here's Part One. Hopefully the link should work.

Ive already realised a couple of issues I may run into regarding the cab...but I shall cross those bridges when i come to them.

https://youtu.be/HpAYBDp-TJ4

L33

Really enjoyed the video. Awesome techniques - and clearly well thought out. If I was to make one with my hand saw and Dremel - it's not me spoofing you - those are the tools I own!!!

 

[L33]

Getting slightly ahead of myself, but just thinking about the button layout etc...I've modelled my cab on the Funhouse table which has 2 plungers I think.

Does anyone know how the second plunger is operated on the Pc version?

And

I'm sure I recal a table having magna buttons or something like that. Does that make sense to anyone?

Thanks.

 

[EldarOfSuburbia]

Getting slightly ahead of myself, but just thinking about the button layout etc...I've modelled my cab on the Funhouse table which has 2 plungers I think.

Does anyone know how the second plunger is operated on the Pc version?

And

I'm sure I recal a table having magna buttons or something like that. Does that make sense to anyone?

Thanks.

The second plunger is controlled the same way as the main plunger. The game decides which plunger is in use. Red&Ted also has a second plunger on the left-hand side.

Black Knight and Black Knight 2000 both have secondary buttons to control their magna-save features. BK has them left and right, BK2K only has it on the right. These are controlled by whatever buttons you have configured for secondary flipper buttons.

Also if it ever comes to TPA, The Shadow has two sets of buttons on either side to control the ramp diverters.

AFAIK Haunted House should have extra flipper buttons for the top/bottom levels but they are not implemented in TPA.

Jack*Bot makes use of the EB buy-in button to "cheat", and whilst it's not a default setting on any table, you can set up extra-ball buy-ins via the Operator menu on other tables that support it (STTNG, TZ, others?)

Then there's the "Fire" button in the middle of the lockdown bar in Black Rose, mapped to the "Start" button in TPA (similar to the cannons in ST:TNG and T2).

Am I missing any other weirdness?!

Also, how do you plan on implementing nudging?

 

[mpad]

Starship troopers mini flipper can be controlled via extra button.
Definitely use two buttons on each side. If you ever decide to use a Frontend like pinballx it is great for navigating the tables.

 

[L33]

The second plunger is controlled the same way as the main plunger. The game decides which plunger is in use. Red&Ted also has a second plunger on the left-hand side.

Black Knight and Black Knight 2000 both have secondary buttons to control their magna-save features. BK has them left and right, BK2K only has it on the right. These are controlled by whatever buttons you have configured for secondary flipper buttons.

Also if it ever comes to TPA, The Shadow has two sets of buttons on either side to control the ramp diverters.

AFAIK Haunted House should have extra flipper buttons for the top/bottom levels but they are not implemented in TPA.

Jack*Bot makes use of the EB buy-in button to "cheat", and whilst it's not a default setting on any table, you can set up extra-ball buy-ins via the Operator menu on other tables that support it (STTNG, TZ, others?)

Then there's the "Fire" button in the middle of the lockdown bar in Black Rose, mapped to the "Start" button in TPA (similar to the cannons in ST:TNG and T2).

Am I missing any other weirdness?!

Also, how do you plan on implementing nudging?

Wow...that's potentially a lot of buttons. I'll probably have to reference this thread then before deciding on how many buttons to put in. Just hope there's room cause the TV seems like it takes a fair bit of room up.

Re the nudge, I'm thinking of adding a button on each side. That way it'll save my cab from a hammering if I later on used one of those plungers with the nudge, plus with the buttons I can still 'nudge the machine' by pressing the buttons and the machine...if that makes sense.

 

[L33]

Starship troopers mini flipper can be controlled via extra button.
Definitely use two buttons on each side. If you ever decide to use a Frontend like pinballx it is great for navigating the tables.

Probably just be using Pfx2 and TPA, but never say never...I'll definitely be putting 2 buttons a side now, possibly even 3. Just got the TV in the cab so I'll give it a try tonight...though I'm sure it won't be the same until I get the buttons.

 

[mpad]

cool, make sure to use LEAF SWITCHES for the flippers! otherwise it's not the real thing.
they are quite big on the inside, so putting three takes some planing !

 

[L33]

cool, make sure to use LEAF SWITCHES for the flippers! otherwise it's not the real thing.
they are quite big on the inside, so putting three takes some planing !

Good point...forgot about that. Glad I havent drilled any holes yet

 

[L33]

Well...done for the day. Think I let the stress of it all get the better of me today. Made good progress, although slow. Im concentrating too much on things that are never gonna be seen...trying to make things look good when they don't really need to be. Cab routed out and tv in...ish! Going to have to wait to receive a few parts before I can carry on with this bit. Will get Part 2 video up in a couple of days; meanwhile i'll try and suss out the backbox. Quite stressfull all this...the swear box certainly filled up quick today

 

[Jeff Strong]

It will all be worth it in the end.

 

[L33]

Had a few games with the tv in the cab last night...still cant decide on the angle and height of the tv, although any angle seems to give more realism to the ball when it rolls from the top of the table to the bottom. I might even go so far as rolling a real ball next to the virtual ball to see if I can get them to roll at the same speed, and change ther angle to suit best...but that might be taking things too far!

Pinball FX plays really well and the graphics are spot on...although part of the table seems to disappear on the edges. Pinball arcade (DX9 version) didn't play anywhere near as well and the graphics were not as good either. What made it even worse was the ball was really fuzzy too, no matter what settings I used. Hope I can sort that.

Another annoying thing...PFX automatically goes portrait on start up. TPA needs me to adjust my computer settings first...which really complicates things. Hope theres a way around that too.

Made a start on the backbox this morning...just making it up as I go along now but still basing the measurements on the Funhouse table. Once done I should have a bit more room to work cause the plywood sheets take up lots of room.

Its funny really...the more the project comes together and the closer it is to being part of the house furniture, the happier I am...but oddly enough...the more cheesed off the wife is.