Humble beginnings - My MFME Keyboard - a work in progress...

[MPU_FIVE]

4 minutes ago, woodsy said:

Thanks for your pictures and sharing your experiences, it’s really helpful and motivating. 

You're welcome, matey!

I'm trying to include as much as I can so others can either build a carbon copy of this, or use it as a guide to making their own take on it... will be amazing to see a whole army of MFME Keyboards springing up on these forums!

I remember seeing Reg's MFME Keyboard tutorial, and was in awe, - wished i'd done this sooner, i'd always wanted to make one, but 4 flippin' years!!?? - god, i'm slow on the take-up!

Cheers,

Gary

777

[woodsy]

14 minutes ago, MPU_FIVE said:

You're welcome, matey!

I'm trying to include as much as I can so others can either build a carbon copy of this, or use it as a guide to making their own take on it... will be amazing to see a whole army of MFME Keyboards springing up on these forums!

I remember seeing Reg's MFME Keyboard tutorial, and was in awe, - wished i'd done this sooner, i'd always wanted to make one, but 4 flippin' years!!?? - god, i'm slow on the take-up!

Cheers,

Gary

777

Same with me and layout design, to think of all the years I ignored out of anxiety, and the guide got me started too, so I’ll give volume 2 a go eh! Haha

[MPU_FIVE]

 

 

 

 

MFME Keyboard.... the journey so far,

My brother sent a video of him painting the MFME Keyboard last night, I should be picking it up tomorrow and then the wiring can begin!

I have been converting a few layouts, ready to play when the keyboard is completed. There are some pictures of the I-Pac2 keyboard layout i have chosen, and a PacDrive lamp layout i have on screen to refer to when changing the keys.

I was a bit (confused dot com) on one or two layouts that i was configuring, as although they let me change the key for a button, they also retained the key they were originally set to, for example, Each way shifter by Ploggy, I changed the "TAKE" button from "T" to "4" as per my MFME Keyboard, saved changes, but it now uses "T" and "4" for this button, but "T" is assigned to the gamble button as per my MFME keyboard, so when i press the "GAMBLE" button (assigned to "T") it collects instead because it thinks i've pressed the "TAKE" button... I did wonder if it may be because i have the same machine in another folder on my computer (but then ALL should suffer like this because they ALL already exist in another folder) - probably due to the way i keep things, as in a picture below there is a screenshot of my folders - over the years as each emulator came out i would have layouts for that specific version of the emulator in it.

Fruit Roms (MFME 1),

Fruit Roms (MFME 2),

Fruit Roms (MFME 3),

Fruit Roms (MFME S4 & MPU5), - the leaked one that caused chaos in FME land (aka 9.4, 9.9 and 10.1a)

Fruit Roms (MFME 5),

Fruit Roms (MFME 6),

Fruit Roms (MFME 19),

Fruit Roms (MFME 20),

and a new folder i have made specifically for layouts converted to the forthcoming MFME Keyboard -

Fruit Roms (MFME Keyboard)

Although really perhaps i should keep it simple and just go through all i already have and change the keys on them without creating new copies for the MFME Keyboard... - crumbs reading that back i've confused myself! oh well - onward we go -

 

I also include a short video of how i change a key on a layout, and how i find the lamp number which corresponds to that key, for anyone that does't know... I hope at least that won't confuse anyone! I kept that short and sweet - although filmed on my camera as i can't screen record as Windows 10 doesn't think my computer is up to spec to do it on the game bar... (I have a DELL XPS 420 from 2007) - i really must do some overtime at work and save up for a new one...

One way i have of making use of the buttons more intuative can be seen on the Each way shifter layout, (where it has 6 direction keys - 3 to the left, 3 to the right to move the light to make the word "WIN" on the board.) My thinking was traffic lights...

RED for TOP

YELLOW for MIDDLE

GREEN for BOTTOM

...and then it's quite easy to use the square and triangle buttons related to said direction keys!

Also chucked into the pictures is a pic or two of a list i've written out with the lamp numbers for each key that will need to be entered into MFME for the Pacdrive for each individual layout... for instance on the pic titled "lamp numbers for pacdrive 3" in the red circle, for jewel in the crown, the lamp number 31 is to be associated with the Pacdrive button 1 (which is the START button on the layout)

On Andy Capp, I think i only needed to change 1 (if that) key as they were pretty much all set to the keys my Keyboard will be configured to... the H and L for Hi- Lo are mapped to my triangle Hi-Lo keys and is more intuative for hi-lo than if i used the blue and green round buttons on the bottom row... my preference anyway

A pic of how i intend to map the buttons to Labyrinth should show what's going on a bit clearer than how my shoddy explainations have been going today anyway!

I've also ordered a crimp tool so i can put bootlace ferrules (inspired by @WibbleWobble's amazing I-Pac & PacDrive board on the cabinet he made) on the wire ends that will go into the PacDrive and I-Pac2 as i decided if i'm going to do this, i may as well do as best a job of it that i can!

I hope this all makes a bit of sense anyway... I think i need a coffee and a lay down now! ha ha!

Here's some pics that will hopefully do a better job of my ramblings!

next stop - wire city!!!

Cheers all...

Gary

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[davep180]

In design/edit mode, there is a component list. Some of the older layouts use the button numbers for key assignment, rather than the lamp numbers. you can change them in properties from there.

[MPU_FIVE]

7 minutes ago, davep180 said:

In design/edit mode, there is a component list. Some of the older layouts use the button numbers for key assignment, rather than the lamp numbers. you can change them in properties from there.

Ahhh, cheers, I will try that, @davep180

Hopefully it will fix that layout as it's one of my favourite mid tech machines ole Each way shifter!

[davep180]

I hope you get it sorted. You'll find the machines are a lot of fun when you have your buttons up and running!

[woodsy]

holy MOLEY. it looks good, but as dave knows i'm not that good at wiring and working out the techy stuff, but it looks awesome..

do you have to rearrange the lamp buttons for each layout or can you default one or more as in make button 1 the space bar by default and 1,2,3 cancel etc be auto assigned to same buttons on your keyboard/button thingy.. ?? i guess that would be helpful eh

[davep180]

@woodsyYou can make templates for the button assignments. I have different ones for mpu3, mpu4,mpu5/impact,s2 etc

Once a machine is loaded, you can load the template into the configuration settings. You only have to change the odd button or two then, but most layouts use space for start, 1,2,3 for holds, 0 for £1 etc, so not all buttons need be assigned each time. Hope you get my drift.

[woodsy]

5 minutes ago, davep180 said:

@woodsyYou can make templates for the button assignments. I have different ones for mpu3, mpu4,mpu5/impact,s2 etc

Once a machine is loaded, you can load the template into the configuration settings. You only have to change the odd button or two then, but most layouts use space for start, 1,2,3 for holds, 0 for £1 etc, so not all buttons need be assigned each time. Hope you get my drift.

that's cool, would have to figure out how to load the templates and get hem assigned to ohaha

[MPU_FIVE]

1 minute ago, davep180 said:

I hope you get it sorted. You'll find the machines are a lot of fun when you have your buttons up and running!

 

4 minutes ago, woodsy said:

holy MOLEY. it looks good, but as dave knows i'm not that good at wiring and working out the techy stuff, but it looks awesome..

do you have to rearrange the lamp buttons for each layout or can you default one or more as in make button 1 the space bar by default and 1,2,3 cancel etc be auto assigned to same buttons on your keyboard/button thingy.. ?? i guess that would be helpful eh

As far as I understand it, you come up with a keyboard layout that you "set in stone" when you define the keys using the I-Pac2 software.

So as an example, going by my set up, the blue square key is always going to be button D

The layout for  Jewel in the Crown i believe had K set for the blue button (for Knockouts), so you edit the layout and change from K to D and click apply to set it...

While in edit mode, you'd hover the mouse arrow over that blue "knockouts" button on the layout and it will show in a white box the lamp number associated with that button, you'd go into the Pacdrive settings of MFME for that layout (Jewel in the crown in this case ) and set the Pacdrive button 12 in my case to the lamp number that you just discovered... so lamp 18 in this case... see pic :)... (circled in green)

 

[MPU_FIVE]

I think the only thing that'll bug me about the keyboard in terms of appearance will be the fact that the triangle keys will not have smooth edges to them as they are low profile buttons with a spacer so have a "catchy edge" to them... I could of sunk them in to be low profile i suppose but the amount of space the key has to grip to the wooden panel is literally just the 3 corners of the triangle (with a large triangle hole beneath it) which i don't think i want to do...  i could make (who am i kidding - get brother to make) a wooden "high profile" triangular surround for each button i guess - or maybe look into how much it would cost to get a 3D printing firm to fabricate me 4 triangle plastic button edges. hmmm

[davep180]

15 minutes ago, MPU_FIVE said:

As far as I understand it, you come up with a keyboard layout that you "set in stone" when you define the keys using the I-Pac2 software.

So as an example, going by my set up, the blue square key is always going to be button D

The layout for  Jewel in the Crown i believe had K set for the blue button (for Knockouts), so you edit the layout and change from K to D and click apply to set it...

While in edit mode, you'd hover the mouse arrow over that blue "knockouts" button on the layout and it will show in a white box the lamp number associated with that button, you'd go into the Pacdrive settings of MFME for that layout (Jewel in the crown in this case ) and set the Pacdrive button 12 in my case to the lamp number that you just discovered... so lamp 18 in this case... see pic :)... (circled in green)

Yep. That's how it works. The each way shifter has probably been set up with letters set up using the button numbers, and you change letters according to lamp numbers. Locate the button number with the corresponding lamp number, and change them. Lamps will be changed in the ipac config section and the button number letters can be changed in the component list.

Here, letter G is both Button 29 and Lamp 34. In config, it will change the lamp part, but you'll have to find the button part in the component list, click properties and change that too.

Hope that makes sense.

[woodsy]

23 minutes ago, MPU_FIVE said:

I think the only thing that'll bug me about the keyboard in terms of appearance will be the fact that the triangle keys will not have smooth edges to them as they are low profile buttons with a spacer so have a "catchy edge" to them... I could of sunk them in to be low profile i suppose but the amount of space the key has to grip to the wooden panel is literally just the 3 corners of the triangle (with a large triangle hole beneath it) which i don't think i want to do...  i could make (who am i kidding - get brother to make) a wooden "high profile" triangular surround for each button i guess - or maybe look into how much it would cost to get a 3D printing firm to fabricate me 4 triangle plastic button edges. hmmm

can i ask, is each button clear plastic with a colour insert behind it kinda like a quality street wrapper, because my dream is to put my own insert pic in them not the colours

if you get my meaning. thanks bud

[davep180]

11 minutes ago, woodsy said:

can i ask, is each button clear plastic with a colour insert behind it kinda like a quality street wrapper, because my dream is to put my own insert pic in them not the colours

If you get buttons from real fruit machines you can change the inserts inside them, then you can live the dream!

[woodsy]

1 minute ago, davep180 said:

If you get buttons from real fruit machines you can change the inserts inside them, then you can live the dream!

Thanks I know a arcade owner very well and I’m planning to ask him for any spare buttons, that’s going to be the motivator to get my keyboard going forward. There’s no rush so I’m waiting for summer really! This stuff is awesome and Gary is class for sharing this in understandable details etc

[davep180]

3 minutes ago, woodsy said:

Thanks I know a arcade owner very well and I’m planning to ask him for any spare buttons

See if he can get you a parallel hopper and a Mars126 coin mech too. Then you are more than half way to an MFME cabinet!

[woodsy]

31 minutes ago, davep180 said:

See if he can get you a parallel hopper and a Mars126 coin mech too. Then you are more than half way to an MFME cabinet!

Do me a favour and pm me the details and wish list and gthen the fair to ask for second hand stuff then the do you have stuff etc and i'll ask him im varying levels of deseration and cheek

[MPU_FIVE]

2 hours ago, davep180 said:

Yep. That's how it works. The each way shifter has probably been set up with letters set up using the button numbers, and you change letters according to lamp numbers. Locate the button number with the corresponding lamp number, and change them. Lamps will be changed in the ipac config section and the button number letters can be changed in the component list.

Here, letter G is both Button 29 and Lamp 34. In config, it will change the lamp part, but you'll have to find the button part in the component list, click properties and change that too.

Hope that makes sense.

Thank you for your brilliant tips... @davep180

I will give them a go when i've signed off here for the night...

Cheers! :)

[MPU_FIVE]

2 hours ago, woodsy said:

can i ask, is each button clear plastic with a colour insert behind it kinda like a quality street wrapper, because my dream is to put my own insert pic in them not the colours

if you get my meaning. thanks bud

@woodsyThe plastic is coloured but the lens can be easily removed to place your own "legends" inside the buttons...

I screenied the round, square and triangle buttons from arcade world's website and highlighted where it says about it so you can see for yourself in these pics....

Hope that helps matey! :)

[woodsy]

HAHA LEGENDS!!! That’s us all over

[MPU_FIVE]

33 minutes ago, woodsy said:

HAHA LEGENDS!!! That’s us all over

Legends with lollipops, no less!

[Amusements]

 

8 hours ago, MPU_FIVE said:

While in edit mode, you'd hover the mouse arrow over that blue "knockouts" button on the layout and it will show in a white box the lamp number associated with that button, you'd go into the Pacdrive settings of MFME for that layout (Jewel in the crown in this case ) and set the Pacdrive button 12 in my case to the lamp number that you just discovered... so lamp 18 in this case... see pic :)... (circled in green)

I think you might be doing the bulb settings the long winded way?
You only have to assign the buttons in Edit mode, and then you can press [Config] (Box on the right) on the Pacdrive page, to fill in the bulb numbers automatically ..... Providing you have loaded your template first.

[MPU_FIVE]

5 hours ago, Amusements said:

 

I think you might be doing the bulb settings the long winded way?
You only have to assign the buttons in Edit mode, and then you can press [Config] (Box on the right) on the Pacdrive page, to fill in the bulb numbers automatically ..... Providing you have loaded your template first.

Oh cool, @Amusements that sounds a much better way to do it (dare i say faster too?)

Are you able to do a short video to show me how it's done?

Or am i right in thinking, when i define the keys on the I-Pac2 software, i can give it the PacDrive number also associated to that key?

For instance i can tell it that the Orange button on (I-Pac pin 1SW1) will be represented by SPACE and it's lamp is connected to (Pacdrive pin 1)

Or is it MFME's PacDrive setting where the above info is defined? It'll be one or the other i guess?

Thank you!

 

 

 

[Amusements]

1 hour ago, MPU_FIVE said:

Oh cool, @Amusements that sounds a much better way to do it (dare i say faster too?)

Are you able to do a short video to show me how it's done?

Or am i right in thinking, when i define the keys on the I-Pac2 software, i can give it the PacDrive number also associated to that key?

For instance i can tell it that the Orange button on (I-Pac pin 1SW1) will be represented by SPACE and it's lamp is connected to (Pacdrive pin 1)

Or is it MFME's PacDrive setting where the above info is defined? It'll be one or the other i guess?

Thank you!  

I think the easy way, is to show you my template as an example:

So after creating your own template, hit the [Save Template] Box and put somewhere handy. 
When you load a new layout, configure all the buttons as you did before.
When finished, open up the PacDrive tab on Game Configuration as above, and hit the [Load Template] button and reload your template.
Hit the [Config] button and Voila! The bulbs get automatically added. 
Eg:

The only thing that may need changing manually, are the hopper settings, when the layout requires a triac to hopper payout, or if you are using 2 bulbs on a button.

[MPU_FIVE]

Thank you for the tips @Amusements - won't be long now till i can try it all out as today I went to my brother's house and collected the finished wooden case...

Been putting bootlace ferrules on the ends of the wires, and tomorrow will do all the wiring, hopefully getting to play live for the 1st time tomorrow... fingers crossed everything works!

Here's some pics, my brother done a damn fine job! - well happy!