Well yeah, but you can actually get a button press response from tilting the guitar. How that converts to an actual button I’m not sure how hard that would be to do.
Can we all agree this is a stupid idea already?
the tilt device looks exactly the same as in a rock band controller, so yes it is completely possible to convert it into a button you just get rid of the device and replace it with your own wires on the main pcb board.
well, if you pick up one of the GH controllers for $7.99 you have a nice PCB with 6 buttons, MAYBE 8 if the other two are on the pcb somewhere? not sure how that’s stupid.
Went to Gamestop today, saw they had a free Xbox 360 Guitar Hero Wired X-Plorer controller with the purchase of Guitar Hero Aerosmith for $10.
Got it home and popped it open. Unfortunately, the PCB is not common ground. You could easily get six action buttons, three option buttons, and the control pad out of it, but the uncommon lines and a PCB that was a little bigger than I thought it would be kinda ruin it.
Just thought I’d report failure so others don’t waste their time or money.
I’d really like to see one of these PCBs with the eight action buttons, three option buttons, control pad, small size, and a common ground. It’s be great if someone finds one.
lol, I’ve had a rock band drum kit in my closet for about a year that I don’t use anymore. think one of the pads is broken. Maybe I’ll open it up tonight.
IIRC, that’s supposed to be a pretty good board to use. I seem to remember someone making an Xbox360 interface using one. I think it was the guy making MIDI device->RockBand adapters.
$10 for GH:Areosmith and a guitar, or $10 guitar with the purchase of GH:Aerosmith?
Because if it’s the former, I’ll head out to get a few right now.
Both the guitar controller and GH:Aerosmith for $10, both brand new, so the former.
Here is what my receipt reads for the items:
Guitar Hero: Aero 9.98
200448 020/000
Disc: 20.01 Promo #7068
XB360 Wired GH Gu 0.01
802632 080/000
Disc: 39.98 Promo #7068
This is part of one of Gamestop’s biggest sales of the year. If the Gamestop does not have both in stock, ask the guy to find a place. I think this deal is national, though I dunno if a clerk might be stingy about it. I had a pretty cool guy ring me up.
Ok, so I was bored tonight, so I took this one out of my drum kit, which has been sitting in a closet for a year since I hate Rock Band.
This looks like a pretty nice PCB:
http://img24.imageshack.us/img24/182/pcby.jpg
It’s super small and compact, got nice mounting holes (along with the screws).
I’m going to have to use the LT/RT button (which has a harness attached, I assume I can just remove it, but I’ll probably just use the wires that are already attached.). It’s used for the kick pedal, I don’t know which trigger it actually is, but either will work.
I’m going to also have to use the Back button, as I can’t find RB and LB on this anywhere. Can anyone pinpoint where those might be?
Also the buttons are also wired to the side of the pcb on the other side (not pictured), so I can just use those wires if I want.
If someone can identify which side is ground on each contact I would appreciate the help.
A way to find out would be to solder two wires (one on each side). Then touch one of the wires to each other button’s pads. Plug the pad in; if you touch a ground to a signal, you will activate the button :D. That should define grounds and signals quite easily.
This is for people who don’t have multimeters.
Well, the good news on the Drum Kit pcb is this: Super easy to work with, small, buttons and pad work great in games…
Bad news: No RB. At least that I can find. Both back and start are here, but I can’t figure out a way to get a 6 button setup with those as no fighting games let you map the back button to an attack. Obviously I’ve got A,B,X,Y and LB.
I’m wondering if the RB is actually on the board somewhere. If someone thinks it might be and thinks they can find it let me know, and I’ll send a higher res pic than the one above.
I’ve got everything soldered and working great aside from that, if I find that last button on the pcb I’m good to go.
Well I still can’t find another button on here.
This one is going to become a Neo-Geo stick.
We need a vendor that already has the license to start shipping super easy, compact 360 PCBS with all digital button pads for under $20. Someone get on that.
Microsoft would likely hunt down and kill those involved. Might be tough.
But I’m sure some bootlegger in China might be able to get away with it for long enough to get some out there…
Nono, see they make them as the PCB for a licensed controller but sell the PCBs by themselves as well. So no trouble from the man and we have access to easy mode 360 pads.
Yeah I understand the idea, Microsoft just wouldn’t go for it.
Think of all the service calls they’ll get from SRK members who accidentally burned their fingers off with the soldering iron.
LOL, I’d like to see somone actually use the Guitar Hero controller and install joystick parts on it!
Wouldn’t be all that hard really. You can detach the neck on most of them.
It would just be too much work for the weird shape, that I’m sure wouldn’t be comfortable.
Man. I was thinking about using one of my xplorers for this but didnt think it had enough buttons.
Id be happy with just 6 buttons. So instead of the usual LB/RB and ignoring the triggers id be working with LB/LT?
I totally forgot you could probably rig the whammy bars to a set button.
Ive messed around a little with these putting ps1 sg strumbar and microswitches into rock band fenders.
And then modding a headphone jack to the back button so you can plug in the bass pedal to use star power. It was messing with those that gave me the confidence to try making my own stick. I do eventually want a common ground pad to try LEDs and shit, I guess this would be a good start.
I had one xplorer in particular act up, sometimes doesnt want to be detected. figured that be a good thing to test on. I wish theyd patch gh2 and 3 to use the fender, then i can gut all 3 xplorers…
Heres a pic of the xplorer in the game controllers window, http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b12/tehglow/xplorer.jpg
the guide button never seems to get picked up on any controller used in windows, so could be 6, 9 or 10. Or I dont know why it would be showing 2 extras unless its a drivers issue. PoV hat is regular dpad, works fine. nothing seems to be moving the first box of axes. The X rotation is the whammy, Y rotation is the tilt. Holding the guitar to your chest, bringing the neck up and down.
Oddly the Z is picking up me spinning the guitar in front of me, as in neck to base stays parallel to the floor but i spin it, and the Z axis wobbles a bit, nothing too crazy.
Im no pro, but the xplorer pcb doesnt appear to be common ground. the fret pcb has abxy and LB on it, yet 8 wires. i think i counted 2 or 3 sharing a ground, and the main pcb has diodes all over it…