This is the official thread for my PSX -> JAMMA/Supergun converters. With this new thread, I can now keep a constantly updated information database on the converters in the first post, which I wasn’t able to in DreamTR’s thread. Orders and any future updates to the converters will take place in this thread.
Now, let’s get to the converters.
<Intro>
Since a few people seem to think that these converters only work on Superguns and not arcade cabinets or vice versa, let me just state that these converters will let you use your PS1/PS2 controllers on both arcade setups and superguns.
<Converter Circuit Board>
The current PCB design is at revision 2.1 and it has been tested to work with all PS1/PS2 controllers except a very few (so far, only the ASCII programmable controllers don’t work). The rev 2.1 board also has a self-resetting fuse on the power line that goes to the PSX controller to protect the converter from getting burned in case a faulty/blown controller is connected to it (thanks goes to Toodles for the suggestion).
<Pinout and Button Mapping>
My converters use a modified Neogeo DSUB15 controller pinout for the output. Here’s my pinout diagram (shamelessly edited using MKL’s diagram)
http://laugh25.com.ne.kr/PSX2JAMMA/db15_laugh.PNG
As you may or may not notice, the pinout is identical to the Neogeo controller ports except with Button5 and Button6 added to it. You can plug the converter into any system that uses this pinout natively (AES, some MVS motherboards, and quite a few custom superguns). Superguns with different pinouts can also use these converters simply by making a cable to adapt the pinout to my pinout, and for arcade cabinets, you can make a little add-on JAMMA fingerboard like this one to plug the converters into them.
Keep in mind that the above diagram shows the correct pinout if you are looking at the controller port on the supergun/console and NOT at the converter. The pinout diagram of the female port on the converter side is just a mirror image of the above. The pin number and its assigned function is the same on both the male and female DSUB15 ports, so if you’re confused, use the pin numbers that are engraved on most DSUB15 ports as guidance.
The reason why my pinout has Button1, Button2… instead of circle, R1, L2… is because it’s modifiable by the user. Before I get to the modification part, below is the default button assignment.
Button1 - []
Button2 - /
Button3 - R1
Button4 - X
Button5 - O
Button6 - R2
The above button assignment was chosen because most arcade sticks have its buttons laid out like this (which I will call the standard button layout from now on), which is also the Street Fighter layout.
[Standard Button Layout]
B1 B2 B3 => [] /\ R1
B4 B5 B6 => X O R2
The default layout was decided like this because a vast majority of arcade stick makers laid out their buttons like above to accommodate for Street Fighter games.
However, there are a few sticks out there that don’t follow the standard button layout (Japanese T5 HRAP, Arcana Heart HRAP, Neogeo AES style stick for the PS2, ASCII Guilty Gear stick, and Tekken Tag stick by Namco come to mind). Also, there are different games that use layouts different from street fighter games. This is where the button assignment modification feature comes in handy.
Previously up to this point, I’ve accommodated different games’ button layouts by letting the user flip through 6 predetermined layout settings based on the standard button layout, while completely excluding the few sticks that don’t follow the standard button layout. I have been coding over the weekend and added on-the-fly custom button mapping feature to the converter’s software in case the default assignment doesn’t suit your needs. Here’s how it works.
- Go into custom button mapping mode by pressing [] + /\ + O + X + Start
- Let go of the buttons after pressing the combination of buttons from step 1.
- Press 1 button at a time, each time pressing a different button, up to 6 buttons. The order in which you pressed each button has determined Button1 through Button6.
- Now the new button assignment is in effect.
It’s really simple. You go into custom button mapping mode, press the buttons you want to assign for Button1 ~ Button6 and that’s it. There are some notes you should be aware of regarding the on-the-fly custom button mapping procedure.
*You can only assign the buttons with 8 action buttons ( [] /\ X O R1 R2 L1 L2 ). This means that any order of these 8 buttons can be assigned to output Buttons 1 through 6.
*It also means that you cannot choose Start, Select, R3, L3, or the 4 directions for any of the 6 buttons during custom button mapping, and these inputs will be ignored even if you press them while in custom button mapping mode.
*While you’re pressing buttons one by one to designate Button1 though Button6, if you press a button that has been assigned already, it will be ignored and won’t make that button trigger multiple outputs. This means there is a strict 1 input -> 1 output rule in place.
*The 2 buttons not chosen during custom button mapping procedure will not be assigned to anything. Say you chose ( [] /\ X O L1 L2 ) as your 6 buttons. In this case, R1 and R2 will do nothing when you press them.
<Ordering>
First batch orders have been completed.
I’ve decided to scrap the group shipping idea to avoid any headaches and also because shipping isn’t that expensive even though they will be sent from Korea. I’m taking payments starting now, so take a look at the pricing info below as a reference.
Converters - $60 each
[Shipping options to North America and Europe]
a) Airmail - takes 1-2 weeks to deliver, doesn’t support tracking numbers, costs $7 for up to 3 converters and $12 for up to 6 converters.
b) EMS Express - takes 3-5 days to deliver, supports tracking numbers, costs $23 for up to 3 converters and $30 for up to 6 converters.
My paypal address is laugh_acw (at) hotmail (dot) com
I’ll make these converters as long as people want me to make them, so don’t worry if you can’t order one right now or in the near future. Just give me a PM about ordering them, and I can give you all the quotes and estimated dates.
Feedback regarding the converters is very welcome. Thanks for the support over the last few months, guys. Your support and feedback has really motivated me to get this done as nice and complete as I possibly could and has helped make this converter better than anything I had initially imagined.
Update 7/24/008 - You can get your own custom label for the converter. Check this post for my personal examples.
I also have more stock of the converters available.
Edit1: Editted the button combination code for the custom button mapping mode to [] + /\ + O + X + Start
Edit2: More stock of them are available! Added info about custom labels. Removed the first batch info since that’s been handled and completed.
!
