Want to buy a pinball machine

[spidey07]

I don't think id like a computer pinball machine. I want to bump and feel it.

 

[Rubycon]

I don't think id like a computer pinball machine. I want to bump and feel it.

I see what you did there!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4ZMoylD0Kc

 

[spidey07]

I see what you did there!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4ZMoylD0Kc

While funny, I do use my hip to nudge the machine depending on the tilt setting.

I already said, if I don't get a TILT every now and then, I'm doing it wrong. I hated the machines that if you bumped just a little they TILT.

pre-mature e-TILTulation

 

[Gibsons]

While funny, I do use my hip to nudge the machine depending on the tilt setting.

I already said, if I don't get a TILT every now and then, I'm doing it wrong. I hated the machines that if you bumped just a little they TILT.

pre-mature e-TILTulation

and occasionally (well, rarely) you find the machine that will take a lot of abuse before tilting. Some really high scores usually result.

 

[gorcorps]

I don't think id like a computer pinball machine. I want to bump and feel it.

There's a lot of people that put a ton of time into making their virtual machines as close to the same as possible. They use mercury switches to simulate the ability to nudge/tilt the machine, as that's part of the software. They also use knockers, solenoids, and all sorts of stuff to give force feedback to the flippers, bumpers, etc. Apparently you can get really damned close to the real feel, though you still loose some of the magic of seeing the mechanics of it all at work. That said IMO the ability to load any table at will is something I really like, and the true to life feel can be simulated with some effort.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

I don't think id like a computer pinball machine. I want to bump and feel it.

People do put tilt sensors in and some even put vibration devices in to make you feel the ball hitting things.

 

[Muse]

There's a lot of people that put a ton of time into making their virtual machines as close to the same as possible. They use mercury switches to simulate the ability to nudge/tilt the machine, as that's part of the software. They also use knockers, solenoids, and all sorts of stuff to give force feedback to the flippers, bumpers, etc. Apparently you can get really damned close to the real feel, though you still loose some of the magic of seeing the mechanics of it all at work. That said IMO the ability to load any table at will is something I really like, and the true to life feel can be simulated with some effort.

Well, any pinball machine is going to have its electronic componentry. But I want mine to have real life steel balls with momentum = mass x velocity. I think I want a pull back spring loaded launcher, too! Thwapp! Here we go...

 

[Born2bwire]

Well, any pinball machine is going to have its electronic componentry. But I want mine to have real life steel balls with momentum.

I will say one thing, it doesn't look anything like the real tables. The playfields that I have seen for PinMAME are generally far too bright and colorful.

 

[Possessed Freak]

and occasionally (well, rarely) you find the machine that will take a lot of abuse before tilting. Some really high scores usually result.

We used to have a machine on the campus that would NOT tilt if you lifted at a specific angle. You could save it from a drain if you timed it properly.

 

[ImpulsE69]

Just a bump for something new that has recently come to pass. Slightly on and off topic. Real pinball DMD's in virtual pincabs. Just put one in last week. They are simply awesome.
(don't mind that it's not fit right, I have to cut a new grill for it.)

 

[Jeffg010]

Just a bump for something new that has recently come to pass. Slightly on and off topic. Real pinball DMD's in virtual pincabs. Just put one in last week. They are simply awesome.
(don't mind that it's not fit right, I have to cut a new grill for it.)

I'm glad you bumped this thread because I have been thinking about building one of these. What is the best forum or links for info. The other thing I would like to do is get my hands on one and play it. Also that look like Mars Attacks.

 

[gorcorps]

Just a bump for something new that has recently come to pass. Slightly on and off topic. Real pinball DMD's in virtual pincabs. Just put one in last week. They are simply awesome.
(don't mind that it's not fit right, I have to cut a new grill for it.)

If that's a virtual pinball machine, I would re read the thread. We've already discussed them.

Did you just buy a kit?

 

[ImpulsE69]

I'm glad you bumped this thread because I have been thinking about building one of these. What is the best forum or links for info. The other thing I would like to do is get my hands on one and play it. Also that look like Mars Attacks.

It is! The one above it is Scared Stiff.

The best places where you can find help and info is Hyperspin Forums and VPForums. There are people's builds, as well as walk throughs on everything from setting up the software to where to buy parts and cabinet templates.

As mentioned before, these aren't replacements for real machines, but they are a hobby of themselves to complement them. As much money or more goes into building one of these as a real machine.

 

[ImpulsE69]

If that's a virtual pinball machine, I would re read the thread. We've already discussed them.

Did you just buy a kit?

Yes, I was the one who brought them up in this thread, however my post is that now real pinball DMD screens work in virtual pins. That picture is not an LCD screen, it is a true pinball LED screen. One more element of realism.This just became possible a few weeks ago. I was showing mine.

No, it's not a kit, I built it, but the cabinet itself I salvaged from a burned out Mata Hari.

 

[gorcorps]

Yes, I was the one who brought them up in this thread, however my post is that now real pinball DMD screens work in virtual pins. That picture is not an LCD screen, it is a true pinball LED screen. One more element of realism.This just became possible a few weeks ago. I was showing mine.

No, it's not a kit, I built it, but the cabinet itself I salvaged from a burned out Mata Hari.

Ah, okay... now I gotcha. I'm not down with all the pinball lingo so the "real pinball DMD" reference didn't mean anything to me. Carry on

 

[Jeffg010]

It is! The one above it is Scared Stiff.

The best places where you can find help and info is Hyperspin Forums and VPForums. There are people's builds, as well as walk throughs on everything from setting up the software to where to buy parts and cabinet templates.

As mentioned before, these aren't replacements for real machines, but they are a hobby of themselves to complement them. As much money or more goes into building one of these as a real machine.

Thanks! One more question I saw a youtube vid and it looked like they were scrolling through like 20 different pins. This is what got me thinking if I'm going to spend some money on pinball I could get a lot more pins on the virtual pincabs for the price of 1 pinball machine. How many pins/roms are in your virtual pincab? I'm assuming you just load the software in the computer and when a new one comes out just add it.

 

[ImpulsE69]

It's a conglomerate of software that has a front end for cabinets. There is Virtual Pinball (which uses real pinball rom emulation), and there's Future Pinball (which doesn't). They both have pros and cons and things they do better. You can run one or both, up to you. I run both and right now have about 170 tables on my cabinet. I would say there are probably 400 or so tables both real and original. There are some very good original tables as well.

The front end is called Hyperpin (it, and instructions can be found on both forums). Not to be confused with Hyperspin (for Mame cabinets). People create tables and you just add them to your collection. There is a install guide on VPVorums that points to all the software and how to set it all up. Takes some time to get running, but it's not too difficult.

 

[KeithTalent]

I was thinking about this thread yesterday. They showed a Muhammad Ali pinball on American Pickers and it looked awesome. Totally want to try that. :hmm:

KT

 

[gorcorps]

It's a conglomerate of software that has a front end for cabinets. There is Virtual Pinball (which uses real pinball rom emulation), and there's Future Pinball (which doesn't). They both have pros and cons and things they do better. You can run one or both, up to you. I run both and right now have about 170 tables on my cabinet. I would say there are probably 400 or so tables both real and original. There are some very good original tables as well.

The front end is called Hyperpin (it, and instructions can be found on both forums). Not to be confused with Hyperspin (for Mame cabinets). People create tables and you just add them to your collection. There is a install guide on VPVorums that points to all the software and how to set it all up. Takes some time to get running, but it's not too difficult.

What kind of PC do you need for totally smooth gameplay? I would think you'd need a decent one for the multiple screens but I don't know how well optimized the software is.

 

[ImpulsE69]

What kind of PC do you need for totally smooth gameplay? I would think you'd need a decent one for the multiple screens but I don't know how well optimized the software is.

Well that's the tough call. There are definitely recommendations, but as table making gets better and more advanced features come along, more robust system is recommended. However, the software is outdated and runs off 10 year old code. There are new things out and there are some updates, but the base code is not actively being worked on very much. Most of the newer stuff actually runs outside of the main programs.

I have mine running on Win 7 - 64bit with a Phenom x2 (B555) unlocked to a quad core and oc'd to 4gz and run 99% of what I try w/o issue with a GTX460. I have the Pinball programs running off 2 cores, and everything else on the other 2 cores. This allows them as much cpu as they need. That being said, everyone's mileage seems to vary. There are people with completely tricked out I5's that have issues on occasion.

It's not really a hardware issue as it is timing issues and emulation issues caused by multiple software/dll/driver issues. It's something the community is discussing regularly and making fixes where they can.

It comes down to making compromises on some tables, tweaks here and there, and often people will put out new optimized versions of tables with new features that take up less resources and do more. So it's getting better by the day, but at the end of it all, it's still 10 year old emulation software. I wouldn't go into it expecting 100% perfection, but it's damn close. It can be down right frustrating because one table will work perfect for one person and not another, and the only thing different might be XP vs 7.

At the end of the day, it's so worth it if you are a pinball/tech fan, because when it works right which is a majority of the time, it's pretty damn cool.

 

[fustercluck]

Gone Fishin'! Leave a message!

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Regarding processing power. When I was looking into these 1-2 years ago, the simple conclsuions was that the more powerfull your rig, the better. Remember, this is a physics simulator under the hood. There is alot going on. And now consider multi-ball. That's when things can really slow down.

And you can get the program downloaded and running on your home PC/laptop to try out. The best recomendation is to just get it going on your current system. Just be sure you DL tables that are made to run on one screen. I think it can actually do "two screens" via a split screen. Anyway, get the emulators and a few tables to try it out. Get a simple table and move on from there. Don't start with teh Terminator 2 table granted it is a fun one.

 

[ImpulsE69]

Regarding processing power. When I was looking into these 1-2 years ago, the simple conclsuions was that the more powerfull your rig, the better. Remember, this is a physics simulator under the hood. There is alot going on. And now consider multi-ball. That's when things can really slow down.

And you can get the program downloaded and running on your home PC/laptop to try out. The best recomendation is to just get it going on your current system. Just be sure you DL tables that are made to run on one screen. I think it can actually do "two screens" via a split screen. Anyway, get the emulators and a few tables to try it out. Get a simple table and move on from there. Don't start with teh Terminator 2 table granted it is a fun one.

It's true, and not true. People with really beefy systems still have issues, while people running lower end systems have no issues. Of course, alot has changed in 2 years. The graphics are higher res, they are running 2-3 screens, they have "real" transparencies, all sorts of toys including real led/solenoid control, nudging mechanisms, shakers, and now real DMDs. This all adds to the overhead, but most of that comes to the hardware that controls it being able to pass info fast enough since it's mostly all timing based.

Sure, there probably is a point where bigger faster will overcome those issues, but at what point do you stop throwing hardware at a software issue? This is something that is slowly being addressed. The biggest roadblock is that the people who made these programs don't have any desire or time to recode everything, and due to politics if anyone is recoding, they aren't sharing. There is a new physics project in the works using Unity 3D and FP/VP that could prove to be pretty interesting once it gets further along.

Again - for the record, bigger, badder isn't necessarily better, not that it can hurt. Just don't go out buying a GTX680 or ATI 6790 and wonder why it runs like crap with all that power. Read up and research. Most of this has been covered by somebody.

 

[arkcom]

Bought Silverball Mania today. The battery on the MPU is messed up and all the rubber needs replaced. From what I've read, these are the most common issues.

Also got Congo Bongo. It kinda sucks.

 

[Ns1]

i love this thread so much.

Any one of you guys who posted in this thread have any updates of your rig(s)?