Well I think it's about time I got this info here. With multi system wiring what you're going
to be doing is making more than one system able to work with just one control panel. For example, you
could have PSX, Dreamcast, and PC all wired together. Most people who I talk to are interested in knowing
how they can wire a PC together with some other console. Whenever you want to wire a PC to anything
else, I suggest you use a Keyboard encoder, like the I-pac. If you try to hack a keyboard by
soldering wires to it, you'll run into problems along the way since you will be trying to make a
hot/ground setup work with a matrixed set of hots. They're not electrically compatible.
Here are some methods that I have seen people use to get two (or more) systems to work with just one controller.
About system adapters
The best, and easiest solution to multi-compatibility, is to wire a PSX pad, then use console/PC adapters like the ones sold at
Lik Sang. You can get these for nearly every system out there, even the PC. Here's a link to one right here:
If you're just making a stand-alone joystick controller, then that is probably the most simple way of doing this.
If you are planning to put these controls into a game cabinet, you may find that this is a problem
because there's no way to shut down windows with a PSX pad, and you will find it inconvenient
to open up your control panel each time you want to switch systems.
Barrier-Strip method
The next best way to accomplish the task of multi-system wiring, is through the use of a barrier strip.
A barrier, or terminal strip, looks like two rows of screws. Each screw
has an individual circtuit with another screw on it. Putting a wire to one
screw would be the same as having it attached to the other screw. Having pads that have just one
ground connection also will make this easier. I can't guarantee you success with this method,
because I have never made one of these, so please don't email with questions about this process, I probably won't know what's wrong. Also it may be a
bad idea to have more than one system's power on at once when you activate a circuit. I take no responsibility
for the loss of your system or any electrical damage that occurs when you are attempting this process.
Ok, here's how it works. Let's talk about just one button. Look at the diagram. Say you have a Six-button, street
fighter 2 arrangement for your pushbuttons, and you when you push the Fierce Kick button,
you want it to act as R1 on the PSX pad, and R1 on the Dreamcast pad, too. Easy street. If you have
already daisy-chained your ground to all of the buttons, Just
wire the hot lead from each of your pads to one of the terminals, then wire the other side of
the terminal to the Kick button. Same procedure with every other button. You also need to have
one ground lead off of each pad connected to one terminal as well, then that will go from
the other terminal to your daisy chain. In the picture, red represents a hot lead, and purple is
your daisy-chained ground. See, that wasn't so difficult, was it? Two wires go in,
one comes out. Add all the controllers you want to one button layout. Just remember that each system you
add lenghtens the amount every system's electricity has to travel, increasing resistance. Too many systems and none
of them will work right.
To make wiring easier with the barrier strip, instead of just using bare wire, use crimp on spade terminals,
then screw them down. These are available at Radio Shack, and most any other electronics supply.
Questions or comments? Be sure you have read the FAQ. If your question still isn't answered, E-mail me at CD_Vision (at) hotmail.com.
