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Building my first test bench

ShootTheCore said:
I have two of them and they’re great, except that it makes it more difficult to adjust the 5V pot-keep a long flathead screwdriver around.
Click to expand...
If you look at mine there's an extension tube running to the pot with a knob on it. Easy adjustment from the outside, no screwdriver required.
 
Ok starting over it looks like I am going to choose the axunworks supergun. I saw a minigun on eBay but isn’t it better to just buy one new?

Supergun: https://m.axunworks.com/product-p669501.html

Power Supply: https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/MEAN-WELL/RT-125A?qs=l0g2inPJSHPK02OnI5FJmg==

If I choose these two, what else will I need? I actually don’t have a Sony pvm. I was going to buy one but the one I was going to buy had a chip on the screen so I decided not to get it. So I will need to get a monitor or crt.
 
You'll still need everything else on the list I posted earlier, except for the SuperGun, Power Supply, and a video cable since one is included with the SuperGun.

https://www.arcade-projects.com/threads/building-my-first-test-bench.19457/post-301017

As an alternative on the Power Supply, Axun sells his own that pairs up with his SuperGun that has a Voltmeter embedded in it:
https://www.axunworks.com/h-product-detail.html?goods_id=669351&variant=4595943

The cable that is included with the Axun SuperGun uses BNC connectors and is meant to feed directly into a Sony PVM or BVM. You can also connect that SuperGun up with a VGA cable, but the device you plug it into has to support a 15 kHz resolution. PC CRT monitors are generally high-quality and have VGA and sometimes BNC connections, but they won't typically handle the 15 kHz resolution - the monitor will display a "signal out of range" message when you click the board on.

Without a PVM, your most cost-friendly scenario for a test bench will be to run a VGA connection from the SuperGun into an upscaler like the OSSC and then output from there to a PC VGA CRT or a modern flat-panel display.

Also a PC VGA CRT and/or flat-panel display doesn't have a speaker in it like the PVM does, so you'll have to handle audio seperately. A cheap pair of PC speakers plugged in through the RCA audio jacks on the SuperGun will work fine.
 
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MegaMan said:
I saw a minigun on eBay but isn’t it better to just buy one new?
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Chances are it was new honestly. Minigun is an open source project, people buy the parts and build them for those who aren't able to do their own from scratch and sell them places like eBay.
 
MegaMan said:
Ok starting over it looks like I am going to choose the axunworks supergun. I saw a minigun on eBay but isn’t it better to just buy one new?
Click to expand...
How much do you care about your boards? If they are worth more than $0 be careful what you buy off eBay. One of our unfortunate members blew up a CPS2 b-board with a badly made Minigun/power supply/power cable combo (off eBay) Could have been worse, Could have been a Radiant Silvergun board :-)

The latest version of the Minigun is v2.5 - frankfjs (The Minigun Man) has said that this is the final version. So if you get v2.5 you won’t have an “I should have waited” moment.

There are two versions of Minigun Supergun 2.5
9-pin - this uses a mini-din 9 Megadrive 2 cable
8-pin - this uses a mini-din 8 cable like the XRGB

Both of them generate RGBS only - no composite or svid. But composite and SVID are rubbish compared to RGBS, and you have a PVM that takes RGBS, so you are already at the top of that mountain :-)

Both of them are safe to use with modern equipment, meaning the audio and video section is decoupled from the JAMMA voltages. Your PVM can take a lot of input voltage abuse and probably wouldn’t care. But some other video/audio gear might care a lot. the Minigun is a safe modern design

The 9-pin version can generate TTL sync as well as normal 75 ohm sync. There are a few edge cases with sony PVMs where TTL sync might be useful. Some of the more exotic arcade boards do output weird sync, and amping it to TTL can sometimes fix that.

Here is what a version 2.5 9-pin should look like note the “v2.5” written on the back, bottom left corner (sorry this one isnt quite finished and was still covered in goobs, not quite Insta-ready until after it’s ultrasonic bath)
C8621D37-FE97-4892-AE56-B77967472D1C.jpegDB69E122-27C4-4370-8FA5-44F1075DF8A6.jpeg

Here is what the 8-pin version should look like, again note the “v2.5” silkscreened on the back bottom left corner
DE6A2268-4DDE-421D-B99A-FAE7F8574F36.jpegAAA3C93C-4E76-45CE-A305-D584A6DF4B4A.jpeg
 
hatmoose said:
How much do you care about your boards? If they are worth more than $0 be careful what you buy off eBay. One of our unfortunate members blew up a CPS2 b-board with a badly made Minigun/power supply/power cable combo (off eBay) Could have been worse, Could have been a Radiant Silvergun board :)

The latest version of the Minigun is v2.5 - frankfjs (The Minigun Man) has said that this is the final version. So if you get v2.5 you won’t have an “I should have waited” moment.

There are two versions of Minigun Supergun 2.5
9-pin - this uses a mini-din 9 Megadrive 2 cable
8-pin - this uses a mini-din 8 cable like the XRGB

Both of them generate RGBS only - no composite or svid. But composite and SVID are rubbish compared to RGBS, and you have a PVM that takes RGBS, so you are already at the top of that mountain :)

Both of them are safe to use with modern equipment, meaning the audio and video section is decoupled from the JAMMA voltages. Your PVM can take a lot of input voltage abuse and probably wouldn’t care. But some other video/audio gear might care a lot. the Minigun is a safe modern design

The 9-pin version can generate TTL sync as well as normal 75 ohm sync. There are a few edge cases with sony PVMs where TTL sync might be useful. Some of the more exotic arcade boards do output weird sync, and amping it to TTL can sometimes fix that.

Here is what a version 2.5 9-pin should look like note the “v2.5” written on the back, bottom left corner (sorry this one isnt quite finished and was still covered in goobs, not quite Insta-ready until after it’s ultrasonic bath)
C8621D37-FE97-4892-AE56-B77967472D1C.jpegDB69E122-27C4-4370-8FA5-44F1075DF8A6.jpeg

Here is what the 8-pin version should look like, again note the “v2.5” silkscreened on the back bottom left corner
DE6A2268-4DDE-421D-B99A-FAE7F8574F36.jpegAAA3C93C-4E76-45CE-A305-D584A6DF4B4A.jpeg
Click to expand...
Do you think the axunworks supergun is safe enough? I don’t know where I can buy a minigun new. Also I have a MegaMan the Power Battle USA and Asian. Rockman the Power Battle and Power Fighters. And then the most important one a MegaMan 2 the Power Fighters, they are all 100% original. I really don’t want to ruin any of them. I also plan on buying a cab for my MegaMan the Power Battle so I am keeping a lookout for a nice street fighter cabinet in an hs-5.
 
djsheep said:
For playing games. No. Grab a ruler and measure out diagonally how big 8 inches is.

For a test bench, it’s great though.
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100% agree.
8” is the perfect size for a test bench, and they have a handle on the top for easy portability.
For actually playing the games for any length of time you’ll want to put it into a proper cabinet.

Here is my 8” test monitor (mine is a PVM 9L2) on top of a 14” monitor
ADEC767A-7F0A-4B64-A7C1-D9F2251D858A.jpeg

And yes, an 8044 would fit the bill nicely. It has RGBS input and a (tiny) mono speaker. Just what you need for testing
 
MegaMan said:
Do you think the axunworks supergun is safe enough? I don’t know where I can buy a minigun new.
Click to expand...
Axunworks, HAS and Minigun are all beloved by the arcade projects community. They are all well known, well supported and safe to use with modern equipment.
Axunworks have posted some detail in other threads about lead times for orders, and I think HAS may be planning a new version too. So see if you can find and have a read of those threads for more detail.
 
Derick2k said:
I use a HAS with 8" pvm on my bench, never had an issue. @RGB is excellent with support, and the HAS has been a solid supergun for many years now.
Click to expand...
^ This right here is the reason many folks on this forum rely on the HAS for their test bench setups.

Unless you have a stack of PCBs that require urgent testing and repairs, I would hold off until RGB lists some new HAS for sale. (He put a few up for sale just a couple of weeks back.)
 
I’m not in that much of a rush I guess, so I’m thinking I’ll wait for it then. I wanted to get a head start on what it took to build a test bench mainly because I will be building one in the future. I guess all I’m really looking for now is something to make sure my boards work, I know I bought them working but I don’t want them sitting around for a while and not being turned in every once in a while. I’ll keep my eyes open for a HAS Supergun and when one is available I’ll buy the rest of the parts needed for a test bench. If a sigma Raijin or something similar does happen to come up, depending on the condition and cost Il probably pick it up, just so I have something to play and run my boards on. Also, I don’t really know where things are going with the part shortages. Hopefully HAS won’t run into any issues with that. This thread has been an extremely big help to me! I’ve learned a lot on this forum since I’ve started collecting arcade boards in April and I can thank everyone enough for the help I really appreciate it!
 
Does anyone know where I can find a cps2 kick harness? Paradise arcade is out of stock. There are some on eBay but are they all the same? Also, do I need an inline volt meter? Thanks again for the help :)
 
The Sigma Rainjin doesn’t have a voltmeter built-in so you should absolutely get an in-line voltmeter. You’ll use it to adjust the 5V-AJ pot on the SuperGun to 5.0V with any board you connect.

As for the CPS2 kick harness, the Sigma Raijin requires it to be soldered to the fingerboard that attaches to the SuperGun. If you can’t solder, either @Lemony Vengeance or @XianXi should be able to add the CPS2 connector to your existing harness for you, and I believe they stock the necessary parts as well.
 
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@MegaMan -- FWIW if you write to TOPS, they have a harness making service for the control boxes they sell.

I ordered one for my Boardmaster alongside CPS-1, CPS-2 and ST-V kick harnesses for it. They also had a voltmeter installed on there. Hit them up perhaps, but I know that the two peeps that @ShootTheCore mentioned do excellent work also.
 
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