PARSEC Supergun Project

[Frank_fjs]

Never mind, worked it out.

http://etim.net.au/shop/shop.php?crn=203&rn=549&action=show_detail

 

[low_budget]

I disconnected the existing JAMMA harness wiring from my (unfinished) aluminum arcade cabinet and connected the Parsec to the tri-sync 25" arcade monitor and amplifier directly. The RGB input of the monitor has selectable 1k or 75 ohm inputs so I set it to 75. The VGA connector on the expanded RGB hat has separate vertical sync and this made it easier to dial in the vertical hold on the monitor.

Looks really good, IMHO.

Someday I will replace the existing wiring in the cabinet with a modified Parsec.

With the component video hat, Viletim's component add-on board is only generating the Pr and Pb from red, green, and blue. The luma (Y) is tapped into the s-video luma directly.

 

[low_budget]

I assembled the first v2.0 Parsec PCB today.

New features & changes:
RGB level adjustment pots.
Uses a THS7316 for RGB buffering instead of the BH7236AF RGB outputs
Uses a EL1883 instead of the LM1881 for sync
uses 8p mini-DIN for RGB SCART connection instead of the 9p Genesis 2 connector
-5v regulator on/off switch powers JAMMA with ATX -5v when off
Now supports 6 buttons over JAMMA with DIP switches

I am now working on the HAT board for it.

I'm still doing testing but things are looking good so far. The RGB video appears a bit sharper and the RGB adjustment pots are nice to have finally

Since some Genesis 2 RGB scart cables are wired differently, I decided to change over to the 8p mini-DIN with XRGB mini Framemeister compatible pinout.

 

[plasia]

Looking nice!

 

[low_budget]

Instead of having two different HAT boards for component video and VGA connectors I just made one HAT that can accommodate all the components. This new HAT can be custom assembled depending on what features are needed. So there's 4 things you can do with the new HAT:

• Output RGB via VGA connector with switch to select composite sync or horizontal / vertical sync
• YPbPr component video at 240p using the Viletim component video add-on board
• 1/8" stereo auxiliary audio input which connects to 8p mini-DIN A/V connector
• Mounting holes for mini voltmeter

The previous VGA connector HAT had an 8p mini DIN also, so a total of 3 RGB connectors with the on-board 9p mini DIN, kinda excessive.

v2.0 Parsec Supergun PCB features:

• JAMMA, JAMMA+ compatible
• 24 pin ATX power input connector (also works with 20 pin ATX)
• Push button on/off switch
• On-board -5v regulator provides up to 1A
• -5v regulator on/off switch connects JAMMA to ATX -5v when off
• LEDs indicating presence of +5v, -5v, +12v, and standby power
• Built-in NTSC video converter
• XRGB mini compatible 8p mini-DIN A/V connector for RGB SCART
• S-video and RCA composite video jacks
• Separate red, green, and blue level adjustment
• 1/8" stereo line out jack or 8p mini-DIN A/V connector provides audio
• 8p mini-DIN sound output disabled when 1/8" audio is connected
• Stereo / mono switch
• Audio attenuation circuit with isolation transformers
• Neo Geo compatible controller ports for players 1 and 2 with Undamned pinout
• Credit, test, and service buttons on-board
• Kick harness connector
• Buttons 4-6 on JAMMA connector can be disabled with DIP switches
• Basic button remapping option: credit and button 5 can be swapped by moving jumpers

Won't be much longer now and I will have the first v2.0 boards available. So much work.........

 

[low_budget]

Just a quick update

Assembly is going well, unfortunately I have some back ordered parts and that is holding up production.

Hopefully 1 more week and I'll be able to finish assembly and test 6 more Parsecs.

I have to admit, I'm not very fast assembling these. It takes me about 4-5 hours to build each one start to finish.

I don't know if there is much interest, but I am open to selling the bare PCB (with digikey parts list) or maybe a full kit with all parts.


Like before, I am offering the Parsec v2.0 for sale direct, through Tindie, and sometimes I list 1 or 2 on ebay. I raised the price by $10 due to additional component cost and assembly time over the v1.1 Parsec Supergun.

 

[Ruprit]

I'd be down for a kit with all the parts.

 

[burger time]

When will the deluxe hat be available again?

 

[low_budget]

Finally the remaining parts arrived so I was able to finish assembly. Parsecs and HAT boards are available again.
I make the main Parsec PCB and the HAT board into the same design to save money over ordering 2 separate PCBs. The only downside is the extra labor cutting the board and filing the edges smooth.

I will try to have a full kit available soon. I'm asking $99 for PCB and all parts for the main Supergun board. $15 extra for all the components on the hat board, minus the Viletim component video circuit.

I will send PMs when I have the full parts kits available.

 

[LittleLarrySellers]

Picked up one of your 2.0 superguns from Ebay and I got it working yesterday with my CPS-2 board I plan on doing the darksoft multi-kit with! Thanks!

This is my first arcade board and supergun and real project in the hobby. Pretty amazing seeing the arcade board running on my HDTV (also grabbed an OSSC). Excited for next steps although nervous about the soldering part for the key writing and I know I'll have to do the kick harness as well but should be good learning experience.

Here is my first crimp job and the Parsec supergun powered up and kicking ass. For now I am having the supergun generate the -5V, is there any benefit to having it come from the PSU? I did order a longer ATX 20 pin cable I'll install later and will use the -5V wire but curious pros/cons to either approach.

 

[LittleLarrySellers]

Quick update, also scored a MV-1FZS off of Ebay and the Parsec works great with the board. It came with KOF 99 MVS cart so was easy to test. I may eventually challenge myself with trying to consolize this board but pretty cool I was able to just plug it in and get Neo Geo going without a hassle.

Super impressed with the talent this community has and I am going further and further down the rabbit hole myself now that I know the potential of what the classic arcade gaming hobby can be!

 

[low_budget]

I have the first Parsec kit ready.

Assembly isn't too bad if you've done SMT soldering before. The smallest resistor / capacitor is 0805 size, and the three ICs are all SOIC.


Soldering the JAMMA connector is a little tricky, as the heat from soldering likes to move the connector. The trick I use is take a JAMMA arcade PCB that has a connector the same height as the Parsec and plug the JAMMA connector into that. Then solder the JAMMA pins to the Parsec with the arcade game holding the connector in the right position. Alternatively, you can also just buy a pre-wired JAMMA harness and solder the wires to the Parsec pins.

 

[Appley81]

How much for the kit? Love soldering

 

[EVAWINGZERO]

Bought one off of eBay, looking forward to testing it out soon!

 

[Zebra]

I disconnected the existing JAMMA harness wiring from my (unfinished) aluminum arcade cabinet and connected the Parsec to the tri-sync 25" arcade monitor and amplifier directly. The RGB input of the monitor has selectable 1k or 75 ohm inputs so I set it to 75. The VGA connector on the expanded RGB hat has separate vertical sync and this made it easier to dial in the vertical hold on the monitor.

Looks really good, IMHO.

Someday I will replace the existing wiring in the cabinet with a modified Parsec.

With the component video hat, Viletim's component add-on board is only generating the Pr and Pb from red, green, and blue. The luma (Y) is tapped into the s-video luma directly.

I think I have the same tri-sync monitor as you (I have a Billabs 24.7" flat CRT tri-sync and a 29" flat Makvision). By any chance, did you try comparing the image via the Parsec Supergun to connecting the pcb to your monitor directly?

I have a cheap (and crappy) Supergun here that I want to replace with something better. I am interested in your thoughts on whether investing in a better Supergun makes any difference if used with an RGB arcade monitor?

Our tri-sync displays are obviously designed to directly accept both consumer level RGB and the higher voltage rgb from old CGA and EGA PCBs. In theory, we shouldn't have to worry about excess brightness or voltage. We could just use a regular Jamma harness if we had the patience for the wiring.

I like the idea of the convenience with the Parsec (I particularly like the kick harness header).

 

[low_budget]

I'm currently out of assembled Parsec superguns. I do have the parts on-hand to build 14 more, so it's just a matter of me motivating myself to sit in my basement "dungeon" and solder circuit boards for 5-6 hours straight for many days.

While the kits involve a lot less labor on my part, it is still fairly time consuming to bag and label the individual parts. I will try to make 3 kits available to anyone interested.
So this is going to take some time, I estimate late August / early September I will have more Parsecs available.


I don't really have a good way of comparing image quality between a direct arcade monitor connection or the Parsec's RGB out to monitor. One thing I did notice was the monitor's H and V hold potentiometers were easier to dial in when using the Parsec HAT board's VGA connection.

Last time I tested the Parsec with the Makvision 25" flatscreen tri-sync monitor I used the v1.1 Parsec. I will eventually test it with the v2.0 Parsec which uses a different RGB circuit. I really like that monitor.

My aluminum arcade cabinet has a stereo audio amplifier on-board so it works with the Parsec line level sound out. The Parsec has no provision for speaker level sound output.

I should probably start a separate thread on the aluminum arcade machine I made. I still haven't completed the project; it still needs diamond plate aluminum covers cut along with a lockable door to access the internals. The high voltage monitor components are 100% exposed (and surrounded by grounded aluminum) Not exactly safe in its current form. That project was a crazy amount of work, and it's still far from done.

 

[EVAWINGZERO]

Got mine in and all set up. It works pretty dang well.

I'm going to be streaming some Neo-Geo / Jamma from it tonight around 5:30 p.m. EST at www.twitch.tv/pastblaster

If you guys want to see how it runs, or have any questions on it, feel free to drop by and ask.

 

[EVAWINGZERO]

Build Complete. Using a Jamma Extension, and Undamned USB encoders. This thing works very well with either a PVM via Scart or an OSSC. I use it at our local FGC weekly events and folks play ST on an LED panel with no complaints.

It did take me a bit to dial everything in, but everything is working pretty dang well now. Overall would recommend.

 

[low_budget]

Sold out again.....

Eventually I will need to order new circuit boards, which will be an opportunity to make changes. While I believe v2.0 is good for a “final” version based on feedback I’ve received, suggestions for improvements are welcome.

Thank you to all my customers and thank you arcade-projects.com

 

[magnus3s]

Late thanks for mine! Any recommendations for HDMI output for portable use?