Convert pinball to virtual pinball

[BillyCarpenter]

The other day, I picked up a 1971 Gottlieb pinball machine that works but has some problems that will take more time than I'm willing to commit. After playing a few games, it's too vanilla for my taste. So, I've decided to gut the machine down to the bare wooden cabinet and covert to a virtual pinball machine.

It will have a 42 inch LCD for the playing field and 2 smaller LCD monitors in the back box. I'm not gonna do 4k on this one. I'm also gonna wrap the cabinet in vinyl graphics. The artwork will probably be from the AC/DC pinball machine.

Here's the machine that I bought.


pin32.jpg

[BillyCarpenter]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

I haven't had much time to work on my virtual pinball build, but I did gut the pinball cabinet that I recently purchased and installed a 40 inch flat screen TV. When you're building one of these machines, you're at the mercy of the TV's/monitors that are mass produced. It's not like you can request that Sony or Vizio make a 28 inch wide TV that will perfectly fit your cabinet. I got lucky in that I found a 40-inch Hisense TV that fit perfectly.

I've mostly being doing research on the software that I want to use and the input/output devices that are available.

There's a virtual pinball community out on the web that has really done some amazing things with virtual pinball. It's a lot to take in and it can get expensive depending on how far down the rabbit hole you want to go.

I paid $400 for the used pinball machine that I gutted for the cabinet. Another $250 for the flatscreen TV. Before all is said and done, I anticipate spending over $3,000 on this build. However, I'm gonna have to do it in stages because it's complicated and this is my first build. I will update when I make some progress.

[slimslob]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

I haven't had much time to work on my virtual pinball build, but I did gut the pinball cabinet that I recently purchased and installed a 40 inch flat screen TV. When you're building one of these machines, you're at the mercy of the TV's/monitors that are mass produced. It's not like you can request that Sony or Vizio make a 28 inch wide TV that will perfectly fit your cabinet. I got lucky in that I found a 40-inch Hisense TV that fit perfectly.

I've mostly being doing research on the software that I want to use and the input/output devices that are available.

There's a virtual pinball community out on the web that has really done some amazing things with virtual pinball. It's a lot to take in and it can get expensive depending on how far down the rabbit hole you want to go.

I paid $400 for the used pinball machine that I gutted for the cabinet. Another $250 for the flatscreen TV. Before all is said and done, I anticipate spending over $3,000 on this build. However, I'm gonna have to do it in stages because it's complicated and this is my first build. I will update when I make some progress.

If you want to get the look and feel of virtual pinball, Microsoft has now made the 3D Pinball Space Cadet, originally included on with XP, available to download and run on current versions of Windows. I found and installed it after your initial post.

[BillyCarpenter]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

If you want to get the look and feel of virtual pinball, Microsoft has now made the 3D Pinball Space Cadet, originally included on with XP, available to download and run on current versions of Windows. I found and installed it after your initial post.

There are much more advanced software on the market and it's open-source. Someone(s) has taken the time to write the code to recreate real pinball machines in the virtual world. It's uncanny how realistic they are. What's more, they have written software that incorporates real pinball parts to give it the feel and sound of the real things. Things like solenoids, shaker motors, led addressable strips and much more.


Check this table out. This is one of many on the same table.

[BillyCarpenter]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

I'm trying to keep this build on a budget as much as I can without sacrificing too much. I have a Dell Optiplex 9020 with a I7 CPU, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD. I'm upgrading the graphics with a Nvidia Geforce GTX1060 (6gb). I'm also getting rid of the stock 290 watt Dell power supply and replacing with 500 watt. We need power to run the new graphics card.

When all is said and done, I'll have about $300 in the computer. Not bad if I do say so myself.

[BillyCarpenter]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

The cabinet has been gutted and I'm sanding in prep for applying a vinyl graphic wrap. But first it needs a fresh coat of paint as the vinyl doesn't stick good to bare wood.

Right now it seems like I will never finish. Much work lies ahead.




cabinet2.jpg

[BillyCarpenter]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

I now have a much better understanding of how these virtual pinball cabinets function. Keep in mind that you can download these builds and play them on your PC using your keyboard to operate the flippers and other components.

However, when you play in cabinet mode, you no longer use a keyboard but instead use real buttons like you'd find on a real machine. These buttons will be connected to a circuit board that will that will encode the signals as a "keystroke" and feed them back to the PC where they will be understood like it was a computer keyboard stroke.

That's the simple part. It gets much more complicated. The people who wrote the code for the pinball games included code that incorporates real pinball hardware like solenoids, dot matrix boards, chimes, bells, ect.

Example: When you press the left flipper button, a solenoid will engage and give the exact same sound you'd hear on a real pinball table.


I'm a long ways from doing any of this as I'm sanding rust off the coin door and legs in prep for painting. It's a real pain in the ass.

[slimslob]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

I now have a much better understanding of how these virtual pinball cabinets function. Keep in mind that you can download these builds and play them on your PC using your keyboard to operate the flippers and other components.

However, when you play in cabinet mode, you no longer use a keyboard but instead use real buttons like you'd find on a real machine. These buttons will be connected to a circuit board that will that will encode the signals as a "keystroke" and feed them back to the PC where they will be understood like it was a computer keyboard stroke.

That's the simple part. It gets much more complicated. The people who wrote the code for the pinball games included code that incorporates real pinball hardware like solenoids, dot matrix boards, chimes, bells, ect.

Example: When you press the left flipper button, a solenoid will engage and give the exact same sound you'd hear on a real pinball table.


I'm a long ways from doing any of this as I'm sanding rust off the coin door and legs in prep for painting. It's a real pain in the ass.

But do they have tilt sensors built in?

[BillyCarpenter]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

But do they have tilt sensors built in?

It will have a tilt and nudge sensor. You can actually nudge the table and ball will move accordingly. Nudge too hard and it will tilt.

[BillyCarpenter]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

The cabinet is sanded, primed, painted and ready for graphics. I think I'm gonna build a bigger back box so that it will fit a 32 inch monitor. This one is too small.



prime 3.jpg

[BillyCarpenter]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

This project is turning into an obsession. But, hey, don't they all?


In the old cabinet, I was limited to a 27" monitor in the back box. I want a 32" monitor. There's a big difference as far as it being proportional to the playing field. So, I built a new back box that gives me what I want.

See picture:


new box 2.jpg

[MBZ6301]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

Looking good this pal,

I must admit despite what I mentioned on your other thread regarding this project I'm really looking forward to how it turns out, and recently I've become a bit obsessed with some of the tables on Pinball FX3.

Not sure if it's any help but if you need info from a newer machine for dimensions or whatever give us a shout, I've got a nearly standard Iron Man with manual, bits, etc

[BillyCarpenter]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

I'm done with the cabinet. That was a lot of work.

The next stage will be the hardest part. The machine will have 10 solenoids, shaker motor, strobe lights, LED strips, and more. Some of this stuff draws a lot of current and will require me installing a fuse bank and a relay board that has 15 separate relays.

I'll be installing 2 power supplies. (24vdc and 12vdc) I'll use a 12v to 5v converter for my 5v supply. I'm gonna have to lay out all of the components and find the best placement. There will be a ton of wire run inside the cabinet.

The software that will control all of the devices is called DOF - Direct Output Framework.

Think of DOF as the man in the middle between the table and the hardware.


I want to lay out all of the hardware and get it to working before I move on to the next stage.

[BillyCarpenter]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

A table like the one I'm building would cost around $7,000 if you bought it preconstructed.

I just ordered a bunch of stuff from Amazon that I'm gonna need.

I ordered a total of 48 items for.....


Subtotal (48 items): $1,142.78



I have a budget of $3,000. I think I'm gonna come in under that because I already had the computer and 40" & 32" monitors.

I need to order the graphics for the cabinet and I'm not sure what else I need. My head is kinda spinning. This should get me most of the way home and then we'll see....

[BillyCarpenter]

Re: Convert pinball to virtual pinball

I spent the majority of the day watching videos and reading articles on setting up the software that controls the hardware.

I wouldn't say that it's overly complicated. Don't get me wrong, it's complicated but compared to learning something like Windows Server or Routing & Switching, it's just not on that level. Learning Windows Server and studying for CCNA taught me patience and how to follow directions to a 'T'. Those skills will come in handy on this Virtual Pinball build. I would best describe the process as "tedious."

I really can't get started setting it up until my graphics card arrives. Until then, I'm just doing my research.