I don't even know what I'm talking about. I always assume that cabinets with the pads that have sheet metal panels on the base of the bar (3 separate pieces) rather than 1 whole piece always seem to be similar (roxor)... Whereas the ones with one piece of metal at the base (like mine) were andamiro or something... Honestly this is probably just a completely wrong thought I've had probably. How do you actually know the difference?

The first is a Andamiro cabinet and the second is a Roxor. There's a lot of ways to tell the difference, but the most obvious is; if it's an Andamiro cab, it will have the Andamiro logo on the marquee and at the bottom of the subwoofer panels. The Roxor version doesn't have this.

Also, the Andamiro version has "Pump it Up" written above the In the Groove 2 logo on the marquee. You can kind of see it in the photos.

Just posting to let everyone know that I did a little bit of touch up work on the pads today.

Pulled off some old worn foam and added new foam to the panels that needed them. They are up and running at 100%! If you have any issues with the pads please feel free to contact me!  

I also noticed that someone pulled off a significant amount of foam from the Player 1 side; the right and left arrows had a handful missing. I don't know who is doing this but please don't remove anymore foam, at least if you do, have the decency to post to let people know. This is the second time I had to re-foam the player 1 side.  

Thanks!

Ughh sorry about this! I wish it wasn't happening

I wonder if Bill's techs are the ones removing the foam, on the grounds that they don't all know why it's there? I feel like that's more likely than someone in the community messing with it. 

Also, I managed to totally miss the part where APHR and Abbye were the ones who finished the mod.  A sincere thank you for taking this on, guys. The pads are pretty great now!   

That was what I was thinking as well. I was there tonight and unfortunately, the player 2 side had pretty much all the foam removed as well.

Also, we are both happy that everyone is enjoying the pads! 

Going back tomorrow to re-re-re-mod the pads, and hopefully they will remain in the pads this time haha! 

Just posting to let everyone know that the player 2 side is modded again and ready to go!

Thanks.

Sorry I haven't been active on the forums lately - I've been busy and it kind of slipped. I still am busy, and will continue to be busy. Anyway, to clarify everything a little, I believe my responsibility to Bill with regard to the machine is to keep the computer in playable condition - when it goes down, I drop everything to fix it as quickly as possible. Beyond that, new content and working USB are a thing I try to deliver to the community as I can. Beyond that, it's not the computer any more and I have no responsibility toward it. I know how to work on pads and will do so when there's a problem I know about. I will give people their stolen quarters and check on the coin mechs if I am already there. These are things I do because I can and I feel generous, not because I have to. The computer is what I do for Bill, what has been the topic of any money exchange (parts reimbursement, etc.). So that said, if there's something you want done with the computer (settings tweaks, new content), I will get to it when I get to it, and I am trying to get back on top of doing it. The pads are already modded, obviously, but before that, I didn't need to be involved, because I would have just been another one of the players - my stance was neutral, but I didn't want to do it, because then I'd be responsible for the modding upkeep as well.

One additional point - I really don't like cutting in front of people to take the machine down for maintenance, so new content always waits if I can't get to Acme at a time when no one else is there. If you know me, my preference is to go when I'll be alone as often as possible, since I like to fiddle with the settings a lot.

My responsibilities at tournaments and at Sakuracon are also entirely separate, but related, and sometimes intersecting with those I have regarding the Acme machine.

As for the state of the computer:
1. The new OS has been pretty stable as far as I'm aware. Like the old OS, there is exactly one hiccup. This time it's that the computer only supports ITG mode and command line mode, so I can't tweak certain things as easily and adding content is doable, but more annoying than previously was the case.

2. Tachyon Delta and Fort Rapids VII Lower Division are coming soon - probably Saturday. Glad to field other requests - just give me a (working) link so I can actually download the file/pack.
3. I've been trying to switch the theme to Simply Love, but something is messed up with OITG and it crashes when you try to play a song with that theme. Switching the theme to SL will give us CMods again.
4. USB really is coming as-soon-as-vyhd-and-I-are-both-free-to-go-and-nobody-else-is-there-playing. I'm going to have to admit that last time I tried to set up USB, I rendered the old OS incompatible with the way OITG uses the filesystem in a way I couldn't figure out how to undo. vyhd, on the other hand, has actually done this successfully before.
5. I'm going to try dropping the brightness another bit. I may have misremembered the default value, and have been having issues with arrows blurring into the background on songs that I used to play a lot without that happening.

I had an interesting idea. It's a bit overkill for our needs, but maintenance on the ITG machine isn't always the easiest thing. A lot of stuff gets to me by text messages through the few people who have my phone number. I want to set up trac (http://trac.edgewall.org/), a piece of issue-tracking software (also a wiki engine and probably 18 other features). Every software company uses something like trac, and trac is completely free, but it would be kind of separate-ish from PNWBemani (it's not compatible with the forum software out of the box and setting that up would probably take a ton of work if it was possible in the first place, so I'm not even going to look into it).

New content for the machine? File a ticket and I'll actually have an easy place to look to find it. Find inappropriate-for-Acme content? File a ticket and it'll actually be written down somewhere. I always bring my laptop to Acme now, anyway, so I can set this up as a personal thing only, or I have permission to get some server space of my own and spawn off trac.pnwbemani.net so that we can all use it to organize information pertaining to the Acme ITG machine.

Any thoughts on the matter?

I'd just like to second that I couldn't get Simply Love to work on my machine, either. Something is up with that theme (yes, I tried Mute's version, too). My modded ITG3 theme has C and M mods...but I get the feeling that the ITG community gravitates towards the most minimal themes possible. Other than the ability to choose a different judgment font, I don't really see the pazaaz with the Simply Love theme. But, to each there own. I still have that ITG3-s theme link active from a few pages back if you care.

Well Simply Love wasn't meant for OITG which is the problem in the first place and why it's so difficult to run. Everyone has different builds and computers and there are just so many variables that it's tough to get it right. I Still don't have it running on my OITG on my Laptop but I have it on my SM3.95.
I think Simply Love is nice because it gives you the option of picking colors which IMO gives the player a higher advantage because colors can really affect your mood.
I always thought that Max 300 sounded intense but without the flaming red backgrounds and mines everywhere it's not nearly as intimidating.
Picking the Judgement font is also really nice because again colors/flashes/minor differences in font can really affect different people in different settings.
I like picking fonts that flash when I'm trying to FA things  because it gives me a pulse but don't like it during stamina because it's to distracting.
Simply Love also more precise mods for C and X mods and it does the math for you to tell you your scroll rate which is really nice for songs with speed changes or just to keep a constant among lots of different charts.
I felt pretty limited in that respect on your theme Scott.
Having a .75 option goes a long way but being able to play in increments of .10 Gives you that extra precision that might help a person read something they never could before or keep a chart at a rate where a song isn't two slow but isn't two fast.

But honestly if you incorporate split C and X mods, have good mini percentages, hide BG or Shades that don't DQ, and a decent font it shouldn't matter what theme you have.
I always loved Gold Theme haha because it was on a Dedi in Cali I used to play on all the time. 

Posting to say, thank you to Tony for putting on some new content on our machine at ACME!

Also, I just wanted to mention that I did some work on the Player 2 side bottom arrow. After foam modding the bottom arrow, it seemed to get stuck every once in a while. To help alleviate this problem I tried to switch the upper sensor on the bottom arrow with the right sensor and it worked out perfect!

Just logging what I've done thus far! 

Thanks

Huge problem at ACME! The power cord for the ITG machine is broken, can't turn the machine on. Hopefully someone can come down soon to fix this. Otherwise it's obviously unplayable.

Just saying that the power is on and it seems okay atm, the power cord however is still broken, not sure how its on to be honest!

Ill keep you posted.

Well just got done playing, not sure how the machine was turned on with the broken plug but I guess it is what it is. I still think it needs to be addressed!

Thanks

IIRC, The power cord is a standard desktop computer cord. Like this thing: http://www.amazon.com/Belkin-6-Feet-Replacement-Power-Cord/dp/B00000J1UQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1381363799&sr=1-1

You can get them even cheaper if you hunt around. If anyone has a desktop they aren't using and lives near Acme, feel free to give it a try. I'm using all of mine at the moment. They also sell them at Fry's. With the machine it's current position, the outlet is immediately behind the machine, and the plug is on the lower left side, so any length of cord should be enough.

Oh, and the cord is damaged because people keep pushing the machine too close to the wall. Someday, I hope to get the machine rigged up in such a way that I can do all the maintenance work remotely (push new song packs from home, change settings from my laptop while sitting near the machine, triggering a machine reboot during your set before it can save if you take one of my records, that kind of stuff), at which point I won't need to open it up for every little thing anymore, and we can put the feet down again.

Until then, to avoid putting pressure on the cord, if you do push the machine back up against the wall, here's the rule I use. Slide it off the wall by enough that you can fit your hand - fingers held together and straight, thumb out (use the hand that doesn't jam your thumb in the wall, obviously) - snuggly between the machine and the wall (this puts the machine about 3 inches off the wall with my hands), and repeat on both sides, to make sure it's parallel to the wall. This also ensures that the vents on the back of the machine actually have some circulation, which keeps the internals happier, meaning the machine keeps working. Line up the pads however you want after squaring the machine against the wall, rather than setting up the pads and lining the machine up afterward.

Someone phoned our shop about the power cord about the same time the post was made here.  Needless to say, a new cord was installed a couple  hours later.  :-)  And yes, nothing special about these line cords, just the standard computer type used on everything these days.

That brings up a funny story.  Since people sometimes need these power cords, we have a few ghetto spots where the cords get stolen on occasion.  Always have to carry a few spares.

Thank you for replacing the broken power cord! When I saw that the power cord was broken, I nearly died...   

I know as much about computers as I do nuclear physics so I seriously thought the ITG machine was going to be out for a while. So, thanks for coming to our rescue and fixing it! 

Met up with vyhd today, and we confirmed P2 USB was working, with one slight hitch - the USB Hub on the front plate is broken and we configured it using a spare port on the computer. Now we just have to install some kind of working USB port on the front of the machine.

Oh yeah, the P1 down and right arrows were giving me some trouble - the down arrow especially is very easy for me to stick. I adjusted the bracket screws a little and it got better, but I was still getting errors during almost every song. I haven't been messing with the foam, except for moving the occasional stray piece back into place after it slides out, since I don't know what I'm doing when it comes to the foam, but I can definitely say that some of the brackets were really sticky and it definitely helped to adjust the screws.

I'm assuming these are issues relatively specific to me, my build, and my playstyle, since others don't seem to get as many issues (I played Land of the Rising Sun from ITG1 - it's a 7 for those who don't remember - and got 8 misses on the right arrow yesterday), but it's still pretty bad for one player to not be able to play. I'll take a look again today and may end up taking out just a little bit of foam in some key spots if I can figure out where the problem is, since I think the stickiness is largely that the foam is making them a hair over-sensitive, and then a sensor is too strong or a bracket too sticky and it jams super easily.

Unless something changes, I'm going to head straight to Acme after work to play and, if no one else is there, to tear open the machine and try installing some replacement USB ports on the front. I'm replacing the hub with a nice USB wall plate I found and running extension cables from the plate to the computer - this should be a lot less breakage-prone(and easier to fix if it ever does break - than the hub was, plus it's likely to save/load a little faster without a cheaply made hub getting in the way. It's just going to look a little non-standard, since there's going to be a wall plate (like a normal power outlet, but with USB ports) where the old hub used to be.

From what I've noticed the Player 1 side is that the bottom/right arrows tend to get stuck when you play with heavier steps. I tend to play relatively light on my feet so I generally don't run into that problem. Also, the use of Powder helps alleviate this problem.

I will go in tomorrow afternoon, around 3pm to re-adjust the pads, they need some TLC anyways. I'll make sure the sticking won't happen and take a look through all the sensors and panels and replace the old foam with some new foam.

I'll keep you guys posted with regards to how the pads are functioning!

Thanks for the heads up.

I can't use powder, even the slightest bit and the pads are too slippery for me, and it's not just a matter of preference - even holding the bar, I can barely stay standing on powdered pads, let alone actually try to play well.

Also, I installed the new USB ports yesterday. They're the ugly thing taped to the front of the machine where the hub used to be - I'm going to talk to Bill about longer term solutions than a whole bunch of tape, but the mounting plate for the old hub is welded in, so I had to rig up what I could for now to get something working. Both ports are working as far as the computer is concerned, but P1 is still misconfigured for some reason, so only P2 USB works for now, ut it does work.

Might be nice if you could find a way to mount it on the left or right side of the machine similar to either what the actual upgrade kits did or what the machine at Narrows had.

Good news everyone! 

I just finished repairing the pads and they both seem pretty good to me. The issue with the player 1 side getting stuck has been resolved as far as I know. I played the player 1 side with more of a deeper/heavier step to check for sticky arrows, and I didn't run into any problems.

Again, feel free to contact me if anything acts up with regards to the pads!

Thanks!

So Evan, Tuan, Hollie and I were there last night. Left arrow P2 side was miss firing/Sticking pretty badly. Everything else was great!

Ah, got it, I'll fix it today!