I want the AtGames 4KP (even though I own a state of the art vpin)

[jdv]

Let me explain why:

 

[robertms]

Hmm.. my custom VPin turns on with one switch and is ready to play in under 30 seconds. I installed everything internally, so no cables outside other than the AC power. An analog plunger and accelerometer were simple to implement. Not to mention DOF with multiple solenoids and flashers, which I simply couldn't live without. So as good as you claim the 4K AtGames is, maybe your VPin is not as "state-of-the-art" as it could be?

 

p.s. just busting your "balls"..

[jdv]

 Yeah, I knew this sort of comment was coming (and deservedly so)!   I'm still very much a beginner in this hobby in many ways; still fumbling my way through.  Send me an email if you'd like me to cover your 'Zilla rig - it looks incredible!

 

Part of why it takes so long for my vpin to set up is that I also use as my main editing machine - so the vpin aspect is, sadly, secondary. 

And as try as I might, I can not get my PC to recognize 7.1 sound at boot (actually quite a few topics on this subject at reddit and the like); apparently it got nuked in one of the later windows 10 updates.  If anyone knows a fix for this, I'd be grateful....

 

And no avoiding having to manually turn on the LG C2 or the tv I'm using for my backglass... but I'll put that C2 up against any other monitor going right now - it's been a gem (better be for what I paid for it).  Once you go OLED, you won't go back.

 

I can't get DOF to work yet, but when a table has good 7.1 sound (which is almost all of 'em of late), the 4 amps/9 speakers I run do a great job (when I remember that I have to reset windows sound to 7.1).  I do want a separate knocker and shaker motor though, so at some point I'm going to have to figure out DOF....

 

BUT all that said, using the plunger on the 4KP has made me realize that I do need one of those for sure.  I don't know if I need DOF to make it work though.  One of the positives (and perhaps negatives) is that I learn something new almost every day in this hobby.  I am honestly in awe of you guys who know this stuff inside and out & program these games. 

[SoonerDoc]

It is absolute junk. Do not do it. 

[NerdLoftGaming]

On 3/23/2024 at 11:34 PM, SoonerDoc said:

It is absolute junk. Do not do it. 

Not really. 

[jdv]

Yeah, nothing near junk - zero chance of building something as nice as this machine is for what they're asking for it (esp if it's on sale).

 

And of course, there are literally zero other companies making anything else like this product.  For casual vpin fans who want a one-stop-shop experience with licensed games, this is the only game in town.

[SoonerDoc]

OK. You do you. Don’t say you weren’t warned. 

[GeorgeH]

Tell more about the PinballNet™ subscription.  Do you really need it? Is it worth $30 per month?

 

Does it allow you to add Future Pinball and Visual Pinball tables that you download yourself?

 

 

Edited April 4 by GeorgeH
add another question.

[jdv]

I've never used any of AG's subscription services... but I think it'd be a good way to try out their library (for instance for their new 4k versions of the Gottlieb tables).

[Khrymsyn]

Hi all! I'm completely new here.

I got a 4k machine at launch after thinking for years I would love a VP machine... issue is I don't have the carpentry skill and up until recently didn't have the space to try to learn how to build a system myself. I kinda didn't really want to go down the tweaking rabbit hole for PC based vPIN (which changed.... lol), and I also didn't want to throw 5-6+ k on a prebuilt, so never pulled the trigger. This seemed to tick a lot of boxes (good sized, pre-built, don't have to fiddle with things), and luckily it got to me even with pretty badly beat up shipping boxes, in good working order.

 

 

George - I can't answer about the PinballNet subscription. I think it's to be unlocked this or next month? But I can answer your other question as well as some other "thoughts".

1.  Future Pinball and Visual Pinball? Yes! Even though I wanted something "turnkey"... I wound up being inspired by this forum (and TerryRed's Jaws and VPW's Tron Legacy) to figure out how to get FP/VPX working. Yes, you can set up a separate computer, plug in 3 HDMI cables (one each for Playfield, backglass, DMD), as well as a USB cable for inputs, and so far I have Jaws, Tron, and probably another 15 machines running. I'll admit I'm much worse getting FP tables working than VPX tables, even though Terry's got an insane amount of docs out there... but it's definitely do-able!
   1. For the record, the machine I'm running off of is not even that strong. An old i7-4770k with a 1070 GPU all on a 512 SSD running Win10. Seems most games are hitting 60fps even with the playfield set at 4k. Tron Legacy does run a little "laggy" compared to the rest though. Only one that seems to be like that.
2. As I noted, playfield at 60Hz/FPS. For folks that want 120Hz smoothness, this will not work. The 3 screens are 4k/60, 1080p/60, 1080p/60. I don't mind this, and none of my friends/family that have tried it seemed to notice any issue, but I also know that once you're "into something" the rabbit hole gets deep.... don't ask me about my sim racing rig... *sigh*
3. The system comes in 2, possibly 3 boxes. Box 1 is playfield, box 2 is topper/backbox, box 3 is SSF kit. SSF kit IMO is almost a must. Crazy the change in impact it's made. And yes, it does work with FP/VPX as far as I've been able to tell.
4. The Zen tables have lag.... but recent updates seem to have improved it. For some it may be lowered to acceptable, for others still will be too much. I'd rate it right now as far as lag it goes "built in tables" -> OTG (PC FP/VPX) -> Zen tables in terms of lowest lag to worst lag. Though, as I said, the Zen tables improved pretty recently.

 

That's my 2 cents as a newbie. Reality is, if there wasn't an item for this price-range that was pretty easy to put together, feeling built solid, and seemingly this "maintenance free" so far (not including OTG) then I probably would still be dreaming about virtual pinball instead of playing it.

Also, thanks to this community for keeping the idea of Virtual Pinball out there. I had no idea this all existed until a couple years ago.

 

 

 

[GeorgeH]

10 hours ago, Khrymsyn said:

Hi all! I'm completely new here.

I got a 4k machine at launch after thinking for years I would love a VP machine... issue is I don't have the carpentry skill and up until recently didn't have the space to try to learn how to build a system myself. I kinda didn't really want to go down the tweaking rabbit hole for PC based vPIN (which changed.... lol), and I also didn't want to throw 5-6+ k on a prebuilt, so never pulled the trigger. This seemed to tick a lot of boxes (good sized, pre-built, don't have to fiddle with things), and luckily it got to me even with pretty badly beat up shipping boxes, in good working order.

 

 

George - I can't answer about the PinballNet subscription. I think it's to be unlocked this or next month? But I can answer your other question as well as some other "thoughts".

1.  Future Pinball and Visual Pinball? Yes! Even though I wanted something "turnkey"... I wound up being inspired by this forum (and TerryRed's Jaws and VPW's Tron Legacy) to figure out how to get FP/VPX working. Yes, you can set up a separate computer, plug in 3 HDMI cables (one each for Playfield, backglass, DMD), as well as a USB cable for inputs, and so far I have Jaws, Tron, and probably another 15 machines running. I'll admit I'm much worse getting FP tables working than VPX tables, even though Terry's got an insane amount of docs out there... but it's definitely do-able!
   1. For the record, the machine I'm running off of is not even that strong. An old i7-4770k with a 1070 GPU all on a 512 SSD running Win10. Seems most games are hitting 60fps even with the playfield set at 4k. Tron Legacy does run a little "laggy" compared to the rest though. Only one that seems to be like that.
2. As I noted, playfield at 60Hz/FPS. For folks that want 120Hz smoothness, this will not work. The 3 screens are 4k/60, 1080p/60, 1080p/60. I don't mind this, and none of my friends/family that have tried it seemed to notice any issue, but I also know that once you're "into something" the rabbit hole gets deep.... don't ask me about my sim racing rig... *sigh*
3. The system comes in 2, possibly 3 boxes. Box 1 is playfield, box 2 is topper/backbox, box 3 is SSF kit. SSF kit IMO is almost a must. Crazy the change in impact it's made. And yes, it does work with FP/VPX as far as I've been able to tell.
4. The Zen tables have lag.... but recent updates seem to have improved it. For some it may be lowered to acceptable, for others still will be too much. I'd rate it right now as far as lag it goes "built in tables" -> OTG (PC FP/VPX) -> Zen tables in terms of lowest lag to worst lag. Though, as I said, the Zen tables improved pretty recently.

 

That's my 2 cents as a newbie. Reality is, if there wasn't an item for this price-range that was pretty easy to put together, feeling built solid, and seemingly this "maintenance free" so far (not including OTG) then I probably would still be dreaming about virtual pinball instead of playing it.

Also, thanks to this community for keeping the idea of Virtual Pinball out there. I had no idea this all existed until a couple years ago.

 

 

 

 

I am surprised you can get SSF.  Is there a way to add Future Pinball and Visual Pinball tables other than attaching another PC?

[Khrymsyn]

I don't believe that'd be a possibility George.

The machine would have to be hacked and Future Pinball and Visual Pinball would need to be written/patched in such a way to support the machine's hardware and operating system. I don't anticipate those things to ever happen together anytime soon if ever.  You'd need a separate computer of some sort.

 

 

[GeorgeH]

 

 

 

14 hours ago, Khrymsyn said:

I don't believe that'd be a possibility George.

The machine would have to be hacked and Future Pinball and Visual Pinball would need to be written/patched in such a way to support the machine's hardware and operating system. I don't anticipate those things to ever happen together anytime soon if ever.  You'd need a separate computer of some sort.

 

I expected it.  I suppose I could hook it to my existing PC although I don't think it has 3 HDMI cable inputs. 

[Bartdesign]

On 3/19/2024 at 5:17 AM, jdv said:

And no avoiding having to manually turn on the LG C2 or the tv I'm using for my backglass... but I'll put that C2 up against any other monitor going right now - it's been a gem (better be for what I paid for it).  Once you go OLED, you won't go back.

 

 

You actually can, all LG TV's support wake on lan via network cable or WIFI. You can run a program at startup of the computer and wake up the OLED.

 

Or use something like: https://github.com/JPersson77/LGTVCompanion

 

You can also buy a HDMI CEC device to send power on commands to your playfield or use a little IR transmitter. Food for thought 😉