bloodydrake
Cool Smoke Luke
whats gsync?
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The Pinball Arcade |OT| play them all from Soho to Brighton
- Thread starter AMUSIX
- Start date
I fired it up over the last few days and love the look of it, but for some reason the lighting on the ball just looks off. Like, it refracts light when it rolls over inserts as if it were a glass ball, not a metallic one. So for that reason (and it's hard to track the ball sometimes) I leave it at around 10-15% darkness and it looks great. Can't wait for portrait mode!
It's where your monitor's refresh rate is synchronised to the refresh rate of the game. So if your GPU is only capable of playing TPA at 45-50fps, you don't get screen tearing or locked to a 30fps refresh rate... your monitor just changes it's refresh rate to 45Hz.
bloodydrake
Cool Smoke Luke
ya they need to change the way the ball reflects light..the highlights shouldn't dim with the overall room lighting. Till they do that I have switched to the free custom ball that looks like a silver ball with black stripes on it...even at zero% its easier to track..not saying its good enough..but try it just till they address the ball issue later in the beta.
oh so its basically dynamic v-sync. that sounds cool.
why doesn't it work now? is it due to windows mode vs fullscreen and speed up bug?
If so try the alt+enter trick ...maybe that will help
Yup. I don't know how, but even the Zaccaria iOS app manages with dynamic lighting just fine (on an infinitely less powerful device) but FS can't wrap their heads around it :/
That's exactly what it is. But the monitor has to support it, it's a physical hardware thing. So you need to make sure you have the right monitor (usually pricey) and GPU. I think all new nVidia GPUs support it, as do AMD cards but with a different name.
bloodydrake
Cool Smoke Luke
might as well show off some from season 4 all are set for 0% brightness
really enjoy these tables alot more visually.
once all the pretty shiney wears off I'll be ready for them to add some dual monitor support and start to address their flipper and sliding ball physics
really enjoy these tables alot more visually.
once all the pretty shiney wears off I'll be ready for them to add some dual monitor support and start to address their flipper and sliding ball physics
Minsc
Gold Member
I have trouble believing this is actually a problem for anyone who owns a gsync monitor (particularly if it's a ~$700 1440p 27" one or so, but I imagine anyone who takes the initiative to spend $300+ on a new gsync monitor upgrade has a decent GPU capable of maxing out TPA).
I'd say it's more for those who use supersampling to play it at an internal resolution of a billion P. If you can afford a GPU/monitor capable of GSync, your PC can run TPA without any issue. Hell, my 5970/5850 combo which would have to be going on 6 years old now can run it fine, albeit with the typical AMD/ATI problems (like AA/AF not applying properly for some reason).I have trouble believing this is actually a problem for anyone who owns a gsync monitor (particularly if it's a ~$700 1440p 27" one or so, but I imagine anyone who takes the initiative to spend $300+ on a new gsync monitor upgrade has a decent GPU capable of maxing out TPA).
Gentleman Jack
Member
When I attempted a 4x MSAA downsample of TPA it ran at about 1 frame every four seconds. Maybe it's different in DX11 world but TPA is not a game friendly to your machine when you try to push it to extreme resolutions.
Minsc
Gold Member
Perhaps, I dunno. I just tried the newly patched beta at 2160x3840, and it ran silky smooth for me (exactly the same as 1080p), you can even see the aliasing is sharper, compare the main ball ramp over the middle (need to load to tabs):
2160p
1080p
Sure is looking nice btw, they've done a pretty good job for a rough beta!
Maybe try using the configuration tool to get it to downsample instead of MSAA. It allows you to set the game to super sample by selecting resolutions higher than what you're running.
Yeah, I should have specified that in my case it's not about the game performing slowly or anything, but it actually instead runs too fast. The DX11 beta currently doesn't cap framerates, I guess? So when I run fullscreen TPA picks 144hz and the game runs at over 2x speed since this game's logic speed is dependent on the framerate.
Ohhh... so you enable v-sync, but because your monitor runs at >60Hz, it's causing problems? Gotcha. I think I've heard people complain about a 60fps cap with the original DX9 version, so you might be right about it not being able to run (properly) at higher refresh rates.
I'd post about it in the beta thread on PAF.
Nice! I don't think you'll regret it. I would also make sure you check out any Pinside threads that mention potential problems with the game. Not that I've heard of any, but newer Sterns tend to have one or two issues that can get a bit gnarly. I'd also suss out what's called "Cliffy" protectors for the mystery scoop and magnets, just so your playfield doesn't get heavy wear in those spotsJust got a bunch of cash out of the bank. MET Premium so close I can taste it...
Only thing with newer Sterns I think is that resale value might not be as easy to work out as with 90s and early 2000s games. But if you're keeping it for a while, I doubt there'll be any problem with that at all.
PS. Post photos as soon as you can!
Minsc
Gold Member
Wouldn't a 144hz gsync monitor still sync the game to 144fps? I didn't realize gsync slows games down, i thought it just synced your display to the framerate you were getting better (which would still be 144 fps).
Edit: Another thought, couldn't you just set your current 144hz monitor to run at 60hz when you launch the game, then it would run the game at 60fps?
Okay, finally gave the beta a go and got a setup with great IQ. And I found out I can Vesa mount my monitor for portrait despite only 2 screw holes, should bear it.
Here are mine from landscape mode: 2160x1280, 8xMSAA 100Q, 16xAF. Runs at 60fps on my HD6850.
Backlight: 35 and 30. Lower looks worse to me, shows how the lighting is still early. Too bloomy.
Otherwise, looking pretty smooth thanks to the minimal downsampling. Tried 4k, nope.
Here are mine from landscape mode: 2160x1280, 8xMSAA 100Q, 16xAF. Runs at 60fps on my HD6850.
Backlight: 35 and 30. Lower looks worse to me, shows how the lighting is still early. Too bloomy.
Otherwise, looking pretty smooth thanks to the minimal downsampling. Tried 4k, nope.
bloodydrake
Cool Smoke Luke
Just tried this and wow the super sampling looks even better then before..menus are a bit messed up but significantly clearer details
thx for the tip
Do you have post-processing on or off? I stopped using it after a very short time with the old lighting model, I'd imagine it would blow out some colours if you were using it on the DX11 .exe
Gentleman Jack
Member
I'm really really glad that global illumination is a per-table setting. Well done on that one, Farsight.
drhankmccoyphd
Member
Probably a common question, but can anyone recommend a rotating stand for portrait mode? I found one on Amazon but never put it on my wishlist.
Also, any chance of a sale to celebrate the beta?
Also, any chance of a sale to celebrate the beta?
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
Man, MET Pros are not as expensive as I thought. I'm HALF tempted to grab one, play it for a bit, and trade it for a LOTR.
I have heard lots of good things about MET Pro, but haven't played it enough to get a good impression personally. Looking at the way the market works, if a game is good then there will be demand for near-NIB games as soon as they are no longer available NIB. Also people are always interested in what is new and shiny, so games like LOTR will surface as new games are released. Lastly a lot of people like to trade rather than sell games, so having a game to trade helps with getting the one you want. As long as you like the game or are at least interested in playing it for a while, I'd say go for it. Don't just buy one purely as trade bait.
The Technomancer
card-carrying scientician
Huh, cool, this tiny hamburger place near where I work has a T2 machine in pretty good condition
I need to find some quarters :/
I need to find some quarters :/
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
Yeah, I'd be buying it because the game is pretty damn good. I would, of course, prefer LOTR. But if I can get an MET Pro for less than $5k delivered (
$4700 NIB or $4300 for a non-LED showroom model
Rule #1 for pinball junkies - ALWAYS have quarters on you.
ALWAYS
E: I will be the owner a NIB MET Pro LED next week. :3
bloodydrake
Cool Smoke Luke
got one of these its fantastic
http://www.amazon.com/Single-Monitor-Desktop-Deluxe-STAND-V001B/dp/B00EQ7HTG6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1429734272&sr=8-1&keywords=STAND-V001B
thats how what i use in the pics a page back
Assuming it is actually unopened, you shouldn't need to worry unless the box looks damaged. For peace of mind, you could ask the seller to set it up and demonstrate that it works before you take it with you. I am pretty sure that Stern provides a warranty on their machines.
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
If it's sealed, and you are a serious buyer, they should have no problem opening to verify that it's indeed NIB. Make sure you double check about the warranty, too.
Two new MET owners in this thread!
Although mine is a Pro (because I can't say no to
$4700 delivered
Wow. First Nate from C2C gets a MET Pro LED, then two other people are getting practically the same machine! If I was getting one I'd probably go for the Pro as well (I just don't like the hammer, to be honest) but I think I'd rather have Spidey.
Congrats to everyone on their new acquisitions! I'm afraid my next one will probably be a while given I'm saving for a house, but hopefully when I find a place it'll have room for a friend to lend me plenty of his! That would include a Whitewater, and potentially a practically mint Black Knight, practically mint WWF, or maybe even his Centaur or a projecty-kinda Black Hole. I know he has a Dr. Dude as well.
Hell, if I have even a $1k after things are all done I might be able to get one of these for myself:
Robot by Zaccaria
I played a Pinball Champ '82 a few months back and loved how it played like a campy early-mid 80s Bally (think Centaur/Fathom) so I might just "settle" for Robot. I think it'd be fun!
Congrats to everyone on their new acquisitions! I'm afraid my next one will probably be a while given I'm saving for a house, but hopefully when I find a place it'll have room for a friend to lend me plenty of his! That would include a Whitewater, and potentially a practically mint Black Knight, practically mint WWF, or maybe even his Centaur or a projecty-kinda Black Hole. I know he has a Dr. Dude as well.
Hell, if I have even a $1k after things are all done I might be able to get one of these for myself:
Robot by Zaccaria
I played a Pinball Champ '82 a few months back and loved how it played like a campy early-mid 80s Bally (think Centaur/Fathom) so I might just "settle" for Robot. I think it'd be fun!
My copy of Pinball Arcade is updating on Steam. 182MB. Could this be Jack-Bot?
Hmmm, the Whats New brings up Jack-Bot, but it's not playable in the Season 4 folder. Small bug? Also, it's version 37.5, so yeah this has to be the Jack-Bot update.
Apparently this wasn't the Jack-Bot update. It was something related to the beta it looks like. Nothing to see here. Move along.
Hmmm, the Whats New brings up Jack-Bot, but it's not playable in the Season 4 folder. Small bug? Also, it's version 37.5, so yeah this has to be the Jack-Bot update.
Apparently this wasn't the Jack-Bot update. It was something related to the beta it looks like. Nothing to see here. Move along.
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
Spidey is crazy expensive here, LOTR has alluded me, and I had cash and wanted to play pinball. MET is one of those games that, if I wanted to trade it for LOTR or SM or something, I would have NO problem doing so.
Having said that, I am excited for the game. The band isn't my favorite, but they do have some incredible songs that I remember from when I was growing up. Also, the art is fucking glorious on this machine. I am STOKED for that. I plan to FINALLY open my expensive beers to break this game in next week!
Spidey can be expensive here, but I don't think it was that popular. I have a feeling it's one of those titles that wasn't common in Australia, but rather than that making it more expensive it just kinda holds regular value for it's era. I know I've seen some go for around $5.5k, which means I'd pay a little under $2k if I swapped it with RBION (possibly less).Spidey is crazy expensive here, LOTR has alluded me, and I had cash and wanted to play pinball. MET is one of those games that, if I wanted to trade it for LOTR or SM or something, I would have NO problem doing so.
Having said that, I am excited for the game. The band isn't my favorite, but they do have some incredible songs that I remember from when I was growing up. Also, the art is fucking glorious on this machine. I am STOKED for that. I plan to FINALLY open my expensive beers to break this game in next week!
I don't know if I'd swap a HUO RBION for a Spidey that shows some wear, though. Just have a feeling that even though it's already hard to come by, a HUO Ripley's is even harder.
So this Metallica Pro LED, is it new or just NIB from someone who didn't want it? And how much are you paying? Last question: What's their RRP over there?
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
NIB delivered right from Stern! I THINK it's part of the latest run they posted pics of on Facebook, but we'll see.
I'm paying $4600 + $100 shipping. I think RRP (is that MSRP?) Is $5400.
bloodydrake
Cool Smoke Luke
Patch Notes
Fantastic Beta update btw the light bulb brightness helps the older tables like Twilight Zone alot
Holy cow, that's super cheap! For what it's worth, you can see on this page just how much us Aussies get slugged for buying a machine. If you can't find it on there, it's $7850AUD :/
Make sure you get some Cliffys on that thing too. I don't know if they ever solved the problem with the magnet protectors (I think they were warping or lifting with the heat from the Sparky magnet?) but you almost definitely want one for the mystery scoop.
I believe there's also a spinner mod available for it? I tried reading part of the thread on Pinside but I couldn't access it at work :/
Fake edit: $7850AUD translates to just on $6k USD via xe.com. That actually doesn't work out to be too bad, currency-wise. Just a shame our dollar is in the shit, means everything from NA is that much more expensive
That's great. So by their wording is that like distinguishing between room brightness and table brightness? I can't tell. And did they fix the portrait mode issue?
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
Yeah, I was pretty thrilled with the price. So...
And I think I'm going to order a Color DMD. Ouch.
Also, I am downloading TPA on Steam now. I've only ever played it on handhelds and mobile...So it's time to see what all the fuss is about.
And I think I'm going to order a Color DMD. Ouch.
Also, I am downloading TPA on Steam now. I've only ever played it on handhelds and mobile...So it's time to see what all the fuss is about.
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
Awesome, thanks.
Also, been going through and listening to a bunch of Metallica on YouTube. I lied - I fucking love their music. I grew up with this, but just haven't heard it in 10+ years. So much good shit.
And if you don't, you can download Pinball Browser and replace the music with your own. I'm pretty sure you can change the stuff you select in the main menu, but probably not the mode-based music.
Minsc
Gold Member
Yes and yes. I think the main issue that remains now is for people using non 16:9 aspect ratios, but I'm not 100% sure, there's probably a workaround for that out now. Though I'm not sure they'll leave the sliders in at release or if they're a beta thing. I could see release simply having like 2-3 presets per table, bright/dim/off for lighting. Hopefully not, but since each table needs to be tweaked separately for a proper dark setting, it wouldn't hurt if they did have some sort of night default that is properly adjusted, 0% on some tables is horrible.
DX11 upgrade after you set the room brightness in the help & options menu (once you've started a game) to around 0-20% really breathes new life in to the tables for me, they look so much more realistic now, it definitely improves them, gives them a lot more depth to objects as well.
You also do have to launch the game by right clicking and selecting the DX11 beta specifically (every single time), a normal shortcut/double-click will get you the DX9 version.
bloodydrake
Cool Smoke Luke
yep specifically the second slider is for bulb brightness.
I find it helps on old tables like the twilight zone to set the bulb brightness to 100%
then lower room brightness to as close to 0 that your happy with.
Newer tables like Dracula and season 4 probably don't need the bulb brightness adjusted since the lighting on those seem to have already been tweaked in prep for dx11
I find it helps on old tables like the twilight zone to set the bulb brightness to 100%
then lower room brightness to as close to 0 that your happy with.
Newer tables like Dracula and season 4 probably don't need the bulb brightness adjusted since the lighting on those seem to have already been tweaked in prep for dx11
You don't have to right-click at all, when you open it up by default the popup will appear for the different options
Agreed about room/bulb lighting too, having room lighting at 20% or so really makes it pop. Not sure what I think about the tables having slightly different physics though. Taxi for example feels completely different to CFTBL, for example.
bloodydrake
Cool Smoke Luke
I agree about this..older tables don't feel right..the ball glides all over and feels like its "on the rails" alot
do they still let you try tables you haven't bought?
try cyclone, I'm not a fan of the table overall but I find the ball physics feels alot better. The ball seems to have some more heft and not so floaty.
Hey nicoga,
Are you getting shaker motor? I am, though the speakers are tempting. Was going to go hog-wild on mod LEDs but think I will hold off for now. Current plan:
-Cliffy's full set
-Shaker
-Snake tongue decal & fangs (just because seller had them)
-Fuel gel (same)
Probably will get color DMD at some point but unfortunately it's not out yet.
Are you getting shaker motor? I am, though the speakers are tempting. Was going to go hog-wild on mod LEDs but think I will hold off for now. Current plan:
-Cliffy's full set
-Shaker
-Snake tongue decal & fangs (just because seller had them)
-Fuel gel (same)
Probably will get color DMD at some point but unfortunately it's not out yet.
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
I actually just emailed the distributor I bought my game from. Normally, distributors offer a discount on a shaker when you buy NIB from them. He never offered, so I'm going to ask him and see if I can't get one for like $100 or whatever.
I will only be doing the Mystery Scoop Cliffy on this one. Apparently the magnet protectors are problematic with the new code update? Something about the way the magnet pulses now can cause curling on the protector. I also bought the shooter lane protector from pinballlife, mostly because I had a $10 gift certificate for them. But I would get a shooter lane protector from SOMEWHERE to protect your investment.
Instead of Cliffy on the magnets, I am going to put mylar circles on the playfield. I also ordered mylar for the ball drops off the wireforms.
Snake tongue and fangs are on their way as well.
Since I am getting the Pro LED model, I can just change the bulbs for the Fuel inserts. That's easier and cheaper in the long run.
I want to order a ColorDMD (you can order the generic Sigma kit now so you can beat the rush when they release the rom), but I think I'm going to hold onto my $400 for the moment. That said, I will likely get it in the future.
Farsight is gonna be streaming Jack*Bot soon: http://www.twitch.tv/farsight_studios
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
Niiiice. I've never even seen this game, so I'm excited.
twinturbo2
butthurt Heat fan
It's basically PinBot with a casino theme, a casino-themed rule set, and a DMD.
(Remember to hold the flippers during the Casino Run.)
Hopefully we get High Speed II next month, I have my Lamborghini gassed up and a ZZ Top playlist on my iPhone ready to go.
I have all of them, so I can try any
But the funny thing with Taxi is that it's like the physics engine speeds up and slows down. Sometimes the ball feels like it's going faster than it should, other times it's "normal". But CFTBL is just weird, as is BoP. Haven't posted about this on PAF yet, but I honestly don't remember there being this much disparity between the tables in the DX9 version.Where are you getting those mylar things from? I wouldn't mind getting some for the RBION magnet and vari-target ball drop near the right orbit.
And I've heard the same thing about the Cliffy magnet protector as well, but this was a few months ago. Maybe things have changed since then?
On Jack*Bot, I played it for the first (and only) time in Texas last year and it didn't really grab me. To be honest, I didn't really "get" it, but I didn't spend a lot of time on it.
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
I am ordering mine from Pinball Life. However, someone on Pinside just told me I can get them at Office Max or Office Depot. Basically, your local office supply store should have mylar sheet. You just have to cut it yourself.
Pinball Life has so much stuff I want, but christ their shipping to Australia is horrid
Actually, I don't think they have that much, but I keep hearing their balls are the best.