Beatmania IIDX AC to test in the US! Oh... My... GOD!!!

Amp Divorax · Post by **Amp Divorax** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 8:00 pm

Pics of the machine are up on http://ddrehab.net

Riot · Post by **Riot** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 3:18 am

Wow, didn't know IIDX Gold was meant for ONLY the USA. Apparently it's not supposed to be sold anywhere besides USA, and all the menus and everything are completely english and everything.

WhiteDragon · Post by **WhiteDragon** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 8:06 am

Amp Divorax wrote:Pics of the machine are up on http://ddrehab.net

What the FUCK?! What is this shit?! That is NOT what a IIDX monitor is supposed to look like! Shit! Figures that when they release IIDX over here they manage to fuck something up!

Also, from what I've heard from Ho, doing this is a pretty damn stupid thing to do.

Post by Ho » Tue Mar 06, 2007 9:30 am

Riot wrote:Wow, didn't know IIDX Gold was meant for ONLY the USA. Apparently it's not supposed to be sold anywhere besides USA, and all the menus and everything are completely english and everything.

The particular version at BZN may be regionalized for the US (and include a license screen indicating it as such), but I can assure you that Gold has already been released in Japan as well...and perhaps the UK based upon its appearance at ATEI in London.

WhiteDragon wrote:What the FUCK?! What is this shit?! That is NOT what a IIDX monitor is supposed to look like! Shit! Figures that when they release IIDX over here they manage to fuck something up!

Actually, that is the correct monitor for IIDX nowadays.

The original monitor Konami used on IIDX cabinets was a 40" LCD rear-projection unit as pictured here:

Beginning with 10th Style, they switched to a 34" CRT direct-view as pictured here:

They include a giant metal bezel to go around the monitor to fill in the extra space difference between the 40" and the 34" since they didn't redesign the dimensions of the rest of the cabinet.
(NOTE: At least I'm pretty sure the switch was made at 10th Style as all of the stock photos of 9th Style machines I've seen still show the original monitor style.)

When purchasing a replacement monitor for my own machine, I decided to go for something closer to the original style rather than the new style for a few reasons:
a) It was originally a 4th Style machine and would have had the old style monitor,
b) I prefer the look of the larger screen in the cabinet and think it has a "higher impact", and
c) I didn't think I would be able to acquire one of those giant metal bezels nor did I want to attempt to construct one.

They generally don't make rear-projection units as small as the 40-42" range anymore, so I pretty much had to go with either a LCD or plasma direct view to get the size I was looking for. I auditioned quite a few before finally deciding on the plasma that I ended up with. Fortunately, lag was down to just 1-2 frames on pretty much every unit I tried. As a result, my decision came down to a picture quality preference and overall size (some 40-42" screens came with really large bezels that would not have fit in the IIDX monitor space).

Don't sell out the new CRT monitor though. There are some advantages to it. First of all, there should be virtually no lag. This, of course, is critical to IIDX. Other technologies have made great strides at eliminating lag, but I think the CRT was probably a good choice at the time (10th Style) they made it.

The CRT should also be less susceptible to burn-in than a plasma (though not immune like an LCD). It should also be more durable in the rough-and-tumble world of an arcade--especially an American arcade. It's a lot harder to scratch, bash, or do other permanent damage to the glass face of a CRT than just about any other alternative.

WhiteDragon wrote:Also, from what I've heard from Ho, doing this is a pretty damn stupid thing to do.

If he's standing on the control deck...yeah, that is pretty damn stupid. The control deck on my machine is held on with just four bolts, and the sides of the deck extend past the main body of the machine where they aren't supported very well.

But if he's standing on top of the woofer box on the side, it's pretty sturdy. I can't really tell for sure in that picture, but I'm guessing the latter, safer option. Still, a step stool would be a much better idea.

chocobojoe · Post by **chocobojoe** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 9:40 am

WhiteDragon wrote:That is NOT what a IIDX monitor is supposed to look like!

It's better than some damn 25" Sanyo flat-panel piece of crap so hush

WhiteDragon · Post by **WhiteDragon** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 3:08 pm

Ho wrote:Beginning with 10th Style, they switched to a 34" CRT direct-view as pictured here:

Lame.

Though I do see how it's better suited for it's purpose.

danc1005 · Post by **danc1005** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 4:26 pm

Maybe it's just me, but that HUGE bezel seems quite unattractive.

Post by **MonMotha** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 4:40 pm

While I agree that the Bezel isn't exactly stylish, having played on that style, I can tell you that it really isn't that bad. The metal bezel looks fairly at home on the cabinet, and it doesn't move you too far off center. Compared to playing on machines with their original monitor, it was welcome. The original monitors just fell apart under constant arcade use: they got dim and blurry to the point of being unplayable. Supposedly you can at least fix the dimness issue by cleaning the mirrors, but I don't trust your average arcade op to ever do that.

The monitor is well suited for the game. It's still rather large at that distance (if anything, the old one is TOO big), doesn't lag at all, is clear an vibrant, and isn't too susceptible to burn-in. It's also the same size monitor as is being used on other IIDX machines at this point, so don't complain about the USA getting shafted or anything.

Amp Divorax · Post by **Amp Divorax** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 8:20 pm

Personally, I actually prefer the CRTs over the Rear Projection LCDs when it comes to the arcade even though they are smaller in size. Something that I will mention is that on Monday it was a 2 hour wait to play the game and the Konami reps were happy with the location test. Also, I will mention that they have translated everything into english except for song titles. I want to go this weekend, but as I can't find anybody else who wants to go I might not do the roadtrip now.

Oh, something I hope will happen is that Konami would sell upgrades to Gold in the US.

Merk · Post by **Merk** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 8:55 pm

If you're willing to make a detour to Ft. Wayne then perhaps something can be worked out

Amp Divorax · Post by **Amp Divorax** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 7:36 am

That could be a possibility, albeit I have NEVER been to Ft. Wayne before.

Post by Ho » Wed Mar 07, 2007 3:28 pm

Amp Divorax wrote:Oh, something I hope will happen is that Konami would sell upgrades to Gold in the US.

Do you think there are very many machines here that would be able to take advantage of such an offer?

I suppose it's not too big a deal for Konami to make kits available if they're going to release the full game as well. But unlike DDR, I just don't see that there's much of an available market for IIDX upgrade kits.

I've had this discussion with various people... Does anyone have a feel for how many IIDX machines are in the country? This is just anecdotal, but I wouldn't be surprised if the total number is less than 50...maybe even less than 25.

But like I said, I don't have good data on this. Does anyone have some to share?

Amp Divorax · Post by **Amp Divorax** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 4:23 pm

I know that http://lights2dx.net has a tally of all the 10th style and newer machines. As for older machines I have no idea really.

Dyme · Post by **Dyme** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 10:21 pm

Odyssey Fun World in Tinley Park, IL uses theres as a wall. kinda funny. yeah its broke...lol

Post by Ho » Thu Mar 08, 2007 9:40 am

Amp Divorax wrote:I know that http://lights2dx.net has a tally of all the 10th style and newer machines. As for older machines I have no idea really.

Thanks for that. I count 20 listed on that site. Let's estimate that there's another 20 pre-10th Style machines in the country. That would still be within the < 50 total machines guesstimate I stated previously.

I guess that's a market...but compared to the 1000s of DDR machines here, it's pretty small potatoes.

Dyme wrote:Odyssey Fun World in Tinley Park, IL uses theres as a wall. kinda funny. yeah its broke...lol

The machine at the Ft. Wayne Putt-Putt was pretty much a coat rack for quite awhile while it had no monitor.