What are /r/Stepmania's favorite Products & Services?

From 3.5 billion Reddit comments

here is a helpful picture dictionary on ffr (scroll down to the gifs)

the only thing it doesnt cover is chordjacks because they're relatively new to the meta (in the west at least), but they're basically patterns with repeated chords (jumps, hands, quads). an example of a chordjack file is the lost dedicated from the pack fullerene shift. here is a picture example from said file

Judge 3 is way too lenient compared to the arcade. If you want something that's close to ITG, you'll have to use judge 4.

SM Judge 4 / ITG
Marv: 22.5 ms / 21.5 ms
Perfect: 45 ms / 43 ms
Great: 90 ms / 102 ms
Good: 135 ms / 135 ms
Bad: 180 ms / 180 ms
so you can see Judge 4 is pretty close.

If you want DDR timing windows, in addition to selecting judge 4, you'll have to go to the folder where SM is installed, go to Save/Preferences.ini and change the following lines from:

TimingWindowSecondsW1=0.022500
TimingWindowSecondsW2=0.045000
TimingWindowSecondsW3=0.090000
TimingWindowSecondsW4=0.135000
TimingWindowSecondsW5=0.180000

to

TimingWindowSecondsW1=0.016667
TimingWindowSecondsW2=0.033333
TimingWindowSecondsW3=0.091667
TimingWindowSecondsW4=0.141667
TimingWindowSecondsW5=0.225000

This is further explained in https://www.stepmania.com/forums/general-questions/show/586 Keep in mind that if you're trying to AAA stuff, the DDR timing window for a perfect is much smaller than it is in judge 3, or even judge 4.

http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=145215

get this theme because any other version of sm than this is garbage except 3.95 but that's old

http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

here's a massive list of good packs

also nobody actually plays other than 4k and 6k (6k is usually called solo)

http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=114321

>Double setup: Having two keys bound to each column, and when a very fast jack or trill comes up using some configuration that alternates keys for that column, allowing it to be hit twice as slow as intended. Considered cheating if not explicitly stated as part of the playing style.

>you're bs: An allegation that the player is widening his windows/using double setup/using a bot/completely faking scores. Usually not true (unless it's really obvious, e.g. person comes out from nowhere with scores that make no sense and no stepfile choice/knowledge you'd expect from a long time player) and can be countered by an 'im not bs' video that shows the hash of the executible and stepmania being booted up, the lines in stepmania.ini showing the sizes of the judgment windows, a clock and fingertaps during play and that the judge/life settings within stepmania are 4/4.

so unless you want to be considered a cheater/be called bs its up to you, if you just play for fun and dont care about scores then do w/e you want ;)

Not sure if you're looking to run on Stepmania (PC/Mac) or another platform, as you didn't say. So going to assume you mean Stepmania since that's the sub reddit you're in :) Kind of a returning noobie myself, but I'll chime in anyways. From everything I've read (community reviews and discussions and Amazon reviews), the DDR/Konami brands are generally a bit of a gamble now, sadly. Getting one that will work (and keep working past a week or two) is kind of a crap shoot. So unless you feel up to some trial and error, and as well as effort to keep sending back possible lemon pads until you get a good one, maybe go with something else. For some, the cheaper price is worth the hassle.

Myself and others have had more luck with the D-Force pads, but they are not without their issues. Mainly sensors being smaller/farther apart, and you can't feel them in the pad to adjust them or anything. I got the $1.50 4 year protection plan on the D-Force I got on Amazon, and hoping their customer service holds up if/when the thing breaks. I'm a Mac user, and all I had to do to get it working was map the buttons in StepMania.

If you play on carpet, soft pads are likely to slide around, curl up a bit when playing, and more likely that sensors can shift or warp over time. There are youtube tutorials about how to modify/mount soft pads on some MDF board to prevent that (like this one), to make them last longer. My current place is hardwood so I don't have those issues, but just FYI for ya!

scroll down/ctrl+f "keyboard dumps" and click show spoiler for a ton of hard shit: http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

also check out the packs under normal 4 key as well because packs like nuclear blast and jumpstream of fighters are there too

>just place different 32nd jumps after one another to some 260bpm sharpnel track

This will result in a very bad keyboard file, there is actually quite a lot of theory behind making them and you can't just put down anything you want and get a good quality simfile. Just take a look at this review document for BOAT 2. https://docs.google.com/document/d/16ucHZMYkyiuNQkOZ9arzEhonnWKCmG9AuLQIvYyiyZQ/edit

If you want to learn how to chart for keyboard, this thread should give you a good idea of the basics. http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=82080

Keyboard community is mostly focused at FFR forums in terms of simfile releases, for chatting most kb players hang out in discord groups, there are a lot of them. I don't know much about the pad community. Anyway most packs are hosted on SMO, so that might be a good place to look for DDR-A and stuff.

Hello !

Simfiles, you can find a lot here : http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

For the mods, you can try to use something like 3x, 30% Mini with another noteskin, for example wafles4.

For the practise mode, you can disable Fail in the options, or play in edit mode !

I don't really want to spend the time to sync something 24 minutes long, but at the very least I can recommend you sync with DDReam if you aren't already, it has a bunch of tools to assist with syncing a file.

http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=123423

Try this theme, it's becoming increasingly popular and includes a NPS counter/graph: http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=141588

Just drop it into your "Themes" folder, fire it up as a theme from one of the options menus (Appearance, I think?), and then when you're getting ready to play a song, enter the Player Options and select "NPS Graph" or what have you.

Here's an old guide, but it's still relevant:

http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=72047

Stepmania 5 specific guide:

http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Song-on-Stepmania

The most important part in making your own song is getting the bpm right. If you don't get this part right, it just won't feel good to play. So, make sure you take time to get that down first.

http://stepmaniaonline.net/index.php?page=downloads

Pretty much every pack in existence. If you're still looking for a community based around the game, http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/ is probably the most active one left.

My local machine has Lone Digger on it (it's an easy 11). I'll try and ask around if someone has the simfile.

As for Highscore, Gpop made a great simfile for it in "original pad simfiles 2"

link here

have fun with it!

Just off amazon, it’s the DDR Game Energy foam mat. Not terrible for 70-ish bucks:

https://www.amazon.com/Dance-Revolution-Energy-Deluxe-Playstation-2/dp/B000GHG0BA/ref=sr_1_2?crid=98RKHVAJHD30&dchild=1&keywords=ddr+dance+pad&qid=1586819123&s=videogames&sprefix=ddr+%2Cvideogames%2C198&sr=1-2

I complain about it a lot, but with a hard surface floor it really doesn’t slide around quite as much as the other soft mats. You can always tape the f*cker down, I just don’t cuz it would imply a semi-permanent configuration for a room that’s not spacious enough for such.

Honestly, you're better off making a .crs file for it

grab an already-existing crs file and place it into the /Courses/ folder. You can then open the game, head into the editor, press C and load the crs file and start making changes to how you see fit.

I have included a Hastebin link below which is a crs file set up explaining what everything does and with examples of how to do it, as well as how to move them to be used as Attacks when you're finished, so you don't have to go to Marathon Mode all the time

https://hastebin.com/bimirafegu.php

There's also contact information if you need me. I hope this helps!

you might have to use JoyToKey https://joytokey.net/en/ to map your pad's buttons to stepmania's inputs, or change the input keys on Stepmania itself in Settings. I personally use joyTokey.

Skip to the end of this, it has a lot of definitions. This is more for keyboard, but you never specified and /u/KonKitty already gave some good pad definitions.

http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=115282

And if you haven't seen this link, check out the pad section in particular.

http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

There might be some easy metal/rock songs in there also. I mainly play 4k on keyboard, so I'm not as familiar with pad packs. Good luck and keep practicing!

Uh, probably need some context to figure out exactly what you are looking for, but until then Icy X and the in progress sequel Icy X2.

Well, that's just how Stepmania works, you download packs and play them.

You could also try out FFR, there is a "Most Popular Songs" section on the daily stats page.

1. Put the image in the file's folder. If you name it "Song Name-bg.png" and "Song Name-banner.png" it'll automatically add them. If you want to use a different image name, then you need to specify that in the SM file (open it in Notepad).

2. Scroll down a bit here to see patterns.

Hey sorry for the very late reply here, I think I can find both of those. Please don't think your post is being ignored :D

• Szycag is one of the most popular VS marathon files, it's 9 minutes and stepped by MrTea. It's in FFR Community Pack Spring 2012.

• Masodik Galamb (4:16 long) is in FFR Community Pack 4 stepped by mi40, there are also a bunch of other VS and Aphex Twin songs in the pack

• Yolomania packs, there are four volumes
• Nuclear Blast JS Awesome Bomb Filez (particularly 4 and 5), organized and released by icontrol*yourworld*
• hi19hi19 Pack 3 - Popcorn Blast JS Buttery Snack Filez by hi19hi19, really popular and experienced user. Every file has at least one jumpstream-oriented chart

If you're making your own files, I highly recommend using ddream studio in lieu of the built-in editor. It's leagues ahead in essentially every way.

Here's a link to a forum post with some tips and tricks to get the most out of it along with a download link for the program and a video tutorial on getting started.

Best of luck with your file :)

I might make one in the future but keep in mind there's several different ways to go about it and I would just be showing my method.

Right now this is probably the best you've got.

I like to use ddreamstudio for syncing and the Stepmania 5 editor for putting notes down.

If you have specific questions about making simfiles you can ask me.

It's from Vocaloid Project Pad Pack 3rd. That pack has a ton of fun songs to play imo. I found it in this thread on flashflashrevolution.

As for flair, I think that's something the moderators set manually so you could message them about it.

Hey. :)

I assume that the defunct hosts for the files were from StepMania Share and that StepMania FTP? It seems really hard to find the file anywhere else, sadly.

Perhaps you saw this video already, but this is likely the simfile you were looking for, ne? Doesn't look like that guy is terribly active though... A really unnecessarily long and boring thing to do would be to try recreating it based off this video.

Perhaps the best bet, though it may be a bit awkward, would be to contact Xanox100 personally and see where you can go from there. He seems to be sort of active on the FFR forums, but I guess you can go from there.

Good luck!

http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

This thread should be the first place you ever look when you want new packs to play.

You're gonna run into weird quality issues if you just download random packs from the SMO Downloads page since they're only loosely categorized and not sortable.

I would register with FFR's forums, and post a thread in here: http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/forumdisplay.php?f=21

You'd have a way better chance of getting results from that, than in here.

I assume you used this method: https://www.stepmania.com/forums/input-adapters-and-controllers/show/282

I too have that when I was stuck in windows 7 64bit but not useless to me on windows 10 sigh...

I think the key thing is the 'Allow Unsigned Drivers' would help a lot in the process of windows to work the driver and adapter for sure...

For more specific instructions:

To get latest 5.0 (I recommend this) click this link https://www.stepmania.com/download/ click the button that says the name of your OS, run the thing that downloads, follow the directions.

To get 5.1 click https://github.com/stepmania/stepmania/releases click StepMania-5.1.0-b1-win32.exe if you are on windows, and StepMania-5.1.0-b1-mac.dmg if you are on mac, then run the file that downloads, follow the directions.

Most people seem to use 5.0.12 or 3.95, ~~but I'd recommend 5.0.12 since it is the newer version.~~

I personally don't really use themes, but I have seen some people using Simply Love.

I'm not really the person to ask for controls, but I primarily use the arrow keys, with the WASD keys bound just in case I need to Hand. There are better control schemes out there, though.

EDIT: Apparently SM 5.1 exists too, so that's actually the newest version.

Socks all the way. It's kind of a crutch, being able to slide a bit from panel to panel instead of actually having to step everything, but I hate wearing shoes, and barefoot hurts after a while.

You can get no slip socks if you like socks, but want more grip.

https://www.amazon.com/D-Force-Deluxe-Dance-Pump-USB/dp/B00H1B9B6A

I've had one of these for a couple years so it's the only one I can recommend.

For any soft pad you get, i FOR SURE recommend getting a piece of plywood cut to put the mat on top of. Greatly increases note detection and prevents the mat from sliding

damn:/ yeah i dont know why its such a pain in the ass finding a decent peripheral for it

https://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-Controller-Converter-Compatible-Microsoft/dp/B00F52N9W4 you know anything about these?

Can't say I know of any good ones in that price range. The reviews for those tend to be "I got this, and it didn't work/after a week it stopped working, had to get a replacement" and basically people kept getting replacements until they got a good one (one that actually worked the way it was supposed to long term). So if you really want to stick with that price range, just know that it might be kind of a crap shoot with some effort and delay involved.

I went with the D-Force on Amazon ($48) and had no issues with it. Had to map the buttons in StepMania but that was easy. Been working for 2 months with no issues! (I'm running on High Sierra, just FYI.) Only thing that kind of irks me is that the sensor for the back arrow is pretty back there on mine (have to press the back 1/3rd of the back arrow area), and there's no way to feel where the sensor is or shift it. I got the protection plan for $1.50 that's supposed to cover it for 4 years- but I can't speak to their customer service as I haven't used it yet.

Best of luck!

i'm not sure if it is worth it for you, but you can use what the fighting game community uses. Brooks universal pcb.

i've also seen other people use the Zero delay encoder PCB. probably more suited for your purpose

https://www.amazon.com/SJ-JX-Controller-Board-Arcade-Raspberry/dp/B07RFM43G5/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=zero+delay+encoder+ps2&qid=1594854334&sr=8-3

I ended up having to make one of these cables today, here is the pin-out instructions in case anyone else needs to make a 15-pin (CF) to 9-pin cable (control box).

You do not need to use pins 10-15 since these are not used; the control box will handle Start/Select.

I used the following parts:

• Female DB9 (Serial) Breakout Cable (I used this one)
• Male DB15 (VGA) Breakout Box (I used this one)

You can use a Female DB9 breakout box in place of the cable, but you will need to use shrink tube and something like CAT5/6 ethernet cable; I felt the pre-made cable was a simpler option.

You will also need a flat-head eyeglass screwdriver to open the screws in the breakout box.

If I had to do this over again, I would have used a thicker DB15 breakout box since it was a VERY tight fix and was extremely tough to tighten; I had to bend the cables upward in order to make it fit inside the box. BE CAREFUL WITH THIS PART, THE CABLES ARE FRAGILE.

Cost was around $28 for everything and took me around 30 minutes to make.

Note: YMMV and do it at your own risk. Not responsible if you damage anything.

Hey, if you're still looking for a PS1/2 to USB adapter, I'd recommend this. You'll need to install drivers from their website so that it doesn't input the arrows as a joystick.

This is what I'm using, just keep it nearby while playing: https://www.amazon.com/Upgraded-Rii-Wireless-Keyboard-Raspberry/dp/B00Z81U3YY/ref=sr_1_6?crid=3J5THYE1T0P95&keywords=wireless+keyboard+htpc&qid=1665515455&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIyLjYwIiwicXNhIjoiMi4wMiIsInFzcCI6IjEuMzAifQ%3D%3D&sprefix=wire...

I wouldn't mod that pad. Tape it to the floor with some floor mat tape: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PMLCRHS/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

And play for awhile. Give it a couple of months and see if its something you do regularly and enjoy long term. I've introduced many people to DDR who love it for awhile and bounce off pretty quickly.

I'm using a 42" and it's about the perfect size - I got a free standing mount (this one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08F1ZC9BF/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 ) and it's cool because I can move my setup around without too much effort. No wall mounting required! I don't think it supports vertical swivel though - I don't know what you'd need to do to accomplish that.

if DDR is literally your only goal on this computer then the spec requirement is extremely low as machines more than 15 yrs ago could play ddr just fine. Below is a cheap and easy rec but any other type of simple mini PC will do. Install Linux (Pop OS/Endeavor/Fedora) then stepmania (you need to clone the git repository and clone locally) and you're good to go.

https://www.amazon.com/KAMRUI-AMD-Windows-Computers-Teaching/dp/B0B9LXCMGN/ref=sr\_1\_3?crid=IRSE41TVLHC5&keywords=mini%2Bpc&qid=1663224366&refinements=p\_36%3A-30000%2Cp\_n\_feature\_twenty-eight\_browse-bin%3A23724149011&rnid=237...

https://www.amazon.ca/D-SUB-Terminal-Breakout-Connector-Screws/dp/B0779WGQN4

This is what I grabbed or some very similar thing. They are called 'breakout boxes' you'll need wires as well but it doesn't require solder. Just a tiny flat head screw driver that should come with it.

I got this: Beelink Versatile Mini PC GK Mini... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08JGZ6LYY?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

It worked great! It was a gift for my mom. At first there was something wrong with the inputs and I had to manually calibrate it from the command line - the UI calibration tool did not do it - for the tv we were using. But yeah, no issues whatsoever.

If the adapter works with other pads, then it's the pad, else it's most likely the adapter or the driver for it.

I have success with this adapter on Windows and the Stepmania Axis Fix enabled in settings: https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00FBM3F72

I use these yoga socks. Keeps the pad clean while still giving me grip that socks don't provide, and playing barefoot hurts.

Muezna Men's Non-Slip Yoga Socks,... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H4DVVPQ?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

This reply is far too late and I imagine you've already gotten a pad, but I use this pad and i've had it still going for years

I have a cobalt flux, same kind of deal with the serial connection. I bought a zero delay arcade controller and just rewired the pad at the control box. Works like a champ.

Mine is similar to this one:

https://www.amazon.com/Easyget-Joystick-Raspberry-Retropie-Projects/dp/B01C5J5AJO

This is what I use with my ltek pad

(Upgrade) Rii i4 Mini Bluetooth Keyboard with Touchpad, Blacklit Portable Wireless Keyboard with 2.4G USB Dongle for Smartphones, PC, Tablet, Laptop TV Box iOS Android Windows Mac.Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07T13GLY3/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_JCV1J3XSVXTZ101P0HT6

If you can find it, I ordered one of these in 2014 and it had no issues with U+D or L+R and was really low latency (if not outright lag free). I think I got like 48 PFC's back then with this adapter and a modded Wii pad but it's got the ports on it for PS2 and OG Xbox as well.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B000ND3XXA/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I just went through the same confusion last week (got L-Tek pad, assumed it had the back/enter buttons on it, found it out it didn't, was miffed) and got this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07SS9F3CK/

In my head, I was imagining the PS2 dance pads (which did have those buttons), but many StepMania users are imagining the arcade pads, which did not. Arcade cabinets (AFAIK) always had the selection buttons on a separate panel on the cabinet. So I think it's probably fair--I just wish it was more clear before ordering. But I'm still very happy with the dance pad.

If you can find it I can tell you for a fact this one works, I used it back in 2014 with a Wii (Game Cube) soft pad on Stepmania so the PS2 part should work just fine too. But I don’t know if you can still find it.

MAYFLASH 3 in 1 Magic Joy Box For Pc https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000ND3XXA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_JCS37Y5QJ0DY1MT3ZXMV?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07D2BG6R5/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_KSHKR0GW63ZT9VFBKFMY

Any of these kind of handheld keyboards work great. They don’t need to be fancy or low latency to control the game, so just pick whichever one you like.

I've always ran and enjoyed Beats - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.beatsportable.beats&hl=en_US&gl=US which also uses simfiles (I use the same files as I use in Stepmania)

Following, I too have a PS2 dance pad (RedOctane) and am looking for a known working USB adapter to play Stepmania with this pad. I tried https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B097MXJ1BW and it did not work. It registers as a "Playstation 3 Controller" in Windows 10, and a PS2 controller worked through it, but the dance pad doesn't register any button presses in Windows or Stepmania.

I did find a couple possibilities since posting this.

The Raphnet adapter. It claims "Uses standard drivers included with supported operating systems" . They also actually advertise the latency as only 4-6ms. Someone on another thread said you can't go wrong with it. Unfortunately at the time of this note though they are out of stock till November 2022

https://www.raphnet-tech.com/products/psx\_to\_usb/index.php

The Mayflash universal adapter. This one was mentioned by /u/xzc930213 below. Info seemed mixed in the reviews with some people mentioning latency or lag and others mentioning no latency or lag. One other person in the reviews did mention it working with PS2 dance mats. Someone in the comments mentioned windows 10 auto downloads some generic drivers. Seems like a possibility and it actually is available at the time of this message.

https://www.amazon.com/MAYFLASH-Universal-Adapter-Xbox360-Vita/dp/B0089OBLDO

I imagine you’ll want to get a wireless controller for menu-ing. Amazon sells full keyboards with basic controls in the shape of a game controller for like 30$ that work great for that purpose.

This is the one I use:

Mini Keyboard,Rii X8 Portable 2.4GHz Mini Wireless Keyboard Controller with Touchpad Mouse Combo,8 Colors RGB Backlit,Rechargeable Li-ion Battery for Google Android TV Box, PS3, PC, Pad,Nvidia Shield https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07D2BG6R5/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_KSHKR0GW63ZT9VFBKFMY

I use an L-Tek on carpet no problem. It slides just a little bit but I put a small Gorilla litter mat under the down arrow and it stays in place perfectly. Probably anything with the same sort of coating on the bottom would work but I had an extra one lying around and was surprised by how effective it was!

https://www.amazon.com/Gorilla-Grip-Original-Premium-Resistant/dp/B01MDNDDYS/ref=sr\_1\_5?crid=1MDYGFHBFG3A5&keywords=gorilla+litter+mat&qid=1647382803&smid=AK8KODIOTRXHK&sprefix=gorilla+litter+mat%2Caps%2C134&sr=8-5

Back in the day, the grail was a specific blue, transparent, male usb to two female ps2 controller adaptor.

Actually, looks very much like this one.

That said, the usb soft mats that came with the DDR game for PS3 work like a dream with little to no messing around. I might've used a tool or driver for it, but this was certainly within the last 5 years and it did work. It was probably also an unsigned driver now that I think of it lol, but welcome to niche PC desires.

ps3 pads are USB and use directinput, so they are the easiest to set up, but might be a bit pricier due to their slightly higher rarity.

the wii mats use gamecube controller ports, but are super common and the cheapest official soft pads usually. you can get mayflash brand gamecube adapters that have a pc mode so you can plug in the pads: https://www.amazon.ca/Mayflash-GameCube-Controller-Adapter-Switch/dp/B00RSXRLUE although some people have issues with these things working properly on windows even, no idea about linux. i used to use a wii mat and the official wii u gamecube adapter with a program that turns it into directinput, but said program doesnt work on linux.

i have no experience with ps2 pads and their usb adapters, but the pads are at least as common as wii pads imo.

xbox 360 pads are usb, but they use xinput, so that might not be of use. they are also quite rare and in my experience the most expensive.

You can download and install songs from the Osu website, it's very easy and probably one of greatest advantages of Osu.

The standard mode is pretty fun, if you ever played Ouendan or EBA you'll know what it's like.

Not sure if you're into the Miku/Vocaloid side of Camellia, but many of the Vocaloid collection packs have at least one or two of his songs charted up, usually for pad play as well.

https://www.stepmania.com/forums/song-packs/show/295

(I can go thru my files and find out which packs have Cam songs if interested, just ask!)

You want a keyboard with 0kro (0 key roll over)

You will also want to make sure you get the right switches (not blue) black and brown didn't work well for me. Red is the way to go because of how they work

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/mechanical-keyboard-work-technology-explained/

Thanks for the info! What do people use to drive their CRTs if not some sort of VGA or s-video connection? Wouldn't those all be interlaced? Are there special video cards made to output interlaced without delay? The only spare LCD I have laying around is my old TV, which I know from experience has unplayable input lag. I have been using this CRT to play DDR on my PS2, and that works great for latency. I am just so sick of having to start up the PS2 and switch disks all the time just to play.

The CPU is an AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+, so I think that might be fast enough to run the game. The TV is a 27" Sony CRT television from the late 90s. The only inputs it has are a single s-video and another set of composite inputs.

Money isn't really an issue, I'm just trying to reuse stuff I have laying around if it is good enough. What would the ideal hardware setup for low latency stepmania look like? Are there major advantages to using newer versions of stepmania? Are the stepfiles all compatible between versions?

Thanks again for your help. I haven't used stepmania in probably 5+ years so I don't really know about the recent versions.

hey glad to hear it worked for you! can you help me out?

I have the same setup as you I believe but it won't work! Currently on MacOS, OutFox 5.3, Mayflash Adapter , Wii Konami DDR Pads

1 footed steps work but It won't register simultaneous LEFT + RIGHT presses and really frustrating. Anything helps ty

Yup, that's normal with every fresh install. I don't think I've ever had issues with SM seeing a pad. I know some people have used the JoyToKey software to use dancepad for other games, but you should be okay. Is it working?

you can just buy any old adapter with low latency, then use the program joy2key to map the pad to the keyboard arrows. this is how i get away with using a Nintendo switch pro controller for stepmania.

the biggest factor in stepmania 5 vs. 3.9 will primarily be settings. If all the settings are the same, for example vsync off on both versions, and various other optimizations you can use primarily for 3.9 in this linked thread, the next biggest being waveout. then the next possible answer will be that the play fields themselves. Ensuring the playfields match exactly across versions is just as important as the settings if you are used to a certain area of play. Finally if all of that checks out then it just means you are more accustomed to sm5 than 3.9 and your best bet would be to adapt to the version you wish to play on. http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=125005

Here is a big ol list of packs - http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

Maybe you’ll find what you are lookin for in there? You can also search up songs on stepmaniaonline.com

I'm addition to what others said, if you're an old-school player and want to jump back in, this forums seems to still work. I don't know if new stuff has been added but I lost my song library a couple years back and this got me right up to speed

http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

As for the controller, yeah dude. I used to have a modded psp and there was a great stepmania for it. Probably one of my most played titles on the device.

i almost choked when i read this holy shit

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Here my man, this is where i get a lot of mine :
http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

also get etterna instead of the normal stepmania client, its got a built-in song downloader.

You're doing keyboard packs. I wouldn't recommend that. Personally I like to use this FFR thread:
http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

This is a good starting point. http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

This is a list of all the major stepmania packs with download links to help you get started. The keyboard megapack 1.5 is a good starting point (im not sure how good you are but some are pretty difficult) also the keyboard collaborations are good and the Fantastically Fresh Flock ones are good too.

Stepmania is for pc. A average/below average laptop can play the game.

Get your charts here

I am a keyboard player so I don't know where one could get a high quality pad. However I have seen ones on Amazon that look good.

>In my own time making these I noticed that if you set a note ever so slightly ahead of the note in the song it overall feels more accurate.

Not true at all. Don't do this please.

Anyways the file is still offsync. Unfortunately this song's bpm drifts, so you should probably use ddream because syncing this properly in arrowvortex would be a huge pain in the ass.

This is a useful link I often see getting passed around, it's what I sent to my friends when they wanted packs. Best of luck, remember that (a lot of) practice makes perfect! http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

As far as I know, spawncamping-wallhack theme and the Etterna client both have the box that counts your judgments.

Etterna: http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=145215

Spawncamping-wallhack: http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=141588

Does popularity matter if it's a good game and a HUGE amount of songs? Every DDR song is on SM, without exception and there are tonnes and tonnes of video game music packs.

Latency is not a problem, you sync up your keyboard and display latency to the sound and you'll have effectively 0 ms latency.

Osu! is more popular than Stepmania. On the contrary, SM has proven itself over the years, whilst Osu! might be a shorted lived hype. The mania mode of Osu! is worse than SM's, because of the arrow coloring.

First of all you really want to put your judge back at 4, it will help you out immensely in harder songs because you'll be way more accurate, also people tend to not take the score seriously because it is played at the easiest setting. Second, jump streams are streams that have jumps in between sort of like this - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GzUG4rAyG-U if you can see there's a few jumps in between the "stream" of notes making the song harder to play (but funner imo)

also notes are different colors to represent different beats in the song e.g quarter notes, half notes, eighths, 32nd 64th etc etc

you can look at this FFR post when you have time to familiarize yourself much more with the terminology and the game itself - http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=127628

Good luck!

personally, i tend to focus somewhere between the receptors and the combo counter and i believe most people do this; just try your best to focus

i highly recommend not straining your hands too much, try playing to the point when your hands feel tired but before you start feeling any real pain; your stamina will improve naturally

there is currently an attempt with standardizing difficulty ratings, go to smrankings.net, it's not very accurate yet though but newer packs are starting to use it

just keep practicing and playing more, you'll learn trills and jacks them by playing them

i would say you're at a fairly average level, keep playing and please dim your background when playing, trust me it helps + try going for AA on files, don't focus on being too perfect

also try the wafles4 noteskin, it's great for reading: http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133619

edit: this might be useful too: http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

if your theme does not have BAT LIVES in the mod screen then check if its in the game settings, probably under arcade options or something similar. if its not there I would reccomend using a theme, like ultra-light (on staiain's twitch if you type !theme) or spawncamping-wallhack, which can be found here

Theme is a WIP by ca25nada for Stepmania 5.0.8 and later versions. :) http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=141588

Song pack is in the description of the video which is Yolomania Vol. 4. :3 http://smleaderboards.net/uploads/packs/Yolomania4.rar

You can still go to the FFR simfile pack list and it still works for some reason, even though the links are directly to SMO. Here's the list: http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/vbz/showthread.php?t=133223

They might not have the exact songs you're after, but if you've not already grabbed them Gpop's Vocaloid Project Pad Packs (scroll down) are a great collection of well-made simfiles for pads, with a good range of difficulty levels.

https://www.stepmania.com/forums/general-questions/show/5562

According to a reply in this thread it looks good. Honestly stepmania is pretty quick and easy to setup...I'd just do it, plug in the pad, config/map the keys and see what happens tho.

I have that pad, I know for a fact there is no USB control box for it, so you'll need to DIY I used this guide at stepmania.com forums to make one and to be working great on StepMania. May not be the best solution but works what you have now.

Well, everything looks sufficient- drivers and updates are at most a few months old so that shouldn't be any problem (but updating is best practice). A note of curiosity, is your monitor using HDMI for the audio signal, or a 3.5mm wire?

Anyways, with the information provided I believe you had a problem with your extraction process. Please follow this link to the official download and get the Windows installer again. Make sure that you're installing to a folder you have permissions for (if you're not the admin of that machine). I suspect this reinstall will solve your problems, and I'll be here for next-steps if it does not.

https://www.stepmania.com/forums/input-adapters-and-controllers/show/483

I have to use this fix for my computer every time. Keeps everything as a grid instead of being seen as a controller as well so that shouldn't be an issue.

Do you do anything to map it already?

yes ive used it. yes its trouble hahaha. now here's the rub, it works out of the box with stepmania sure. if you have the same as mine, stepmania 3.9 that is.

the most convenient thing is to play 3.9, which is actually still pretty darn good besides some hiccups with recent charts, or play on linux, which will work with sm5 with no trouble.

if you do want to run it on windows, you have to install some old ems ps2 converter drivers, download ppjoy and play in safe mode, as described here.

hopefully at some point ddr energy fixed the issue and this isn't actually your issue, but given you have the one with the 4 way connector as well i have a feeling it is.

https://www.stepmania.com/forums/input-adapters-and-controllers/show/1451

These forum posts might help you troubleshoot your situation. I don't own cobalt flux anymore so I can't get as specific as I'd like to, but at one point I got deep into its guts due to a persistently bad left arrow. My problem was a damaged wire. Even if the damage is not visible to the naked eye, if you have a multimeter, you should be able to narrow it down from there. Good luck.

The easiest solution is to turn on the axis fix option. Options -> Input Options -> Advanced Input Options -> Axis Fix

https://www.stepmania.com/forums/input-adapters-and-controllers/show/21365

Add the stepmania theme forum to the 'useful links' section please.

And this theme also looks very nice!

This fixed it for me. Hope its not too late!

https://www.stepmania.com/forums/input-adapters-and-controllers/show/483?start=40

You don't need to compile from source anymore, so the easier way to do it is to just go to the downloads page and download the linux version there. Once you have it downloaded, you can decompress it using the following command:

tar xvf ./path/to/StepMania-5.0.12-Linux.tar.gz

(replace ./path/to with the actual location where you downloaded the file).

That'll make a folder called StepMania-5.0.12-Linux/stepmania-5.0. You can then start the game by going in the folder, and running the file stepmania

Ah, I knew Chris used to handle the CDs (from the FAQ) but didn't know he had a twitter handle. Thanks! It looks like he also has a website with some other contact info but that hasn't been touched since 2015.

It's in all of them, it should be in input options

If it doesn't work still you can use the raw input exe which maps your pad to the keyboard. Just open it then launch stepmania and it should map to abcd

I would personally recommend downloading the appropriate installer for your OS at https://www.stepmania.com/download/

For the time being 5.1 is in beta, and it breaks compatibility with some historical content (themes/noteskins), so if you aren't aiming for 5.1 for any particular reason I would recommend sticking with 5.0.

If you do however want to get 5.1 there are installers here: https://github.com/stepmania/stepmania/releases

It sounds like the file you downloaded was the source code, which you would have to build to start using stepmania. If you aren't planning on making changes to the code I would not recommend that route as it requires a significant amount more work.

This was about all I could find. That, and some a-hole on Youtube who apparently made one "so good" that he only gives it to people who (in his words) "aren't a c*nt"

https://www.stepmania.com/forums/themes/show/445