let's talk about dance pad
 

ok i own the DDRmax2 us version on pc and curently I have those DDR dance pad premium or somthing, you those with a zipper and there's a "softpad" in it so it's more comfortable for long hour of DDR.

well i'm hapy with it since I don't play a lot well this may, change, you see one of my friend got dance dance mario mix and now she really likes DDR and we play more and more DDR, sadly when I bought those pad (yep it's wasa pack of 2 dance pad) the second pad the down arrow doesn't work (talk about a problem in this game >.<)

so anyway I want to buy some new pad (maybe just one) and I was looking at ebay and there's always just those thin dance pad which I don't know if i'll like it, because I think that the DDR mario mix pad is like that and my feet was already hurting after just a few song. But now where I live, we have a carpet, so i was thinking that maybe just those thin dance pad would be ok because of the carpet under them.

so the big question is, what pad should I get, it term of durability, respond and comfort. (don't forget that's a PS2 dance pad that I'm looking for)

note that I don't want any big "hard pad" because I don't have the place for that and they cost too much.

and if possible is there some better place to buy some dance pad online beside ebay? (note that I live in Canada so they must be able to ship there too)

well thanks ^^

Soft pads tend to move around on carpet unless you find a way to keep them flattened onto a square of plywood or something hard, and even then, it's not 100% that the material under the pad won't move around.

yay I already notice that witht he one I have

Well, I wouldn't reccomend softpads unless you do what Sim mentioned there. And you already own an ignition type pad. PLUS, you don't want a metal pad, based on what you've said.

I reccomend just getting another Ignition Pad or something. Within a reasonable price range and you can put it away for easy storage, rather than stuffing a metal pad somewhere.

I have been wondering how good are the ones that Gamestop/EB have for $20? I think that they are not that good due to the price. Anybody has any input on them? I would like it for DDR Mario Mix and DDRMAX for the PS2.

The Cobalt Flux is the best dance pad available, period. Nothing else even comes close. I have one, and I have never, even for a second, regretted buying it. It is sturdy, reliable, and far, FAR more accurate than any other pad. My scores have increased drastically since I purchased mine, and I have broken all of my previous records. I can even do Max 300 and MaxX Unlimited barless now. (Check it out: http://www.yousendit.com/transfer.ph...831970E6D8B4B). I failed at the very, very end. Damn! I have passed it, though.

I know you said that's not what you want, but that's the only thing worth recommending. Sure, it's expensive, but it is the single best thing I ever did for my DDR life.

They're awful unless you play only Light songs. Those mats slip on the floor like crazy, scrunch up easily under even moderate speed steps, and really just blow for anything on heavy.

If you go for the Gamestop "Iggy (Ignition) Style" Pad they have for about $40, those aren't all that bad. I bought one, and it works like the Ignition, more or less. But they're still very reliable and I haven't regretted buying it yet.

Actually, I bought the Maki Dance Pad Revolution 2 for about $20 US and loved it.

Both my brother and I play on that one, and have been playing mainly 7-9 footers for around a year and have had the pad itself for around two years... and it's only just now started to go buggy. We play in his room where the carpet's been taken out (so the floor is hard) and have the circle-shaped sticky things on the bottom so it doesn't slip around that much. It only just now started to curl up on one corner. I never fold it when it's not in use - I just slip it under my bed when I'm done with it.

I don't know why people look on that pad - it's an excellent deal for the price.

metal pads are shitty unless you build them yourself. I have one DDR Softpad that came with DDRMAX2 (which I don't own anymore) 1 Pump it Up Banya Collection USB pad, One Pump it Up : Perfect Collection PS/2 pad and one Pump it Up Exceed US PS2 pad.

I keep wondering when the hell they're gonna make metal Pump pads for consoles... though it won't matter much if we don't see an Exceed 2 or Zero CS release.

Fix'd ... Cobalt flux is extremely durable, sensitive, and made in the US. But, its expensive.

That they are.... but they are a good penny to buy.
My b/f and I have one thanks to one of our friends who was selling his, but the first pad I rigged up was pretty good, especially for hardwood floors!

I bought the standard DDR soft pad, got some thick, heavy plywood and 5 rubber gloves.

You duct tape the pad on the plywood. Cut open each rubber glove and duct tape one on each corner and one in the middle. This pad is perfect learning on, I was also able to get decent scores on heavy mode with it... it is not bad at all! Here are the pics so that you get the idea...

some sheets of copper, a PS1 third party controller, plexiglass, and some really thin wire should be enough to make a decent "metal" pad sensor... also if you have something that could make a recession in a piece of MDF that would be heavy enough to make a pad. MDF must be painted or water or sweat will destroy it... hell put some of that wood finish polish on it... haha

i bought like 3 of the $20 pads and they all don't work now. all the arrows are screwed up and i can hardly use it. also they move around too much for me and sometimes stick to my foot.

They actually varied in how long they last with me. I bought about oh... 2 or 3 of em altogether. Back then I'd play about an hour or so, filled with 7-9 footers a day (ah the times when i had the free time to do so daily...). The mats would usually last about 6 months before it started to get buggy. Back then though EB had a one year warranty for an extra two bucks, so I'd return and get a new one just like that~!

Well, I stopped playing, only my mom does now about a couple times a week. Its been nearly two years and this mat is still going strong.

Bumping this old thread.

I was wondering if anyone bought the metal gamepads that are available in Future Shops, EB Games and Toys'r'us for about $100 CDN. I don't quite remmeber the brand but I think its Intec or something.

Can you find any pictures of this particular pad?

Since there are no Pad Discussion threads, this one could pretty much be given that title.

And here's my situation as to why I call it the discussion thread:

For Christmas, my mother is planning on getting me a new Arcade Metal Pad. However, I was looking at 2 different brands: the Twilight Arcade Pad from www.ddrlive.com (I think that's right), and the BlueShark Arcade Pad.

Now, judging from the research I did this morning, the only differences I could tell are:

Twilight:
Shows a weight durability of 400 lbs, which I don't have to worry about.
Has a height thickness of 1 1/2 inches.
Dark surface coloring
Has plugs for PS1, PS2, Xbox, and PC

Blueshark:
Doesn't show a weight durability on the site from what I could see, but I'm assuming it's over 300 if not 350-400 lbs.
Has plugs for only PS1 and PS2, with a seperate cable for Xbox that you have to buy.
Height thickness of 3 inches.
Arrow plates look like something made by FFR or ITG crew, and I care more for DDR.
Claims to have recessed arrows.

The main things I'm seeing in both pads:

Super-Sensitivity.... well, more described as super sensitivity in Twilight pads.

Arrow plates are made of Polycarbonate Plexiglass, at least, I believe it's the arrow plates, correct me if I'm wrong.

Both promise non-slip bottoms. Problem with that, my old arcade pad rocked left and right when I used it. I want one that won't rock left and right as well as not move around.

Both pads promise tournament-level cooperation in the sensitivity, which is good, because I need to practice after getting stomped in a tournament last weekend.

Both, of course, come with a bar, so that I may bar-rape for 10-footers, because I cannot pass them for shit with my degrading stamina.


The only other problem I forgot to mention, Twilight is worth $300... $300+ if I got an extra 6ft extension cable to use when I play on StepMania, while the Blueshark would be $380... $400+ if I were to get the extra Xbox converter.


So I come to you experts in the DDR Pad World with this dilemma. What do you think I should go with? And please, get answers to me ASAP. I need to get this ordered today if I wanna get it in before Christmas.

Just go for a Cobalt Flux. Seriously, nothing else compares. I still use mine all the time, it rocks.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...m/P1011576.jpg

See, I wanted to do CF a while back, but then one of my friends said he read up about people having problems with CFs, so he bought a BlueShark and claims to love it.

And I'm just noticing that Twilight doesn't have an item number or ability to add to cart. I'm wondering if they're sold out. Might have to look at Flame or Ninja now.

The only problem I have ever had was the screws being too loose when I installed the arcade mod. So I bought some long ones at Home Depot. Problem solved.

Ah, well. I decided to go with a BlueShark Arcade Pad. Twilight wasn't getting any feedback anywhere, and I've never heard of DDRLive before, unlike MyMyBox. Plus, BS was getting praised when compared to CF.

Oh well. Just know that I've heard that they break easily, and that the sensors are extremely expensive to replace. Nothing beats the durability of a CF pad. When something goes wrong (and it will) with your BS pad, you have to pay to get it fixed. The only thing that ever goes wrong with CF pads is that they have to be cleaned. The design is so simple, there's simply nothing to break. I just don't see how you could fail to go with them, when they have such an awesome track record with pad durabilty and customer service.

Well, I've got 6 months to break it while it's under warranty. After that, I'll worry about breakdowns and repairs.