[Resolved] Strange Transient Rotation/Stretch

[MrGrynch]

I am seeing an odd rotation and stretch happening on my MAME games when going from attract mode to loading.  My main screen is set to portrait mode and PinballX is set to HORIZONTAL.  My attract mode is playing gameplay videos on the main screen.  When I select to play the game shown, The playfield switches to a rotated and stretched version of a still frame from the attract mode video.  I don't think it should be doing that.  I have attached my log as well as my configuration, and a video showing the problem.

 

log.txt PinballX.ini

[MrGrynch]

If I switch the setting for Table Loading Media to the media folders, then it doesn't happen (it's just blank because I don't have any).  Worst case, I could leave it like that or add loading media.  I'm not going to mark this resolved just yet because I still think the described behavior is wrong.

[Mike_da_Spike]

How is the image created in the media/loading images directory ? If you rotate that for 90 degrees, will that show better (just 1 for test)

[MrGrynch]

Just now, Mike_da_Spike said:

How is the image created in the media/loading images directory ? If you rotate that for 90 degrees, will that show better (just 1 for test)

Hi @Mike_da_SpikeI'm not creating it at all.  The software is doing this automatically from my table video.  I just have the software configured to "Use Playfield Images".  The video the image came from was playing just fine (as seen from the attached video)

[Mike_da_Spike]

2 minutes ago, MrGrynch said:

Hi @Mike_da_SpikeI'm not creating it at all.  The software is doing this automatically from my table video.  I just have the software configured to "Use Playfield Images".  The video the image came from was playing just fine (as seen from the attached video)

I understand, but think the software wants to have pbx started in landscape mode and set pbx to rotate 270 degrees.

Just give it a try (with the image in the loading images folder)and if thats the case, you found an undocumented feature

[MrGrynch]

1 hour ago, Mike_da_Spike said:

I understand, but think the software wants to have pbx started in landscape mode and set pbx to rotate 270 degrees.

Just give it a try and if thats the case, you found an undocumented feature

That causes other problems (like playfield videos rotated the wrong way).  If I do as you say and record the playfield video, it will be rotated the wrong way when I play it back.  That's why I put it in portrait mode to begin with.  My original forum post on that is here: https://forums.gameex.com/forums/topic/27474-resolved-screen-orientation-issues-pinballmame/.

It is possible that my initial configuration is no good, so let's go back to basics.  I just set PBX to 270-degree rotation. My MAME has no rotation settings touched at all.  So, the ONLY thing doing any rotation is PBX..  See attached images:

First image showing my display is landscape mode

Second image showing settings set to 270-degree rotation in PBX

Third image showing MAME running in landscape

Fourth image showing MAME rotation settings all off

Fifth image showing arcade system screen looks OK

Sixth image showing me about to select Jungle King

Seventh image showing Jungle King (horiz game) running upside down

Eighth image showing Gyruss about to be selected

Ninth image showing Gyruss (vert game) running normally

A couple of points.  The default rotation for Jungle King is 180-degrees.  That's why it is upside down relative to my landscape orientation.  Gyruss had its per-game config set to rotate CCW 90-degrees, which is why it looks right on my cabinet.

 

[MrGrynch]

So, I turn on MAME's auto-rotation feature and now Jungle King is right-side up.  To make the games work with my cabinet I need to rotate them CCW 90 degrees.  I can either go through every game and do it per-game or I can tell MAME to do it for me.  I'm going to let MAME do it.

First picture is MAME auto-rotation to fix upside down orientation of Jungle King

Second picture is setting default rotation of CCW 90-degrees.  That aligns everything with my table.

Third picture shows MAME menu now oriented CCW 90-degrees

Fourth picture shows Jungle King oriented correctly for my table

 

[MrGrynch]

So, I record the playfield video for Jungle King.  I play it back standalone and its all good.  I play it back in Pinball X, its rotated the wrong way.  I either have to:

• Record the video in a different orientation than normal gameplay
• Rotate the video in post-production
• Set my screen to portrait mode and PBX to horizontal.

The last option has yielded the most consistent results with everything working as it should.  As I mentioned, I already have to tweak every pinball table, so setting its orientation from 270 to 0 isn't a problem.  I haven't found a table yet that doesn't work in this configuration.  It's just the eccentricities of PBX.  So, I am back to my original problem.  Sorry for the long explanation but I think it will save a lot of time from going back-and-forth.  It seems to me that the Main Display Rotation setting is rather pointless if it doesn't carry through to all aspects of the front end.  Otherwise there is no predictability of behavior.  There is a workaround.  Disable the auto-generation of the loading image from the table image/video by selection the Folder option with no media, or do the same and provide your own media.

First video is the playfield video playing standalone

Second video is the same video playing in PBX attract mode

[scutters]

58 minutes ago, MrGrynch said:

So, I record the playfield video for Jungle King.  I play it back standalone and its all good.  I play it back in Pinball X, its rotated the wrong way

Did you record it manually?.. PinballX expects table videos to be flipped - when recorded via PinballX the video should appear upside down if played back manually. 

[MrGrynch]

Just now, scutters said:

Did you record it manually?.. PinballX expects table videos to be flipped - when recorded via PinballX the video should appear upside down if played back manually. 

I cannot use PBX default recorder.  It doesn't record sound.  I use the XBox Game Bar app that is built into Windows 10.  Its mapped to a hotkey for "Use GPU Driver Capture".   I don't have the option to flip it other than manually after the fact.

I'll just either leave it pointing to the empty loading media folders or eventually create my own.  In the short term it avoids having the stretched image popping up.  Thanks for your help!

[scutters]

1 minute ago, MrGrynch said:

I cannot use PBX default recorder.  It doesn't record sound.  I use the XBox Game Bar app that is built into Windows 10.  Its mapped to a hotkey for "Use GPU Driver Capture".   I don't have the option to flip it other than manually after the fact.

Ahh, that explains it. Maybe an alternative is to get all your mame stuff set up as you want it, record all the videos and then do a batch script to flip them all 180degrees at the same time.

[MrGrynch]

20 minutes ago, scutters said:

Ahh, that explains it. Maybe an alternative is to get all your mame stuff set up as you want it, record all the videos and then do a batch script to flip them all 180degrees at the same time.

@scutters why doesn’t this happen when I’m in portrait mode and VPX is configured for HORIZONTAL?

[scutters]

On 3/28/2022 at 10:36 PM, MrGrynch said:

@scutters why doesn’t this happen when I’m in portrait mode and VPX is configured for HORIZONTAL?

Good question!.. i've never tried that config so it's news to me. Sorry, no idea

 

Edit - Btw, in the next version of database manager we'll be adding the option to rotate playfield videos from the right click menu, that will make things easier.