# Trackmate? Laptimer 2000? who is using what....



## thor25 (May 8, 2006)

I have tried Laptimer 2000 and just cant seem to get the parallel or any intewrface for that matter to work. Thinking about the Trakemate solution. Anyone care to share there experiance with either of these two pieces of software?

I am new (again) to slotcars and wish to build a killer 2 lane HO setup. The timer seems to be the only piece missing missing with the exception of my compolsivelly growing slot car collection...Damn Ebay.

Thanks in advance......

Thor


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## 1976Cordoba (Sep 20, 2000)

I use Trakmate and like it.

'doba


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

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## Franko (Mar 16, 2005)

I'm using Laptimer 2000 with phototransistors hooked to the parallel port of an ancient IBM PC. Works very well for me.


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## Stoosh (Feb 13, 2006)

I use trakmate windows version on my 4 lane oval and really like all the features. I also use Laptimer 2000 on my 2 lane road track and have had no problems with it. Both of my systems use the infra-red sensors and work to perfection. The trakmate on the oval is the feature system and track since that is where I host races with a number of drivers and it seems to have more features for that aspect of racing. Mike


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## Mike(^RacerX^) (Mar 15, 2003)

Thor.....

I am in the same boat as you.I use Laptimer,but have had a lot of problems with it.I have it set up now and it works,but not 100%.

If I figured my time as money,it would have been cheaper to have just gotten the Laptimer setup.Down the road I probably will.

Ive heard nothing but good about it.

Mike


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## SwamperGene (Dec 1, 2003)

Hi Mike.....did you try the trick with the reed switches? That setup, using Laptimer 2000, is still working flawlessly for all cars, bone-stock skinny-tire T-jets through full polymer cars.


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## Mike(^RacerX^) (Mar 15, 2003)

Hello Gene :wave: 

You know,I forgot I had read about using the reed switches.I may do that as my last ditch effort before 86ing the LT software altogether.

A few months back,I thought that using dead strips with LT would be the solution to my missed lap problem I was having.
Not the case.ANd very frustrating I might add.

Gene....Will you be at the SHORS race thats coming up next week??????I may pop in depending on if my band is playing or not that night.

Mike


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## thor25 (May 8, 2006)

Thanks For your input. The IR Sensors from what I read on this and other forums seem to either work just fine or are a black hole of tweaking. I did finally get the software to work on my Parallel port and find it to be pretty fun. Some of the faster cars (Wizzard for instance) may experience a missed lap every now and again. Not to discredit the software at all I realize it is a physical adjustment problem not the program code. My kids and I have spent hours tying to get the fastest lap and having a timer truly changes everything. Where before it was car against car to determine a winner now its push each car to bring out its best performance and our best driving. We may end up playing with a reed switch this weekend… 

I really appreciate everyone’s feedback and love the forum. Again Im a newbie in sponge mode right now and trying to soak up all the info that’s out there. 

Burning HO Rubber in Pinckney MI

Thor


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

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## Gunther455 (Dec 30, 2005)

I am in the middle of lap timing issues myself, I have priced a few different options. The Trakmate in my opinion seems like the choice for me, using the I/R sensors. If you decide to use I/R or regular LED, you will most likely need a light bridge, which will cost you additional $$. And you need to match the output of the light source with the sensors. DO NOT GO THE RADIO SHACK BUILD IT YOURSELF METHOD. I have had nothing but issues with it.


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## bigun624 (May 11, 2005)

I use laptimer 200 on both my portable tracks with a lamp overhead and have had no problems.


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## mking (Apr 25, 2000)

*i use laptimer*

and i like it. there are settings you can play with to address missed or ghost laps. once i got reliable sensors it worked well. and it adds tremendous fun to racing solo. makes tuning much more quantifiable. 

i had trouble with the IR sensors sold by Greg Braun. part of the problem was i didnt have the right light source. i found these sensors on ebay, and they work very well with the incandesent lighting , so i didnt need to add a light bar to the track. i have an overhang on a section of track from my worktable, and two 60 watt incandescant lights tucked under the overhang work very well with these sensors. the seller doesnt have any listed on ebay right now, but if you email him i am sure he would be happy to list more. 

 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=2619&item=6045491726


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## nitrohead (Aug 28, 2005)

Ok looking for sources 
TrakeMate sytem
4 lane LED timming wiring harness'


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## fsmra (Feb 28, 2005)

I have all those - plus you may want to consider www.slottrak.com

Feel free to contact me!

Thanks

FSMRA


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## reptilian (Oct 14, 2006)

I have a crappy old dell latitude laptop, with windows m.e. the most i use it for is like a oversized mp3 player and for word pros. would this be a good thing to dedicate as a track pc for trackmate or laptimer? what are the requirements for those programs? I have almost gave this thing away like 20 times cuz i cant find a good use for it.


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## herschdog (Nov 4, 2006)

hay welcome to slot car racing
i had trak mate for a few years.the only trouble i have had it when i up date my soft ware. it stared to skip laps and if your dead strip is to small it won't count the lap.
now i have two lap counter running on my four lane track.one info red lap counter and trakmate on a dead strip.
if you are only using a 2 lane lay out try using a old micro wave timer to set your time and a over the track afx lap counter.


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## micyou03 (Apr 8, 2003)

I have Lap Timer 2000 working flawlessly on my 1/43rd track on an old Windows 95 computer. Now I am trying to get it working on my IBM ThinkPad A20 Windows 2000 Pro and can't get the printer port interface to work. I made a cable and tried jumping 10, 11, 12, and 13 to 25 and get nothing. Even direct jumping at the port gives no results. The keyboard interface (pushing 1,2,3,4 on the keyboard) works. 

Any ideas?


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## Scafremon (Dec 11, 2006)

micyou03 said:


> I have Lap Timer 2000 working flawlessly on my 1/43rd track on an old Windows 95 computer. Now I am trying to get it working on my IBM ThinkPad A20 Windows 2000 Pro and can't get the printer port interface to work. I made a cable and tried jumping 10, 11, 12, and 13 to 25 and get nothing. Even direct jumping at the port gives no results. The keyboard interface (pushing 1,2,3,4 on the keyboard) works.
> 
> Any ideas?


Going from memory, there is a list box in LapTimer related to the parallel port. As I recall there were 4 options in the box, one of which was custom.

On your computer, check the properties of your parallel port (right click My computer/properties/hardware tab/ device manager/right click printer-port LPT1/properties/resources tab. On this tab, there is a number related to the port (mine here at work says 0378-037F). In Laptimer, select the number in the drop down that resembles this.

I remember I had to do this when I hooked up laptimer to my IBM Thinkpad.


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## BewstdGT (Jan 4, 2005)

Does anyone know how to tell what kind of 25 pin port I have on my laptop? I Saw Greg's site lists a DB25 as well as a parallel 25 pin port. The wiring is different for each and since my lap timer isnt work at all Im thinking I have the otherkind of 25 pin port. I wired mine for the parellel style port but since my laptop is newer Im thinking it might be a 25-pin serial I/O port instead, in which case the wiring needs to change. *shrug* Im lost! lol


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## Mike(^RacerX^) (Mar 15, 2003)

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.I had this problem a ways back.......


I think what I ended up doing was buying a cheepola game pad and wired it for the game pad schematic he had on the site.

I bought an adapter at Radio Crack,converted the game pad wire to USB.

And my problems were done.





Mike


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## T-jetjim (Sep 12, 2005)

I have a Slot Master timing system. It has worked without a hitch from day one. It uses light sensors and doesn't miss laps. There are a lot of great add-on features that I didn't purchase such as crash and burn, pit stops, fuel consumption based on throttle, etc. It will do race rotation and marshall rotation. I wished it tracked fastest lap and announced it.
Jim


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## micyou03 (Apr 8, 2003)

Thanks for your help all.

I emailed Gregory Braun and he got back to me rather quickly (within an hour). He suggested changing the the printer port from LPT1 to LPT3.

Gregory Braun's suggestion of changing the printer port to LPT3 worked like a charm. Now I know my software/computer are working good together, and I know that my cable is correct. I'm in business now.


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## colin h (Jan 2, 2007)

Greg is top notch,
I use laptimer 2000 with the printer port. I had a problem with the infra red led's so I went to jumbo super bright red led's, this works great, have had no problems.

Colin


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## mikeponiatowski (Jan 24, 2006)

thor25 said:


> I have tried Laptimer 2000 and just cant seem to get the parallel or any intewrface for that matter to work. Thinking about the Trakemate solution. Anyone care to share there experiance with either of these two pieces of software?
> 
> I am new (again) to slotcars and wish to build a killer 2 lane HO setup. The timer seems to be the only piece missing missing with the exception of my compolsivelly growing slot car collection...Damn Ebay.
> 
> ...


 I also had problems getting Laptimer 2000 to work on more modern pc/laptop. It works fine with an old pc.

Also, I believe Trackmate is no longer available. If you go to the website the owner pretty much says he is retired and so is the product.

Anyone, am I reading that correctly ???


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## hot shoe (Dec 30, 2006)

I've been using SRM and S.P.T.S.

SRM is very easy to set up with photo transistors and S.P.T.S. has a cool fuel consumption feature.
Both web sites explain very well how to hook the sensors to the computer.

IR sensors are the most reliable method to trip the timer and light bridges are simple and cheap to construct.

My whole timing system here cost less than $25 bucks. That's including the computer, wire, light bridge cover, photo transistors and LEDs, power supply.


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## Hornet (Dec 1, 2005)

TrakMate is okay,it's Tracker 2000 that's defunct.
I doubt if Dan at Trakmate will be closing up shop anytime soon

http://www.infoserve.net/oss/slotcar/SCL/sclscreenshots.htm

http://www.infoserve.net/oss/slotcar/index.asp


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## mikeponiatowski (Jan 24, 2006)

yep, you are correct, Tracker 2000 is defunct. Thanks for the correction.


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## Boosted-Z71 (Nov 26, 2007)

Guys I am having major issues with Lap timer 2000, Let me start out by saying that I had it working with my laptop, We have done some finalizing of the layout & now decided to add a dedicated PC to the layout, Now the problem, I can not get LT to recognize the game port, I also tried the USB game port adapter he lists on his site as this is how I was running on the laptop. Nothing has changed on the wiring of the the track. But now I can not get either computer to recognize the port & function. I have tried to just use the straight game port as well as the USB connector. I am running XP-pro on both machines, I have already been through the IR aiming exercise & had the software working great on the laptop, now switching to the desktop I get nothing, The software tells me nothing is hooked up or run the emulator, I do the setup for the emulator & then the PC says it is not connected when I pick it as the choice of connection. At times it will not save the emulator setups & after you exit the window & open it back up you can see it reverted back from the 2 axis 4 button setup I had saved. I changed sound cards in the PC for a new game port & still the same problem. Someone please give me some tip or ideas to try, I am about to go crazy trying to figure this out. I contacted Greg about a week ago but have not heard anything from him. Any help will be appreciated, it has been very frustrating as I really thought this would be a simple plug & play as it had worked great on the laptop & nothing has changed in the setup.

Thanks

Boosted


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## AcesFull (Jan 6, 2008)

Boosted-Z71 said:


> Guys I am having major issues with Lap timer 2000, Let me start out by saying that I had it working with my laptop, We have done some finalizing of the layout & now decided to add a dedicated PC to the layout, Now the problem, I can not get LT to recognize the game port, I also tried the USB game port adapter he lists on his site as this is how I was running on the laptop. Nothing has changed on the wiring of the the track. But now I can not get either computer to recognize the port & function. I have tried to just use the straight game port as well as the USB connector. I am running XP-pro on both machines, I have already been through the IR aiming exercise & had the software working great on the laptop, now switching to the desktop I get nothing, The software tells me nothing is hooked up or run the emulator, I do the setup for the emulator & then the PC says it is not connected when I pick it as the choice of connection. At times it will not save the emulator setups & after you exit the window & open it back up you can see it reverted back from the 2 axis 4 button setup I had saved. I changed sound cards in the PC for a new game port & still the same problem. Someone please give me some tip or ideas to try, I am about to go crazy trying to figure this out. I contacted Greg about a week ago but have not heard anything from him. Any help will be appreciated, it has been very frustrating as I really thought this would be a simple plug & play as it had worked great on the laptop & nothing has changed in the setup.
> 
> Thanks
> 
> Boosted


If you are using the LPT port, check the port settings in the BIOS. I had many issues with this setup myself and learned it was the hardware in my case. I now use Banner Eng. diffuse type photroelectric switches and it works flawlessly. Also, when I was trying to use the gameport and it wasn't working, I was told by someone that it may be an issue with XP, as these systems were not designed really for gaming but for office use and even though they are capable of using a joystick, they are not any good for it. Keep us posted.

Also, we had a discussion similar in this thread.
http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showthread.php?t=208774


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## Boosted-Z71 (Nov 26, 2007)

Thanks I will check it out, I was trying to use the game port & the usb adapter. I have an old lpt d-sub 25 pin cable that I can hack up to use the lpt port if someone could tell me what / where the pins on the LPT go in relation to the R11 (similar to the phone plug) connectector. Sorry guys I am not an electrician & do not know all the connectors. Is there anything specific that I am looking for in the bios as far as the LPT port, I have a relay that I want to hook up to control track power so I was working my way to the LPT port anyway but would like to get it up & running before I add another wrinkle to the system. I can usually solve 1 problem at a time.

Thanks for your help

Boosted


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## Scafremon (Dec 11, 2006)

I can't help on relating the wiring for LPT to the phone plug you have, but here is an idea, and how I did mine.

I used a LPT extension cable instead of a normal LPT printer cable, which gave me male d-sub connections at both ends.

Picked up a female connector that had solder cups on one side.



If you don't want to solder I think you can find other types of these. 

Using Greg B's Trackmate wiring info, attach leads to the cups for pins 10, 11, 12, 13 (lanes) 25 (grd), and 2 (for your future track power relay). In the above pic, I had not yet wired the #2 pin for the relay - that is why there are only 5 wires.

If that phone plug is what is coming from your sensors, snip it off, and I'm guessing there will be 5 wires in there. (The #2 wire doesn't go to the track). Use a continuity checker to find the common ground that goes to each sensor, and connect this to #25. Connect the remaining 4 wires to your d-sub leads. I don't think it matters which goes to which lane, as you can adjust lane colors in the software.

Just one way to do it - hope this helps.


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## Mike(^RacerX^) (Mar 15, 2003)

Boosted-Z71 said:


> Guys I am having major issues with Lap timer 2000, Let me start out by saying that I had it working with my laptop, We have done some finalizing of the layout & now decided to add a dedicated PC to the layout, Now the problem, I can not get LT to recognize the game port, I also tried the USB game port adapter he lists on his site as this is how I was running on the laptop. Nothing has changed on the wiring of the the track. But now I can not get either computer to recognize the port & function. I have tried to just use the straight game port as well as the USB connector. I am running XP-pro on both machines, I have already been through the IR aiming exercise & had the software working great on the laptop, now switching to the desktop I get nothing, The software tells me nothing is hooked up or run the emulator, I do the setup for the emulator & then the PC says it is not connected when I pick it as the choice of connection. At times it will not save the emulator setups & after you exit the window & open it back up you can see it reverted back from the 2 axis 4 button setup I had saved. I changed sound cards in the PC for a new game port & still the same problem. Someone please give me some tip or ideas to try, I am about to go crazy trying to figure this out. I contacted Greg about a week ago but have not heard anything from him. Any help will be appreciated, it has been very frustrating as I really thought this would be a simple plug & play as it had worked great on the laptop & nothing has changed in the setup.
> 
> Thanks
> 
> Boosted


I feel you pain.

Ive been through pretty much everything you mention.Reed switches,dead strips,the photo sensors,etc.

Can never get anything to work right to the point where I said screw it a month or so ago and my track has become a huge folding table for laundry.

But,I will soon give it yet another try.

Mike


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## Boosted-Z71 (Nov 26, 2007)

Thanks, I will check the pins config & get back with you. It is so frustrating as I had it all working on the laptop & its really a neat setup, We mounted a 19" flat Lcd to the wall for the display & now just cant get it to time.

Thanks, again I appreciate the help.

Boosted


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## AcesFull (Jan 6, 2008)

Mike(^RacerX^) said:


> I feel you pain.
> 
> Ive been through pretty much everything you mention.Reed switches,dead strips,the photo sensors,etc.
> 
> ...


Photoelectric diffuse type NPN output is the way to go. Havn't missed a single lap since installed. Lovin' it.


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## Scafremon (Dec 11, 2006)

AcesFull said:


> Photoelectric diffuse type NPN output is the way to go.


Aces,

Do you have a part number and/or a web link to where someone can buy these?


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## brownie374 (Nov 21, 2007)

Buy the trackmate! A+++


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## AcesFull (Jan 6, 2008)

Scafremon said:


> Aces,
> 
> Do you have a part number and/or a web link to where someone can buy these?


The one I used were the expensive ones, the T8 series from banner engineering ($60 per, luckily I had 3 in my shop and only had to buy 1 more). There is another brand of the same type, just in a larger package on m2sensors.com. I have tested P/N M2 EFA-2DNC - they work great and are adjustable up to 100mm. They are easy to configure and very reliable.


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## AcesFull (Jan 6, 2008)

brownie374 said:


> Buy the trackmate! A+++


I am buying their LPT to serial interface board to adapt my hardware with their software. I really like their layout.


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## Crimnick (May 28, 2006)

I bought a used track mate system from a fellow club member...I'll post how it goes on set up....I have everything but the light bridge....and one of the IR pickups is smashed...

Software is 4.0...I have a PC with 98 still on it I have to dig out...

And having a real power supply rocks.....got the 10 amp track mate...

We race SS at 18v...but it's nice to get my SG+'s out on 22v for some kicks...

Slot cars arent addictive....nah....I could quit anytime I wanted to...


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## Montoya1 (May 14, 2004)

I have heard and read about so many issues with PC based timing that I went with the Tomy control station hooked to a light bridge so as to do away with those troublesome white bases.

AFX Racemasters are bringing out a new version with extra features and more compact size before the end of the year. It won't be as feature heavy or as a cool as a flawlessly working PC system but very plug and play.


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## Boosted-Z71 (Nov 26, 2007)

This is my first true "layout" that I have built, I still have all the old T-jet, AFX, AFX-mag, Tyco, & G-plus from my child-hood days. This track I am building with my 10 year old son. The Laptimer was something I found searching around on-line & thought it would be cool for the track. I could not believe how much we enjoyed lapping as fast as we could. We have a 4 lane 70 ish foot / lane layout. Jr is lapping this thing consistently in the low 6 sec range with some of the new super g cars. We have really enjoyed the lap timer & it has worked flawlessly until the recent computer change. I think you guys gave me all the info I need to switch to the LPT port & were going to try that today. I will let you guys know how it comes out. 

Thanks again for all the input & help.

Boosted


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## Boosted-Z71 (Nov 26, 2007)

Changed to the LPT port & it fired right up, no problems at all. 

Big thanks to all of you for your help.

Boosted


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## jimbo-slots (Feb 28, 2006)

Hello,
I am also running Lap Timer 2000 from Greg on an older Todhiba Lap top for my 4-lane AFX HO track. I am using the printer port I/O. The only issue I had was I first tried using reed switches. I would constintly have missed and double counted laps and it was frustrating. I gave in and went to Radio Shack and bought the matched pairs of phototransistors (Transmitter and Reciever) wiered them in and have not had one issue since. I will admit it does not get used a whole lot but it does get used.

Jim


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## AcesFull (Jan 6, 2008)

Boosted-Z71 said:


> Changed to the LPT port & it fired right up, no problems at all.
> 
> Big thanks to all of you for your help.
> 
> Boosted



Congrats. I know it is so much more fun when it all comes together and operates as intended.:woohoo:


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## neophytte (Sep 14, 2006)

I use Laptimer2000 on my routed track with reeds; I must admit that there were a few setup issues (for some reason my printer post is mapped to LPT3, and the debounce needed to be set to 1000ms) but from there it *mostly* worked. Turbos, SG+ and comparable models started missing laps but (without any known intervention from me) they seemed to settle down. TJets were a similar situation until this weekend when I took it to a racemeet and one of the guys gave it a rubdown with a train rail cleaning erm, sponge type thing and they now seem to be counting fine. Not sure what the issue was there. Wizzards are still missing occasionally, but I believe that may be due to the fact that I routed my reeds *up* to the track, whereas I probably should have routed *down* into the wood. There were a bunch of suggestions the guys came up with and you can read them at our local forum http://neophytte.mine.nu/forum/ and you can read about my routed track at http://routedtrack.hobby-site.com/ Hope you can find some info there to help!!

Cheers

Richard


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## Peacefield (Jan 22, 2008)

I use Trakmate for Windows and LED's. Real happy with the performance. The only thing I think it lacks is data management. I really like the way Ultimate Racer 3.0 collects info on the cars, racers, track, etc. and reports back out on it. Trakmate doesn't do any of that so I'm left with the obnoxious process of saving a lot of little Excel files that I later combine with additional data and do it myself. 

I would've gone UR3, but Trakmate has the one best feature of all; audible track times. That makes it worth every penny to me. Even makes racing solo fun.


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## Scafremon (Dec 11, 2006)

I agree about UR 3 and the database of info it collects. I need to load that program up again and play around with it. Greg's software is just so user friendly - at least that was my impression when I compared them a while ago.

Audible lap times? Do you mean more then the different sound when a new best lap is run? If so, I need to check that out. I was pleased once I hooked up speakers to my PC so that I could here the different sound for a new best.


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

Totally agree about TrackMate. Great product and the speech feature is great. Getting speech out of a Windows program is pretty easy because Microsoft provides an API for doing it. Just check out the Narrator feature under Accessibility options. I suggested this to Greg years ago because I know he is a professional Windows developer.

I've contemplated doing a race management system myself, but so far I'm having more fun just playing with other people's work and doing my own sounds too much like real work. The biggest missing feature in TrackMate is what I'd call a comprehensive data historian tied to a data management system like Peacefield mentioned. I'm more interested for now in the realtime data and being able to completely reconstruct every lap of every race for every driver and every car. The additional metadata like driver and car info adds another dimension, but only when it's correlated with the real time data and easy to capture. I don't want to have to type in all that stuff. 

The nirvana scenario would be to have every car bar-coded, and every controller equipped with an ID that could be read by the track management system, or maybe just put a fingerprint reader on each drivers station and require the driver to log-in to every lane by touching the reader. Being able to collect all of the realtime data automatically is what I really want. A good first step would to capture all of the live race data that's already available and be able to play it back, both for post race analysis for performance tuning (car and driver) as well as being able to reconcile any scoring issues that may have occurred during the race. The super nirvana system would have the ability to determine when a car leaves the track, i.e., crashes during the race, so off track time can be captured as well. A back-emf detection system could be used to do that. Having presence sensors every foot or so would be nice too.


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## Peacefield (Jan 22, 2008)

Scafremon said:


> Audible lap times? Do you mean more then the different sound when a new best lap is run? QUOTE]
> 
> Better. In one of those robotic voices, it calls out the actual lap time to 1/1000 of a second. It's fantastic. You need to turn off all other sounds because they stamp over each other. I don't know how it handles four racers at a time, but for my two lane, it clearly calls out the lap times for the first car followed by the second. It requires only the most recent version of Trakmate for Windows and the installation of a few drivers. Definitely worth exploring.


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## Scafremon (Dec 11, 2006)

AfxToo said:


> The nirvana scenario would be to have every car bar-coded, and every controller equipped with an ID that could be read by the track management system, or maybe just put a fingerprint reader on each drivers station and require the driver to log-in to every lane by touching the reader.


Total geekfest. :thumbsup:


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## midlifer (Jan 19, 2008)

*Wait a minute..Apples to Apples*

Since I am also trying to figure this out. Trackmate 1/32 $200.00 hardware. Greg braun 1/32 hardware $60.00. If you go with free software or you buy trackmate. I just want to make sure this is what I am looking at. Yes money matters and I don't want to waste it.

Peace
Jc


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## AcesFull (Jan 6, 2008)

midlifer said:


> Since I am also trying to figure this out. Trackmate 1/32 $200.00 hardware. Greg braun 1/32 hardware $60.00. If you go with free software or you buy trackmate. I just want to make sure this is what I am looking at. Yes money matters and I don't want to waste it.
> 
> Peace
> Jc



The Trackmate hardware is the same as the rest, by that I mean it uses the LPT wiring configuration (as seen on G. Braun's site). The interface to the computer is different. The software is designed to use the serial port not the LPT. Therefore you have to purchase the interface board to convert the signals. You will notice that there is a 25 pin connector coming from the hardware side but a serial cable provided for computer connection. G. Brauns can be configured to use different PC ports, you just have to wire your hardware according to his schematics. I am personally using G. Braun's software right now with my own hardware setup. I am also going to purchase the Trackmate interface board and try out their software.

The cost difference in the hardware is because you get more with the trackmate. You get a light bridge & power supply, 25 pin cable with detectors, interface board & power supply, serial cable, relay and a track call button. With G. Braun's, you get a cable with the detectors connected at one end and the other end tied into a junction box with an RJ-45 connction, an RJ-45 cable and an adapter for your computer (depending on which config you choose), and you get the emmitters which you have to mount in something yourself. Software is free for both.

Hope this helps.


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## midlifer (Jan 19, 2008)

*Apples*

Aces
Thanks. Another question i have sent braun this but I have yet to hear back. Can I mount his sensors in a light bridge or are those different? It's weird I am getting so into this .I am also looking for used 1/32 cars solid runners for everyday use. I'm amazed at how much everyone seems to know from motors to tires since I am happy just figuring out how to get my car back in the slot.

Peace
JC:freak:


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## AcesFull (Jan 6, 2008)

midlifer said:


> Aces
> Thanks. Another question i have sent braun this but I have yet to hear back. Can I mount his sensors in a light bridge or are those different? It's weird I am getting so into this .I am also looking for used 1/32 cars solid runners for everyday use. I'm amazed at how much everyone seems to know from motors to tires since I am happy just figuring out how to get my car back in the slot.
> 
> Peace
> JC:freak:


The light bridge sold with Trackmate already has the emitters mounted in it, that is why there is a power supply that goes with it. With G. Braun's, you have to make your own. He does sell a pedestrian bridge that you can mount them into but it's pretty crappy imo (also it will only fit over a 4 lane HO scale track). You are better of building your own than buying that pedestrian bridge.


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## midlifer (Jan 19, 2008)

*sensors*

So on Gregs gear I need to provide a power cable and I need to mount the sensors. But to be specific the sensors he uses are enough to put in a light bridge even though I believe it says under track sensor mount?

Peace
JC


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## AcesFull (Jan 6, 2008)

midlifer said:


> So on Gregs gear I need to provide a power cable and I need to mount the sensors. But to be specific the sensors he uses are enough to put in a light bridge even though I believe it says under track sensor mount?
> 
> Peace
> JC


The sensors are a 2 part item. The IR emitters need to be mounted above the detectors(the part that mounts under the track). Yes, you have to supply your own power to the emitters. When I bought his package, I do not recall getting a power supply for the emitters. I had alot of problems with the emitter/detector devices and ended up building my own using industrial photoelectric devices as I mentioned before. There are other options as well that guys on this forum have used successfully, like reed switches. I believe that most are wired in accordance with the LPT diagram. Trackmate hardware is also wired this way, but gets converted to a serial output via an interface board. I am going to purchase the interface board today. When I recieve it I will try to provide some feedback on the 2 different softwares.


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## Slott V (Feb 3, 2005)

Midlifer- no matter what you use for timing, the basic principal is to send signal to the computer with the car somehow, whether it be a
(1) small reed switch activated by magnets,
(2) a "dead section" where the car itself triggers a switch and then
(3) photo-electric sensors.

LED sensors fall under the last category.

The basic function behind these LED track sensors for a timing software is like this:

The *LED sensors* are light sensitive so when you use an overhead light source they detect it. When something passes over the sensor and interrupts the light source getting to the sensor it gives a closed signal to the computer and the software registers it. You want the sensors in the track, close to the car bottom so shadows don't give false readings.

To get fancy, you can use infra-red *LED light senders* instead of an incandescent light source. (light bulb, desk light, etc.) These LED's send a band of light you cannot see. You can even use plain white LED senders for a light source. If you choose overhead LED's you need a power source to make them give light.

-Scott


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## RiderZ (Feb 19, 2007)

*!!!*

I have GB's LT 2000 system and am not real happy with it.Although it does work well when it does work.I think my problem may be more computer related though.Here are a few picks of the sensors mounted in the track at the start/finish line and the emitters mounted in the light bridge with the wiring to the emitters.Hope this gives you a better visual understanding.


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## midlifer (Jan 19, 2008)

*mo money*

I starting to think trackmate is more complete also a bit more complicated. If I plan to use this semi commercially it sounds a bit more heavy duty. Someone also mention race car sound not the fastest lap callout on trackmate how and where does this happen? It's getting time to pull the trigger.

Peace 
JC


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## AcesFull (Jan 6, 2008)

midlifer said:


> I starting to think trackmate is more complete also a bit more complicated. If I plan to use this semi commercially it sounds a bit more heavy duty. Someone also mention race car sound not the fastest lap callout on trackmate how and where does this happen? It's getting time to pull the trigger.
> 
> Peace
> JC



Trackmate sells you a better package. If you can build a reliable hardware setup, then you save a few bucks. I just purchased the trackmate interface board this morning and can't wait to get it and stop using LT2000.


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## AcesFull (Jan 6, 2008)

Well, I got my interface board and started plyaing around with it. I like the Trackmate screen layout much more than the LT2000. It's the simple things really, such as the flags that change color(green while racing, white on last lap, checkered when race is over). I also like how it stops copunting laps when the race is finished. With LT2000, the laps would continue to count after the race had been won. I haven't had time to really get into the sound, but so far I really like Trackmate. The race results are formated better as well. Easier to read with a few options for viewing. Unfortunately, like LT2000, there is not a racecar database or any function which tracks data for cars or lanes, such as best times and such. That would be a nice feature. Overall, after a couple hours of racing using Trackmate, I am happy with it and done using LT2000.


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## LeeRoy98 (Jul 8, 2005)

After reading the Fray reports and all the positive reviews regarding the Slottrak timing system, I have downloaded the evaluation software and will be loading it on my track computer. 
I have been very happy with my Trackmate software but the Slottrak capabilities for team racing are very intriguing. Anyone else using Slottrak and care to report their results?

Gary
AKA LeeRoy98
www.marioncountyraceway.com


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## Mike(^RacerX^) (Mar 15, 2003)

Guys,I just wanted to hit this thread to give a big thanks to all who contributed info.

Almost five years later of messing around and using the software and living with missed laps and glitches,I have to say,knock wood,I FINALLY got it to work,99.9%.
Not sure but I THINK I might have missed one lap.

I have an older machine that I used the USB game port configuration.The dope I am,I never realized that the computer actually had an old school game port.

Made a new set of sensors,built a light bridge like the one Gene showed me awile back with the super bright red LEDs,focused them dead center over the sensors,and viola!!!

So in the end,it wasnt the reeds I used or the dead strips I tried,it was the damn USB adapter the whole time.

Again,thanks one and all for the great info!!!!


Mike


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## AcesFull (Jan 6, 2008)

Congrats on getting it worked out. I know for me it was a big ordeal but in the end it was worth it for the learning experience alone. It's nice to finally be able to race with the kids and watch them get better based on lap times.


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## hepkat63 (Mar 17, 2006)

can someone please tell me how to turn on audible lap times in trackmate?


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## demether (Aug 26, 2008)

> Unfortunately, like LT2000, there is not a racecar database or any function which tracks data for cars or lanes, such as best times and such. That would be a nice feature. Overall, after a couple hours of racing using Trackmate, I am happy with it and done using LT2000.



take a look on ultimate racer 3, it's full of options, diagrams, stats, for each car, each racer, each track, and you can also trace your own track with the track designer inside the software, so you can have scale speeds stats too !

It's compatible with major track sensors (I use it with reed switchs) and the track data bank contents tomy and tyco track parts range.

The race screen is also entirely customisable (fonts, colors, racers photos, etc...). 

hope it helps.


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

> can someone please tell me how to turn on audible lap times in trackmate?


Instructions are given at the top of the page under the version 6.4 software update:

http://www.trackmateracing.com/a_support_slot_cars_laptimer_windows_software.asp

Here's a more detailed step by step:

1) Download the version 6.4 update ZIP file.
2) Unzip the scl64.zip file into a folder. This will unzip into about 6 files and 2 folders.
3) Launch the installer for the version 6.4 software by double clicking the setup.exe file.
4) When setup is completed, go back to the collection of unzipped stuff and open the VoiceDrivers folder.
5) Install the two voice drivers by double clicking on spchapi.exe and then tv_enua.exe.
6) Run TrackMate and give it a try by pressing the Alt plus number 1 through number 8 keys at the same time - depending on how many lanes you have. The voice feature can only be activated for one lane at a time. 

If you cannot get speech to work on your computer, make sure that speech is enabled in Windows. Here's an article for setting up and testing the speech engine in Windows XP.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306902

If you can get the text-to-speech working with the built-in Windows functions like Narrator but it still does not work with TrackMate then Dan at TrackMate will have to walk you through some additional things to check.


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## X2ioner (Jun 4, 2009)

Hello from Californa

You can call me X2 for short ;-)
I hope I can be a part of this group and help others in HO scale slot cars.:tongue:


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

X2 - More than happy to see a new 'face' on the board. Welcome!

The Track Building Forum is a little slow these days but it can pick up quickly once someone starts chronicling their past or present track and/or scenery building experiences. 

So feel free to jump right in with both feet. Oh, and we love pictures around here too. Whether it's poetry, prose, or a literary classic for the ages, don't expect too much. Throw in a picture now and then, hey now, everything is right with the world and we're a happy bunch.


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## X2ioner (Jun 4, 2009)

Thanks AFXtoo


I thought no one was around and came back and here you replied :thumbsup:

Are we allowed to just show our blog in a link here so everyone can see pics that way?

Since this thread is about lap timers, I've used SRM which has worked well for the past few years for me, my only dislike about it is its a dos program.

I have Gregory Brauns lap timer 2000 on my track now, it was not all that easy to set up and seemed his install notes are not exact and the setup can change from computer to computer .... but it works if you just ingnore his instructions and play with the connections by trail and error.

Right now I'm finding I am getting errors in the laps, its either the reed switches or the software, I'm thinking of adding photo cells and see if that's my problem.

happy motoring :wave:






AfxToo said:


> X2 - More than happy to see a new 'face' on the board. Welcome!
> 
> The Track Building Forum is a little slow these days but it can pick up quickly once someone starts chronicling their past or present track and/or scenery building experiences.
> 
> So feel free to jump right in with both feet. Oh, and we love pictures around here too. Whether it's poetry, prose, or a literary classic for the ages, don't expect too much. Throw in a picture now and then, hey now, everything is right with the world and we're a happy bunch.


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## roffutt (Jun 30, 2006)

X2ioner said:


> Are we allowed to just show our blog in a link here so everyone can see pics that way?


X2,

Why not start a new thread and post the pictures or link to your blog.. that way everyone has a chance to see and enjoy.. and possibly respond without taking this thread off topic! 

Thanks,
Robbie


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## fsmra (Feb 28, 2005)

Obviously I prefer Slottrak

But please remember that when using the trakmate hardware with our software that your settings are correct otherwise it wont count. Make sure that you have the proper "trakmate" settings (in the slottrak software, debounce, etc) when using slottrak software with trakmate hardware.

If you have any questions OR if it seems to not be working properly in any configuration, feel free to contact me or call my cel with any questions you may have.

There is a new version on the website www.slottrak.com V10.16

Thanks

Michael Block
www.slottrak.com
1-262-269-8121


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## roddster (Jan 17, 2010)

Yep, 1st post here. :wave: I'm not new to Ho or even 1/25th scale racing, just new to this forum. Bumped into it by "googling" "laptimer 2000"
Ok, here it goes: last week I won a laptimer 2000 program on Ebay, $40.00 some bucks. Comes with Ir sensors and the programing for windows (yes, I know the programing was free) and some other connector stuff.

Here is what I'd like to know before this shows up any day now: 

What contols the track power? I've seen on a post here that Laptimer 2000 will continue to count laps after the race (heat)is over. When I ran 1/25th scale stuff (the place closed like 10 years ago,boo-hoo) the heats were 2 minutes or so. You started on lane 1, went to lane 2, then so on. You ran laps, the track powe shut off, you moved your car to the next lane (and put the color sticker on it for that lane) and the counter picked up the laps from there. There was also a timed period to change the lane your car was in. I seem to recall it was 1 minute or so. I'm hoping that the Laptimer program works this way, or, did I miss something?


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## shipsgunner (Sep 6, 2008)

Franko said:


> I'm using Laptimer 2000 with phototransistors hooked to the parallel port of an ancient IBM PC. Works very well for me.


Ditto


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

roddster - you'll need to wire in a track power relay. There is a description on Gregory's web site: http://www.hoslotcarracing.com/LapCounter.html


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## sd624 (Feb 14, 2009)

AfxToo said:


> roddster -There is a description on Gregory's web site: http://www.hoslotcarracing.com/LapCounter.html


Just a heads up he has the DC to DC relay wire backwards on his site. I talked to him about it a year ago and he said he was going to fix it but he still hasnt.


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## roddster (Jan 17, 2010)

Afxtoo & Sd624: Thanks for the tip. I'd like to have this all operable before inviting some friends over to run.


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