My mame cab project!

[jay_red]

After wanting to get into this for a while, and planning out how I would do this, I finally took the first step in doing a MAME cab...getting a cab! I have been searching craigslist for a while looking for anything, I finally posted a want ad and was responded to the next morning by a guy that had 6 different cabs he offered me (little did I know that this was just the tip of the iceberg). He had one that was priced right and seemed like a good start. I went over to his house tonight to see what he had and was happy with this cab as a starting point, and for an extra $10 he delivered it to my door.

Enough beating around the bush, now she doesnt look like much, but I plan on making her shine again... Its an original nintendo cab that originally had donkey kong in it, it is completely gutted (just what I wanted) and only need some minor wood repairs.


Along with the the cab he gave me 2 control panels, one metal one drilled for 2 player 6 button fighter style (what i will use) and one original wood pac-man panel. He also included 2 marquees for the top and a plexiglass sheet for the front.

I need to figure out what size monitor will go in, it will be horizontal style for fighters and the like, I will most likely go with some sort of computer CRT. I will put in a spare computer to handle the games, its an old dell that should do just fine. I will be getting Sanwa parts for the controls, and am thinking about pad hacking ps1 controllers and using an adapter for the computer (all parts I have lying around except the buttons and sticks).

The guy I got it from was very cool, and when i talked to him on the phone he mentioned he had like over 20 cabs in his garage, I thought this was a mistake, but boy was I wrong...
this is just some of them, he said he has more in a storage, I think he has a problem lol...



So I hope to keep this thread updated as I go on, I need to figure out my monitor situation asap!

[s1mplehumar]

Make sure to request a price on that Star Wars sit down.

Any clue what your cab was in its prior life? Good luck!

[jay_red]

haha he stated that the star wars cockpit was the crown jewel of his collection (these wernt for sale, this is his personal collection, he just happened to have some extra cabs to sell) My cab was a donkey kong cab originally.

[fastbilly1]

Ah an old DK cab, a 21inch CRT should fit snuggly, if I remember correctly. I wouldnt say the guy has a problem, if you have ever been to a poorly attended auction, you can walk out with 10 cabs for under a grand.

[dunpeal2064]

Ah an old DK cab, a 21inch CRT should fit snuggly, if I remember correctly. I wouldnt say the guy has a problem, if you have ever been to a poorly attended auction, you can walk out with 10 cabs for under a grand.

Wow, that would be the shit.

[fastbilly1]

Ah an old DK cab, a 21inch CRT should fit snuggly, if I remember correctly. I wouldnt say the guy has a problem, if you have ever been to a poorly attended auction, you can walk out with 10 cabs for under a grand.

Wow, that would be the shit.

You can ask Majors if you dont believe me. I almost got Raiden 1 and 2 in separate cabs in good condition (needed new sticks though) for $70 each.

[dunpeal2064]

Ah an old DK cab, a 21inch CRT should fit snuggly, if I remember correctly. I wouldnt say the guy has a problem, if you have ever been to a poorly attended auction, you can walk out with 10 cabs for under a grand.

Wow, that would be the shit.

You can ask Majors if you dont believe me. I almost got Raiden 1 and 2 in separate cabs in good condition (needed new sticks though) for $70 each.

Oh I believe you, I was just shocked at how great a deal can be had on cabs. I always figured each cab would be in the hundreds.

Damn, that would have been a crazy good deal. I would love to have a Raiden 2 cab, especially for under a hundred bucks. I'll haev to keep an eye peeled on one of these auctions.

[fastbilly1]

Sadly the Raiden PC ports are crap, but vertical cab of some kind is in my future, even if I have to make it myself. To get back on topic. Jay_red, what is your input device?

I will give you one tip that I tell everyone making Mame cabs. DONT PUT EVERYTHING ON IT. You will be overwhelmed and you will not play most of them. Since you are building it with the capcom 6 button layout, try to stick to games that use it, or can easily be played with the layout. Dont put on Donkey Kong (partially because your screen will be Yoko, and partially because you will have an 8 way stick and not a 4 way so it will play sloppy).

[CRTGAMER]

Sadly the Raiden PC ports are crap, but vertical cab of some kind is in my future, even if I have to make it myself. To get back on topic. Jay_red, what is your input device?

I will give you one tip that I tell everyone making Mame cabs. DONT PUT EVERYTHING ON IT. You will be overwhelmed and you will not play most of them. Since you are building it with the capcom 6 button layout, try to stick to games that use it, or can easily be played with the layout. Dont put on Donkey Kong (partially because your screen will be Yoko, and partially because you will have an 8 way stick and not a 4 way so it will play sloppy).

Agree, Mame has a ton of games that can be hard to track. There is a favorites folder right in the Mame Front End, add the preferred games there. This is why I prefer the Mame built in Front End over a prettier graphic laden one. All the Game List options.

As fastbilly pointed out a good idea to look at the games you want to play, to determine the correct controller. I think you can set up multiple controllers, for example a two player fighter game can use the two sticks for a Twinstick game such as Robotron. A Spinner and Trakball to one side could also be added as to not interfer with the stick games but allow versatility in a game such as Centipede or Tac Scan. In addition, the Trakball could be used to control the front end in place of a Mouse.

@ Jay_red - Great Find at the Arcade Cab "Warehouse" a story itself!

[jay_red]

Sadly the Raiden PC ports are crap, but vertical cab of some kind is in my future, even if I have to make it myself. To get back on topic. Jay_red, what is your input device?

I will give you one tip that I tell everyone making Mame cabs. DONT PUT EVERYTHING ON IT. You will be overwhelmed and you will not play most of them. Since you are building it with the capcom 6 button layout, try to stick to games that use it, or can easily be played with the layout. Dont put on Donkey Kong (partially because your screen will be Yoko, and partially because you will have an 8 way stick and not a 4 way so it will play sloppy).

I looked at some horrible offenders of this, putting every control under the sun on the panel, I want to just keep it simple here. Just a basic 2 player 6 button layout, with a player 1 and 2 buttons on the top. Plus this cab is pretty compact compared to others so you couldnt get much more on it that that.

About how I will do my controls will interface, to keep it cheap (since I already have it all) I will be pad hacking 2 playstation controllers and using a usb adapter I already have.

In case anyone was curious I paid $60 delivered to my door for this cab with its extras.

Edit: Started to repair the wood damage tonight, will update with pics...if it comes out well haha.

Double Edit (guess no one is reading )
Got a TV for it, was debating on getting a CRT computer monitor, but couldnt find one large enough. Went to some thrift stores with my tape measure and ended up with this Sony CRT for $15, its a 20 inch screen and will be perfect! My biggest worry about this whole project has been how to mount the screen, but it seems that it was all for nothing, as I literally set the TV in the cab and it held it at the correct height and angle! All I have to do is secure it once I am ready. The computer will be hooked up to it via s-video.

The wood repair is coming along better than I could have imagined! I ended up getting this stuff called Water Putty that I read about online to fill in the missing chunks of MDF. It is interesting, kind of between bondo and playdough, but you can form it once it starts to dry and when it does dry like the can says its rock hard! The only down side is that its kind of difficult to sand haha. Once I am finished with that I will be painting it with the left over blue paint from our Mario wall in the game room.

Im gonna call this close enough!

haha I had to make sure the TV worked, and this was the quickest way to do so, some Genesis power and the sweetest arcade stick known to man! It was actually kind of cool to see it like this honestly.