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Author Topic: New Mame Cab First Conversion  (Read 12403 times)

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Taekwonjudo

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New Mame Cab First Conversion
« on: January 25, 2011, 10:07:07 pm »
Hey guys

Been reading this forum for a few months now & I have officially caught the bug!

I'm looking to make my first MAME cab & before even really starting, I thought I'd get some thoughts & feedback from all of you here. I really want to take my time & plan this out right.

I've just recently gotten my hands on a like new Golden Tee Live 2010 Cab.

The main screen has been removed as has the PCB & most of the innerds. The nice thing is that the smaller LCD screen below the marquee was included.

Ok couple questions first

1) Am I making a MAME fauxpas by "destroying this beautiful cab to accommodate the multiple games that I'd like to play on it considering the condition of thing? (I'm really torn on this one... this thing really is pristine
2) Does anyone know anything about these smaller LCD's they used in these? I've been able to pull this one out. Looks like it's in great condition with 1 DVI & 1 VGA input along with 2 other inputs that I don't understand.... worse than that... I don't see a power plugin with it either  ??? :dizzy: Can this be used for other things or are these manufactured strictly for the purposes of the original machine?
3) Seeing as I'd like to avoid damaging this unit as much as possible, can anyone suggest a way that I can create my CP to fit nicely on this unit without too much modification?
4) If this were your project, any suggestions on what I should set the second LCD to do?

Thanks a bunch guys.

I'm looking forward to the replies & especially the beginning of the project itself.

Nephasth

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #1 on: January 25, 2011, 10:46:49 pm »
1) You won't be destroying it if it can be put back to the original set up. I don't see any problem in that.
2) I don't know anything about these smaller LCDs. But keep it (see #4).
3) Duplicate its CP (dimension wise) with your desired layout. Keep the original (just in case you ever want to revert back to what it was).
4) :D Set it up for a changeable marquee like: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=70840.0
« Last Edit: January 25, 2011, 10:49:19 pm by Nephasth »

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #2 on: January 25, 2011, 11:03:54 pm »
Quote
1) You won't be destroying it if it can be put back to the original set up. I don't see any problem in that.
2) I don't know anything about these smaller LCDs. But keep it (see #4).
3) Duplicate its CP (dimension wise) with your desired layout. Keep the original (just in case you ever want to revert back to what it was).
4) Cheesy Set it up for a changeable marquee like: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=70840.0

Thanks Nephasth

That thread actually helped me identify that this LCD appears to be some kind of LCD TV. It has one of those PCB's attached with micro switches that threw me for a bit of a loop.... strange though... I still don't see what powers this thing yet. May be tomorrow I'll take some pics of it & post to see if anyone can help me identify the plugins & how to set it up to be a variable marquee as you suggested  >:D >:D to be honest... that was my first idea for it as well.

Cheers!


Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #3 on: January 26, 2011, 09:47:03 am »
Ok, a little closer look into that LCD leads me to believe that WG is now manufacturing LCD's specifically for arcade type units.

I found the power plug.... traced the end & now I'm thrown back again... Looks like the end of a CPU power plug to a mobo. Anyone have any idea if/how to hack this to use a regular plug?

I'm attaching pics of the PCB that's still attached to the LCD along with pics of the inputs for the thing. I cant's figure out what the one input is for. There doesn't seem to be a wire in the cab at that location that'll fit that 2 prong input that I can see or trace.

Gonna take some measurements today & start working with CP layouts to see if I can get a comfortable 2 player layout with a trackball in the existing size. If not... a little ingenuity & planning will be in order.

Nephasth

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #4 on: January 26, 2011, 10:16:58 am »
I don't know what the two prong port is for, being it's two pins, it's probably an optional power connector (just like this LCD has the option of either DVI or VGA input). But that's clearly a 12V LCD. You could just cut that plug (the one that looks like it connects to a mobo) off the end and wire it to 12V from the computer's power supply you put in this cabinet. And that PCB is probably for making adjustments to the LCD.
« Last Edit: January 26, 2011, 10:21:56 am by Nephasth »

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #5 on: January 26, 2011, 10:25:58 am »
Ah ok.

Dumb question time now then. The PS from the computer... are all of the outputs from them usually 12v? Reason I ask is that the system I plan on using, I wired up a fan for the side of the case with the connector you see in the attached image. Could I do the same sort of thing do you think?

Would I hook up the wired to the same connectors as I did here?

Nephasth

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #6 on: January 26, 2011, 10:27:49 am »
For power supplies, red wires are 5V, yellow wires are 12V, and black are ground. You should just be able to match the wires color for color.

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #7 on: January 26, 2011, 10:30:11 am »
 :cheers: Beautiful! That makes life easy for testing the LCD now :)

Wish me luck! I'll keep ya posted.

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #8 on: January 26, 2011, 05:21:36 pm »
Well whad'ya know! That worked perfect! Thanks Nephasth!  :cheers: The LCD is like new & the resolution is so crisp! It's almost a shame to use it as just a marquee.

Dunno... may I'll turn it into a flatscreen for my recording computer... I'll decide later.

I'm attaching pics of bothe the Hack job I did in case it helps anyone out along with the working monitor

Been toying with some ideas. I think since I'm going to MAME this cab... I might as well go all the way. The wife suggested since my boys are getting into dragons now, maybe something along that theme... not sure. Any suggestions are welcome.

I'm working on the layout for the CP now, like I mentioned, I think I want to set up 2 players, possibly 7 buttons each & a trackball in the middle. From another thread, I found the http://www.slagcoin.com site. Anyone know if these layouts are good to use dimension wise for Happ sticks & buttons? I think I liked the Sega 2 layout the best as this seemed the most comfortable to me & seemed to be a bit more compressed than the standard KI type straight layout. What's everyone's take on the straight vs. the curved layouts? Preferences? findings?

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #9 on: January 26, 2011, 11:33:00 pm »
Ok. So I think I've worked out a pretty reasonable first attempt for CP & am looking for thoughts & comments. (.ai file attached size as if needed)

First off, would anyone be kind enough to check the scale of the buttons, joysticks & trackball I've used? It really strikes me that I have a lot more real estate than I originally thought I might in the space available. (I used the .png I found from slagcoin).

I'd love to hear some thoughts & opinions on where everything is laid out & how it's set up. (Anyone see anything I'm going to hate myself for by this?

Nephasth

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #10 on: January 26, 2011, 11:43:59 pm »
Glad to see the LCD works. If it were me, I would keep it with this cab. It works, and fits perfect in the hole. As far as your CP, haven't really seen on layed out with the trackball behind the joysticks before. You might think about rotating the button groups CCW for a more natural hand position. Below is a layout I made for my project (it's a tiny CP).

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #11 on: January 27, 2011, 12:35:59 am »
Quote
Glad to see the LCD works. If it were me, I would keep it with this cab. It works, and fits perfect in the hole. As far as your CP, haven't really seen on layed out with the trackball behind the joysticks before. You might think about rotating the button groups CCW for a more natural hand position. Below is a layout I made for my project (it's a tiny CP).

Yeah I wasn't sure about the trackball, however trolling the forums here it did seem that most people put the trackball higher up on their mame cab CP than the joysticks.... then again... they also had a lot more real estate to play with. (The original thought was to keep as many buttons away from the trackball as possible to avoid accidental presses during gameplay. Hence the esc button being WAAAAAaaaaaayyy up in the top left ;p)

I actually think I like it aesthetically in the new position TBH. Gives me a fantastic idea for CP art if I go the dragon route. Gonna have to print it full scale & fiddle with it a bit to see if it works with the P1 buttons so close.

Thanks as well for your CP layout. Based on your design, my buttons were a tad smaller than they should have been.. but not bad.... & I LOVE the way the twisted layout feels! Thanks heaps dude!

Nephasth

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #12 on: January 27, 2011, 07:23:53 am »
You may also think about moving the joysticks and buttons up some. Some people find it uncomfortable playing on the edge of a CP, and moving the controls up a little will give them a place to rest their wrists. Trackball location looks good though.

Edit to add: Once you print it out full scale, move stuff around. Find what is most comfortable to you. My CPs are only 19.5" wide, they're a little crowded, but that's what I had to settle for with what I was doing. I made the 7 button layout to fit my finger tips and thumb in a natural position (top row and thumb button) so I wouldn't have to stretch my fingers to reach buttons. Also, if you think that trackball is too big, you may consider a 2 1/4" trackball to free up some room on your CP.
« Last Edit: January 27, 2011, 08:15:18 am by Nephasth »

newmanfamilyvlogs

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #13 on: January 27, 2011, 09:34:47 am »
I fit a similar layout into a similar sized space on my cab:



It's 25"x12"

I have found the P2 joystick to be a little too close to the trackball, but still very functional.

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #14 on: January 27, 2011, 09:50:05 am »
Hey thanks cotmm. How much space is there in a direct line from your trackball to the p2 joystick in that layout? I've been thinking I might do a spinner as well... will they plug right into an 1-pac-2 do you know? I also looks like if the trackball is above the joysticks, I should be able to bring the 1p in a bit from the side as well. I think I want to keep it no closer than 2" from the outside edge...


Hmmm. time to go full scale & play around a bit I think

Nephasth

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #15 on: January 27, 2011, 10:43:43 am »
Trackballs and spinners would need to be connected to an Opti-pac, unless you use USB versions of those devices.

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #16 on: January 27, 2011, 10:47:56 am »
is it possible to set up an optipac to run 2 spinners or do I need one per? The trackball I have on order is USB driven.

Nephasth

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #17 on: January 27, 2011, 11:15:08 am »
From Ultimarc:

Quote
Features:
One USB cable handles up to two trackballs and 4 spinners/rotary joysticks.
No external power needed.
The active control (trackball or rotary) is automatically selected.
Supports buffered controls (Happ, Ultimarc U-Trak) or unbuffered (Suzo, Wico, Ultimarc 2 1/4), high or low polarity.
Configurable via software utility for active high/active low.
Full-Speed USB Interface. 16 Bit data.
Will work alongside PS/2 or USB mouse if required.

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #18 on: January 27, 2011, 11:38:56 am »
Hmmm sweet! Ok.. spinners will be included eventually then. I've heard that if they're monted right, you can get steering wheels to put on them somehow... will have to look into this. Anyone know what I'd need for an analogue gas pedal for games like Super Sprint?

newmanfamilyvlogs

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #19 on: January 27, 2011, 11:57:26 am »
I actually added a spinner later on:



All of these are hooked up to a single minipac:



The pre-wired harness made this take about 5 minutes to hook up. But it looks like an absolute disaster.

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #20 on: January 27, 2011, 12:01:55 pm »
Do you mind taking a shot of the minipac? I'd like to see how it's laid out

*Edit nevermind. Is that it resting between the P2 blue buttons?

newmanfamilyvlogs

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #21 on: January 27, 2011, 02:24:28 pm »
Yup. Just dangling freely.
There is a wiring block diagram on Ultimarc:
http://www.ultimarc.com/images/Minipac_wiring.pdf

It's very straight forward.

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #22 on: January 27, 2011, 04:12:35 pm »
Interesting. So that minipac can control 2 trackballs & a spinner?..... could that maybe work then for 2 spinners & an analogue pedal do you think?

newmanfamilyvlogs

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #23 on: January 27, 2011, 05:05:10 pm »
Minipac can control one trackball and one spinner. The trackball is presented as a mouse to the system, the spinner is presented as a single axis mouse.

To the best of my knowledge you could not hook a pedal to a minipac because most pedals are going to use a potentiometer. I do not believe you can read this on a minipac.

The APac can do up to 4 pots:
http://www.ultimarc.com/a-pac.html

the U-hid does some other stuff too, but someone who's more familiar with it will need to chime in on that.
http://www.u-hid.com/home/overview_board.php

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #24 on: February 02, 2011, 11:07:39 am »
Ok. Thanks for the feedback guys.

I'm still playing with & tweaking the layout for the CP but got distracted as I've hit a snag that I hope someone can help me out with.

The computer I'm using is one I built a couple years ago with an MSI K8N Neo4 mobo, AMD Athlon 64 3500+ CPU, 4 gigs of DDR 333 single channel ram, and a BFG NVIDIA GeForce 7800GT Video card.

I just got my hands on a great SONY WEGA 32" flatscreen TV that I'd like to use as the main monitor.. but I've lost (probably threw out DOH!) the breakout cable that came with the card.

Does anyone know how I can hook up either one of the DVI connections from the card to the component ins on the TV? (Is the 5 wire stil component? Is that the best one to use or is there a difference between it and the 3 cable RCA jacks?) or does anyone know where I could possibly find a replacement breakout cable that will fit the 9 pin configuration in this card?

I've been reading a lot in the monitor forums here & as of yet have been unable to come across a post that addresses a similar issue.

Heck. I don't even mind if someone knows where I can find a step by step hack to create a cable I can use.

Help if you can please!

newmanfamilyvlogs

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #25 on: February 02, 2011, 11:22:22 am »
http://www.pccables.com/cgi-bin/orders6.cgi?action=Showitem&partno=01779&rsite=f.01779

I think this is the cable you're looking for. Though I'd keep looking for a better price.

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #26 on: February 02, 2011, 11:43:21 am »
AHHH PERFECT! Thanks Cotmm. Yeah I think I'll keep shopping around but at least I know they exist!  :cheers:

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #27 on: February 02, 2011, 11:52:30 am »

Erik

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #28 on: February 02, 2011, 08:55:39 pm »
There's a lot of posts on here about the problems with the way video cards handle tv-out.  I don't recall the specifics but it seems like it was something to do with loss of quality due to scaling the images to certain resolutions a couple times.  There are some comparison pics of the different methods of connecting a pc or monitor if you search around. 

You might try something like this and see if it gets any better results.  :dunno
http://cgi.ebay.com/VGA-PC-TV-Ypbpr-Component-AV-TV-Converter-Cables-/320640043917?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4aa7a2cb8d
or this
http://cgi.ebay.com/RCA-VGA-HDTV-Component-Video-Y-Pr-Pb-Adapter-VHDC300-/140507892339?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20b6ec4a73

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #29 on: February 02, 2011, 09:06:17 pm »
Thanks for the reply Eric. Yes I've seen similar items in the source as well as futureshop etc. The issue lies in cost unfortunately. I am hoping for a solution that wont cost me more than $20 or so. :)

I have found a dongle that I ordered that is a DVI to component converter. When it comes in I'll see how it works & go from there.

Once I vet the tv working I can start to install software & start to configure everything. (the easy part of the whole project right? Lol)

Cheers!

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #30 on: February 03, 2011, 05:52:23 am »
I believe sending a component image will be different than people with traditional TV-out. The component signal is usually intended for "HD", and thus the card and TV will probably be working in a progressive mode, probably something like 480p or 720p. You'll probably end up with a pixel perfect display on the TV, and then need to configure mame to scale the image into those confines. From there you can decide if you want to do something with the extra pixels being generated like 'filtering' or what not.

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #31 on: February 04, 2011, 01:37:08 pm »
Ok. Since I'm playing the waiting game now for my TV connection, I decided to go back & try another layout for the CP. I'm hoping for some more feedback & thoughts on this one. One thing I should mention is that because of the layout of this cab, there's a 3/4" rim flush all around the CP that adds a bit of space as well.

Thoughts?


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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #32 on: February 04, 2011, 01:42:49 pm »
Do you plan on playing trackball games with buttons? Reaching for the P1/P2 buttons might be a little uncomfortable in a game of Centipede or the like.

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #33 on: February 04, 2011, 01:50:44 pm »
Hmm good point. My main concern was to keep as many buttons out of the way for games like Golden Tee. I can't recall, games like Centipede & marble madness... did they have a button on either side of the trackball or just to the left of them? Should I maybe place the 2 control buttons in the upper right one to either side of the trackball with some space do you you think?

Taekwonjudo

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #34 on: February 04, 2011, 05:00:17 pm »
Thanks for all of your help & input so far guys! I love this community for that!

Anyways, here's round #4 for CP. As always thoughts & input welcomed.

Cheers! :cheers:

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #35 on: February 04, 2011, 06:12:49 pm »
I'm also playing around with the artwork for this cabinet at this point. One thing I'm looking at however, if see the pics above, there are pieces of this cab that are I'm assuming a veneer that's white. This is kinda putting a damper on what I'm thinking of for artwork. Can anyone recommend what to use to paint right on top of the veneer? Is it possible to do with a lasting effect? I'd like to change this to black as well as I want the art to "pop".

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #36 on: February 09, 2011, 07:59:49 pm »
Ok. So I'm playing around with setting up the FE now. Looks like there seems to be quite a few supporters of MALA so I thought I'd give it a shot.

Went to the wiki & read the quick start guide but hit a minor snag that I'm hoping someone could help me out with.

I DL'd the most recent windows command line version of MAME (the 64bit as this system is running windows7 64bit). Grabbed the latest release of Mala, did the install & continued through the process.

The issue happened when Mala was supposed to create the mame.ini file, however, that process failed.

Will cause complications? Is there somewhere I can download a usable mame.ini? Does someone have a way to fix this?

Thanks for the help in advance guys.

Cheers!

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #37 on: February 09, 2011, 08:53:21 pm »
Mame -cc
run that from command line. It generates a default ini.

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #38 on: February 09, 2011, 08:55:44 pm »
Thanks Cotmm. That worked perfectly!  :afro:

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #39 on: March 04, 2011, 03:47:01 pm »
Ok. Been a while since I've updated. Really it was mainly because I just about made myself bald trying to figure out how to hook up that old tv. In the end I finally decided to scrap the idea & went out & bought a brand new 24" LCD. (Made life so much easier).

So for the last month or so, I've been playing with the FE's & setup & configuration of this thing. I think I've decided I like the look & functionality of Hyperspin best so far. Only thing is on some of the screens it seems a bit slow on the loading. Is there a way to alleviate some of the processing that's happening to let it run smoother?

Also, there HAS to be an easier way of checking/verifying/eliminating duplicate r*m files. Going through over 6000+ files individually I think is gonna take me until I'm in the grave! I'd like to make sure to only have 1 working version of the games I'd like to have functioning & I'd like to setup my different "wheels" based on specific grouping. I see that HyperHQ used to have this functionality but since version 1.0 that seems to have been taken out.

Is there an easier way of cleaning up my files & setting everything up that I haven't found yet?

I'm also thinking about that second monitor. Does anyone know of any programs that exist that will allow me to run something different on that screen based on the game selected? Or if not that, then is there a way I can set  up the system to play a looping video on just that monitor?

(I'm taking the advice of everyone here making sure to complete everything else before setting up my CP or I like many before me I'm sure will get stuck in that rut of not finnishing because I'm spending too much time playing ;p)

Thanks for all the help so far guys!

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #40 on: March 04, 2011, 04:12:57 pm »
The program you're looking for is Romlister:

Here's a walkthrough on Hyperspin's page:
http://www.hyperspin-fe.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=103&Itemid=115

There are various programs for outputting to the second monitor.
Here's a thread with some ideas:
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=70840.0

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #41 on: March 04, 2011, 04:23:08 pm »
  :applaud:

Awesome! Thanks again Cotmm! Once more you've come through for me.   :cheers:

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #42 on: May 13, 2011, 01:39:01 pm »
Finally got some more time to get back at this project.

I have a mock up of the artwork for the CP that I'd like to hear some feedback on if anyone has some comments/FRIENDLY criticisms ;p


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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #43 on: May 13, 2011, 01:41:56 pm »
Hmmm... This one might show the intention better. Button & Trackball locations shown here.



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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #44 on: May 13, 2011, 01:44:37 pm »
I like it!  Its better than the lightning and space themes you see all the time.

Why did you go back to the straight configuration for your buttons?  Personally, I like curved layouts better, I think they feel better and look better.

What are the buttons at the top for?

I like the placing of the start buttons, unconventional but cool.

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #45 on: May 13, 2011, 01:58:09 pm »
I like it!  Its better than the lightning and space themes you see all the time.

Why did you go back to the straight configuration for your buttons?  Personally, I like curved layouts better, I think they feel better and look better.

What are the buttons at the top for?

I like the placing of the start buttons, unconventional but cool.

Thanks Donkbaca,

Although because of the straight borders around the player buttons the layout DOES look like they are straight, they are in fact still the curved layout. I too found playing with that much more comfortable.

The extra buttons at the top are for control buttons. I'm thinking a n ESC, a Pause & a shift. I wanted to keep them as far away from the trackball as possible as I've read other people's frustration on their build when they were placed too close.  ;)

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #46 on: May 13, 2011, 02:03:38 pm »
I am assuming the other two buttons are coin?  I would recommend ditching the shift,  as it would allow for better symmetry, and other than esc and pause, you can just use a keyboard behind the coin door for admin reasons.  That being said there is no right or wrong answer for shift functions.  It seems pretty split on here, half love them, half don't feel they are necessary.  I am in the latter group.  I just don't think you would use it enough to justify it being on the CP. 

Anyhow I would suggest the opt buttons look like this:


P1coin    Exit                                    Pause   P2 Coin

Nice symmetry, both players have their coin on the outer edge.  Player 1 gets to control exit.

just my 2 cents.

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #47 on: May 13, 2011, 02:10:02 pm »
I am assuming the other two buttons are coin?  I would recommend ditching the shift,  as it would allow for better symmetry, and other than esc and pause, you can just use a keyboard behind the coin door for admin reasons.  That being said there is no right or wrong answer for shift functions.  It seems pretty split on here, half love them, half don't feel they are necessary.  I am in the latter group.  I just don't think you would use it enough to justify it being on the CP. 

Anyhow I would suggest the opt buttons look like this:


P1coin    Exit                                    Pause   P2 Coin

Nice symmetry, both players have their coin on the outer edge.  Player 1 gets to control exit.

just my 2 cents.

:) That's actually almost exactly the layout I was thinking as well. Unfortunately at this point I'm kinda stuck with the shift as the plexi & wood have already been drilled :banghead: . Otherwise yeah, the more I've thought about I agree that I likely won't be using the shift much at all.

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #48 on: May 13, 2011, 02:13:11 pm »
One thing I am actually torn about (thanks Donkbaca for drawing my attention to it). I'm starting to think the surrounds around the player buttons might be a bit much.

What do you guys think?


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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #49 on: May 13, 2011, 02:58:38 pm »
I like both to be honest... 

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #50 on: May 13, 2011, 04:00:14 pm »
Thinking on artwork. I just realised that putting the dust covers on top of my CP is going to ruin the look of this thing.

Does anyone know if I can get clear washers for my Happ Competition 8-way's?

Something like what's being offered here for the Sanwa's.

http://www.arcadeshop.de/Sanwa-Joysticks-Washer-JLF-clear_1032.html?osCsid=31e8a4d8918369eff00321423e5f7e87

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #51 on: May 13, 2011, 04:19:50 pm »
Here's a discussion from a few years back about clear dustwashers:
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=71444.40

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #52 on: May 13, 2011, 04:35:29 pm »
you can always put the dustcovers under the art.  or use cd cases and your current one as a template to make some clear ones

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #53 on: May 13, 2011, 04:59:19 pm »
My only concern about going under the art is, what are the chances of then catching & ripping the art? That & the pinching mentioned in the thread above. I remember getting some great holes in my hand back in the day from being pinched on cps without washers :(

CD cases are an interesting idea.... I suppose a hole saw would likely shatter that though wouldn't it?

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #54 on: May 13, 2011, 06:55:06 pm »
Hmm... maybe?  Maybe not if you spin it backwards an let it melt through the plastic...

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #55 on: May 13, 2011, 07:06:12 pm »
Hmmm... interesting idea. I still have some plexi left over from the CP, as well as a crapload of CD cases lying a round.... I'll try both & let you guys know how it goes.

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #56 on: May 13, 2011, 08:52:46 pm »
One thing I am actually torn about (thanks Donkbaca for drawing my attention to it). I'm starting to think the surrounds around the player buttons might be a bit much.

What do you guys think?

I think I'm borderline jealous. That is a wicked cp overlay.

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #57 on: May 13, 2011, 10:15:19 pm »
Thanks for the encouragement emb :) Took me quite a while to get the look I was gong after.

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #58 on: March 30, 2020, 09:28:56 pm »
Welp... Consider me another dinosaur resurrected from the dead! LOL. Through this whole Covid-19 ordeal, I finally had time to get back at this build.

...almost a decade later... DAMN! Where'd the time go?... Anyway. I'm now looking at things a little different. I now have a full ROM set & CHD list  that match, am planning on using Launchbox as a Front End and upgraded the system to boot.

As far as the box goes, everything seems to be up and running beautifully.

Now just to find a way to mount a 27" LCD into the cab and we'll start the fun part of this project and FINALLY get things off the ground!

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #59 on: April 02, 2020, 09:54:12 pm »
Ok. Progress has been made. CP art has been finalized and ordered. Just got the plexi in today for the overlay. I did a test fit of the controls ... looks like I need to shave down the edges of the supports a bit to make room for the top buttons, but overall I'm pleased with the results.

One question though, and I'm hoping you guys can help meout.

When I started this project, I ordered a HAPP light up trackball. Everything looks good, instructions tell me how to wire up the buttons and USB, (Tested & it works)... but nothing to instruct on the wiring for the bulb to light up...

This looks to me to be an incandescent bulb... does anyone recognize this and is able to direct me on how/what to do to hook up power to this and light it up?

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #60 on: April 02, 2020, 10:54:19 pm »
I ordered a HAPP light up trackball. Everything looks good, instructions tell me how to wire up the buttons and USB, (Tested & it works)... but nothing to instruct on the wiring for the bulb to light up...

This looks to me to be an incandescent bulb... does anyone recognize this and is able to direct me on how/what to do to hook up power to this and light it up?
Pretty sure that is a 14v 0.19A #161 bulb.

You can get 12v (yellow) and ground (black) from a molex connector in your computer.
- Hack a 4-pin molex splitter or extender.
- There's no polarity for the bulb socket -- just solder one wire to one tab and the other to the other tab.
- Commonly available 24AWG, 22AWG, or 20AWG wire will easily handle the current draw.




Scott

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #61 on: April 02, 2020, 11:08:50 pm »
Awesome! Thanks PL1. I'll try & then report back the results.

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #62 on: April 15, 2020, 01:16:03 am »
Ok... This is my 3rd attempt at posting... (apparently I can't pay attention to file size... sorry :/)

1st, thank you to PL1! You were bang on sir! those connections worked like a charm, as shown in the pic attached... sadly it wasn't as bright as I was hoping for... so I guess that means I'll have to look at adding LEDs to brighten this up down the road.

So I took almost a full saturday deciding to wire up the (temporary) Cp (I say temporary because as I was wiring it up, I realized that I didn't account for the plexi for the CP, thickness-wise... <sigh>... hiccup here.. Oh well... It's good to have a mockup before final anyway ;p

I decided I'd cut another CP & plexi that would fit... round 2....

While wiring the trackball up, there's this one wire that has a lable that reads "attach to earth ground". Question for everyone... if this is connected through USB.... is this REALLY important to connect to a ground somehow? If so.... what's the easiest way to accomplish this?

Since I wired it up anyway I thought I'd show a pic of the wiring job.... yeah I know it's a rat's nest now, but I'll clean it up on final CP.

Things are finally coming together!... I'm nervous though as I'm hitting that dreaded "Functional" stage where so many projects fall off the rails as things become functional.

I AM determined though that through this isolation... this project WILL get completed!

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Dragoncade
« Reply #63 on: April 15, 2020, 01:38:29 am »
So It's official

Since the artwork for the CP has been ordered (If nothing else, to keep me moving forward, I've decided this unit will be called Dragoncade...

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #64 on: April 15, 2020, 02:35:36 am »
While wiring the trackball up, there's this one wire that has a lable that reads "attach to earth ground". Question for everyone... if this is connected through USB.... is this REALLY important to connect to a ground somehow? If so.... what's the easiest way to accomplish this?
Yes, it is important to ground that wire.  The USB cable will not fully ground this type of trackball.

A trackball rolling on steel rollers generates a static charge that can cause ESD damage to the electronics unless the charge is drained to ground via that wire.

Connect it to the metal case of your computer, the computer's power supply case if you've decased the computer, the FG (frame ground) terminal if you're using an arcade-style power supply, or the frame of the coin door if that is already connected to ground. (the metal parts on the cab that you might touch should already be grounded)


Scott

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #65 on: April 15, 2020, 11:41:23 am »
Hmm.. thanks fir that again PL1!

Would it be sufficient to slice in a connection to the black lead from the computer I used to connect the light bulb to, or should I just screw this down top the CP and add a long lead to the computer's power supply?

I assume if I unscrew one of those mounting screws and connect the ground with that will work?

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #66 on: April 15, 2020, 02:38:45 pm »
Would it be sufficient to slice in a connection to the black lead from the computer I used to connect the light bulb to, or should I just screw this down top the CP and add a long lead to the computer's power supply?

I assume if I unscrew one of those mounting screws and connect the ground with that will work?
Ground is ground.

The static charge will drain equally well through the light bulb black wire ground as through a screw connected to the metal frame of the computer's power supply.


Scott

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Re: New Mame Cab First Conversion
« Reply #67 on: April 19, 2020, 12:58:48 am »
So... like I said, I am determined that this will be a complete machine!

More progress.

I had a 27" LCD monitor that is just slightly wider than the internal space of this cab. I figure it'll be good fit with some minor adjustments. I cut a square piece out of some sheet metal I had laying around, mounted that to the back of the monitor and laid it into place. With a little help from my son holding the unit, I mounted a 2x4 inside right up against where the plate was and marked the spacing to mount the square mount to the 2x4 (sorry.. I forgot to grab pics of this process. The blurry hard to see image is the monitor mounted from behind.

Once I got that all setup and tested, it was an easy process to set the pc to use 2 monitors & set Big Box to use the smaller monitor as a digital marquee. It works well & looks decent... but I think I'll poke around in the files and create some better fitting/looking images for the units I'll set up on this machine. (Thanks to Lathe for pointing me in the right direction on that one!)

So on to the new CP. The artwork & template came in. I cut my plywood and plexi to size and matched them up with the template in between so I knew where to drill. No bad. Slipped once on the 3" hole for the trackball :/... ended up with a few very minor scratches... <sigh> oh well... I don't think I ever played a pristine machine in the past anyway... I'll chalk it up to adding to the nostalgia I guess.

I also noticed that by the player 1 buttons, the top layer of the plywood cracked & split off <oops> :/... nothing a little wood glue & filler can't fix though.

Disassembled the "mockup" CP & re-installed all of the hardware onto the new & permanent cp..... I'm starting to think this is starting to look pretty decent.

I've ordered some light up LED buttons just to give this a little more pop.

Next steps:

1) Wire up LEDs
2) Think of a way to replace that incandescent bulb with an LED one. The incandescent just isn't bright enough IMO
3) Wire up the LED butons
4) Mount the computer inside the unit
5) Mount Smoke plexi to the control screen
6) Wire clean up
7) Remove creditcard info panel from the original Golden Tee machine & add new artwork there
8) create, print & mount permanent Top Marquee