Main > Main Forum
Repurpose furniture at right height for lightweight stand-up MAME machine?
stu33:
I was considering this same thing when I did my first cab. But after reading here for a while, you'll actually learn some stuff. Lurking here made me confident to find a local cab and gut it for MAME. I took a broken/incomplete Bad Dudes (for 50 bucks) and repurposed it, and it's WAAAY easier than you think. Just time-consuming. Seriously, though, you'll spend so much time working on setting up the PC juuuust the way you want it (and it'll never be truly done) that you'll dwarf the amount of actual hardware work that you'll do.
The forums here are an amazing resource for learning. Really. It's worth researching here and doing what you really want.
Woodshop Flunky:
--- Quote from: snorpmeister on July 19, 2011, 11:48:16 am ---I've wanted a MAME cab forever. But I've realized that:
1) I'm not going to buy a complete, pre-built cab (don't have the cash, e.g. thousands)
2) I'm not going to refurb an existing cab (don't have the skills)
3) I'm not going to build a cab from scratch (definitely don't have the skills)
4) I'm not going to buy a cab kit (still don't have the skills)
Even if I did have the cash or skills, I may be moving soon. So I don't want something that weighs hundreds of pounds and is hard to move.
...
Any suggestions for COTS furniture (preferably available in box box U.S. retail stores) that could serve double-duty as a lightweight MAME platform?
--- End quote ---
Option 1... Agreed, this can be very expensive.
Option 2... I do think refurbing requires a unique set of skills (which can be learned of course :)). For me though, it is easier to build than to fix.
Option 3... This can be difficult for a complete newbee, but there are lots of examples here of folks who's first woodworking project has been a scratch built cab.
Option 4... I've met a lot of people who think they don't have the skills to do this sort of thing, but I've never met anyone who has actually failed trying. I think you might give this some more thought. It will get you over a bunch of hurdles, and you can end up with a really slick machine.
If size is an issue, consider a bartop or WeeCade http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=111865.0. Personally, I think the WeeCades are super slick. They move easily, and they have all kinds of WOW and play value. You can put them on a shelf on the wall at any height that is comfortable for you, and it will be a guaranteed centerpiece with guests. :)
newmanfamilyvlogs:
You could build just a CP box, deep enough to house the computer, and run that to a TV via HDMI?
As for big box products:
http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/179-9532137-0496418?asin=B000HX517W&AFID=become_df&LNM=|B000HX517W&CPNG=furniture&ci_src=16079562&ci_sku=B000HX517W&ref=tgt_adv_XSE10001
Build the controls into the area the microwave is suppose to go, slap an LCD up on top. Store the computer in the bottom.
alfonzotan:
--- Quote from: Woodshop Flunky on July 19, 2011, 01:32:02 pm ---
Option 3... This can be difficult for a complete newbee, but there are lots of examples here of folks who's first woodworking project has been a scratch built cab.
Option 4... I've met a lot of people who think they don't have the skills to do this sort of thing, but I've never met anyone who has actually failed trying. I think you might give this some more thought. It will get you over a bunch of hurdles, and you can end up with a really slick machine.
--- End quote ---
Seriously--a cabinet is really just a wooden box with a slightly-funny shape. It's really not hugely-complex job (which is not the same thing as saying that building one is easy).
DarthMarino:
One option is to use a projector stand. You can easily adjust the height and when it's not in use you can just remove the legs and store it somewhere. I've used one with an X-arcade dual stick and it works great.
One example:
http://www.amazon.com/Project-Stand-Projection-11-25INX19IN-Table/dp/B000298U7Y