How much do people typically spend building a cab?

[shponglefan]

I just recently did a parts list/budget for the cab I'm designing here.  I was a little surprised to see it came out at $2500.  Mind you, that includes everything from scratch including PC, monitor, plus 3 separate swappable panels.

What's a typical budget for an arcade cab?  I've seen the occational one posted, usually under $1000.  Although I'm sure some cabs (Mission Control comes to mind) probably cost a pretty penny.

[Nephasth]

Mine is currently at about $850-$900 and is almost complete...

[DaveMMR]

People have built cabs from $100 or less to well over a few grand (note: educated guesses).

My first (current) cab cost upwards of a couple of thousand but I spent money on the "bling" like RGB LED's and Electric Ice stuff and a brand new 25" CRT monitor (plus shipping). I could have gone much cheaper if I exercised a bit of restraint.

My current project I'm planning on doing for under $500 but I have a lot of the more expensive stuff (display, computer, old controls, etc.) already on hand.

[Gatt]

Depends on what you build.  My build ended up around $2k,  but I went with a modular panel,  with a 2 player setup for almost every control type,  lightgun,  360 and 180 steering wheels,  star wars yoke,  and a flightstick.  I don't regret it one bit.  I can play pretty much every game with the right controls for it.

I'd *really* suggest you consider if a modular panel might be better for you than swappable.  Swappable do take up alot of space,  especially if you decide you want more controls later.  Modular can fit in a bookshelf and give you controls for everything,  even doing a one-use setup like Defender is trivial.  But you do sacrifice artwork.

[paigeoliver]

I have had multiple Mame conversions come out with negative costs after I sold the leftover bits.

I did a from scratch build recently from furniture grade plywood, here is the cost breakdown. Prices are from memory so they may not be exact. Some of these items I had on hand, but I priced them anyway (either used what I paid or what they would cost me).

$40 4x8 sheet of plywood. I specifically designed the cabaret cabinet I built to only need one sheet to keep the cost down.
$1 1 furring strip.
$6 wood stain.
$20 Namco reunion joystick and some buttons from bob roberts.
$5 Used coin door.
$3 Piece of angle aluminum.
$25 Used 21" CRT monitor.
$55 JAMMA multigame PCB.
$9 Piece of plexiglass.
$4 Furniture feet.
$1 A fuse with holder.
$1 extension cord.
$12 El cheapo chinese power supply.
$10 Used jamma harness pulled out of a deconverted machine.
$5 Marquee my wife printed at work.
$10 t-molding
$5 Tacked on the end for misc shop supplies (sandpaper, couple blasts of black spraypaint, rags, etc).

$224 total.


Here is the resulting $224 machine. I haven't actually installed the marquee yet, it will go below the control panel unlit in cabaret fashion.

[paigeoliver]

Previous project before this one. Started with this machine here....



$100 Game purchased at auction (heavily worn but fully working Neo Geo 1 slot with Puzzle Bobble in one of the leftover Cliff Hanger cabinets).
$20 Buyer's premium and sales tax.
$40, paint and painting supplies.
$32 Joysticks and buttons.
$5 Cap kit.
$20 artwork kit done by my wife.
$9 plexiglass.
$4 new leg levelers.
$60 new multi jamma PCB.
$290 initial spending.

I reused the existing jamma harness, power supply and monitor. I was also able to remove the sideart cleanly enough to put it on my other Neo Geo.

Now, lets sell the leftover bits.
$20 Neo Geo marquee with working credit boards installed.
$85 Neo Geo One slot motherboard.
$5 Neo Geo red cardboard bezel.
$25 Puzzle Bobble cartridge.
$2 quarters found jamming up the mechs.
$8 used joysticks and buttons.
$2 nice condition SNK kit box with the sticker on it in good condition for a different title (was in the cabinet).
$2 Neo Geo manual.
$149 in leftovers.

$141 total project cost. To become this machine here.

[Tha_liks]

So far

$120 wood - home depot
$30  21" monitor - Craigslist
$150 laminate - home depot
$45 coin door - eBay
$15 florecent marquee light - lowes
$30 HP 2.1 speakers - eBay
$50 1/4 acrylic for marquee - lowes
$8 exhaust fans - eBay
$30 smart strip - amazon
$65 Bronz 1/8 glass for bezel - onedayglass
$80  marquee retainer, control panel clips, - happs
$250  control panel buttons, sticks , and ipac -  ultimarc
$350  computer  - tiger direct
$60  software - eBay
$??? Custom art work (still not there)

And I would say another $2000 on brand new tools as my only tools before this project were mechanic tools

[jennifer]

     My last build, And not quite done....Is a Rock-ola 440, The parts, and options were quite hard to find, and its been a decade in the works, rebuilt everything.
Not a typical build however, more of a love affair.....$7138.00.

[Woodshop Flunky]

My build cost just a little over $1k... but a friend gave me a sound system.  Everything was new except for the 17" CRT monitor and the sound system.  If I had bought my own sound... it would have cost around $1200. 

[TopJimmyCooks]

I built switchcade for well under $1000 - including roughly $100 extra spent on monitor rotation and probably $75 extra on the hardware for the swap panels.  I bought some nice used parts- 2.1 speakers, spinner, driving controls and trackball.  I also bought a new U360 and Ipac 2 so I didn't always go the cheapest way.  PC and display were donated by my Brother to the cause.  Rather than buy a $30 track ball mount plate, I made my own out of a scrap of sheet metal I already had. 

You don't have to spend $2500.  Unless you want newer 3d games to play and or Hyperspin with videos, there's really no need to spec out a new pc.  My dell SFF pc was purchased for $35 on ebay.  PC's with enough grunt to do the job are being placed in dumpsters as we speak.  I also did some painted artwork to save some $ on art.  It was definitely a budget build, at every turn I had the option to decide to spend more but elected not to. 

Man, that set of Mame Romz on DVD's from that guy on ebay set me back $200 though . . . .

[ark_ader]

I have a huge box of arcade stuff, a pile of cut wood and a bunch of tools that have cost me total well over £500.

It is becoming more expensive to put this  together on a day that I am: 

a) off work
b) have a few hours to myself to do it
c) that it isn't raining.

This weekend isn't looking good either. 

[TopJimmyCooks]

Ark, I appreciate your sacrifice so I can have a wet race at silverstone and my boys can win.  (lewis and jensen)

[Dawgz Rule]

All told, mine ran around $1500.  The big expense items were the arcade monitor and the artwork.

[dgame]

Scratch builds, like yours, will generally cost more as you have to acquire everything.

Monitors are probably the single most expensive component.

The PC and controls can vary in price depending on what level of performance you want.
Though I would not skimp here.

Converting an existing cab can be a lot cheaper than a scratch build as others have noted.

Your design is rather ambitious and you want good parts hence the price.

As long as you are not getting ripped off for the individual pieces, then the price is what every little thing you want adds up too.

[Dawgz Rule]

The price can add up but I have to say that it was one of the most enjoyable projects I have ever done.  Would like to start another but that isn't going to happen without sacrificing a pinball.

[vanrose72]

Mine is currently at about $850-$900 and is almost complete...

That's about how much my cabinet cost me, which is surprising considering how rudimentary the end product was. I ended up spending too much on items I never used ... the price of learning experience, I guess.

I'd like to start another project, but the cost I can't cover is that of basement space (according to the wifey).

[Dawgz Rule]

Funny.   I had may area but quickly outgrew the allocated space.  I promised the wife I would actually do some finishing work before acquiring anything new.  She is getting tired of looking at silver walls.

[vanrose72]

Funny.   I had may area but quickly outgrew the allocated space.  I promised the wife I would actually do some finishing work before acquiring anything new.  She is getting tired of looking at silver walls.

You're lucky you were able to get away with outgrowing your space. Your situation may be different, but I'm always wondering how I can pay the mortgage and yet have no say on how I use the space. 

I'm thinking once we renovate the kitchen, she'll have to allow me at least one more machine.

[shponglefan]

I'd *really* suggest you consider if a modular panel might be better for you than swappable.  Swappable do take up alot of space,  especially if you decide you want more controls later.  Modular can fit in a bookshelf and give you controls for everything,  even doing a one-use setup like Defender is trivial.  But you do sacrifice artwork.

I considered that, but TBH I really love the look of the standard artwork+clear acrylic control panels.  And I find doing the artwork is my favorite part of the panel build.  I just can't give that up.  

I probably won't do all three at once, though.  Start with one, then build others later as needed.  And who knows, I may decide it is too much of a pain and come up with another solution...

[shponglefan]

You don't have to spend $2500.  Unless you want newer 3d games to play and or Hyperspin with videos, there's really no need to spec out a new pc.  My dell SFF pc was purchased for $35 on ebay.  PC's with enough grunt to do the job are being placed in dumpsters as we speak.

True, I have a couple older PCs I'll probably use initially.  But the design is specific to accomodate an HTPC or smaller case, which means going MicroATX or Mini ITX.  Unfortunately, I don't own any parts for that type of build.  

Not to mention, I wouldn't mind if it could play SF IV or other newer fighting games.

[shponglefan]

     My last build, And not quite done....Is a Rock-ola 440, The parts, and options were quite hard to find, and its been a decade in the works, rebuilt everything.
Not a typical build however, more of a love affair.....$7138.00.

Wow!  Suddenly $2500 doesn't seem like much. 

[CheffoJeffo]

My first MAME box (soon to be rewired JAMMA and 60-in-1d) came in at around $400

$200 - Working Perfect Billiards cocktail
$20 - PC
$40 - iPAC
$80 - ArcadeVGA
$50 - Joysticks and Buttons
$10 - Wood for additonal CP
$15 - Vinyl overlay for CPs

Paid quite a bit for paint (oil-based with a true black base, not tinted ... great for cabs), but that covered many cabs.

I think my cheapest two almost-MAME cabs were my my 60-in-1 and 48-in-1 -- paid $100 for the pair working, threw in JAMMA harnesses, reconditioned Wico sticks and buttons and a recon trackball. Total cost before boards around $150. Another $150 for the boards.

[Vigo]

Both my vigolix machines were under $100 each. The first one was about $90, and the most expensive piece was a $17 fluorescent light. The racing one was about $80 out of pocket and I had to buy an emergency monitor last second from CL for $40, otherwise I think it would have been a record cheap racing cab. Scrounging for free used stuff if the way I go. Free LCD monitors are practically gold to me. 



Here is my price list, rounded:

Vigolix 1
Wood : $17.00
Spray Paint: $15.00
Vinyl stripping: $5.00
Flourescent light: $17.00
USB powered Speakers: $5.00
ZD Arcade Encoder:$ 12.00 (after my special vendor discount  )
Plexi: $7.00
Artboard for bezel: $3.00
Stencil to make "Vigolix" logo: $4.00
Nuts, bolts, hardware: $5.00
Laptop: Free (had on hand)
Joystick and buttons: Free (had on hand)
TOTAL: $90.00

Vigolix Racer
Wood : $16.00
Car mat for flooring: Free (had on hand)
Spray Paint: $8.00 (Had some left over)
Vinyl stripping: $5.00
Speaker: Free (had on hand)
Racing Wheel: Free (Swiped from my dad, this cab was a gift for him anyway)
Artboard for bezel: $3.00
Nuts, bolts, hardware: $5.00
PC: Free (had on hand, old work computer)
Monitor #1: $3.00 (Fried on me, was a sweet garage sale find otherwise)
Monitor #2: $40.00 (Emergency replacement)
TOTAL: $80

[BadMouth]

The funny part is that a lot of people get into this hobby because they want to make something useful out of an old useless computer.  

The driving cab started with a $50 empty shell, but I ended up with around $700 in it, not including the new CP with happ ffb.  
I quit keeping track after it was initially "complete"

I built a 3/4 scale cab using a ping pong table found in the neighbor's trash for the wood.  It ran an ancient computer and crt monitor that I got for free.  
Ended up with $50 in that one, but I had a lot of oddball stuff laying around that most people wouldn't.
It actually looked pretty good for being made out of trash and thrown together quickly, http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=111821.0  

My primary setup is just an x-arcade tankstick, budget pc build, 32" crt tv, & some old act labs s-video light guns.
Even that adds up to more than $500 and there's not even a cab there!    :'(

I also have piles of parts that I bought just to tinker with, knowing they'd probably never be used in a cab.
(various joysticks, positional guns, steering wheels, pc joysticks, optical encoders, aim-trak, recoil gun, 4 player cp, etc)
I enjoy learning how they work, getting them to work, then deciding if they are worth incorporating into a future cab.
Someday I might throw all the leftovers in one CP for the ultimate Frankenpanel.  
Then I'll list it on ebay for a crazy price nobody would ever pay.  

I'm not keeping track of what's being spent on the new cab.  I usually nickle and dime it, spending around $40-50 per week.
When I do spring for a bigger order or an expensive part, I won't buy anything for a couple weeks after that.
It doesn't really feel like I'm spending a lot, but I'm sure it will end up costing well over $1,000.
I view it as a series of smaller projects that will eventually come together.

This is one of my hobbies.  I don't watch much tv.  
If I weren't spending money on this, I'd be spending it on some other way to entertain myself.
I'm a compulsive tinkerer with a desk job.
If I don't spend a good amount of my free time building something, I feel frustrated.  
This hobby is a nice culmination of different skills.

[CoryBee]

The funny part is that a lot of people get into this hobby because they want to make something useful out of an old useless computer.  

The driving cab started with a $50 empty shell, but I ended up with around $700 in it, not including the new CP with happ ffb.  
I quit keeping track after it was initially "complete"

I built a 3/4 scale cab using a ping pong table found in the neighbor's trash for the wood.  It ran an ancient computer and crt monitor that I got for free.  
Ended up with $50 in that one, but I had a lot of oddball stuff laying around that most people wouldn't.
It actually looked pretty good for being made out of trash and thrown together quickly, http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=111821.0  

My primary setup is just an x-arcade tankstick, budget pc build, 32" crt tv, & some old act labs s-video light guns.
Even that adds up to more than $500 and there's not even a cab there!    :'(

I also have piles of parts that I bought just to tinker with, knowing they'd probably never be used in a cab.
(various joysticks, positional guns, steering wheels, pc joysticks, optical encoders, aim-trak, recoil gun, 4 player cp, etc)
I enjoy learning how they work, getting them to work, then deciding if they are worth incorporating into a future cab.
Someday I might through all the leftovers in one CP for the ultimate Frankenpanel.  
Then I'll list it on ebay for a crazy price nobody would ever pay.  

I'm not keeping track of what's being spent on the new cab.  I usually nickle and dime it, spending around $40-50 per week.
When I do spring for a bigger order or an expensive part, I won't buy anything for a couple weeks after that.
It doesn't really feel like I'm spending a lot, but I'm sure it will end up costing well over $1,000.
I view it as a series of smaller projects that will eventually come together.

This is one of my hobbies.  I don't watch much tv.  
If I weren't spending money on this, I'd be spending it on some other way to entertain myself.
I'm a compulsive tinkerer with a desk job.
If I don't spend a good amount of my free time building something, I feel frustrated.  
This hobby is a nice culmination of different skills.

 

[Rando]

I'm in for about $700-800 at the moment, all costs below are estimates:

NorthCoast UAII Cabinet - $500
Joysticks & buttons - $200
PC - $0 (built years ago for myself, passed on to folks when I upgraded, they gave back when they upgraded)
Monitor -$0 (had LCD on hand, picked up additional Sony Trinitron that I may use on second project from work person for $10)
Speakers - $35 (Had Speakers on hand, upgraded for remote volume control)
Wood/Plexi/Paint/etc - $50

Not the prettiest of the group, but the purchased cab gives it a nice finished look.

Luck!

[Dawgz Rule]

You're lucky you were able to get away with outgrowing your space. Your situation may be different, but I'm always wondering how I can pay the mortgage and yet have no say on how I use the space. 

I'm thinking once we renovate the kitchen, she'll have to allow me at least one more machine.

The wife has about two thirds of the basement and uses it for dog agility and a craft area.  I eeked out the other third.  Just enough for a workbench, xbox/kinect setup, pinball, and a cab.  All of my tools are on portable benches, etc.  I take over the agility area from time to time for large projects so it works out OK.  Still have to finish the walls and ceiling.  My wife's only complaint is that I am a loud gamer.  Other than that, she was OK with the expansion.   She did get a little upset when I took some of her rubbercal tiles and set them up around the xbox.....we eventually replaced them

[TheShaner]

Mine has been freaking expensive ... but I havent skimped on anything.  I would put it somewhere between $1500 - $2000.

I had also never done any wood work before, so I had to keep buying tools ... saws, drill bits, table saw, drills, sander, the list goes on and on ...

Im scared to do the math, but will once this is all done.

[Paul Olson]

I would say over $3000, but I am not sure how much over. I am planning to build a new cabinet for it this summer, and I also want a bigger TV. I would guess another 1000 - 1500 will go into it this year.

I just keep adding to or redoing the same project, so it will probably always be costing me money.

[shponglefan]

Being the Excel nerd that I am, I decided to chart the expenses per my OP.  Came out like so:



Computer costs including monitor eat up about 40% of the $2500.  If I were to exclude all computer costs, overhead and two of the three panels, I'd be looking at closer to a ~$700 build.  Amazing how all that other stuff adds up.

[CoryBee]

I built some cheap little Bartops for quite the decent price. They were my first so a little rough around the edges but my friends were very pleased.

Price for 2 Bartops

$40 - (2x) IBM\Dell Laptop from ebay
$14 - Particle Board
$6   - Contact Paper
$7   - Acrylic
$42 - Joystick n' Buttons
$7   - (2x) Gamepads
$3   - Marquee Retainer (some panel holder thing I found at HD)
$10 - (2x) chinese mini amps (used for mp3 players)
$5   - Set of 6 Bayonet base bulbs

Total was about $134, not counting the fact I had several of these parts laying around. So more like $85 out of my pocket.

[alfonzotan]

This is just a rough guess, it's been a while and I didn't keep a running tally:

Wood/building supplies $150 (including laminate)
Monitor: $100
Computer: $100 (built up from new/used parts)
Controls: $250 (the real Tron joystick was pricey... iPac4 and spinner also jacked up the costs here)
Glass/marquee/cosmetics: $100

Tack on another $100 just to be safe, and call it $700 or so, spread over a couple of years.  Control panel was built in '10, cabinet in '11.  Cabinet construction took about six weekends.

[MTPPC]

For arcade cabs, I have spent as little as $225 putting a 60 in 1 into Mr. Do! and I profitted a 19" arcade monitor and Mr. Do! board/harness/powersupply. I've also spent much as $550 by mameing a used machine from TILT arcade. My mini-pinball cost $415 in materials and the computer was given to me. Digital pinballs are a lot more expensive and time consuming in my experience. I used a mostly things I had and if I were to buy everything, I'd expect about $750 into a cheap build. By far, the cheapest way to build a mame cabinet is to find an empty cabinet and throw a pentium 4,  an old 25" TV and a hacked keyboard into it. But like most things, the cheapest won't be quite as nice as spending a little more.

Having said all this, I have an empty Solar Ride Gottlieb pinball cabinet in my shed waiting to be built. I plan on buying the stuff for it over the next year or two before I begin building it. If you take your time, you can really find some cheap TVs and monitors.

[compute]

I wouldn't consider building a full cabinet if I didn't want the experience.  Originally I had intended to build a panel in the area of $200.  Then I stumbled onto this cabinet.

Cabinet - $20 (gas)
Wood to fix water damage - $20
Coin door - $25
Monitor - $5
Paint - $20
Trackball - $25 (will need new bearings/rollers, harness, interface board, and possibly opto's.  In the end, not a bargain at all!)

Notice how I haven't even bought controls yet!  I'm learning a lot, but if I weren't so damn cheap I'd be closer to finished.

The PC was collecting dust, and I have spent a few dollars on tools (orbital sander, replace a circular saw, clamps, etc).  In addition there have been a few false-starts where I tried to be cheap.  Initially I was going to mouse-hack the trackball, but I couldn't get it to work. I'm just going pick up an Opti-pac and know that I've soldered the right connections.  It was fun to try, but I just want the damn thing to work now.

[paigeoliver]

Just finished another machine, time to get pricing.

This project is a Jaleco City Connection in a Sega Eliminator cabinet.

$50. Cabinet, purchased as a working Video trivia.
$2.   Bits of wood used in cabinet repair.
$11 Jamma harness.
$30 Original Jaleco City Connection board (bought this about 10 years ago after a 2 year search)
$3 Fingerboard and wire to make City Connection to Jamma adapter.
$12 NOS Wico joystick.
$8 Six buttons
$3 Custom marquee cost.
$1 Shop supplies (a bit of solder a few blasts from the spray can, etc).
$120 Subtotal

$45 Original Eliminator power supply that was still bolted down in the cabinet sold for this.

$75 Total.

From this project I am still sitting on an unhacked Video Trivia harness, a Video Trivia main board with a fairly late rom revision (much newer than my other one), a video trivia ROM board with 5 different installed categories, a set of 5 working video trivia light up buttons and a nice video trivia marquee.

I have a bunch of spare monitors, so I may just install the Video Trivia PCB and controls in my bar and hang the monitor up behind the bar. I could actually do a pair of that, since I have two sets of Video Trivia stuff.

[Grimoz]

My MAME cab was made from a gutted point blank cab and all up I think it cost about $2000 (Australian). But i think that in this hobby there is no final price because your always updating and spending more cash to make things bigger and better 

[Le Chuck]

My first build was a conversion that ran me 75 for the cab, 300 for the monitor, and an additional 325 in CP, paint, computer, speakers, art, light guns, etc.  That was in '03 I think. 

Several full size builds fill the years all averaging around $500.


This past year:

Darkade ran about $400 with the majority of that tied up in CP.  That includes 90 I spent on a new router, which was the second biggest cost then art.  The rest was nit-noid stuff like paint, hinges, mdf etc.  Computer was free.

Micro SW ran around 180 but would have been a lot less if I had known what the hell I was doing.  Hours spent on that one are more than on Darkade I think.

Micro Gauntlet I'm over 200 and not finished.  Art ran me a bit more and I have been going through encoders trying to find a good solution.

Micro Tron is at $80 so far but is on hold until I finish gauntlet and maybe until I get frustrated with trying to build a speeder.

Speeder I'm already at $350 and haven't started.  I anticipate that project could run me a few thousand when all is said and done. 

[yaksplat]

I'm at about 1500 on my 'Mystery Arcade'.  Dual spinners, trackball, a pair of u360s, and nice light up buttons take up a bunch of the budget.

[nick3092]

There is no such thing as an average cost in this hobby. It all depends in what you want in your cab, and how far are you willing to take it. I initially started out with a spreadsheet of what it was going to cost me when I planned mine out. But I now I have far surpassed whatever I estimated.

This is true of almost any hobby. Take golf for example. One person could spend $300 on clubs, someone else could spend $1,200. And both could hit the ball the same distance. So the same principle applies. Spend/buy what feels good for you within your budget, and enjoy it. But comparing dollar amounts feels like a d**k swinging contest to me.

Just my 2cents.

[paigeoliver]

Exactly, impossible to pin down an average when you have people managing to crank out functional sub-$100 projects and other people making $3000 masterpieces. While yet a 3rd person will basically make that same $3000 masterpiece with a budget of $1000 by converting an existing cabinet and using a used PC rather than scratchbuilding and putting in a high end gaming PC.

There is no such thing as an average cost in this hobby. It all depends in what you want in your cab, and how far are you willing to take it. I initially started out with a spreadsheet of what it was going to cost me when I planned mine out. But I now I have far surpassed whatever I estimated.

This is true of almost any hobby. Take golf for example. One person could spend $300 on clubs, someone else could spend $1,200. And both could hit the ball the same distance. So the same principle applies. Spend/buy what feels good for you within your budget, and enjoy it. But comparing dollar amounts feels like a d**k swinging contest to me.

Just my 2cents.