Speaker advice for classic MAME wanted

[DarkSoul1]

I'll be playing classic games on my cocktail (Space Invaders, Galaga etc).  Is it worth going the $$ for a PC set of 2 speakers and a sub or should I just go with a decent 2 PC speaker set?

Sound will be running off a SB Live I had laying around, I don't want to go down the track of amp and car speakers.

[OSCAR]

See what I did here:

http://www.oscarcontrols.com/speaker which I did for my cocktail www.oscarcontrols.com/cocktail

Basically, I took a really cheap set of PC speakers, took them apart, and connected them to cab speakers.  I only play classics on the cocktail and the sound is superb for those games.

[TalkingOctopus]

I did the same thing as Oscar (after viewing his write up)  w/ an upright and it sounds superb for all arcade games.

[OSCAR]

I did the same thing as Oscar (after viewing his write up)  w/ an upright and it sounds superb for all arcade games.

Thanks, I really couldn't comment on that because I haven't used this particular setup for anything other than the few classics I have on my cocktail!  These speakers that Bob carries seem pretty hefty, I'm not surprised that they have pretty good response for the newer games with more complex sound/frequency range.

[StLouisRod]

Of course, those 4" speakers are not full range, so in my opinion they are only OK for arcade games.  Most people like their Mame cabs to play CD music (jukebox mode), DVD movies, etc.  So full range with subwoofer is only way to go!

Just go to www.partsexpress.com and find a pair of full range speakers in your budget, then buy a set of bucking magnets to make them shielded.  

Try those, and if the sound isn't beefy enough, just buy a set of Creative Labs Inspire 2.1's, throw away the crap satellites, and wire the sub into your cabinet to power your other speakers.  THEN you also get the benefit of that cool volume controller that you can stick anywhere on your control panel!  Once you have a volume control, you'll never go back!

[SirPeale]

Most people like their Mame cabs to play CD music (jukebox mode), DVD movies, etc.  So full range with subwoofer is only way to go!

That's a rather bold statement.  I think you'll find that the majority of people with cabs don't use it for multi-use.  A lot of people do, but the majority don't.

[papaschtroumpf]

I got a 2.1 set of CyberAcoustic speakers for $20 on clearance at officemax. Games sound much better (the sub helps tremendously in some of the games). And they're decent for music too, so now I'm looking for a jukebox softwre that I can run in my cab that will support thousands of MP3s...

Personnaly I'd go with a sub, especially given the price of computer spekaers this day. Just don't go carzy with speaker quality, anything below $50 should be perfect.

[grafixmonkey]

Most people like their Mame cabs to play CD music (jukebox mode), DVD movies, etc.  So full range with subwoofer is only way to go!

That's a rather bold statement.  I think you'll find that the majority of people with cabs don't use it for multi-use.  A lot of people do, but the majority don't.

I think my cab is one of the most multi-use I've seen on the forum, and I don't use it for playing CDs or movies.  I might eventually set it up as an MP3 jukebox, but that's only because it happens to be using my best speakers at the moment.  If it plays movies, it will be because it's the closest convenient DVD player to the television and has an s-video out - it doesn't have a built in monitor.  (so far I've used it as a:  beatmania box, video capture box (TiVO), classic systems emulator, Mame machine, file server, web server, all-purpose TV-output box)

Anyway, I think all Mame games would sound perfect on a simple, cheap pair of speakers.  Not even just classics.  I don't remember any arcade games that used anything more than good speaker positioning to improve their sound.  Reason is, the closer you are to a speaker, the better it sounds, even if it's low quality.  (think about headphones  )  You'll get good bass even from a generic 4" or 6" cone if you're close to it or it's mounted in a corner or the inside of a box you're standing close to.  The only thing to avoid would be using a PC speaker set designed to have a sub, and not having the sub in it.

You might look for a cheap barebones amp at Radio Shack, and get a couple of cheap car audio speakers to mount in the wood itself, long as your video tube isn't close to where your speakers will be.  You might get the whole system for $20 or $25 that way.

[DarkSoul1]

Thanks for the suggestions and advice guys.  Now I'm off to the software forum with a problem I just made for myself!

 

[paigeoliver]

I always use $10 PC speaker sets from K-Mart. They are nice and cheap, and are about the same quality as the speakers used in most original games. (Looking at the speakers in most of my original games, they are largely thin paper cone, cheapo looking speakers). A few (very small percentage overall) games like Turbo and Star Wars Trilogy also add a massive sub into the mix, but that is far from the norm.

[MaximRecoil]

Nothing wrong with paper cones. Cone material is mostly irrelevant anyway but paper is about as good as it gets for sound reproduction. I am amazed at the quality of sound that arcade machines/MAME are capable of, even the really old games. I would not feel like I was casting pearls before swine by going all out on a sound system for MAME even if I only played mostly classic 80's games. The digital source is very clean and the more power you throw at it the better it sounds.

As far as getting bang for your buck though, go with a Logitech Z340 2.1 PC speaker set. When I got a new motherboard a couple of years ago, my cheap speakers that came with the computer weren't cutting it anymore. I could barely hear them. I wen to Best Buy looking for something cheap that had a built in amp so that I could actually hear stuff and The Logitech Z340 set was only $50 so I bought it. I got it home and hooked it up and holy hell. I got way more than I expected. The sub itself turned out to be a Tangband (TB Speakers) long throw 8" driver (like this one) which sells for about $30 by itself for DIY home audio applications and is an excellent sub. It is powered by a 20 watt amp and is in a sealed enclosure. The satellites get 6 watts each and sound excellent. The sound is very balanced and smooth. I was/am extremely impressed. I looked around for some reviews on them after I got them home and one guy complained about "too much" bass LOL!

Logitech built their line of speakers with gamers in mind and they did their homework (what are the odds of getting a Tangband driver in a cheap $50 set of speakers?). My brother (who is as big into audio as I am and has spent thousands on his car audio system) heard them and 5 minutes later he placed a bid for the exact set on eBay. His girlfriend loved them too. Seriously, a game of Defender with the volume at a healthy level and the subwoofer volume turned up shakes the walls in this living room and sounds absolutely incredible. They sound great with music too of course.

My ex-girlfriend stopped by a couple nights ago and I turned some music up (Axel F - Beverly Hills Cop theme lol) and she was looking around and told me that there had to be more speakers somewhere in the room than just the 3 that she could see.

[Mugzilla]

Here, be cheap AND have great sound!
http://store.yahoo.com/glob2000/logz55piecsp.html

$30 delivered. I wish I would've bought a set for my home computer...

[MaximRecoil]

Here, be cheap AND have great sound!
http://store.yahoo.com/glob2000/logz55piecsp.html

$30 delivered. I wish I would've bought a set for my home computer...

Even better if you have mounting locations in a cab for 5 speakers (can you just omit some of them I wonder?). The Z340's like mine sell for really cheap, I think my brother got his off eBay for $8 or something. I paid $50 for mine brand new at Best Buy a couple years ago but they can be had for much cheaper than that. Either way, like I said before, Logitech may be fairly new to the speaker market but they really did their homework and they are easily the best for the money out there IMO.

[paigeoliver]

One problem I have had with every PC speaker setup I have ever purchased that included a sub is that they have all developed a bit of a hum over time. The creative labs 5 speaker set I used to have did it, and now the Logitech 5 Speaker set I have does it too.

[MaximRecoil]

One problem I have had with every PC speaker setup I have ever purchased that included a sub is that they have all developed a bit of a hum over time. The creative labs 5 speaker set I used to have did it, and now the Logitech 5 Speaker set I have does it too.

That is usually an interference problem. Mine started doing that one day when I was monkeying around with the wires in behind my computer. I moved the wire around until I found a spot where there was no hum. Since then I have noticed that If I wiggle the plug that goes into the soundcard it will cause that hum or stop the hum. Anyway, the hum is a pretty common thing with speaker sets that have an internal amp (the sub itself is just a speaker, it doesn't have anything to do with it) and moving wires around is the traditional solution.

[jdsony]

My suggestion is if you are going to shell out a bit more money for a 2.1 setup with a sub make sure it is half decent first. My friend has a a sub with his system and it is a whopping 2 inches in diameter! Yay! No bass from that thing. I have a yamaha 2.1 set of speakers that are an excellent value for the price range, they sound better than speakers costing a lot more. I'm at work now and I can't remember the model. The satellites use rectangular speakers so that can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on where you are going to mount them. I bought them at Costco about 2 years ago for probably around $35 US and they sound great with anything. My home stereo speakers are not nearly as forgiving since they have a lot more top end on them so MP3's and arcade game are much better on the PC speakers!

All the classic games would be fine with even the cheapest speakers, you will mostly benefit from a sub for Neogeo games which have some good bass and Capcom CPS-2 games as well as other modern games. It's mostly personal preference as you can get buy with anything and be happy that's all that really matters.

[grafixmonkey]

I think for a classic-style arcade cabinet, some decent size (5" to 8") car audio speakers in the top of the marquee area would give great sound, and you wouldn't have to worry about how to open up a hole a sub so the bass can get out.  The speakers sound best positioned in the top of the marquee, and them being inside a box greatly enhances their bass so I don't think a sub is necessary.  Course, I do enjoy the serious thumping of a Mortal Kombat match on my system - but my audio system is completely impractal for anything but my podium-style CP.

[Serpent]

I've recently bought the Z-540 by Logitech for my PC. It's a set of 4 speakers + subwoofer, which I use with my sblive. Their price is very nice for the quality and power you get. The sound is great, specially the power of the subwoofer. It rocks with modern games. Try Strikers, Garou, and other modern games and you will be impressed. For my future cabinet I will be using a 2.1 system. I will have to choose among these: Logitech Z-2200 THX, Creative Megaworks THX 2.1 250D and as a cheaper option... Creative I-Trigue L3500. The first two models are very powerful, and also quite expensive.