Almost ready to start building

[TeutonicDarkness]

 Hello,

 I'm getting close to being ready to start
Building my arcade. I have never built anything
Like this. I hope to start this weekend.
I have lots of questions... and to be honest
The closer i get to getting started the more
Nervous i get. I will be using computer
Monitor. I notice almost all cabs i see on
Internet have monitor slightly tilted.
Is this necessary? If so what angle should
I shoot for? Also should i use plexiglass
Or will it even work with a pc crt monitor?

I really which i knew a carpenter. I dont
Want a fugly cab!

[PL1]

I notice almost all cabs i see on
Internet have monitor slightly tilted.
Is this necessary? If so what angle should
I shoot for?

The proper angle of the tilt depends on the height at which you mount the monitor.

You might be able to measure the angle of your favorite cabs using Sketchup and models from the Arcade Cabinet by Gozer collection.

I suggest setting up a mockup with a table and piles of books to test the viewing and reflection angles -- preferrably in the desired location and orientation that the cab will be placed.


Scott

[TeutonicDarkness]

 Thanks,

 I appreciate that. That is a pretty cool site when used in conjunction
with sketchup! I'm still curious if there is a specific reason every
Arcade I have seen seems to have a tilted monitor vs one completely flat?
I have no problems with it just wondering.

 I wish I could find plans close to my specifications...
( May not be practical? ) I'm looking for something under 6ft tall overall
height and as narrow as possible. I don't have much room to put this
when I build it!

 I don't have anything specific still planning. I did do some measuring
I noticed my grandmother had a table  for a flowerpot.
I borrowed it and found my pc crt monitor fits perfectly on the table
top. 16 inch from left to right 17 1/2 from front to back.
That at least gives me something to go on.

 If it didn't have any angles on front or back to factor in
I would "guess" I would be looking at 46 to 52 inches tall a little
over 4ft.

I'm guess I'm kind of factoring everything around the size of
monitor since its the bulkiest component.
If I'm already setting myself up for failure because of a out of
proportion cabinet....

someone please let me know!

[PL1]

I'm still curious if there is a specific reason every
Arcade I have seen seems to have a tilted monitor vs one completely flat?

There are two related reasons for the tilt: mounting height and forced perspective.

Most monitors weren't mounted vertically because they were mounted below instead of at eye-level.

If you hold a book at arm's length at shoulder level and parallel to the ground, the words on the page are very hard, if not impossible, to read.

If until you tilt the book so it's closer to perpindicular to your line of sight, it will be easier to see and read everything on the page.

Some games tilted the monitor further back to create "forced perspective".

That means that the bottom of the screen where your ship/character is at appears larger because it is closer.

The top of the screen appears to stretch away into the distance like the opening text crawl in Star Wars because it is smaller/farther away.

I'm guess I'm kind of factoring everything around the size of
monitor since its the bulkiest component.

Scaling the build based on your monitor is an excellent choice.   


Scott

[TeutonicDarkness]

Thanks,

 I appreciate the insight about the
Monitor tilt. I'm going to follow your
Recomendation about proping up
Monitor to determine optimal angle.

I'm probally going to
Use some cardboard or scap wood and
Try to prototype a mockup of the top
Half of the cabinet. This bring me to
My Next question:

What is the ideal thickness for plexiglass?
What color or should i stick with clear?
I still dont know if it will work with
The curved crt monitor surface.
I just want to take everything into account!

[PL1]

I think there are some good threads about glass/plexi thickness in the Main forum.

One keyword to search on is "Graylite" 31 or 14 for tinted glass.


Scott

[EMDB]

...
I wish I could find plans close to my specifications...
( May not be practical? ) I'm looking for something under 6ft tall overall
height and as narrow as possible. I don't have much room to put this
when I build it!
...

If size is a problem don't go for CRT but use a 19"or so LCD monitor. This will also simplify the construction very much. Especially since this is your first build.

Regarding the mock up: just a monitor on a pile of books on a table, put a keyboard in front of it to act like a control panel and play some good old arcade games using MAME. This will give you a good impression about dimensions, angles etc. without any actual building effort.

[TeutonicDarkness]

...
I wish I could find plans close to my specifications...
( May not be practical? ) I'm looking for something under 6ft tall overall
height and as narrow as possible. I don't have much room to put this
when I build it!
...

If size is a problem don't go for CRT but use a 19"or so LCD monitor. This will also simplify the construction very much. Especially since this is your first build.

Regarding the mock up: just a monitor on a pile of books on a table, put a keyboard in front of it to act like a control panel and play some good old arcade games using MAME. This will give you a good impression about dimensions, angles etc. without any actual building effort.

 I know it would be easier to use as LCD monitor... I just don't consider that
an option.
1.) I hate the way games look on them
2.) I have spare crt monitors

 I'm going to just have to hope for the best and it just may end
up being a little bigger than I wanted. I am at least going to try to
keep size within reason though!

I appreciate everyone's input so far. Making a list going for
some supplies. I have a 4 day weekend... WOO HOO!

[EMDB]

...
1.) I hate the way games look on them
2.) I have spare crt monitors
...

No problem. But...

1.) You can tweak this quite nice: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,130690.msg1358280.html#msg1358280
2.) If size (and weight!)) really matters a 19"LCD can be found real cheap online.

[nemesismachine]

Remember, this is supposed to be for having fun; no saying you cant have fun building it.  I had my computer built way before I purchased joysticks and buttons, even before I had the cabinet.

[SavannahLion]

Take a look at the project cabinets area here in the forum. The Low Boy cabinet sounds like it's right up your alley. It's typically shorter than most and happily accepts CRT or flat panels.

Your second choice might be the Knieval's "Woody" which is referenced in http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,103103.0.html]Hall of Fame thread[\url]. However the design does not lend itself well to CRTs because it is a very shallow cabinet.

other designs that can fit with modification is the Candy Cab, a popular Japanese sit down cabinet. Or a Tabletop cabinet, a heavily modified and scaled down cabinet small enough to fit on your dinner table and be put away in the closet when eating.

[Bonecollektor]

If you do end up using a LCD or similar flat panel don't forget to take into consideration the off-angle viewing of some panels. I think there's a term for it but, I can't think of it off the top if my head. What i have done is get the sides cut or even just use something similar. Grab se wood clamps and clamp the monitor shelf at a test angle. Make sure it's sturdy and put your monitor on it and see how it looks and feels. If it sucks, remove monitor, adjust and try again. Once you find your "sweetspot" either mark it or measure the angle. Sometimes what looks good on Sketchup or CAD doesn't always look or feel good in person.