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First machine, need opinions on MAME PC

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Arc Kalocal:

Noted, but at the moment scratch build is my only option, and I actually have access to some really good deals on most of the parts. If I scratch out the processor and mobo I chose what do you think my best option would be today? I'm sure the i3 is overkill but I wanted to play it safe at first. I can get an ivy bridge celeron processor pretty cheap if you guys think that would cut it.

As far as the cabinet goes I'm retrofitting one I won at an auction so I don't think I'll need yo put in much money to it. It has a working CRT monitor but I had my heart set on an LCD. Maybe I'll change my mind. I'm not sure if the speakers it have will be compatible I haven't looked there yet. The control panel will be ripped out and replaced with a 4 player setup with 4/6 buttons each. Im going with the basic competition buttons and joysticks from Happ unless I'm convinced otherwise.

So at the moment I'm looking at:
$200 cabinet
$200 PC
$150 control panel
$200-300 monitor? Maybe.


Arc Kalocal:

One other thing, how necessary is a trackball for mame? They're expensive and there aren't really any games I'm interested in at the moment that use them. Can I use the joystick and buttons to navigate the name front end or would I be stuck with a keyboard drawer as my only other option?

PL1:

The trackball isn't necessary for navigating your front end.

You may want to take a look at the Sparkfun trackball if your main concern is budget.


Scott

Cynicaster:

Track balls are pretty spendy pieces of kit (relatively speaking), but if I had to choose between spending a hundy on a track ball or a PC that plays 7 more games than my 8 year-old PC does, I'd take the track ball any day of the week. 

I love playing Missile Command, Marble Madness, Centipede, Millipede, and Wacko, but even if I didn't like those track ball games, I'd still get my money's worth from playing "party games" like Golden Tee, bowling, and Shuffle Shot when non-gamer friends are over. 



BadMouth:


--- Quote from: Arc Kalocal on July 21, 2013, 11:59:18 pm ---I'm mostly interested in games like Gauntlet Legends, TMNT, D&D, and MVC2. And how realistic is it to run newer games like SF4 or tekken tag 2?

--- End quote ---

Maybe you should play around with MAME on your current PC first so your expectations are reasonable.
A $200 PC isn't going to run Gauntlet Legends.  You need to get up near 4Ghz to run it.

MVC2 doesn't work in MAME regardless of how fast a processor you have.
It is playable on Demul and Makaron emulators, but those require a good video card.

SF4 arcade ran on the Taito Type X platform which was just a standard PC with embedded windows xp. 
There is a version out there that is hacked to run on any PC, but it is only one player.
Just buy the PC game, it's cheap now and will be a much better experience.

I'm not aware of a way to play Tekken Tag Tournament 2 short of installing a PS3 in your cab.

I've replied to other threads like this and given an idea of what to expect from various hardware.
If you search here in the main forum, you'll find more info on horsepower requirements.

Keep in mind that most people use MAME to play games from the early 80's up through the 2D fighters of the 90's like Mortal Kombat.
So when you ask what PC specs you need, the answers are going to lean toward that, not the beast it requires to play newer 3D games.

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