Greek candy cab conversion: SFIII 3rd Strike! - FINISHED

[mourix]

Hi guys, I’m a 22 year old Dutch electrical engineering student who's fixed arcade machines since his 14th (with varying degrees of success). After years of lurking on this amazing forum it’s time to finally document a MAME project.

This story starts in 2010. Forum member njay bought a Greek arcade cab to convert to Hyperspin. Halfway through he broke up with his gf and sold the unfinished project to me. The original thread is here: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=101535.0

So why am I only starting this project after 6 years? Well, a series of bad luck. The monitor died during transport. On top of that the roof of my shed broke so the cab stood in damp storage for years. Now I finally have good enough repair skills and a workplace to bring this machine back to life.

So let’s begin, shall we? This is my starting point. CP in parts everywhere, random cables, grime, and rust.


I took out all loose parts and the monitor chassis. This is what it looked like after cleaning.


Next up was the monitor. Moisture took its toll on the Hantarex Polo chassis. Before storage there was no rust to speak of. I put a dehumidifier on the cabinet for a few days while I inspected the chassis. Since the monitor had a rolling image 6 years ago and there was rust everywhere, I inspected every component and solder joint before plugging it in. A damaged resistor, cap, and 5+ fixed solder joints later it was time to put it to the test.
;

The monitor worked at first try! This project is a go


The cabinet color makes me think of a Capcom big blue so I’m considering a Street Fighter 3rd strike theme. The focus of this project will be on finish quality and durability of the components while remaining as minimalistic as possible. I’d rather spend money on a monitor rebuild than on fancy stickers. I'd love your input.

[harveybirdman]

Seriously cool cabinet! I'm interested to see what you come up with for a cp overlay and marquee.

[yotsuya]

The focus of this project will be on finish quality and durability of the components while remaining as minimalistic as possible. I’d rather spend money on a monitor rebuild than on fancy stickers. I'd love your input.

I think you're already ahead of the game. Good luck!


Sent from my SM-G386T using Tapatalk

[rablack97]

The focus of this project will be on finish quality and durability of the components while remaining as minimalistic as possible. I’d rather spend money on a monitor rebuild than on fancy stickers. I'd love your input.

I think you're already ahead of the game. Good luck!


Sent from my SM-G386T using Tapatalk

[emphatic]

Awesome looking cabinet.

[mourix]

Thanks for the nice comments guys! Today's update: pc stuff.

With the cabinet came a Pentium 4 2.8GHz 0.75GB pc with an AGP Arcadevga card but it just didn't cut it for Hyperspin and newer emulators. I gave myself a budget of €50 to find a pc that's reliable, fast enough, and works with the newer CRT Emudriver.

For €25 I got this, a HP dx2300 business pc. It's simple, conveniently sized, and has one of the fastest loading BIOS screens I have seen. Original specs were: Pentium E2160 2x1.8GHz, 1GB ram, and integrated graphics.

;

I set myself out to make it a bit better:
- Upgraded the CPU to a Core 2 Duo E6400
- Changed the ram to 2GB heatsinked versions
- Put in an ATI HD5450 1GB GPU with hacked bios for CRT Emudriver
- Replaced cmos battery and updated the mobo bios

For the software side of things it's running Windows 7 64bit, Hyperspin, Groovymame, and Retroarch. I’ve optimized windows a lot by turning off services, boot apps, and visual stuff. The system is not super high end but it runs my games just fine. Testing was done with a SCART TV in the place of the Arcade monitor.



Last up was trying it with the Hantarex monitor. This is where bad luck hit me. It's been raining for almost 2 weeks now and my dehumidifier just couldn't keep up. When powering up the screen I got sparks and a bang so it seems like there's moisture in the screen. Will have to keep it off until it's dried, fingers crossed…

[mourix]

This project is taking longer than expected with the monitor issues and vacation times but I have made progress on the marquee. This is the original SF3 3rd Strike marquee:


Below is my version. I've found all the artwork to make the marquee and removed all unnecessary bling to make a more crystal clear theme with dimensions fitting my cab.

[mourix]

Id color swap Chun Li (pink maybe?) so she stands out more from the BG. other than that it looks great

Thank you. It does look pretty nice in pink:

[n3wt0n]

That's a cool cab and I really like the marquee. Great idea to make Chun Li pink, it stands out much better now.

[opt2not]

Interesting! This cabinet reminds me of the Namco Excellena. Well I guess 'cause it's a candy cabinet that's blue.

[mourix]

*freeze frame*
*record scratch*
Yup, that’s my CRT Emudriver cab. You’re probably wondering how I ended up in this situation.

It all started with the Hantarex going out with sparks and a bang, and then only working with a loud hiss. There already was screen burn, caps needing replacement, and now a flyback on top of that list. Not to be left out, this machine doesn’t have a monitor chassis frame and no way of working inside. It was time to write this one off….

Here is a short summary of my search for a replacement monitor:
1.   Bought a Sony Trinitron TV. Turned out to have 30.000 hours on it and not to fit in the cab.
2.   Bought a Philips 50Hz TV. Fit perfectly but started humming and flashing before I could even decase it.
3.   Bought a Philips 100Hz TV. Good picture but it turned out these TV’s use multiple circuits board with huge cooling so this was a no fit either. Also weird geometry issues depeding on the resolution.

*cue to me breaking down and buying an lcd*
A 26 inch 1920*1200 lcd is a perfect fit! With GSLS shaders it works quite well and the PC has been upgraded accordingly.

;

So, what have I learned from all this:
1.   When you work on a big CRT like this one, make sure you have a big space and a monitor frame or your life will turn sour quickly.
2.   28 inch TV’s used to be the center of living rooms and are almost all end of life. Besides of it taking months to find them, every one I got turned out to have at least some malfunction. This is why it took so many months to follow up.
3.   If you replace a tube in an old frame, get your bog standard Philips type TV. The fancy sony ones don’t fit the original mounting holes.

These pics contain a spoiler of the controls, that will be a topic for next time!

[mourix]

Time for another update! This cab had some generic silver cut side art, but it was flaking to bits and parts were missing:



I removed all of it with a heat gun, scraper and lots of patience. Afterwards everything was cleaned with sticker removing solvent:



Looking much calmer than the shiny mess. I’m getting close to ordering vinyl wrap and artwork to finish it off.

[mourix]

PC time, part II! With the upgrade to a full HD flatscreen, it was time to upgrade the specs. Out went the dual core, in goes the quad core.

This cab had a pcb drawer spot in the bottom so I cut a mdf piece to size, and put extra sheets on the edges to make it a perfect fit. Afterwards it was a matter of putting motherboard spacers in the right places, and getting all the computer parts bolted down:



Apart from having to cut a few holes to fit the CPU cooler, everything went in without a hitch:

[Ian]

This is a seriously cool looking cab! I love it!

[danny_galaga]

Groovy cab. My highschool Greek tells me it says something like 'Polypaixnido', but I'd like to think you have found the original Polybius 

[mourix]

Groovy cab. My highschool Greek tells me it says something like 'Polypaixnido', but I'd like to think you have found the original Polybius 

Haha, that would be a very good possibility considering the amount of bad luck this thing has given me

I ran the letters through Google translate and it basically means "Multi Game". This has probably been a mame cab in the past already, which explains the utterly cut up wiring harness I had to remove.

[mourix]

Audio time! With the crt being replaced with an lcd, there was a giant space left behind the screen. To use this to my advantage I went to the thrift shop and got myself a 2.1 subwoofer.

Downside of this one was the internal volume control. To make this external, I cut the sound board in half and brought out only the volume control:


Installation went perfect. The old crt pcb holder turned out to be a perfect fit for the sub, and the rear hand grips made room for the volume knob. Lots of wire management later and you get this:
;

Before putting everything back in, I added some metal bracing to the lcd support to prevent flexing:


In the end I can definitely recommend adding a subwoofer, it’s a huge improvement when you play 90’s games.

[mourix]

After lots of life distractions I am finally getting work done.

First up, marquee lighting. The previous owner did some funky stuff by putting a light bulb in a weird place, and afterwards cutting the power wires halfway down the cab.

All turned back to stock now:
;

Next up, power. All the 230V lines in the cab were cut up, and the line filter had a blown fuse. Seems like this thing had some bad stuff happen in the past. I wired up some connectors to a smart power block and did a quick test.

Everything now works with the outlet in the bottom, and cable management be done soon...:
;

[mourix]

After 2 hours of wood and plastic cutting, the monitor bezel was done structurally. Black vinyl and marquee have been ordered and should arrive next week. Here is where we stand now:


The inside service panel got a makeover too, so everything is PC ready:
;

[Mike A]

I loved this cab, but the LCD absolutely killed it for me. It just looks wrong.

[Ian]

I like it... it's starting to come together. I understand why you went with the LCD. All my arcade monitors with the exception of my galaxian are driving me crazy with inconsistent colors and hot spots where there is no magnetic interference. Sometimes I wish I went LCD.

Keep up the good work.

[Nigel-James]

This is looking good.

Love 3rd Strike.

[Mike A]

LCD cabinets are fine. There are some really good ones on this site. Shoehorning one in where a CRT used to be just does not look right.

[mourix]

LCD cabinets are fine. There are some really good ones on this site. Shoehorning one in where a CRT used to be just does not look right.

Come on man, I spent 6 months going over 4 CRT's. Where I live it's impossible to get a 29 inch one in proper condition, and have it fit too. This was the only viable option. I tried to make that clear.

I have, however, gone the extra mile to have every LCD mount part be a nondestructive add-on, and even the upgraded GPU is an emudriver compatible one. All the bits and pieces are left to drop in a CRT in when the opportunity rises.

[mourix]

Anyhoo, here is a quick mockup of the CPO I'm designing for the (heavily modified) Hotrod SE joystick:


Any thoughts?

[yamatetsu]

I would :

- make the joystick graphics and the button fields smaller, so that the P1 and P2 buttons don't obscure the art

- incorporate the seventh button into the outlines

- move the 'punch' field to the left edge, move the 'kick' field to the right edge

- either ditch the Capcom logo (doesn't make a lot of sense just sitting there) OR give it an outline like the 'punch' field

- maybe give the joystick graphics a yellow outline, too.

[Mike A]

It is OK. You don't have to agree with me. It is your machine. Only one person ultimately has to be happy with it.

[pbj]

It is OK. You don't have to agree with me. It is your machine. Only one person ultimately has to be happy with it.

Yeah, and she said no.

[mourix]

Thanks for the feedback, yamatetsu! I've updated accordingly. The Capcom logo and button outlines are a direct copy of the original 3rd Strike CPO, and I'd like to keep that accurate.

Here is the render:

[Ian]

I like it! I could have sworn that cpo artwork was from an earlier Street Fighter game... but you are right!

[yamatetsu]

This does indeed look better.  I would give the joystick graphics the same outline as the buttons, to make it more consistent.



I couldn't resist giving the logo an outline as well, I think this looks better than the plain one.

I would move 'punch' and 'kick' even more to the left/right, but that's just me, it also works like it is now.

[mourix]

That outline idea I will definitely incorporate, thanks. The minimalistic logo however is something Capcom always does and I'd like to keep that original.

In other news, the marquee and black carbon vinyl have have arrived and look awesome! I'll install it all over the weekend

[mourix]

Marquee and bezel: DONE

[mourix]

Big updates this time!

The original control panel was bulky with hard to modify metal construction so I got myself a HotRod SE joystick. It's a pretty sweet controller, has all genuine Happ parts and it fits the shape of this cabinet well.

Replaced the encoder with a new Xin Mo one and bolted it on the cab, but the angle and construction wasn't doing it for me. Time to build a new base:


Artwork got put on, makes a big difference:


All doors got new locks, coin lights were replaced and wired to the PC power, and carbon vinyl was put on the rejects:


Now combine it all and you get this pretty picture:


PC got a full reinstall with updated emulators and almost overheated in the process, so I put two fans in the back running at 7V:


Lots of small things were done too, ranging from polishings the bolts and screws, cleaning, to wire management.

This thing is approaching the finish line now. Just have to put in ordered LED bulbs, finish the software, and put more carbon fiber vinyl on worns parts 

[yamatetsu]

Probably too late for this now, but I think a blue border around the CP would tie everything nicely together.

[mourix]

Probably too late for this now, but I think a blue border around the CP would tie everything nicely together.

As always, your feedback is appreciated I figured that matching the metallic blue in print would never work.

Instead I'm incorporating black carbon fiber vinyl everywhere as to match the pieces. When that's added onto the speaker surrounds and bottom stands, everything will tie in perfectly 

[stigzler]

I normally vomit when I see a hotrod or x-arcade pre-built CP, but your build seems to carry it off somehow...

Unique cab - like it!

[harveybirdman]

Tastefully done.  Wish the CRT could have worked out but it looks great regardless!

[mourix]

Months have passed, time for the final update! Since last time, the pc broke down so I caved and got the best I could afford: a Dell Optiplex 390 Core i5 2400, 6GB ram, 128GB ssd. With custom mounts, everything runs smoothly now.

Last up, vinyl wrap to tie it all together. I’ll let the pics speak for themselves:


So there you have it, the finished project. I’ve learned a lot from this one, but the big takeaway is the meaning of the word “project”. The work for one post here took massive amounts of time, and sometimes you can’t make a piece the way you like no matter how hard you try. But I am hooked, and happy with the results. Thanks for all the replies and advices, I’ll be back!

[HaRuMaN]

Great job!  Normally I'm against LCD in a cab like this but you really pulled it off!