What is Your Single Biggest Regret of your Arcade Build?

[harveybirdman]

* puts on flame suit*

LED buttons and sticks are stupid anyway


The only reason I feel it would ever be worthwhile is to show what buttons are active in a specific game, and I'd rather spend all that extra money building separate cabs for separate types of games rather than have something that looks nothing like any arcade cabinet I ever saw when I was a kid...

The only thing that makes me sicker is theme artwork that is completely out of sync with the controls on the panel.

[Nephasth]

The total cost for The Beast was $800. And she's got full RGB controls as well as RGB cabinet lighting.

[Louis Tully]

.

[yotsuya]

The only reason I feel it would ever be worthwhile is to show what buttons are active in a specific game

That's the approach I took as well. I have red translucent buttons for P1, and blue ones for P2. I light the ones needed in a game, and that's about it. One color, 12 buttons, 1 controller, very cheap.

[cack01]

Using a crt for my build.  It’s 35" and looks gorgeous.  However, it has considerably limited me on my choice of hardware for the system (mainly graphic cards) and software (somewhat tied to XP still).  This has made it difficult to implement new features such as Hyperpause or newer emulators.  It is also impossible to move and I recently spent $300 just to hire a moving crew when I recently relocated.  Given that the crt affects can be emulated with a $50 dongle or HLSL, I am not sure I would take a similar route on my next build.   

[pbj]

Once you go flat, you never go back.

[yotsuya]

Once you go flat, you never go back.

Not true. My first build was with an LCD. Every full-size build since has been a computer CRT. I wouldn't do it differently.

[pbj]

The weirdo exception proves the rule

[wp34]

Once you go flat, you never go back.

My first build was a flat CRT----mind blown. 

[yotsuya]

The weirdo exception proves the rule

Says the guy who always brings up the weirdo exceptions...

[Dawgz Rule]

Probably wouldn't have purchased light guns as I use them infrequently.  Also should have gone with vertical mount on the monitor as that is what I seem to play the most.

In short, probably should have focused on a genre of games and built a cab specific to that. 

[zallax]

Total         $1434 <--- that is ---smurfing--- stupid high.



The life of a Griff-Richer .... 



Enjoy.   






Edit: how much do you have in the whole cabinet? If you don't mind my asking.

I've probably spent about 4k, but hundreds of it in poor planning.  The panel was originally a custom SlikStik panel.  I didn't test on cardboard which I should have.  I quickly found that the layout was not ergonomic, that and my hand jamming on the DOT spinner above the trackball.  So, I redesigned and custom built my next panel, but with a sloped top and also with hinges that allows it to flip open from the top for quick access to wiring.  I also have quite a few peripherals, like PS3 wireless controllers, PS3 Guitar Hero and Rock Band guitars, a DDR mat, etc.   I've also had one of the few RAM Controls, "Ya, I know", Star Wars yoke, but have yet to connect it because of the custom mount I built got water damaged.  I also got light guns that I never got to work reliably.  So, ya, I am in deep.

[jennifer]

     You could say that, OR You can look at it as a cheap lesson learned. The next one you build will have the skillset that money just cant buy.

[Louis Tully]

.

[zallax]

It did.  I built two bartop cabs after that and both were much easier to make and for much less cost.  I love the mini cocktail one as it's solely powered by the laptop which has a battery, for portable arcade gaming anywhere.

[ChanceKJ]

Not that it should matter to anyone else but, I lost track of the total $ amount of Flynn's after the $4500 mark. I think all said and done its around $5000CAN (including shipping and unused parts). I could give a ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- how much the value of my time was because it was a labor of love and education.  I chose to go all out and make it to my standards because I could and it matched my vision that I outlined from the start. It taught me a TON too, and the value of showing people what I'm now capable of making from the ground up can't be quantified.

Now I'm trying the "Restore and old cab" idea, and I went from LCD to arcade monitor, each have their own place.

This conversation has really become entirely subjective.

[jennifer]

     And to what end,.... Ive got over 10k in lab test equipment alone, but cant "add" that loss to my most resent project should I need a scope or something.

[dkersten]

Anyone who thinks your time doesn't have an equitable value in money is fooling themselves.  Money is just a conversion of time anyway.  Everyone here exchanges their time for money every day.  And everyone comes to a point where they believe their time is worth more than they someone can pay them.  Just because you might not think of your time in relation to money, there is a price there.  And because there is a price, there is a direct correlation between what you would spend and the time you save by spending it.  To me, spending $100 more to save 20-50 hours of doing something I have no interest in doing is well worth it.  On the other hand, if it were to save $1000, it might be a different story.  Everyone has their price.  Yours might be $10, but you still have a price.

Sometimes you have money and don't have time.  So you spend money to save the time.  It is a door that swings both ways.  And whether it is worth it or not is pure opinion.

As for RGB LED's, I like them.  It's a "coolness factor".  Like a rotating monitor, or an interchangeable control panel.  Sure, there is some value in having the buttons turn to the color that the original game used, and the more games you have, the more useful it is.  Having the lights change colors while in "attract mode" is pretty cool too.  When I saw that I could do that, I decided it was worth the extra $250 on top of the regular price of the controller and buttons, so I did it.  I also bought aimtrack guns, which are horribly inaccurate and not very much fun after the first couple times you use them.  I also bought U360's, which while they are nice sticks aren't the best for specific games, and the analog mode is all but useless to me.  I also got a coin door, which is just for show even though it works.  See, I spent a lot of money on things I didn't need but wanted.  I didn't expect to spend $3k, and if you take out the pedals I bought, the a-pac, the Logitech g25 wheel and pedals I bought that I intended to build a cab for, and perhaps some other things like the player 3 and 4 and a couple admin buttons, maybe the wheel for the spinner, then I could dial this back to less than a grand.  But so what, it was free in the end because I made it all back on the next two cabs I built.  (yes, not free because I had over 200 hours of labor, but whatever, I enjoyed that time and did what I wanted to do.. I could make another $3k building a few more cabs that people are lined up to buy, but I got bored of it and have other things to do that are more worth it to me).

When it comes down to it, the money didn't mean anything to me, the time I spent didn't mean anything to me.  What mattered was the smile on my kids' faces when they played, the pride I felt when I delivered the cabs to the people I built them for, and the knowledge I gained and people I met from getting involved in the hobby.  Even the time spent playing games on it has little value compared to those things.  Sure, there are regrets, but those other things far outweigh them.

[Nephasth]

Anyone who thinks your time doesn't have an equitable value in money is fooling themselves.  Money is just a conversion of time anyway.  Everyone here exchanges their time for money every day.

Correct. But your time only converts to money when you're doing work for someone else. You can't pay yourself for your time, thus you CANNOT put a dollar figure on your time spent on one of these projects. Because if you paid yourself out of one pocket, it's just going right into the other pocket, so your gain/loss=0.

What mattered was the smile on my kids' faces when they played.

x1000. This always feels better than the self gratification I get from working on a project and even learning new skills.

[dkersten]

OK, I made a mistake on my numbers.. I just went back to look at my spreadsheets from my build.  The $3k was including things I didn't use like the pedals, apac, and G25 wheel, but also my first tankstick and xtension cab, which I sold.  JUST looking at the cab as it sits now, I have just under $1700 into it.  I never did finish artwork though, which will be a couple hundred more, and if I added the pedals like I wanted to, add another $200.  Plus there is money lost there as well from the GGG LED's that ultimately didn't work with the ipac UIO and had to be replaced.  I was supposed to swap those out and Randy was going to give me my money back on them, but I never finished that project, and whether he will still take them back after this long is questionable, which is completely my fault.  However, that cost does not include the computer, which would be at least another $500 if I bought it used (fairly high end graphics card, ssd, etc) and around $900 if I built it new.  So all in, yeah, around $3k, but I took in about 3500 from the sale of my first cab plus the next 2 I did after that, so in the end the ~300 hours labor I have between all 4 cabs made me about $1.70 per hour plus a pretty decent (if unfinished) mame cab.

So depending on how you look at it, I spent around $1700, or I spent around $3000, or I got it free and earned about $500 in the process, OR if you go by the rate my day job pays me, this hobby has now cost me somewhere in the $11,000 range, lol.  It's all perspective.  I choose to look at it as I got it for free and made a few bucks, but to each their own..

[DietCoke]

Not that it should matter to anyone else but, I lost track of the total $ amount of Flynn's after the $4500 mark. I think all said and done its around $5000CAN (including shipping and unused parts). I could give a ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- how much the value of my time was because it was a labor of love and education.  I chose to go all out and make it to my standards because I could and it matched my vision that I outlined from the start. It taught me a TON too, and the value of showing people what I'm now capable of making from the ground up can't be quantified.

Now I'm trying the "Restore and old cab" idea, and I went from LCD to arcade monitor, each have their own place.

This conversation has really become entirely subjective.

This. 

I am sure that I've overdone it on equipment and materials, but it has given me a lot of experience that will likely serve me well in the future.  I don't want to feel like "if I had only done this" or "if I had only considered this" when it is done, so a number of times I've had to change course and buy a different item to get it to where I want.  I am sure things could be done cheaper, but a) I'm new and expect bumps and bruises on something like this, and b) in my experience cheaper is often not better long-term.  Once the cabinet is done for me, the hardware portion is done - short of replacing defective or worn-out parts. 

As well, of course I don't *need* working coin mechs.  Sure I don't *need* a trackball or spinner.  But I like having the options.  Probably my biggest frustration in this task was getting the control panel put in, holes drilled, etc, then realizing that I had truly screwed up the U360 installation by cutting out squares and routing around them to meet flush against the cp surface.  Of course they should be installed UNDER (at least for me), and thus I had to tear the whole damn thing out after already having screwed and glued.  And while I don't go nuts over paying twice for the joystick that just "feels right", it really bugged me that I wasted a significant chunk of MDO.

I wouldn't even consider "labor" in all of this.  I do, however, bill myself each time I sit on the toilet, as that sometimes does feel like labor  

When this doesn't feel like fun I'll quit.  In the meantime that is the goal, along with learning how to build one!

[zallax]

I admit.  I think get more enjoyment out of watching other play my arcade.  I am and will forever suck at Street Fighter.  However, one night we had a work party at my house and two really good Street Fighter players were in attendance.  I watched them bang out on my cab like I never had.  It was awesome to watch.  I loved the moment because they hadn't played like that in years and my cab was able to withstand the test.

[yotsuya]

Now I'm trying the "Restore and old cab" idea, and I went from LCD to arcade monitor, each have their own place.
[/quote ]

Ultimately,  I found this aspect of the hobby more rewarding.

This conversation has really become entirely subjective.

Aren't they all?

[ChanceKJ]

Now I'm trying the "Restore and old cab" idea, and I went from LCD to arcade monitor, each have their own place.
[/quote ]

Ultimately,  I found this aspect of the hobby more rewarding.

This conversation has really become entirely subjective.

Aren't they all?

Oh dude. Seriously that $200 i spent on my cocktail a couple weeks ago equally compares to my FLYNN's investment. But for whole different reasons. My eyes are increasingly being opened as to why so many subjective viewpoints are made in threads on this forum.  This is why i chose to change my DKU project from a "Lets build a cab" to "lets restore and retrofit an old cab".

Look, i'm 30. Most of these games are older than me, but i've found a crazy respect and admiration for all of them that i've played (yes, even BurgerTime, ...stupid pickles!). I'd consider myself pretty damn good at anything with the Halo trademark. But man, Donkey Kong continues to mop the red scaffolding with ---my bottom---. And i still keep coming back for more.  The games are equal parts hard, and fun. And most of them don't have some crazy abrupt cliffhanger ending that makes you want more from the eventual sequel or downloadable episodic content that you need to shell out another $60 for. Just a kill screen i'll probably never see outside of a youtube video, or a High Score of my own i'll be forever trying to best. Isn't this in part what this is all about, and one of the true meanings of this?

This all makes me want to write a thread on my experiences over the last year and change. For other newbies coming into the hobby. Something about joysticks, large frankenpanels, the difference between rolling your own wires or buying a pre-made harness, etc.  (again, my experience. Totally subjective.) I figure my Flynn's build has helped a few people, why not see if i can expand on that?

[dkersten]

But your time only converts to money when you're doing work for someone else. You can't pay yourself for your time, thus you CANNOT put a dollar figure on your time spent on one of these projects. Because if you paid yourself out of one pocket, it's just going right into the other pocket, so your gain/loss=0.

Semantics.. You are talking about what you ARE doing with your time and I am talking about what you COULD be doing with your time. You COULD be working a second job.  Not trading your time for money is the same as wasting money.  In both cases, you don't have the money you could have had.  But it is semantics, you view it as already not making the money, so you might as well do something you like to do.  I view it as losing out on money you could have had but instead you chose to do something that didn't make money.  Both of us think that time is worth something, you just choose not to equate that to real money that is being lost. 

So relate it to something that has more value to you, like your kids.  If you have the choice of spending time building an LED controller you don't want to build, or spending a few extra dollars to buy one so you can spend that time with your kids instead, which would you prefer to do?  Either way you answer you are comparing the value of money to the value of your time..

[Le Chuck]

Once you go flat, you never go back.

Not true. My first build was with an LCD. Every full-size build since has been a computer CRT. I wouldn't do it differently.

Every fullsize build I've ever done has been CRT.  I've only used LED on my minis and that weecade thing I built one. 

[lisowskikevin]

Once you go flat, you never go back.

Not true. My first build was with an LCD. Every full-size build since has been a computer CRT. I wouldn't do it differently.

Every fullsize build I've ever done has been CRT.  I've only used LED on my minis and that weecade thing I built one.

Ya aren't the viewing angles on an LCD screen pretty bad? And it probably wouldn't look anything like the old arcade game i.e. scan lines. But who am I to knock someone else's set up, it comes down to what YOU are happy with!

[ChanceKJ]

Viewing angles on an LCD are only bad if you buy the wrong type of LCD.

Scanline generators make up for a lot of the classic CRT effect, depending on what your level of acceptability is for getting it close enough to the oldskool thing.

[lisowskikevin]

Viewing angles on an LCD are only bad if you buy the wrong type of LCD.

Scanline generators make up for a lot of the classic CRT effect, depending on what your level of acceptability is for getting it close enough to the oldskool thing.

Really? that's very interesting, I ignorantly figured that ALL LCD's had crappy viewing angles. Good to know.

[ChanceKJ]

There are a bunch of diffrent ways to crack an egg in the display world.

Next time you're in the TV section of a brand name electronics store, pick a few diffrent brands and sizes, stand directly in the front of one a few feet back and check out the levels of colour, picture, black intensity, then stare at it as you move to a 45° angle to the display. Red is a very good color to look for as well. 

[yotsuya]

Now I'm trying the "Restore and old cab" idea, and I went from LCD to arcade monitor, each have their own place.
[/quote ]

Ultimately,  I found this aspect of the hobby more rewarding.

This conversation has really become entirely subjective.

Aren't they all?

Oh dude. Seriously that $200 i spent on my cocktail a couple weeks ago equally compares to my FLYNN's investment. But for whole different reasons. My eyes are increasingly being opened as to why so many subjective viewpoints are made in threads on this forum.  This is why i chose to change my DKU project from a "Lets build a cab" to "lets restore and retrofit an old cab".

Look, i'm 30. Most of these games are older than me, but i've found a crazy respect and admiration for all of them that i've played (yes, even BurgerTime, ...stupid pickles!). I'd consider myself pretty damn good at anything with the Halo trademark. But man, Donkey Kong continues to mop the red scaffolding with ---my bottom---. And i still keep coming back for more.  The games are equal parts hard, and fun. And most of them don't have some crazy abrupt cliffhanger ending that makes you want more from the eventual sequel or downloadable episodic content that you need to shell out another $60 for. Just a kill screen i'll probably never see outside of a youtube video, or a High Score of my own i'll be forever trying to best. Isn't this in part what this is all about, and one of the true meanings of this?

This all makes me want to write a thread on my experiences over the last year and change. For other newbies coming into the hobby. Something about joysticks, large frankenpanels, the difference between rolling your own wires or buying a pre-made harness, etc.  (again, my experience. Totally subjective.) I figure my Flynn's build has helped a few people, why not see if i can expand on that?

/KaneClapping.gif

[pbj]

I started a notebook that kept track of my hobby expenses.... Last updated circa 2005.

 

It's just money, quit counting it.

All said and done, I'd bet I've got a grand in turtle box and it's not in the same league as many builds around here.  Just close your eyes and slide that card until it burns.

[dkersten]

I started a notebook that kept track of my hobby expenses.... Last updated circa 2005.

 

It's just money, quit counting it.

All said and done, I'd bet I've got a grand in turtle box and it's not in the same league as many builds around here.  Just close your eyes and slide that card until it burns.

lol, after my "summer of arcade" I had to get a new card, I melted the old one. 

[knightrdrx]

Not going with the coin door from recroommasters and opting for the cabinet door and coin door sticker...so I ordered the replacement panel and coin door and just took apart the whole thing!  Plus I'm not even done configuring...I keep adding more games and still find missing video snaps.  I'm a bit of a perfectionist.  I am disappointed the bezel I ordered doesn't hide the bottom of the monitor because you can look down behind it.  I suppose I should have put black electrical tape over the monitor logo.

[yotsuya]

Viewing angles on an LCD are only bad if you buy the wrong type of LCD.

Scanline generators make up for a lot of the classic CRT effect, depending on what your level of acceptability is for getting it close enough to the oldskool thing.

Really? that's very interesting, I ignorantly figured that ALL LCD's had crappy viewing angles. Good to know.

This is the best 4:3 your money can buy:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Samsung-SyncMaster-213T-21-3-LCD-Monitor-/251811476604?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3aa122347c

21.3" big, 4:3, and great viewing angles. You can get a good price on one if you are patient.

[knightrdrx]

I certainly didn't intend on spending about $2300 over the past year (that's not how much I told my wife I spent)...that includes $750 for a new computer build and 27" monitor..but it certainly looks better than the old dell, nintendo controllers, and a 26" tv on a tv stand I originally had the games running on which cost almost nothing.   Funny how I was willing to spend $300 on 2 spinners and steering wheels but will not buy a $300 Wii U...I guess because I really only want to play Zelda on the Wii U and I get alot more use out of the cabinet...The cabinet was worth the money...it also adds decoration to the house.

[Ond]

"time is money"  I used to think this, not any more sunshine.  My goal now is to earn less money and be happier with less. 

[RetroGreg]

I'd say the majority of people spend too much on their first cab, but it ends up being a good learning experience and you'll probably have a lot of parts you can re-use on the next build.

I guess I regret the extra money I spent, but let's be honest. I would have probably spent it on a different hobby anyway. I had fun and I've learned a lot. I have a much greater appreciation for a lot of different crafts. You really learn a lot about computers, software, woodworking, electrical work and so on in this hobby. It's great and I love the many different types of projects and ideas people come up with.

I'm much more patient and I just enjoy tinkering with things now. The process always seems better than the end result. That's why many of us seem to always have a new project.

BTW - I love that mini cocktail posted above. Looks cool. 

[Nephasth]

But your time only converts to money when you're doing work for someone else. You can't pay yourself for your time, thus you CANNOT put a dollar figure on your time spent on one of these projects. Because if you paid yourself out of one pocket, it's just going right into the other pocket, so your gain/loss=0.

Semantics.. You are talking about what you ARE doing with your time and I am talking about what you COULD be doing with your time. You COULD be working a second job.  Not trading your time for money is the same as wasting money.  In both cases, you don't have the money you could have had.  But it is semantics, you view it as already not making the money, so you might as well do something you like to do.  I view it as losing out on money you could have had but instead you chose to do something that didn't make money.  Both of us think that time is worth something, you just choose not to equate that to real money that is being lost. 

So relate it to something that has more value to you, like your kids.  If you have the choice of spending time building an LED controller you don't want to build, or spending a few extra dollars to buy one so you can spend that time with your kids instead, which would you prefer to do?  Either way you answer you are comparing the value of money to the value of your time..

You COULD be. But you're not. Just like I COULD be banging a super model right now. But I prefer to not live in a fantasy. When I was married and had stepchildren (none of my own), I would rather save money to provide for the kids than drop $400+ on LEDs.

If you are continually trading your time for money (not "wasting money") that just makes you a whore for money.

[lisowskikevin]

Not going with the coin door from recroommasters and opting for the cabinet door and coin door sticker...so I ordered the replacement panel and coin door and just took apart the whole thing!  Plus I'm not even done configuring...I keep adding more games and still find missing video snaps.  I'm a bit of a perfectionist.  I am disappointed the bezel I ordered doesn't hide the bottom of the monitor because you can look down behind it.  I suppose I should have put black electrical tape over the monitor logo.

You didn't like the coin door sticker?