Will this old computer work for Mame?

[GPD1444]

I posted before about a project that I want to start and was given advise to just build it instead of buying a computer already set up for Mame. I am a complete computer idiot but decided to give it a go anyway. Haha

I found my old desk top, this was the last computer I owned so that should tell you how far behind the times I am. Will this work for Mame? I only want Orginal NES games and  26 4 player 2 button arcade games (TMNT, TIT, Xmen, sunset rider and a few others) so they are the most basic of games all mid-late 80's. Will this work? The specs are in the pic and it's running windows xp.

My plan is put it in a TMNT cabinet with a 25in CGA monitor that is medium resolution and uses VGA hook up. I have 12 arcade games that I have restored/fixed so the arcade/wiring aspects will be fairly easy for me, I'm just a complete idiot with computers.

[Fishinfiend]

I am not sure but mame was orginally designed with XP.  If you have the time, a spare monitor, and a keyboard you can test itnout yourself.  Just download some of the newer arcade games and test it out.

[leapinlew]

I would expect those games to work, assuming you select the correct version of Mame, have your OS running lean enough, and don't select a overloaded front end.

So, clean up the OS so it isn't running anything you don't need, go with an older version of mame, and use a low powered front end like Mala. Definitely no Hyperspin.

[GPD1444]

I'm working on cleaning everything out of the computer now. Finding Pics from the kids 10yrs ago and moving them to a portable hard drive then deleteing everything I can out of it now. 

[leapinlew]

I'm working on cleaning everything out of the computer now. Finding Pics from the kids 10yrs ago and moving them to a portable hard drive then deleteing everything I can out of it now.

Storage is important, but making sure there isn't any unnecessary applications (especially antivirus). My arcades are disconnected from the network, so I don't run any antivirus and no applications that require updates (like adobe stuff).

Good luck!

[GPD1444]

Ok I have everything turned off I can from the machine, cleaned all unused files out of it but I'm having issues finding where to download Mame at every article I read are a few years old and a lot of the links are bad. Best place to download Mame and games from?
Thanks in advance

[ed12]

to start with dump this into google search
>old mame for windows xp 32 bit<
u will get alot of pages as to where to d/l from
example here >Download MAMEUI (32-bit) v0.155 (freeware) - AfterDawn: Software ...<

ed

[JDFan]

Ok I have everything turned off I can from the machine, cleaned all unused files out of it but I'm having issues finding where to download Mame at every article I read are a few years old and a lot of the links are bad. Best place to download Mame and games from?
Thanks in advance

Direct from MAME.org (that way you know it has not been messed with or has anything else added to the download !!) - under downloads - previous releases - they have pretty much every release available for download still (just be sure to get roms that are compatible with that release !! - can't link to roms on this site so use Google search for roms from the version you plan on using (ie. Mame roms 0.139 if using version 0.139 or Mame roms 0.181 etc.)


Direct link to the page :
http://www.mamedev.org/oldrel.html

[BadMouth]

Ok I have everything turned off I can from the machine, cleaned all unused files out of it but I'm having issues finding where to download Mame at every article I read are a few years old and a lot of the links are bad. Best place to download Mame and games from?
Thanks in advance

Official MAME site: http://www.mamedev.org/oldrel.html

I recommend v.106
A lot of people run that version on older computers because it was the last version before an update that made MAME a lot more demanding.
Since a lot of people use it, it's possible to find roms for that version.

Alternatively, there are unofficial builds of MAME that incorporate a user interface, which you'd probably find useful until you get a feel for how things work.
The most popular of these was MAME32.  So if you search for "MAME32 106", it shouldn't be hard to find.
This will let you pick and launch the games and change settings without having to edit files or use a front-end.
It might not have the look you want for the final product, but it's good to test and learn with.

For a front-end to make it look more Arcade-y...

Mala is no longer being updated and won't work with the current version of MAME out of the box.
However if you're using an older version anyway, it's one of the easier front-ends to use.
Uncle T's setup guide should work fine for v.106 http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,56010.0.html

A lot of new people also start out using Maximus Arcade for the Front End.

[Haze]

I am not sure but mame was orginally designed with XP.  If you have the time, a spare monitor, and a keyboard you can test itnout yourself.  Just download some of the newer arcade games and test it out.

MAME was started in 1996 as a collection of smaller emulators including Multipac, with the first release of the combined project under the MAME name in February of 1997, it was a DOS application for quite a while before becoming a Windows command-line application.  We're actually coming up to the 20th anniversary of the project next month.

Windows XP wasn't even released until late 2001.

Of course, that means nothing these days, we've come a long, long way since then, but it certainly wasn't originally designed for Windows XP ;-)

[Arbee]

Even with 0.106 I can't see the MAME experience on that machine being particularly great; you'd probably actually be ahead to get a Raspberry Pi 3 and use that.

[Phreakwars]

I can remember playing MAME back on my old Windows Millennium Edition PC that sported a 450Mhz K6-III chip with 128megs of RAM, so OF COURSE it will work. The max ram on that old PC is 1gig, I'd for sure hunt down some old 184 pin DDR memory to slap into it. The motherboard itself has crappy integrated Intel video and only 2 PCI slots for expansion. You'd probably want to consider going with like a Radeon 7000, or maybe a GeForce 5500 in the PCI version for a little more meat.

Guess it really depends on how much you want to put into it, to get the most out of it. A machine that old ain't worth much... in fact I've thrown away computers NEWER then that, that I have been given over the years.

For sure you'll wanna get more ram though. 512 is pretty weak just for the OS. If plunking down money for a Radeon or GeForce seems too extravagant, something like a PCI Rage XL off of eBay for a couple bucks, would still serve you better then that intergrated Intel junk, which... and this is only a guess... might cause some frame rate issues even in basic games like galaga and what not. You could OF COURSE always use an older version of mame, even do something like installing the old ArcadeOS and do it in DOS. Your options are somewhat limited, but at least you do have options.

[BadMouth]

Why bother with a video card?  MAME doesn't use it for rendering and versions old enough to run on that PC don't have HLSL.

[Phreakwars]

Because of the CPU usage on that old Intel chipset. But again.. I may be wrong, might run just fine. It's just been my experience with that particular onboard graphics that it tends to eat up your CPU usage more then an integrated ATI, Nvidia, or even the long forgotten S3 Savage. At the time that particular PC/motherboard came out, Intel was in it's infancy in regards to onboard video. You could help it just a tad if the BIOS supports it and increase/decrease the amount of system ram dedicated to video and give it back to the overall system. Hell even a Pi handles it better!! Like I said before.. I've ran it on an old K6 chip, and it ran very well back in the late 90's and that was using an old Jaton AGP videocard. OP said he would like to play TMNT, TIT, Xmen, sunset rider, etc.. Highly doubtfull those particular titles would run well, and it's not because of what the CPU renders and the video doesn't,... it's because of what the video needlessly eats up and takes away from the CPU... if that made sense.    This is why I say a cheap $5 Rage XL card off of eBay (which is itself quite the wimp), would be better then using the onboard graphics.

[JDFan]

Because of the CPU usage on that old Intel chipset. But again.. I may be wrong, might run just fine. It's just been my experience with that particular onboard graphics that it tends to eat up your CPU usage more then an integrated ATI, Nvidia, or even the long forgotten S3 Savage. At the time that particular PC/motherboard came out, Intel was in it's infancy in regards to onboard video. You could help it just a tad if the BIOS supports it and increase/decrease the amount of system ram dedicated to video and give it back to the overall system. Hell even a Pi handles it better!! Like I said before.. I've ran it on an old K6 chip, and it ran very well back in the late 90's and that was using an old Jaton AGP videocard. OP said he would like to play TMNT, TIT, Xmen, sunset rider, etc.. Highly doubtfull those particular titles would run well, and it's not because of what the CPU renders and the video doesn't,... it's because of what the video needlessly eats up and takes away from the CPU... if that made sense.    This is why I say a cheap $5 Rage XL card off of eBay (which is itself quite the wimp), would be better then using the onboard graphics.

+1 -- THen another reason is if there is only 512MB of system RAM sharing that with the onboard video means the system will probably be using the HDD to cache the memory slowing things substantially and thrashing the HDD. So adding a video card even if it doesn't get fully used by MAME will at least free up the shared system memory for use.

[ed12]

lord oh mighty
why did u NOW IT ALLS STEP IN BEFORE MY OPP's ?
complete trash for a coumpter for a newbie/cheapie to get my fingers wet as it is
---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- why did u not tell the nick to just burn the ---smurf--- and move on ?
instead of wasting thread time and bandwith ?
try these words once in awhile :HELP:

ed

[leapinlew]

lord oh mighty
why did u NOW IT ALLS STEP IN BEFORE MY OPP's ?
complete trash for a coumpter for a newbie/cheapie to get my fingers wet as it is
---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- why did u not tell the nick to just burn the ---smurf--- and move on ?
instead of wasting thread time and bandwith ?
try these words once in awhile :HELP:

ed

Classic Ed. I'm assuming from the 60% of your post I understand, you are suggesting the guy trash his computer?

I don't assume to understand everyone's financial position and access to computers. The guy asked if the specs on the computer could run the games he wanted. The answer is yes.

[Phreakwars]

Yep, my answer was also a yes and I gave the OP "potential" issues, not "FOR CERTAIN" issues, and even pointed out that, I may in fact, be absolutely wrong. I know I personally could make it work, but then I'm the kind who would more then likely beef it up a hair. Hell even a 486 could run MAME quite well if backed up with the proper hardware.

EDIT: Might just have to dig out an old 486 and prove it. Lowest I personally have ran MAME with, was a Cyrix 6x86 P166+ CPU in DOS. Yeah, I've been MAME'ing that long.

Anybody remember THIS old website??

https://www.arcadeathome.com/mame.phtml

That front end used to be DA' ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- back in the day.

[leapinlew]

Niiiice. I wonder if this is our Zakk

https://www.arcadeathome.com/pic.phtml?/images/zakk.jpg

[Phreakwars]

Don't know, but it's pretty interesting checking out some of those OLD SCHOOL arcade builders and what they came up with.

https://www.arcadeathome.com/pics.phtml

Was thinking my old Player's Choice 10 conversion to MAME was also pictured, but I didn't see it. Pretty sure that's the website where I first learned about the iPac interface back when Ultimarc first started selling them. Before that, it was pretty much... hack a PC joystick, then stick it in an arcade cabinet.. Then another came along.. what was it called? HOTROD? Yeah, that's it. Used to have one of those too. Best damn joystick ever.. least in my opinion. X-arcade pretty much took over that scene, I think the company went out of business, I know people were gutting their Hotrods and sticking them in arcade cabinets... All the options we have now for hardware were very hard to find.. but yeah.. almost 20 years of MAME, and I've been enjoying it for at least 18 years for sure. You think back at what computers were like 20 years ago, circa 1997. You had alot of 486's in use and of course the Pentiums, and AMD and Cyrix were duking it out for the number 2 spot with Cyrix kicking butt. So you, of course, seen different versions of MAME that were optimized for the 486/586/686, etc.. Dos was pretty predominate as most everybody was using Windows 3.x or Windows 95. DOS was where it was at if you wanted to game, much less, play Pacman... But I'm babbling... point being..

If the OP is so inclined, yes there ARE many different older versions of mame that will run quite well with that old eMachine, and some cool old school front ends that will give you a pretty decent setup with almost any computer. The thing of it is... ALOT of the ROMS have changed over the years. It's much easier to hunt down newer versions then it is finding those older versions. And the thing about that... newer version of ROM, means... newer version of MAME. And of course, system requirements then change. For the most part, you got the bases covered for all you need, it's just those "potential" issues with RAM and video you need to be aware of.. Good luck with the project!!

[gdonovan]

Even with 0.106 I can't see the MAME experience on that machine being particularly great; you'd probably actually be ahead to get a Raspberry Pi 3 and use that.

I'm running a 2.8 ghz machine with Win7 and MAME 148 and it runs like the wind with the 80 arcade games I have loaded. Even the 3dfx 3d rendering title Mace the Dark Age plays well.

Nothing to lose by trying.

[Phreakwars]

Ah here we go, This page shows what Tim was using in HIS arcade cabinet at the time.... check out the specs.

https://www.arcadeathome.com/qna.phtml

[Guywiththegun]

I was using MAME on my laptop in college in 2002 with no issues. I still remember playing through TMNT with friends on an old Gravis gamepad. As long as those old versions of Mame are available I think you'll be surprised at what you can play.

[GPD1444]

Ok that got a bit to technical for me little brain.
I am an arcade purist with 12 original machines and always said no MAME but now I'm out of space and realize that there are so many games I still want. So I decided to try and put all the 4 player 2 button games in my turtles cabinet. I hate having buttons that are not used that's why only 4 player 2 button games.
I wanted to try and use this old computer to if I would even like the set up before I spent any real money on it. I wanted to have someone build me a Pi with jamma adaptor so I don't need to hack my cabinet wiring up to badly but the only jamma connector for pi I can find is for 2 player and does not support 4 players. So it looks like MAME may end up my only option.

I tried some of the suggestions about downloading from the sites but seems that a lot of the old downloads are not avail anymore. So I guess I'm buying a newer computer to try this.

[Phreakwars]

When I first did a MAME conversion, I didn't think much of the cabinet, didn't really care. But as time went on, I learned to appreciate these old games for what they are. Could kind of kick myself now for gutting out that old Player's Choice 10 cabinet with the dual monitors. If I had to do it all over again, I would have restored that game, found some more game ROM chips for it, and kept it original. I am now a very firm believer that old arcade cabinets are sacred, and that if you want to MAME... either get an X-Arcade stick, or build a cabinet from scratch. Not at all saying that's what YOU should do, just saying it's what I feel is appropriate for these old games. I have other arcade projects on the drawing board for probably later this year after I finish my 2nd Honda Spree and 1st Indian AMI50 restorations. No way will I desecrate any of the tons of arcade machines I can buy pretty cheap around these parts.. I'm building it with wood from the lumber yard.

[gdonovan]

I tried some of the suggestions about downloading from the sites but seems that a lot of the old downloads are not avail anymore. So I guess I'm buying a newer computer to try this.

I have no problem running MAME 148 on my free computer, the one I use for testing is even slower! Roms are not much a problem either, I have found a single game I can't play on 148 so I keep it in a separate folder with MAME 180.

Do what you will, seems like you are set to spend money when you don't have to.

[BadMouth]

Meh.  I got bored with pacman.  Had a 4-in-1 multipack installed for a few years.  Got bored with that. Sold the machine.
I wish I'd kept the machine and converted it to a dedicated 4-way vertical classics cab.  I was sick of the games, but now I miss the vibe its appearance gave the room.

The "collector" I sold it to screwed the back on with drywall screws rather than spend money on a new lock/latch.

Phreakwars, thank you for your answer about the onboard video being parasitic. 

[leapinlew]

Meh.  I got bored with pacman.  Had a 4-in-1 multipack installed for a few years.  Got bored with that. Sold the machine.
I wish I'd kept the machine and converted it to a dedicated 4-way vertical classics cab.  I was sick of the games, but now I miss the vibe its appearance gave the room.

The "collector" I sold it to screwed the back on with drywall screws rather than spend money on a new lock/latch.

Phreakwars, thank you for your answer about the onboard video being parasitic. 

Yeah, that's where I'm at. I love the appearance of dedicated machines and the functionality of Mame. It'll be super difficult to make a Star Wars dedicated from scratch.

I love restoring a cabinet to better than factory, and I care about the controls, but I don't care as much about the internals. The sacred part of an arcade game for me is the cabinet and controls, and I understand that the internals are important, but to me - it's an out of sight, out of mind thing.

Even though I love some cabinets more than others, at the end of the day, it's a mass produced machine meant to last a few years and the eventual owners can do whatever they want with their cabinet.

[paigeoliver]

Even with 0.106 I can't see the MAME experience on that machine being particularly great; you'd probably actually be ahead to get a Raspberry Pi 3 and use that.

Sorry, you are wrong. My cabinet has a 15 year old PC in it and can handle the important stuff just fine. Obviously you can't use a bleeding edge mame version, but it runs rings around pi.

Watch here to see.

[nitrogen_widget]

have tested advmame .106 on a p4 1.6ghz with 2gb of ram and Attractmode on a pciE nvidia 8400 video card just fine with an old vga monitor at 640x480.
OS was tiny 7.

That pc should be fine and since op is using a CGA monitor not a lot of scaling has to be done.
That is when mame starts to make a pc chug, when you start scaling up to higher resolutions and applying filters.

[Mean Yob]

I can also vouch for Mame 0.106 + MaLa running on WinXP
Runs great on all my old computers (in arcade cabinets). Get your roms to match 0.106 = no issues! (Use Romcenter)

Even run all games at 1280x1024, so I can get reasonably good 'scanlines' to work (Not as goods as the HLSL effects, but my old computers would never run that anyway)
Killer Instinct, Mortal Kombat 3 all run full speed! But 3D games, forget it!

...Some pictures of Mame 0.106 with scanlines on a 2004 machine.