Thinking of buying Outrun2 cabinet - Are there better choices?

[csnow]

Found a sweet Outrun2 sit down cabinet for sale locally.  As much as I love Outrun2, I would like the ability to play other driving games in this cab.  I know there are many variables with the different types of controls in MAME, but I was curious if this is a good cabinet to use as a multi driver.  Can someone provide some other titles that would be candidates for using the Outrun2 controls.  I assume Crazy Taxi since its also from Sega and from the same era.  Trying to figure out if I should buy this one or if there are better cabs like Crusin World etc that are better base platforms to start with.

[shaolindrunkard]

You lucky dog. Personally I wouldn't touch an outrun 2 machine. I would leave it just as is if not try to restore it. That's my holy grail. I would buy it in a second if I had the money...

I would look for one of the Cruis'n series (or Offroad challenge or California speed, all use the same cabinet as Cruis'n world) if your looking to make a multi game machine. That's what I'm doing. I have 3 now looking for a 4th...

They are much more common than the sega cabs and a lot of time you can find them already gutted so there's nothing to feel bad about by dismantling a working machine...

[BadMouth]

If the Outrun 2 is Lindbergh hardware, you can buy a multi-game Lindbergh setup for it, but they are pricey and I don't know much about them.

There is currently no interface for that hardware that preserves force feedback when using it with a windows PC.

The cab that would require the least amount of modification would be a Need For Speed that uses an Immersion USB interface board.
Those cabs run embedded windows, so the hardware will work on a standard windows PC with the proper drivers.

Some NFS games used a separate "Nitric" board for the pedals.  There are no drivers available for it, so the pedals would have to be hooked up to the same Immersion board that the steering is wired to.

I'm not sure which NFS games use which boards.
You could probably figure it out by looking at the manuals.
http://service.globalvr.com/nfs.asp

You can also buy an immersion board and install it in any old driving cab that uses Happ controls, but the boards are getting hard to find.

EDIT:  Any of these options require a good ability to tinker and make things work on your part.  There is no guide & nothing is absolutely plug and play.
If you aren't the type of person who enjoys that type of thing, I recommend you buy a gutted cab and plunk a PC wheel and pedals into it.
It's the least amount of hassle.

[csnow]

Thanks guys, as always your spot on with the info I need.  Love this place.  My only fear on the Outrun 2 is the crappy Sanwa 29" monitor seems to be a serious turd and very hard to find replacements for.  I guess the tube craps out before the chassis, which is just odd.  I love the game enough to keep it original.