Noob Needs Help

[agent007]

Hello i am looking to build my first arcade cabinet and i have a couple of questions.

First:

What is the best fronted. I keep seeing so many different front end its hard to pick one. i like the look of hyperspin and emulation station, but i heard that those are hard to master.

Second:

What kind of a computer do i need. I know that you can slap a raspberry pie together and call it a day, but i am wanting to use it as a actual computer on a different monitor. i wont be doing anything to demanding, i will just be doing some browsing on the internet and some you tube, or document typing, so im wondering if an Intel nuc would work either the i5 or i7 version. I would only be emulating like 30 games

Third

what is the best way to control rgb lights. Because i am going to buy the ultimarc chrome buttons with the rgb add on and i will also have rgb back light and i want them to both be synced together

Fourth

What is the best way to do a scoreboard. So instead of doing a marquee i want to do a scoreboard like what you would find on a pinball machine

Fifth

I am not sure what theme i want. I am wanting to do a Retro theme so any suggestions, leave a photo i you have one themed this way please.



Thanks ahead of time for your help and i know its a lot of questions to ask.

[wp34]

Welcome to the board!

There is a search function you can use that might get you answers to some of these questions.  The one about what computer to use is asked a lot.   How much horsepower you need depends on which games you want to run.  The "classics" do not require much computing power.

As far as front-ends go my personal favorite is AttractMode.
http://forum.attractmode.org/index.php

It is super easy to setup and will use a lot of the same artwork as Hyperspin if you want that look.  I had Hyperspin working but decided to switch to AttractMode because I just found it easier to work with.  YMMV though.

[harveybirdman]

Spend $ on stuff besides LEDs.  I'd putt the scoreboard on the wall. There are plenty of retro based themes, the good ones avoid collages of video game characters or other themes that don't have ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- to do with arcade games

[yotsuya]

You’ve been given some good advice already. While the scoreboard idea sounds neat, that might be way above your skill level right now.

Try making the best, most fun cab you can make first, then worry about all the fluff and other stuff once you’re comfortable with lwhat you’ve built.

[paigeoliver]

I have been in the hobby since its infancy, and I haven't even run a front end in years.

[yotsuya]

I have been in the hobby since its infancy, and I haven't even run a front end in years.

I set up my front end six years ago and I’ve never touched it since. I just copied the same one over on the other builds I do.

[DrakeTungsten]

I have been in the hobby since its infancy, and I haven't even run a front end in years.

That doesn't help a newb. That's just bragging how Zen you are, lacking any direction on how to achieve such an exalted state.

[Mike A]

Spend the money on good controls first. Use a CRT. An actual arcade monitor, an old TV, or an old PC monitor. Worry about everything else after that.

[Osirus23]

NUCs are rather spendy for what you get. If its inside a cab you could definitely just buy a motherboard/CPU combo for cheaper, and probably one better than the low-power U-series CPUs the NUCs use.

[paigeoliver]

To be more direct, what frontend you do or do not use is pretty much the least important choice you can make. Get everything else going first and then worry about that. Heck, you can even install 10 different ones if you want. I used to have like 50 different versions of mame installed just so I could peg down what version different games got slow in, so I could suggest which Mame version to use to those who had trouble running their favorite.

I have been in the hobby since its infancy, and I haven't even run a front end in years.

That doesn't help a newb. That's just bragging how Zen you are, lacking any direction on how to achieve such an exalted state.

[opt2not]

First round of questions should be: 
- What kind of monitor am I going to use -- LCD/CRT? 
---- If LCD, widecreen/4:3? 
-----If CRT, Consumer TV/Computer/Arcade Monitor? 
-----What orientation mounted?  Vertical or Horizontal.

Second set of questions should be: 
- How many players will my Control Panel hold? 
---- How many buttons each? 
---- What additional Controls?
---- How many Admin/Coin Buttons?

These questions are what you should be asking yourself first, and will dictate what kind of design you'll come up with and help your 5th question.

Questions 1-4 on your list are things that should be asked later.