First machine build! Cocktail(ish) cabinet

[bobbyb13]

I have commented enough on other people's posts that I figured it was time for me to stop being a coward and post something of the mess I have been making in my workshop.  I did take a few pictures I will try to post.

Design parameters:

*2 player cocktail (because maybe then I will be allowed to have it in the house!)
*Design aesthetic and color scheme that matches the decor of the new house (because maybe then I will be allowed to have it in the house!)
*Have controls that suit games the girls will want to play too (because maybe then... well, you get the picture)
*Comfortable for someone up to 6'3" to play.  I'm not that tall myself, but I have friends who are!
*Fit a 27" CRT
*Be as small as possible and still pull all this off.
*Shamelessly steal the vibe of the concept drawing I stumbled on from an old Atari Quadra Pong machine (because it was awesome looking!)
*Play a bunch of my very favorite games- Centipede, Missile Command, Defender/Stargate, Tempest, (as well as however many regular old joystick games-) and not wind up a hideous franken-mess.

I figured if the color/texture scheme was different from one side to the other then I was doubling my chances of (yep, you guessed it) being allowed to have it in the house!
One side is black and ebony stained birch ply and the other is chestnut stained birch ply and the UFO looking side panel is the same material as the kitchen cabinets ;-)


I say cocktail-ish because although it is the same form factor, it isn't built to have glass covering the controls like a conventional cocktail cabinet.
I prefer this look actually- but you can't put your Mai-Tai on it!

It wound up being a pretty ambitious first go.

Getting everything to fit in there and for it to be comfortable to sit at and see well and play was a fun challenge.

It still isn't quite finished.
Still waiting on tempered glass to replace the 3/8" plexi, need a bit of inspiration on a few last implementation challenges, and have to make a bit more spare $$ for a few last controls.

I have had to make some (hopefully) temporary concessions about sound and video for now, but it works and plays pretty well actually even still.

And after my 10 year old son helped me get it as far as the dining room area (on it's way upstairs to the office where I was told it could live) the lady of the castle came home...

And I was allowed to have it in the house!

Thanks to everyone who ever posted anything on this forum because I would probably never have had the knowledge, inspiration or balls to pull this off without all of ya-

Bobby

[wp34]

That turned out nice.  You got a lot of controls onto those CP's without it being overwhelming.  It looks very nice in your decor as well.  Kudos for using a CRT.

[yotsuya]

Excellent job, and you incorporated that CRT in nicely! Love the Quadra Pong influences.

[bobbyb13]

Thank you both! 

I'm stoked on it myself, but it is a slippery slope it appears- because I started the next one already.
 

And it looks like my other attachments in regard to this have reappeared!

-Actually these pictures are of cabinet #2 control panel #1- yeesh.

Maybe I can figure out posting before I finish my next build.

[morton]

Been loving the new designs folk have come up with... Something different without looking alien. Hats off to you OP. Agreed about controls. Tastefully done and very well laid out.

[Drnick]

Do I spy a Starwars panel in the making     

[bobbyb13]

Your eyes do not deceive Drnick!

Been loving the new designs folk have come up with... Something different without looking alien. Hats off to you OP. Agreed about controls. Tastefully done and very well laid out.

Thank you for the compliment morton.
Seems like most of my agonizing in design is layout of controls.  I have been through a lot of wood sorting it out 

[leapinlew]

Looks good Bobby! Good work.

[bobbyb13]

Thank you all !
I am satisfied (enough) with it to not mess with it on a grand scale at least.

It's drawbacks are motivation for the next one!

[bobbyb13]

Will I get reprimanded for zombie-resurrection of my own thread?!

Well, the cocktail-ish cabinet finally crapped out.
The PC seems to be mad about something- which I have no patience in dealing with since I have learned so much in the intervening few years.

Adding to the immediacy of dealing with this particular issue is that the lady of the house issued a decree that if she couldn't play Burgertime on the thing with me then it would have to get....
RELOCATED!!!!

I have had so much much mayhem going on (not bad mind you!) since I had the divine pleasure (not joking really) of meeting a bunch of you at Zapcon 8.2 that I have had precious little time to post rather than just lurk here (and elsewhere.)
Man, are there some angry people elsewhere in this (otherwise quite fun/brilliant/informative/encouraging/simply rad) community!

WTF

Anyway...

It's dead- except for the stupid blinking led's (thanks Mr. Gates)
And now gutted.

Mostly.
The CRT stays as long as I can still sit up and take nourishment.
And watch the latest volume of Stranger Things of course (holy Vecna!)

Anyway, the rest may be relegated to the scrap heap.

Any recommendations on replacing the PC that gives me headaches?
I can try to fix this DELL abomination or put a Pi in it (or maybe jamma this baby and put my BitKit2 in it if Aaron makes Burgertime a reality... yeah,... no...?!)

I'm not sure how much time I have to sort this out so immediate realistic solutions to my dilemma are greatly appreciated.
 

And for those I saw in AZ-

Miss y'all!

And in parting, a toast to she who gave us so much fun- and to my BYOAC friends also.

Now get your asses out here.
 

Aloha!

[pbj]

Appleton, good choice.

Just slap a 60 in 1 in there and disable everything besides Burger Time.

[Zebidee]

TV seems to be oriented horizontally? Burgertime is a vertical game.

I feel your pain Bobby. It can be hard to change mental "modes", like from carpentry to computers.

Most obvious things to check would be:

- Check cables and contacts generally, power, fans, drives, cards etc...

- Reseat the RAM modules. Pop them out, check the contacts and slots are clean. Clean out dust. Clean the RAM "finger" contacts (isopropyl). Pop them back in (all the way). Keep yourself static-free during this, ground yourself first and don't go rubbing any carpets, balloons or woolly sweaters! 

- If you have two or more RAM modules, swap their sockets. Try removing one and booting. If you only have one RAM module, try swapping in a good one. RAM goes bad sometimes.

- Replace the CMOS battery ("coin" battery on mother board, saves BIOS bootup settings).

- Test with a new or known good power supply. I bet it gets hot in the belly of that beast.

- Try booting from "bare-bones", disconnect everything except MB, PSU and RAM. Then start adding stuff.

After that, I don't know!

I'm glad you posted again because I'd missed this thread. Great little project! Also, if you don't mind, I came up with a name for this style of cabinet: "Mocktail"

[bobbyb13]

As much as I don't like those boards pbj, it was a thought, but Andrew is correct on his screen orientation assessment.

If this beast winds up a vertical cabinet then the 27" in it presently would need to become a 19" for it to fit and I'm not sure I want to deal with that drama.
I would if Aaron's new BitKit2 had Burgertime on it already.

The PC was never situateded that well or have a great software setup really and it was using an Extron scan converter (this was a pre-GeenAntz days build!) and also a desktop speaker system- all of which really cramped the inside.

If I can make it more user friendly it will stay a MAME unit, but I would prefer it to be set so that anyone can just turn it on and play it.
In it's original iteration it required me or Tyler to fire it up.

Since we now have a half dozen machines here and play Defender/Stargate on the jrok multi-williams up in the loft anyway, it also doesn't need this crazy CP layout so that was going to get redone no matter what anyway.
And MikeA will approve!

I'm going to take the guts up to the shop and see if I can get it going again and I have an idea for better layout of everything already.

And so another project to add to (the head of!) the que.

[pbj]

You two need to rethink this, 60 in 1 would work fine.

[Zebidee]

I think that what Bobby *really* needs in another excuse to build yet another cab.

Forget Burgertime. Just run Bank Panic on it. Only joystick and three buttons needed. Play two-player (alternating sides) with a friend. Drink Mai-Tais or beers or whatever while waiting for your turn. You won't have to wait long

There's great fun to be had watching each others reactions slowly turn to jelly as you get more and more pissed. Little while longer and you'll be glad that you are sitting down.

Play it with She-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named until she gets addicted.

[bobbyb13]

Nikki is hilarious to play games with because she is awful at all of them and still has a grand time of it.

This needs to stay a MAME machine to play what the crew wants it to really.

I'm going to have a go at the old PC and see how I do.

The sound system will be swapped for a small amp and speakers in the control panels firing down.

Video will get either a multisync board for the existing tube or a GreenAntz to feed the TV chassis.

Now that this machine doesn't need to play everything, the control panels get a complete redesign also.

Lots to do!

[bobbyb13]

Designing and building machines- super fun.
Fighting with software- no joy.

I tried a swap of components here and I'm having issues.

The Mocktail may get RasberryPi'd if I can sort it out and still use the tube and Ultimarc boards for controls.

Like I need another rabbit-hole at this point.
 

[Zebidee]

Just get something in there!

Too hot and humid right now for me to work on arcade cab, so I'm prowling here instead

[firedance]

what is the make and model of pc ?

Any warning lights or beeps ?

Does it actually switch on at all ?

[bobbyb13]

And the winner is...
Processor high temp warning shut off.

The way the heat sink was on the processor in there was fine if let be (as I had pulled the mobo out of the case to make it fit and rigged it to sit properly) and it appears that one of the kittens had gotten in there at one point (admitted to me by someone who had left the door off) and obviously knocked it loose.

I was using this as an opportunity to update things but I will have to start over with my windows install and video setup it appears.
Having sync issues with my GreenAntz to consumer TV as I can't recall how I had this setup before so I'm just going to start over.
I imagine I can do better a few years later now.

[firedance]

Glad it was a simple hardcore fix, just gotta wrestle with the software now 

[Zebidee]

And the winner is...
Processor high temp warning shut off.

The way the heat sink was on the processor in there was fine if let be (as I had pulled the mobo out of the case to make it fit and rigged it to sit properly) and it appears that one of the kittens had gotten in there at one point (admitted to me by someone who had left the door off) and obviously knocked it loose.

Usually ends up being something simple like that!

We also have had (died recently) a curious cat in the house, makes it very hard to service cabs as it always wants to go in, check out the fascinating dark spaces inside. Cat fur and exposed sensitive electronics are not a good mix.

I was using this as an opportunity to update things but I will have to start over with my windows install and video setup it appears.
Having sync issues with my GreenAntz to consumer TV as I can't recall how I had this setup before so I'm just going to start over.

GreenAntz should simply work once you get your 15khz software/install sorted out. Using CRT_emulator?

I imagine I can do better a few years later now.

As always, like your optimism.

[bobbyb13]

All the critters are now denizens of the outdoors.
The last straw was the piglets.
Cute, sure, but they are feral pigs after all, in spite of all the hilarious activity.
And it truly is hilarious.  That could be a thread all its own.

Anyway, I put in a different motherboard that I didn't need to mess with and she is back to running.
Convergence however is now awful, so whatever feline vandal was in there (probably chasing a gecko) knocked a ring while they were dislodging the heatsink.

Joy.

At least now I get to learn some other esoteric element of this arcane hobby of ours.

Any suggestions on a tutorial anyone?!

[Zebidee]

Hopefully some forward-thinking soul has painted some white paint/glue/whiteout across the rings so you know where they should go.

See if any rings seem loose.

Beyond that, YT seems to have tutorials and many monitor manuals will cover the subject. Oh, and use a large mirror so you can see what is going on when adjusting stuff.

[Arroyo]

Bobby!

Mikey pointed me to here to see if I can help as I’ve been in CRT land for awhile now.  As Zebidee mentioned ideally the rings were marked for alignment with each other.  If they were bring them back together and then you can spin them as a group to find where they originally rested.

Absent that I would point you to page 5-6 of the K7000 manual:
http://www.arcade-museum.com/manuals-monitors/Wells%20Gardner%20K7000%20Manual.pdf

Also often, but not always, the rings have a color marking on them indicating which is for blue, green, and red.

Good luck and let me know if I can help.

[Gilrock]

Do you have a test pattern generator?  or some way to display a grid (some games have it built in for testing)?

I've done quite a bit of messing with rings on a couple CRTs and I can never get it where I think its perfect but I get it close.

In most cases the rings work like this (in order from tube going outwards):
Purity Rings:  ring set closest to the tube.  If you need to mess with this read one of the CRT manuals.  K7000 or K4600 should work.

Red to Blue alignment rings:  These rings adjust the red and blue color alignment with each other.  Move the tabs together or apart to adjust vertical alignment and move the tabs in unison to adjust horizontal alignment.

Red/Blue to Green alignment rings:  These rings adjust the red/blue to green color alignment.  Move the tabs together or apart to adjust vertical alignment and move the tabs in unison to adjust horizontal alignment.

What you usually run into is trouble getting the alignment across the entire grid so align things in the center first.  If you have misalignments occur near the corners then it will take convergence strips to fix it.  If you have a uniform misalignment going from top to bottom or left to right then that is what's called dynamic convergence and requires the yoke to be tilted to fix it.

I can tell you it sounds easy but I find the lines don't always move exactly the way you expect when you adjust the rings.  You'll soon be wanting to smash the CRT...lol.

[bobbyb13]

Thanks everybody for the encouraging replies.

I actually DO have a test pattern generator (even a WG one with a db15 connector and various signal frequency modes) so I am guaranteed to be throwing ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- after an hour of torturing myself with this one.

Haven't looked at it closely enough to see the present state of the rings exactly so I am starting from square one.
That WG manual will get a good read first and then I'll see what kind of mess I can make.

I'll engage in a little masochism and report back with some entertainment!