Anywhere to buy a name cab anymore?

[patm95]

Hello all. I’ve been out of the loop for a long time. I was starting to entertain the idea of building a mame cab (been a goal for over a decade). I went to north coast customs site and seems they are out of business now. Are there any reputable sellers left that sell cabs?

[meyer980]

I think 1up Arcade (and similar) really took this type of market over. They're essentially pre-made emulation cabinets. And, with the right know-how, they can be upgraded into a MAME machine pretty easily. High-end, expensive, pre-built MAME cabinets would have a hard time competing with that.

Casuals can buy the 1up. People who care slightly more can buy a 1up and upgrade it. And the people who really care (like us at BYOAC) will build our own.

There's also AtGames Legend Ultimate machines. https://www.atgames.us/collections/legends-ultimate-arcade-hd-machines

[bobbyb13]

There are still people building legitimate cabinets but few want to pay what it really costs to build them.
To even get apprentice type wages on building a complete machine including all parts, materials, artwork, etc. puts a regular upright into the realm of $4k+ depending on all the details.

And sure it will play games but no matter what parts you change on it, an Arcade 1Up will never be a good long term investment in a gaming machine.
A properly made one will survive decades of regular use.

I built multi machines that have been in a surf shop and pizza parlor in my town for 5 years and counting and I haven't had to perform a single bit of maintenance on either.

No modded 1Up would have lasted so long.

Where do you live?
You DO need to be careful about custom builders though as there are a few guys building what look like ok machines but they are cutting corners on process, over-charging for materials, and offer terrible service overall.

[patm95]

Thanks for the replies. I’m in IL. My brother has a couple of 1ups which are cool but in My mind they do not compare with a real Mame cab. I originally got interested in this around’08. I got the John st Claire book and bought some MDF, couple of coin mechs and some custom tokens. I also got a multi resolution crt that was popular back in the day.  Then decided to go back to school. Graduated and moved into a small house. We are remodeling our basement and was considering if we had enough room for a cab. Was considering buying one of those kits from north coast customs and realized they went out of business.

[bobbyb13]

If you still have those parts and the tube then build one!
St's book is great and you'll find all the help you need otherwise right here.
Just requires some space, time, and tools really.

There are enough generic cabinets floating around your area that if you spend some time looking and waiting that you could find and convert a non-rare original cabinet without angering the arcade gods too.

[Gideon]

Don't fret about North Coast going out of business, because arcade cabs are mainstream now.  Even Costco sells them!

But echoing others' sentiment:  Building your own is a more rewarding experience.

[BadMouth]

If you build a 4 player cab, heed the pic in my signature.  Saint (author of that book and owner of this website), as much as we love him..... got it wrong when he depicted them angled, as do all the people selling impressive looking hundred thousand game rgb laden cabs.  I bought that book and passed it along to a new member here, but not before correcting those pages.   

[BadMouth]

Also, check out arcade auctions in your area.  You might get a good deal on an original non-working cab.

[fallacy]

Also, check out arcade auctions in your area.  You might get a good deal on an original non-working cab.

Why is having the joystick aligned the same as your buttons fail? You are also standing off to the side as a third or fourth player.

[PL1]

Guess it's time to dust of this old topic again . . .   

Why is having the joystick aligned the same as your buttons fail? You are also standing off to the side as a third or fourth player.

The fail is not that the stick is aligned with the buttons.

The fail is that the stick is not aligned with the monitor.

Almost every 4 player game had the sticks aligned like the ones in green.
- There were very few games with sticks angled like the one in red, and those titles were not well received.
Related thread: https://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,87347.msg1301886.html#msg1301886

There were some 2-player titles that angled the sticks, specifically Virtua Fighter and Virtua Fighter 2.   
- Offered as proof of that assertion, a picture from the VF2 manual.


You can learn to adjust to angled sticks, but that involves compensating for the angle of the stick and your body position relative to the stick.
- Big guys need more elbow room, changing where the players stand, which changes their angle relative to the stick.

If the sticks are not angled, up on the stick is always perpindicular to the line described by the face of the monitor.
- Up on the stick is always up on the monitor regardless of where you stand.  The direction you push the stick matches the action on the monitor.  This makes it easier to hit the desired direction.

Some companies did things like un-angled sticks that stood the test of time and some did things that did not.


Scott