Main > Main Forum

Check out this almost $8000 ultimate II system

Pages: << < (7/13) > >>

patrickl:

If you get that much money for a cab, why bother learning woodworking. I got a quote for $500 for getting my cab built. If I wasn't doing this for a hobby I'd sure take them up on that quote (or at least get more quotes to find something cheaper).

Gildersneeze:


--- Quote from: patrickl on July 11, 2004, 02:58:58 pm ---If you get that much money for a cab, why bother learning woodworking. I got a quote for $500 for getting my cab built. If I wasn't doing this for a hobby I'd sure take them up on that quote (or at least get more quotes to find something cheaper).

--- End quote ---
Is that $500 with the hardware and paint, or just the wood?  Because that's one hell of a markup too.  Three sheets of 3/4" MDF is about $50 - $75 depending on where you get it, and you can usually find a friend or a friend's parents (or your own parents!) with most of the tools you need.  The cabinet itself is about a weekend's worth of work, and the control panel is about three days (for a solo act without a full woodshop/paintshop).

Considering the woodshop would already have all the tools necessary (and if they're charging that much for just an arcade cabinet, those tools are paid for, easy), figuring about $5.00 for screws and glue, and the discount they probably get on the materials, even adding stuff like hinges and marquee mounts you're only looking at around $125 at WORST for supplies (their cost).  That's leaving $375 for labor.  Divided by about five working days, you'd be tossing in an extra $75 per day to have the cab built.

I realize what your point was, this was more for my own figures, but jeez, $500 seems like a real rip-off for what would mostly be a lot of straight cuts with a jigsaw/circular saw and a bit of screwin' and gluin'.

SNAAAKE:

madman is not the same as the ebay guy,I did another different looking "time machine" marquee for him.As for this cabinet,his control panel looks retarded.Its just plain black and its FLAT :o
Its supposed to be SLANTED cuz that effects a lot for fighting games.Its really hard to play on a flat panel.If I were to pay 8 Gs for a cab then I would atleast want a nice panel or something.

Maybe I sould start building a LOT BETTER looking cabs and sell for 4 Gs a piece(I can build 1 every month and thats over $2000 profit right there).


etumor:

There's a guy locally that I met over on the Dragon's Lair Project.  He wanted to know how you convert a DL to a Daphne cab.  It turned out he works a couple of blocks from me, so I started talking to him on the phone.

About a week later, he finds this "Time Machine" cabinet on eBay for $5000, and calls me to ask my opinion.  I spoke with him at length, both on the phone and via email, telling him that it was horribly over-priced, and definitely illegal.  He ended up talking to the guy that was selling it on the phone, and the guy was a real smooth talker, and talked him into buying it, over my objections.  Fed him a real line about how this cabinet was so much better than any other MAME cab, and how they had "solved" the problems that most MAME cabs have.  It was total BS.

The thing is, this same guy bought a Dragon's Lair for $3000 -- horribly overpriced, and worse still, I'm 90% sure it's a reproduction, not an original.  He's got a bunch of other games, and he paid unbelievable amounts for all of them.  In my dealings with him, I've learned that he barely knows how to turn on a computer, so he doesn't care how much he has to pay for something, as long as he doesn't have to work on it himself.  So apparently he doesn't mind paying through the nose for one of these -- mostly because he doesn't know any better.

What follows is an email from the guy selling these "Time Machine" cabinets.  The ebay auction is slightly ambigious about whether or not he actually includes the roms.  His emails (I have several from him listing every rom he includes) leave no doubt that he is breaking the law.

> Thanks for your email and for your interest in The
> Time Machine. I will email you the gamelists I have in
> text form. I have not updated the lists for awhile, so
> the machine actually has many more games than you will
> see on these lists. But the lists do comprise several
> thousand titles, I'm sure you will be more than
> satisfied. The control panel on our machine is
> detachable and ships already detached. The cabinet is
> then only 28" wide and will easily fit through a door
> or hallway.
>
> The Time Machine comes with nearly every coin-op
> arcade game ever manufactured. From 1976 Computer
> Space(the first video game), all your favorite 80's
> classics(Pac-Man, Galaga, Asteroids,...), modern day
> gun games(Area 51, Lethal Enforcers,...), fighting
> games(Mortal Kombat, Tekken,...), even the latest
> driving games and Golden Tee Golf!
>
> The Time Machine also has all the popular laserdisc
> games from the 80's such as Dragon's Lair and Space
> Ace. And if that is not enough, it also plays home
> console games. It currently includes all the games
> ever manufactured for the Nintendo(NES), Super
> Nintendo System, the Sega Genesis System, the Nintendo
> 64, SegaCD, with more to come soon. The machine is
> easily upgraded with new games and systems.  We will
> soon be adding all the games ever released for the
> Atari 2600, Playstation and Xbox and other home
> systems.
>
> As an optional upgrade, we offer the Stepmania Dance
> Pads. The Time Machine has seamlessly integrated this
> technology to allow you to play Dance Dance
> Revolution, Pump It Up, and other dancing games. We
> use the same commercial grade, all steel dancepads
> used on the original machines. But with the original
> machines, you'd spend over $10,000 for about 40 songs.
> The Time Machine includes every version of every game,
> over 1200 songs.  Cost to add the one player system is
> $500. Or, upgrade to the two player system for $950.
>
> You can pause any game at any time, and you can even
> create a custom "favorites" list of your top games.
> If you are seriously considering a purchase, you are
> going to think of more questions. So our best course
> of action would be to talk on the phone.  You should
> know that we are close to signing an agreement with a
> large corporation who will become the exclusive
> distributor for our machines. Unfortunately, they
> intend to sell each unit for $7,995. So if you are in
> a position to make a purchase, you will want to call
> right away as the machine will not be available at the
> $4,795 price much longe.  You are welcome to call me
> any day of the week from 10am-10pm, or get me your
> number and I will call you.
>
> Regards,
> Andrew Culpovich
> High Score Amusements
> Tel. 207-712-3959

I personally am pretty disgusted by this, but they're actually selling these things, so that gives you some idea of how easy it is to rip people off.

-Jeff "etumor"

independentthread:

Whoever makes these things should go into politics.  I know the people who run the city I live in a crooks, so why not this guy too?  But think about it people, there is a reason why this guy is selling them for so much.  He's covering his future legal expenses should he ever get caught for selling roms from every system available.
And as far as the comment about free shipping...if I were to pay upside of 6000 bucks more than the system was worth, you better show up at my door and............
Nah, I won't finish that statement.  But I think you know where I was going with it.

Pages: << < (7/13) > >>

Go to full version