Newbie wanting advice on first MAME cabinet

[dmbfan]

Hello all.  I'm quite excited about getting my first mame cabinet.  I can build computers but when it comes to woodwork I don't have neither the tools or skill to build my own.  I know a used arcade cabinet can be had for $100 or less or sometimes even free from what I've heard but I don't think I'll be able to turn an arcade game into a nice looking mame cabinet.  This cabinet has to look great because of the WTF.  I'm sure you guys no what I mean.  This cabinet can't have a lot of artwork on it.  I'm basically interested in a flat black laminate finish with a simple marque design.

Here are the two choices I'm considering:

1)  Buying the ultimate II arcade kit from mameroom.com.  Buying the SlikStik classic arcade controls.  Inserting 27" television and build a computer.

2)  A guy I've been talking with said he could build me one and that he only charges $250 for labor.  Seems pretty reasonable.  Of course I would be responsible for all the materials.  This idea sounds a little better than the first one because he can do the laminate/artwork/bezel/marquee stuff for me.

There is also another option from hanaho.com but not sure I like the design as much.

Please don't flame me for being a n00b at this.  I don't want to be told that I'm lazy or that I'm not a purist for not doing it all by myself.  I just want some opinons on which you think would be the better way to go or some other insight.  I bought a book called arcadepc from amazon that should be arriving shortly maybe that'll help.

Thanks for anyone's input

[Apollo]

Don't worry about being flamed everyone here remembers being a total noob.
You might want to consider the fact that in my opinion and probably many others here the building or creation process is more than 50% of the fun.
Even if it takes you a year or more don't be in a hurry. When I discovered MAME it took me about 6 months to finish my first control panel then another 6 months to finish my first cab and then another year until I had built my dream machine. When I started I had no woodwork or electronics experience, now I have the skills and the tools to do almost anything. Money was an issue for me not time ( time never should be ) so I went slowly. A skillsaw for birthday a router for X-mas etc. Bought an I-Pac and a few controls to start me off and basically saved and scrimped until I could buy the next thing I needed.
It sounds like you have a bit of cash to spend so I would suggest buying a decent cab with 25" arcade monitor. Maybe using ArcadeVGA card and I-Pac and Opti-Pac.
There are a million ways to do this have you read all the examples? That is a great place to start. Write down what games you can't live without and go from there.
Good luck and don't be afraid to ask lots of questions. I'm sure you will find as I did that this is one of the friendliest most helpful forums around.

[danny_galaga]

yes, definitely don't be in a hurry!! you know what the games look like already so don't be in a rush to put them in a cabinet. it is fun building stuff. i come from a modelling background rather than computers so i really know the value of taking my time. of course sometimes i don't end up finishing projects but thats another story...
with my mame cabinet I managed to finish it fairly quickly before my inertia ran out. once its finished, any rough short cuts youve taken will be there forever. you want it to look like a 'bought' one otherwise you may as well build this:

http://www.ugiansky.com/trashcade/

of course if you get the bug then whatever didnt work that well on your first one can be improved upon on the next one.

[photorock]

         I totally agree with Apollo and danny_galaga, don't be in a rush. I've been planning my control panel since last Fall, I even considered buying a premade console from X-arcade or Slik-stik, but I'm glad I waited and builted it myself. I have absolutlely no woodworking experience and my CP is turning out great, actually better than I had anticipated and it's all due to being patient, visiting other builders sites and mostly due to the wonderfull and knowlegable people here at this board.

         My best advice is to read, read, read and when your done read some more. Seriesously everything you need to know is here at this board and if you can't find it ask and someone will answer it for you.

         If you must have it now, buy a Slik-Stik (nice CP), set of plans, TV and comp and have someone build it for you. If you do that and watch it been built, I bet in a year you will have built one yourself.

        Half the fun of these projects is building it yourself, so what ever you do enjoy, this is a great hobby!!!

[fogman]

I have to echo what the other posts said...building the cab can be more than half the fun, but only if you are interested in that sort of thing.  When I started, I amost gave up in the first week because the rotating control panel I wanted to build seemed WAY beyond my abilities.  I stuck it out and am almost done with the cabinet, with the rotating panel.

If you want instant gratification (like I did) build a "Frankenstein" CP first.  You don't have to worry about graphics, or front ends or any thing else to start out and you can get it done in a weekend.  It will also give you ideas about what kind of control panel you want and wehre to go next.  I bought a sheet of 3/4" MDF and a 1 1/8" spade drill.  I then bought a few buttons, a couple of joysticks and an I-pac.  I was up and running pretty quickly, and then got a trackball and a spinner.  The frankenstein control panel let me have the instant gratification of playing the games with "real" arcade controls and I got many ideas for the actual CP.  Building the cabinet started last August and as I said I am finishing most of the painting just this week.

The best part of all this is that I am re-using all of the controls from the Frankenstein CP.  Since I've slowly been acquiring my components, I've been able to keep their purchases under the radar of my wife!  It can get pretty expensive with all the screws, bolts, hinges, etc.

Getting the control panel set to your liking and having someone else build the cab is a great way to go.  $250 dollars compared to the amount of time on the learning curve is a great tradeoff, if you don't feel like getting the experience of building the cab yourself.  I know I spent at least $250 on errors!

Lastly, there is no such thing as a purist, since all of these cabinets are amalgamations of different pieces/parts and only the real dedicated, exact replicas are "pure".  The best part of this hobby is that you get out what ever you want.  Some people just want to play games, some want to learn woodworking and some don't care about either one, they just want their friends to say "Wow!  You you have a what in your family room?!"

Good luck, and don't forget to keep everyone posted on how you are doing!

[spystyle]

.