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Examples of subtle, aesthetic, furniture-esque living room cabs?
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DrewKaree:

--- Quote from: Martoon on April 02, 2005, 07:07:40 pm ---
I think another thing could be plastic T-molding.  T-molding looks great on a lot of arcade cabs, because that shape around the edge is often like genuine arcade machines.  But for nice-looking wooden furniture (forgetting arcade machines for a moment), T-molding looks cheesy (IMHO).

My brother-in-law will be building it with me, and he's a former cabinet maker (e.g., kitchen cabinets, etc., not arcade).  I'm sure he'll keep me safe from bad wood choices.


--- End quote ---

If your b-i-l did that stuff for a living, he should (but in case he doesn't here it is to tell him) be able to add a piece of half-round molding instead of T-molding, or he'll add a piece of solid wood to the plywood edges (if that's what you use for the larger panels) both to hide the edges and allow himself something to take a router to and finish the edges (usually a roundover bit in a router).  If he's gonna do a glue-up and make a large solid wood panel, it won't even be an issue.  He'll finish it the same way.  I dunno if an ogee would look right (or if there's even enough material or small enough bit to do both sides), but he can mock up some examples for you when you get that far.

If you'd like to do a nice glue-up, I'd recommend aspen.  Easy to find, reasonably inexpensive, and easy to work. 

One other thing I might suggest is taken from one of those computer armoire's.  The "keyboard drawer" could be turned into your pull-out control panel, and the upper area could have doors that open and slide in alongside the monitor.  It would then look as any other piece of furniture, perhaps you could even do shelves along the bottom for storage/frou-frou items wives always seem to collect and crap up the house with.  Atop that, you could throw a fake spider plant (or real, if your wife wants to deal with it) to more "housify/class" the thing.

Buzzdalf's is the closest I've seen to what I"m suggesting, but I'd stick the PC more up inside the unit, allowing the shelves on the lower section, and some other stuff I just can't put my finger on yet.
RoboG2:
Saw this a while back:

http://www.arcadeathome.com/pic.phtml?images/netbox.jpg
DrewKaree:

--- Quote from: countchocula8 on April 02, 2005, 07:25:23 pm ---
i saw this cab a whle back...not sure if it belongs to anyone here in the forum, but i think it looks pretty good: http://www.slam-tilt.com/~bwillis/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=mame
the woodgrain makes it look kinda weird at first since not a lot of cabs have that look, but i think u will really like it once u get used to the look.


--- End quote ---

Let me point out what it is that I'm talking about, and before I piss some people off, state that I understand why these things are done - it usually comes down to cost, or that "CRAP!  I don't wanna make ANOTHER trip to the hardware store" where we cut corners or think "it'll look fine once it's done".

I'm not pointing these things out to pick on this guy's cab, I'm pointing them out to demonstrate what I'm talking about.  On the first page, click DSCN2373.  It's the CP.  Notice the nice grain to that, the tightness of it, how the stain seems to add to the beauty of that piece of wood.

Next, click DSCN2371.  Notice how the stain seems to bring out the vast differences and accentuate the wildness of the grain?  And lastly, notice how the bottom piece, where the grain runs horizontal kinda makes your eye just "STOP" there?  Now, I know it's a "I'm not wasting a whole 'nuther sheet" thing, but things like this, if you do not like wood and have no understanding of how grain pattern will affect your project, these are the things that people who may be considering a natural wood finish could/would be put off by unless they do a little homework.

I personally think the CP on that cab is just one SWEET piece of work, and the horizontal grain - the guy went with that pattern around the whole base, so at least it's not a totally out of place piece there.  Pretty good work on that cab, and a fairly decent example of how nice a natural wood look can be.

Check out the side panel on Buzzdalf's hide-a-cab.  See how the grain is SUPER SWEET up top?  Unless you look carefully, or if it's out in the open, you hardly realize the crazy grain on the bottom.  Another example of working with the wood to accentuate the better parts of it!

Just some things to look at, anyway.
mahuti:
If you are going to build an upright cab it will stick out more if it is wood grain if it is the typical cab shape. It's shocking and weird to see a wood grain cab. Plain black with no or only basic adornments would be the least obtrusive upright machine. They're all gonna stick out, though. If you really wanna do wood, find a woodworkers specialty lumber store. I used to go select really nice wood for design projects in college from this great indoor lumber yard. Really rare and expensive wood, but plenty of top of the line standard boards too. In general, the wood there had less imperfections, knots, warps, etc. Real, quality wood is way heavy, but it can look great. If you get the wood from a specialty store, you'll have more selection on the grain.

The best thing to do for an apartment anyway, is to have a cocktail machine. Cocktails are cool, and they can have a second function which is very handy for apartment living. Used really dark smoked glass for the top glass... that will help conceal all of the monitor and stuff If its off and you don't have a tablecloth on it. The tablecloth though, can add a lot of color to a typical drab apartment anyway, so the cocktail with cover seems a natural.
paigeoliver:
Big funiture cabs are still overwhelming. The two most subtle cabinets I own are my Midway cocktail (no NOT do a 3 sided, those ARE overwhelming), and my Candy cabinet. The Candy cabs are small and they are very manufactured. They have a real appliance look to them.

I find HEIGHT  to usually be the biggest wife-turn-off when it comes to games. The shorter the machine the better. A cabinet that is 3 feet wide but only 4 feet tall will look smaller and less offensive to a woman than one that is only 2-feet wide, but that is 6 feet tall.
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