QuantumCade Quad Cab - R.I.P 2008

[(+_+)]

Hi Everybody,

Thought I'd post my first Mame Cab and home made game launcher/jukebox software for your viewing pleasure (I hope)   

http://www.elitebastards.com/cms/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=17&Itemid=28

[deadkenndys1105]

To be fully honestly I hate it.  I dont see it as an arcade cabinet.  I could be a very interseting concept but the monitor just out there and the button layout seems why to clutered.  More isnt always better.  I hate all in one CP and to me admin button are just horable unless you hide them like putting them were button 5 and 6 would go on 4 player cabinet.  You do have potenal and I know this is going to be hard to read but you need to rethink this one.

[(+_+)]

Thanks for honesty dk1105, I'd have to agree with you on a couple of fronts. First off the clutter. There are a couple of corrections that are required. The extra admin buttons are going to be removed for the next cab since I'll be using an I-Pac4 and use the shift button. Also, there are a couple of tweeks to the cp. First off the far right joystick ended up being a little to close to the second one from the right. It is playable but gets in the way from time to time. I must have drawn 100's of little bubble cp diagrams and this was the best I could come up with considering the games I wanted to play (I blame Robotron mostly) and not have to resort to a rotating or a modular type cp. My theme also revolved around something we called the selfish center design. Considering I often play single player games, I wanted to be able to play in the center and not off to one side as many control panel setups force you to do. I may use SuperCade's cp approach and offload a few controls to a separate level but with a different layout. As for the monitor, it always bugged me a bit too just floating out there in mid air. My next project is going to adhere more to the traditional cab type machine. I'm currently debating whether to use an HG 9200 27" or 33" monitor or go for a widescreen display. I'd like to have the best of both worlds though and this is a tough decision seeing that widescreen will stretch the image but have a far better resolution. The other thing I dislike will be losing the rotation that the LCD offers.

And your right, it was hard to read. If only you could see the craftsmanship that went into what we considered a prototype (since we knew we'd be building a second one). The routing and shaping to the cp that is made from 2" thick maple alone is quite impressive. He also made the platform that holds the LCD out of metal, shaped and welded it himself. A plywood cab would have been simple and easy to make in comparison. But I do appreciate insightful criticism. It will only make the next project that much better.

[dweebs0r]

To be fully honestly I hate it.

Hate is a pretty strong word.

The panel is definitely cluttered, no doubt, but it's already built at this point.

I really like the way that its built though.  It would be really cool to put this thing in a living room next to a huge TV like a showcase cab.

-D

[leapinlew]

I really like the way that its built though.  It would be really cool to put this thing in a living room next to a huge TV like a showcase cab.

I agree.... This is your protoype right? You wouldn't be the first person to rebuild their first cabinet, or regret some of the design choices you made. I'm rebuilding my Old School cabinet now (look for it in project announcement soon). Your setup is close to a showcase cabinet now. I have some pics of an auction I went to in St. Louis in the main forum that shows a showcase frogger cabinet if you want to get some ideas.

As it is... it works. I'm sure it's fun to play. Ultimately, you have to remember why your building it. I can't make some of the master peices that these guys are making, but I can make a cabinet that suits my needs, and thats all you should be worried about doing to.

Can you tell me why players 3 and 4 have 7 buttons? I'm curious. Overall - it's an interesting design - I applaud your creativity. Did you design it out much?

[leapinlew]

Also -

The front end is cool

The burned in(?) wood work is pretty nifty as well

[(+_+)]

Hey leapinlew,

Yes we did plan it out, but not as much as I would have liked. I was more responsible for the wiring up, software coding and the idea of getting something out there. My brother-in-law is the one whose more in touch with the way out there designs and woodworking skills. And yes, it does work quite well for many many games. I plan to use a few less buttons and a bit more spacing the next time around. By "burned in" are you referring to the QuantumCade logo down the side of the box. That is actually routed with a piece of black plexi behind it.

I'd like to see some of the pics you were taking about. Yes my rather dark, dingy refinished gargage doesn't do it justice. We used to have it in my b-i-l well lit place and it looked great. Like a piece of furniture.

[JonnyBoy]

I think it's a really cool concept. The software looks fantastic as well, very futuristic and clean.

The only thing I have to suggest is maybe figuring a way to bundle (organize) the cables to keep them from being noticed as much, maybe even finding a way to hide the PC. I think that it's a great idea and I like the look, but the wires bug me because I'm anal retentive.

Otherwise, it looks great and is obviously a labor of love, Good luck!

[(+_+)]

Oh yeah I forgot to tell you why player 3 and 4 have so many buttons. Not sure if we're on the same page though. Player 1 and player 2 are on the far left and far right for shoulder room sakes. The reason player 3 and 4 (which are in the middle) have so many is because the center is used more often than not for myself to play robotron, tron, qbert, defender, asteroids etc and I positioned the controls more for me ("selfish center") than for multiple players.

Thanks for the thumbs up on the software JonnyBoy. I've been slaving over it for a long time now. The skinability is pretty much done and I've changed the look of the arcade mode so that the media player doesn't look like a square plugin anymore . It is oval now with custom pause, stop, play etc. I'll try to post a new screenshot of it soon. I still believe it could look better since I'm not very artistic. I used to draw stickmen poorly, but learned to become quite comfortable with Photoshop. I'm quite anal myself and have already stated to clean up the wire issue. I should never have taken pictures with the wires exposed. I was just itchy to play it and get some pics out there.

[JonnyBoy]

Heh, cool. Be sure to snap some pics after the cleanup. Remember, zipties are a cab-builders best friend (until he needs to unwire something).

[deadkenndys1105]

This cabinet reminds me of the tekken 5 cabinet. (pic at bottom of post)  I would honestly love to see this turned that style of cabinet.  Dont stop building, like I said you have potencal.  I think im going to make my project thread tonight so you can rip on mine all you want.   Those tipties are a huge help when keeping the wiring nice an neat but a pain in the ass to work with them on.

[DaveMMR]

I'm not a big fan of cluttered control panels (Frankenpanels) in cabs, but yours looks more like a stand-alone control, and therefore, actually is useful and probably fun for friends and youself.  It's only when they're incorpated into a cab that's 25 inches wide and originally had, like 2 buttons and a single joystick does it begin to look a little ridiculous. 

Piece of advice for your next cab/panel if and when you do one: resist the urge to mirror controls.  I noticed that the third set is a backwards copy of player two - which means Player 2 (or 3, whatever) is handicapped because he/she has to play on a different layout than Player 1 (or 2, whatever).  The main two player should have identical controls, lest someone pulls the 'ole "but you had the superior controls" should you beat them at Street Fighter 2 (or Alpha, whatever).

Otherwise, good work.

[johnperkins21]

I'm not a huge fan of the CP as it does seem to have too much going on. It looks like this cab is a perfect candidate for a modular panel. I do think that the design is very cool and different in a good way. Count me in as one who thinks some sort of system to hide the cables is a good thing. Other than that though, great work!

[deadkenndys1105]

I just noticed this.  Is the trackball even useable?  I mean the flight stick is in the way and its to far back.

[Raven..]

Alright a few bits of input here.  First, congratulations........you made a working machine    Now for the useful stuff........

1) the cabinet design is pretty good, it looks a lot like a wooden Naomi (see attached pic), but you should take some notes from that design.  Get rid of the shelf on the side and make the front a solid piece, it will look very slick.

2) You really don't need all of those controls.  Frankenpanels are popular with some people, but they clutter up many otherwise great cabinets.  Honestly, do you REALLY need 4 players, a flight stick etc?  Go with 2 sticks, 7 buttons and a nice trackball (maybe a spinner).....you wont regret it.

3) Micro buttons a great for admins (if you want them).  Midway cocktail start buttons are perfect.  You can buy them for a couple of bucks from mikesarcade.com

4) Remount the monitor and case it in to match the cab.  That will make it look more like a cab and less like a kiosk.  You may even want to put flat panel speaker beside the monitor.

5) If you really want four players, consider a modular panel design or gamepad ports for players 3 and 4.

I hope some of this helps.  Keep refining your style...it's unique! 

[Crafty]

Keep up the good work.

I am only a newbie around here but to me it seems your work whilst not universally appreciated is still what this forum is founded on.

Pushing the boundaries/new and innovative ideas.

You only have to cruise around some of the other recent projects to see this.

Finally whilst I will eventually build something more traditional, I admire the work that went into your machine.

[(+_+)]

LOL. It's Frankenpanelly.

I personally was against the visible PC shelf since I don't like seeing the components also. I wanted to have the PC guts built into the center of the unit with a nice smoked glass access door instead of slot and shelf on the side like we did. This was one of my biggest concerns. It's funny you should mention kiosks, since my brother-in-law used to build them. I'm starting to make some plans for my next project which will hopefully begin soon. Wife and money permitting.

I plan to put up some design pics soon so I can get as much up front critique as possible.
I want the next cab to kick severe ass in all respects. What do you guys think of a 32" wide screen display (that'll be boxed of course this time around). I'm toying with a hybrid cross between the dream authentics "Eladius" (Hey, they changed the look of it for the worse??) and what we currently have. It'll be much beefier this time around. Has anyone used a widescreen display? Does it distort (stretch) the games? The reason I ask is I prefer the higher resolutions that are offered by LCD and Widescreen Panels over the HG Wells type CRTs because of some of the more modern games that I play such as mutant Storm, Space Tripper etc.

[IG-88]

I think it will look a lot better when you get it "cleaned" up a bit. Overall it's a great design. What are you running under the hood? ie: computer specs? Also, are you letting others try your app?

[(+_+)]

Thank's for your design comment IG-88. Originally, I had it the unit back to back with my home PC

AMD 2800
GeForce 5950
1 GB ram

This was one of the big reasons for wire exposure. I had been sharing my keyboard and monitor with the cab. I had a monitor switch and it was quite messy. I'm currently
plugging it into a laptop that sits nicely on the shelf which gives it a clean and unobtrusive look.

AMD Athlon 64 3500+
1 Gig Ram
128MB ATI Radeon Xpress 200M

I was considering getting the app out there for people to play around with and help the cause. It is a lot of work since I must develop, test and maintain it by myself which doesn't give me much time to get it out there and fully test it to be bulletproof. What I would really like is find 1 or 2 people who are artistic unlike me and come up with an across the board kick ass theme. Like I've mentioned before I've seen some very slick interfaces and I find mine acceptable only. Maybe I'm being to harsh on myself, but I always am.

[gamecreature]

I was considering getting the app out there for people to play around with and help the cause. It is a lot of work since I must develop, test and maintain it by myself which doesn't give me much time to get it out there and fully test it to be bulletproof. What I would really like is find 1 or 2 people who are artistic unlike me and come up with an across the board kick ass theme. Like I've mentioned before I've seen some very slick interfaces and I find mine acceptable only. Maybe I'm being to harsh on myself, but I always am.

I think I fall into that category, but I don't think I've got a lot of free time at the moment to help you out. But if your schedule isn't tight, maybe we could work something out.

[(+_+)]

Guess what?

QuantumCade is no more. I sold it to a buddy of mine a while back and there was a fire at his place. May the Frankenpanelly first attempt at spending loads of cash and as well as time rest in peace.

The important thing is nobody was hurt.

Please bow your heads for a moment of silence.

[leapinlew]

Guess what?

QuantumCade is no more. I sold it to a buddy of mine a while back and there was a fire at his place. May the Frankenpanelly first attempt at spending loads of cash and as well as time rest in peace.

The important thing is nobody was hurt.

Please bow your heads for a moment of silence.

...... silence .....

question: what does the insurance company do about it? How do they compensate?

[(+_+)]

That's a good question. I'm assuming they'll cover all part expenses as well as  reasonable coverage for the unit itself. We'll have to stay tuned until my friend works it out with his insurance company.