Space Invaders Full Sized Conversion

[cyork2]

Yes this is in fact a conversion of a working Space Invaders   My wife and I went to an auction and bought the arcade machine for $350!  I gently suggested to my wife that we pick something else so as not to ruin this classic but design wise we both agree the Space Invaders cabinet was just too beautiful to pass up (what other machine has such awesome PAINTED artwork).  So, I have saved everything for a future return as a dedicated Space Invaders cabinet.  The original CP is safely tucked away, the boards are safe, the original moon, black light and star field cardboard are all safe (sorry none of this is for sale).  I also taped labels to each connector and put a corresponding label on the board or the wiring harness so I can reconnect it all.

I'm mostly through with a Word document I'll save as HTML and publish with much more details including a cost breakdown (approx $1075) and a table of resources I used which of course includes the forums here (should be available by next week).

BYOAC is by far the best resource on the web and the people here have been very helpful so thank you all for the numerous useful posts.

So with my flame retardant jacket in place here are pictures of what I've done.  I designed the CP in Photoshop and my first design was a better match for the game but it was 6 buttons straight across with no room to rest your hands so I started over and came up with the design you see (borrowing from the original CP art of course).

As you can see from the side views we refurbished the cabinet and repainted most of it (after filling in lots of damage with wood filler).  My wife handled this part of the project and since I didn't do it I don't mind saying I think it turned out great.

Still to do:
1. get a slot cutter for my router and put T-Molding on the front of the CP
2. tweak video settings
3. figure out why iRotate doesn't work even after reinstalling the ArcadeVGA driver several times

Timeline for this project was 1 month with no prior planning or special knowledge other than a computer engineering background.

Craig

[cyork2]

I posted the web page with a lot of additional pictures and details (and more still to be added including the reference table at the bottom which is coming I promise).  It is all one big page so images may take a bit to load...

http://fbipool.com/msi.html

Content is suitable to someone new to the hobby.

Craig

[severdhed]

looks good, however be prepared to take alot of heat for converting a space invaders to a mame cabinet.  at least you didnt destroy it.

[wp34]

If you are going to Mame a classic this is the way to do it.  Very impressive that you kept all the original parts. 

That control panel is awesome.  It really matches the original design.

Nice work!

[cyork2]

I added the reference table to the bottom of the web page (no surprises for regulars here but completes the page for new people) -- http://fbipool.com/msi.html

Thanks for the compliments.  This week I've been spending more time playing than tweaking or loading ROMs and that has been a nice change

Have a greay 4th of July weekend everyone.
Craig

[bradx]

that is really nice.   i dont think theres anything wrong with mame'ing a classic as long as you save the original parts.  of course, the fact it was working seems wrong somehow, but its in your house, so why should it matter to anyone else what you do to it, considering it can all be switched back.  i notice you said the controls are kinda bunched up, but i like that, its alot better than if ya woulda put wings on it like some people do. 

[ratzz]

that is really nice.   i dont think theres anything wrong with mame'ing a classic as long as you save the original parts.  of course, the fact it was working seems wrong somehow, but its in your house, so why should it matter to anyone else what you do to it, considering it can all be switched back.  i notice you said the controls are kinda bunched up, but i like that, its alot better than if ya woulda put wings on it like some people do. 

That is the most confusing post I've ever read.

[wesf]

I was wondering if I could get the photoshop files for the control panel.  I tried to follow the website link but got nothing.

[PL1]

Welcome aboard, Wesf.

Bad news:  OP hasn't logged on in over 4 years so you probably won't get a reply and the Internet Wayback Machine doesn't have the page archived.

Good news: You can make something similar from the files here and here without too much difficulty.

Good luck.


Scott

[jdbailey1206]

The major problem with converting an arcade cabinet to mame is people tend to stray away from the look and feel of the original cabinet.  IE adding cupholders,  .  This is an excellent representation of how it should be done.  You have combined aesthetics with appearance.  Nice job.