Project: Hyperspace Quad Cab (Update)

[(+_+)]

Hi Everyone,

The idea of building an arcade cabinet came about 4 years ago when a co-worker told be about an emulator (MAME) that allowed you to play arcade games in all their original glory on your PC. I had purchased a Robotron 2084 machine about 17 years ago and always thought of purchasing a couple more game boards and making a multi game unit out of it. Yeah right! Enter Mame and exit that crazy idea. From that point on, I became obsessed with creating a software and Quad MAME cabinet that would be an all in one entertainment unit.

The obsession continues...

Hyperspace is my second attempt at a Quad Cab. I have been working on it here and there since the summer (2006). I have taken quite a few pics and plan to blab up a storm about it. This time around, I ventured into the unknown (to me at least) art of routery. You've gotta love that router. I've also given my never ending homemade game launcher/jukebox program a facelift and added a few new features. I've also completed the artwork in Photoshop for the marquee and control panel. Need to get that printed up though. The control panel top is being worked on and I await my controller order as we speak from our friendly neibourhood divemaster127. I'll try to post a few pictures over the next few days.

Controller Components
1 - Turbotwist 2 spinner
32 - Black Pushbuttons 58-9166-L
1 - Player 1 58-2096-L1PLY
1 - Player 2 58-2096-L2PLY
1 - Player 3 58-2096-L3PLY
1 - Player 4 58-2096-L4PLY
1 - 3’’ Trackball with USB and PS/2 Interface Blue Translucent 56-0300-12T
1 - Trackball light kit
2 - UltraStik 360 Ball Top with USB cable-RED
2 - UltraStik 360 Optional Hard Spring
2 - UltraStik Restrictor Plate Kit
1 - I-PAC 4 Interface USB (with USB wire)
2 - Mag-Stik Plus Black Pear handles

PC Components
-For now I'm going to hook up my laptop to it HP ZV6300 and later on dedicate a built in PC
-Logitech Z-2300 speakers
-LG 26" LCD 26LC2R

[Donkey_Kong]

 

FINALLY!! Good Luck!!

 

[psychotech]

FINALLY!! Good Luck!!

My words exactly! Good luck! 

[(+_+)]

So then the quest began.

At the time, I sort of had an idea of where I was going. I had scribbled down an infinite number of button layouts and designs. Truth be told, in the end it was a completely "fly by the seat of your pants" project. I kid.

I started of with a solid interior frame. You'd think I was building a bridge or something, but I digress.









Next I build a base and used 4 - 2 1/2 inch casters. The rear 2 are the type that are locked in place while the front 2 swivel and lock.





The frame and base are all being held together using 2-1/2" and 1-1/2" inch screws all of which have been countersunk. The casters are being held using carriage 2" carriage bolts, nuts and washers.

I'll post some more tomorrow. Homework time for my 3 tikes.

I forgot to mention. I just got my postal slip in the mail for the Turbo Twist 2 and nice BYOAC nickel token knob. Can't wait to pick it up tomorrow.

[miles2912]

O man..  more of those 'framed' cabs.  Seriously enjoy the build it is a lot of fun.  Looks like you are off to a good start.


Don

[(+_+)]

Yes, another one of those 'framed' cabs. There is method behind the madness though. Because the unit has different depths I had no choice but to frame it. You'll see this more clearly after I post some more pictures tonight and even more so with the skins attached.

One good thing about the frame though is it's as solid as a tank and has some good weight behind it. It definitely won't wobble around during those aggresive Robotron and Mutant Storm matches. It also allows me to attach the wood panelling very securely and will keep the panels from twisting. I'm not using traditional MDF or Plywood. I'm using high grade pine 11/16" sheets. Those are the ones that have smaller lengths glued together to form a larger sheet. Pricier but better for routing the edges cleanly and sanding. This was inportant to me since I did not want to use T-Molding. I hope I didn't offend the T-Mold fan base. 

[Crafty]

I hope I didn't offend the T-Mold fan base. 

The T-moulding fanbase is more about the true arcade feel of the t-moulding..
Ultimately it's your choice and I can't wait to see the finished product with the wood panelling.

[(+_+)]

Here's a few more pics. I just finished routing my controller lid. It really turned out nice. I need to first print out my artwork before I bore the holes. I'm nervous about it cause I really don't want to have to do anything twice or worse yet pay for anything twice.

This pic shows the frame attached to the base


The 2 pics below have the controller pedastal frame. At this point I was really freaking out because I said to myself, look at the skinning mess that i got myself into.





The trick I used to overcome the odd shaped skins was to used paper templates such as this one. At some point my son decided it would be cool to write his signature all over it.



I'm still preparing many more pics which I'll post later.

[(+_+)]

I hope I didn't offend the T-Mold fan base. 

The T-moulding fanbase is more about the true arcade feel of the t-moulding..
Ultimately it's your choice and I can't wait to see the finished product with the wood panelling.

I know Crafty. That's the reason for my wink. I was expecting to take heat for it.

[(+_+)]

Holy smokes!

I just picked up my Turbo Twist 2 with the nice Nickel BYOAC Token knob. That's a real nice piece of machinery. They're right. You really don't need the extra Energy Storage Cylinder if you get that knob. It's got a nice heavy feel to it. It costs a pretty penny for it but the look and the feel is worth every penny. Can't wait to wire eveything up.

[(+_+)]

Here's some shots with the base and it's skins slapped on. All skins were cut out using paper templates similar to the one shown earlier and attached with countersunk woodscrews. All skin egdes except for the very back where the door is have been routed using the quarter round bit. I think it is a half inch bit but don't quote me on it.

I think my son is trying to say he had a hand in building it.






The base with the dreaded faceplate missing.


Top view. This is where the top piece with screen and speakers is going to rest on.


This is the rear where the door to access the internal is going to be.


The door with the ball bearing snap in hinge. What a pain in the neck these things turned out to be. Don't use these without adult suppervision. May lead to self mutilation and/or hanging.


Notice the way it frayed the sides of the snap in point after little use. This is cause by not pulling the door off all of its hinges at the same time. What I had to do was carve out some of the wood on both left and right sides of each hinge to avoid the fraying.




Notice the seem along the front faceplate. I had a leftover piece that wasn't quite big enough and my brother in law told me to simply glue a piece to it. I argued that it would look crappy but he swore that I wouldn't even be able to tell. Just choose a piece and line up the grains reasonable well. He was right. After sanding it it looked great. All you need to do is glue the pieces together (don't be shy with the glue) and use duct tape to pin it together evenly. I was thinking clamps and once again an experienced pointer (tape) from my B-I-L worked perfectly.



A shot with the Subwoofer 10" hole. I've already purchase a nice black grill that will cover the hole. Also, going to be using some soft rubberized matting underneath it and up against the face of the sub to reduce the vibration a little. Pics of the mat to follow at a later date.


The rear door. Beware the hinges.

[Kaytrim]

I wasn't too sure about the shape of your cabinet from the first go around if pics.  However looking at these updates I am liking this build more and more.  Your base is going to be booming in that big wood box. 

[(+_+)]

Good to hear. It only gets better...(I hope) as the entire picture falls into place.

Booming hopefully not, except when I put use my program (pics to follow later) in jukebox mode.  This is the reason for the rubberized mats I mentioned. I'd like to dampen vibrations as much as possible. Not that I plan to blast it anyways when playing games. I'll save that for tunage.

[Kaytrim]

Just make sure that all your components are screwed down nice and tight or they may shake loose.   

[(+_+)]

Screen and speaker housing


I've got to take a photography course or something.


This shows the rounded off skin attached to the housing. The reason I did this was to maintain the look as well as have the speaker skin sit in the front and flush with the sides.


The marquee casing. Originally, I had cut out a rectangular box and when I sat it on top of the unit it didn't quite do it justice so I scrapped that version. I like the shape of this one much more.




These are the speaker skins I was referring to above. They have the same 2 holes as the 2 satellite speakers with a nice little chamfer aroung the outer edge. The side that will sit up against the screen also has a routed angle to it so that the front glass will sit up nicely against the edge.








This is the post that'll sit in the screen housing and hold up the rotating LCD screen. You can also see a piece of the rubberized mat lying at the base of the box that I'll be using for the subwoofer.


Here is the LCD whose front panel was taken off. I had to add some reinforcement edges to be able to secure the round front faceplate. Removing the faceplate was a chore since I didn't want to force and potentially crack anything. Notice, I had to slot one of the frames due to the LCD button cable not being quite long enough.




Here's a partial shot of the LCD faceplate as well as the bracket that was built into the original LCD stand. This was another pain in the neck to remove. Why do they have to make everthing so difficult. In the end it save me from having to buy one for $60 or so.




Here's the hack up marquee light. I had to build a frame around it due the casing it came in and because of the way I wanted to mount it. I've seen pictures of the exact one I would have liked to buy right here at BYOAC, but couldn't for the life of me find one at my local hardware or lighting store. 




If I get some time tonight, I'll try to post a few more shots of the unit coming together.

[(+_+)]

Here's a couple of shots of the countersunk screwholes with the dowels in place.




Here's a few more shots with the pieces piled on top of each other. I haven't anchored anything together yet since it still needs to be stained. My Brother in Law has gratiously offered to stain it for me. He is an experienced painter and does fantastic work. 









I hope to get some pictures of the controller box and lid out soon.

[rlemmon]

Dude, You just made the rest of us look like idiots when it comes to woodworking skills, Seriously that is one of the best looking cabs i have everseen. what are your plans for art work ?

Nice job,
Ron

[(+_+)]

Sorry. I posted it twice.

[(+_+)]

Ron, thanks for the high praise. There are a lot of very skilled people on this board and I owe a lot of it to the people here who have made this community a great place to be a part of. Truth be told. It was the first time I ever use a router. I did ask people a lot of questions, read and thought about it endlessly (well at least it felt endless). Anyone can do as good a job or even better one if they plan and take their time. As for artwork, I did a lot of photoshop work for both the Game Launcher program, marquee and control panel overlay. I plan to post those soon so I can get some feedback about it.

[Grasshopper]

Dude, You just made the rest of us look like idiots when it comes to woodworking skills, Seriously that is one of the best looking cabs i have everseen. what are your plans for art work ?

Nice job,
Ron

Agreed. That's certainly one of the most complex and impressive home-built designs I've seen.

I'll be keeping a close eye on this one.

[Gametreks]

Hmmmm.  It seems you've got my attention.  Very impressive build.  I'll have to keep my eye on this one.

[(+_+)]

Here's some more pics of the control panel and the lid.

I started off with a 3/4" plywood frame and then once again skinned it to maintain the look and feel. I could have gone with thinner plywood though since the rim is 1-1/2" now. This will make for a long lasting and solid control panel. I also glued the skins to the plywood and opted not to use any screws.








For the lid I decided to use a 5/8" piece of MDF because of its smoothness and then frame that with a wooden 3/4" border. The reason for the thinkness difference was so that the MDF would lie 1/8" lower than the border. Doing so allows me to insert the 1/8" plexi sheet so that it lies flush with the border. The top edge of the border was also routed to give it a nice finish. I glued and screwed the frame to the MDF. I really had to countersink some of the screws on the front wider border due to its width. You can see some of the dowels that cover the screw holes. The dowels were glue in well and rounded nicely when routed.








The 2 shots below show the 1/8" height difference mentioned above.

[(+_+)]

Here's a few shots of the control panel and marquee art. I'm not 100% sure about it yet. I've flipped and flopped, back and forth between so many names and themes, it has made me crazy over it. Let me know what you think about the button layout and which marquee you prefer out of the 2. Please keep in mind that the controller layout is as it is due to the games I love most. Those being Robotron, asteroids, defender, stargate, tempest. This is the reason for lack of concern for the center players 3 and 4 which are really only there for completeness. Most often, I'll be playing games in the center. Once in a while the odd 2 player games on the far left and right (need the shoulder room). Then the even less often 4 player guantlet match. And yes, I don't care if player 4 has to play lefty once in a blue moon.

The pics look a little crappy because I'm running out of web space. They look far better at the normal size. My provider only gives me a cheesy 5MB of space.

Please criticize. I want to make any cool suggestive changes before I send it off to print.
Thanks

[leapinlew]

I've been thinking about your CP since you posted it. I'm usually opposed to doing a goofy foot setup for player 2 in the name of symmetry but it sounds like your planning on the 2 player games being used from what would normally be player 3 and 4? I'm a bit confused. Where are the magstiks going and where are the 360's going to be on your CP?

Also, whats the trackball/spinner situation?

I really like the artwork. I like the off centered nature of it. Also, I like how the controls don't really bother the flow of the art. Very nice!

[Donkey_Kong]

You ain't effin around are you? 

WOW! Nice job....This is gonna be very nice. Looks like it is gonna SOUND nice to eh? I'm very happy for you (+_+).

 

[(+_+)]

Thanks guys. I updated the controller image with some labels. I took for granted that I knew where everything should be.

LL, you're right about player 3 and 4 being the opposite of what it normally is. I don't mind since I can pretty much design joystick/button setup any way I want on a profile basis with my application. So if I like to play Pacman with the left joystick and my son likes to play with the right one, a simple one time setup for his profile will take care of it.

I'm a big Robotron/Mutant Storm fan. Ultra-Stiks in the center.

[leapinlew]

Ah, I see!

Marquee:
Between the 2, the 1st one with the starburst for sure. It's really pops because the starburst does a good job between separating the text from the background. My eyes are drawn to the text first and then the outlining artwork. On the second one, I have to pick out the text from the background. If the first one had a white glow on it - it would be a harder choice. But, as it stands, #1 is the winner to me.

The control panel layout:
I see it's gonna work well for Robotron and Defender. I understand why you did your layout - since if you moved the joystick to the left for player 2 the buttons may be too far away to play a decent game of defender. This will probably work well as long as you aren't planning too many fighting games. Player 3/4 positions would work for fighting games, but the magstik+ won't. The throw on those joysticks is very small and I eventually had to replace my magstik+ with some supers because no one could use any special moves because of the short throw.

I'm curious what your thoughts are between the magstiks and 360. I wouldn't be surprised if your kids would prefer the 360's.

Which brings me to my last question. Who is your intended audience? I built my first cabinet with me in mind, and after a few parties with me having to explain how the cabinet worked to each individual person (despite an instruction card), I decided to make all future cabinets as easy as possible to use. I didn't want to spend a party babysitting a machine. Things I've done that make the cabinet easy to use:

• Dedicated quit button out of the way of the trackball
• Minimal amount of admin buttons
• Minimal amount of controls on the cp
• Dedicated cabinets. 1 cabinet for 4 way games and the other for 8 way games
• All controls identical layout and hardware

Thats what I found works best for me. I'm curious how everything works for you and I wish you the best of luck. It's a beautiful piece of hardware your building and I can't wait to see it finished!

[leapinlew]

One last thing...

Do you have a trackball? Will the trackball and trackball housing fit in the room you provided for it? Also, if you haven't seen people play Golden Tee - you should check it out. Some people take full swings a full 2-3 feet in front of the trackball.

[psychotech]

Cool!

Looks Great! ..and sturdy, for sure

Actually, I was concerned about the trackball position also.
How much free space do you have above it? How about installation? Seems like (at least) a tight fit.

Great cab, great graphics, great woodworking skills 

[(+_+)]

There should be plenty of space above it due to the gap between the top of the control panel and the angled part just below where the screen window will be (see pic below). I did this purposely. One reason for the gap was while considering Marble madness gameplay and the other reason was so the lid could open up nicely and not have a joystick potentially smash through the screen window. Believe me when I say I lost sleep over the nitty gritty details. There should be enough room for the trackball housing. I plan to double check that before sending it off to print.

leapinlew, starburst marquee it is. I was leaning that way too. Thanks.

[Kaytrim]

I really think that you are not giving yourself enough room for the trackball mount.  Here is an idea to keep your symmetry and give enough room for the trackball.  Take and put a spinner on the outside of each U-Stick then slide the trackball down.  The game Blasteroids uses separate spinners for two players.

Otherwise I agree with LL on the marquee.  You might even consider using the starburst on the CP around the trackball.  You really have gone overkill on the CP box, 1 1/2' thick sides.    Over all I am really liking the design of the cabinet.  Keep us posted. 

[(+_+)]

You're right guys! I hadn't gone over it again yet to be sure. What I plan to do is lower the trackball and spinner a bit. Currently, I do have enough room since I'm not going to be using the trackball mounting plate. There is 2.75 inches from the top to the center of the trackball and from the diagram below of the 3" trackball, I need 2.75 inches. This is a little to close for my liking so I'm going to lower it a good centimetre or so. From the trackball center to the screen, there must be about 7". I think that should be ok.

Great catch LL! 

http://www.happcontrols.com/images/50/560100xxmount.gif

I should be posting some shots of the painted (well stained) unit. There a few minor touch ups required and I should be getting the unit back next weekend. I took a few shots yeserday anyways and should post them along with the changes to the control panel art either tonight or tomorrow.

[Kaytrim]

After the stain is finished are you going to put on a polyurethane finish or dutch oil?

[(+_+)]

Hey Kaytrim,

What we did was stain it and follow it up with a clear coat stain. However we had to tint the clear coat a bit to hid a few knots since some of them continued to show through.

[leapinlew]

You're right guys! I hadn't gone over it again yet to be sure. What I plan to do is lower the trackball and spinner a bit.

cool - I look forward to seeing the updated artwork. I couldn't pull up the link in your last message (for all I know, that could've been the updated artwork!).

Whats your plan to mount the trackball? I also mounted mine without the trackball plate. So far, so good.

[(+_+)]

Sorry about that. I fixed the link above. That was just a schematic of the Happ 3" trackball.

I have a question for everyone about hosting my pictures. I'm currently out of web space allocated by my provider. A measly 5 MB.  Is it possible to post the pics by uploading them hear somehow or is there some site I can host them from.

Here's an updated shot of the control panel art with the trackball moved down about 1"



It's too bad because it looks horrible at that resolution. It's Very unclear compared to full blown pic.

Thanks
Marc

[johnperkins21]

Sorry about that. I fixed the link above. That was just a schematic of the Happ 3" trackball.

I have a question for everyone about hosting my pictures. I'm currently out of web space allocated by my provider. A measly 5 MB.  Is it possible to post the pics by uploading them hear somehow or is there some site I can host them from

Thanks
Marc

Few options: You can click "Additional Options" below the post form to attach images. You can also do this to that stickied post on the Project Announcements page that says "This is not a project" or something like that, then link to that using the IMG tag. Or you could use www.flickr.com to host your images and link to them from there. It's free and gives you a decent amount of space.

[leapinlew]

Sorry about that. I fixed the link above. That was just a schematic of the Happ 3" trackball.

I have a question for everyone about hosting my pictures. I'm currently out of web space allocated by my provider. A measly 5 MB.  Is it possible to post the pics by uploading them hear somehow or is there some site I can host them from.

Here's an updated shot of the control panel art with the trackball moved down about 1"



It's too bad because it looks horrible at that resolution. It's Very unclear compared to full blown pic.

Thanks
Marc

Hey Marc,

I would suggest you shrink your images. They take a while to load up on my machine. My guess is you are uploading them straight from the camera and they are at a decent megapix. My pictures out of my camera are approximately 3mb each. After I shrink them, they are around 70k. You can use Imageresizer to shrink your pictures - it's a powertool from Microsoft. This is also useful if you are emailing your pictures around.

Another option is to open an account online. I use spaces.msn.com and I upload my images there and link to them here.

As for your new image, I like it. I must admit I liked Hyperspace on the bottom more, but it works.

[Neilyboy]

man this things going to be sweet i cannot wait to see the finished product.

Neil

[(+_+)]

As for your new image, I like it. I must admit I liked Hyperspace on the bottom more, but it works.

Crap. I was thinking the same thing myself. I kind of liked it there too because it was closer to the hyperspace button but then the new found real estate above the trackball got me thinking... I wish I could just turn off the voice sometimes. 

The pictures have all been shrunk to sizes ranging between 60 and 150 Kb depending on the picture. I can't really shrink it much more than that. I'll look into spaces.msn.com.

No wait on second thought 'Additional Options' it is. That's exactly what I was looking for
jp21. Sometimes you can't see the forest for the trees. It was right there staring me in the face the whole time. And to believe they give me the keys to the database at work. 

Thanks