done with the first stage of "poor man's arcade"!

[bowmand1]

Well, I realize I never even told you guys I was doing this, but I'm done with the first stage of my arcade cabinet.  Since I live in a small apartment, I don't have a lot of room for extra or redundant furniture, so I've turned an old generic JAMMA cabinet (from Taito) into a combination entertainment center/Dreamcast powered arcade unit!  It's pretty cool.  Currently, it has a VCR, Sega Dreamcast, and 19" TV installed in it, but I've made it upgradable by leaving room for a DVD player and a 21" TV when I have the money.  The Dreamcast and VCR are accessable through the over-under coin doors, and the whole unit is cooled via a pair of PC power supply fans that I hacked outta some old computers laying about, and are run by, amazingly enough, another PC power supply (with it's own fan installed still)  It has two (1) 8-way + 6 buttons setups, plus the two start buttons (that DreamPad is SO easy to hack)

Plans to come include adding some light guns in holsters to the sides of the cab(DC House of the Dead 2 is killer), and a bezel around the TV (I've got friends coming over this weekend, so I can't work on this anymore...as long as it works, and looks good, I'm set for now)  also, I think I may add some 5v DC or 12v DC lights, behind the marquee, and in the compartments for the Dreamcast and VCR, so you can see what you're doing.  I've still got unused power connections on the PC power supply I can tap for those.  And I want to ass a car amp, and some better speakers.  Ahh, someday...

Pics to come, as soon as I pull out my company's digital camera.

Peace.

Dave Bowman
Detroit, MI

[DF]

Nice....I had considered doing essentially the exact same thing as that (only building my own cabinet instead of converting one)

I am taking a bit of a different twist on it, but it ends up basically the same way. I am building a stand for the TV and a separate stand for the controls, this way I can haul the controls to a lan party or whatever I want to do.

Mame in front of a pojector :

[Lilwolf]

Cool!  

I wanted to do that (mainly for DVD's) but my monitor is at a huge angle on my cabinet.  Kinda sucks viewing from anywhere but sitting at the cabinet.

[bowmand1]

well, I've actually got the TV sitting pretty well upright at this point, SLIGHT angle back, but it's still viewable from my couch.  This was a neccessary compromise, as it's the only tv I can fit in my apartment.  However, I have this SHWEET idea for a hydraulic ram-controlled variable tilt shelf to adjust the viewing angle...but when I priced it out today at Hydraulic Service in Detroit, well, let's just say I'd have to shell out a month's paychecks to cover it, and I've only got about a hundred bucks into this cabinet at this point.  <sigh>  so, I'm open to ideas, if anybody's dealt with this multi-use idea before, cuz I'd REALLY like to be able to tip the TV back farther for when I'm playing Gauntlet Legends or DOA2... or I guess I could just get some stools.  Oh well.

Dave

[darkmanx]

maybe hack apart a more powerful RC car and hook up a gear to the drive system? use the same principle bicycles use with one small and one large gear to increase power. you could put the control into some less conspicuous looking casing, slap a mame logo on it, or whatever!

[delta88]

i have a solution......you can come over and take my virtua fighter home with you...it needs a pc right now but it has a 25" screen ..tv... and i play nes,saturn and deamcast on it right now......you know  where i live..you just have to fit it in that little apartment room door of yours.....
i cant remeber how high is the ceiling...would it touch???

[bowmand1]

Ed, you know I can't fit that in my apartment...  that thing's a BEAST!     besides, I'm poor.  Hence the "poor man's arcade"  I couldn't afford what you'd want for that sweet thing.

which reminds me...  are you coming over to check this out tonight?  Call me...

DarkManx...  good idea.  Although I think if I can capture some squirrels, I may be able to control the mameified monitor lift assembly by nut-power.  any suggestions on how to bag a squirrel?

whatever...  life is good.  I have a cab.  peace, y'all.  out.  --dave

[ErikRuud]

Check out your local surplus places, you never know what you might find.  An electric gear motor might do what you want, and there are usually plent of them at surplus places.

In my area we have American Science and Surplus. They are are great place too find stuff for projects.  I often find things there that I hadn't thought of using for a project.

[gnateye]

american science and surplus is the BOMB! they have everything, one day a year or 2 ago i was there and they had ahuge pile of arcade marquees, all for games i never egard of but they were like 1$ each so i bought em up and gave them to my friends for xmas

i love that place!

chi-town!

[ErikRuud]

I don't think I have ever seen arcade marquees in there, but that is what the place is like.  You never know what they might have, and neither do they.

I live near the one in Geneva, and my in-laws live near the one in Chicago at Milwaukee and Foster.

Gnateye,  what part of Chicago are you from?  I am originally from the NW side near Milwaukee and Addison.

[ErikRuud]

I just rembered another good surplus site for electronics.

The Electronic Goldmine

They have tons of electronics goodies at reasonable prices.