Which would work best as a MAME cabinet?

[ObeyGiant]

I found 3 arcade cabinets near my area and they are all empty although 2 have a monitor in them. I was wondering which out of a Don Pachi, Double Dribble, and Die Hard cabinet would work the best for making it into a MAME cabinet.

[bluevolume]

The Don Pachi is a vertical, I wouldn't go with that unless you plan on having an horizontal MAME box as well.  Double Dribble might be a good choice, while the Die Hard would certainly have a unique look.

I would check the Die Hard for space in the cabinet, and what shape the monitor is in.  That looks like it might be a fun project. http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?game_id=7579

[ObeyGiant]

it says that the monitor only shows one bar of colors in the middle for the die hard cabinet, is this easily fixable? if not would it be easy to just put a computer monitor in it or TV?

[bluevolume]

The monitor might just need a cap kit, which is cheap and fairly quick (if you are experienced in CRT repair).  Or it might be toasted; a pic of what it looks like would be enough for the guys here to tell you whats wrong.

A computer monitor is going to be tough since the original monitor is 25".  You could put in a 21" and make a bezel to go around it, though I think those look silly and wouldn't do it myself.  A TV may fit in there if you remove the case, though if you are confident in doing that you might as well just fix the monitor that is in there.

[NoOne=NBA=]

The Die Hard would be the one I'd choose.
The Double Dribble has a really small control panel area, and a smaller monitor.
The only thing I would have against the Die Hard is that it wouldn't be as easy to "just build a shelf into", if you need to put a TV in it.

[CheffoJeffo]

A guy local to me MAMEd one of those Die Hard duramold cabs and it turned out really well. I've turned one into a JAMMA gun cab (idea came from a local op who has done a couple like that ... they are perfect for it).

As NoOne=NBA= points out, modifying the duramold itself can be a problem (check your button layout and alternative monitor mounting will be a challenge).

Also, the big metal base can make it more of a PITA to move around than a normal cab.

[TOK]

I don't think you've given enough info to say. Don Pachi is a conversion, and Double Dribble was offered as a JAMMA conversion. If you look at the Double Dribble on KLOV, its in a Zaxxon cabinet. If either the Don Pachi or DD is in a Dynamo cabinet, the monitor can easily be oriented horizontally or vertically by just unbolting the monitor mount and turning it.

[Neverending Project]

I came across a Mercs cabinet, and for $50 it was in excellent shape. I liked the look of it too, so it became my MAME project. So consider how they look (i.e. if you like the shape), since you will have to look at it every day.

Also, in my mind many of the old games that I used to play back in the day were vertcial monitors. But now that I have taken up this hobby, I have found that most are actually horizontal (and it seems that my memory is pretty poor). So my cabinet is a vertical monitor, which means most games will not be seen as big as they could be. But in reality, a game originally on a 19" horizontal was only about 15" across. So on my cabinet with a 27" viewable vertical, I will see a horizontal game at about the same size as original, but it will seem smaller because of all the unused monitor.

But I digress... sorry. My point was trying to be that the monitor orientation may be important to you as well. As everyone else has suggested, consider what will fit in the cabinet.