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Author Topic: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)  (Read 31423 times)

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weisshaupt

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    • The Ghost in the Machine Project Thread
The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« on: January 12, 2008, 06:33:55 pm »
Hi All,

I have been a lurker here for quite some time.. you know stealing ideas and such.  :)
I have finally finished v1.0 of my Arcade Cabinet, the Ghost in the Machine.



Here is the Short list of Features...

“Doc Like” Modular Panels using Velcro for easier fabrication
4 Player capability
Side Lit Etched Acrylic CP Art
Lighted Controls (So you know they are Plugged in!)
Laser Etched Acrylic Marquee with Luminglass Accent
Lighted “T-molding” (okay so its NOT really T-molding but held in place by it) 
2.1 Sound System
Custom Lighted “Twisty Grip” Joystick
Custom Lighted Spinner
Parallel Port Controlled Automatic Rotating Display built with easily sourced parts (and therefore anyone can do it)
Padded Wrist Pads
Removable Top for Play in the Home Theatre (and to make it easier to move)
Flat Surfaces upon which Drinks, cups and food can be Placed!
Ambient Backdrop Lighting
Storage Drawer for Modular  Panels

I haven't yet put up a website for it, but you can link to a PDF of what will be basically the same content
https://share.adobe.com/adc/adc.do?docid=68037683-c164-11dc-be2b-2b3a237bf757


Here are some picts with the Lights Off and the Flash On, so you can see every imperfection in the finish I put in there. Mostly the problems are on the top of the CP- you can already see where my kids have started to scuff it. In v.2 I will have to put some t-molding or another lighted bumper there...







And here are the rough measurements from the initial design.. 2 inches per square...



Again, a special thanks to everyone here who helped.. even if they didn't know they were doing it :>)



-Weisshaupt
« Last Edit: January 14, 2008, 02:42:59 pm by weisshaupt »
“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine
« Reply #1 on: January 12, 2008, 06:39:14 pm »
nice.
i'll be the first to ask for more pics of that cp and any construction pics.
very very nice :cheers:
got COLOR codes from projects, post them here

add stuff to the uk wiki section

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine
« Reply #2 on: January 12, 2008, 06:44:10 pm »
I agree, excellent work!!  :applaud: :applaud: :applaud:
But, please more pics! I am especially interested in your rotate mechanism, since Im working on one..

I tried to open the link you posted, but it's asking me to sign in..

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine
« Reply #3 on: January 12, 2008, 06:47:03 pm »
Lighted T-molding. Now I've seen it all. That's the best part about this forum. That last statement is never true.  As long as your addicted to oxygen and on this forum you will never see it all!! Great job and yet another project inspiring me to get past my coin door restore. 

P

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    • The Ghost in the Machine Project Thread
Re: The Ghost in the Machine
« Reply #4 on: January 12, 2008, 06:54:47 pm »
Hi All,

This is my first time using this Adobe Share thing.. I apologize the first link didn't work..

Try this link

https://share.adobe.com/adc/adc.do?docid=68037683-c164-11dc-be2b-2b3a237bf757

I am course happy to answer any questions any of you might have!

« Last Edit: January 12, 2008, 07:00:10 pm by weisshaupt »
“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine
« Reply #5 on: January 13, 2008, 12:48:50 pm »

But, please more pics! I am especially interested in your rotate mechanism, since Im working on one..


I took a look at your thread.. so first - I cheated. I used a 20 inch (4:3) LCD monitor. I did this for 2 reasons:

1) I wanted to be able to take the top off to use it as a pedistal in the Home theater. That meant a serious reduction in weight. As it is, its still really heavy, and I should have used more 1/4 inch MDF on the back.. Oh well. I can get it down if I really strain, and 2 people , one on each side can take it down easily.
2) NO Degaussing Required.

An LCD has the disadvantages of being really expensive if you go larger than 20 inches (I think this one is an Acer I bought at New Egg for around $220)  and if you get too far off axis, you have a hard time seeing the screen. Luckily thats only an issue in the 3x4 position, and I have no 3x4 4 player games loaded (are there any?)

You could of course, attach a large pully (wood cutout etc) to the monitor and do the same thing, but I think for a CRT, you will need something larger than my little hobby motor..like it looks you are using. The Premade circuit from Solarbotics I used can drive anything upto 600 MA load,  but I am not sure thats enough. Anyway, from your thread it looks like you are on the right track..

My goal was more or less to provide an easy, cheap (around $50) way to rotate an LCD, that required a minimum of soldering and electronics work and worked mostly under program control. (if anybody wants the binary exe file I used for the control, just email me and i will ship it over..)
“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (UPdated with more Pics)
« Reply #6 on: January 13, 2008, 01:13:32 pm »
Love the etched plexi.  :o Legendary!!!! Are those electric ice buttons? if so where did you get the maching balltops? The only thing that has prevented me buying a set is getting a replacement for my light up bubble ball.
When pixelated clipart just wont do, just call for Betty

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    • The Ghost in the Machine Project Thread
Re: The Ghost in the Machine (UPdated with more Pics)
« Reply #7 on: January 13, 2008, 01:40:16 pm »
Love the etched plexi.  :o Legendary!!!! Are those electric ice buttons? if so where did you get the maching balltops? The only thing that has prevented me buying a set is getting a replacement for my light up bubble ball.

Yep, electric ICE using the older, less bright LEDs.  I got the sticks at http://www.slikstik.com/index.asp, they are just shafts to use with  a regular HAPPS SUPER joystick. Looks like they are carrying Trackball upgrades now as well, but I got mine from Groovy-Game-gear. Had a good experience with that- just screw the LED PCB to the bottom of my old WICO trackball and drop in their ball instead.. Had a great experience with both companies.
« Last Edit: January 14, 2008, 02:43:52 pm by weisshaupt »
“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (UPdated with more Pics)
« Reply #8 on: January 13, 2008, 06:08:30 pm »
That is an awsome cab. Im in love with the new slim style that is catching on using lcd screens instead of crt. The CP is amaizing!!

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine
« Reply #9 on: January 15, 2008, 06:49:05 am »

But, please more pics! I am especially interested in your rotate mechanism, since Im working on one..


I took a look at your thread.. so first - I cheated. I used a 20 inch (4:3) LCD monitor. I did this for 2 reasons:

1) I wanted to be able to take the top off to use it as a pedistal in the Home theater. That meant a serious reduction in weight. As it is, its still really heavy, and I should have used more 1/4 inch MDF on the back.. Oh well. I can get it down if I really strain, and 2 people , one on each side can take it down easily.
2) NO Degaussing Required.

An LCD has the disadvantages of being really expensive if you go larger than 20 inches (I think this one is an Acer I bought at New Egg for around $220)  and if you get too far off axis, you have a hard time seeing the screen. Luckily thats only an issue in the 3x4 position, and I have no 3x4 4 player games loaded (are there any?)

You could of course, attach a large pully (wood cutout etc) to the monitor and do the same thing, but I think for a CRT, you will need something larger than my little hobby motor..like it looks you are using. The Premade circuit from Solarbotics I used can drive anything upto 600 MA load,  but I am not sure thats enough. Anyway, from your thread it looks like you are on the right track..

My goal was more or less to provide an easy, cheap (around $50) way to rotate an LCD, that required a minimum of soldering and electronics work and worked mostly under program control. (if anybody wants the binary exe file I used for the control, just email me and i will ship it over..)


Again, great job!
I thought about going with a 19" LCD (which the viewable area is about an inch larger than the 19" CRT), and I was going to do that if I couldnt get the problem I had with the CRT monitor worked out.
But I think I do have that problem fixed now, so Im going on with the original plan. Unless my mounting mechanism is too big for my cabinet.
I plan to cut circles out of MDF or ply to fasten the CRT to.
My motor draws about 1 to 2 amps with no load, so your drive would not work for me.
The drive I am using is only good for 4 amps, so that may not be enough when  the motor starts to push the monitor around, if not I have a back up plan, using 10 amp relays.
I would be very interested in trying your program, can you post it here?
If it is too large to post here, let me know I will PM you my email..

weisshaupt

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    • The Ghost in the Machine Project Thread
Re: The Ghost in the Machine
« Reply #10 on: January 16, 2008, 12:05:56 am »
Quote
I would be very interested in trying your program, can you post it here?
If it is too large to post here, let me know I will PM you my email..


Sure thing. The source code is at the end of the PDF I posted (which I believe is working now- let me know if you think that link is dead)

the secret.exe file can be downloaded at http://myfreefilehosting.com/f/0cc45e7424_0.42MB

and requires the following DLL be placed in the windows/system32/drivers directory to function.

http://myfreefilehosting.com/f/20120a7ac9_0.03MB

The wiring the program expects is also in the PDF, and should be pretty easily adaptable to the driver/relay circuit you are using. Not sure what you plan to use for limit switches, but the ones I used from digikey should work, (but really any reed/ limit switch would work-- just don't delete the resistors or you risk damaging the parallel port by sinking too much current)

This prorgam could, in theory, be adapted to turn a pin high at the end of rotation to do the degaussing. Let me know if you need it to do that andhow long a pulse you need to activate it, It should be an easy modification.....

In my setup I am using emulaxian/3d Arcade to call secret.exe using the 3x4 or 4x3 parm that is in the game list.. 

Cheers!


“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #11 on: January 16, 2008, 04:03:33 pm »
HOLLY ---steaming pile of meadow muffin---!!! I just looked at your documentation and... WOW. Very thorough. At less than 10 posts you have made a name for yourself already (at least in my book) clearly you did your homework before building and posting. Very good work, congratulations on an innovative cab with many slick and cool features. The photo doesn't show the marquee very well, but the fact that it's luminglas behind the text sounds fantastic. You should post a video.

Welcome to the forum and good job on your cabinet.  :cheers:

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #12 on: January 17, 2008, 05:37:27 am »
 :applaud: Awesome looking cab. Love the eluminated CP and moulding.  :notworthy:

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    • The Ghost in the Machine Project Thread
Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #13 on: January 17, 2008, 06:23:16 pm »
HOLLY ---Cleveland steamer---!!! I just looked at your documentation and... WOW. Very thorough. At less than 10 posts you have made a name for yourself already (at least in my book) clearly you did your homework before building and posting.

I thank you (and everyone else) for their kind comments.  But I think we all know that this whole hobby relies on us all learning from and teaching each other... I am well aware of the giants whose shoulders I stand upon. The Doc and Knievel influences should be apparent, though I really stole many ideas and got many a solution by browsing here...  I even Owe a vote of thanks to Pixelhugger. His mission control project convinced me that I should NOT announce mine till I had it done... Otherwise MY thread would be 2 years old...

 I think its a duty to give back to the community as much as I have taken.  IHopefully the docs help somone else as much as everyone here has helped me. Pay it forward, you know?

Unfortunately my Little Phone Cam-corder doesn't show the video well either. It just records too brightly. In person you can really see the "ghost in the machine" text very clearly, and the MAME logo floats behind it rather nicely..  Maybe I can borrow a better vid-cam from somebody else and post it again. But such as it is... here is what I have now..

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/v/i4rmKNbvVIk&rel=1"[/youtube]
« Last Edit: January 17, 2008, 06:27:06 pm by weisshaupt »
“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #14 on: January 25, 2008, 01:53:39 am »
Even in the bad video you can tell that it's one of the coolest ways to do a marquee ever.

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    • The Ghost in the Machine Project Thread
Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #15 on: January 26, 2008, 09:55:28 am »
A slightly better video... You can now see how the text "floats" a little bit better, and you can see the MAME logo in the back is intentionally blurry and ghost like (rather than just blurred from my crap video equipment)

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/v/Xu-DJfLrL64[/youtube]
« Last Edit: January 26, 2008, 09:58:43 am by weisshaupt »
“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #16 on: February 05, 2008, 10:28:11 am »

Wow.  I couldn't dream of making one that good.

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #17 on: February 05, 2008, 07:53:49 pm »

Wow.  I couldn't dream of making one that good.

Thanks for the compliment, but really you could do this too. I got a C in shop class in jr. high. 
You just need some tools -- table saw,hand drill,  router and dremel... okay- I did borrow my Stepdad's drill press a couple of times.. but really the main thing in getting a good result is taking the time to do so and stealing everyone elese's good ideas...   
“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #18 on: February 09, 2008, 05:52:30 am »
Isn't it a little lame to have a controller like 2 feet to the left or right of the monitor?  How is that even remotely fun to play that way?

Sorry to bust balls but seriously.  Why not just sacrifice those few games that use those specialized controllers?  What's the point of having an "original" controller (4-way, diagonal, whatever) if it is so far off of the monitor?

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #19 on: February 09, 2008, 09:53:34 am »
Isn't it a little lame to have a controller like 2 feet to the left or right of the monitor?  How is that even remotely fun to play that way?

Sorry to bust balls but seriously.  Why not just sacrifice those few games that use those specialized controllers?  What's the point of having an "original" controller (4-way, diagonal, whatever) if it is so far off of the monitor?

Hi Koolmoecraig,


Your point is well made, and those 3 &4 player positions caused me some consternation during design. .

The center of the player 3 and player 4 positions are about 12 inches from the edge of the monitor, and the Monitor is actually pushed back from the CP by quite a bit, allowing a decent viewing angle.

  Coming up with the orientation and angles so it wouldn't be a pain to play there was difficult and it took several mockups to really get one I was happy with. My son and his friends use the 3 & 4 player positions a lot when playing TMNT and they call positions by what character they want to play. I have even found 2 of them playing in the 3 & 4 player positions one day- leaving the 1&2 player postions open. So apparently 6-8 year olds don't find any benefit in one position or another... so I think I succeeded in making those positions useable.

 However, in the end I still ended up with a CP that was about 6 inches wider than I wanted, and those controls further out than I wanted.   I even toyed with the idea of making a panel that used an arc rather than 3 sections at angles, in order to try and move the controls in a bit. Sadly my woodworking skills are not as good as all that (but I would love to see someone try it)  and it would require me to not only have 2 identical arcs for the rails, but also to cut varying width panels at specific angles, and place arcs at the top and bottom. At that point the panel lighting would have been made more complicated as well, though a string of LEDs along the arc would probably work...   If I had unlimited funds and decided to pay to have the CP Plexi laser etched and cut, I would have done it, but at that point, I decided against that approach, although it would be undoubtedly WAY cooler than what I did.. who knows, if someday I retire and have more wealth and time than I know what to do with, it might still make a good project.   

I suppose I could have also just made the player 3 & 4 positions part of a dedicated panel that extended to the left or right of the modular one, allowing me to move those controls in closer, and angling them enough so there would be enough room for 4 players to stand side by side.   My original thought however was also one of storage. When I wasn't using a panel, at the moment, but knew I would be putting it back in soon, it seemed like it would be a good place to park it. In practice, my kids have their friends playing so often that I need to leave the joys and buttons in the 3 & 4 player positions 98% of the time.   I guess I also had dreams of one day having a 3 TB panels  for Rampart, but it wouldn't be too much to ask to let that dream go. In retrospect and now that you suggest it, doing a hybrid Modular /dedicated panel would probably have been a really good idea...  But hey its detachable, so if it ever really bothers me, off it comes and a new one is put on..

“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #20 on: February 09, 2008, 10:43:41 am »

Haven't even visited your site yet but had to say this thing is awesome, nice work! :cheers:

I'm always a sucker for glowing blue things and there's no shortage here.

Love those 20" Acer monitors, I've been using them in all my slim cabinets. Unfortunately they are getting really tough to find.

Well I'm off to your site, I need to know more about that marquee. :)

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    • The Ghost in the Machine Project Thread
Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #21 on: February 09, 2008, 11:33:00 am »

Haven't even visited your site yet but had to say this thing is awesome, nice work! :cheers:

I'm always a sucker for glowing blue things and there's no shortage here.

Love those 20" Acer monitors, I've been using them in all my slim cabinets. Unfortunately they are getting really tough to find.

Well I'm off to your site, I need to know more about that marquee. :)

Thanks Knievel,

Praise from you is a mighty thing....

Your Neon Mame was the inspiration for me to really even attempt to build a cab, so the glowing blue  stuff is just coming round full circle. 

In regards to the marquee,  I learned that I should have allowed room for a 24 inch CCFL along the top and bottom (there is too much light fade towars the middle) and I also learned that I should cut the Bezel so that the  lights are less visible. Luckily the latter is something I can do after the fact.. providing I don't let me wife see me do it...  ;)




“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #22 on: February 09, 2008, 12:20:41 pm »

Unbelievable documentation! Really well done, I can barely stop to take build pics. :P

I really wanted to do the EL tape t-mold thing when I built the Neon 3 years ago but couldn't find anything suitable, very cool.

Go enjoy all your hard work!

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #23 on: February 21, 2008, 09:47:45 pm »
This is a totally AWESOME build! It inspired me to register and start posting on the boards! I love the lighting setup
BTW, how much did the Luminglass piece cost? Did they charge extra since it looks like it was a custom design?

Great documentation also.

weisshaupt

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #24 on: February 21, 2008, 10:57:13 pm »
This is a totally AWESOME build! It inspired me to register and start posting on the boards! I love the lighting setup
BTW, how much did the Luminglass piece cost? Did they charge extra since it looks like it was a custom design?

Great documentation also.

Hi Ioargra,

Welcome to the forum (though I am pretty much a newbie myself)  and thanks for the compliments.  I have had a couple of people ask about the luminglas. Its not cheap- that 6 in by 23 inch piece was $300 without shippping.  As far as I can tell Strattman Design owns the patent on the stuff, so unless you want a round production piece made under license, you talk to Wayne.  But he can do anything - including laser cut pieces in the shapes of letters etc.  Smaller pieces are cheaper, but still not as cheap as the novelty ones you can pick up. Anything over 24 inches reguires a specail jig, so costs more.  if only Rectangular was a popular novelty shape!  When working on Ghost, I fell prey to the "in for a penny,  in for a pound" problem, where you just decide you have spent so much time that its just worth it to you to get it to look the way you want..


“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #25 on: February 21, 2008, 11:25:25 pm »
OMG  :notworthy: :notworthy: :notworthy: :notworthy:

K you oficially now have the best (completed) machine on this forum, and anywhere else on the net that ive seen.

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    • The Ghost in the Machine Project Thread
Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #26 on: February 21, 2008, 11:56:30 pm »
OMG  :notworthy: :notworthy: :notworthy: :notworthy:

K you oficially now have the best (completed) machine on this forum, and anywhere else on the net that ive seen.

I appreciate the high praise, but Its not deserved.  I am just waiting for someone else to take the basic stuff I put in and show me how to really do it right... its already happening in regards the the rotating LCD...  What I am really learning is I should have tried to tap the brains of this fourm much earlier in the process..

If I ever get a chance to build Mark II, it will be a much better machine because of the feedback I have gotten here on Mark I


“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #27 on: February 22, 2008, 02:55:39 am »
If you want to support your habbit and be wife friendly, sell it for a lot of money. You have a truely original machine. Sell it for 2x what it cost to build it, and then use that money to buy a new one. Also use some of that proffit to buy your gf something. I sold my first machine, and bought my gf a new lcd for her computer, a nice new coat and a printer. Just a word to the wise ;D

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    • The Ghost in the Machine Project Thread
Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #28 on: February 22, 2008, 10:29:38 am »
If you want to support your habbit and be wife friendly, sell it for a lot of money. You have a truely original machine. Sell it for 2x what it cost to build it, and then use that money to buy a new one. Also use some of that proffit to buy your gf something. I sold my first machine, and bought my gf a new lcd for her computer, a nice new coat and a printer. Just a word to the wise ;D

I don't think I could get twice what it cost to build.. besides, I don't know if I can bear to see it go elsewhere. Maybe I just need some time to cut the umbilical... 


“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #29 on: February 22, 2008, 10:44:43 am »
Plus... What is your time worth? I for one don't think I'll EVER build another one like the one I'm working on. Maybe a simpler design, but not the same. I'm spending just too much time on it.

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #30 on: February 23, 2008, 12:02:31 am »
I got 1400 for mine, I jus posted it on the forums.

Cabinet - $50 xenophobe
parts $100
computer - free
joystick - 120

what costs the money is the time, but being into this its all about spending time doing something you like. I didnt even take in to consideration how many hours it took me. like 3 monthsish. It was my baby but now I have  a new one.


*edit - i almost derailed the topic*
« Last Edit: February 23, 2008, 12:22:19 am by uprightbass360 »

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #31 on: February 23, 2008, 12:50:28 am »
Well done! The innovation on this board never ceases to amaze me.....

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #32 on: February 23, 2008, 01:09:51 am »
The coolness of that control panel outweighs the fact that it is the size of a surfboard...

  :notworthy:

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    • The Ghost in the Machine Project Thread
Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #33 on: February 23, 2008, 09:15:17 am »
The coolness of that control panel outweighs the fact that it is the size of a surfboard...

  :notworthy:
Nah, its 52", way too small to surf with.  You might be able to snowboard with it..

Of course now that I designed the Mark II, it IS looking a bit to wide :>)
I still need to get some 1/8 inch plexi to experiment with, but if that goes well, I am pretty sure the Mark II CP will be much smaller and I hope even cooler.



“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #34 on: March 02, 2008, 12:16:24 am »
Truly an amazing machine!

Makes me feel bad I'm working on my first and it won't even be 1/8 of what you have there.

Maybe I should just give up right now!  ;)   lol

Again, awesome job! 

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #35 on: March 03, 2008, 03:16:25 am »

Wow. That is not a cab. It is a piece of Art!

There has got to be more than a few people here that like large panels.
I know I do.

I have been reluctant to post pics of my 1st cab because of all the negativity towards large panels.

Totally awesome!  :cheers:

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #36 on: March 31, 2008, 02:58:04 pm »
I *like* large panels... they just make me ANGRY because I don't really have room for them in my theater room without sacrificing some comfort/walking area, etc.

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #37 on: April 07, 2008, 05:12:30 pm »
read your pdf on monitor rotation and on led buttons, ive got a mechanical coin mech i might try stick a few leds on, anyway what i want to know is, i looked for the pulley and theres lots on the site and cant see the pacific one, , would a bigger pulley wheel have had worked without the pizza tin or is that still required? also what bearings did you use, im in uk and trying to find parts are hard,i want to do a 15" dell rotating monitor and then my own 20" crt one

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    • The Ghost in the Machine Project Thread
Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #38 on: April 07, 2008, 06:15:42 pm »
read your pdf on monitor rotation and on led buttons, ive got a mechanical coin mech i might try stick a few leds on, anyway what i want to know is, i looked for the pulley and theres lots on the site and cant see the pacific one, , would a bigger pulley wheel have had worked without the pizza tin or is that still required? also what bearings did you use, im in uk and trying to find parts are hard,i want to do a 15" dell rotating monitor and then my own 20" crt one

You may want to do a search here on the forum, as there are quite a few Rotating LCD projects going on right now. My project used a 6 inch pulley attached to a pizza plate largely becauce I tried to rotate it with a belt first and already had the pulley mounted.  Other people have used a Wheel and its internal bearing, another sandwiched a roller skate bearing into a piece of MDF, and yet other people are trying out Lazy Susan Bearings. 

There is certainly no universally accepted method for doing the LCD mount at this point and a lot of experimentation going on.  What you need to look for is :

1) Nearly frictionless rotation (totally frictionless is bad, adding something that has a little friction to it actually helps this mechanism - something I learned from other here who are smarter than me)
2) A easy way to attach the monitor (my plastic pully is easy to drill through, the pizza plate wasn't as easy - which is why many of the people doing projects now are using MDF or wood as the Pulley/mount)
3) A LARGE Circle to act as a pulley  (my 6 inch pully is merely providing the bearing, the pizza pie plate is the actual pully the motor acts against) So A Really large pully would work better than my six inch diameter one, but any of the methods being explored provide this.

As far as the LCD goes:
1) Try to select one with the VESA mount dead center of the screen. If you don't, you will have to modify the mount to accomodate the difference
2) Select a monitor with a WIDE viewing angle. Do not go by Specifications, you need to see and touch it to know how it will do.   Otherwise as its rotated, it may become unviewable if you are too far off axis, and that, in general is bvad if your joystick position is off axis :>) Some are great, others not so much.

I haven't done a CRT based project, and I generally don't want to because you have to add the degauss in. DaOldMan has got one, and would be a good person to ask. 
“A government ... cannot have the right of altering itself. If it had, it would be arbitrary. It might make itself what it pleased; and wherever such a right is set up, it shews there is no constitution” - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man

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Re: The Ghost in the Machine (Updated with more Pics)
« Reply #39 on: May 03, 2008, 11:10:29 pm »
Cool project.  Curious to know how the velcro'ed modules are holding up under use.

Love the old school etchings too.  Very, very nice.

~telengard
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