power cord for marquee light

[cowgod]

i recently got an arcade cabinet that used to be dungeons and dragons.  there's a marquee light in there that i want to try to use, but the power on it is a strange 6 pin molex (i'm new to arcade cabinets).  is there an adapter that would let me plug this into a regular wall socket?  It looks something like this:

http://www.mikesarcade.com/cgi-bin/store.pl?sku=MNL06P

[SirPeale]

If I had to guess, I'd say that some of the connections in that Molex connector do more than just power your marquee light.  Speaker connections and power button connectors come to mind.

What's wrong with your existing marquee light?

[Kevin Mullins]

How many wires go into that molex?

[TheShanMan]

In my case (centipede cab with a florescent light), it just needed 110, so I just took a good extension cord, cut it open, and wired it up. I have a power strip that turns on the outlets when it senses current for the computer, so with the monitor, speakers, and marquee light controlled by that, it works great.

Of course, you would need to be careful doing this and if you don't know what you're doing with this kind of stuff then don't even try.

[cowgod]

now that you mention it, there is a power switch wired in there somehow.  there is also a speaker in the cabinet, but the wires coming out of that look like they were cut and are just dangling there not connected to anything.  i've done my fair share of wire stripping and soldering, so i suppose i could take a stab at it.  do you guys need pictures to understand how the thing is wired up?  is it really worth it to try to salvage this or should i just go buy a task light at wal mart that has a regular electrical plug?

[SirPeale]

Again I ask: what's wrong with your original fixture?

[cowgod]

i don't know if there's anything wrong with it--that's what i'm trying to find out.  i have no way of powering it up to see if it works because i don't know what this 6 pin plug is on the end of it.

[SirPeale]

So the socket is just dangling free?

Marquee lights (at least the florescent variety) have two leads: hot and neutral.  Regular AC wiring.  I'm betting if you look closer you'll note that two of the leads in that Molex plug go to the fixture, and the rest go elsewhere.

A picture would help greatly as well.

[cowgod]

yeah, it's just dangling there.  i can get a picture tomorrow.

[DeLuSioNal29]

Why not just get an LED light and be done with it?  GroovyGameGear.com sells one for $17.95.  I bought 2 of them and have them each in 2 separate machines.  They were a snap to install.

I have included 2 pictures to this post of my machine where I have one of them installed in.

The first pic is of the LED installed.  I simply removed the original light fixture and inserted a piece of wood in it's place.  Then I used the 2 screws the LED light came with and attached it to the wood.  The 2 wires (12v and ground) are attached to the power supply of my PC so that when I power up the PC, it lights up the marquee.

The second pic is of the marquee when it's lit (poor example of it lit - I should have turned out the lights in the room.  Also there is a reflection of my light fixture from the ceiling... but it will have to do).

You can grab the LED light here:  http://groovygamegear.com/webstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=83&products_id=307

Hope this helps!

~ DeLuSioNaL

[cowgod]

here's a pic of the marquee.

http://www.4shared.com/file/35480328/1807f70f/marquee_power.html

it is indeed wired in with the power switch that is on the top of the cabinet.  per your suggestion, delusional, would it be safe to assume the two wires coming out of this marquee are also 12v and ground?  if so, then i could wire them into a 4 pin molex and hook them up to my pc power supply right (as is common on regular pc case fans)?

[SirPeale]

Yeah...uh, no.  110V AC, my friend.

I can't see what's behind that Molex because your hand is in the way, but it's moot anyway.  Your fixture appears to be just fine.  Just wire it into 110V AC and be done with it.

In the event that the bulb or ballast are bunk, just buy a cheap under counter 18" fixture from Wal-Mart or Home Depot (or better yet, your locally owned hardware store).  Transplant the ballast or bulb into the unit.  Cheaper than getting individual part replacements.  And you're done.

[DeLuSioNal29]

here's a pic of the marquee.

http://www.4shared.com/file/35480328/1807f70f/marquee_power.html

it is indeed wired in with the power switch that is on the top of the cabinet.  per your suggestion, delusional, would it be safe to assume the two wires coming out of this marquee are also 12v and ground?  if so, then i could wire them into a 4 pin molex and hook them up to my pc power supply right (as is common on regular pc case fans)?

I'm not sure how it would work with the molex connector you have, I was just suggesting that you scrap it all together and purchase the LED light for $17.95.  Then simply connect it to a spliced molex connector from the PC power supply (yellow and black wires) (12v - yellow / ground - black) directly in the computer case.  That way it makes it nice and neat when turning your PC on.

But you can try what Peale suggested as well.

I took another pic of my lit marquee (this time in the dark) last night to show you how it looks lit with the LED light.

Good luck.

~ DeLuSioNaL

[cowgod]

sorry i'm such a newb...

so how exactly do i wire it up?  just cut off a plug from some old lamp or something and solder them together?

maybe i'd be better off just buying a new light like you suggested.  i just figured if this light was still good, why throw it away...

[DeLuSioNal29]

I'm not really sure how it would be wired up.  I was a newbie too, and didn't really feel like messing with electricity (110v) so I chose the safer route.  Also, there was no guarantee that the light fixture that was already in there worked to begin with.  That and the fact that I didn't want to ever change out the bulb when it died... ever.

~ D

[SirPeale]

Yes, just wire it to 110V.  There are two wires going to that fixture.  You can take a lamp cord (though if you look likely it's already wired for AC) and use wire nuts to attach it.

As for replacing the bulb...likely you'll never have to with home use.  And if you do, replacements are extremely cheap.  And the replacement will last a very long time (with home use).

[DeLuSioNal29]

Sounds good.  Best of luck!

~ D