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surface tension:
My advice is to have a browse around the forum so you can get a little more specific. It seems like you have stumbled upon the forum and just said "What shall I do?"
Have a look around. Do you want an upright or cocktail. 2-player or 4-player. LCD, PC-monitor or arcade monitor... These are just the broad decisions... later you'll have to decide which joysticks you want to use!
You'll get some excellent advice around here, but you have to be prepared to do some of the work, especially the ground work.
BASS!:
True true, a good mame rig is more then just the money for parts, and in the end should be one of the sub areas of your build. But as far as building a full machine from scratch, with all new components, to really run great is another area that people overlook. On the other hand, the great thing about mame, is it doesn't take much to do most of the games. If you would want a $500 system I would go with these substitutions:
Processor
Intel Core 2 Duo E6550 Conroe 2.33GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80557E6550
$169.99(-$70)
Cpu Cooler
None(-$42.99)
severdhed:
i agree, the stock heatsink/fan that comes with the core2 duo is more than sufficient for normal use. unless you plan on overclocking it, or have it in a tiny box with no ventilation, it would be fine and save you some money
LoyalistRevolt:
So your saying it would be cheaper to make a CPU cabniet
Really I just want to know where to start!
TelcoLou:
--- Quote from: LoyalistRevolt on February 21, 2008, 07:09:13 pm ---So your saying it would be cheaper to make a CPU cabniet
Really I just want to know where to start!
--- End quote ---
Here's how I started:
• I installed MAME command-line version with MAMEwah as a front-end on an old laptop.
• Hooked up an old 17" CRT monitor.
• Got a cheap ($10) set of speakers.
• Got 2 Logitech Precision USB joypads.
• Set everything up on a small, wheeled TV cart.
• Set up Windows to boot into MAMEwah.
After playing for a few dozen hours, I got the urge to put it all in a real cabinet, then scoured around and with my lovely Wife's help, found a local guy who was selling old, gutted cabinets in need of some TLC; picked up one for $50 and got busy.
It all depends on your level of woodworking skill, how handy with wiring you are, and your dedication to "Building Your Own"
I also recommend getting the "Project Arcade" book; it's got a wealth of info that helped me out with making my decision :)