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Favorite Front End
Raitsa:
GameEx is my choice, it does all i need easily and a heck of a lot more, meaning i have disabled most of the GameEx´s functions in my own cabinet :laugh2:
damphon:
I'm a fan of Hyperspin it feels like a real arcade machine, not like a computer.
jimmy2x2x:
My 2 cents
MaLa is amazing for a free FE, the system requirements and boot speed are second to none!
Loadmans tireless support and constant improvements and praiseworthy, thanks loadman ;)
Hyperspin is the opposite for me, heavy system requirements and slow boot speed
But the results are show stopping - if you have the horsepower and time to set it up right
its probably the most impressive FE
Maximus Arcade, for me this one falls between MaLA and Hyperspin, moderate system requirements
and an acceptable load time for a visually impressive FE. Maximus's real strengths, for me at least, are its
very easy configuration, global 'quit emulator' key binding and excellent community support.
Its just so clean looking! Look at it gleam 8)
I haven't had time to check out any others, but I intend to when I do have the time.
For me right now, and a lot of this is down to my target PC.
1) Maximus Arcade
2) MaLa
3) Hyperspin
Its so nice to have so many quality choices for Front Ends, I hope they all enjoy the success they rightly deserve
Dazz:
--- Quote from: jimmy2x2x on August 12, 2010, 04:41:41 am ---Hyperspin is the opposite for me, heavy system requirements and slow boot speed
But the results are show stopping - if you have the horsepower and time to set it up right
its probably the most impressive FE
--- End quote ---
Slow boot speed? What kind of speeds are you looking at? With the intro video turned off, I can have HyperSpin loaded and running within 8 seconds after launch. The 8 seconds is with complete wheels, images and text. If your setup was taking longer on a decently specc'd machine then you're running into something else causing the longer boot times. Perhaps invalid character in the XML files, incorrectly named or rogue file or something similar. We have also noticed slow downs/lag happening if you have some USB control devices plugged in or if you have Windows Defender Realtime scanning turned on. Windows Defender seems to be trying to scan every image that's loaded in HyperSpin upon launch and that definitely slows the launch speed. Other than those issues there should be very little boot time with HyperSpin as it doesn't scan or query other databases for game lists. It uses XML which is loaded dynamically as you navigate the wheel.
I've been a Maximus user for about 7 years and Maximus has always had one of the longest boot times out of any Front End. It has to go through a scan process upon each launch which can last up to 30 seconds depending on how many systems you have setup. Not having the ability to add emulators other than the "supported" emulators greatly crippled MA for me. Not to mention the lack of support and development from the developer was the final straw for me as a user. I'm not sure where you get "Excellent community support" from unless you are considering the BYOAC forums for support. If so then yes, there is good support here. However, there is NOT any support or community involvement by the developer. However, with that said, MA is still a good front end, especially for beginners. I still have it installed and load it up every 6 months or so, but I don't use it on a regular basis like in the past.
I also used Mala and MameWah for a while as well before settling with Maximus long ago. Both are great at what they do, but both are basic front ends. Both have very quick loading times that are slightly faster than HyperSpin by perhaps 3 or 4 seconds. Both will run on very low system spec's.
GameEx is also very nice front end and it is fairly easy to setup for beginners. I tried using it on my MAME cabinet, but it was too Windows like. If I was running a HTPC then I would definitely consider it to integrate into HBMC or Windows Media Center for a seamless environment.
headkaze:
--- Quote from: Dazz on August 23, 2010, 04:05:11 am ---GameEx is also very nice front end and it is fairly easy to setup for beginners. I tried using it on my MAME cabinet, but it was too Windows like. If I was running a HTPC then I would definitely consider it to integrate into HBMC or Windows Media Center for a seamless environment.
--- End quote ---
Here is a theme I made for GameEx recently based on a MaLa theme. Does it look too "Windows like"?
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