Computer:
I got 2 free computers from friends. I used 1 for parts trying to fix my old Megatouch machine and that didn't work too well. And the other computer was so slow that even MAME lagged on it. So, I turned to either my laptop or my older desktop. The desktop was a good option; however, not sure of the video card and I saw no S-video output on quick inspection, but maybe I'm not looking in the right spot? But no matter what I use, I plan to house all of the games on an external 300GB hard drive. This should have plenty of space to house all games and any future additions. I don't forsee any problems using an external drive, but perhaps I'm wrong there? Hope not since there's not a ton of space in the desktop and it would make updating in the future much easier (and could make the gaming somewhat portable).
Monitor:
My plan was to use 1 of the 2 27" TVs I inherited. Unfortunately, my opening in the cabinet is 24" at the edge, 25.5" inside. Both TVs are at least 26" in the case. I'd rather avoid decasing if possible, but it's an option if need be. But before I'd do that, I'd want to figure out how I will connect my computer. I'd probably need a new video card, not sure. At this point, I'm ruling out the arcade montior. A future cab or addition, that may change. So, my only other options on hand are tiny 15" and 17" CRT monitors. Fine for testing, but I have space for upto a 27" monitor, so I really want to go bigger, especially since I enjoy both vertical and horizontal games and I don't want the vert game to look tiny. I've been considering buying an LCD monitor. I've read opins on all of these and they run the gambit. I know the LCD won't look authentic and I guess I'm okay with that. It seems that is the only real drawback. Since there are now even guns that work on the LCD, I can't see any other drawbacks to it. But I'm open to feedback. Or, I just may buy a smaller TV.
Controls:
First, to see my dilemma on what to include and not include, I made a top 10 list of my favorite games growing up:
Arkanoid
Ms. Pacman
Street Fighter II
Golden Tee
Gauntlet
Spy Hunter
Q-bert
Star Wars
Tron
Pole Position
After Burner
Could I get any more diverse in controls needed? So, I had to make some tough decisions for this 1st build. I'm definitely going 2-player. The existing 49-way joysticks I'm assuming would not work for these purposes so I'll either sell or trade them.
2 - u360s (since I'm going for the u360s, do I really need a dedicated 4-way as I've seen on many other cabs)
7 button fighting/neo-geo layout for the 2 players - haven't decided on brand name, open to suggestons. May try to use some of my existing buttons. As for other buttons, not sure how many I need at this point.
I'll also have a trackball and spinner. Still deciding on which brands for those. Suggestions welcome. For spinner, I was considering the TurboTwister2 with the steering wheel. Any thoughts on those? What do people use for gas pedal or shifting gears in games that require it with those?
It was suggested to me to use the existing control panel box as it's in great shape. I'll just need to create the actual panel. The only drawback is that it's too wide for comfortable pinball playing. I haven't tried any pinball games at all yet, so am I missing out if I don't include the pinball? I haven't done any research on the pinball gaming yet.
I'm thinking of including 2 EMS Top Gun II guns as well, that way they're good even if I go with the LCD monitor. Any input on those is welcome too, especially in regards to MAME games. I figure the guns add some additional fun to the cab but take up no additional space on the panel.
I also figure on trying to incorporate additional usb connections on the side out of sight, and headphone jacks if I can figure it out.
Encoder: I'm leaning to one of the IPACs, not sure which. Again, open to suggestions.
Speakers: Probably going to use my existing computer speakers unless they really sound terrible. I figure this is an easy upgrade later.
Hope I'm not leaving anything out. I already got wordy, so I'll end here for now...