Total cost of building my machine

[blind_dado]

I tried to keep meticulous records of what I spent while building my cabinet, and offer my records here for anyone starting out on a similar project.  I definitely went crazy on a few things, and this is by no means a cheap cabinet, but hopefully it gives some idea of what it costs to build an upright mame machine, especially if you are starting out with nothing, including tools.  (I did this partially because I noticed that a lot of other "total cost" posts leave out a lot of small expenses.)  It proved to be an expensive hobby for me, but worth every penny in the end!

(Items over $50 are colored red.)

[Dizzle]

Any pictures of the final product? 

[blind_dado]

I thought you'd never ask!   

You can check out the whole build process (and final results) here:

http://rdowney.com/arcadeodyssey/

[Epyx]

blind_dado,

I have seen this build online before and loved it. I really like your take on the side lighting. I will be doing something similiar with my new project since the neon rings from Knievel's build are nowhere to be found online (in yellow). 

How do you like the 27" Nieman...is it a pain when switching resolutions?

Great build!

And lastly props for somehow managing to not only get your wife to pose with your cabinet...but smile and not roll her eyes like many of our wives would have in said position...

[Turnarcades]

Seems quite pricey for a first build, but then you have included the tool cost, you have gone top-end withthe parts and features and the quality does seem right up there. Well done, reminds me of the NEONMAME project...

[blind_dado]

Knievel's Neon Mame is what started it all for me!  I saw that and knew that I had to build one.  Two other big inspirations were Mountain's mame cab and Stoli's mame cab.

I decided not to go with the neon rings because they necessarily have a dead spot in them (Knievel verified this and I saw it on one in person as well) and I wanted the side art to be back-lit like a marquee.  Another advantage is that I can change the brightness by just changing the bulb (I suppose I could put a dimmer on there, Hmmm...).

The 27" Nieman is great, with a couple of caveats.  First, the circuit board blew out the first day I used it.  Rick sent me a new board and instructions on how to install it and it's been fine ever since.  Second, I almost never put it into the higher res that the monitor is capable of.  The only time that I really use 1024x768 is when I play Geometry Wars, which is a pretty good game for a cab.  So, I might go for a lower res monitor next time.

And as far as the pose goes, YES, I'm the luckiest man alive, as my girlfriend is an avid gamer!  Mostly World of Warcraft these days, but she has an appreciation of the classics as well.
 

[fallacy]

I thought you'd never ask!   Wink

You can check out the whole build process (and final results) here:

http://rdowney.com/arcadeodyssey/

So you are the guy that inspired me to build my cab. I spent almost as much as you and still spending money to improve my cab, all because I had seen your cab when I was doing my research and thought I need to make something as good as that… you bastared!







No but your Arcade Cabinet is the best one out there.

[Endaar]

Thanks for posting that. I feel better now, having spent roughly the same amount. The little details certainly add up.

[blind_dado]

Fallacy, that's awesome.  Now your machine can inspire others.  It's just a big circle of influences, with the student becoming the teacher!  After you build one of these, you feel like there's nothing you can't accomplish with a little research and patience.   I think my next project might be writing Zen and the Art of Arcade Machine Construction!

[RayB]

$36 on one paint brush? You DESERVE the huge amount of money your project has been. 

[blind_dado]

Ha!  No, it wasn't $36 for ONE paintbrush, it was $36 for one SET of paint brushes.  It was a kit from Home Depot that came with several brushes and a paint pan.  Quite economical, actually.

[fallacy]

blind_dado for your next project use this virtual pinball concept and build something kick ass. I need a frame of reference again for when I build mine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkVYnnudHdM&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fhacknmod.com%2Fhack%2Fflat-screen-hacked-virtual-pinball-cabinet%2F&feature=player_embedded#t=24

[bkenobi]

Yeah, what would the cost of that be though?!   

I suggested that to my wife and she didn't seem exactly excited about the idea.  She likes the real pin, but I don't think she would play the virtual one.  Cool idea either way.  I haven't seen that implementation for Hyperspin before, but it looks incredible!

[blind_dado]

Just to see what it would look like, I started up Future Pinball on my big screen TV and set it to rotate 90 degrees, but I couldn't get the playfield to go full screen like it is in the video posted by fallacy.  Instead, it always shows the score board, even from above.  Does anyone know how to get FPB to display the playfield full screen?  Do you have to have a second monitor for that?  (One for the playfield and one for the scoreboard?)

[Epyx]

I think he's using the Hyperpin front end which ads features for rotations.

[dekar24k]

Dude that is a super-sweet cabinet. I can't find anything I'd want to change or do different. Congrats!

[Dazz]

blind_dado for your next project use this virtual pinball concept and build something kick ass. I need a frame of reference again for when I build mine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkVYnnudHdM&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fhacknmod.com%2Fhack%2Fflat-screen-hacked-virtual-pinball-cabinet%2F&feature=player_embedded#t=24

BTW - the outcome of this video turned into this:






For the full photo album - Click here.