SlikStik Arcade Machines Released!

[1UP]

After building a cab of my own, I can see how prices can quickly get out of hand.  I'm not talking about your average painted MDF or plywood cab.  Melamine and laminate is not that cheap (especially in colors), even when you buy it direct.  If you're doing it yourself, you'll need two 4x8 sheets just to build the sides.   If you're lucky, you can build the front and back from the leftovers, but most likely you'll need a third sheet.

People email me all the time to ask if I'll builld them a rotating CP cab.  I ususally give them an estimate of $6000 to $8000.  This is half just to make them give up and build it themselves (it works, I never hear from them again   ) but it's also because I'd have to take a few weeks off of work to build another one, and that's how much money I would lose from the time off.

Now maybe I'm luckier than some, I make a pretty decent living (although it doesn't stretch as far here in California) but when I get ready to make another cab, it will probably be a pre-fab or a used jamma or something that I can just stuff a PC into and be done with.  When I built the first one, I was out of work for a full month, but I would have rather had the work and bought a ready made cab, except that no one makes a cab like the one I wanted!    To me, $1000 for a cab that's probably better quality than the one I built, that just needs the guts and a little finishing, is not out of the question.  But I won't argue that it's not for everyone...

[hyiu]

hey 1up.... instead of asking you to build me your cab....

maybe you should work on a "rotating cp add-on kit" that can be easily added on to.... let's say... slikstick's pre-fab cab (or other generic cabs...) !!!...

that would be a cool thing to have..... haaa haa.....

[SlikStik-Christian]

We just wanted to thank everyone who has posted positive as well as objective replies to our new product. One thing is for certain; you will continue to see cutting edge products from the SlikStik team for years to come.

                                                                 

[DeathMonk]

Damn!  Did I miss everything?!

Oh, well..  Nice looking cabinet slikster.

Everyone else:  Quit yer bitchin.

[Minwah]

I just took 5 to check out this new machine, mixed receptions so far I gather...

So, $900 for the lite version, which I think is ~

[SirPoonga]

Everyone else:  Quit yer bitchin.

HEhe, you mean objective response  Hey, without feedback companies don't know if their product needs a change or not

[Wienerdog]

Here we go again... I'll tell you what, you make the same exact cabinets we make for $335.00 and I will by them from you all day long.

Let's be fair, he isn't saying you should sell them for $335, he estimated the materials at $335.  If you want to be witty, then say you will buy the parts from him all day long for $335 and then build your cabs...

[Amra]

I would pay 650, slightly more if it recieves good reviews, but thats for the Lite cab, as that (provided you own your own mill) would give you nearly the 300 dollar profit, the price that you saved me due to the 10 hours of cutting, sanding, shaping and drilling that I didnt have to do ( all at a craftsmans rate of 30 dollars an hour).  Since I still have to assemble it, I dont see paying you a 600 dollar profit.  Again, this is under the assumption you own your own mill, if you dont own one, I am not going to pay you an extra 300 Dollars just because you have to pay someone else to cut the stuff for you, that is your fault, not mine...

Ok, Im done ranting...  I promise

Good Luck once again!

[SlikStik-Christian]

I would pay 650, slightly more if it recieves good reviews, but thats for the Lite cab, as that (provided you own your own mill) would give you nearly the 300 dollar profit, the price that you saved me due to the 10 hours of cutting, sanding, shaping and drilling that I didnt have to do ( all at a craftsmans rate of 30 dollars an hour).  Since I still have to assemble it, I dont see paying you a 600 dollar profit.  Again, this is under the assumption you own your own mill, if you dont own one, I am not going to pay you an extra 300 Dollars just because you have to pay someone else to cut the stuff for you, that is your fault, not mine...

Ok, Im done ranting...  I promise

Good Luck once again!

Maybe we should just give you one, and then you could be busy assembling it rather than posting any more replies! On second thought, maybe not.

[Todd H]

I'll take one if you're giving a few away!  

[Amra]

You still havent said whether you own or rent a mill... Wonder why that is

[Sasquatch!]

You still havent said whether you own or rent a mill... Wonder why that is

Because it's nobodies business, and it has nothing to do with what the price "should" be?

Here's an absurd though: If SlikStik notices that they're not selling any of these cabinets, they might consider lowering the price.  If they manage to move a decent amount of cabinets at the current price, they'll probably keep it around the same.  SUPPLY AND DEMAND, WHAT A CONCEPT!

That said, I agree with Howard_Castro's earlier points.

[night]

[jcoleman]

Amra,

If you are still in college, do yourself a favor and enroll in a business course this coming semester.  Heck, even an econ course would do, or accounting.  Your "everything costs too much" stress would decrease enough to lower your blood pressure.  Profit is never equal to the difference between materials cost and selling price.  

Personally, I cannot afford the nearly $1300 this cabinet costs after delivery fees.  However, if I could afford it, I would likely buy it as it looks like a good product and would save me hours and hours and hours of work.  I could have had a fully functional MAME cabinet in weeks instead of the months it is taking me now...and I wouldn't have had to "mame" (heheheh) a classic Galaxian cabinet (yes I feel shame).

Christian, is there any chance of offering customized cabinets in the future?  My plans for my next MAME machine involve the EA Sports PGA Tour Golf cabinet design, which I think is a beautiful modern cabinet and would allow for some innovative modular control panel designs.

[SlikStik-Christian]

Amra,

If you are still in college, do yourself a favor and enroll in a business course this coming semester.  Heck, even an econ course would do, or accounting.  Your "everything costs too much" stress would decrease enough to lower your blood pressure.  Profit is never equal to the difference between materials cost and selling price.  

Personally, I cannot afford the nearly $1300 this cabinet costs after delivery fees.  However, if I could afford it, I would likely buy it as it looks like a good product and would save me hours and hours and hours of work.  I could have had a fully functional MAME cabinet in weeks instead of the months it is taking me now...and I wouldn't have had to "mame" (heheheh) a classic Galaxian cabinet (yes I feel shame).

Christian, is there any chance of offering customized cabinets in the future?  My plans for my next MAME machine involve the EA Sports PGA Tour Golf cabinet design, which I think is a beautiful modern cabinet and would allow for some innovative modular control panel designs.

Anything is possible, contact us via info@slikstik.com for your requirements.

[pointdablame]

Well since this thread never drops, I'll chime in.

Great work Christian. I think that your cab looks very professional and it sure can save people a lot of hassle.  I, like many here, unfortunately can't afford to spend that kind of money on an empty cab, however, if I could, I would seriously consider your product. As much fun as planning my cab has been, when it finally gets off the ground, I know it will be a ton of work. You've taken all the guesswork out of it for people. Great job.

I may be new here, but I'm surprised at how many people just got so hostile about this.  This hobby is all of our "babies" and the elitist in all of us may want to come out every now and then, but don't blame a person for trying to make a buck.  It comes off as jealousy and arrogance. If you wanna go make a better cab for half the price, go for it. Let me know if you can pull it off, cuz I (and many others here) would like to see how it turns out.  

[1UP]

You still havent said whether you own or rent a mill... Wonder why that is

He has said before that a mill costs 'more than a new car', which most people would assume means that they own one.

As for continuing belief that he has a $300 cost and a $600 profit, read back a few pages, he's already stated several times that his profit margin is well under half of the selling price.  Overhead costs something (usually a lot) and it factors into every product they sell.  If this doesn't finally sink in, then I'm done bashing my skull against a brick wall, it's useless...  

[DeathMonk]

HEhe, you mean objective response  Hey, without feedback companies don't know if their product needs a change or not

I think SlikStik will find out when they don't sell any of those overpriced POS's..

 ;)j/k.... Or am I?  

[RandyT]

He has said before that a mill costs 'more than a new car', which most people would assume means that they own one.

The proper piece of equipment to manufacture this CAN cost more than a new car, but doesn't NEED to.  I know, I own one, it was new and it didn't .

BTW, I am not taking any sides here.  I know what it's like to have been on the receiving end of this a couple of times, once even for a similar product.  The interesting thing is that a good portion of those that make statements like "I would buy one if it was only $600" often don't even have $60 of excess income for such things, let alone 600.

If I could build my own car, I wouldn't call up Ferrari and tell them "I would buy one of their $200,000 vehicles if it only cost $160,000"  

If you really feel strongly that someone is making a mistake in their business practices and sincerely want to help them onto the "right track", try a heartfelt email. You also might want to include some justifications for your views if you expect to be taken seriously.

You might have a better effect that way and you might be doing them a real favor.  Then again, you might just get ignored.  If you are right, they will see that in time.  If not, then it's a good thing they didn't listen to you.  

But it's difficult to see some of the comments in this type of thread as anything other than "pack mentality product bashing".  Is it ok to say "I don't like it and I think it costs too much"?  I would think so, free speech and all  But when you start attempting to analyze a business model without even knowing what that model is, solely in an attempt to justify your statements (which you don't need to do if it's your opinion), I think certain lines are being crossed that probably shouldn't be.  

These items aren't shoes, food or toilet paper.  You don't need to buy these things.  State your opinion, move on and vote with your wallet.  It's the only real power you have as a consumer.

My seven cents

RandyT

[KevSteele]

These items aren't shoes, food or toilet paper.  You don't need to buy these things.  State your opinion, move on and vote with your wallet.  It's the only real power you have as a consumer.

My seven cents

RandyT

Good point, and well said.

But did it really cost you seven cents? By my estimates it should have only cost you 3 cents. I'd take your advice if it was 3 cents, maybe 4. But 7? Surely you could have found a lower-cost advice manufacturer...

 

[CitznFish]

Send me a cab kit and a Slik Stick CO2 and I'll assemble it, review it, and keep it.

[rockhopper]

2500+ views!  

At least these cabs are getting a lot of publicity!

[KevSteele]

2500+ views!  

At least these cabs are getting a lot of publicity!

What's the old saying, "I don't care what you say about me, just as long as you spell the name right?"

Any publicity is good publicity...unless you're Oday or Qusay...  

Kevin

[GroovyTuesdaY]

Amra,

We did not post our news in this forum to get into a mudslinging fest with the hardcore do-it-yourselfers. We simply posted it because we have a good product at a fair price point and we know from our experience as the makers of THE Best commercial control panel available that there is a market for it. Many people have priced out panel parts and looked at the amount of time involved and have decided that it is easier and more feasible to buy our panels.

I wanted to add this one last comment to this discussion.  It has been a little while since i posted here, but for the record i have bought a slikstick joystick and have also built myself a 4 player panel.  
At first i started working on my own panel and after MANY MANY hours of fiddling and tweaking thoughts and ideas and trying to cut angles on various saws (i really had NO woodworking experience since my high school days so i might as well have known nothing hehe)   I then and there decided that for me, the AVERAGE joe user with limited time on my hands decided to take the plunge and order a professional made joystick!!    Let me tell you, i don't regret it one single bit!    I spent over $500 on  a joystick panel......JUST FOR THE FRICKEN JOYSTICK!!!! And in the end i still am glad i did!!!!  
Now i hear people making comments about the price of the cabinets and yes, i will  concede that a $1000 is alot, but if your like me and don't have  much experience nor the endless hours of time it takes to make this stuff, $1000 isn't looking to shabby, especially for something that you will have and enjoy for a LONG time to come.
Bottom line for me is this:  
 SLIKSTICK has a great product line and i will always keep them in mind if i need something for the future!  
Thanks TEAM SLICKSTICK, you guys are great!! Keep up the great work and i look forward to seeing what all kinds of new kewl ideas you can come up with.

GRROOOOOOOOVY!!!  

[Lilwolf]

LOL!  

These items aren't shoes, food or toilet paper.  You don't need to buy these things.  State your opinion, move on and vote with your wallet.  It's the only real power you have as a consumer.

My seven cents

RandyT

Good point, and well said.

But did it really cost you seven cents? By my estimates it should have only cost you 3 cents. I'd take your advice if it was 3 cents, maybe 4. But 7? Surely you could have found a lower-cost advice manufacturer...

 

[skorch]

Just finished reading all the posts, I wish I could have added to this great topic when it was fresh.
Slikstik has a quality product here....but for the $ I'd like to see a customizable blank CP and encoder.

However, why does everyone get so worked up over something that in the end has little to do with the enjoyment of your games?
A cabinet?
What was the original intent of a cabinet? Probably something that needed to be flashy to attract arcade-goers to it? Actually I know there was a little more to it than that but unless one is building their own arcade for the public why would one want to spend the $ and/or deal with the hassle of building one?
Before anyone starts bashing me assuming I'm a young buck who has no recollection of the arcade's golden years, I'm 33.
I had been considering building my own cab for quite some time until I really thought about the reasons I wanted to.
Nostalgia seemed to be the biggest motivation.
I want to relive those days long since past and bring my friends and I back together on weekends.
But when I think back my friends and I had more fun on the home consoles which at the time tried to give one the impression one WAS at the arcade.
I've decided to go with my own CP connected to my PC output to a T.V. instead. It just seems more practical for me plus a couch and a good sized T.V. will be more accomodating for 3 or more friends than everyone crowded around a cabinet.
Anyone who has already built their own cab(s), feel free to try and sway me.  
 

[vegetariansoul]

I read completely through this monster thread also.  I couldn't have more respect for the craftsmen on here, but it is not for me just yet.  

So I wanted to look into getting something that looked great and was well built.

www.custom-arcade.com seemed to have a mindblowing product but the price was obscene.  $9000 for their top model with all the extras!  That arcade better be able to put its arms around me, carry me to bed and ride me!  If my fiance ever found out I dropped that on a cabinet and PC it would be just me and my custom arcade in that waterbed.

Why was there only build your own or $5000+ turnkey options.  A Harvard MBA wasn't necessary to figure the $6000 versions were marked up at least 100%!  I figured somebody would eventually step forward and prefer to sell more machines with a little less markup.  At least not an insulting markup.

My other thread "BIG QUESTION FOR THE BYOAC MASTERS," has links to the three finalists for my cab project.

I emailed slik stick asking about a package deal with a stick and received an immediate call back.  They were very helpful and were supposed to email me a package deal and never did?  It has been 10 days at least.  

Mike

[SpamMe]

Regardless of how wonderful or junky slikstik's product, there were a couple of problems that doomed this thread from the beginning, imo:

1) No matter how you slice it, you're advertising your product in a discussion forum(targeted spam, imo). Yes, you are providing a product pertinent to the folks here, but a better place to put it would be the for sale forum, or something like that.

2)  Semi-prebuilt products (i.e. it's a cabinet all nice and ready, but you still have to do the rest of the work) like this appeal to a very specific end-user: somebody who either makes a lot of money(where saving hours of work is more worthwhile than saving $1000), or somebody that just doesn't want to  spend a lot of time/effort on this sort of thing. For both of these parties, this arcade cabinet is likely not a good solution, simply because there's soooo much more work to be done anyway. The better solution for the rich feller would be to buy a turn-key product ($1500-$4000). Regardless, I'd wager that the majority of people here (build your own arcade controls) don't fall into either of these two categories. Sure, if the price was right many of us would snap one up, but for me, at least, the cost of that cabinet is a whole lot more than I'll be spending on the entire project.