Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum

Main => Main Forum => Topic started by: BillinIndiana on April 27, 2013, 10:36:04 pm

Title: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on April 27, 2013, 10:36:04 pm
 I assume most of you piece together(build) your own systems for your MAME projects.. I'm not sure I'm that educated? Can a regular stock tower handle MAME ? Here's just a quick Best Buy link http://www.bestbuy.com/site/HP+-+Desktop+-+4GB+Memory+-+500GB+Hard+Drive/6835558.p?id=1218809266786&skuId=6835558 (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/HP+-+Desktop+-+4GB+Memory+-+500GB+Hard+Drive/6835558.p?id=1218809266786&skuId=6835558)

 Will something like this work?
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on April 28, 2013, 08:52:23 am
Anyone?
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: 404 on April 28, 2013, 09:02:08 am
generally the idea is to get a processor with a bit more power to it. Mame is more processor intensive than anything. Intel processors tend to show better performance than AMD processors on mame too.

I generally recomend people simply buy parts for a build as opposed to buying a whole new pc out of the box for mame. You can even look around for second hand parts. I just made a penitum D dual core system out of parts that people threw into the pc parts trash heap. I'm able to play most mainstream games up to tekken 3.

Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on April 28, 2013, 09:40:31 am
Yea, I'm not sure I would know what to do? Be nice if you just plugged it all together..
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: 404 on April 28, 2013, 09:42:46 am
Yea, I'm not sure I would know what to do? Be nice if you just plugged it all together..

If all you are looking for is a dedicated pc for mame, i understand. Unfortunately the clock speed on that unit at best buy that you linked to isn't that strong.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on April 28, 2013, 10:12:24 am
That's where I get confused too, I always hear of people using older computers and this one is brand new but too slow I take it.. Here is an example of what I've read about the system requirements..
http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/how_build_kickass_mame_arcade_rig_old_pc_pics?page=0,6 (http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/how_build_kickass_mame_arcade_rig_old_pc_pics?page=0,6)

 Here's a quote from the link
"Fortunately for you, the system requirements for MAME are pretty darn low. If you’ve got a spare computer or parts from the last 5 year, it’ll run MAME just fine."

 So you can see why I'm confused..LOL.. Does he just mean certain games or what?
 
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: Brian74 on April 28, 2013, 10:28:14 am
You can run mame on older computers. The golden era of games should run fine. If you want to run the newer 2d and 3d games you need more power. I purposely built mine so I would have control of the components. This way I could always upgrade. Im running a 3775k i5 with 8gigs of ram, but supports up to 32gigs of dual channel. A evga 560I video card and a 700 watt ps. I can always upgrade the ram CPU and gpu. This will play most games out there with minor glitches if not none at all. I suggest getting the fastest quadcore you can afford.


Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2

Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on April 28, 2013, 10:36:04 am
Like I said , I'm a total noob to all of this ... I'm not real sure what the "3775k i5" is ? Is it an Intel 5 ? What does the 3775k mean?
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: 404 on April 28, 2013, 10:54:55 am
That's where I get confused too, I always hear of people using older computers and this one is brand new but too slow I take it.. Here is an example of what I've read about the system requirements..
http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/how_build_kickass_mame_arcade_rig_old_pc_pics?page=0,6 (http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/how_build_kickass_mame_arcade_rig_old_pc_pics?page=0,6)

 Here's a quote from the link
"Fortunately for you, the system requirements for MAME are pretty darn low. If you’ve got a spare computer or parts from the last 5 year, it’ll run MAME just fine."

 So you can see why I'm confused..LOL.. Does he just mean certain games or what?

I will try to explain it as best i can.

The PC you linked to from best buy is a multi-core processor but unfortunately, it has a core clock speed of just 1.4ghz. Mame however doesn't handle mutli core support like most would expect. From the Mame Performance FAQ (http://mamedev.org/devwiki/index.php?title=FAQ:Performance):

"Recent versions of MAME include a -mt switch which allows some tasks to be threaded off for use by SMP or multicore systems. Thus far the benefits from this are relatively small, because accurate emulation such as MAME strives for cannot easily be broken up into parallel subtasks (it would be like trying to have a baby in one month by impregnating nine women). There are exceptions of course, and MAME will support them via this mechanism in the future. "

PC specs, mame builds and configurations are also determined by what games you actually want to run. The first question you should consider asking yourself is what games you plan on running. Just because mame will run on your computer and pacman runs perfectly it doesn't mean a more modern game is going to run perfectly as well.

Older versions of mame can run on older computers at the sacrifice of emulation accuracy (some debate this) and game support. For example, Mame 0.106 is a popular choice for older PCs and can run about 60% of the games that run on the current mame 0.148. Tweaks and accuracy are still being worked on in subsequent builds of mame as well as adding support for more games.

I handle second hand and deploy computers for a living. This is the general rule of thumb i use as a basic guideline during some of my own mame tests on newer to later computers running mame.

I stick with mame 0.106 for any pc using the following processors. Pentium III, Athlon XP and low spec pentium 4 processors.

I use more recent builds of mame on pentium 4, athlon 64 and pentium D processors and up.

Some go as far as using even older builds of mame from 0.08x-0.09x on really old pentium II, Cyrix, AMD processors.


If you do not have much experience with computers and are on a budget, you can also look for a second hand retail computer and/or factory refurbished units that has a bit higher spec processor like a core 2 duo, core 3 quad, athlon64 X2, X3, X4 etc.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on April 28, 2013, 11:03:07 am
It's the lack of experience with computers and not so much the funds.. Of course you know I'd like to do it as reasonably priced as I can.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: bearzilla333 on April 28, 2013, 11:04:28 am
I had to chyme in on this. Building a computer is a very fun thing to do! The sense of accomplishment and picking the parts/pieces tailored to what you want, or for budget purposes. There are many helpful sites out there that can help you, Google is your friend  :lol.

Here are a few places to help ya start, I think they are decent reads for a first timer:

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/274745-31-step-step-guide-building (http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/274745-31-step-step-guide-building)

http://lifehacker.com/5151369/the-first+timers-guide-to-building-a-computer-from-scratch (http://lifehacker.com/5151369/the-first+timers-guide-to-building-a-computer-from-scratch)

I notice you live in Indiana I too reside there, in Fort Wayne. Good luck with your new computer  :cheers:
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on April 28, 2013, 11:25:57 am
Thanks for the links
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: happyfunball on April 28, 2013, 12:21:56 pm
building a computer is a lot easier than it used to be back in the day. the last computer i bought I didn't build myself was in 1990. the best part is you can control what you put in it and usually do it cheaper unless you buy one of those best buy 300 buck units.

i built a new mame pc about 1.5 years ago using an AMD I got from microcenter that came with a free motherboard and it works fine for everything I've thrown at it so far. i think I spent 300 bucks total. however I don't think I've tried to run a game newer than 95.

if you get confused by all the numbers and labels, and its easy to do, you can ask a lot of people here. any intel i3 and up will work just fine. just find a motherboard that supports the chip and then what ram it supports, and as long as those all match, the rest isn't an issue. any mid-range nvidia card will be fine.
the trickiest part I always have is connecting all the lights and switches from the case to the motherboard. all the other plugs have been color coded and keyed for easy install, but for some reason all those have never been standardized the same way. i still get confused which way pin 1 goes and its always a crapshoot for me to get it right the first time.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: wesbrown18 on April 28, 2013, 01:06:49 pm
I will also add that if you buy a desktop PC you are buying parts that you don't need in an arcade cabinet.  Like the case itself, or a DVD drive.

You can build a nice AMD based machine for a cabinet for about $150-200 total in parts once you bear the above things in mind.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: Ginsu Victim on April 28, 2013, 01:20:43 pm
Short and simple:
There's a version of MAME for any computer you buy. If it can't handle the latest build, just get an older one.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on April 28, 2013, 02:10:48 pm
I will also add that if you buy a desktop PC you are buying parts that you don't need in an arcade cabinet.  Like the case itself, or a DVD drive.

You can build a nice AMD based machine for a cabinet for about $150-200 total in parts once you bear the above things in mind.
So what all do I need then?.. mother board, processor, power supply and a graphics card?

edit:...Also I would have guessed a graphics card would have cost $150.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on April 28, 2013, 03:33:30 pm
If you don't use a case and just mount your pc components inside the cabinet, do you need any type of cooling fan or anything?
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: JDFan on April 28, 2013, 04:35:29 pm
Depends on the system and the local conditions -- but is always best to keep some type of air flow going through the system- Figure at a minimum you'll have a fan and Heatsink on the CPU and inside the Powersupply and on the Graphics card if not using the onboard chipset depending on the system your using that will move some air around but it never hurts to add a couple extra fans.

As far as building a system that part is pretty easy these days since all of the pieces are pretty much keyed so the wiring only fits on the correct parts and facing the proper direction so you really have to try to mess it up ! --- It's not like the old days where you had manually set jumpers etc. to get the proper voltages\speed settings for the particular CPU you install and you could easily set it incorrectly if not careful -- only advantage to buying a prebuilt at times is the copy of windows is included vs. paying $100 just for the operating system software that you want to hide anyway but you can usually find someone with an old copy of the OS they are no longer using instead of buying a new one ! IF you don't want to attempt the build yourself check your local pc shops and craigslist and you should be able to find something that can run things fine fairly cheap since it doesn't need top of the line components.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on April 28, 2013, 08:05:05 pm
What can be built for that $200 range?
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: Brian74 on April 28, 2013, 09:51:29 pm
Here are some links from a guys video that says it cost 250 with a DVD drive and a case. It doesn't include a hdd. SeaSonic SS-300ET Bronze 300W http://tinyurl.com/258bktj (http://tinyurl.com/258bktj)

AMD A6-5400K Trinity 3.6GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) http://tinyurl.com/coo6x9z (http://tinyurl.com/coo6x9z)

Crucial Ballistix 4GB DDR3 1866 http://tinyurl.com/ahmgsac (http://tinyurl.com/ahmgsac)

LG 24X DVD Burner http://tinyurl.com/bawpr64 (http://tinyurl.com/bawpr64)

APEX PC-389-C Black Steel ATX Mid Tower http://tinyurl.com/n9x9ku (http://tinyurl.com/n9x9ku)

ASRock FM2A75M-DGS http://tinyurl.com/8d3kvuc (http://tinyurl.com/8d3kvuc)
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: wesbrown18 on April 29, 2013, 12:51:19 pm
Here are some links from a guys video that says it cost 250 with a DVD drive and a case. It doesn't include a hdd. SeaSonic SS-300ET Bronze 300W http://tinyurl.com/258bktj (http://tinyurl.com/258bktj)

AMD A6-5400K Trinity 3.6GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) http://tinyurl.com/coo6x9z (http://tinyurl.com/coo6x9z)

Crucial Ballistix 4GB DDR3 1866 http://tinyurl.com/ahmgsac (http://tinyurl.com/ahmgsac)

LG 24X DVD Burner http://tinyurl.com/bawpr64 (http://tinyurl.com/bawpr64)

APEX PC-389-C Black Steel ATX Mid Tower http://tinyurl.com/n9x9ku (http://tinyurl.com/n9x9ku)

ASRock FM2A75M-DGS http://tinyurl.com/8d3kvuc (http://tinyurl.com/8d3kvuc)

This is about right.  The A6-5400K Trinity is a bit on the high end, and is much of the machine's cost at $75 -- you can get a dual-core Trinity for $54, but that's not worth the $21 difference to give up quad-core.  The ASRock is $54, and can't be gotten cheaper without skimping on quality.  The guy in the video made a configuration error -- you really want DIMMs in pairs rather than singletons.

Here's a pair of 2GB DIMMS for $19 each.  http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231395 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231395)

The DVD drive is questionable in need -- but it can make setup, installation and transfer of data easier, if you don't have a network.

The case is so cheap, and it includes the PSU -- but you might want a higher grade of PSU and get that instead of a case for $35.  Or you can get just a PSU for $15.

Decent PSU:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171046 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171046)

Cheap-ass PSU:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817170012 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817170012)

You will need a system disk in addition to above -- a 250-500GB drive will set you back about $50.

I'm a fan of using a SSD in a cabinet, however.   32 to 64GB models can be gotten for $50-60.

So the total system cost as configured above would be about $250, including the components that are missing from the list above.

Trinity - $74.99
ASRock - $54.99
Pair of 2GB DDR3 - $37.00
32GB SANDisk SSD - $47.99
PSU - $30

edit:...Also I would have guessed a graphics card would have cost $150.

Nope.  The AMD APU has a capable GPU onboard, and for emulation purposes, a $150 card is a total waste.

Only advantage to buying a prebuilt at times is the copy of windows is included vs. paying $100 just for the operating system software that you want to hide anyway but you can usually find someone with an old copy of the OS they are no longer using instead of buying a new one ! IF you don't want to attempt the build yourself check your local pc shops and craigslist and you should be able to find something that can run things fine fairly cheap since it doesn't need top of the line components.

My answer to this is GroovyArcade, which doesn't run Windows. :)  Free.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: mcseforsale on April 29, 2013, 03:26:29 pm
If you need dual core, try an off-lease:

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?InvtId=DC7900SFF-C2D30-MAR-12R&cpc=RESX (http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?InvtId=DC7900SFF-C2D30-MAR-12R&cpc=RESX)

If you don't, use an old P4.  This is a Dell OptiPlex GX260 P4 3.2Ghz with 2 GB ram on Windows XP Pro, Mamewah, Mame, Daphne, SNES and Atari 2600 emus.  It also runs SKJukebox:
(http://i128.photobucket.com/albums/p191/mcseforsale/Basement_Reborn/IMAG0406_zps4519f1d9.jpg) (http://s128.photobucket.com/user/mcseforsale/media/Basement_Reborn/IMAG0406_zps4519f1d9.jpg.html)


This cab runs an old Dell Optiplex GX150 Celeron M 3.2Ghz (I think) with 1GB of RAM on Windows XP Pro, Mamewah, Mame, SNES and Atari 2600.  No jukebox on this one...he doesn't want the added complexity.  It runs Killer Instinct just fine, which is my litmus test since I'm not really interested in games after that.  And KI is pretty resource intensive.

(http://i128.photobucket.com/albums/p191/mcseforsale/GUNSLINGER_MAME_CAB/100MEDIAIMAG0317_zps380bfe11.jpg) (http://s128.photobucket.com/user/mcseforsale/media/GUNSLINGER_MAME_CAB/100MEDIAIMAG0317_zps380bfe11.jpg.html)


AJ
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: severdhed on April 29, 2013, 05:56:23 pm
i'm running a p4 3ghz with 4gb of ram in one of my cabinets, and an athlon xp 2500+ with 2gb of ram in my other cabinet (both windows xp).  They don't handle the 3d fighting games very well, but everything else runs just fine. 
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on April 29, 2013, 11:26:51 pm
Thanks for all the replies, SO Many options... Be nice if I could get something that could play everything.. I'm not even sure what all can be played ?
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: 05SRT4 on April 30, 2013, 04:08:00 am
Thanks for all the replies, SO Many options... Be nice if I could get something that could play everything.. I'm not even sure what all can be played ?

That's a good question. Being able to play everything is a tough one, not only does it come down to PC power but also compatibility. Meaning the Roms and Emulators used sometimes if you was to run a certain game you need a specific version, then other games may not run on that version of MAME so finding that medium is kind of rough at first.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: mcseforsale on April 30, 2013, 10:54:13 am
I don't understand emulating disc games like PS2/3 since standing for that long would suck. 

I'm old.

AJ
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: keilmillerjr on April 30, 2013, 02:56:48 pm
I'm piecing together my own computer and it will be priced similarly to that tower, but have way better specs.

Check out new eggs CPU/motherboard combo deals. You can then add appropriate memory, a power supply unit, and a hard drive.

http://www.newegg.com/Store/ComboDeals.aspx?ComboStoreID=1&name=CPUs-Motherboards (http://www.newegg.com/Store/ComboDeals.aspx?ComboStoreID=1&name=CPUs-Motherboards)
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: wesbrown18 on April 30, 2013, 03:57:18 pm
I don't understand emulating disc games like PS2/3 since standing for that long would suck. 

I'm old.

AJ


That's why I have a Japanese Candy Cabinet that I can sit down at.  I am also 6'6" so standing for long at an American cabinet sucks too. :)
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: yotsuya on April 30, 2013, 05:08:50 pm
Bill-

Don't fall into that "I want it to play everything trap" we ALL fall into at first. Figure out what you want to play, then figure out how you will be able to play it well. Sure, this will eliminate some games, but you'll be happy with the ones that really work. Unless, of course, you go the Frankenpanel route, which is your call.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: ScotM on April 30, 2013, 07:37:14 pm
Bill I myself just built my first computer a few weeks ago. New Egg has great tutorial videos on you tube on how to do it. Its a 3 part series and takes you through step by step. Everything from picking out the components, to building it, and loading the operating system. I didnt get off any where near the $200 range but I wanted a machine capable of alot more than just running mame.

Newegg TV: How To Build a Computer - Part 1 - Choosing Your Components (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPIXAtNGGCw#ws)
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: candre23 on April 30, 2013, 09:10:08 pm
Here's what I just bought for a bartop build:

(http://i.imgur.com/avWyFZn.jpg)

That price includes tax and shipping. 

It will absolutely smoke the E1 HP you linked in the OP.  The E1 series of chips is AMD's equivilent to Intel's atom - it's a super-low-power chip meant for netbooks and tablets.  Why they're even bothering to sell that in a desktop case is beyond me.

Even a low-end ivy bridge processor like the one I got should handle pretty much anything you throw at it.  For newer games you'd definitely want a better video card to go with it, but that shouldn't cost more than an extra $100 for something like a 7750.  Anything more than that would be mostly wasted on emulation.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: wesbrown18 on April 30, 2013, 09:30:00 pm
Here's what I just bought for a bartop build:

[omitted for brevity]

That price includes tax and shipping. 

It will absolutely smoke the E1 HP you linked in the OP.  The E1 series of chips is AMD's equivilent to Intel's atom - it's a super-low-power chip meant for netbooks and tablets.  Why they're even bothering to sell that in a desktop case is beyond me.

Even a low-end ivy bridge processor like the one I got should handle pretty much anything you throw at it.  For newer games you'd definitely want a better video card to go with it, but that shouldn't cost more than an extra $100 for something like a 7750.  Anything more than that would be mostly wasted on emulation.

At this point, I do need to note that the AMD A6 5400K is about 20% faster, and has a much more capable GPU -- you wouldn't need to throw an additional GPU if you wanted to run 3D games -- it has a Radeon 7540D on-chip!  For the same price, essentially.

This is why it perplexes me that people pooh-pooh AMD so much.  It's a much better proposition at the low-mid end than Intel.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: SithMaster on May 01, 2013, 02:32:48 am
I'm pretty sure newegg has a current offer for 8gb of ram free with select motherboard purchases.  Couple that with a sixty dollar processor, fifty dollar hard drive, twenty dollar after rebate psu, and use a dvd drive from another pc to install windows and you are golden.  If you have a junk pc case you can cut out the motherboard tray with the expansion card slots for support when mounting to the cabinet.  If you don't plan on going with the more modern games you could probably find a used pc on craigslist that could handle everything just fine and just need a fresh install of windows.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on May 01, 2013, 11:47:48 am
Unless, of course, you go the Frankenpanel route, which is your call.
What is that?
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: yotsuya on May 01, 2013, 12:13:32 pm
This (http://www.wickedretarded.com/~crapmame/30.html).
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: ScotM on May 01, 2013, 02:17:15 pm
This (http://www.wickedretarded.com/~crapmame/30.html).

OMG! Thank you yotsuya. I have not laughed that hard in a long time.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on May 01, 2013, 03:54:00 pm
So I take it there aren't any games were two players play each other using the track ball or spinner huh?  I can't think of any from my arcade roaming days..Centipede only had one track ball right?.. Tempest only had one spinner I think? SO, this is Overkill huh?
  Why the 12 buttons ? Can't you play every game with fewer? 
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: mcseforsale on May 01, 2013, 03:54:32 pm
Hahaha.  Yeah.  Kneivel CPs are my favorite.  I tried to create my own a number of years ago and it was funk.  Then I saw Neon Mame and I had to have that layout.  I've used it on all my cabs so far. 

AJ


This (http://www.wickedretarded.com/~crapmame/30.html).

OMG! Thank you yotsuya. I have not laughed that hard in a long time.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: yotsuya on May 01, 2013, 04:10:41 pm
CrapMAME should be required reading for anyone starting out on this hobby.

Look at this (http://www.wickedretarded.com/~crapmame/26.html) one!
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on May 01, 2013, 06:55:07 pm
CrapMAME should be required reading for anyone starting out on this hobby.

Look at this (http://www.wickedretarded.com/~crapmame/26.html) one!
Now this one does look totally horrible..

  Yotsuya you said in order to play All games I would have to build a Frankenpanel.. Why is that?
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: yotsuya on May 01, 2013, 09:14:11 pm
Bill-

Think about all the games you loved as a kid. Then think about what you used to control them. You CAN'T play Star Wars, Pole Position, or Centipede in MAME with a joystick- doesn't work right. If you loved Pac-Man, you won't be able to play it right with an 8-way joystick. Did you like Street Fighter? You'll need 6 buttons per player for that, but if you are playing 1942, then you really only need two buttons. And if you're a TRON fan, you'll need a spinner and a trigger stick to play it the right way.....

You see what happens? A Frankenpanel tries to take all these controls and put them on one control panel. Now, far be it from me to tell you what to build. But my advice is to decide what you want to play, then figure out how that has to happen. You may have to cut some favorites, but that's OK. That's what the second MAME cab is for.  :cheers:
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: mamenewb100 on May 01, 2013, 10:07:10 pm
CrapMAME should be required reading for anyone starting out on this hobby.

Look at this (http://www.wickedretarded.com/~crapmame/26.html) one!
WOW. I almost died laughing. The buttons make fighting games unplayable, P1 and P2 joysticks aren't even. It has 2 coin doors? WTF. Then despite the enormous panel.. he puts the flight stick right in front of the trackball AHAHA. Makes my crappy panel look good.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on May 01, 2013, 10:38:19 pm
Bill-

Think about all the games you loved as a kid. Then think about what you used to control them. You CAN'T play Star Wars, Pole Position, or Centipede in MAME with a joystick- doesn't work right. If you loved Pac-Man, you won't be able to play it right with an 8-way joystick. Did you like Street Fighter? You'll need 6 buttons per player for that, but if you are playing 1942, then you really only need two buttons. And if you're a TRON fan, you'll need a spinner and a trigger stick to play it the right way.....

You see what happens? A Frankenpanel tries to take all these controls and put them on one control panel. Now, far be it from me to tell you what to build. But my advice is to decide what you want to play, then figure out how that has to happen. You may have to cut some favorites, but that's OK. That's what the second MAME cab is for.  :cheers:
  I guess that's were I'm confused.. So you need 6 buttons for Street Fighter and only 2 buttons for 1942, this doesn't mean you need 8 buttons does it?  Can't you have 6 and still play both games?
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: yotsuya on May 01, 2013, 10:48:37 pm
Bill-

Think about all the games you loved as a kid. Then think about what you used to control them. You CAN'T play Star Wars, Pole Position, or Centipede in MAME with a joystick- doesn't work right. If you loved Pac-Man, you won't be able to play it right with an 8-way joystick. Did you like Street Fighter? You'll need 6 buttons per player for that, but if you are playing 1942, then you really only need two buttons. And if you're a TRON fan, you'll need a spinner and a trigger stick to play it the right way.....

You see what happens? A Frankenpanel tries to take all these controls and put them on one control panel. Now, far be it from me to tell you what to build. But my advice is to decide what you want to play, then figure out how that has to happen. You may have to cut some favorites, but that's OK. That's what the second MAME cab is for.  :cheers:
  I guess that's were I'm confused.. So you need 6 buttons for Street Fighter and only 2 buttons for 1942, this doesn't mean you need 8 buttons does it?  Can't you have 6 and still play both games?

Bill, the beauty of MAME and encoders is that you can reuse buttons. The 6 buttons are enough for almost everything. It's the multiple joysticks, spinners, and trackballs that take things to another level.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on May 01, 2013, 10:55:48 pm


Bill, the beauty of MAME and encoders is that you can reuse buttons. The 6 buttons are enough for almost everything. It's the multiple joysticks, spinners, and trackballs that take things to another level.
Gotcha, that's what I was thinking..  So why would he have 12.. I know that's part of why it's on that site, but why would he do it? I mean he has to have some sort of reasoning?
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: 05SRT4 on May 02, 2013, 05:13:31 am
I don't know any Mame games that would use all those buttons. I can see if you have a console (ps3,xbox,wii) this would allow you to use the L2 and R2 buttons.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on May 02, 2013, 11:39:52 am
I don't know any Mame games that would use all those buttons. I can see if you have a console (ps3,xbox,wii) this would allow you to use the L2 and R2 buttons.
My 42 yr old butt does my XBOX'ing setting down..Haha
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: yotsuya on May 02, 2013, 11:42:51 am
I don't know any Mame games that would use all those buttons. I can see if you have a console (ps3,xbox,wii) this would allow you to use the L2 and R2 buttons.
My 42 yr old butt does my XBOX'ing setting down..Haha

I'm with you on that. I took all the console stuff off my MAME cab because, quite frankly, it's not much fun playing NES, SNES, and Genesis games on anything else but a gamepad. I just ordered a HaRuMaN Special that I'm going to use to be a console only emulator- no joystick or button, only attached gamepads.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: mcseforsale on May 02, 2013, 11:43:53 am
FIFY.

AJ

I don't know any Mame games that would use all those buttons. I can see if you have a console (ps3,xbox,wii) this would allow you to use the L2 and R2 buttons.
My 42 yr old butt does my XBOX'ing setting down..Haha

I'm with you on that. I took all the console stuff off my MAME cab because, quite frankly, it's not much fun playing NES, SNES, and Genesis games on anything else but a *COUCH*
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on May 02, 2013, 11:49:08 am
I don't know any Mame games that would use all those buttons. I can see if you have a console (ps3,xbox,wii) this would allow you to use the L2 and R2 buttons.
My 42 yr old butt does my XBOX'ing setting down..Haha

I'm with you on that. I took all the console stuff off my MAME cab because, quite frankly, it's not much fun playing NES, SNES, and Genesis games on anything else but a gamepad. I just ordered a HaRuMaN Special that I'm going to use to be a console only emulator- no joystick or button, only attached gamepads.
That's interesting, what do you mean gamepads? Do you mean like one of the original controllers or what?
  I tried to Google HaRuMaN Special  and had a hard time finding what this is?
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: yotsuya on May 02, 2013, 11:51:36 am
I don't know any Mame games that would use all those buttons. I can see if you have a console (ps3,xbox,wii) this would allow you to use the L2 and R2 buttons.
My 42 yr old butt does my XBOX'ing setting down..Haha

I'm with you on that. I took all the console stuff off my MAME cab because, quite frankly, it's not much fun playing NES, SNES, and Genesis games on anything else but a gamepad. I just ordered a HaRuMaN Special that I'm going to use to be a console only emulator- no joystick or button, only attached gamepads.
That's interesting, what do you mean gamepads? Do you mean like one of the original controllers or what?

You can buy USB replicas of varying quality out there, but I've found that the xBox 360 controller setup for Windows works best for me. I'm 99% sure that's what I'm going to use on my console bartop.
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: BillinIndiana on May 02, 2013, 11:54:11 am
I tried to Google HaRuMaN Special  and had a hard time finding what this is?
Title: Re: Stock Comp for MAME
Post by: yotsuya on May 02, 2013, 12:02:07 pm
I tried to Google HaRuMaN Special  and had a hard time finding what this is?

It's a bartop that forum member HaRuMaN offers for sale as a convenience to the community:

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,130522.0.html (http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,130522.0.html)

There are other bartop vendors out there, but I use HaRuMaN because he's local and we've done business before.