Thinking of selling my Pac-Mamea cab, talk me out of it! (or make an offer?)

[1UP]

OK, I know it seems ridiculous that I'm even thinking about this after spending so much time and money on my cab but...I'm seriously considering letting it go.  And, NO, I'm not joking this time!  

I got a Playstation 2 today, and after a day of playing Tomb Raider AOD and Soul Calibur 2 on it, I've discovered that I'm a lot more likely to actually play games when I can sit on a comfy sofa, using the biggest/ best screen and surround sound system in the place!  At the same time, I've spent 100x more time designing, building, tweaking, upgrading, and adding to my cab, than I ever have spent playing games on it.  I actually spend most of my time at home doing something arcade related, and that's time that I could spend on something that would actually advance my career!

My wife does enjoy many of the games in it, but often complains about how tiring it is to play either standing or hunching on a stool.  I actually have to agree with her there-- ouch!  I also know that she'd be glad to have the space back in our living room, and to her eyes, classic arcade sideart is not exactly stylish decor...  Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful machine with everything I ever wanted, but I can't really justify the space it takes up, against the amount of time I spend using it.

Now sure, when we have some more room (read: when we can afford a home here in CA), I'd love to have a little game room with 5-10 original game cabs and a pinball beeping away.  But for now, in our 1 bedroom apartment, I'd be just as content to put one of those ITX cases in our entertainment center to play the Mame/ PC games, and an X-Arcade or SlikStik on the coffee table for the non-gamepad-friendly games.

Anyone else ever felt like this?  If you ever got rid of a cab, did you feel like you got what it was worth?  Were you glad you did?

(If you've never seen my cab, go to my website below.  I'm willing to consider offers at this point, but nothing is for certain yet.  Email me for more info.)

[SNAAAKE]

  ... what the heck ?
Drunk ?

NEVER sell the cab.I dont really play that much now a day(no time with college) but doesnt mean I wanna get rid of it.

THINK !!!  

You added all the controls and everything to play so enjoy the cab
If you feel tired playing then dont play all the time.


played tomb raider?YUCK..horrible game .
wait till you try metal gear solid 2 for ps2.GET IT NOW ! !
Keep the cab and play classics there.
simple !

[1UP]

... what the heck ?
Drunk ?

NEVER sell the cab.I dont really play that much now a day(no time with college) but doesnt mean I wanna get rid of it.

THINK !!!  

You added all the controls and everything to play so enjoy the cab
If you feel tired playing then dont play all the time.


played tomb raider?YUCK..horrible game .
wait till you try metal gear solid 2 for ps2.GET IT NOW ! !
Keep the cab and play classics there.
simple !

Don't argue with me over games!  I'm sure there are people who will say metal gear is horrible... That's not the point here!

Anyway, I'd like to play classics sitting down too.  That's why I'm trying to decide what to do...

[SNAAAKE]

meh..classic from couch..doesnt sound right !  
Maybe build one of those "modular" or use the coffe table.

(still dont sell it)

[paigeoliver]

I have sold lots of games. I don't really regret selling any of them. All the sales were profitable. Although chances are slim to none that I will ever come upon another dedicated Assault with NOS sticks again. The other 25 or so, were all conversions, empty cabinets, or common dedicated games (Turbo, etc).

There are always more games and more cabinets. The quality and condition of the stuff I have now is a whole level above the stuff I had a few years back. I do miss my Turbo, but I really wanted a cockpit, and not an upright. One will come along some day.

It also helps to learn how to take a good look at a dusty old cabinet, and figure out if it will shine up like new or not.

Now, as for selling YOUR Mame cabinet. Hmmm, it really depends. If you think you would ever want it, then you should keep it. As reproducing it will be a money (and time, especially time) losing venture.

[1UP]

I do feel like it will kind of negate all the time and money I put into my cab, but the more I think about it, the more I'd rather have a tabletop CP taking up a LITTLE space in a closet or shelf when I'm not using it, rather than a full-sized upright taking up a LOT of space in the middle of my living room 24 hours a day.

When I DO have the room, and my career is more where I want it to be, I will proably start building a real game room full of classics, rather than any more do-it-all MAME machines.  The fun was all in building the cab, but it's ending up that there's still too much to do before I'd really consider it complete (monitor, bezel art, guns, PC upgrades, etc, etc) but I'm growing tired of tinkering on the same machine.  I'm kinda getting into a mode now where I'd rather be an arcade collector, than a MAME DIYer...  That was my original dream anyway, which building a cab could only partially fulfill.

[paigeoliver]

I have been down both paths. Started as a Mamer, then got into real games, and finally decided on a happy medium of going for a bit of both. 3 Mame cabinets, 3 real games, and one pinball.

[Lilwolf]

1)  don't do anything rash.  You will be able to sell it at any point.  What you wont be able to do is build another one.  Consider the time it would take to replace it later and consider if you would ever do it again.

2) Build another one.  Your cab might not be the best for your space.  What is?  I personally don't really like in your lap joysticks much.  They really don't seem to be do much for me.  But that might be your thing.  How about a mini cab?  One that you sit down infront of?  How about a xybot cab with its monitor is straight up/down so you can use it as an entertainment center?  

IE, spend some time thinking what you want and would play.  

The thing about mame is that it allows you to play a TON of games you wouldn't really think about.  But I think thats more of a frontend issue (one thats good with favorites.. and my favorite search ("favorite not set").   My kids play some weird games.  

Having a few dedicated cabs would be nice.  But being able to change your mind at a whim is nice.  And being able to please anyone who comes over also is.

Anyway, don't sell it.  You always will be able to do that.  Get it out of the way for a few weeks if you need the space.   You will probably regret it in the future.

[Frostillicus]

Wait is it April again already?  

I often think about what I could do with the $$$ I could get for my cab - but I have a few problems that maybe you could relate to:
1) What would someone pay for it?
and 2) that amount would not come close to making up for the months of time/effort/sweat I put into it.

Yes we all know it's a hobby, and half the fun is building (Or more than half!) but in the end it would be nice to think your effort was worth something.  And I doubt you'll ever feel satisfied by the average offer.

[paigeoliver]

Yes, consider what your time is worth. Lets say you make $12 an hour (a low figure, but there are a lot of younger people here who make less than that, so we will go with it).

Now, how many hours do you have in your cabinet total? I mean TOTAL. Building, trips to the store, shopping for cabinet parts, posting on this messageboard, making the website for the cabinet. All of it counts, because it all went into that cabinet.

I would take I guess and say you probably have AT LEAST 150 hours into that cabinet, probably much more.

Ok, good, now figure out how much you spent. Looking at it, and considering you built the cabinet from scratch, I am going to guess at least $1500.

Now, you have $1500 in parts, and $1800 in labor, for a grand total of $3300. It would be a miracle if you could sell it for that much. I also wouldn't be too terribly surprised if you spent more than $1500, and had a lot more than 150 hours of labor into it (given the assortment of pricey controls, and all the time consuming custom stuff).

A better solution might be just to store the beast somewhere for a while. You will miss it later.

[DarkKobold]

I think that this is a very bad idea.  

Have you thought about just changing the side panels/frontpanels to be a wood grain plywood, and then stain and gloss them? It would solve your problem of not "fitting" in with the living room furniture, while still allowing you to keep your cab.

 Paigeoliver was right. Don't sell, at least store it. Go, focus on your career for a while. You'll want it back, but in time.  

[jcoleman]

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!

Move it to the basement, or maybe the computer room.  DO NOT SELL IT...unless you want to sell it to me for $100.  In that case disregard everything else you've seen here.

John

[BldnACab]

Hi, I have never posted anything here before. I have been monitoring this site for about a week, as I am new to the MAME community and I am in the beginning stages of designing my MAME cabinet. One of my favorite designs for cabinets is yours. I appreciate your website and found your comments here to be very interesting.

When I discovered this message that you are thinking of giving up your MAME cabinet I was in disbelief. One of my main inspirations for a cabinet design is throwing in the towel.  

Well I can't begin to talk you out of it, however I just wanted to let you know that there are people out there who look to you guys who have done this before, for inspiration.  Even if you do give up your cabinet, I hope you contiue to maintain your website, and continue to visit these forums to help us newbies along.

Thanks

[Sasquatch!]

You live in a 1-bedroom apartment?    Yeah, I guess I can see why you'd need the space...

I guess my advice would be to find a friend who has the space (and want) for Pac-Mamea, and ask him/her if they wouldn't mind keeping the cabinet until you have a house.  While it might seem like you're just using them for storage, it's a cool enough item that I don't think most people would mind.  Heck, if I lived near you, I'd do it.    I seriously think that you'd somewhat regret it if you sold it outright, never to see it again.

For people arguing about the games, having an arcade cabinet is a very much a novelty/gimmick.  It is DAMN cool to have around, but it's not the most comfortable (or space-conscious) thing.  Remember that they really weren't meant to be in people's homes (or apartments) after all.

[crsdawg]

here's an idea. move the cab out of your apartment by either taking it to a friends house or putting it in storage. this way you can see what life would be like without it, but you'd still own the game.

selling it would suck, but as long as you get a decent price (ie. more than you put in), i wouldn't sweat it to much.  i think most agree, building is as much fun as playing. take that cash and build another that suits your current needs. maybe a mini, tabletop, or cocktail. and you will take what you learned building the the first one, and make the next one better.

it's a tough call no matter what, just make sure you don't make any rash desicions.

[Ghoward]

Hi,

Sell it! You made one of the best cabs I'ver seen and I'm sure you would get a good price for it in ebay or however you want to sell it.

Hey and guess what when the cab building bug gets you again and it will! You next cab will be even better.

Gary

[DAmnb]

Dont have enough space for your cabinet? Thats what parents are for, me and my sister still take up almost half of our parents storage space

But seriusly you can never sell it at what its worth like paigeoliver said and you should really try to store it.

I can relate to the whole issue with time put towards building VS time spent playing, I havnt even finished my first cab and im allready starting my second because almost more fun building/planing/dreaming than it is playing.
But, Ive been collecting videogames for many years and I can honestly say that I have regreted every single sale I have made at some point  

[DaveMMR]

I'll add my 2 cents:

You may want to think about it long and hard before selling.  I've sold some things in my time that weren't even 1/100th as nice as an arcade cabinet and I still feel pangs of regret.  I put my vote in for keeping it somewhere else (storage, friend's house, etc.) if space is a problem.

As for Snaaakes comment:  

Metal Gear Solid 2 is a good game, but I actually recommend getting the original Metal Gear Solid first.   It's not as pretty as 2 but the story line is 100 times better.  (and in case you don't know -- old PS1 games do -- most of the time -- work on PS2, but you'll need the old memory card).  Oh and be sure to buy/rent Castlevania Symphony of the Night and get a saved game on your memory card before reaching Psycho Mantis.  

But back to the topic on hand:

You really designed that cab for your needs, so it should remain in your possession.  Sleep on it for a couple of weeks.

[DaveMMR]

ITS AN APRIL FOOLS JOKE GUYS

It might just be me but don't April's Fools jokes usually occur in April?   It's September right now.

[SirPoonga]

1UP, you know there will be that one day you wish you had your cbinet but don't have it.  I know I get that once and awhile now that I have gotten rid of my genesis with 32x.

[rampy]

blah..

1up... my cabinet is much more vanilla than yours, and is not nearly as inspirational... and I too live in a 1 bedroom apt with mrs rampy.

We don't entertain much because the place is so small, and I think I liked the building more than the playing... so ubercade doesn't get nearly the use I'd like it to... It kinda makes me sad to see it in my living room gathering dust.  And I think to myself,"what if I sold it... kept that money put aside... and later,  when we buy a house in the next 2 years or so make a new one that would be an improved design ubercade 2.0"

I dont' have an answer for you (or myself) 1up, just comiserating... empathizing with ya.

I dunno... I'm just dissapointed now that's it built, that I don't play it more, and i'm sick of tweaking software stuff...

It doesn't help that I'm now addicted to counter-strike (yeah, 6 years after it's popular...) or that I like playing my DC more at this point...

*shrug*

Rampy

[Tommy Boy]

1UP...Just my $0.02...I think you're probably a  lot like me.  Planning and building are a lot more fun than the result.  I've gone in and out and back in to a number of hobbies over the years as a result.  But after I've moved on and come back to a hobby, I get that same old rush again as I relish the possibilities of buying or building some toy.

I say find it a good home.  No doubt you'll feel some pangs of regret that'll sooner or later bring you back in for another round of cab building.  And the next one will be better than the last.  And you'll get all of the fun of planning and building again.  Plus, you'll make someone without your skills very happy to own a fantastic cab.  Everyone wins!  

[1UP]

Here's another reason:  I had a MAME party last year to break-in my cab.  The wow factor was definitely high, but subsided soon when my guests had trouble working the interface, as I was just using MAME32 back then with no additional FE so I had to keep telling them to hit P1 Start + P1 J1 left to enter a game, and P1 Start + P2 Start to exit, and all the other shortcuts for coins etc.  I've since added a coin door, and use Emulaxian for the interface (just push P1 Start to enter a game) but the other problem was that the gamelist was just overwhelming and people didn't know where to begin.

After the novelty wore off, everyone gravitated over to the PS2 in the  living room, and only a couple guys were left playing the game machine.  I know that if I had just a few dedicated machines, people would have jumped on their favorite games, and wouldn't have to wait for one person to finish playing so they could play something else.  The guys would be playing Street Fighter and Asteroids, and the chicks would be playing Ms. Pac-Man.

I may also be turning sour on this whole deal because the PC in my cab has been really taking a crap lately.  It regularly hangs, and it's always had problems, but I really dont' want to spend more money to replace it right now.  If I do keep the cab, it's going to need a lot more work before I'm happy, and I just don't have the desire to mess with it anymore...

[Spaced Invader]

First, your cab is awsome...easy top three material...but I'm sure you know that. Now whether or not you should sell such an incredible creation is a personal matter. In my opinion you will never get a dollar amount that will compensate for what you have built.

But I undestand priorities. Your career is more important than your arcade cabinet; but it doesn't have to be one or the other. Others have already given some very good alternatives...storage, friend, parents. The regret and desire to build a new cab may turn out to be more of a distraction and detriment to your career than keeping the cab.

In the end the decision will be yours. Think before you act and remember you will have doubts no matter what you decide.

Oh if you do sell...Please keep the site up...you have no idea how many of us draw inspiration from you.

[Cisco Kid]

personally I think you could get $2500 - $3000 for it easily (someone who doesn't feel comfortable building there own and has money to burn on a new toy   )

that rotating control panel is freakin' awesome   (main selling point ... heck I would've made you an offer if I didn't already own one ... now I got a new hobby that consumes most of my cash now ... hehe ... RC Monster Trucks ... amazing how much money you can drop hopping one of those bad boys up ($1500 per truck))

... its funny how you want something so bad your whole life and once you attain it the allure wears off fairly quick and the machine just sits there only being played once in a blue moon.  I think with me I finally grew up ... rotflmao ... depends on who you ask  

If ya do find a buyer ... I'll be interested to see what design you come up with for your next MAME cabinet if you decide to build another.

You could sell it to a close friend ... and let him spent his money putting the finishing touches on it ... then after he gets bored with it and you finally have your gameroom ... you could buy it back from him real cheap ... lol  

[Tailgunner]

It seems to me that to get anywhere near what it's worth you'll need to sort out whatever problems it currently has.

Another thing to concider, some of the pieces involved aren't getting any easier to find, and they definately aren't getting any cheaper. If you let them go now and decide to build again later you'll be kicking yourself for getting rid of them.

While some might concider this blasphemy, I'd suggest stripping out the parts you want/need  and selling the rest. You'd still get a fair price for the cabinet, you won't have to put any more effort into fixing it, and you'd still have the rare bits should you decide to build something different in the future.

[1UP]

It seems to me that to get anywhere near what it's worth you'll need to sort out whatever problems it currently has.

Another thing to concider, some of the pieces involved aren't getting any easier to find, and they definately aren't getting any cheaper. If you let them go now and decide to build again later you'll be kicking yourself for getting rid of them.

While some might concider this blasphemy, I'd suggest stripping out the parts you want/need  and selling the rest. You'd still get a fair price for the cabinet, you won't have to put any more effort into fixing it, and you'd still have the rare bits should you decide to build something different in the future.

I think I'm out of my funk now.  The real problem with my cab is that it's not perfect, and being a perfectionist, that drives me up the wall!!

I think I'll just put finishing the "icing on the cake" on the backburner for a while, and just do what I need to do careerwise now, save some money, and do the icing stuff later.  Meantime, I can probably get a 1ghz replacement for my current PC pretty cheap, and that will at least get it working again...

[spidermonkey]

I think you and frosty should trade cabinets for a while to break up the monotony. You ever heard of that show "Trading Spaces" ?   But seriously, What if you have a couple little ones one day and the only thing you have to show them is a few pictures instead of something they can have hours of enjoyment with ? I'm sure Mame will continue for quite some time and your cab will always be able to be updated with a more powerful computer to keep up with future games which means the little tikes will be able to play games that they grow up with rendering the cabinet timeless. You're obviously very intelligent when it comes to working around obstacles and making adjustments so I'm quite sure that you would be able to keep the machine fresh and up to date. If you do decide to have kids (if you don't already) I'll bet it would rekindle your interest in the game for there sake rather then your own. Just some things to think about. Whatever your decision is I'm sure you'll have good reason to do so but if I was "1up junior" I know what my answer would be.

[Xiaou2]

 Heh   I had a feeling it was like that.   As I too am a bit of a perfectionist.   I rebuilt all 6 of my panels before I even had all the wiring done because I decided that I wanted to change a single panel... then realized that if I was going to remkae one, I might as well fix up some other things I didnt like with it.

 After almost completing it... I started to realize that I wanted real controllers instead of my home-made's... and also, that I wanted to make it more artisitc with nice control panel artworks and specialized lighting.

  Then I lost my job... and then I went into game design mode... workign on marble insanity, and some others which fell thru.

  I plan on getting back into it and rebuilding it all again in a better fashion when I have aquired the right parts and have the time and money to do it 'perfect'  (perfect=my standards of what I would like to see as the final result)

  As for what you said about standing... I think thats a preference thing.   If you truely dont like to stand... then vertical rotation is not a good option.

  I find if Im serious to play a game i like.. I hardly notice standing.  I think it has to do with how you feel after a long day of work/stress.  Sometimes you want to play something relaxing and non-taxing...while sitting down in comfot.

  About friends that play psx2:  Get new friends : P   heheh
Really tho - the cab is about what 'YOU' want to play... not about entertaining others with things you dont care for.   If you like and play PSX more than anything... then make a psx center.  Why make a control panel from hell if you arnt happy playing most of the games it plays?  

  If theres too many games.. then set up a seperate mame that has a limited set of roms in it... so there will be less to choose from.    You could volley between the favorite set, and then, load the full set if someone needs to play a unique rom...then move that rom into the favorites afterwords later on for next time.

  After a build you notice flaws in design and practice... as its near impossible to plan for everything.   The more thought and re-builds = the closer to perfection.  The only thing.. is that there truely isnt a perfect solution.  Theres always going to be some sort of compromise somewhere... unless you have it all (own all the coinops! : ).  

 I have no solution for you... Just a friendly comment  
...Try to enjoy what you have while you are here... as our limited time is a precious gift.

 

 

[)p(]

I have not time to read all posts in this thread ..so here goes my first reaction:

Don't sell!

Building a cab is not only for playing games. You also recreate an importent part of your childhood...if you are a bit like me the sight and sounds of the arcade and it games were put into my brain and heart forever and still influence me on a very deep level for example in artwork that I love...to bring back those feelings..and have a part in that myelf by building the cab and fe felt like a little miracle...that i myslef hava a part in it...now that it is finished for so long...not actually playing it is the most importent, i mostly let it cycle between attrractmode,but the fact that it is there!

a bit sentimental post but i really feels like that  

peter

[DaveMMR]

 I had a MAME party last year to break-in my cab.  The wow factor was definitely high, but subsided soon when my guests had trouble working the interface, as I was just using MAME32 back then with no additional FE so I had to keep telling them to hit P1 Start + P1 J1 left to enter a game, and P1 Start + P2 Start to exit, and all the other shortcuts for coins etc.  I've since added a coin door, and use Emulaxian for the interface (just push P1 Start to enter a game) but the other problem was that the gamelist was just overwhelming and people didn't know where to begin.

After the novelty wore off, everyone gravitated over to the PS2 in the  living room, and only a couple guys were left playing the game machine.

There's your problem right there.  Arcade cabinets can only entertain two people at a time tops (unless you build a four player deal).  So basically there are people standing around and once they get tired of watching, they naturally gravitate towards another form of entertainment (i.e. the PS2).  Cabs are great at parties but no so great to plan parties around.

But I understand what you're going through.  Something goes wrong or your mood is just right and you feel like anchoring your masterpiece.  I've had the same feelings and that's just when my control panel construction doesn't go as smoothly as I envisioned.  Whether it's minutes, days or weeks -- eventually you snap out of it.  I can tell by what you've accomplished with your cab that it's never been a passing fancy with you, but something you dedicated yourself to.

And when your career takes off and you come home from a long day, you can unwind by playing Star Wars -- and you can also take Solace that you're one of the few who's playing it the way it was meant to be played... with the yoke.    

[jerryjanis]

Ugh...  I dread the idea of some heartless lazy mamma's boy screaming "what a POS" at 1UP's arcade machine because he doesn't realize that the positional guns need a quick calibration.

[hyiu]

OMG !!!!  
this is the first reaction when I saw the topic....
(and I thought someone brought back the april fool thread...)

I don't know what to say....  

My personal opinion is...   DO NOT SELL IT !!!!!  

you know.... maybe you're getting a little sick of your cab since the "fresh" scent of your cab has died down.... and now all your friends saw it multiple times... they don't WOW anymore when they see it....

or... maybe you do like the new games better..... DC, xbox, ps2...

but once in a while... you still would like to enjoy a good old game of pacman / pang / galaga / ..... (+ 3000 more....)
(ok.... your 3 panels can only play 2000......)

now.... life will move on.... you'll probably will pick up other interests / hobby..... you might want to concentrate on your career.... have a few kids.... and move on.....

if so... do you think you will spend as much time / effort to build another better cab ??.....

frankly.... there are cabs out there that looks like (well.... looks just like a freaking normal boring cab...) and sells for $4k.... with your work.... art... design.... inspiration.... I would say if you sell your cab under $5k.... you're losing in selling your cab....

I can understand if you're in a middle of financial hard time... and have no choice.... then sell.... (cos then.. its not a choice....) family / survival has to go first....

but living space.... you might be able to re-arrange your furniture.... re-doceorating your home.... clean / pack / build a few cabinets / storages that can make your house look larger.... more efficient use of space....

if your computer is hanging.... maybe you can just upgrade your computer.....

Maybe I'm just speaking for myself.....
but I'm building my 2nd cab.... (I sold my 1st one...) I did make some profit... but its not like its a job or anything.... I'm building my 2nd cab now... and I do plan to keep this....
and most likely.... I don't see myself keep on building different cabs for the next 5 yrs or whatever.... so... I'm going to keep my cab..... (unless I have no choice....)
this cab will be a "souvineer" for myself that I've "been there... done that..."

I'll probably move on to other hobbies when I'm done....
(if I ever get it done....    )

ok... I typed too much and I think I'm losing myself and typing nonsense here..... I think I should stop now....

1 more time.... DON'T SELL IT !!!

give it more time.... let it jsut sit there and don't think about it for a while..... "re-locate it to the corner of the room for now..." give it some time... give yourself some time.... I think you'll miss it....

[paigeoliver]

Also, one way to really get back into your cabinet is to pick a game (older ones work best), and see how good you can get at it. I was getting a bit bored with my Artic Mini for a while, until I decided to get good at Pac-Man Plus. That brought back the magic again.

The more different games you play, the less fun you will have. The least sastifying sessions I ever have with my cabinets are the ones where I play 20 different games one time each.

[SirPoonga]

1UP, I do understand, mame is overwhelming.  Start weeding out games and making lists of games you like to play, that helps out alot.

[CitznFish]

I live in Cali. I''m willing to 'store' it for you in my gameroom until you get a house.


2200.oo and I'll keep it. :p

[Superdude]

I just say SELL IT!!!! I mean think about it....  You ALREADY had one post about selling it.  You had a good response, you might as well get it going and just sell it.  You can ALWAYS build another better system.

SELL SELL SELL.....

[Apollo]

I thought about this for a long time and have decided that you should sell it.
You broke new ground when you built your cab but it has been a while since it was finished now. I think you should sell and go on to something even better.
I'm sure there are things on that cab that annoy you or that you want to change.
A great deal of the enjoyment from MAME comes from the building itself ( as you are already aware ), why don't you design and build the perfect cab? I'm sure it would be an awesome machine and would quickly become famous itself.
Challenge yourself, DO IT!

[Sasquatch!]

1UP, I do understand, mame is overwhelming.  Start weeding out games and making lists of games you like to play, that helps out alot.

This is true (for me anyway).  I had the "gotta catch 'em all!" mentality about ROMs, but having to scroll through twenty thousand mahjongs was a bit tedious.  

[1UP]

Thanks for all the votes of confidence and support.  I've decided to move the cab to another location in my dining room where the cats can't climb on it, and it'll be out of the way of traffic to the kitchen.  If it still bothers me, I'll move it to the bedroom or to work for awhile, where it'll definitely get used!

A couple things happened to get me in this down mood  First, we got the PS2, which is a much more sophisticated game system, and I guess for a while it made my cab look useless by comparison.  The origional plan was to add the PS2 to my cab, so I could play Soul Calibur 2 arcade style!  Then my wife got addicted and refused to let me move it to the cab, and I got a little bummed.  (I should just put my foot down since I paid for the dang thing, but it is a lot more impressive on the 32" screen and surrond sound...    I also got sick on Sunday, which just made me more depressed...

Then I saw Carsten's Centipede cab and I started wishing I had made my cab more authentic, using an genuine classic layout rather than designing my own.  I know that's stupid to worry about now, but I really love his cab!  

Also, my cab stopped working Friday night when I tried to upgrade to a better power supply, to hopefully cure some problems I've had with occasional hanging.  Well, the thing wouldn't even get all the way through bootup after that.  I replaced the original supply, and it did boot up again, but now it would hang every few minutes.

I finally got it working long enough to play a few games of Ms. Pac-Man with the speedup button, and it all started to come back to me why I built the thing!    After that, I started to scale back my expectations for finishing my cab, cut out a couple extras that I had been planning, and simplified my plans for others.  The T2 gun platforms are out, so I'll be using the Act-Labs TV guns when they come out, even though it means that I'll have to switch to the PC guns/ Win98 when I upgrade my monitor later...  This will free me up to put the Lexan and artwork on my third panel finally!!  (Guess I didn't need to make the yoke removable after all...   )

Anyway, I guess it'll never be perfect.  I'll have to wait to upgrade my PC and monitor for a few months, and in the meantime I'll start writing my screenplays and stuff that I've been wanting to do for the last couple years.  If time and money permit, I can always break from my writing to put on the new backsplash and bezel artwork.  Then when we get a bigger place, if there's room for a gameroom, I'll start my arcade collecting, and move the Pac-Mamea cab to my office for breaks.  I don't think I'll ever build another MAME cab, unless it's a 4-player showcase cab for the gameroom, and even then not until I've got a lot more of my career goals accomplished.

Thanks again for the encouragement!   Good to know I have a lot of friends out there, even if it's in a virtual way...sniff....