Turning a floor model television into a MAME cabinet.

[Jack Burton]

This is an idea I've been kicking around for a while.  To take an old floor model TV like an RCA Colortrak such as this one:



and convert into a complete MAME (MESS?) cabinet with RGB video and an internal PC.  As a community, we have the knowledge and technology

-tapping internal RGB lines or installing a new tube+chassis
-PC's the size of an Atari 2600 cart

Some of these old sets have fake handles and drawers in the front.  They could be converted into real drawers to hold controllers, or ports could simply be cut into the wood. 

If the old tube could be used the image should be very nostalgic looking.  Think it's feasible?  Is it a crime against our brothers in the TV collecting hobby?

[eclipso]

I think its a great idea and could be a fun project.

[Louis Tully]

.

[Le Chuck]

Might be a fun scratch build as well to add some modern flair

[PL1]

On the subject of modern . . .

You might be able to use a newer CRT TV with composite or component inputs and wrap it in a console-type cabinet.

With a lot of those old console TVs you'd have to run the video through an RF modulator since many of them only had an antenna input.


Scott

[Jack Burton]

There's always the possibility of completely replacing the chassis with another television, but I think if at all possible I'd like to keep those parts original. 

A scratch build would be nice, but I just don't have the woodworking skills to make it look enough like furniture. 

Right now, I'm reading as much as I can about some other member's previous projects in which RGB video connections were added to a television.  That will be the trickiest part.

[paigeoliver]

If that is a 27" then you could substitute in a 27" VGA arcade monitor.

Otherwise, I am not really seeing it. What would you play with gamepads? Are you going to put it up high on a stand and bolt a control panel on it?

[SavannahLion]

That CRT might be a ---smurfette--- to get working with anything other than the crappy composite. And if fooling around with my grandma's old Zenith is of any indication, you're not going to have any room to add your "drawers" without moving some of the internal organs around anyways.

Swap the CRT out for a LCD and create a new curved piece instead.

Up to you, your TV.

[mamenewb100]

Swap the CRT out for a LCD

I'll pretend you didn't say that 

[Jack Burton]

That CRT might be a ---smurfette--- to get working with anything other than the crappy composite. And if fooling around with my grandma's old Zenith is of any indication, you're not going to have any room to add your "drawers" without moving some of the internal organs around anyways.

Swap the CRT out for a LCD and create a new curved piece instead.

Up to you, your TV.

It's RGB CRT or nothing. 

If that is a 27" then you could substitute in a 27" VGA arcade monitor.

Otherwise, I am not really seeing it. What would you play with gamepads? Are you going to put it up high on a stand and bolt a control panel on it?

It's really more of a MESS cab than a MAME cab idea.  Gamepads and exterior joystick controllers would serve as input.  I know an exterior PC would be more typical (and even more useful) but I fancy the notion of having it all in one case.

I have an RCA similar to this one:



That will be my start.  I think tapping the individual color signals should be easy, but sending the correct voltage will be a process.

[paigeoliver]

You could get an 8liners RGB chassis for the TV tube and then run it with an arcade VGA for a real arcade setup.

[wordsworth]

AWESOME! Please do it if you can.

[yotsuya]

I wouldn't do it. To me, the charm of these old wooden TVs was seeing all the cabling going from the consoles to the wooden TV box, seeing the console resting on top of the TV. I don't see any advantage to building the controls in. I'd rather build a console emulator and hook it up to the TV than cannibalize the TV. But that's just me. You might be able to do it and keep it classy.

[shponglefan]

Is it a crime against our brothers in the TV collecting hobby?

Wait... people collect these things??

[paigeoliver]

Is it a crime against our brothers in the TV collecting hobby?

Wait... people collect these things??

No one REALLY collects the console sets. I have bought and sold perfectly working console sets (with record players included) as old as 1960 at price points under $100. TV collectors seem to like the weird form factors over the consoles.