Main > Main Forum
Yipee Ki Yay - Stainless Steel Cabinet Build
henbury:
Just added the complete build diary for my new mame cab - Yipee Ki Yay.
I think you'll find some novel features, including:
Cabinet built from a stainless steel frame combined with ply exterior
Simple and effective method of producing artwork
Bezel production and TopGun LED-sensor bar accomodation
Coin door microswitch solutions
Hiding hinges
Control panel box housing both the controls and keyboard drawer
And much more!
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=120827
paigeoliver:
Looks nice, but I can't believe you got all the way through a project that big and expensive without anyone telling you that arcade games don't have or need a frame and angling the player 3 and 4 joysticks makes them basically unusable.
Luckily it looks like you can salvage the joystick situation without ruining your overlay, just reroute them straight. The frame, well, it just made it heavier and more expensive, it isn't hurting anything.
I like the theme. I have one of those duramold Die Hard cabinets in my basement!
henbury:
Hi mate thanks for your reply, and thanks for checking it out! I'll update the post to reflect this but to elaborate on your points...
The stainless tube frame by itself was very very light, yet could support both the weight of the monitor and my body weight on the control panel arms (it's interesting what you test). The tubing (and lots more of it) was obtained for free through my uncle, who also provided the free welding skills. The beauty of the frame is that it supports all the weight. Panel to panel joins are simple right angle brackets - they serve no weight-bearing purpose at all. The side panels are merely holding up the marquee and ceiling panel - they aren't holding up the monitor. So a stainless frame was decided upon because it was free, rock solid, light, and for simplicity the rest of the body work was simply screwed onto it. Add wheels and weight is basically a non-issue anyway. I think more importantly though, it was a fun exercise and something new to try.
I never played 2-joystick games when I was younger, and even though I was aware of and considered that option, I chose against it and opted for the 4 individiual players groups. Once I made that decision, I was free to place 3 & 4 controls where I like. I know you can still orientate 3 & 4 joysticks to allow for 2 joystick play but I wasn't overly concerned and preferred the groups the way they turned out. I'm looking towards incorporating 4 player console games so you can sort of see that in my thinking. For me the cabinet is a finished product so I won't be re-routing or re-orientating any joysticks. That overlay took a lot of time and work and I simply ain't changing it haha.
paigeoliver:
I wasn't talking about twin joysticks games. I meant that player 3 and 4 won't be able to play anything correctly. An arcade stick isn't a gamepad, you can't angle them and expect people to be able to use them properly.
I apologize. Sometimes I feel like I am just beating my head against a wall with some of this stuff. It can get frustrating.
I have never played on an exact precise clone of the control panel layout you have come up with. I have played on maybe a half dozen machines that had angled sticks (several pretty similar to your layout but not exact). There was always some level of strangeness to it that ranged from mildly weird to totally unplayable. The larger the angle and the closer you were to the screen the worse it got. I have played on countless machines that didn't angle the sticks and the only thing that was ever weird about it was the less than ideal screen viewing angle that most 4 player machines gave the 3rd and 4th players.
The alignment of the buttons in relation to the alignment of the stick isn't a real issue. If you look at enough original machines you can see that they swung those all over the place on multiplayer machines. The reason it isn't an issue is because your joystick hand isn't doing the same thing as your button hands, at all. It is up in the air holding a stick controlling the action that happens on the monitor and that is why aligning the stick with the monitor works most naturally. That is why when you drive your car you can operate it just fine with your steering wheel at one level and your shifter down much lower. However if you tried to ergonomically angle that shifter gate pattern to fit the angle of your arm you would find it would be harder to control.
It might also help if you could imagine piloting a plane with that stick, and the monitor is the front window of the plane. The plane will always be easiest to fly if the controls face the same was as the window, even if you approach the stick from an angle.
henbury:
I understand what you mean. But why get so upset about other peoples machines that you're never going to play on? It all comes down to personal preference and that's the beauty in building these things, you can completely customise it to do whatever you want, how you want. You don't like playing on angled controls, fine. I didn't have a problem with angling the joysticks, and I've played on it now on each players controls and there is nothing weird about it. Others have played on it too and no-one has said anything about it. In fact look at how many other controls panels are out there with angled joysticks. It's even been profitable for some to produce them commercially. I haven't yet seen someone put in all the effort on a cabinet, and then criticise their own work after it was built because they wish they didn't angle the joysticks on the outside players.
And thankyou for the analogies. It's like yelling at the sky for being blue.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
Go to full version