Suggestions needed. Bar topper arcade project

[bclinton]

Hi folks - thanks in advance for any help or suggestions. I bought a few bartop cabs from a local amusement company sight unseen. They are pretty rough but I think can be a useful cab for a small mame build. I have attached a couple of them. One looks like it housed a 15 inch and 1 an 11 inch touch screen. I would like to convert them to a 1 player bartop mame machine with buttons, trackball and joystick. My problem is how to secure the deck for the controls. If I had to do it over again I would just build one from wood. But....I have them so I wanted to try and use them.

Was hoping you great folks could offer some suggestions or better yet maybe someone has done something similar with them before.

Thanks!

[Malenko]

make USB ports in the front, and have the stand alone panel plug into it?

[leapinlew]

Here is a suggestion you don't want to hear: sell them and build your own from wood.

I purchased an arcade cabinet a while back and the guy threw in a megatouch machine that wasn't working and had no boards. After looking at it for a few months, I finally decided to make a jukebox out of it. Like you, I wished I built from scratch. The end result was good, but I spent more time trying to make the megatouch cabinet work.



Unlike your project, the idea of using it as a jukebox isn't far off from it's original use as a megatouch. Trying to add a keyboard, buttons and a trackball just sounds like too much modding to be worthwhile. I've built about a dozen bartops and I wouldn't consider using a megatouch cabinet again. Consider building from scratch, otherwise Malenkos suggestion of a add-on control panel is probably a decent way to go.

[bclinton]

Here is a suggestion you don't want to hear: sell them and build your own from wood.

I purchased an arcade cabinet a while back and the guy threw in a megatouch machine that wasn't working and had no boards. After looking at it for a few months, I finally decided to make a jukebox out of it. Like you, I wished I built from scratch. The end result was good, but I spent more time trying to make the megatouch cabinet work.



Unlike your project, the idea of using it as a jukebox isn't far off from it's original use as a megatouch. Trying to add a keyboard, buttons and a trackball just sounds like too much modding to be worthwhile. I've built about a dozen bartops and I wouldn't consider using a megatouch cabinet again. Consider building from scratch, otherwise Malenkos suggestion of a add-on control panel is probably a decent way to go.

Thanks. I think you are right. Let me ask you. Is your jukebox using a touch screen? Where is a good source for monitors? I will probably keep the best of the 3 I have for a project like yours. That is pretty slick looking.

[leapinlew]

Touchscreen is the only way to go. I highly recommend freebox, but any way you go, you'll want to make sure you have your MP3 files tagged\organized properly.

It's been a while since I've purchased a touchscreen, but I can't imagine they would be difficult to acquire nowadays. I got this particular one in a trade. The one I had previously I got on ebay.